The observation floor remained filled with tension after the new group of survivors appeared outside the tower gates. Rain slowly began falling over the ruined city while weak spotlights illuminated the exhausted people standing below. Men supported injured companions while women wrapped blankets around crying children trembling from cold and fear. Some survivors could barely stand anymore after traveling through infected territory for days. Their clothes were torn. Their faces looked hollow from starvation and exhaustion. Yet despite everything, hope still remained visible in their eyes while they stared toward the tower.

Because this tower meant safety.Or at least the closest thing remaining to safety in this dead world.

Inside the observation floor, civilians and soldiers argued loudly while watching the situation unfold below.

"We can’t let them inside!"

"They have children with them!"

"What if they’re infected?!"

"We barely survived the last outbreak!"

"They’ll die out there!"

Fear and guilt mixed together violently. Nobody wanted innocent people to die outside the gates, but nobody wanted another hidden infection inside the tower either. The memory of yesterday’s outbreak still haunted everyone.

Arata stood silently near the shattered observation window while rain reflected faintly across his dark eyes. The system warning still remained inside his mind.

[Warning: One Survivor Carries Hidden Infection]

His expression hardened slightly.One infected person.That was enough to destroy the entire tower.

Yuna leaned beside the window while watching the arguing civilians nearby. "Humans really are amazing," she muttered. "The world ends and people still find time to fight with each other."

Reina crossed her arms calmly. "Fear makes people selfish."

"No," Yuna answered quietly. "Fear reveals what people already were."

That answer made the atmosphere heavier.

Below, one older man outside the barricade suddenly stepped forward despite the rain pouring over him. He raised both hands slowly toward the tower defenders.

"Please!" he shouted desperately. "We know you’re scared! But we have injured people! Children!" His voice cracked slightly. "We’ve already lost half our group trying to reach this place!"

Behind him, several exhausted survivors lowered their heads hopelessly while others looked toward the tower with desperate expressions.

A small girl clung tightly to her mother’s arm while shivering violently from cold rain.

A wounded teenage boy struggled to remain standing while blood soaked through bandages around his stomach.

An elderly woman sat weakly against one abandoned car breathing heavily.

The scene silently crushed whatever emotional walls still remained inside several civilians watching from above.

Airi’s expression tightened immediately. "...We can’t leave them outside."

One nervous soldier beside her looked conflicted. "But if one of them is infected—"

"I know."

Silence followed again.Arata continued observing the group carefully.

Then suddenly—The system screen appeared again.

[Carrier Identified]

[Location: Survivor Group Rear Left]

Arata’s eyes shifted instantly toward one man standing near the back of the survivor group. Mid-thirties. Thin build. Gray jacket. Supporting an injured woman beside him.

Completely normal appearance.No obvious symptoms, But the system marker hovered faintly above him.

[Early Infection Stage]

Arata narrowed his eyes slightly.The infected man himself probably didn’t even realize it yet.

"...There’s one," Arata said quietly.

Everyone nearby looked toward him immediately."What?" Reina asked sharply.

"One carrier." he said calmly.

The atmosphere instantly became suffocating.Yuna sighed heavily. "...Of course there is."

Several soldiers immediately gripped their weapons tighter while nervous civilians stepped backward from the observation windows.

"Then we can’t open the gates."

"We have no choice."

"They’re already dead."

Airi suddenly looked toward Arata seriously. "...Can the infection still be stopped?"

The question caught everyone slightly off guard.

Because nobody asked that before.The tower already accepted infection as a death sentence.

Arata hesitated briefly before answering. "...I don’t know."

Technically true.The system never explained enough.

But deep down—He suspected something.

Because unlike ordinary infected transformations, the carrier outside showed extremely slow progression. Almost suppressed somehow.

Miyu adjusted her glasses while studying the group below carefully through binoculars. "...No visible mutation yet." She looked toward Arata thoughtfully. "Interesting."

Yuna groaned softly. "Please don’t say ’interesting’ while talking about zombie infections."

Arata remained silent for several moments.

Then finally—"Open the outer barricade only."

The soldiers froze.

"What?"

"No direct tower access yet," Arata continued calmly. "Move them into the security checkpoint area first."

Reina immediately understood. "...Isolation screening."

Arata nodded slightly.The older soldiers exchanged uncertain looks before finally agreeing. It was risky. Extremely risky. But leaving civilians outside guaranteed death anyway.

Orders spread quickly across the tower afterward.

Soldiers repositioned defensive lines near the lower entrance while civilians prepared emergency medical stations inside the outer checkpoint zone. Several armed defenders aimed toward the gates nervously while heavy metal barricades slowly opened beneath the rainstorm outside.

The survivor group reacted instantly.Some cried from relief.

Others collapsed from exhaustion immediately after realizing they survived.

The little girl near the front hugged her mother tightly while sobbing.

"Thank you..."Watching that scene made several tower civilians visibly emotional despite their fears.

Because deep down—Everyone remembered being desperate survivors once too.

