How Zombies Survive in the Apocalypse

Chapter 131



As soon as Arian revealed herself, those at the radio tower immediately opened fire.

Gunpowder let out a fierce roar, and dozens of bullets rained down like an avalanche.

However, not a single one struck Arian.

Woosh!

Arian, her crimson eyes glowing, lunged towards them, leaving a red serpentine afterimage.

She was too fast to be hit by gunfire.

Simultaneously, an inexplicable dread assailed the people who had been aiming their guns at her.

For no apparent reason, their hands gripping the firearms began trembling.

It was only in that moment that they realized…

What had descended upon them wasn’t human.

“Uu… Aaaargh!”

Someone, their sanity consumed by terror, let out a scream.

They deeply depressed the trigger towards the area of that crimson aura, firing until their magazine was completely empty.

Oblivious that the direction they aimed was where their own comrades were.

“Aaack!”

A woman struck by the indiscriminate gunfire collapsed, clutching her abdomen.

However, her suffering didn’t last long.

Shlick!

A crimson blade abruptly flew forth, slicing halfway through her neck to sever her carotid artery.

The last sight her eyes beheld was her own blood spurting from her throat into the air.

As Arian charged into the midst of the enemies during that chaos, Aiden precisely sniped those who had been thrown into disarray from behind.

Bang!

A man who had been waiting atop the radio tower to snipe Arian was instead sniped by Aiden.

His skull pierced, he staggered before plummeting down.

Losing two comrades in an instant, the man who had been screaming in terror abandoned his rifle and began fleeing.

But he didn’t get far before encountering Arian and collapsing on the spot.

The final person was inside the building.

Armed with a pistol, he attempted to target Arian’s blind spot through a window, but couldn’t evade Aiden’s crossfire.

And just like that, the battle swiftly concluded.

With only four ordinary people as opponents, it was never going to last long from the outset.

“Are you unharmed?”

Arian rejoined Aiden and Sadie.

Not a single bullet had properly flown towards Sadie’s direction.

Aiden nodded once.

“By the way, what were these people up to?”

Arian frowned slightly.

For Arian, who tried to engage in minimal dialogue whenever possible, these people hadn’t even given her that opportunity – sheer brutes.

“Who knows. We’ll have to investigate now.”

Aiden spoke indifferently as he closely examined the trap Arian had triggered.

Had these people originally nested in this mountainous area?

The trap was so stealthily and meticulously concealed that even Aiden would have struggled to detect it.

It wasn’t something that could be noticed after just a cursory attempt or two.

“This is…”

After observing that trap, Aiden retrieved the crossbow component that had been used as part of the mechanism.

While somewhat worn, it was a modern metallic crossbow coated in black paint.

Moreover, its size was small enough to be suitable for trap usage.

The advantage of such a crossbow was clear.

Despite being a ranged attack weapon, it produced minimal noise, making it unparalleled for stealthy actions against ordinary zombies.

However, its drawback was also obvious – the arrows, its ammunition, were exceedingly difficult to obtain.

Even the bullets for the once ubiquitous firearms were now in short supply.

So procuring crossbow bolts, which hardly anyone possessed from the outset, was literally like searching for needles in a haystack.

Of course, there was the possibility of retrieving and reusing spent bolts.

But the fundamental premise of crossbow operation was stealthy movement.

So having one’s movements restricted for the sake of bolt recovery was inherently inefficient.

Naturally, its greatest shortcoming was its ineffectiveness against mutants.

Against those with rock-hard muscles and skulls that even bullets couldn’t penetrate, a crossbow could only be used against ordinary zombies.

So for Aiden, who had no need for stealthy maneuvers against regular zombies, it wasn’t a particularly useful weapon.

However, it wasn’t entirely without purpose either.

There was someone else who could use it – Sadie.

The crossbow’s size wasn’t too large, and its weight was light as well.

When Aiden tested loading it, the draw force required didn’t seem excessive either.

While not quite child-sized, it appeared to be a model focused on reducing the burden of operation rather than sheer power.

“You should probably hold on to this.”

So Aiden handed it to Sadie.

Sadie observed the crossbow with a curious gaze.

To a child, its complex structure must have seemed puzzling.

“I’ll teach you how to use it later.”

“Okay!”

Sadie responded.

Having already become accustomed to firing pistols, handling a crossbow shouldn’t pose much difficulty for her.

