As their numbers thinned, the pressure on the survivors mounted.

Chris pushed up beside Ethan, and the two Tier 3 Awakened stopped bothering with defense altogether. They went full offense, plowing into the horde like twin wrecking balls.

With both of them cutting a brutal path through the undead, the group's pace picked up noticeably.

A few minutes later, Ethan drove his foot into a cluster of zombies, sending seven or eight of them crashing to the ground. Without missing a beat, he vaulted over their twitching bodies and burst through the encirclement.

The others didn't hesitate. Before the zombies could regroup, they surged after him, breaking free of the trap.

But the cost was staggering.

Of the original fifteen hundred, fewer than five hundred made it out. More than two-thirds gone.

"Head for the classroom building!" Ethan shouted, swinging his barbell bar in a wide arc that sent another wave of zombies sprawling.

The survivors didn't need to be told twice. These were the sharper ones—the ones who hadn't stopped to loot crystal cores. They bolted toward the academic building without looking back.

Ethan, Chris, Henry, Vivian, and the rest of her team followed, cutting down any undead that got too close as they ran.

They sprinted across the open courtyard, feet pounding the pavement, and barreled into the classroom building. Once inside, they rushed up the stairs, then turned to hold the line.

Fighting in stairwells was familiar territory for Ethan's crew.

This one was wider than the dorm stairwells, but they had more people now. Between Ethan's trio and Vivian's two Tier 2 teammates—Vivian herself and Nate—they had enough firepower to hold the chokepoint.

The five of them, bruised and bloodied, took up positions at the stairwell entrance. The rest of the survivors scattered into classrooms, barricading doors and windows.

Ethan glanced around and shook his head. He'd been thinking about lowering his standards, maybe recruiting a few people from this group.

Not anymore.

Half an hour later, the stairwells and hallway exits were completely blocked—piled high with desks, chairs, and zombie corpses. The five defenders finally collapsed to the floor, utterly spent.

Even Ethan could barely lift his barbell bar.

They lay there in silence, catching their breath, the air thick with the stench of blood and sweat.

Eventually, Vivian turned to Ethan, her voice quiet but sincere. "Thank you… We wouldn't have made it without you."

Ethan waved her off. "Don't mention it. We were trying to get out too. You just happened to be going the same way."

"...Still," she said, her tone firm. "Without you, we'd all be dead."

She wasn't exaggerating. Her team had been cut from eighty to just over forty. Nearly half gone.

And that was from the rear.

Ethan's team had been at the front the entire time. She couldn't even imagine how they'd managed to survive, let alone carve a path for the rest.

"I've gotta ask," she said, eyeing him curiously. "There's only three of you, but your strength is insane. How the hell did you level up so fast? I didn't even see any of you use abilities."

Ethan smirked. "Can't really tell you that. You're not Henry's girlfriend."

"..."

Vivian stared at him, speechless. "Right. My bad for asking."

Ethan chuckled and leaned back against the wall, letting the silence settle again.

They all sat there, catching what rest they could.

All of them were injured—cuts, bruises, worse—but with so many people around, Ethan didn't want Henry using his ability just yet.

Henry's power was... unique. And if word got out, it would bring more trouble than it was worth.

They'd wait until they were back at the dorms.

Then they'd patch themselves up.

After resting for over half an hour, Ethan finally pushed himself up off the floor.

"Alright, sun's going down. Time to move. I'm not spending the night in a damn classroom."

Vivian glanced toward the stairwell. "You do realize the exits are all blocked, right? How exactly are you planning to leave?"

"Second-floor window," Ethan said, like it was obvious. "This isn't the main dining hall—it's not sealed up like a bunker. We can get out wherever we want."

"You're just gonna leave the others?"

"I'm not their babysitter," Ethan said, rolling his eyes. "Getting them out of that mess was already more than enough."

"Fair," Vivian muttered. Then she pointed toward the stairwell, where the floor was littered with zombie corpses. "So you're not even going to bother with the crystal cores?"

"They're all yours," Ethan said with a grin, already turning away.

He motioned to Chris and Henry, and the three of them headed toward a different classroom.

Tier 1 crystal cores weren't worth their time anymore. Right now, all they wanted was to get back to the dorm and patch themselves up.

As they disappeared down the hall, Nate leaned in close to Vivian and whispered, "Vivian, I really think we should keep our distance from those three."

"Why?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"They're dangerous," Nate said quietly. What he didn't say was that he was also worried Ethan might steal her heart along with everything else.

Vivian gave a small shrug. "Maybe. But Ethan's not as cold as he looks. He didn't have to help us, but he did. He got us out."

She paused, her voice turning serious. "And let's be honest—whether we like it or not, he's stronger than either of us. In a world like this, having allies like that could be the difference between living and dying."

Nate opened his mouth, then closed it again. He couldn't argue with that. He just hoped Ethan didn't become more than an ally in her eyes.

...

Ethan and his team reached a classroom window and peered down.

The drop from the second floor was about twelve feet—taller than the dorms, but nothing they couldn't handle.

Below, a dozen or so zombies milled around.

Ethan didn't hesitate. He jumped.

The moment he landed, the zombies turned and lunged. He swung his barbell bar in a lazy arc, and within seconds, they were all twitching on the ground.

Chris and Henry followed, landing beside him with practiced ease. The three of them moved quickly but cautiously, weaving through the shadows as they made their way back to the dorm where they'd stashed their supplies.

The moment they stepped inside, all three collapsed onto their beds, too exhausted to even speak.

After a long silence, Henry finally dragged himself upright and began treating their wounds.

None of them had taken anything fatal, but they were covered in cuts, bruises, and deep gashes. It wasn't pretty.

It took over an hour, with a few breaks in between, but Henry eventually healed them all. By the end, he was so drained he passed out the moment he hit his mattress.

Ethan and Chris, though, were feeling a bit more human again.

"Man, thank god for Henry," Chris said, stretching out with a groan. "I don't even want to think about what we'd do without him. What about the others? How do they deal with injuries?"

"Awakened bodies recover faster," Ethan said. "As long as it's not a fatal wound, most injuries will heal in a few days. But yeah, having a healer makes a huge difference. That's why we keep Henry's ability under wraps. If word gets out, we'll have a line out the door—and a target on his back."

Chris nodded. "Makes sense."

He hesitated, then asked, "So what's next? Keep leveling up?"

"Yeah."

Chris leaned forward. "I've noticed other groups are starting to expand—recruiting, building teams. Looks like they're all trying to carve out a piece of the world for themselves. Should we be doing the same?"

"Not yet," Ethan said. "You know as well as I do—the authorities aren't going to let anyone play king for long."

"Even now?" Chris asked. "They've lost control of half the city."

"Doesn't matter," Ethan said. "They're still the strongest force out there. Forget the guns—they've got more Awakened than anyone. And they're organized. If we start making noise, we'll be on their radar real fast."

"So we lay low?"

"For now. Focus on getting stronger. When the real chaos hits—when the system breaks down for good—that's when we make our move. Until then, we stay sharp, stay quiet, and stay alive."

Chris grinned. "Got it. Whatever you decide, I'm with you."

Ethan smirked. "You're my guy."

They bumped fists, the unspoken bond between them stronger than ever.

...

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