I stood up, prepared the food on the table, and started eating. While holding the spoon, I felt a slight numbness in my middle finger.
I raised my right hand and moved it. Something was definitely off—not serious, but not right either. I activated the [Regeneration] skill and focused on my middle finger. Moments ter, it felt normal again.
“Mmm! Sho... the s-strengthening—” I tried to speak with food in my mouth.
Crow cut me off. ‘Fuck, eat first. And yeah, looks like we have unlimited use of [Infection], but there’s a drawback.’ He paused. ‘And this passive from [Regeneration] won’t heal damage if it’s too minor or not considered a problem.’
‘Now about [Infection]... let’s see if it leveled up, though I doubt it.’ Crow made another guess and opened the specific panel.
---
Infection Lv. 15
---
‘Thought so. But that fire ability Lena has— it leveled up just from using it,’ Crow mused.
“Mmm!” I choked a little on the food in my mouth.
‘Yeah, it says it needs to be used to level up, but we didn’t use it the right way. So the only way to level this up without ability points is by infecting a non-infected creature.’ Crow imagined banging his head while nodding. I nodded too.
After finishing the food, I looked around.
"Man, this pce feels like one of those storage compartments at the back of a supermarket—cramped, no bathroom, but just big enough to call it a room if you're desperate."
‘There’s a public restroom in the supermarket. Why don’t we just take a bath there?’ Crow joked.
I ignored him.
Instead, I went straight to the building in front of the supermarket—it looked like an apartment complex. I had cleaned it up yesterday. From what I could tell, people had been gathering in the supermarket but were avoiding ciming any of the surrounding buildings. It seems like when humans are in danger, they tend to stick together in one pce.
After finishing my route, I moved to the rooftop of the building. Standing on the 12th floor, I could see almost everything around me—but there were still plenty of buildings taller than this one.
Once I finished taking in the view, I got down to business. I looked at my right hand and fully coated it with [Infection]. I waited until I felt the ability reach maximum concentration. I kept the coating stable, focused entirely on my middle finger, remembering what happened st night.
After a few seconds, the middle finger began to absorb the infected coating surrounding it—draining from the palm and the other fingers. I could feel the redistribution, like the ability was bancing itself across the hand while focusing power on that one finger.
I moved it slightly—definitely stronger, maybe twice as much. I repeated the absorption, this time activating [Finger Strengthening] with it. The power surged again—now easily four times stronger. One more activation pushed it even further. At this point, it felt like eight times the strength... and my hand was starting to feel it. I noticed the coating was getting thin, but I felt like I could push it two more times. I wasn't sure, but I had to test it.
I activated it once more.
Crack!!!
My bone creaked like a juicy grape being crushed under pressure, but louder—sharper. The sound echoed in my skull before I even fully registered the pain. Then it hit.
A wave of white-hot agony surged up my arm like a lightning bolt made of broken gss. It wasn’t just pain—it was wrong. It felt like my muscles were crushing the bone into powder, then grinding that powder deeper while squeezing themselves against each other to wring out every st drop of blood.
My vision blurred. My knees buckled, and I barely caught myself against the rooftop wall. For a moment, everything went bnk—no thoughts, no reason, just raw survival instinct.
Every nerve in my body screamed the same command: tear the damn finger off before it gets any worse.
My breath hitched. My heartbeat spiked. It felt like something deep inside the finger had split—not just a fracture, but like the entire structure colpsed in on itself under pressure it wasn’t built to take. Muscle, tendon, bone... all overloaded beyond their limit.
I gritted my teeth so hard I thought they might crack too.
'Such intense pain just for one finger,' Crow muttered, trying to sound like he shared the pain. In reality, it was like reading a horror story—he could see everything, but didn’t feel a damn thing. 'But yeah, it wasn’t like smashing it with a hammer. It was like the finger turned into a lemon and juiced itself.'
Crow described what he witnessed: the body crushing its own bone from the inside, muscle grinding down bone and wringing out blood. The body didn’t even remember it properly. Only Crow saw the whole thing.
Hearing his take didn’t help—it didn’t dull the pain or comfort me. But being in Crow’s position didn’t seem so bad right now.
A few minutes passed. I sat there breathing, recovering. The time read 6:20 AM. Only forty minutes left before the scheduled gathering.
“Well,” I muttered to myself, “we’ve confirmed it—feeding bone and muscle the same resources doesn't work. Bone needs way more. It’s rigid and has to hold everything in pce. Muscle can flex and distribute, but bone? It shatters under raw strength if it’s not upgraded.”
