Alex woke up to the sound of loud singing, the source being painfully obvious.

  Grumbling, he sat up and turned to the energetic young man beside him, who was singing a song with headphones strapped to his ears.

  “…Lord of Hosts… the King of Glory…” Sometimes Paul would get too excited and shout a part of the chorus.

  Realizing his blunder, he would always turn to check if anyone was uncomfortable.

  Usually, he would find the room empty of everyone except from his grumpy neighbor dead asleep, then continue.

  But this time, he choked as he saw Alex’s smiling gaze.

  Alex eyed the young man, wondering whether to punch him in the throat or wait for him to apologize for waking him up.

  With a not so musical song no less.

  “Brother, do you want to join? It’s very soul-uplifting music,” Paul smiled nervously, handing him the headphones.

  Alex frowned and was about to snatch the headphones and break them.

  Paul immediately withdrew his hand and clutched the headphones to his chest, looking at him with a scared expression.

  “I’m sorry, okay? Let’s just calm down,” Paul said, clutching the headphones tighter.

  Alex snorted and went to take a shower.

  Paul sighed in relief, then went back to humming with his head bobbing.

  This time the empty room left him free to sing as loud as possible.

  Well until Alex came back to take his phone that was left behind and backpack.

  Alex didn't say anything at the awkward Paul but his eyes revealed the disdain he felt as his bad singing.

  Paul felt ashamed and scurried to the bathroom holding clothes and a towel.

  Alex wearing new clothes and holding his phone went off to explore.

  He had already flipped through the contents of his phone yesterday, so now it was time for physical observation.

  The hospital structure was truly a testament to the prestige of the Shae family.

  Each section had an entire building to itself.

  The first building was for emergency patients who required urgent attention or had sustained serious injuries.

  The second-to-last building was for those with special cases—

  or terminal illnesses—who couldn’t find the courage to live at home.

  It was equipped to be as comfortable for the patient as possible, with a special team of staff just for them.

  The last building was the staff dormitory for the top management, plus another side for their respective offices.

  It was there that Alex finally saw guards blocking an entrance.

  That only made Alex more curious about what was inside.

  The other buildings were free to the survivors.

  Mainly because there was nothing to steal as it required actual knowledge to be able to use it.

  Though the common drugs for things like headaches or fever were taken by the survivors with those in charge not caring.

  So for them to guard the staff building then that means there's something worth protecting inside.

  And treasures usually help to reveal secrets.

  Secrets that Alex plans to use to his advantage of any, especially any information about the evil entity.

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  He stood behind a tree and weighed the kitchen knife in his hand.

  He thought about storming the place with the knife and his skills.

  But that plan was discarded—he knew it was just his anger taking over.

  Alex found that he had become someone who easily fell prey to anger and bloodshed.

  The fact unnerved him and almost made him give up the task entirely—

  through the only way out he knew: death.

  But luckily, the system promised to help him destroy memories of this place.

  Alex believed that without the memories of this wretched place tormenting him, he would go back to normal.

  Alas, a tiny voice in his head told him otherwise.

  A voice he quickly suppressed under the weight of desperation—

  desperation begging for hope, just to see the light of day one more time.

  But Alex also wanted to make some sort of effort toward fixing it, just to feel like there might actually be hope.

  Now that he had calmed down, he thought about tricking the guards away.

  That plan was dropped because he didn’t have any information that would work.

  Knock them out?

  There were two of them, and both had abilities.

  Plus, it wasn’t determined whether there were others inside the building.

  Walk over confidently and strut inside?

  No—stupid.

  The knife in his hand looked increasingly brighter as Alex thought.

  Just then, a hand wrapped around his shoulder and started dragging him away.

  Alex didn’t bother to check and swung the knife, aiming to scratch the arm.

  Paul yelped and jumped back just in time.

  “I saw you standing under the tree and thought you might be hungry,” Paul explained with both hands in the air.

  “Oh? And what gave you that good idea?” Alex smiled, playing with the knife.

  “Can’t you see how hot it is? I thought the heat made you delirious because of how intensely you were staring at them,” Paul gulped.

  “How did you find me, anyway?” Alex asked curiously.

  “Would you believe me if I told you I got lost?” Paul scratched the back of his neck.

  “Bullshi—” Alex started to curse, glaring at him.

  But Paul rushed over and covered his mouth.

  “Cursing is bad, and I really did get lost. I’ve always been a bit clumsy,” Paul said sincerely.

  Alex, however, was focused on the hand on his mouth.

  Paul removed his hand quickly and wiped it on his pants.

  “I’m warning you, I’m not into men,” Alex said, taking a wary step back.

  “Yeah, what a coincidence. Besides, I already have someone I like,” Paul rolled his eyes.

  “Good. Then leave me alone from now on,” Alex said, walking away.

  “Wait up!” Paul hurried over and tried to put a hand on Alex’s shoulder again, but Alex glared so deeply that Paul got goosebumps and kept a respectable distance.

  He didn’t stay silent, though, and continued asking Alex questions.

  Alex sat at an empty table in the cafeteria and ate his food while ignoring Paul.

  Realizing he wouldn’t get answers, Paul finished eating and brought out his phone to play games.

  Alex glanced at the youth one last time before walking away.

