How Zombies Survive in the Apocalypse

About two weeks later.

Aiden was still staying in Fort Wayne.

During this time, the routine of Aiden and his group remained remarkably consistent with the first day.

From morning, they handed Sadie over to the military, checked for requests at the trading post, and when they found a suitable request, they set out to resolve it.

“Are you planning to handle requests again today?”

Arian, who was getting weapons from the vehicle after leaving Sadie, muttered sarcastically.

Aiden nodded briefly.

“Of course.”

“It’s good that you’re doing it, but until when? It’s been over two weeks since we started wandering around the city.”

The content of the requests varied each time, from hunting mutants to rescuing isolated reconnaissance soldiers, or collecting belongings of the deceased.

However, the stage for these requests was always the city of Fort Wayne.

But there was a clear reason for that.

“I’ve said it before. Until we’re sure of the dangers in the city.”

For the past fortnight, Aiden had been diligently gathering information about the 62nd Division.

Not only from buying information from nearby shops but also from the tidbits Sadie shared while resolving requests and moving in and out of the barrier.

And the result.

Aiden was considering that the 62nd Division wasn’t a bad place for Sadie to stay.

“Fort Wayne is a possibility. If only there weren’t the city’s zombies.”

“I didn’t think it was that dangerous. How about from your perspective?”

“…I’m not sure.”

With Aiden giving an ambiguous answer, Arian furrowed her brow.

Aiden paused for a moment and then spoke again.

“It’s still unpredictable. There are many zombies, but the military’s firepower is considerable. If they really start cleaning up, it seems likely to succeed.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“There are too many types of mutants.”

During the past fortnight, Aiden encountered almost 10 types of mutants in the city.

Among them, three were completely new species that even Aiden had no information about.

Of course, in a city with many zombies, having various mutants wasn’t unusual.

But what bothered Aiden was the diversity of their types.

“The mechanism by which zombies turn into mutants hasn’t been understood yet. However, generally, similar types of mutants are found in similar environments.”

“But, isn’t it different here?”

Aiden nodded.

The city wasn’t so vast, nor did it have various environments to account for the discovery of more than 10 mutant types.

Yet, there were mutants of 10 or more types.

Clearly, something was off.

“Well… what about Pittsburgh?”

“That was a zombie horde that came up from the south, covering a wide range. The mutants found in Pittsburgh weren’t exclusive to Pittsburgh.”

“I see.”

“Of course, this city is about 500 km further west from Pittsburgh. So, it’s natural that there are many survivors and zombies. But… neither side is as expected. That’s why it’s unpredictable.”

In the end, there was nothing precise.

Upon this, Arian changed the subject.

“Then, what about others? Do you think there are no other problems with the 62nd Division?”

Aiden shook his head.

Of course, besides matters related to the city, there were many problems within that organization.

The fundamental structure, being a military organization, had a somewhat rigid command system.

Also, since it was a society that mainly revolved around armed forces, the care for children wasn’t as meticulous.

“It’s a worrying point for Sadie, who doesn’t have parents within the organization to look after her.”

Aiden explained, adding that.

However, despite considering these points, there was no organization in the vicinity like the 62nd Division.

“If that’s the case, what’s there to worry about? I can take care of her.”

Arian confidently replied, but Aiden shook his head.

That was an impossible story.

“It would be difficult.”

“Why?”

“Because you can’t be part of the military. It’s not a matter of whether they accept it or not. Isn’t that right?”

At that remark, Arian couldn’t easily give an answer.

A vampire mixing into human society.

She already knew how difficult that was.

“You need to periodically consume blood. If you become a part of the military, you’ll have to explain about that. It won’t be like now.”

Even now, Aiden and his group were purchasing blood directly from the trading zone.

However, Aiden and Arian were outsiders to some extent.

Even in the military, it would be considered peculiar, but they wouldn’t delve deep into it.

Whatever they did with blood, it didn’t matter, in fact.

However, if Arian became their colleague, the story would change.

People would inquire about the use of Arian’s blood.

As a result, it would inevitably be revealed that Arian was a vampire and the powers she possessed.

“But your abilities, from the organization’s perspective, are ridiculously dangerous.”

Even when facing zombies, Arian possessed formidable strength.

But if that enemy turned to be a human.

At that point, the potential Arian held was truly beyond imagination.

For example, in a hotel in Pittsburgh, Arian hunted a Brutal with the blood of just one person.

While this demonstrated the extent of her abilities when hunting zombies, when she fought against humans, it took on a different meaning.

Every time she killed a human, her power, surpassing that of Brutals, was endlessly replenished with their blood.

In simple terms, Arian was a being with the power to topple an entire society with just one source of power.

It was needless to explain how threatening that appeared from the perspective of an organization like the 62nd Division.

“…Quite a life you’ve got. Anyone would think you’ve lived as a vampire.”

Arian muttered bitterly.

Aiden casually responded:

“Well, I have.”

If a vampire were to overthrow society with their own power, zombies could reproduce the same through their contagiousness.

Aiden understood Arian’s situation because of this.

Ultimately, both of them were beings that could be rejected by human society for the same reason.

With a sigh, Arian asked:

“So, what should we do?”

“Only do as I do.”

“Like you?”

“If Sadie ends up living here, you’ll become a junk dealer, watching from the outside.”

“Ha…! Are you telling me to do this for several more years?”

Although Arian grumbled discontentedly, she somewhat empathized with Aiden’s words.