'Imagine if we upgrade [Decompose] and get attribute points instead of abilities,' Crow muttered, recalling something that made his metaphorical spine itch.
I exhaled through my nose, the unease settling deeper. “We need to prioritize physical endurance and durability over just strength… If I dump all my points into raw power and ignore the rest, I might literally rip myself apart.”
I looked at my right middle finger, dangling like a strip of loose skin. Activating the [Regeneration] skill, I muttered, “This skill is becoming more important than any other.” To my astonishment, the limp skin straightened slowly, the finger repairing itself bit by bit.
I opened the [Spatial Storage] and pulled out a bck jacket with a hoodie and a full-face white mask—so opaque that even the eyes couldn’t be seen from the outside.
Standing on the rooftop under the full gre of the sun, I realized something: being fully covered in clothing only felt oppressive when I stood still. Once I started moving, the heat became bearable—the sun's intensity wasn't as direct when in motion.
I stayed on the rooftop for about twenty more minutes before finally heading down and making my way to the supermarket.
When I stepped out of the building, I slowed down—not like when I first entered in a fast walk. That’s when I noticed something strange. There were no zombies on the road. Was it because people were camping nearby? Did zombies stop respawning in pces with active human presence?
Not finding any solid answers, I proceeded toward the supermarket. As I stepped inside, people immediately turned to look at me.
Man, this feels like I’m some kind of animal at a zoo, I thought, aware of every eye watching.
'Why not do a flip now? Maybe they’ll cp and be amazed,'Crow joked in my head, always trying to inject some fun.
I spotted Samantha’s group and headed straight toward them. Five new people stood with her, but Zach was still nowhere to be seen.
"Mark? You dressing for Halloween or trying to rob a bank?" Samantha asked, tilting her head.
Bouncing closer and leaning in, trying to get a better look at my face. “Didn’t the system say yesterday was the New Start? If the days didn’t reset, that means it’s April, not October.”
I didn’t bother answering. Instead, I casually pushed her face out of my view and turned my attention to the unfamiliar faces in the group.
The first one that stood out was a girl—but only just. Her posture, clothes, and aura gave off a tomboy vibe, but her facial features were beautiful, distinctly feminine. She had slightly curly, jet-bck hair that fell to her elbows, and her figure was unmistakably that of a woman. With a bust size somewhere between a C and D cup, perfectly proportioned to her 5'9" height, she looked like she came straight from a corporate secretary poster. Her name was Noami Vance.
Next was a chubby guy with a round face and a belly to match. At first gnce, you'd think he was some kind of manager. His hairline looked suspiciously uneven—either a bad haircut or maybe even a wig. His name was Victor Henshaw.
“Man, Henshaw sounds more like a businessman’s name than a chubby guy’s. Or maybe Chinese? Even though his eyes are normal-sized,” Crow muttered with his usual commentary.
Victor stood at 6'1", but his bulky frame made him seem shorter from a distance.
Then there were the Marcel brothers. You wouldn’t mistake them for anything but siblings—hell, they almost looked like twins, despite a three-year age gap. They had that lean, wiry build you’d see in guys who worked at a water refilling station, constantly hauling gallon jugs. Both had distinct faces, but shared enough features to be unmistakably reted. The older one, Elias Marcel, had darker skin and a reserved demeanor. The younger, Daren Marcel, was a bit lighter and more expressive. They both stood at 5'8".
Finally, there was the guy who stood out the most—because he looked the most normal. Below-average build, reading gsses, and a quiet presence. Something about him felt… simir to me. Maybe it was the way he moved. When he introduced himself, I could tell—he had martial arts training. I recognized the posture instantly.
I joined a karate css once too, I thought. But I only did it for the running ps. I bailed the moment they told us to do splits—I’m not into pain.
He was about 5'6", a few inches shorter than me.
---
[
Creature: human LV 17
Css: agility
Name: Naomi Vance
Age: 23
Attributes {
Strength:29
Agility:56
Physical:25
}
Ability: none;
]
[
Creature: human LV 16
Css: physical
Name: Victor Henshaw
Age: 28
Attributes {
Strength:27
Agility:23
Physical:51
}
Ability: none;
]
[
Creature: human LV 16
Css: strength
Name: Eis Marcel
Age: 21
Attributes {
Strength:50
Agility:24
Physical:27
}
Ability: none;
]
[
Creature: human LV 15
Css: strength
Name: Daren Marcel
Age: 18
Attributes {
Strength:45
Agility:24
Physical:32
}
Ability: none;
]
[
Creature: human LV 16
Css: ability duration
Name: Rayan Lewis
Age: 19
Attributes {
Strength:15
Agility:24
Physical:32
}
Ability: none;
]
---
'Ability Duration without an ability? That’s like buying batteries for a fshlight you don’t own,’ Crow muttered. ‘Maybe he thinks choosing this will unlock one ter… yeah, that’s the only thing that makes sense.’
