Chapter 34: Bait (1)

Chapter 34: Chapter 34: Bait (1) Some time ago... A group of over thirty survivors slowly made their way southeast. Over the five-hour walk, they lost more than half of the people. Most of them were ordinary humans. No, in the eyes of survivors, they were bait. The Chosen needed to conserve their strength. It was unwise to fight their way to the naval base. So whenever a zombie spotted them, they broke a human’s legs to make them immobile before tossing them aside. The zombies usually went for the free food. However, sometimes the zombie would choose to eat the chosen, only to die at their hands. But that didn’t mean the injured human was safe, or they’d get accepted back into the group. It would be foolish to let good food go bad, so the chosen generously brought the said human to the zombies and forced other humans to watch. It was done to show the unawakened their position in the new world. They had lost their status as humans. Now they were livestock, born to be used by the chosen in any way they desired. It was somewhat better for the unawakened women. The chosen males protected them like cavemen. Obviously, they had no good intentions behind it, as they wanted the females for themselves. It was truly a disgusting sight, but it showed the human’s primitive nature at the time of crisis. However, the chosen weren’t as united as they seemed from the outside. Similar to the grade-classification of the zombies, the chosen had a classification of their own. A grade-one chosen had the strength or abilities to take down three grade-one zombies on their own. A similar trend continued to classify other chosen classes. So far, they all were grade-ones, but that was because they didn’t know how to evolve. If they did, no one would tell others about it. Who could blame them for keeping it a secret? They all saw how the weak ones were treated. Once the unawakened were used up, it would be the turn of grade-ones, and so on. That’s why everyone wanted to evolve asap. But not everyone was as clueless as the rest in that regard. At least John Smith wasn’t. John had been a scrawny, underweight guy before the apocalypse. However, the gods blessed him, giving him a talent called Endless Strength Growth. In simple words, it was a talent that made him physically stronger with each zombie he killed. However, the growth had slowed considerably since the beginning. It was as if the vessel of his strength had filled up. While he was stronger than most, it could change at any moment. After seeing how the unawakened were treated, he grew worried and desperate. Now that he had tasted the life of privilege, he was unwilling to return to his former social status. That’s when the gods showed him mercy once again. He received a quest, a hidden quest to give him new powers. While everyone looked ahead, John’s gaze drifted towards the zoo. The zoo was close to the naval base. Just half an hour of walking was required between the two places. John decided to complete the quest and turned to the girl behind him. Her name was Jade, his childhood friend and... long time crush. In three days of apocalypse, her soft features had hardened, yet she looked as beautiful as ever. Her long brown hair was tied in a messy ponytail, and her shirt was half-torn at the sleeve, the same one she tore to bandage John’s insignificant wound. She noticed his gaze and smiled. John smiled back. Before the apocalypse, he was weak. That’s why Jade ignored him so others wouldn’t bully him. That’s what she told him last night while confessing to him. Ever since then, Jade clung to him like a proper girlfriend. John thought his love won her over, but he was a fool. Love? That concept died as soon as the apocalypse arrived. Jade only clung to him because he was strong. She wasn’t a chosen like him, but she was cunning. She knew the men would eye her or use her as bait, so she clung to John. John’s love for her hadn’t gone unnoticed. While Jade never rejected him, she found him disgusting, and that’s why she kept her distance from him. She knew John wouldn’t use her and protect her from the rest. In other words, he was the apocalypse’s version of a nice guy. Nice to keep around, but never to commit. As the group of survivors pushed ahead through the broken road, John turned left. "John?" Jade asked, tugging on his arm. "What are you doing?" "We’re taking a detour," he said, pulling her along. However, Jade smacked his hand away. John looked at her, somewhat hurt. She realized her mistake and apologized immediately. "I-I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to—" "It’s fine," John said, shaking his head. "I forgot you asked me not to touch you till you were ready." "No, it’s... alright," she smiled. "But why are you heading towards the zoo? Neha said it was dangerous there." John scoffed. Neha this. Neha that. He had grown tired of following the mind reader. Everyone agreed to whatever she said, but not a single person dared to ask her how she knew so much about the apocalypse. It wasn’t like she had lived through the apocalypse before. They were all in it together, so what made her so special? John didn’t want to tell Jade about the quest, but it was the quickest way to convince her, so he did. "A quest...?" Jade asked, somewhat skeptical. "Listen, do you want to awaken or not?" Awaken. That was all it took to convince Jade. As long as she awakened, she could stop clinging to John, or better yet, turn him into her loyal minion. It wouldn’t be difficult, since she already had him wrapped around her finger. "...I’ll go with you," she agreed. The two were about to step away when Min noticed them. "Where are you two going?" he asked. Everyone turned to face them. John clicked his tongue. He had planned to leave unnoticed, but got found out. All because of Jade. While John struggled to come up with an excuse, Jade pointed to the signboard. "My boyfriend used to work at the zoo," she said. "I just wanna see if he’s alive. John volunteered to help me." Min looked at John before shaking his head. Even in the apocalypse, he could see a bright green hat on top of his muscular form. "Neha, what should—?" Min asked. "Let them be," she replied. "Everyone is free to do what they want." With that, she walked ahead. The rest of the group followed, leaving John and Jade behind. John breathed a sigh of relief before turning to Jade. "A boyfriend, really?" He asked. "Are you jealous?" Jade chuckled before kissing his cheeks. "Come on, let’s go before they change their mind!"