A faint silence stretched on.

What on earth was happening? All they could do was guess that they were in a crisis. “Mr. Han…”“Yes?”“Will it be okay?” Who could say. If everything were fine, they wouldn’t be reacting like this. It might even be worse than they thought — bad enough that people were refusing to help. He forced a sigh down, but the answers that formed from everyone’s guesses were unsatisfying.

“Probably an internal problem.”“Internal?”“Food and water, disputes between comrades… there are too many possibilities.”“It’s not the monsters causing this, right?”“No. If the creatures themselves were a direct threat, we wouldn’t even be able to communicate.” It was only conjecture, but if he had to diagnose it privately… the Central Control Center must be in a poor state and multiple problems were unfolding. Yet if that were all, Ken’s reaction still didn’t make sense. There must be other reasons layered on top. By now the platoon leaders’ faces had grown serious.

“Kyle, I heard the story.”“Benjamin.”“Shall we prepare to deploy?” Benjamin’s question left him momentarily speechless — he couldn’t decide what the right move was.

If they used the Defense Force to rescue the Central Control Center… no, that would mean annihilation. Charging into the city center after one victory would be suicide; if we move, it must be by Black Wing with a small, stealthy team. But could the Central Control Center’s situation be solved by just two or three people?

No. Ken already knew how far my reach extended — he had made contact with the Defense Force base shortly after the explosion in the city center. His calm act only meant he had already concluded that a small-scale response wouldn’t suffice. He finished weighing the options and reached a decision.

“There will be no deployment.”“Kyle.” It sounded harsh. But as the leader of this group, it was the thing he had to say.

“It’s not that I don’t trust the Defense Force. It’s because a soldier’s life isn’t something to risk lightly.”

To gamble someone’s life on uncertain things is incompetence that shirks responsibility. Leaving Benjamin, who let out a thin sigh, he sat back down in front of the transceiver and ran through countless assumptions. Layering assumption upon assumption until he pictured the worst didn’t take long. If I had been inside the Central Control Center in such a scenario, what would I have done? Food and water running out, restricted access to the outside.Comrades bickering, patients piling up inside. Some, driven mad by constant anxiety, running rampant. If all those things overlapped, what choice would I have made? No matter how he thought about it, there was only one answer: solve the root problem while also securing food and water. “Ant Cave.”

The only option was to open the underground civil defense facility, the Ant Cave. “Eli.”“Yes?”“I should talk to Ken again.” He revealed the existence of the Ant Cave. He even explained how to open it. That was not something to take lightly. The Ant Cave wasn’t merely a civil defense shelter — it was the only safe escape route for the Fifth Defense Force base if it fell into crisis. If a mutation or infection got in… in the worst case, the escape route could be cut off. So there was reason to hesitate. Ken Sasaki and the officials: was the Central Control Center worth taking that risk for? Maybe he was overthinking it. Of course the Central Control Center was necessary — at least if anyone intended to rebuild the city. But the risk was undeniably high. They needed a different approach. How? “Well, now that it’s come to this… we should strengthen Ken and the Control Center.” The Ant Cave, being a civil defense facility, actually had a ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) surprising stock of resources. Not only could it be used to open a way to survival, it could be developed into a power base. And then — he would take hold of the reins. The Ant Cave was currently flooding. If the drainage pumps weren’t restarted, survival in the Ant Cave would become impossible. He didn’t plan to boss people around just to take advantage of them, but holding control of the pumps was effectively holding their lifelines. The moment the Central Control Center started to base itself on the Ant Cave, worries of betrayal would vanish. He exhaled. Just as that thought settled, the Central Control Center answered on the line with static.

—crackle… this is Central Control Center. Strangely, the voice wasn’t Ken’s. It felt wrong.

“This is the Fifth Defense Force base. We urgently need to speak to the person in charge.”

—Go ahead. I am the person in charge.

“…?” Was there a senior above Ken in the Central Control Center?“I want to speak with Ken Sasaki.”

—Tsk… Sasaki is no longer the person in charge. You can speak with me.

“Has something happened to Ken Sasaki?”

—If you have nothing more to say, I will terminate the transmission. The voice was slightly irritated. Pieces of the mismatched puzzle clicked into place: Ken’s fall from power, the new leader’s attitude. A frown creased his forehead as the picture of the internal situation took shape. “I asked whether something had happened to Ken Sasaki.”

—crackle… crackle…

“I know a way for you to survive. So answer me.”

—What did you say?

“Send for Ken Sasaki. He is the person in charge, not you.”