Then I shifted my gaze to the two brothers, focusing on Eis. ‘This guy... if he keeps going like this, he’s gonna die because of his own choices,’ Crow added grimly. I gave a subtle nod in agreement.
"So, anything you guys want to ask?" I asked ftly, keeping all emotion out of my voice. I didn’t know why, but it felt right.
Naomi stepped forward. “Yeah. Why the hell are you dressed like that? And where are we going? And why are we even going?”
The others behind her nodded silently.
‘Shit, I thought dressing like this would make me feel like a leader,’ Crow grumbled. I gnced around, noticing more people were watching our group.
"I can’t tell you just yet," I said, lowering my voice. "Too many ears around. I’ll expin everything on the road."
Then I gestured to my outfit—only my hands were visible. "And this? This is because I’m your leader."
I paused. "But not your usual kind of leader. We’re in an apocalypse. I need to keep my identity hidden. I want to move through public areas without anyone recognizing me."
‘Yeah, easier for them to remember a full white mask than some random average guy’s face,’ Crow added.
From the edge of the crowd, I caught a few whispers:
“Is this guy for real?”
“Are they forming a cult or something?”
“Shit, someone call the cops.”
“They’re like 8 meters away—and the police are busy anyway.”
‘You could always turn around and commit their faces to memory,’ Crow suggested. I didn’t react.
He added with a smirk, ‘Actually, that st guy sounds smart. Maybe we should invite him. Now turn around!’
brushing off Crow’s thoughts. “Don’t worry—if I had bad intentions for any of you five, I wouldn’t be giving a speech. It’d already be over.”
Naomi raised an eyebrow, arms crossed, a smirk tugging at her lips. “Yeah? But your face is covered. You could do the same thing again, no one would even recognize you.”
I sighed and facepalmed. With exaggerated reluctance, I peeled off the mask and slowly turned around, letting each of them get a good look at my face.
‘Fuck, just kill me now…’ Crow groaned. He wasn’t a fan of this pn either.
I finished the slow 360° and gave them a deadpan smile. “Happy now? Anything else?”
“Nope, I’m good,” Naomi said—and burst into loud ughter, not even trying to hide it.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Lena, Nathan, Ethan, and Samantha all grinning, barely holding back their chuckles. Even the new guy cracked a smile.
Pulling the mask back over my face, I turned to the remaining four newcomers. “What about you guys? You in, or not?”
Each of them nodded or voiced a quiet, “I’ll go.”
I gave a single nod. “Good. Let’s move.”
But Nathan stepped in front of me. “Mark—”
I cmped a hand over his mouth before he could finish. “Shhh.”
‘Let’s just go full leader mode,’ Crow chimed in with wicked glee.
I looked around the crowd, catching every eavesdropper and hanger-on. My voice rang out, clear and commanding. “Call me Crow.”
Then, remembering the mask covering my face, I raised my chin slightly. “No—call me White Crow.”
I turned toward Nathan, who stood right in front of me. I couldn’t read his face—was he about to ugh, cry, or punch me? Either way, he looked like he needed a wake-up call.
SLAP!
I sandwiched his cheeks between my palms—not too hard, but loud enough to echo across the pce.
“White Crow, your leader, is speaking! Say it, my people!” I boomed dramatically.
‘Laugh at me, and I’ll drag you all down with me,’ Crow muttered with dark amusement.
Nathan’s cheeks turned bright red. “Someone needs to stay behind and guard this pce,” he muttered, clearly flustered. “I’ll volunteer.”
He raised a hand to smack me on the head, but I caught it mid-swing. “Fine,” I said, looking around. “You guard this pce for me. Keep it safe.”
I let go of his wrist and turned away—but before I could take a full step, something fshed at the edge of my vision.
Instinct kicked in. I lunged forward.
SWOOSH!
BOOM!
I spun around.
The metal rods had smmed into the floor, scattering splinters across the ground.
Nathan stood there, one in each hand, awkwardly trying to hide them behind his back like a guilty kid caught red-handed.
Looking at the others, I raised my voice just enough to carry. “What are you wai
ting for? Let’s move.”
Without waiting for a response, I turned on my heel and walked toward the exit. One by one, they followed—though a few were clearly holding back ughter, their muffled chuckles trailing behind me like echoes of a joke I wasn’t in on.
