How Zombies Survive in the Apocalypse

“…”

Aiden briefly glared at the fallen Wielder.

Just in case it showed any signs of movement.

However, the Wielder’s brain had clearly been obliterated, and after confirming that, Aiden shifted his gaze towards the woman beyond it.

She was an African American woman in her mid-twenties.

After witnessing the gruesome remains of the man who had just been killed by the Wielder, she had tightly shut her eyes, overwhelmed by the grisliness of the scene.

Aiden stepped over the Wielder’s corpse and approached her.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes… I’m okay…”

As she looked towards Aiden, her expression gradually morphed into one of bewilderment.

She had likely initially assumed he was one of her companions before realizing that wasn’t the case.

“…Who are you, exactly?”

The woman mechanically aimed the rifle she was holding towards Aiden.

Aware that her weapon’s magazine was empty, Aiden casually continued speaking.

“I’m just a passing junk dealer.”

“…”

The woman’s gaze still regarded Aiden with evident distrust.

In response, Aiden let out a brief sigh before attempting to converse with her.

* * *

Some time later…

After finally lowering Keira Jones’ guard, a member of the Liberation Front, Aiden was listening to her recount the events that had transpired here.

“…That’s how it happened.”

At the end of her explanation, Aiden nodded.

The Liberation Front had dispatched a scouting party numbering over a hundred individuals to this location.

While not an excessive amount, for an organization with a total strength barely exceeding a thousand, it was a substantial investment.

“My condolences. The losses seem quite severe.”

Aiden spoke those words as he surveyed their surroundings.

While no dedicated lighting sources were present, the interior of this shopping mall with its glass walls provided ample illumination, revealing a harrowing scene. Not a single surface was untouched by blood splatters, nor a floor unstained by scattered viscera. A poignant depiction of the ferocious battle between zombies and humans that had unfolded here.

Moreover, this building now remained deathly silent.

According to Keira, she was the sole survivor among over a hundred people the Liberation Front had committed here.

An immense hemorrhage for their organization.

No matter what supplies they might have secured, such combat losses were likely a far greater detriment.

“It’s all… because of that person.”

In response, Keira gritted her teeth and muttered those words as if reciting a curse.

Perhaps referring to a comrade whose actions had contributed to this failure.

Unable to follow the abrupt shift in topic, Aiden simply waited for her to continue.

“That bastard Nelson is the one to blame for this…!”

However, unexpectedly, the target of Keira’s cursing was none other than the leader of her own Liberation Front.

As Wielder’s bodily fluids spattered across his helmet’s visor, Aiden wiped it clean with his sleeve before speaking up.

“Seems you harbor a lot of resentment towards your organization.”

“Resentment? Ha…”

Aiden probed gently, but Keira merely let out a deep sigh, showing no inclination to elaborate further.

Perhaps judging Aiden, an outsider, as someone she shouldn’t divulge such matters to.

In that case, Aiden inwardly attempted to deduce the reasons behind Keira’s discontent himself.

For a frontline combatant like her to criticize the command would typically stem from one of two causes:

Either inadequate supplies or doubts about the operation itself.

In other words, a belief that the overall unit management was mishandled.

However, judging by the scattered weapons and Keira’s own armaments, supply issues didn’t seem to be a factor. Additionally, having been deployed from their base just a few hours away, shortages of food or water were equally unlikely.

Which left only one possible answer.

“Could it be that the operation was reckless from the start?”

Aiden posed that question as he surveyed the gruesome corpses strewn about.

While he didn’t know exactly what the Liberation Front had sought here, the outcome had ultimately been the mutual annihilation of both their scouting party and the zombies.

One could argue they had achieved victory by securing whatever supplies remained.

However, by any measure, the losses far outweighed the gains from such a Pyrrhic victory.

His speculation seemed to hit the mark, as Keira immediately reacted to Aiden’s words.

“Of course! That bastard sent us here despite knowing there were mutants lurking!”

The previously tight-lipped Keira immediately responded.

And once her floodgates had opened, her words continued to pour forth unabated.

“This was a place they had already failed to secure three times prior. The command undoubtedly knew full well how dangerous it was. We shouldn’t have come here. But that idiot James insisted on it for some self-serving bullshit about ‘doing it for others.’ I warned against it, but that fool…”

Her harsh rant trailed off as Keira trudged over to the spot where the man she had mentioned lay dead, his remains a gory mess.

She then slumped down in front of his corpse.

In that somber atmosphere, Keira’s gaze wavered with emotion.

After briefly observing her, Aiden spoke up in a level tone.

“But weren’t you in need of medicine? I heard there was a disease spreading within the Liberation Front.”

“…You seem to know quite a lot for just a passing junk dealer.”

Keira muttered those words in a dejected manner.

“Yes, that was the pretext. That we needed to secure this place to obtain medicine for the outbreak. But it was all a lie.”

“A lie, you say?”

“A fabrication. Just look at the timing. After the third scouting party was annihilated and suspicions started arising, suddenly there’s a disease outbreak. Does that really seem like a coincidence?”

As she spoke, Keira rummaged through the tattered remnants of James’ clothing.

Eventually, she found something within – likely a pendant belonging to her deceased comrade, salvaging his personal effects.

“Then why is Nelson so obsessed with this place? A leader wouldn’t intentionally sacrifice their own people without reason.”

“What reason could there be? Obviously, it’s so he can survive on his own.”

Keira spat out those words.

She rose from her crouched position and proceeded to check the remains of another fallen comrade.

“I’ve heard rumors that Nelson is suffering from some kind of illness.”

“An illness?”

“I don’t know the exact details. The only doctor in the Liberation Front is his personal physician, and that guy is a complete quack.”

“So the Liberation Front lacks the necessary medicine to treat his condition…”

Aiden trailed off, allowing Keira to infer the rest.

In response, she merely offered a derisive snort.

“…Are you certain about that?”

“If I was certain, I would have confronted Nelson instead of coming here.”

“…”

“I have my suspicions, but no concrete evidence. Nothing to pin on him. That’s the problem. If I had voiced these accusations within the Liberation Front, his supporters would have likely tried to kill me.”

Keira’s tone was self-deprecating.

Mere baseless ramblings voiced before an utter stranger of a junk dealer, devoid of any credibility.

However, Aiden didn’t entirely dismiss her conjectures as groundless.

As she had stated, there had been three prior failed attempts here. No matter how desperately they needed medical supplies, sacrificing such manpower would have been an excessive investment for any survivor group.

And this latest attempt was no exception.

The previous failures should have provided them with a reasonable estimate of the zombie presence they would encounter here. Yet they had forcibly deployed a force doomed to mutual annihilation, clearly not for the Liberation Front’s benefit, but driven by some other motive to secure this location’s supplies.

“Are you a lieutenant?”

Aiden inquired, indicating the rank insignia on Keira’s arm.

While not a particularly high rank in a conventional military, the Liberation Front’s highest rank was merely that of colonel.

So Keira’s position was the third-highest, implying her status wasn’t insignificant.

“A lieutenant? What a joke. Four years ago, I was just a violin player. What kind of lieutenant does that make me?”

Although Keira dismissed it, her rank still held meaning for Aiden.

“There’s a favor I’d like to ask.”

At Aiden’s direct statement, Keira’s eyebrows raised slightly.

However, soon recalling his profession as a junk dealer, she opened her mouth with a wry smile.

“Right, you said you were a junk dealer. You want payment, is that it?”

“You catch on quickly.”

“But I don’t really have much to offer…”

“I want to formally trade with the Liberation Front. As a junk dealer, I’d like you to enable me to receive requests from your organization.”

Having voiced his request, Aiden looked Keira squarely in the eye.

Of course, this was something he had also asked of Parker, the original client for this request.

However, the chances of this request being accepted were undoubtedly higher coming from Keira.

The difference between a sergeant’s and a lieutenant’s rank, a sentry and a combatant’s respective roles – within the Liberation Front hierarchy, their standings were incomparable.

So to increase his chances of success, Aiden had made this request of Keira instead.

Even if it meant forfeiting Parker’s offered compensation, it wasn’t a significant enough loss to be concerned about.

“…”

Meanwhile, Keira seemed to deeply contemplate Aiden’s request, silently salvaging her fallen comrades’ personal effects.

After retrieving a few more items, she finally opened her mouth with a sigh.

“I’ll talk to them about it. But I don’t recommend getting involved with that bastard.”

“I have no choice. I’m a junk dealer, after all.”

As a junk dealer, his livelihood depended on accepting requests.Regardless of personal preferences, he had to trade with the Liberation Front and their leader, Nelson.

Seeming to understand his rationale, Keira simply nodded.

“Alright, then… do you also need an escort?”

Aiden added that he intended to depart from this place.

“I would appreciate it.”

Keira’s response was inevitable.

Having expended all her ammunition and lost her comrades, she had no other viable option.

And so, they exited the water park premises.

Heading back towards the Liberation Front’s base once more.

“Ah, right. It might take a day or two for the results. But… where are you currently staying? I’ll need to inform you of the outcome.”

In response to Keira’s question, Aiden briefly contemplated.

While it was only a temporary shelter, he was hesitant to reveal the location where he and his companions were residing.

However, Amarillo ultimately fell under the Liberation Front’s territory.

Any attempt at concealment would be futile, as they could easily locate it if they truly wished.

“A small church south of your base. There’s a park nearby.”

“Ah, I know the place. Alright, I’ll let you know once I have permission.”

And so, Aiden and Keira promised to reunite once matters had been settled.

* * *

The next morning, at Aiden’s group’s temporary base…

“Someone’s approaching.”

Not long after sunrise, Arian spoke up with a sharp tone. Aiden, who had been maintaining his firearms, immediately reacted.

“People?”

“Yes. Quite a few of them. Around a dozen, approaching from the north.”

Aiden’s brow furrowed as he retrieved his helmet.

The north was the direction of the Liberation Front’s base.

Could these be forces dispatched from there?

It wasn’t an impossibility.

Just the previous day, he had informed Keira, a Liberation Front member, of this location.

However, even if that were the case, this visit raised numerous perplexing questions regarding their intent.

Yet Aiden didn’t have time to ponder it at length.

Not bothering to conceal their movements, they swiftly arrived near the church.

“Combat might break out. For now, Arian, protect Sadie.”

Unable to discern their objectives, Aiden assumed the worst-case scenario, instructing his two companions to withdraw from the entrance.

With a grim expression, Arian moved with Sadie towards the rear of the modest church building.

“…”

Aiden positioned himself beside the door, raising his pistol as if anticipating someone to burst through at any moment.

As he maintained that tense vigil-

Tak tak-

The sound of approaching footsteps grew increasingly closer.

Those footsteps soon halted right in front of the small church door.

Then, a knock resounded.

“Is anyone present?”

Contrary to Aiden’s expectations, it was a cordial approach rather than an outright assault.

However, he didn’t let his guard down, simply allowing his voice to pass through from behind the door.

“Who is it?”

“I am Lieutenant Harris of the Liberation Front.”

The individual on the other side readily introduced himself without hesitation.

This Harris, standing upright behind the wooden door, displayed an unusual lack of caution. As if the prospect of bullets ripping through and raining upon him hadn’t even crossed his mind.

However, the words that followed from Harris were even more unexpected than Aiden could have imagined.

“Colonel Nelson has come to commend you for yesterday’s events.”

“What…?”

Finding those words nearly impossible to believe, Aiden peered through a small window beside the door.

There, he indeed witnessed an individual wearing a colonel’s peaked cap among an armed escort party.

And standing before them with an uneasy expression was none other than Keira.

Aiden couldn’t begin to comprehend how the situation had escalated to this point.

The only certainty was that they didn’t seem to have any hostile intentions.

Of the dozen or so individuals present, most were clustered together, solely dedicated to providing security for the colonel figure. Their demeanor didn’t resemble preparations for an assault on the church premises.

So Aiden cautiously opened the door.

Upon doing so, Harris naturally stepped back, allowing the colonel to step forward from his protective escort.

A man of Northeast Asian descent in his 40s, with an unpleasantly oily demeanor.

“Are you the junk dealer known as Aiden Lee?”

He inquired.

Maintaining a wary stance, Aiden nodded in affirmation.