The new arrivals entered cautiously while soldiers checked each individual carefully for visible bite marks or infection symptoms. Medical volunteers distributed water and blankets while exhausted survivors sat weakly against checkpoint walls trying to recover.

Airi immediately moved toward the wounded civilians without hesitation.

"Bring the injured here!"

Despite exhaustion herself, she started treating people one after another while organizing temporary medical stations rapidly. Blood covered her hands again within minutes.

Arata watched silently nearby.And once again—He realized something.Even after everything humanity lost—People like Airi still existed.That alone felt almost unbelievable now.Meanwhile the infected carrier remained seated quietly near the rear checkpoint area beside the injured woman he traveled with. His expression looked exhausted but calm. Completely unaware of the danger inside his own body.

The system screen hovered faintly again.

[Infection Progression: 18%]

Still slow, Normal infection spread much faster.Something felt wrong.

Yuna walked beside Arata while eating stolen crackers from somewhere. "You’re staring at him like you already know something."

"I do." he said. Her playful expression faded slightly. "...The infected guy?"

Arata nodded once.

Yuna sighed loudly before sitting beside the checkpoint railing. "...So what now?"

"That depends." Arata said.

"On what?" yuna said .

Arata’s eyes remained fixed toward the infected survivor quietly.

"...Whether he turns."

Hours passed slowly afterward while the checkpoint remained under heavy security. Most new survivors slept almost immediately after receiving food and medical attention. Others cried quietly from relief while speaking with tower civilians for the first time.

Stories spread everywhere, Destroyed shelters.Massacred survivor camps.Mutated infected appearing across the city.Entire military zones collapsing.

Humanity outside the tower looked worse than anyone imagined.

One older survivor spoke with soldiers quietly near the barricades.

"...There are intelligent infected now," he whispered fearfully. "We saw one controlling a horde near the western districts."

Several soldiers exchanged nervous looks instantly.Another survivor nodded weakly. "The infected are changing."

Arata overheard everything silently, And deep down—The system warnings felt more dangerous now.

Evolution, Adaptation, Resonance, Those words kept repeating inside his mind endlessly.

Late into the night, most civilians finally slept while soldiers maintained defensive positions around the checkpoint area. Rain still poured outside while distant thunder echoed across the ruined city.

Airi sat beside one sleeping child while rubbing her tired eyes weakly. Her white medical coat now carried bloodstains, dirt, and exhaustion from treating wounded people nonstop for hours.

"You should rest," Arata said quietly while approaching her.

Airi looked up slightly before giving a tired smile. "You should too."

Neither of them moved. Yuna, sitting nearby against the wall, immediately smirked after noticing the atmosphere. "...Wow." She looked between them dramatically. "This apocalypse romance is progressing nicely."

Airi instantly became embarrassed. "Y-Yuna!"

"What? I’m supporting emotional development." Reina sighed from nearby. "...You’re impossible."

Yuna grinned proudly. "Thank you."

Even Arata looked slightly less tense for one brief moment.

Then suddenly—The system warning exploded across his vision violently.

[CRITICAL ALERT]

[Carrier Infection Progression Accelerating]

[Mutation Response Triggered]

Arata’s expression changed instantly.

The infected survivor suddenly collapsed onto the checkpoint floor nearby while screaming in pain, Everyone froze.

The man’s body convulsed violently while black veins spread rapidly across his neck and arms. Nearby civilians panicked immediately while soldiers raised weapons toward him.

"H-HELP HIM!"

"What’s happening?!"

The injured woman beside him cried desperately while trying to hold him still. "Taro! TARO!" 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

The infected man screamed again before coughing blood across the floor. Arata moved instantly.

"BACK AWAY!" he said loudly.The checkpoint exploded into panic.Soldiers aimed rifles, Children cried.

Civilians screamed while retreating from the infected survivor, But something immediately felt wrong, The transformation looked different, Slower, Painful.

The infected man clutched his own head desperately while struggling against whatever happened inside his body.

"HELP ME..." he cried weakly.Then suddenly—He stopped convulsing.Silence filled the checkpoint.Everyone stared nervously.

The man slowly lowered his hands while breathing heavily, Still human, No glowing eyes, No violent mutation, Nothing.

Even the system paused briefly.

[Mutation Progression Interrupted]

Arata’s eyes narrowed sharply, "Impossible" He Said.

The infected man looked around weakly while trembling violently. "...W-What happened...?"

Nobody answered immediately, Because nobody understood what they just witnessed.

Then Miyu stepped closer carefully while observing him through the system interface.

"...Interesting."

Yuna buried her face in her hands. "PLEASE stop saying that word."

Miyu ignored her completely. "...The infection stabilized itself temporarily."

Reina frowned immediately. "...That shouldn’t happen." "But it did," Miyu answered calmly.

The system screen appeared again before Arata.

[Abnormal Host Detected]

[Mutation Resistance Present]

[Potential Evolution Irregularity Identified]

Arata stared toward the infected survivor silently.Then slowly—A horrifying realization formed inside his mind.

If infection could stabilize... Then maybe humanity and infected were no longer completely separate anymore.