How Zombies Survive in the Apocalypse

Aiden’s group explored the interior of the warehouse buildings for a while.

However.

“…It’s empty.”

Having searched the warehouse to some extent, Aiden muttered in disappointment.

As Owen had mentioned, the above-ground section of the warehouse had been thoroughly cleaned by someone. All that remained were worthless odds and ends. 

Even the number of zombies left was minimal.

“Let’s head straight to the underground. No need to waste time, right?” 

Arian suggested, looking at the road leading below.

Finding the entrance to the underground from this massive warehouse turned out to be surprisingly simple. 

A wide tunnel, suitable for military trucks, extended from the external road to beneath the warehouse.

“They’ve practically made a bunker.”

Entering the tunnel, Aiden looked around while commenting. 

The underground was more extensive than he had anticipated. Additionally, perhaps to transport military supplies, one side of the blocked tunnel resembled a loading area.

Unremoved wooden boxes were scattered here and there.

However, Aiden’s group approached the door leading further inside without paying much attention to them.

The end of the tunnel, securely sealed with gray concrete.

There, a steel door with a handle tightly wrapped in chains was visible.

“This is…”

Aiden tugged on the chains. 

Although there was a perfectly intact locking mechanism, it seemed oddly unlocked. It suggested that someone had opened the door after finding it, sealing it again afterward.

“I can open this. Should I?” Arian asked Aiden, facing him in front of the door.

Aiden nodded and stepped back.

Then Arian’s machete gleamed.

As if the blade was enveloped in blood, it shone a bright red.

Clink!

And one strand of the tightly wrapped chains was smoothly cut.

Aiden immediately unlocked the chains entwining the door handle and opened the door.

Deep darkness, akin to a cave, greeted Aiden’s group.

“I’ll take the lead.”

Arian stepped forward.

The blood sphere followed beside her.

Aiden activated the light on his rifle.

The bright LED light illuminated the underground warehouse.

Only dark passages made of discolored concrete walls were immediately visible. Rusty pipes and ducts protruded from the walls here and there.

“Stay close to me.”

Aiden told Sadie.

Sadie nodded with a tense expression.

Thus, Aiden’s group entered the underground warehouse.

The dim corridor, filled only with thick darkness and silence, continued for a while.

There were large and small rooms on both sides.

Most of the doors were broken, so the insides were clearly visible from the corridor.

“Hmm…”

Aiden explored several neglected rooms.

There were quite spacious meeting rooms, sleeping quarters with military beds, and even bathrooms.

However, there was no significant harvest anywhere.

Even at the entrance of the underground, someone had already swept away the supplies, just like on the surface.

Soon, a fork in the road appeared.

It seemed to be the starting point of the actual underground warehouse, as the size of the corridor noticeably widened.

Aiden found a sign hanging from the ceiling with the lights.

To the right was the fitness center, to the left was the command center.

And it seemed like there was a cafeteria straight ahead.

Aiden’s group decided to check out the cafeteria first.

But then.

“…They’re here.”

Arian, sensing the presence of corpses, warned the group.

Aiden quietly adjusted his rifle.

“Quietly… Let’s move forward.”

Soon, the moans of zombies began to be heard.

Not too far away.

Aiden directed the light in that direction.

About 15 meters ahead, there were zombies in the middle of the corridor.

“Kiiie!”

The one who sensed the light turned its head.

Not mutants, just ordinary zombies wearing military uniforms.

Confirming their appearance, Aiden let out a wry smile.

Simultaneously, he now understood why the gang that had come here in the past had abandoned this underground warehouse.

“Zombies with armored measures…”

Perhaps the military unit stationed here wasn’t an ordinary one.

The zombie soldiers in this underground warehouse were not only wearing armored helmets but also armored vests.

This significantly lowered the efficiency of firearms.

Especially, the armored helmet was problematic. It could potentially deflect even the 5.56mm bullets used by Aiden.

Moreover, that helmet, doubling as headgear, couldn’t be penetrated by melee weapons.

So, to effectively destroy their brains, the only option was to stab a weapon deep through the eyes or jaw.

Given the conditions of fighting numerous zombies, this became an incredibly challenging task.

Fortunately, however.

Among Aiden’s group, there was a presence unaffected by such conventional conditions.

“Kiiii!”

Two zombies that noticed Aiden’s group screamed and rushed towards them.

Former soldiers with a robust physique resembling the military.

However, before they could even take a few steps.

Swoosh!

With a creepy sound, the machete of Jungle Doe passed through the space between the two zombies.

Neither the armored helmet nor the armored vest could protect against the onslaught of the melee weapon. The zombies’ heads were severed bone-deep, and they collapsed onto the corridor floor.

“Those two are done for.”

Arian, who had defeated the zombies, spoke.

She didn’t even spare a glance at the armored helmet the zombies were wearing.

While she might recognize it as an armored helmet, it seemed she didn’t consider its significance.

“Bullets don’t work well with these creatures.”

So Aiden explained that part to Arian.

At the mention of Aiden’s reduced firepower, Arian raised an eyebrow.

Seemingly in a tight spot, she let out a short sigh.

“So, what should we do? It’s dangerous if there are more of these. Shall we turn back now?”

“No, with you here, it should be fine.”

In response to Arian’s question, Aiden answered, shaking his head.

It wasn’t just mere optimism.

This underground space was the perfect place for Arian to fully unleash her abilities. In this confined area where walls and doors constantly obstructed the line of sight, her tracking ability would be maximized.

As much as there cannot be as much open space as on the surface, even if zombies swarm out in hordes, it will be difficult for them to surround Arian in narrow corridors.

The variables in battles brought about by numerical superiority are significantly reduced.

In contrast, Arian has 6 liters of blood.

