How Zombies Survive in the Apocalypse

“Found it?”

The temporary office building that Aiden had chosen as a shelter.

Before he could even approach it, Arian suddenly appeared from the building and spoke.

Her senses detected the scent of human blood emanating from Aiden.

Aiden nodded, taking out a plastic bottle filled with blood from his pouch.

“Wait a moment.”

He had separately poured an amount just enough to neutralize with a neutralizer from the liquor bottles that Anders had left in Pittsburgh.

About 200ml.

It was about one-third of the blood collected from the three people today.

And the rest was handed over to Arian in its entirety.

Aiden always needed only this much blood.

Unlike Arian, using strength didn’t consume as much blood.

Knowing this, Arian immediately started gulping down the blood in the bottle.

Sadie, who came out a little late, watched her with a curious look.

“He… I feel like I can live now. Thank you.”

Whether she had been enduring quite a bit until now or not, Arian said that while quickly finishing the bottle.

Meanwhile, Aiden, who had filled the bottles he found today into the vehicle, nodded briefly.

“But how did you get them? Were there people here?”

“Not really. There’s a story to tell about that. I’ll explain it inside. Have you had dinner?”

“No, not yet.”

“Then it’s better to hear while having a meal.”

At Aiden’s words, Arian quickly brought today’s dinner from the car.

In her hands were canned mackerel and ham.

To be honest, it wasn’t a very delicious menu.

Even Arian wrinkled her nose when she took out the canned food.

But even though it was the same type of canned food for days, Sadie, while receiving one without complaining, didn’t say a word.

Even if it was an understatement to say it was sickening and disgusting, she didn’t utter any complaints.

Rather, the girl bowed her head to Aiden.

“Thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”

With a smile and a thank you, she expressed her gratitude.

It wasn’t a special gesture.

For every meal, Sadie always thanked Aiden like this.

Whether she matured according to the situation or if it was in her nature.

Sadie was not a child who would take kindness for granted.

And that aspect of Sadie made Aiden particularly appreciative.

“I got this today. It should be good for dessert.”

Aiden handed a pineapple he obtained today to Sadie.

Then Sadie’s face brightened a bit more.

With a faint smile, Aiden opened his mouth.

“Let’s go inside then.”

So Aiden entered the temporary shelter with his colleagues.

Under the gradually setting sun, Arian and Sadie listened to his story.

* * *

The next day.

As promised, after the day brightened, Aiden, along with his colleagues, found the funeral home where the survivors were staying.

“You came!”

Claire, waiting at the door, welcomed Aiden.

Already prepared for departure, she was armed, and even her tools were ready.

Aiden looked at the people behind Claire and spoke.

“There are quite a few people.”

In addition to Claire, there were three more people armed.

They were Miles, Joseph, and Maverick, whom he had talked to yesterday.

Did Emeri, who maintained a sharp attitude, ultimately fail to persuade him?

As Aiden was counting them, the survivors also followed Aiden, and their reactions were a mixture of surprise.

“Are those… your colleagues?”

“It’s like that.”

“No, how…”

Seemingly unexpected, Joseph said so.

The reactions of other survivors were similar.

Arian was another question. But they didn’t expect there to be a child like Sadie here.

“Why bring a child like this? Are you out of your mind?”

Miles spat out a disdainful remark.

Rather than dissatisfaction with Sadie’s presence, it was more about questioning why a child like her was brought to a place infested with zombies.

“I’d rather leave the child here. There are people to take care of her until the job is done.”

“…”

Instead of responding, Aiden glanced at Sadie.

If she wanted, leaving her here was a reasonable option.

The upcoming task was dangerous enough, and leaving Sadie with this small group of survivors, whom he still didn’t fully trust, might be a better choice.

So Aiden asked for Sadie’s opinion.

Sadie nodded slightly.

Aiden respected Sadie’s decision.

“Sadie, we’ll take responsibility for her.”

“Well…”

“I appreciate the sentiment, but staying with us might be safer.”

Aiden said, tapping the metal door lightly.

It meant that the base itself was not trustworthy.

Miles couldn’t refute and just sighed.

The fact was that the base’s fortifications were weak.

Especially with many people leaving in the meantime, it was a vulnerable situation.

Amidst his silence.

