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Chapter: 31
“Zombies.”
As his vision turned red, Kalif stared beyond the horizon and spoke.
Jigu’s face hardened. He had faced many dangers before—by choice or by force—but never had his vision turned such a dark, bloody red. It didn’t look like just a dozen of them.
“I think there’s a bullet lodged in his thigh. If we don’t remove it, we won’t be able to stop the bleeding!”
Peggy’s urgent cry rang in his ears. In a hurry, they had taken off a shirt and tied it tightly around Edwin’s thigh, but it wasn’t stopping the blood at all.
The shirt was so drenched in red that its original color was impossible to tell. Biting his lip, Jigu scanned their surroundings.
We need somewhere to hide before we run into the zombies.
His detection skill sensed danger within 500 meters. If they hesitated any longer, they would run straight into them. But there was no suitable space to activate the Earth Protection Zone.
“It’s a horde!”
Ryan’s hushed shout echoed out. The group looked past the horizon and went pale.
“Damn it! Why are there so many?!”
Black heads packed tightly between the abandoned cars. It wasn’t just a horde—it was more like an army.
“They’re coming from the other side too!”
Maya screamed in horror.
Not just from behind—zombies were pouring in from all directions.
They were completely surrounded.
On top of that, Edwin, who had seemed faintly conscious moments ago, was now convulsing from severe blood loss.
Seeing Edwin’s HP dropping rapidly, Jigu clenched his teeth. They could lose not only Edwin—but everyone.
He had to decide.
“Jump down this way!”
Beyond the guardrail was a steep slope like a cliff, overgrown with thick bushes that made it impossible to see the ground. But it was the only possible escape route.
“Are you crazy? We could die doing that!”
“Then stay here and be their dinner.”
“Damn it…!”
Luke shouted in fear, and Maya sneered before sprinting toward the guardrail. Infuriated by her mocking glare, Luke cursed and followed.
“What about Edwin?!”
“We move first.”
“Wait! You can’t carry a patient like that—!”
Peggy gasped as Kalif hoisted the unconscious Edwin over his shoulder like luggage. But when she saw the approaching horde, she squeezed her eyes shut, grabbed Ryan, and jumped over the guardrail.
Crash! Rustle!
Aaaah!
Their screams faded as they tumbled down the steep slope, unable to keep their footing.
Jigu stepped onto the guardrail, watching them disappear into the brush.
His dark crimson vision, like a “dead ending” game screen, kept warning him of danger.
Better to break a bone than become a zombie.
He just hoped it wouldn’t be his neck.
But at that moment, a hand slipped around his side and lifted him effortlessly.
Kalif.
“Huh?!”
“Careful not to bite your tongue.”
Before Jigu could adjust to the upside-down view, his body floated briefly—then plunged downward. His heart dropped as if he were on an amusement ride.
With a few powerful leaps, Kalif descended the slope, Edwin and Jigu tucked at his sides. Peggy, already there, hurriedly checked Edwin’s condition.
“Th-the bleeding is too severe! If we don’t treat him immediately, he could really die!”
Blood kept seeping through the shirt tied around his thigh. Just touching it stained Peggy’s hands red.
“What do you need to treat him?” Jigu asked urgently.
“I—I need a scalpel, fo-forceps, scissors, foreign body tweezers… disinfectant, and a hemostat…!”
Jigu didn’t understand half of it. As complicated medical terms poured from her mouth, he opened his inventory.
Back in Little Rock Village, they had searched a small clinic. It hadn’t been much—more for checkups than surgery—but maybe there was something useful.
Then—
Thud!
A wet, bursting sound came from behind.
“Zombies!”
“Damn it, they’re coming down!”
Crash! Thud! Smash!
Zombies were tumbling down the steep slope, drawn by the smell of blood.
Their faces turned pale as more and more fell.
Scalpels and forceps didn’t matter right now. They needed a safe place to lay Edwin down.
But where would we even find one?!
Below the slope was a dense forest. Wild trees and tangled undergrowth stretched in every direction.
“Kaagh!”
“Deal with it!”
“There’s too many!”
“We need to run—!”
Thud! Crack!
They smashed the heads of fallen zombies, but more kept rolling down.
“Damn it, I’m not dying like this!”
Unable to handle the horde, Luke began backing away—then turned and ran deeper into the forest.
“Jigu…!”
Peggy looked at him desperately, still checking Edwin’s condition.
He couldn’t blame Luke. Staying meant certain death.
But instead of answering Peggy, Jigu’s eyes followed Luke’s retreating figure.
What’s that?
A small red light flickered among the bushes behind Luke.
His blood-red vision, like infrared, made it stand out clearly.
“…A camera.”
The moment he realized it, another red light blinked nearby.
Jigu clenched his fist. It felt like someone was watching them through the lens.
No—it was certain.
Someone was observing them.
Which means…
There must be habitation nearby. A place to hide.
Looking closely where Luke had vanished, Jigu noticed a faint path—overgrown but unmistakable.
“This way!”
At his shout, the group ran. The hidden camera’s red light blinked again, as if guiding them—or chasing them.
After running for some time, the brush underfoot thinned.
Then it appeared.
A wide field—and an utterly alien sight.
“Where are we…?”
Maya stopped before an enormous iron gate towering several times the height of a man.
The wall stretched endlessly in both directions.
“Damn it! This is insane!”
Luke, already there, shouted in disbelief.
“See that? Zombies burned to death by electricity!”
Blackened lumps clung to the wall—zombies fried by high-voltage current.
“How could they power something like this…?”
The wall looked silent—but high voltage ran through it endlessly.
A fortress.
But for them, it was a deadly mousetrap.
Zombies closed in—from behind and from near the wall.
Bang! Bang!
Smash!
Kalif and the others fought quickly, but there were too many. Edwin’s HP had dropped below 10%.
I could survive alone.
He could just pull a box from his inventory and hide beneath it.
But Jigu couldn’t abandon Edwin. Or the others.
He lifted his head sharply.
Above the iron gate, the red light in the bushes blinked.
“Open it. Please—help us!”
The blinking light glowed silently, as if watching him.
Then—
Clank!
With a heavy metallic sound, the gate slowly creaked open.
