Encounter

Whoosh!

A zombie head fell and rolled on the ground.

Nathan was making on his way to a convenience store just a few meters away. Of course, it wasn't the same convenience store a few days ago.

There were quite a few zombies along the way so he was also killing them. To him, it was a waste not to kill them. And of course, the [Grade D] Repair Kit he picked up earlier was already used.

With every step, he was killing a zombie. When he finally got to the convenience store, the road before him was littered with headless corpses.

His exp was now 35.9375% after killing 21 zombies along the way. His [Grade D] Short Dagger durability is 8/11 and his [Grade D] Scimitar was 10/12.

He stepped inside the convenience store.

Inside the store, it still had electricity. He noticed that the food and beverages left were only around 20%, while things like soap, shampoo, toothpaste, and other inedible items were around 60%.

He did a quick check to make sure there was no one inside.

After confirming he was alone, he deactivated his invisibility, and then kept his Short Dagger on his shoulder holster and placed his Scimitar on a corner.

The 20% food and beverages were enough for him so he didn't really mind and he was only here to eat lunch. But sadly, more than 10% had to be cooked so his options were very limited.

'I really need to do that water experiment very soon. Wait for the rain? What if it doesn't rain for weeks? What if the rain is contaminated as well?' he thought.

He opened a can of coke and took a few sips while deciding what to have for lunch.

Suddenly, a group of four people came inside.

They looked at Nathan, and he looked back at them.

They looked like college students around 20 years old and were carrying weapons. Of the two men, one was carrying a sword while the other was carrying a short spear, both had a [Grade D] Wooden Stick on their back. As for the two women, one was carrying a dagger, while the other was carrying a staff.

Nathan smiled and dropped the can of coke before disappearing right in front of them.

"Shit! Where did he go?!" they exclaimed.

***************************

A few minutes earlier inside a boutique.

"Babe, I'm really hungry. Isn't it already safe outside?" Sarah asked.

Josh remained silent as he heard what Sarah said. He too was hungry.

He then turned to another member of the group and said, "Rick, it's been quiet outside. Let's check it out."

"Yeah, sure," Rick replied and turned to his girlfriend, "Erica, you and Sarah stay here. Make sure you don't make any noise."

"Okay," Erica replied.

Josh and Rick were hiding behind a car and checking the surroundings. Last night, the place they were hiding at got attacked by a horde of zombies.

At first, they thought it was only around 15-20 zombies so they decided to defend their camp. Plus, being gamers themselves, they also wanted to level up and were confident of their knowledge on how to survive a zombie apocalypse.

However, what they didn't expect was that instead of 20 zombies, there were around 100 zombies so they had no choice but to escape through the window. During their escape, they found this boutique shop and decided to hide here.

Knowing that there was a horde of zombies outside, they immediately locked the doors and windows and even covered them with sheets or whatever item they could find. It was only now that they decided to go out because they were really hungry as they haven't eaten anything for more than 12 hours now.

"Josh, look over there," Rick whispered and pointed.

Josh looked over at the direction where Rick was pointing.

Just a couple of buildings ahead, there was a convenience store. However, what was very eye-catching is that there were at least more than 10 headless corpses on the ground.

As for the horde of 100 zombies last night, it was nowhere to be seen.

'Perhaps they left?' Josh thought and then said, "Hey, you think it's safe to go there?"

"It's hard to say. Seeing the headless bodies on the ground, I bet it's a strong group that killed them and they're most likely at the convenience store right now," Rick said.

Josh thought about Rick's answer and then confidently said, "You and I are level 7. Also, the girls are level 5. We could even beat 20 zombies if we want to. Plus, I bet the ones on the convenience store are now tired from taking out the zombies."

"What if they've been there for hours already and have already rested?" Rick asked.

"Who the hell do you think would choose to stay in a convenience store for hours? It's basically a trap because it attracts many people. The way I see it, the ones who took out the zombies quickly left after taking some supplies."

"Makes sense," Rick said and then continued, "But what…"

However, Josh quickly cut him off and said, "Come on, man. Stop being a pussy. We've survived this zombie apocalypse for days now. Let's just call the girls and we'll go together. Be confident about our team's strength," Josh said.

However, in truth, Josh's decision was heavily influenced by his hunger. But can anyone blame him? They've not eaten anything for more than 12 hours now.

Rick thought about it for a minute and finally said yes.

***************************

Back to the present.

"Shit! Where did he go?!" they exclaimed.

"Calm down!" Rick shouted.

After hearing Rick's voice, Josh quickly calmed his nerves and said, "Guys, watch your back, it's –"

Before he could even finish his sentence, he was punched in the face by Nathan who suddenly appeared right in front of them.

Pah!

Josh was sent flying and was knocked out cold.

Thud!

Seeing what happened, Rick immediately dashed forward and swung his sword at Nathan.

Whoosh!

However, Nathan was already gone the moment he dashed forward.

"Sarah, cast [Fireball]!" Rick shouted.

"Where?!" she asked.

"Anywhere! Just anywhere!"

"Oka—"

Just like Josh, before Sarah could even finish what she was about to say, she was punched in the jaw and was sent flying. She too was knocked out cold.

However, this time around, Rick was prepared. The moment he saw Nathan appeared, he immediately cast [Sword Stab] which is an offensive skill that requires the user to thrust his sword forward and multiples a normal strike's damage by 1.75.

Seeing what Rick did, Nathan was impressed.

'Heh~ You used her as bait?'

However, Nathan was level 10 and as a chosen one, his overall stats were higher with 18 (+3) agility. How could Rick, a normal level 7, match Nathan's speed?

Nathan easily evaded Rick's attack and disappeared again.

Now it was only Rick and Erica left. They were both together, their backs against each other.

"Rick, I don't wanna die!" Erica cried out as she tried her best to hold back her tears.

"You won't! Trust me. We'll get out of here alive," Rick said as he was wracking his brains on how they could survive this situation.

'The enemy is strong and he can disappear. Should we run? I can take Erica with me before it's too late,' Rick thought.

"Don't even think about running. I can catch you easily. This pretty girl looks really delicious. Surrender now…" Nathan's voice came out of nowhere. He could tell that Rick was thinking about running away so he was trying to scare the shit out of them.

"Please, oh please, oh please don't kill us!" Erica was begging as tears started rolling down her cheeks. She got terrified when she heard the word "delicious". Was he going to eat her? Cannibals are a common bunch in a zombie apocalypse.

Rick was silent. He was still trying to think of a plan.

"Don't test my patience or else this woman here will... Hehe…" Nathan's voice came out again.

"Rick!" Erica dropped her dagger and grabbed Rick's arms.

"We surrender. Please, we meant no harm. We're just here for food," Rick said.

"Drop your weapons and kick them away from you," Nathan said as he suddenly appeared with his left arm wrapped around Erica's shoulder and held a dagger on her neck with his right hand.