How Zombies Survive in the Apocalypse

“Antonio?”

“Oh my god, it’s really you!”

The attitude of the two elderly people towards Antonio took a turn.

They quickly lowered the guns they were holding.

Then, they rushed toward Antonio.

“You’re alive! You’re alive!”

“But why is your leg like that? Is it badly injured?”

The blonde grandmother hugged Antonio as he was, and the white-haired grandfather expressed concern for Antonio’s leg.

It was like a reunion with a long-lost family.

“…”

Observing them, Arian sighed softly.

Fortunately, it seemed there was no need to take their lives.

So, Arian discreetly watched the reunion between the old people and Antonio, then quietly stepped outside the vehicle.

“Hey, do you know these people?”

“Oh, yes. Haven’t I mentioned it? Originally, they lived in Canton.”

Antonio confidently answered Arian’s question.

Meanwhile, the two elderly people stared at the little girl who had popped out of the car with round eyes.

“Who is this child?”

Was she quite familiar with Antonio?

Unlike before, there was no sign of caution or hostility from the old man asking the question.

Arian signaled to Sadie, who had been hiding, and her small head popped up above the seat.

“Oh, were you riding with such a little kid?”

The sight of Sadie made the elderly people visibly uncomfortable.

It seemed awkward that they had been aiming a gun at the car with such a child inside.

Arian, interpreting their reactions rationally, erased any remaining trace of hostility.

Meanwhile, Antonio introduced Arian’s group to the old people and explained the situation.

“So that’s how it was. John…”

“Phew…”

The elderly people sighed, relieved by the news of Antonio’s survival, even though several acquaintances had died on their way here.

However, their expressions turned sour when they heard about the junk dealer who had gone to the university to seek help.

“Why there?”

“Naturally, to meet Avery. Ah, he’s back.”

Antonio pointed slowly toward Aiden walking over to them.

Aiden, listening to the conversation between Antonio and the old people, also sensed that they weren’t hostile.

“Have you met Avery?”

Antonio casually asked Aiden, as if he was certain that Aiden had met her and shared his story with her.

Aiden hesitated for a moment before opening his mouth.

There was no need to lie to him.

“Avery Roberts is dead.”

“Huh…?”

“Also, the survivor group there met a miserable end long ago.”

Aiden’s voice, numb to the point of not feeling real, made Antonio burst into a bitter laugh.

“What are you talking about now? That can’t be true. It’s nonsensical…”

“It’s true, Antonio.”

The one who spoke like this was Victor, one of the two elderly people.

Victor lowered his gaze, let out a deep sigh, and then, after a while, spoke again.

“…It was about half a year ago.”

Victor informed Antonio about what had happened in Canton during his absence.

The survivor group, almost finished with their exploration around this area and preparing to move their base, was attacked by a zombie horde.

Unable to fend off the attack, many people died, and eventually, the group itself disintegrated.

“…”

Antonio tried to say something several times but couldn’t bring himself to speak.

The story of the survivor group that couldn’t withstand the zombie onslaught and collapsed was a commonplace, almost mundane ending in this world.

Rather, the number of survivors who had held on until now was much less than the number of those who had disappeared.

However, when it was the story of someone he knew personally, the end became unbearably pathetic.

Aiden silently watched Antonio, then shifted his gaze to the elderly people.

“So, are you the ones who survived among them?”

“That’s right.”

“How many people are there?”

“Not many. And all that’s left are elderly.”

Upon inquiring about the situation, Aiden realized it was thanks to Avery Roberts’ decisions during the imminent battle that some people unable to fight were evacuated from the base.

As a result, only a few elderly individuals had survived the disaster.

“Hmm…”

Aiden couldn’t help but sigh.

Though he had thought there might be changes since it had been a year since he visited Canton, having an entire survivor group disappear was beyond his calculations.

In this situation, leaving Sadie in the care of these skinny old folks was utterly impossible, and even his plans to supply resources before were now significantly disrupted.

There was no way there were enough resources to make a deal with these skinny old people.

In that case… supplying resources would have to wait until the next city.

And the period of leaving Sadie in their care would be extended even further.

With that, Aiden’s forehead crinkled inside the helmet.