—Hold on… please wait a moment. The person in charge of the Central Control Center must be Ken Sasaki. It was simple: he knew Ken’s character and motives through thousands of interactions. In short, if a certain situation occurred, he could predict how Ken and the Control Center would react and move. If you can predict a group’s movements, you can control them. Even if he couldn’t predict actions like how they triaged patients, that was beside the point. If another survivor held the center, that advantage would disappear. If Ken had met misfortune… then give up on the Central Control Center. Its facilities could be restored later. A Central Control Center without Ken at its core held little value. —crackle… Kyle.

“Ken?”

—You called for me. Fortunately the transmission came in time, but Ken’s voice was more strained than before.

“You don’t sound well. Has something happened?”

He hesitated a moment.

—Tsk… it’s… not that. There was no strength in his voice — despite the words, his tone told of trouble. But before Kyle could press further, Ken cut to the chase.

—A way to survive… that’s something you can say because you don’t know our situation here.

“I have a rough idea.”

—crackle… you say you know our circumstances? His answer carried a hint of pessimism, and deep despair lurked underneath. What could possibly be happening? One question was enough. “Tell me just one thing.”

—Ask.

“What is the root problem?”

—Tsk… the root problem… you mean? “The creatures stuck to the outer wall have likely been dealt with. They may not be free to roam, but if they choose, they could still send out scouting squads.”

—Yes.

“Still, a chronic problem serious enough to make you reluctant to accept help, shaking your position — tell me that fundamental reason.” Ken didn’t answer immediately. He was silent for a moment. Kyle couldn’t know what he was thinking, but the silence felt like torment. When the silence ended, the reply came:

—tch… there are too many people. It was beyond expectation.

“Too many people?”

—When the siege briefly broke, about half managed to escape… How many must there have been for that to be half?

—Right now it’s about five thousand… or so. “….”

Five thousand in the Central Control Center? Even if the center was large, that would saturate the building. And if that number was already half of the original population, it meant pre-explosion it had been a living hell. For so many to remain inside despite the saturation… “Are they all patients?”

—Tsk… no. There are many patients, and that’s a problem, but the patients aren’t the main issue.

“Then why remain in a saturated control center?”

—Because half of those who tried to leave were all killed. Damn it. He felt a momentary relief — not because many had died (in this world death was common), but because understanding that so many had been killed explained the horror inside. “Now I will tell you. The way to survive.” The Ant Cave beneath the Central Control Center is in the underground parking lot. You can open it with authorization from the mayor or an aide. If you don’t have that, you’d have to force it open, but thankfully Ken had the mayor’s security card on hand. When Kyle mentioned the Ant Cave, Ken’s reaction was excitement. The sullen demeanor dropped, and his tone soon was almost back to normal —Damn… what are you? He explained the route to the shelter most closely linked to the Control Center and didn’t forget to warn him.

“The interior is like a maze. If you move into areas I didn’t tell you, you’ll get separated.” Ken’s mayoral authority limited what other important facilities he could open. He could only open municipal public offices and shelters. He couldn’t open the Defense Force base, so they couldn’t arm up much. Still, if human resources were available, it would help in many ways. If those people adapted to the apocalypse and each played their part, they would be useful somehow. —But according to what you said, won’t the shelter flood soon too?

Ken’s question was valid.

“The drainage pumps will be restarted soon.”

—crackle… is there a method?

“I can’t explain the details, but I’ll act myself.”

—… A short sigh, and Ken swallowed the rest of his words. When he spoke again, his voice trembled oddly.

—We only saw each other once, and it was a very short time.“Yes.”

—I don’t understand why you’d go this far for us. No matter how I think about it… Ken’s second question asked why Kyle was doing this. From Ken’s perspective, it was an inexplicable kindness. This time a candid answer slipped out.

“I hope you’ll be active someday.”

—If that can happen, of course. But can civilians like us help in fighting the creatures? Ken was right — these people might not be much help in combat. But that was a narrow view. “Ken, we’re not just fighting monsters.”

—Then…?

There are many creatures.They aren’t the only threat. A world already collapsing is itself ruthless.So you mustn’t think we’re only fighting creatures. “We’re fighting destruction itself.” Human civilization has fallen. The problems you must face are not few: cold, hunger, diseases and disasters, even other humans. Rebuilding civilization after the apocalypse is to fight all of that. “So, Ken, fight. Even if you have to sell me out, become the center of the Central Control Center again.” Ken dismissed his faltering position as a mere question of numbers, yet I knew there were deeper causes — ones that lay within his realm alone.

And once he chose to turn away from them, all room for interference vanished. All Kyle could do was hope Ken would rise from his situation.

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