“Shouldn’t there be one more person?”

Aiden asked since Haley, Miles’ wife, wasn’t visible.

Miles answered.

“My wife isn’t feeling well. But please don’t blame her. We’ll pay the compensation instead.”

“Compensation?”

“Yes. Today’s compensation will be covered by Maverick and Haley’s blood. Is that okay with you?”

If it was the blood of the two who hadn’t traded yesterday, it was certainly worth accepting as compensation.

But no matter how, it was too little compensation.

“Two units of blood are not enough.”

“Well, is there anything you want? I’ll tell you in advance; we can’t offer water or food.”

Claire said as if playing the lead.

Of course, Aiden was aware that they were short on supplies, so he had no intention of demanding that from the beginning.

“Then, how much ammunition do you have?”

“Well… not much. The remaining ammo is almost all brought today.”

“How many rounds does each of you have?”

“About thirty rounds…”

Aiden frowned inside his helmet at the news that each person barely had one rifle magazine.

With such a shortage of ammunition, they couldn’t make the most of the increased number of personnel.

But there was no room to complain since they probably wouldn’t save ammunition at the risk of their lives.

So Aiden instead asked for other supplies they might have.

“Then I’ll take gasoline.”

Claire was preparing the vehicle, so she must have stored gasoline during exploration.

But it couldn’t be used the other way around, making it more likely to be preserved compared to other supplies.

The returned answer was as expected.

“Gasoline? Well, we have some. By the way, do you also have a car?”

Claire said, her eyes widening.

Although there was no need to disclose it, Aiden remained silent, which was an answer in itself.

“Anyway, do we have a deal?”

“Okay. Let’s do that.”

“Is there anywhere the parts could be?”

“I have some places in mind.”

Saying so, Claire took out a map.

It was a detailed map of Paducah City.

“The place we want to go is here. Paduca General Hospital. It’s a large hospital in the residential area.”

“Hospital?”

“Yes. Of course, where we want to go is not inside the hospital but outside. There’s a large parking lot. However… the problem is that there are many zombies there.”

“I understand what you mean.”

The group with a destination in mind left the base and began to move.

They cautiously approached the nearby residential area.

Not long after, zombies, like weeds growing between houses and abandoned gardens, came into view.

About ten or so were visible.

Considering zombies inside houses, it wasn’t a small number.

Although they could find a way to avoid them, the group was too large for that.

“So, why not split up and move independently until halfway?”

Claire suddenly suggested.

Dividing into groups of 3 or 4, moving as two teams was the proposal.

Aiden readily accepted the idea.

“It doesn’t sound bad.”

“Then let’s move with our respective teammates. It’s more convenient, isn’t it?”

“Is that okay?”

“Now is not the time to worry, is it?”

Claire said, looking at Sadie.

Except for Sadie, Aiden practically considered the firepower on this side to be two.

It was a statement that was quite accurate from a common sense perspective, so Aiden didn’t say anything.

“Do you have a map?”

Aiden nodded, and they decided on a rendezvous point.

Claire pointed to a church near the hospital with her finger.

“Let’s meet here.”

“…Sure.”

Aiden replied.

Then the survivors moved right away.

They skillfully lowered their bodies and quickly hid between the trees in the residential area.

Then, they cautiously looked at each other and moved forward slowly.

Perhaps it was because they had lived in such places for a long time.

Even Claire and Joseph in their twenties.

Even Maverick, who was relatively young, showed a skillful way of avoiding zombies.

“Are those people okay?”

Arian asked, seeming concerned.

But looking at them move so skillfully, Aiden nodded.

“Seeing them move, they’ve probably been here for quite a while. They likely know how to hide well and might even know a safer path.”

“Then there’s no need to walk separately, right?”

“Well, we’re being tested now, aren’t we?”

“Tested?”

“That’s right. It’s common for gangs to throw a simple request to assess the skills of a newcomer.”

Aiden said, looking at the backs of the survivors who were moving away.

For them, the only evidence to trust Aiden’s skills was the canned corn and rum brought yesterday.

However, objectively speaking, it couldn’t be considered solid evidence.

Corn cans and two bottles of rum were items anyone could have even without searching in this city.

So if, during the discussion about this job yesterday evening, someone among them suspected that Aiden had traded with them using the originally owned items to deceive them, there was a possibility.

