In an apartment, two zombies stood facing the wall. The window slid open quietly, and Aron slipped inside. Read complete version only at novel_fіre.net
The zombies didn’t notice him; their empty eyes stayed fixed on the wall.. None of them sensing him.
He moved closer, his blade flashing once, twice. Both corpses collapsed silently.
[Zombie Lvl 2 killed, 200 exp!]
[Ash Walker Lvl 5 killed, 500 exp!]
[Claimable Ability Detected: Burst]
A smile tugged at Aron’s lips. Another ability. The last time, when he killed the first Ash Walker zombie, he’d been forced to choose between Stealth and Burst. Who would’ve thought he’d encounter the same ability again?
Since arriving here, Aron had been hunting non-stop. The Stealth skill was godlike and made all his levelup operation very easy.
Claiming this new ability required 250 exp. Aron was surprised. The cheapest he’d ever copied was Immunity, which cost 100. The most expensive so far had been Stealth at 500.
"Hmm... maybe the cost scales with my level. Still, the name Burst doesn’t sound like something passive. Why am I even overthinking this?"
Exp for next level: 31025/28800
Special Ability: Talent Bank
Talent Inspection: Check
Talent Switch: On/Off
Stealth: Cannot be seen, heard, or detected by normal means. Consumes 2 mana/sec.
FortiSphere: A dome no force can destroy or bypass. Radius: 1 meter. Consumes 50 mana/sec.
Immunity: Unaffected by viruses or mortal diseases.
Burst: Sacrifices 80% strength to unleash instant power for 2 seconds. After activation, user is weakened for 5 hours.
"Another one..." Aron muttered. "Just how many kinds of abilities exist? And this one... isn’t it too trashy?"
No wonder that Ash Walker was sluggish after its first attack. It must’ve used Burst right away. Fast at the start, but drained after." That explained everything.
He searched the apartment for food.
It was now the third day in the apocalypse. No sun. Power gone. Signal also went down yesterday. The air itself reeked of despair.
Daniel, the man who had saved them from the octopus monster, was a customs officer before all this. His job had been monitoring surveillance along the border wall. That was how he found them. Out of one hundred and forty-six officers, only sixteen were left. The rest had been scratched or turned.
Aron shook his head. If not for Immunity, he would’ve been a zombie on the first day too. No matter how strong a person was, one scratch was enough to end them.
After packing food, Aron returned to the officer’s quarters. A small one-bedroom apartment with a toilet and kitchen. Simple, but compared to where he used to stay, this was paradise.
"Thought you’d never wake up."
She had collapsed two nights ago. The exhaustion from using her talent, mixed with hunger, fear, and stress, had drained her completely. She’d been unconscious since then. Aron had been feeding her, worried she might never open her eyes.
For a moment, he thought she would never wake.
"For a second, I thought you were gone," Aron said dropping the spoils he’d gathered.
Rose jumped off the bed and hugged him tightly. "I... I thought you left me behind."
"Good to see you back on your feet." Aron’s voice was calm, but the air grew awkward.
"Thank you... for saving me," Rose said softly, separating from the hug with a blush.
"No need. You saved me first. I just returned the favor. As we agreed, this is where we part ways."
Rose tensed, her lips parting as if to speak, but Aron continued.
"Don’t worry. You woke up just in time. Someone is going to introduce us to the others survivors here. They’re planning to move to Zone B. You’ll be safer if you tag along with them."
"Aren’t... you coming?" she asked quickly, afraid he’d silence her again.
Aron didn’t answer. Instead, he gestured toward the kitchen. "There’s food if you’re hungry. Clothes in the drawer. Try to conserve water."
Rose lowered her eyes. She didn’t dare push further. But as soon as Aron turned, she caught a whiff of herself and almost gagged. She quickly grabbed clean clothes and ran into the bathroom.
Daniel had mentioned there would be a meeting in an hour to discuss the move to Zone B.
Aron hadn’t cared at first. But Daniel claimed the supposed leader was a special Awakener, who had an O-shape on his forehead instead of a square on the wrist, which was same O-shaped mark as the driver driving the truck earlier. If that were true, Aron might finally learn or have an idea of the driver’s talent.
He had wanted to kill the river monster today. But if he left now, he would miss the meeting.
Four soft knocks. Daniel’s signal.
Aron still checked the peephole. Even if zombies rarely wandered into the barracks, caution was survival.
He opened the door. They greeted each other just as Rose stepped out in a simple clothes. Clean, refreshed, her beauty was undeniable.
Aron had to admit Rose was stunning, but she just wasn’t his type.
"Daniel meet Rose. Rose meet Daniel the one who helped us to safety," Aron introduced both to each other.
"Nice to meet you Daniel, thank you for coming to our aid" Rose bowed in gratitude
Aron noticed Daniel staring, frozen in place completely mesmerized by her beauty.
Aron rolled his eyes and tapped his shoulder. "Daniel."
"...Yeah yeah don’t mention" Daniel replied trying to compose himself.
The three of them left the apartment together.
On the way, Daniel was uncharacteristically quiet. The usually talkative man kept stealing glances at Rose, as though he couldn’t help himself.
I’m feeling really unwell right now, so please bear with me if there are any mistakes in today’s Chapter, I was seeing double while editing.
Thank you all so much for your support. You guys make me really happy ❤️
And a special thanks to
Thank you really appreciate your support 😊