Subordinate #1

Jun happily stared at all the notifications he received.

[You leveled up! Lvl1 > Lv2!]

[Your subordinate 'Sheila' has leveled up! You gain 1 stat point.]

[Your subordinate 'Adrian' has leveled up! You gain 1 stat point.]

['Faction' feature added on the menu screen.]

Jun called the menu and navigated to the faction tab.

[Faction - ???]

[Leader - Jun Reyes]

[Members - Sheila Arada, Adrian Santos]

With 3 extra points on hand, Jun didn't hesitate to add it to POWER.

[Power - 14][Endurance - 5][Speed - 4][Wits - 4][Cunning - 6][Charm - 5]

While rejoicing inside, Jun heard a worried shout.

"Boss, watch out!"

***

Adrian etched Jun's word earlier in his mind. "Keep an eye on him. I don't trust him, and neither should you."

As they continued resting behind the jeepney, Adrian's vigilance paid off.

While watching the surrounding, he spotted a suspicious movement from Carlos out of the corner of his eye—Carlos pulled out his knife even though there were no zombies in sight.

Instincts kicked in as suspicions grew.

Adrian lunged forward to intercept Carlos' attack as his voice rang out with urgency.

"Boss, watch out!"

With lightning reflexes, Jun reacted to Adrian's warning, spinning around just in time to see Carlos lunging towards him with a knife clenched in his hand.

Instinct took over as Jun's muscles tensed, his body moving on pure adrenaline as he raised his baseball bat to block Carlos' attack.

The dull sound of metal meeting wood rang out in the stillness of the street. Jun's baseball bat collided with Carlos' knife, deflecting the blade away from its intended target.

Adrian caught up and managed to slash Carlos' shoulder.

It hit but only caused a light injury. To prevent any counterattacks, Adrian retreated several steps back.

Carlos stumbled away in a desperate struggle for survival. With his back into the jeepney, he knew he failed in his attempt to assassinate Jun and there was no going back after that.

He couldn't possibly ask the man he just killed to forget everything and let bygones be bygones, right?

Can he afford another clash?

As he remembered Jun's strength, Carlos' eyes burned with fury.

Too strong!

The man didn't even got pushed back even with his whole weight funneled into his sneak attack.

Carlos chose to do the most logical action he could take.

He ran away!

Jun remained calm and composed, his focus unwavering as he thought of how to deal with his attacker.

With a swift twist of his wrist, the baseball bat disappeared, replaced by a pistol.

Quick switch, an important skill a survivor needs to master in the apocalypse.

Jun took aim on Carlos' pitiful figure but didn't fire after seeing the wandering horde in the distance.

"Lucky bastard. He's not worth the trouble... Who am I kidding? If my aim isn't so bad, I would have tried." Jun chuckled. "I need to distribute my guns to other people."

As he watch Carlos ran away, the man suddenly fell to the side on his own.

"What happened? Did he just trip on his own? What an unlucky guy! Hahaha."

Before Jun could make his way to Carlos, a figure appeared entangled with the man.

Adrian's familiar figure pulled out a knife from the side of Carlos' body. He stabbed him a few more times 'just in case.'

"Oh yeah, he has stealth. That's a good thing for a 'scout' to have."

Adrian tried dragging the body to the group, but Jun shook his head. He hollered, "It's your kill. Go absorb the points."

Adrian stopped in place, hesitating whether to do it or not.

"There are times where I have to send you out on missions. I need you to be strong or at least have the same strength as me. It's not impossible to become a one man army in this age. Don't worry though, there's a lot of opportunities in the future." Jun smiled as he softly uttered, "Or is that something to be worried about."

Adrian finally decided to absorb the points from the body.

Sheila on the other hand, didn't know what to do from start to end. She's still trying to process the series of events. Her supposed to be partner just tried to kill their 'leader.'

As she nervously thought of the consequences, Jun's voice came from the side.

"I'm sorry to tell you this, but your boyfriend is an ungrateful jerk. I saved him and showed him how to survive but he still chose to backstab me. What a prideful chicken. Heh, pride chicken. Now that I'm thinking of food, I'm getting hungry."

Sheila could only keep a lowered and avoid eye contact. 'Sometimes, he acts like a hooligan, and other times, he acts like a kid.