With that thought, Aiden turned his attention back towards the radio tower atop the mountain.

“Then let’s proceed. I’ll check the bodies, so…”

“Got it, I’ll keep Sadie with me.”

Aiden approached the fallen enemies while exercising caution against potential traps, intending to determine whether they were from LA or mere plunderers.

“Hmm…”

Their clothing and armaments were ordinary.

No different from any other plunderers.

However, emblazoned on their bodies was an arrow-shaped brand.

“What is this…?”

It was a pattern Aiden had never seen before.

Burn scars in inconspicuous areas like the sides, thighs, and inner arms – likely made by pressing a heated brand.

Could there be another group behind these people?

Come to think of it, it wasn’t that strange.

The systematic traps, alarm devices, and even the whistles they had used to call their comrades…

Those methodologies seemed too organized to have been established by a mere group of four roaming plunderers.

“So they belonged to a gang, huh.”

Aiden muttered those words softly.

However, that speculation left him with a lingering sense of disquiet.

For a gang, there would be no reason to come all the way to this radio tower.

The radio tower was a simple two-story brown building with a large spire erected atop it.

Just a small, isolated structure deep in the mountains – not a place with any noteworthy resources.

Unless it was for the purpose Aiden had come – to gather information or make contact with people themselves.

No gang would travel here solely for plundering supplies.

Then why had these people ventured this far?

Aiden had tried to unravel that, but the bodies offered no other clues.

So Aiden could only abandon further conjecture and simply collected the ammunition they had been using.

A few dozen rounds of rifle and pistol cartridges were secured.

Along with around 20 crossbow bolts.

Afterwards, Arian drained every drop of blood from the bodies.

As she did, the plunderers’ corpses dispersed like scattered ashes.

Witnessing that eerie sight, Aiden soon turned and headed into the radio tower.

The building beneath the soaring spire.

The door leading inside was already open.

“Hmm…”

Upon entering, Aiden unconsciously let out a small groan.

It was due to the overwhelmingly strong scent of blood permeating the building’s interior.

This must have been the smell of blood Arian had mentioned.

Aiden briefly looked back.

Arian, seeming to roughly guess what was inside, had remained at a distance with Sadie.

Reassured by this, Aiden ventured deeper inside.

There, he found the broadcast room from where the radio was being transmitted.

In front of the outward-facing windows, a table was placed with old broadcasting equipment on top of it. Beside that, a makeshift generator hummed as it supplied power, allowing the radio to continuously broadcast its signal.

On the opposite side was a firmly closed wooden door leading to a storage room.

The source of the blood scent was undoubtedly there.

After confirming no abnormalities in the broadcast room, Aiden unhesitatingly opened the storage room door.

Creeeeak-

The door made an ominous creaking sound as it moved.

It was then that sunlight poured into the windowless storage room, illuminating its interior.

There… the decapitated corpses of a man and woman were suspended upside-down by ropes.

“…”

Even before a gruesome sight that would make an ordinary person scream, Aiden calmly surveyed the room.

The unidentified man and woman were completely naked.

Moreover, beneath their hanging bodies was a large trough, seemingly to catch the blood draining from their bodies.

Upon realizing this, Aiden’s eyes narrowed slightly.

While it could be dismissed as the deeds of mere insane killers, this was an act of far lower depravity.

Leaving human corpses in such a state was quite literally for the purpose of draining their blood.

Like a hunter draining the blood from hunted game for the meat’s flavor.

So Aiden could barely guess the true nature of the plunderers who had been here.

“…Eaters, huh.”

A cult Aiden had only heard about by name.

While their actions were similar to the cultists encountered in Pittsburgh, they were an entirely separate group.

Reportedly, they followed a religion that sanctioned cannibalism.

Their numbers had been slowly growing as plunderers and wanderers became increasingly desperate from starvation.

“…”

Recalling that, Aiden clicked his tongue briefly.

The man and woman hanging here were likely the ones who had been broadcasting that radio urging others to go to LA.

However, that had been their misfortune.

Aiden wasn’t the only one capable of tracing the source of that radio broadcast.

And for these Eaters, who weren’t an ordinary gang but consumed human flesh, there was ample reason to descend upon this place.

Understanding that chain of events, Aiden first decided to properly handle the victims’ remains.

He brought down their upside-down hanging bodies and moved them outside the building.

