There are countless survivors in Apocalypse City.Among them, there are survivors who are friendly toward players— and those who are hostile.And then there are survivors whose alignment lies somewhere in between.A high favorability score makes them a reliable ally, but a low one can turn them into a deadly threat.They’re called dual-natured survivors.Though things hadn’t gone ideally, Vergo was clearly one of the friendly ones.On the other hand, Eli Wayless was an extremely dual-natured survivor.Her defining trait—versatility.She wasn’t outstanding at any one thing, but she lacked in nothing either.An elite individual who could function as an engineer, a doctor, or a researcher.Her combat ability was decent, too.However— dual-natured survivors had far stricter conditions to raise favorability than friendly ones, so players often found themselves in hostile situations with her.Her playstyle leaned toward solo runs that excluded relationship-building.Despite being designed as a newly adult woman with platinum blonde hair and crimson eyes, her personality was tenacious and ruthless— a combination that left few pleasant memories of Eli Wayless.Given that, managing to gain favorability with her in the first encounter was quite a significant feat.Especially now, when survival took precedence over clearance, solo play wasn’t exactly a wise choice.A single player character couldn’t handle everything alone.“You seem to know quite a bit.”“……How did you get here?”“Well, I didn’t really know where to go, so I just followed my curiosity. Didn’t expect Mr. Han to make it all the way here.”She looked exhausted from the climb. But the situation didn’t allow for much sympathy.“Go back down. Staying here will be dangerous.”“If it’s dangerous here, then where exactly isn’t dangerous?”“There must be somewhere safe—if you look hard enough.”“And you’re going to a safe place?”“I’m going to make one.”“Take me with you.”“……?”The situation was taking an odd turn.Instead of answering, she pointed at the floor.A deep groove. A trace of a slash.“Hmm……”Eli Wayless. Having her along would definitely be helpful.But now was not the time.They needed to move fast— and she’d tire quickly.A shame.“I’m sorry, but I don’t have the luxury to play bodyguard.”Even with his firm tone, she smiled faintly.A smile that faintly resembled Gale’s.“You said you’re heading to the central control center to shut down the reactor, right? That won’t be easy.”“That sounds like you have a solution.”“Of course! The name Wayless carries more weight than some mysterious man called Kyle Han, after all.”“We’ll see about that.”He already had the master key— the authority needed to shut it down.No need to tell her that.“I’ll find my own way.”With that, he walked past her and headed down.This conversation might have lowered the favorability he’d worked so hard to build, but it didn’t really matter.At least not until she spoke again.“Don’t you need transportation?”Outside the headquarters, things were exactly as expected.The screams of those in pain grew louder, and more people wandered aimlessly, unsure what to do.Fires had spread, and the number of buildings with smoke billowing skyward had doubled.Amid that chaos— his eyes landed on something humble: an electric bicycle.“This is…?”“How is it?”“Hmm.”“It’s an employee’s electric bike. I scoped it out earlier.”“It’s got a security lock.”“Didn’t think you’d care about that sort of thing. Still, it’s faster than running.”“Well… yeah, I suppose so.”An electric bike.The EMP may have fried the acceleration system, but the pedal function would still work.There were five of them in total.He picked the most usable-looking one and raised his sword.Slash—+[Electric Bicycle]“…Bok-Dong.” (TL note: He seemed to be naming the bicycle maybe jokingly or sentimentally as if it were a companion.)“Sorry?”“Nothing.”At least they had transportation.With bikes, they could reach the central control center much faster.And since it was a bicycle, Eli Wayless was less likely to fall behind.She was a capable survivor— someone who could prove useful later if taken care of.So he had to ask.What she really wanted.“What is it that you truly want?”“Hmm……”Maybe it was too sudden. Eli hesitated, looking troubled.“When you spoke with Mr. Vergo, you mentioned NH-03 was the issue, right?”“…Yes.”“If that’s really the problem, then I’m not safe anywhere.”Not safe anywhere? He was curious how she’d arrived at that conclusion.“You mean it’s about your personal safety?”“Yes.”“Then shouldn’t you go back to your home? That’d be safer.”“NH-03 is a drug that 30% of this city’s population received. Everyone wants to stay young, /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ but only three out of ten actually got the treatment.Do you know what that means?”At that moment, he immediately understood what she was getting at— but asked anyway.“I’m curious.”Her reasoning would prove her competence.“It means the wealthy and powerful were the first to get it. If you think of society as a pyramid— you know, that triangle shape— then only the top thirty percent received the treatment.”“There were exceptions.”“Right. Like people my age who didn’t need it yet, or minors who weren’t eligible.”Her lips curved into a slight smile.“Even so, the divide between those who did and those who didn’t receive NH-03 is clear.”“The lower class.”“Exactly—the socially vulnerable. Here’s the question.”She took a deep breath. Her expression hardened.“In a chaotic world where the ruling class has collapsed, how long do you think it takes for those vulnerable people to turn into rioters?”There was no need to speculate. It was already happening.“For gangs and criminal groups, this kind of chaos is an opportunity. They might start by robbing convenience stores, but they’ll get bolder with time.”