“Testing? Interesting.”

Arian scoffed lightly after hearing Aiden’s explanation.

But if that was the case, it wasn’t bad for Arian.

On the contrary, it was better this way.

If they weren’t here, Arian wouldn’t have had to hide her abilities.

“Let’s go the easy way.”

“Move. Since it’s like this, it’s better to go quickly and clean up the surroundings.”

Arian nodded and took the lead.

It was a light step that was hard to believe was walking through a zombie-infested residential area.

* * *

Two hours later.

Claire, who had passed through the 2km residential area, sighed deeply.

The destination was just a block away from the promised place, the church.

Now at that place where the destination was visible, Claire spoke to her colleagues.

“Do you think those people have already arrived?”

“There’s no way.”

Joseph was the one to deny that claim.

“We at least know a path without zombies. They probably don’t know anything. It’s an impossible story.”

“That’s true. It will take at least another hour.”

Miles intervened in Joseph’s words.

Claire frowned at that.

“Wasn’t it better to just come together after all?”

“Well, you can’t just blindly trust a junk dealer you’ve never seen before. This is a necessary step.”

It was Joseph who first suggested testing Aiden last night.

At that time, Claire fully agreed with Joseph’s opinion that there was a need to doubt Aiden, as the evidence to trust Aiden was somewhat lacking.

So, Claire had also agreed to the proposal to test Aiden.

Now, her determination had been significantly weakened.

The reason was the child Aiden was carrying.

“What if those people turn out to be trouble?”

“If they don’t have enough skills, wouldn’t it be better for us? How can we trust and rely on people like that?”

“But… what about the child?”

“I’m sorry about that too. But we can’t help it. You accepted it too, didn’t you?”

In response to Joseph’s words, Claire fell silent.

His words were harsh, but they couldn’t be said to be wrong.

Although the request was simple, obtaining car parts, the lives of the survivors, including Claire, were at stake.

So, Aiden’s abilities needed to be thoroughly validated, and in that process, there were inherent risks.

Regardless, in a city full of zombies, no matter what they did, danger would naturally follow.

“Then, as we discussed yesterday, if they arrive within two hours, we’ll proceed together. Is everyone okay with that?”

The survivors nodded in response.

If they could traverse the zombie-infested residential area and reach the church within four hours, it meant that the junk dealer’s skills were quite impressive.

With that settled, Claire crossed the last road leading to the church.

Now, all that remained in front was to pass by the bank and post office buildings located on the same block.

However, even this was not an easy task.

Naturally, there would be zombies around, and there was no way to bypass them, so they had to take them down.

Of course, firearms couldn’t be used in this process.

Unless they wanted to attract all the zombies in the residential area, they had to rely solely on melee weapons here.

“Let’s keep moving.”

Swallowing saliva, Claire took out a pole with a sharp piece of iron tied to it, a crude weapon.

However, it was the most suitable weapon for Claire, who was relatively weak, so she raised it and walked towards the gray post office building.

“I’ll check inside.”

Maverick, holding an axe, stepped forward.

He was the youngest among the survivors but also the tallest.

Maverick briefly looked inside the post office through the half-covered window.

However…

“…There’s no one inside?”

Was it luck?

The post office building, which had been a battlefield before, was completely empty.

The situation was the same for the bank right next to it.

Even the small parking lot next to the building was completely empty.

Originally, there should be zombies here, so the survivors showed puzzled expressions.

“What happened here?”

“Hey, look over there.”

Maverick pointed behind the bank building.

In the narrow alley adjacent to the building, as if someone had baited them.

Several zombies were lying on the ground with their heads exposed.

“What’s going on? Has anyone been here recently?”

Claire’s words made the others shake their heads.

“There’s no way. Even we can’t easily come to such dangerous places.”

They didn’t ask Aiden to accompany them for no reason.

The area near the hospital was unusually crowded with zombies, making it a difficult place for even them to approach.

But why were there so many dead zombies here?

Just as their minds were becoming complicated, a clear voice echoed from somewhere.

“Here!”

The survivors all looked at the direction where the voice came from.

It was the church, the agreed-upon meeting place.

In the open window, the same girl, Sadie, whom they had seen before, was waving at them.