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Apocalypse Healer - B1 Chapter 10
🕑 Added 2024-10-23 06:45:00 +0000 UTCNow that the Infected had been defeated, they made a run for it. The snarls and groans of Infected rang through their ears, but the group ignored them. At last, with David by their side, they weren’t afraid of getting infected.
But that didn’t mean they were ready to fight multiple groups of dozens of Infected in a row. They ran away from the sounds, only to run into more Infected near the other stairwell on the other side of the shopping center.
“Why are there so many all of a sudden?” Jack cursed in a whisper.
David had a guess, but he didn’t voice it out.
You guys didn’t expect to be the only survivors seeking protection in the shopping center, did you?
The shopping center was a good hiding spot, but only until the Infected, in the dozens, charged inside. At this point, staying in the shopping center was likely more dangerous than outside.
“We need to leave the shopping center,” Sebastian declared, his expression souring as one of the common Infected turned in their direction.
The group of four spun around and headed for the other stairwells, but Infected sprawled out of them. It was almost like Infected started spawning in the stairwells. After a few minutes of running around, both the first and second floor were flooded with Infected. There were easily more than one hundred Infected on every floor.
“The escalators!” Jack hissed, pointing at an escalator in the center of the wide-open floor.
They heard snarls and hissing from that direction but charged ahead either way. Jack arrived at the escalator first and paled. Infected, in the dozens, occupied the escalator from the first to the second floor. Almost half of them were stronger Infected.
He turned to the others and gestured to them to hurry up. David and Sebastian were the next to arrive. David was ready to block the escalator to bash a bunch of Infected, but so was Sebastian.
Flora, on the other hand, rushed to the escalator and ran up to the second floor while Jack pulled Sebastian and David’s arms. David clicked his tongue inwardly but followed the others to the third floor.
The earthquake didn’t spare the shopping center’s third floor. Several walls were missing, and it looked like entire shops had collapsed. The third floor was damaged, but the fourth and final floor looked even worse. It was utterly destroyed.
“Rest…please…” Flora breathed heavily. Her clothes were drenched in sweat again, and her legs were wobbly. One of her legs even caved in, forcing Jack to help out. He jumped forward and supported her without hesitation.
Is magic that exhausting? Using my Skill Runes was also exhausting, but not for long. After using them a few times, I got used to it.
“Let’s stay here for a few minutes then. The fourth floor, or what’s left of it, will probably fall apart the moment we go up,” David muttered, his eyes flicking to the stairwells and the other escalators. The Infected had yet to reach the third floor. It was only a matter of time before they would arrive at the third floor, but David and the rest could prepare for that.
With that in mind, David headed to a nearby furniture store with collapsed walls, unraveling the beauty of nature. A cloudless, blue sky unfolded before their eyes, and for a moment, it felt like nothing had changed—like the world had never changed.
No. I’m fine with how things are. No one controls me, and I can do whatever I want.
That being said, David crashed on a couch and closed his eyes.
“Wake me up when the Infected reach the third floor.”
A moment later, the world around David turned dark. He fell asleep, ready to jerk awake at any moment, while the rest of the group stared at him like he was insane.
“Did he really just fall asleep?” Flora asked, wiping her forehead.
“It…looks like that…” Sebastian responded, his eyes narrowed to tiny slits.
Jack snorted, “Crazy bastard.”
***
It felt like he’d barely closed his eyes when hushed voices reached his ears.
“W-what are these…things?” Flora’s voice quivered.
David opened his eyes and jumped up with one hand, holding onto the heavy baseball bat.
He might not have slept long, but he felt much better. His body was still in pain from moving around, but his natural recovery didn’t disappoint him. Unfortunately, Holy Sea was still not full, but David recovered enough to use his Skill Runes a few times.
Sleep accelerates the recovery rate. That’s good to know.
“They look like humanoid reptilians, but they’re rather small, aren’t they?” Jack tried hard not to sound scared, but his voice cracked close to the end.
“How are we supposed to say how big or small they are? You’re the one with good eyes,” Sebastian muttered while David arrived next to the trio. They stood at the edge of a broken wall and looked down at the street and intersection, where they heard a commotion of roars and bellows.
At first, David suspected the commotion to be humans, but the comments convinced him otherwise. David leaned forward and looked down, his eyes narrowed to tiny slits.