“Then shouldn’t you definitely return home?”“The area I live in is probably being looted already.”Her predictions were spot on. That’s why he could tell her— it was a wise judgment.She was a member of the Wayless family.If anyone recognized her, there’d be no telling how things would unfold after that.Of course they’ll manage to survive.“Did you form that hypothesis in such a short time?”“If you mean ‘old soul,’ I don’t want to hear it.”“You’re capable.”“……?!”That was good enough.“That doesn’t mean I’m volunteering as a bodyguard.”“If I follow you around… you’ll help when things get dangerous, right? I’ll gladly help when I can.”When he drove the point home one last time, her expression hardened into a pout.“All right. I’ll help.”She might not contribute as much as the effort invested would suggest.But if he never climbed those small steps—never built those small bonds—he’d never form comrades at all.If you wanted to radically increase your survival odds, a minimum ‘group’ was inevitable.Opportunities like this needed to be measured.Could she be turned into an ally? The central control center was urgent, true, but it would be foolish not to think about what came after.“Now, open mine.”“…….”He cleared away the neatly sliced-off security device, then tested the pedals.Fortunately, there was no advanced security that kept the pedals from turning unless a key was inserted.A rough check was done.If they pedaled to the central control center, the primary objective would be achieved.“If it gets hard, go slowly.”“That won’t happen.”He had no intention of escorting Eli along.He didn’t hope she’d need it, but if she collapsed midway there was nothing he could do about it.No matter how much he thought about the future, priorities were clear.The pedals turned more smoothly than expected.Instead of cool wind, hot heat and thick smoke brushed their faces.I’ll get there as fast as possible. A lesson learned from playing Apocalypse City: time must be sliced and spent efficiently.“C—come with us!”Being a civil servant really felt like a vocation.Work just enough.Kill time just enough. Go home at an appropriate hour.That was the job of a civil servant.But— “W-why did this happen?”An unbearable trial had arrived.The central control center was essentially paralyzed.Only Ken Sasaki and a few junior officials remained in anything like a stable state.Their superiors had already collapsed one after another and were foaming at the mouth.The news that kept coming in made everyone dizzy.“It looks like citizens are trapped in the subway stations.”“Sir, the criminal quarantine facility is already—”“Mr. Sasaki! Robbers at Silverman Shopping Center—”“Sasaki! What do we do?!”“Stop calling me! What could I possibly do?”There really was no way.The communications system had collapsed.Most news was being passed mouth-to-mouth.Except for the main facilities supposedly shielded from electromagnetic pulses, there was no communication.That made coordinating guards and firefighters extremely difficult.They had managed to contact the military, but even they seemed no better off than the control center.“And the mayor? Any improvement?”“Unfortunately……”A catastrophic situation.Ken wondered if he could get through it, but the answer was already obvious.…We’re screwed.The situation had passed its limit.The city had gone dead in an instant, and countless citizens complained of unexplained symptoms.At the same time, the criminal quarantine facility had collapsed and criminals poured into the streets.Medical equipment in hospitals stopped, patients began dying in real time.Gangs looting department stores felt almost trivial compared to the torrent of disasters happening all at once.Perhaps because of that, Ken’s decision was quicker than expected.“Ugh!”“Sir!”“Argh! I’m showing symptoms too—!”“You can’t be like this, sir!”Ken convinced himself he’d made a perfectly rational choice. ‘Better to feign illness than to sit here.If things normalize later, I can avoid responsibility.’The survival logic to protect a lifetime job produced a natural scream.Just as the commotion reached its height, a voice cut through like cold water.“Excuse me, we need to take you outside for a moment.”“Gah—ugh—!”No—the thing that doused the moment wasn’t the voice but the expression on the speaker’s face.“Sir, you’re not well. What’s going on?”Then came the words: “It’s a gang.”The expression in the room turned strained.“A gang? Why—?”Ken pretended to be half-asleep and squinted to eavesdrop on the conversation, but soon he had no choice but to snap awake. “The gangs are breaking through the main gate—”“Huh…?”“Why would gangs do that? There’s nothing to steal here!”“Sir, wake up! They said gangs are here!”Why would gangs—?“How many… how many are here?”“Sir, can you focus?”Ken couldn’t stay silent and opened his eyes.Hearing that gangs had reached the central control center introduced yet another layer of crisis.“I’m not sure of the exact number… but dozens. Seems like dozens!”‘Dozens’ sounded small, but dozens of armed robbers are very different from dozens of civilians.Ken recoiled as the situation slid further toward disaster and demanded, “Why on earth—why would gangs come here?”The answer came from someone else.“Maybe they want to destroy the center?”“Don’t say anything weird—”Wait. Then he realized something.“A-are they trying to create even more chaos?”“If that’s not it—”“These crazy bastards—!”With the city already in unprecedented chaos, gangs and robbers were pillaging everywhere.If they were smashing the control center’s gate in the middle of such an event, there was only one reason: they wanted to increase the chaos so they could keep looting longer.“Bring the club and taser guns for security!!”With a scream of fear, Ken had no choice but to get to his feet.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.