Her combat abilities, based on simple calculations, can easily deal with three Brutals.

With such clear evidence, Aiden judged that there was no reason to retreat.

“Huh?”

On the other hand, Arian uttered a puzzled voice in response to Aiden’s words.

As if she didn’t expect him to say that.

But soon, with a smile on her lips, she confidently spoke.

“Well… Yeah, that makes sense. If there’s blood, I won’t lose to those corpses. Just trust me.”

“Got it. I trust you. I’ll stay by Sadie’s side.”

In response to Arian’s assurance, Aiden calmly agreed.

Arian’s smile deepened even more.

The group continued down the corridor.

As they went further inside, the appearance of zombies became more frequent, and their numbers increased.

Moreover, most of them were soldiers wearing armored helmets and vests.

“Kiaaaa!”

In the end, all of them were swept away in front of Arian like fallen leaves in the wind.

There was no process that could be called a battle.

Her transcendental physical abilities far surpassed the zombies’ strength, and they couldn’t even move properly before their heads fell into her hands.

However, each of those astonishing movements was clearly depleting the blood-red sphere floating next to Arian.

In just one hour, Arian had defeated about fifty zombies.

However, during that time, the size of the sphere had noticeably decreased to the point where it could be easily recognized at a glance.

While monitoring the size of the sphere, Aiden, of course, carefully examined the armored helmets and vests worn by the zombies every time they fell.

And among them, he even took off a few.

“Shall we move these over there?”

“Yes!”

He moved them to the side of the corridor through Sadie.

Finding this action unusual, Arian asked, and he casually replied:

“They’re useful items. It would be better to collect them on the way back if they’re in good condition.”

At that response, Arian’s eyebrow twitched slightly.

No matter how useful they might be, those weren’t items zombies would use.

But after briefly considering her own judgment, Arian changed her mind.

Even though she was a vampire, Arian couldn’t properly protect her comrades, including Sadie, from the hail of bullets.

While her vampire abilities could make her nearly indestructible, she couldn’t heal even a small wound on a comrade right next to her.

So, if those items could somehow block a bullet for them.

Whatever zombies used, it was right to use whatever could be utilized.

If only she could resize them, Aiden could use them, and Sadie as well.

Of course… they needed a proper cleaning before that.

“By the way, I don’t see any mutants?”

Arian, exploring the underground warehouse, expressed her doubts.

Despite having come quite deep, there was no sign of the mutants Owen had mentioned.

In response, Aiden pointed to the empty shelves, saying:

“There are traces of someone coming in here. So, there isn’t much left. If there are mutants, they might be deeper inside.”

Next to the corridor, there were shelves and drawers lined up.

It seemed to be a space used as a warehouse, and among the facilities discovered in this underground bunker, it was the place where supplies were most likely to be left.

However, those shelves and drawers were completely empty.

It meant that the gang that had raided the surface had also entered here.

“…Got it.”

Upon this, Arian nodded and continued forward.

Then, soon, a broken door and a spacious area beyond were revealed.

It was a cafeteria.

Whether it was for the soldiers who stayed here or for a scale that could accommodate over a few hundred people having a meal at the same time.

However, the tables and chairs that should have been there were not visible.

More precisely, only the debris of what should have been hit by something remained on the walls and corners.

Moreover, there were no zombies in this wide underground space.

Only remnants of arms and legs mixed in with the wreckage, like broken chairs.

“…This is it.”

Aiden looked at the restaurant scene and said.

“Clear signs of a battle, and regular zombies consumed by something. All of them indicate that from here onwards is a territory dominated by some mutant.”

“Yeah, over there,” Arian pointed to the opposite side of the restaurant.

Aiden’s light focused in that direction, reaching dozens of meters ahead.

Finally, it unearthed the monster hidden in the darkness.

A height slightly over 2 meters, with thighs like logs and muscles developed enough to tear a military uniform covering them.

Especially noticeable were the arms, unusually long.

If stretched straight down, they would almost touch the ground.

“Hmm…”

Undoubtedly the appearance of a mutant.

But it wasn’t the mutant Aiden was familiar with.

If a Wielder had mutations, only one of his arms was significantly thickened, it wasn’t as long as this.

The creature emitted a low growl, scanning Aiden’s group with its rotten pupils.

“Guuuh…”

Like the other zombies in the underground warehouse, it wore a bulletproof helmet.

The head snapped with a squelching sound.

Aiden’s group, facing it, showed no loud reaction, appearing intrigued.

After observing the creature for a moment, Aiden opened his mouth towards Arian.

“…Possible?”

The true capabilities of this mutant were still unknown.

The only thing that could be speculated was that the rifle reversed in its hand and the suppressive shield on the opposite side were both very threatening.

But Arian chuckled.

“I believe in myself. Can’t you trust me?”

“Seems possible.”

Aiden gestured to Sadie.

It was a signal to fall back, and Sadie immediately nodded.

“We’ll wait from behind.”

Arian nodded at Aiden’s words.

Right after that, the zombie screamed.

“Graaaa!”

The creature, judging that Aiden’s group was retreating, no longer hesitated and rushed straight towards them.

Its speed… surpassed that of most mutants.

If one thought speed and strength were proportional, it was almost at the level of a Brutal.

A formidable opponent.

Aiden, with just one movement, could judge the creature’s strength.

But such a formidable opponent…

Swoosh!

Existed on this side too.

Arian’s machete, emerging from the darkness, collided with the suppressed rifle of the mutated zombie, sparks flying as they clashed.

In that fleeting moment.

Arian’s gaze passed through the mutant’s chest.

There was something there – the name and rank of the enemy when this zombie was still alive.

It seemed this man was called Sergeant Smith in his past life.