Becoming a junk dealer might be the best choice for her.

It wasn’t like being confined like in a prison as part of the military.

If she cooperated as a junk dealer, the military would likely permit occasional meetings with Sadie.

As Arian contemplated her future with Sadie in this way, she suddenly looked at Aiden.

“What about you then?”

“I’ll have to stay here for a while. They won’t just accept Sadie for free. Maybe I’ll stay even after that.”

“Well, you don’t really have anywhere else to go, do you?”

That was a valid point.

Pittsburgh, which had already been his base, had disappeared.

If asked why Aiden should leave this place, he couldn’t say there was a reason.

“Maybe we’ll end up working together here for quite some time,” Arian said.

It was at that moment that someone walked towards them in the vehicle they were standing next to. It was a soldier who was in charge of requests at the trading post.

“What’s going on?”

Aiden asked the now quite familiar soldier.

The soldier immediately conveyed what he had to say.

The military had sent a request to Aiden as a mercenary.

“A mercenary?”

The military was suggesting that Aiden join the mercenary unit they had created.

“Yes. Oh, please don’t disclose this to the outside. The cleanup operation will begin soon.”

The soldier, who spoke in a hushed voice, said that the 62nd Division, which had been preparing for the city cleanup, would finally start the full-scale operation in three days.

Aiden wasn’t particularly surprised by this news.

He had anticipated the imminent start of the operation from the recent movements of the military.

“However, according to the reconnaissance results, the number of zombies and mutants in the city is higher than expected.”

So, the military was looking to reinforce additional manpower.

However, randomly assigning mercenaries to the unit could lead to even more dangerous results.

Considering this, the decision was made to select only those who were trusted among the continuously trading junk dealers and form a separate mercenary unit.

“I haven’t been here for long.”

Aiden, who listened to the explanation, asked.

The soldier, who seemed to agree, nodded.

“That’s right. Your case is a bit special. You’ve been recognized for your skills.”

“Skills?”

“Yes. Haven’t you been solving requests tremendously for the past few days?”

For a fortnight, Aiden and Arian had been tackling dangerous urban requests, one per day.

This was possible only because they were a zombie and a vampire, a level of work unimaginable for ordinary junk dealers.

It seemed like the military somewhat considered his powers suspicious, but at the same time, they evaluated them highly.

Aiden inquired:

“So, how many mercenaries are there in total?”

“We sent proposals to around 70 people. Considering possible dropouts, we expect around 50.”

Fifty people. It was more than he had thought.

Of course, compared to the number of junk dealers traversing the trading area, it was a fraction.

It seemed that they had selectively chosen people, which was true to some extent.

“And the compensation?”

“The details about that—”

The soldier explained the rewards and other conditions in detail.

The compensation offered by the military was at a considerably high level.

In addition, weapons and ammunition were also provided by the military.

“Not bad.”

In terms of net profit, the value of the reward was nearly five times that of a regular request.

This suggested that the military was in urgent need of manpower.

“So, what will the mercenaries be doing?”

“They’ll be guarding the defense line at night. Of course, our full force will be deployed as well.”

Aiden nodded, seemingly expecting this.

Even if it wasn’t the city, restoring an area occupied by zombies had two distinct stages.

The first stage involved clearing zombies within the area.

In a city, power was invested throughout various buildings, finding and eliminating hidden zombies, and occupying those buildings.

Naturally, this battle took place during the day, and the success rate was high.

Since most zombies only clumsily ran towards the sound of gunfire.

However, the problem arose in the next stage.

The second stage involved defending the occupied area.

When darkness fell, zombies and mutants whose territory had been taken away started attacking, and they had to defend against this onslaught throughout the night.

This was by no means an easy task.

Midnight battles were accompanied by loud noises and bright lights, which alone could attract numerous zombies.

It was literally a reproduction of a zombie wave rushing in like a tidal wave.

“Hmm…”

Therefore, the intention of deploying mercenaries in that defense was thoroughly understood.

As it was a risky and precarious nighttime defense battle, it seemed they wanted to mobilize all available forces.

However, from Aiden’s perspective, it was an outrageously dangerous request.

If Aiden had simply come here as a junk dealer, he would never have accepted it.

“Alright, I’ll take it.”

However, Aiden accepted the request.

Whether or not he would entrust Sadie to this place depended on the success of this cleanup operation.

If the 62nd Division conquered the city and completely uprooted the zombies in Fort Wayne, Aiden could entrust Sadie to this military without any worries.

Therefore, witnessing this process firsthand was the right decision, according to Aiden.

Arian also had no objections.

“Understood. I’ll convey that. Good luck then.”

With a bow, the soldier left.

Observing the soldier’s retreating figure, Aiden murmured.

“In three days.”

Time was running out.

Aiden had been preparing for this moment since the first day he arrived here, so there was no impatience.

However, there were things to be done.

“Today, instead of taking on a request, let’s go outside the city.”

“Why, because of that mercenary thing just now?”

Aiden nodded.

He anticipated that the battle the 62nd Division was preparing for would be as significant as the one against the zombie horde that had covered Pittsburgh.

So, Aiden needed to be prepared for it.

Three days later, in the morning.

At the North Gate, where the mercenary unit was gathering, Aiden could meet the commander of the unit.

He wasn’t a stranger.

“So, you’re here too.”

Nathan Cooper, a lieutenant. He recognized Aiden.