  He didn’t go back to the staff building but went outside the hospital-turned-base.

  He volunteered to be part of the hunting group.

  This was the end of the world; resources were scarce.

  Therefore, it was impossible to eat and drink for free.

  Survivors didn’t dare live outside because of the unusual movement of zombies.

  The small number of survivors left had shrunk even further, everyone feeling like they might be next.

  That was incentive enough for them to accept the hospital’s work distribution.

  The hunting group, which included Alex, was assigned to clear any zombies that got close.

  They worked in groups, but Alex was a lone wolf with an unstable temper.

  So he told the leader he would work alone.

  Then he walked off amidst scoffs and sarcastic remarks.

  Everyone thought Alex was being arrogant, especially with the frenzy zombies were in these days.

  The leader didn’t say anything and split the team into smaller groups.

  As for Alex—well, who cared if he lived or died?

  No one could be too sure of their own survival, so worrying about others was meaningless.

  Alex held his knife as he strolled among the wreckage.

  He went into nearby buildings, banging at doors.

  There were one or two zombies, which he quickly destroyed using the heat skill.

  Alex admitted that zombies in this instance were physically stronger than others.

  But what did speed matter in an enclosed space against a high-powered heat blast?

  The answer: it didn’t.

  Alex didn’t find more zombies and went back to the base to shower.

  He reeked of burnt zombie and blood.

  After changing clothes, Alex tried gathering information about the hospital.

  He approached other survivors hoping to ask some questions.

  The first reaction: people ignoring him—

  which Alex couldn’t blame them for; they looked depressed enough.

  The second reaction: people giving him weird expressions.

  Who asks about a hospital from the good times when every day is a struggle to survive?

  Who cared about the hospital’s prestige now? It was just a place to live.

  The third reaction: people shaking their heads.

  This was a hospital run by a noble family.

  Normal people had only heard about them on the news, never getting close.

  So Alex asked the nobles.

  “Oh, you want to know about this hospital? And why should I respond to you, peasant?” the noble scoffed as his friends laughed.

  Alex wasn’t bothered and smiled instead.

  His hands clenched on his lap as his gaze sharpened.

  “Are you sure that is your final answer?” Alex asked.

  “Hmph. Maybe if you become my dog—as you’re meant to be—then I might give you more of this.”

  The noble tossed a crumpled bill at Alex’s face.

  Alex looked down at the bill.

  In this world setting, all countries had merged.

  Money was just one kind now.

  No more dollars or won. Instead, it was Yan.

  So what Alex was gazing at was a 100-Yan bill.

  Alex grabbed the bill and stuffed it into the noble’s mouth, who had been smirking at him.

  Then he gripped the noble’s jaw tightly.

  “Clench your teeth.”

  Alex drew his arm back, ready to drop a fist while holding the noble’s jaw.

  The noble panicked and tried to struggle, and his friends—young, hot-blooded idiots—wanted to jump in.

  Just as the confrontation was about to explode—

  Paul appeared from his hiding spot, grabbed Alex’s arm, and dragged him away.

  The nobles chased after them, cursing.

  Alex struggled, wanting to teach them a lesson.

  “I’ll tell you what you want,” Paul said while running.

  Alex gave him a meaningful glance, then followed after yanking his arm free.

  Paul let go, knowing the scowling man would follow.

  To prove he wasn’t lying, Paul led Alex around until they lost the nobles, then to a door hidden under a stairwell.

  The angry voices of the nobles echoed past as they ran downstairs.

  Paul sighed in relief and gave Alex a thumbs-up.

  “Now can you tell me why you were eavesdropping?” Alex asked, wanting to ask how he found him again—but he already expected a stupid answer.

  “Well, I got hungry, so I went back to the cafeteria to look for a snack,” Paul said, as if reading Alex’s mind.

  Indeed Alex had met the nobles in the cafeteria trying to bribe the cook for more food.

  And failing miserably while at it so when Alex walked up to them, they exchanged glances.

  Obviously wanting to use Alex as a means to relieve stress but unfortunately for them, Alex was the one who really needed a stress reliever.

  So even though he could tell these nobles were up to no good at the time they exchanged glances, he did not care.

  He always had the option of forcing the truth out of them.

  Plus the nobles in the instance were usually beasts and scum in human skin, beating them up was doing the world a good service.

  “Then why didn’t you greet this good neighbor?” Alex said sarcastically.

  “Well, you looked like you were discussing something serious, and I was scared you’d punch me for interrupting,” Paul admitted.

  “Wise choice,” Alex hummed.

  “I don’t think that’s something to be so truthful about…” Paul gulped.

  “If you’re so scared of me, then what gave you the guts to help those nobles? Unless you were one of their lackeys who abandoned you,” Alex raised an eyebrow.

  “No! I just didn’t want to see anyone get hurt,” Paul waved his hands frantically.

  “Why? Because you have affection for all humans?” Alex rolled his eyes.

  “Ah—do you finally believe me? I’m touched,” Paul squirmed shyly.

  Alex rubbed his head, trying once again not to punch this guy in the face… repeatedly.

  “Tell me what I want to know,” Alex said through gritted teeth.

  “Of course! That’s easy.” Paul patted his chest and began to speak.