It was hard to discern the creatures from their point of view, but David could make out a few details. The creatures were humanoid, just like Jack said, and they weren’t towering figures like Sebastian either. Once that much was clear, David’s eyes trailed to their weapons.
Rough weapons that are unlike the objects granted from picking a Class, but they’re oddly long. Some swords are longer than these ‘things’, but they’re wielding them effortlessly…
Either these creatures weren’t wearing any clothes, or they were too hard to pinpoint. Given the jagged scales covering their bodies, most of their bodies were bare, if one could call it that.
The creatures had tails as well.
“Looks like a crocodile on two legs to me,” David commented as those Crocs, which he chose to call them for the time being, charged at the Infected. Many stronger Infected were among their enemies, but the Crocs didn’t seem to care. They leaped forward, crossed the distance to their enemies in an instant, and cleaved through the uncommon Infected like one would cut paper.
There was no effort. No struggle. Nothing.
The Crocs – David realized only now that there were a dozen, maybe more – eliminated the Infected, taking them out in the dozens without losing a single member before turning to the entrance of the shopping center.
They’re highly aggressive and seem to seek danger. But what the hell are they? Did animals mutate and transform into humanoid creatures, or is this related to the system and the Pantheon as well?
Everyone was tense, their eyes glued to the scene unfolding down below. The Crocs entered the shopping center, leaving behind a trail of death and destruction. The Infected outside had been defeated. Obliterated.
Even David was stunned. The Crocs were clearly faster and stronger than Sebastian.
Not even a full minute passed before horrifying screams resounded through the shopping center. The Infected didn’t scream. They didn’t feel any pain. As for the Crocs, David was certain they wouldn’t sound this human-like. There was no need for the Crocs to scream like that in the first place.
They were the hunters and not the hunted, after all.
“Fuck,” Jack blurted out while Flora started shaking like leaves in a spring storm.
“We have to run!” She could barely scream, only for Sebastian to cover her mouth, “Don’t panic. You don’t want to expose us, do you?”
Flora trembled even worse hearing Sebastian, but she hurriedly shook her head. Her eyes quivered, and tears streamed down her face. Sebastian released her again.
“How can we run?” Jack asked, nibbling on his lower lip, “If we use the escalators or stairwell to reach the first floor, we will either encounter the Infected or face those creatures. Dealing with some Infected might be feasible, but the commotion will attract aggressive predators. They’re on a hunt…”
Sebastian silently added, “...Kobolds…”
David’s eyes narrowed, and the others followed suit.
“What?”
“They look like life-like versions of Kobold from Dungeons and Dragons…” Sebastian muttered.
“How is that–...” David shook his head, dispersing the questions forming in his mind, “Kobolds, Crocs, or whatever. They seem to be on the stronger side. They’re fast and powerful. Either we create some barricades and traps to fight them, we hide and hope they won’t find us, or-...”
“Or what?!” Jack hissed
David shrugged, “Or we fight our way to the emergency staircase. It should be attached to all floors, but it is located outside the shopping center. Maybe we can reach the emergency staircase before the Kobolds find us.”
Jack’s lips parted for a snarky remark, but he shut his mouth and nodded. No matter how crazy David seemed at the time, a good idea was still a good idea.
“The emergency staircase it is,” David said when nobody spoke up for a few seconds.
He rushed to the side of the shop, where he found the map of the shopping center, which noted all paths for an emergency evacuation. It was a necessity in all shops and easy to comprehend.
“I know where to go,” He forwarded the plan to the others and began to run. There was no time to waste.
The others’ footsteps resounded behind him, but David didn’t turn. He crossed the open hall on the third floor and tried to ignore the cacophony of noises resounding from the first and second floor. David’s heart was beating wildly, his excitement skyrocketing at the thought of fighting the Kobolds. They seemed like magical creatures from other planes. Wasn’t that exhilarating?
Fighting extraterrestrial entities sure sounded exciting.
But the timing couldn’t have been worse. They couldn’t afford to fight them right now.
If they could avoid it, that is.
David and the rest rushed past a stairwell, only to hear a terrifying scream from the side. David’s eyes flicked to the stairwell, where he discovered a young man. The man’s hand was stretched out, his eyes distorted in pain and horror.
“Help m–....”
A blue flash swept through the air, cutting the helpless man’s plea for help, and in the next moment, a blue spear blade pierced neatly through the survivor’s skull.
Fuck this shit!