It wasn’t that he particularly disliked Sadie’s presence. However, it wasn’t a good thing for that child to spend an extended period with a zombie like him.

Meanwhile, Victor, who had been glancing at Aiden’s helmet, spoke up.

“Is it for a reward?”

Misunderstanding Aiden’s silence, Victor asked.

But Aiden, even if he put aside the trade, had no intention of overlooking the compensation for the request.

So, he nodded.

Upon this, Victor let out a meaningless laugh.

“I knew it. Junk dealers are all the same. Of course, we won’t bite the hand that feeds us, especially since Antonio is our benefactor. Is there something specific you need? Oh, but we can’t provide food; we’re short on that too.”

That wasn’t a problem.

Fortunately, the immediate concern for Aiden’s group was not a shortage of food items.

“Well, what about weapons?”

“Weapons?”

“We need ammunition or grenades.”

“We don’t have grenades, and the ballistic ammo isn’t exactly abundant. Lately, there are a lot of those aggressive guys, you know.”

Victor said with a sigh.

There seemed to be a reason why the elderly people, with guns in hand, ominously surrounded the vehicle.

Upon hearing this, Aiden gave up on obtaining supplies from them.

As expected, these old people didn’t seem to have enough of anything.

Even if it wasn’t resources for Aiden, there was something urgently needing replenishment.

“Alright then. Instead, I’ll take blood.”

“Blood…?”

The elderly man, misunderstanding Aiden’s words, stepped back.

Aiden quickly added an explanation.

“I mean, I’m asking for blood donation.”

“Ah, I see. Well, that’s possible, but why do you want that?”

Victor’s gaze was asking why such a thing was desired.

But Aiden didn’t have any intention of explaining that far, so he only conveyed the next condition.

“Also, we’d like a place to spend the night.”

“Alright. If it’s a building where we’re staying, it should be fine. There are plenty of empty rooms, so use them as you like.”

And so, the negotiation about the request fee came to an end.

The shadows of the building were gradually lengthening.

To move on, the two elderly people were still taking care of the seemingly dazed Antonio.

“Is everyone okay?”

Aiden also reconfirmed the safety of the group, especially keeping an eye on Sadie.

Fortunately, her condition seemed fine.

Perhaps the unexpected events that kept happening had, in a way, worked favorably for her.

Sadie seemed melancholic, and her mood was gloomy, but she wasn’t just standing there blankly.

Just a while ago, during the negotiation with Victor, Sadie had been silently watching Aiden.

Though she didn’t do anything, at least she seemed to be trying to grasp how the situation was unfolding.

For a young child, that was enough for the time being.

“…You’re doing well.”

Aiden didn’t ignore Sadie’s efforts.

Upon this, Sadie’s eyes widened for a moment, and she simply nodded.

“Alright, let’s go! Are we going to stay here until the sun sets?”

Victor urged them from behind.

Aiden turned his head toward him.

* * *

A quiet shopping street about 1 km south of Elon University.

Aiden’s group had come there by car.

Since the elderly people claimed to know a safe route even when they drove the vehicle, Aiden followed their lead.

The elderly people’s base they arrived at seemed quite stable.

“This is where we’re staying. It used to be a museum.”

Victor pointed to a three-story building made of light brown bricks.

The size of the building was quite substantial.

Perhaps because it used to be a museum, the entrance was flashy with glass, but there were no windows inside, indicating an emphasis on security.

Moreover, around the museum, there was a parking lot or an open space, ensuring clear visibility of the surroundings.

Considering a possible external attack, it was overall not a bad structure.

“…It’s okay.”

Observing it, Aiden nodded.

He had thought about looking for another place if he judged their dwelling to be too dangerous, but it didn’t seem necessary.

So, Aiden led the group inside according to Victor’s guidance.

“Oh…”

Arian, having seen the interior, expressed her brief impression.

The inside of the museum, furnished with beds and furniture, was quite well-decorated.

Also, as Victor mentioned, there were a few more elderly people inside.

However, the total number didn’t exceed ten when combined.

Skinny elderly people lay scattered around like corpses.

Victor shouted at those elderly people.

“Hey! Get up and see who’s here!”

At Victor’s shout, the elderly people slowly got up from their places.

Then, as they discovered Antonio, their eyes widened.

“No way… is it Antonio?”

“What? