Chapter 294: Chapter 294: Find Something to Do

Shirley Lucas spent nearly the entire night collecting supplies without a moment’s rest.

As the inky black of the horizon began to fade into a deep blue, he knew they couldn’t stay any longer.

"The logistics center had the most supplies. What a shame."

Shirley Lucas said, his voice weak with exhaustion.

"Even if we had time, you’re nearly out of Superpower. We need to get everyone out as soon as possible."

By the time Nina Jacobs said this, the group had already returned to the basement.

Shirley Lucas had cleared out eleven supply points in just under six hours, which was already his absolute limit.

As for the remaining three supply points, they were mostly on the other side of Aethelgard.

She had already cleared out the largest one—the logistics center.

Including Aidan Keaton and his companions, there were twenty-one people in the basement, all of whom were now staring at Nina Jacobs in astonishment.

"You... you’re really going to get us out of here?"

The middle-aged woman from before, Chloe Ulrich, asked.

She was a Strength Element Superpower User, but at fifty-two, she didn’t want to be a burden on these young people.

"What are you talking about, Miss Ulrich? You and Mr. Caldwell are incredible people. You can’t give up on yourselves."

Aidan Keaton said.

Although Blaine Caldwell wasn’t a Superpower User and was nearing retirement age, Aidan Keaton knew he was an agronomist. During their time here, they had even eaten vegetables Blaine had grown using hydroponics.

’Every single person here deserves to live.’

Joanne Page glanced at the time. "It’s about time," she said.

The people who had tried to escape before were all shot and killed on that inter-city highway.

That meant the side road from the city gate to the highway should, at least, be safe.

For now, they had to get through the city gate first.

As dawn approached, Chloe Ulrich changed into her most treasured sneakers. They were a gift from her daughter before the apocalypse, and they were the last thing she had left of her.

"Ready?"

Nina Jacobs felt like giving the well-equipped Chloe Ulrich a thumbs-up. Athletic pants, an outdoor jacket, a safety helmet, and a baseball bat.

She looked like a total pro.

"I’m ready. Let’s go!"

Chloe Ulrich was nervous, too, a feeling that peaked when they reached ground level.

However, she had killed zombies before, so she was surprisingly less afraid when faced with the swarm gathering around them.

’If I don’t make it out of this, I’ll go down fighting!’

Just as Chloe Ulrich raised her baseball bat high to meet the enemy, a Fire Serpent roared past her ear.

BOOM!

The Fire Serpent slammed into the group of zombies, instantly decimating their ranks.

Just as a few zombies continued to give chase, rows of Stone Spikes erupted from the center of the road, impaling some and blocking the path of those behind them.

"Miss Ulrich, it’s time to go."

Nina Jacobs prompted, seeing Chloe Ulrich frozen in a daze.

"Oh, oh, right!"

Chloe Ulrich scrambled to catch up.

Her eyes, along with everyone else’s, were filled with shock and joyful surprise. ’Maybe this time, we can really escape!’

Things went awry as the group was climbing into the railcar.

Several Mutated Zombies had caught up, one of them a particularly nasty Wind Element type.

In a single leap, the Wind Element zombie landed at the head of the group.

SWOOSH! SWOOSH!

Several Wind Blades shot out, accompanied by the zombie’s sharp claws.

Joanne Page formed a Metal Shield to block for the others, while Aidan Keaton and Frederick Langdon surrounded a Wood Element zombie.

Just as Frederick Langdon was about to strike, a wood thorn erupted from the ground and pierced through the Wood Element zombie.

They looked over in surprise. It was Nina Jacobs.

"We’re out of time,"

Nina Jacobs said. The zombies she had lured to the area above the logistics center the other night had spotted them and were now swarming in their direction.

At the same time, the Wind Element zombie at the front had its head caved in by Wayne Warner.

"Goes to show, in the face of absolute strength, all fancy moves are useless."

Joanne Page knew this was no time for admiration, however.

The walls of Aethelgard were constructed from thick, poured concrete, then coated on both sides with a special fireproof and rustproof material.

The escape route was a narrow gap where two sections of the wall met.

Gold and Earth Element Superpower Users had worked together to punch through that gap, creating an opening just wide enough for one person to pass through sideways.

Under Wayne Warner’s protection, the entire group made it through the gap one by one.

Aidan Keaton’s hands were still shaking.

’They had actually made it out!’

"We’re out?"

Listening to the roars of the zombies within the city walls and the sound of the railcar being destroyed, reality finally sank in for the group.

The horizon was streaked with the pale white of dawn, and the bright sunlight eagerly blanketed the earth.

Excitement slowly bloomed on everyone’s faces. They had escaped the Zombie City!

They had taken this step together!

However, Aidan Keaton and the others knew that the road ahead was the most dangerous part of their journey.

Once spotted, they would be shot on sight.

In fact, she was already surprised that no one had spotted them yet.

’Had Nina Jacobs and her group done something?’

"Don’t you think this city has been sealed for too long?"

But Nina Jacobs had turned to look back at Aethelgard. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

Aethelgard, a city that should have been a nexus of roads, was sealed up like a prison.

Shirley Lucas’s eyes lit up at her words. ’She’s not thinking of opening the city gates, is she?’

But she shook her head and smiled.

"They’ll open sooner or later. But before that, we can give them something to do."

Shirley Lucas understood immediately.

He produced an identical bus from his pocket dimension. He had over twenty such buses stored inside.

"Everyone, get on the bus. No matter what happens, don’t get off."

Shirley Lucas said.

’Nina Jacobs was right,’ he thought. ’Time to give those people something to do.’

In the temporary guard camp, snores rose and fell one after another.

The room reeked of alcohol. David Rowan and the others were still sleeping when they heard the sound of an alarm.

He shot up in a reflex.

A familiar bus was parked outside. Shirley Lucas came running off it, his face pale.

"Rowan! Zombies! There are zombies outside!"

Behind Shirley Lucas were Nina Jacobs and the others.

All of them were people they had seen the day before.

"What’s all the shouting for? If there are zombies, just kill them."

David Rowan yawned. It was common for zombies to show up around here.

"No, didn’t you say yesterday there’s a Zombie City over there? It looks like the zombies are coming from that direction!"

Shirley Lucas tried to explain.

"What did you say? That’s impossible!"

David Rowan immediately realized the severity of the situation.

He rushed to the metal watchtower outside, taking the stairs two and three at a time.

His buddy on the tower was still sleeping soundly, thanks to the alcohol.

David Rowan grabbed the binoculars and looked through them, his face instantly paling.

A huge horde of zombies was stampeding down the inter-city highway!

"Get up! Everybody, stop sleeping! Get up!"

David Rowan viciously kicked the man on the ground, then fired a shot into the air.

"Rowan, we’re going to make a run for it. This highway is too scary, so we’ll take a detour. You all take care,"

Shirley Lucas said, his voice full of sympathy.

’Faced with zombies, it’s only natural for us to run, right?’

But David Rowan had no time to spare for Shirley Lucas and his group.

The bus drove toward the barrier gate at the junction.

Conrad Hawthorne, who had rushed down from upstairs, glanced outside the camp.

He had the feeling that something was off, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.

Only when the barrier gate closed again did he realize what it was.

"David, they have an extra bus!"

Conrad Hawthorne shouted from the floor above.

’How did two buses become three?!’

’They had just enough people for two yesterday!’