Chapter 70: Chapter70-A Broken Villain's Deeds
I called up my system and opened my character profile right in front of my eyes.
(Congratulations, Host, 150 Monster Cores (Lesser) has been added to your inventory!)
(Congratulations, Host, 150 Healing portions (Bronze) has been added to your inventory!)
(Congratulations, Host, 150 Monster Essences of Zombies has been added to your Character Profile!)
"It's okay, but I'm still not satisfied with it."
Name: Michael Frostburne
Race: Human
Current rank: Iron.
Progression to Gold rank: 36% (920/2500 essences)
After I checked my status screen, I shut down my system and concentrated on moving forward.
But before I could do anything, Aeron, the chatterbox, spoke up: "Sir, when will we gather food? We've spent the last hour and a half just killing zombies. If we keep this up, we might not have enough time to gather food before the Leader calls us back again."
Emily also joined in, saying, "Um, yes, Lieutenant, he's right."
Ahh, their food, his food, food, food, who even cares about food? All I care about is essences.
My worries were troubling because not bringing back food might lead to Zeras punishing me...
But anyway, we still have plenty of time, and since I'm the lieutenant, I'll request more time for gathering supplies instead of grindinguh, fighting.
I looked at Aeron and Emily and said seriously, "We can handle that later. For now, just follow my lead."
"But that" Aeron started to object.
Before he could say anything else, I silenced him with my next words.
"Are you both going to follow my lead or not?" I commanded firmly...
I was actually trying to intimidate them into doing what I wanted...
During battles with hordes, I needed at least one of them to deal with any remaining zombies so I wouldn't be distracted.
Then, I quickly sprinted in a specific direction with Aeron and Emily right behind me.
They immediately stopped talking and started following me.
Suddenly, a pack of lesser rank zombies emerged from a crumbling storefront.
Without hesitation, I took aim, dispatching the nearest one with a precise shot to the head and, blasting the other's head in to pieces.
As we reached the outskirts of the old apartment, Zeras' voice came over the radio, breaking the tense silence. "Michael, Aeron, meet at the main entrance of the foreign ambassador's building. We're splitting into teams of two to cover more ground efficiently."
Bitch! Now of all times.
I was silently cursing him in my mind.
The place he mentioned is far from where we are now, and it will take us at least 30 to 40 minutes to get there.
This means I'll be wasting valuable time running.
I looked at the others and then, with a silent agreement through our eyes, we headed to the designated meeting point where Zeras waited with his usual calm demeanor.
I noticed small smirks on both their faces. Considering how hard I pushed them to go, they were probably happy that now I had to force myself to get there too.
Sometimes, I just have really bad luck which fucks me as wanted...
After 30 minutes of walking, we finally arrived at the location Zeras had told us about, where everyone was already present.
"Michael, Aeron," Zeras began as we approached. "You two will be paired together for this sweep. Natalie and Emily will take another section, and Marcus, David and I will cover the third. We'll rendezvous back here in an hour."
Aeron looked to me for reassurance, and I nodded in acknowledgment of Zeras' directive.
"Understood, leader!" Aeron replied, his tone firm and focused.
"You can choose which direction to go in, but be careful. If you see another group or Terror's criminals, don't try to fight them. Let us know so we can meet up and then decide if we should fight them," Zeras continued.
Everyone, including me, nodded...
I nodded just to end the conversation quickly and wanted to get out of there.
When Zeras finally said we could go, I ran as fast as I could to find my next targets, leaving Aeron confused.
After putting some distance between myself and Aeron, I spoke to him over the radio.
"We're going to collect food separately, so don't follow me."
Aeron's reply was positive.
"Ok, Sir."
Now, with Aeron around, I have to be more careful than usual.
I don't really regret telling him to collect food separately since he was constantly complaining and annoying me.
Plus, I have the dash skill, so I can easily escape any situation if I keep my distance.
Keeping that distance is important, and my heightened senses should help with that.
After that, I kept walking untill, I stopped in my track all because I saw something familiar on my way here.
I was currently on an abondaned and, destroyed neighborhood but the problem was...
My eyes were locked on to a Apartment building stood in front of me.
