After dealing with the men who had held them captive, Ethan told them to gather every weapon they could find—they would need them ter.

  Bruce had already woken up, and when he learned what had happened, he completely lost control. He tried to speak to Bridget, but she avoided him with a cold, pale stare. She still hadn’t processed what had occurred.

  In fact, everyone’s gaze felt different now. Bruce realized that they all bmed him for what had happened.

  When it was time to move on, they split into small groups. Ethan led the way, and whenever an abnormal appeared, he dealt with it using an axe.

  His skill was terrifying. He moved with an ease that sent chills down the spine. If it weren’t for the tense, nervous look on his face, one might have mistaken him for a homicidal maniac.

  Right behind him were Bridget and Abby, along with their friend Ann. A bit farther back were Camil and Allison. At the rear were Bruce and Cooper.

  Ethan guided them through a quiet route, ciming it would help them avoid rge numbers of abnormals. Since he had already agreed to escort them to the police station, no one objected.

  Seeing that her sister still didn’t want to talk, Abby awkwardly tried to start a conversation using gestures.

  (Why don’t you want to talk to Bruce? You know he wasn’t to bme.)

  Bridget made a conflicted expression before replying softly,

  “I know… I’m just not in the mood, you know, with everything that’s happening. I’m more worried about our parents and whether they’re okay.”

  “But remember, he thinks you bme him. In fact, he thinks all of us bme him.”

  Bridget fell silent and said nothing more.

  . . .

  Camil was a good friend. She never left Allison’s side after what had happened, comforting her as much as she could.

  “Don’t worry. We all agreed not to say anything about what happened. No one has to know that you were… you know.”

  Allison didn’t respond. Her expression remained bnk. But whenever her eyes met Bridget’s figure, a strange glimmer fshed within them.

  AAARGH! AAARGH!

  Hearing the roars of several monsters, Ethan immediately went on alert and shouted at everyone.

  “Everyone! A pack is coming. We won’t be able to run, so we’ll have to fight!”

  “What?! Fight? I’ve never fought in my life! How do you expect me to fight?!”

  “Girls, fall back. Bruce, Cooper—come here.”

  Following Ethan’s orders, the girls retreated while Bruce and Cooper stepped forward, drawing their guns.

  “There’s no time to learn. Take off the safety, aim, and shoot. And not at me—at them.”

  Before they could prepare any further, what was coming finally arrived.

  When they saw what was approaching from afar, terror froze everyone in pce.

  It was a humanoid monster running on all fours. And not just one—two more followed behind it. And to make matters worse, there were ten of those abnormal people as well.

  Ethan quickly regained his composure and shouted at the others,

  “FIRE!”

  BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!

  The boys reacted instantly, firing everything they had. Bruce had some training, so he hit his target about half the time—though none of the enemies fell. Cooper, on the other hand, was lucky if he nded two or three shots.

  BAM! BAM! BAM!

  Ethan, however, didn’t miss a single shot. He hit one monster in the eye, bringing it down, then shot two more in the head.

  By the time Ethan had killed two monsters and the boys had taken down four abnormals, the pack had already reached them.

  Ethan dropped his gun and grabbed his axe, charging straight at the remaining monster.

  Unlike Kus, who had managed to kill it with great difficulty and a lot of luck, Ethan finished it instantly—with a single strike to the head.

  After killing the strongest one, Ethan dealt with two abnormals effortlessly. But the st two rushed the boys and knocked them to the ground.

  “Help! Someone help me, please!”

  Chop! Chop!

  With a powerful blow to the head, Ethan killed the remaining two and shouted,

  “We have to go!”

  While the others were still stunned, Ethan had already started running away from the area. Afraid that more would be drawn to the noise, the rest followed him quickly.

  . . . . . . . . . . . . .

  Along the way, they encountered many people and families returning to their homes. Everyone was confused by this—no one could understand why anyone would want to stay in a pce as hellish as this.

  Ann approached a lone passerby and asked,

  “Why is everyone going back? Isn’t it safer outside the city?”

  “You can’t leave the city. There’s a thick fog surrounding it, and anyone who tries to escape ends up coming back. Since there’s no way out, I want to spend whatever time I have left with my family. You should do the same.”

  Bruce’s group stood frozen. No one could leave the city—and monsters were everywhere.

  Meanwhile, Ethan—the only calm one among them—looked at the group and said,

  “We have to keep moving.”

  . . . . . . . . . . . . .

  After separating from Kus, Sarah managed to make it home—but found no one there. It seemed everyone had already left.

  A wave of vertigo struck her. When the st bit of strength in her body gave out, she colpsed onto the floor and began to cry like she hadn’t in a long time.

  She wasn’t a particurly strong person, but she loved her family. Her little brother, who was always joking and making everyone smile; her mother, who called her every day to make sure she was okay and worried even about the smallest things; and her father, who always seemed to have answers to every problem in the world.

  She loved them all—but now she couldn’t find them.

  Desperation began to set in.

  Knock! Knock!

  That was when she heard someone knocking at the door. She wiped the tears from her face and walked toward it.

  She hesitated for a moment, unsure whether she should open it—but in the end, she did.

  Standing there was her friendly neighbor from next door, smiling kindly at her.

  “Oh, Sarah, you shouldn’t have come back. Things are very bad here.”

  Ignoring his comment, Sarah asked anxiously,

  “Do you know where my parents are?”

  “Of course. They went to the shelter at the church. We’re heading there right now—would you like to come with us?”

  “Yes, please. Just give me a moment.”

  With that, she turned around to gather a few things. Her thoughts were entirely focused on her family.

  She didn’t notice the strange smile that slowly spread across the neighbor’s face.