Adrian arrived just in time at the end of their conversation.

"Alright, everybody is here. Let's go investigate that alleyway."

***

"Knock, knock."

Jun knocked on the dumpster.

"W-who's there?" A muffled echoey voice came from inside the dumpster.

"Your guardian angel." Jun proudly stated with both arms on his hips.

"Guardian angel, who? I don't know anyone with that name. Please go away and have a wonderful day!"

Jun sighed and clicked his tounge. He kicked the dumpster once, causing an echo to reverberate inside.

"Hey, I'm done playing. Get out now, we can't be out here for long. Do you want me to pull you out myself?!"

"I'm coming out, I'm coming out!"

The dumpster lid opened up and a bald young man struggled to come out. Dirt and grime stuck to his body, causing a strange stench to fill the alleyway.

"Goddamn, you smell like shit." Jun pinched his nose, causing his voice to turn weird. "I'm Jun, this two are Adrian and Sheila. Since you will be my third recruit, they will be your seniors."

The bald man surveyed the new people around him. Jun watched him like a hawk with a zombie shrieking under his feet. Meanwhile, he's two seniors are struggling to keep the zombies pinned down under them.

"You can call me Edward." Edward said proudly. "I'll become a hero who can protect the innocent by using one punch to subdue all enemies. I..."

"Stop talking! I thought I was used to your ramblings but guess I was wrong."

Edward's eyes shone." You remember me from that time?! You are really my guardian angel!"

"Actually, no... But nevermind that, can you use energy skills now?"

Jun found Edward because of the question mark inside the dumpster and the note that updated after looking at the strange zombies hitting the dumpster. After reading the note on how to recruit Edward to his faction, Jun couldn't help but smile.

[Note: My Idol - Edward idolizes you for accidentally saving him once in college. As long as you invite him to join your group, he will accept the invitation.]

There are people gifted by the heavens and people naturally gifted. Either way, don't compare yourselves to other people or you will be disappointed.

Edward frowned but showed his open hand. "Do you mean this?"

A yellow light appeared on his palm and suddenly melted and enveloped his hand up to his wrist.

Even without leveling up, Edward learned how to harness energy allowing him to become the first survivor who can use energy freely, giving him benefits that would make anyone envious.

Jun smiled widely. "Alright, good. Now, kill these zombies and let's move on."

Edward eyed the squirming zombies on the ground.

"Please hurry. I'm not strong enough to keep this guy grounded for long." Sheila said while keeping a steady footing on the zombie's back.

"Sorry, sorry. Basic Punch!"

Splatter!

"Basic Punch!"

Crack!

"Haaaaa. Basic Punch!"

***

"Get some drinks on the fridge, eat whatever you find in the kitchen. Don't bother looting anything, we're gonna head over to the supermarket across the bank to stock up on supplies."

After giving a series of instructions, Jun left the kitchen area and went straight to the second floor.

"Wow, so this is where he lives." Edward affectionately caressed the table.

Sheila couldn't help but look at him strangely but kept things to herself.

Adrian opened the fridge and found some carbonated drinks. He took the bottle out and searched for cups they can use.

He came back with three cups and placed them on the table. He poured soda in each cup, and took one for himself.

Adrian raised the cup but didn't drink it. He stared at the two other people in the kitchen like a hawk.

"I don't want to die. At least not without enjoying life. As the most senior subordinate, I will keep my eyes on both of you. Following the boss is a privilege if you still haven't realized it yet. Don't fuck this up and get us in trouble with him."

Adrian eyed Sheila. "The boss needs your medical skills. But don't think you're the only doctor alive today. I'm not threatening you, I'm making sure you understand and don't mess up. You didn't see what he was capable of. So thread lightly."

Adrian then turned to Edward. "I'm sure you are special. Whatever it takes, don't disappoint the boss."

Adrian raised his cup and invited the two to drink. "To not die."

Edward and Sheila slowly took their cups. While staring at the bubbly liquid inside her cup, Sheila couldn't help but ask a question.

"What about you? Your the most senior subordinate, what are you gonna do?"

Adrian looked back at her and thought for a bit. "I'll be doing things the two of you can't do."