It was not much destroyed and, was still in a good shape.
I was focused on the name of the apartment complex: Green Home.
It's the same complex that Lee Chong-san mentioned where he lives.
But I shouldn't think too much about this now; I have other tasks to complete.
I kept walking, but after a few meters, I stopped and glanced back at the apartment complex.
I don't know why, but I couldn't easily leave this place.
A curious feeling gripped me as I wanted to learn more about this outbreak.
***
After a couple more thoughts, my curiosity got the better of me, and I decided to enter the apartment instead of staying outside.
I walked through the first floor, where most of the rooms were open.
I entered several rooms and gathered as much food as I could.
Then, I continued my search for the room of the person who claimed to be the mastermind behind the whole virus thing.
I searched the entire building, and after a little over 10 minutes, I found Apartment number 222 with "Lee" written on the wall.
I attempted to turn the doorknob and pull the door open, but it didn't open up.
"Looks like it's locked..."
I made up my mind to kick it open forcefully, and after a few kicks, the door finally burst open.
I stepped inside, and the first thing I noticed was how surprisingly neat and clean the apartment was, especially given the chaos outside.
So neat...
The living room was almost pristine, with no dust or debris on the floors or furniture.
It felt eerily abandoned, as if the owner had just stepped out and would return any moment.
The kitchen was equally spotless, with neatly arranged dishes and utensils.
It was hard to believe that anyone could maintain such order amid the outbreak.
I walked through the hallway, noting the lack of personal itemsno family photos, no decorationsjust the bare essentials.
I was pretty surprised because he said in the radio he loved his family a lot, but there isn't even a single picture of them here.
Entering the bedroom, I found the bed perfectly made, the sheets crisp and unwrinkled.
Man, he really is neat man and, clean...
A large wooden desk sat in the corner, its surface clear except for a single, neatly stacked pile of papers.
Papers? Let's see if I can get anything...
I approached the desk and started sifting through the documents, looking for any clues about the virus or its creator.
Most of the papers were scientific notes and charts, filled with complex formulas and diagrams.
It was clear that the person living here was deeply involved in science research.
I kept searching, hoping to find something more concrete.
As I continued my search, I opened drawers and cabinets, finding more papers and some medical supplies but nothing that seemed immediately useful.
Darn, There's nothing here.
Frustration began to creep in.
I needed something that would give me a clear understanding of what had happened here.
Eventually, I noticed a small, locked drawer at the bottom of the desk.
Using a knife which I took from the kitchen, I managed to pry it open, revealing a hidden stash of documents.
These papers looked older and more personal.
So, I was wrong, wasn't I?
He truly was a caring man who loved his family.
They included letters, a diary, and some old photographs.
I quickly scanned through them, trying to piece together the story but nothing significant came out...
Then, I spotted a faint glow coming from under the bed.
Curious, I knelt down and looked beneath it.
'Got it.'
There, hidden away, was a small box.
I pulled it out and opened it, revealing even more papers, along with a radio and a few vials of an unknown substance.
No, again...
He really enjoyed leaving radios behind with clues.
I set the radio and vials aside and began examining the papers that were with the radio.
As I read through them carefully, I discovered they listed the names and, their homes of the victims he had experimented on, or rather, turned into monsters.
He truly become a maniac after all that shit...
Then, I picked up the radio.
I wasn't sure if this radio had the message from the mad scientist, but there was a good chance it did.
'What do you have to say this time, Mr. Lee Chong-san?'
I pressed the "ON" button, and the radio's voice echoed through the room.
"Hello!
Hello to anyone listening to this recorded message!
My name is Lee Chong-san, and I am a science teacher at Hyosan High School.
If you already know about me, then I assume you've listened to my first recorded message. If not, you have probably entered my room to survive from the zombies.
Please remember, if you just entered my room, you should turn off this radio immediately since zombies have very sensitive hearing.
Now, if you're the first type of person and you really want to know my story despite the risks, congratulationsyou're about to learn some top-secret information that no one else but me knows.
Now, let's get started.
I don't want to keep rambling like I usually do.
So, after I created the deadly virus..."
***