Since their heads were missing and there were no tools like shovels, Aiden simply laid the corpses amid the vegetation and covered them with fallen leaves as much as possible.

After tending to the remains, Aiden returned to the radio tower.

It was to inspect the second floor he hadn’t explored yet.

The second floor could be accessed via an exterior staircase.

The radio tower’s second story was a small living area divided into several rooms.

Perhaps used by the deceased man and woman, it still contained miscellaneous items like clothing and sleeping bags.

Aiden searched those rooms.

As expected, any usable food or water supplies seemed to have already been taken care of by the Eaters, as none could be found.

However, there was something else Aiden was searching for.

Vehicle keys.

If these people had truly come from LA, Aiden expected they would have possessed a vehicle.

Indeed, outside the radio tower, a small used sedan was parked.

It was highly likely the vehicle they had arrived in, so if Aiden could find the keys, that would suffice.

In the midst of rummaging through some clothing, Aiden felt something rectangular.

He retrieved it, but its identity was something he hadn’t anticipated.

“This is…”

An identification card.

Not a pre-apocalypse driver’s license or employee ID that Aiden was familiar with.

Written on it were the words ‘LA Citizen ID’.

It contained the deceased man’s photograph, along with an unfamiliar identification number, job code, and issue date.

An innocuous item at first glance.

However, upon seeing it, Aiden’s eyes widened slightly.

The ID’s material wasn’t scrap plastic, but a properly manufactured one.

Moreover, the issue date was clearly more than a year after the onset of the zombie pandemic.

In other words, this was… substantial evidence validating the possibility of LA as an intact city for Aiden.

If the city of LA was truly capable of independently producing and issuing such identification cards…

Then its scale wasn’t comparable even to the largest survivor group Aiden had encountered – the Shreveport Alliance.

Taking photographs, manufacturing plastic IDs…

Didn’t that imply society’s infrastructure was nearly perfectly preserved there?

For Aiden, who had assumed all infrastructure and systems had already collapsed, it was nothing short of a shock.

“Perhaps…”

Which was why, upon seeing that ID card, Aiden revised his previous thoughts regarding LA.

Of course, not all his doubts were resolved by this single card, but a possibility had emerged.

The possibility that LA might be the only remaining city left in America.

Organizing those thoughts, Aiden continued his search.

The vehicle keys were soon discovered.

Left intact in one of the room’s drawers.

After completing his investigation, Aiden exited and rejoined his companions. He shared the information he had uncovered.

“Is that really true?”

Upon Aiden explaining the details about LA, even Arian seemed somewhat surprised.

However, Sadie showed no particular reaction, perhaps not fully grasping the implications yet.

“So… does this mean we have to go to LA now?”

Holding the LA Citizen ID, Arian asked that question.

But Aiden neither affirmed nor denied it.

“Even if LA is such a place, not much will change for us at the moment. If we find a suitable location along the way, we can stay there. We simply need to set LA as our ultimate destination.”

Aiden’s words were simple.

They would search for a base where Sadie could reside, just like they had been doing, but ultimately aim to reach LA in the end.

Arian nodded, seeming to understand.

“I suppose that works. But… you said there’s a new vehicle too?”

“Yeah, that one over there.”

Aiden pointed towards the brown compact car parked near the radio tower.

Upon seeing it, Arian tilted her head in confusion.

“Isn’t that a bit too small?”

It was only large enough for four people at most.

Moreover, with hardly any trunk space, they could barely load any luggage.

“It also seems quite old… just look at that mileage reading. It’s been driven a lot, hasn’t it?”

Contrary to Aiden’s words about a ‘new’ car, the vehicle here appeared extremely worn.

However, Aiden wasn’t unaware of that fact.

“You’re right. But we have no other choice.”

At that, Arian closed her mouth.

She already knew their large van they had been using until now could break down at any moment.

“Let’s at least test driving it down the mountain first. We need to find a place to stay for today, at minimum.”

Aiden’s words gained his companions’ agreement.

They boarded the new vehicle, and Aiden started the engine.

For some reason, the engine sound seemed rather weak.

Aiden carefully drove the vehicle down the mountain.

Until then, it seemed to be holding up decently.

However, the moment they found a hideout spot on the city outskirts…

As if it had been waiting, the vehicle’s engine spontaneously shut off.

Observing that, Aiden let out a resigned sigh.


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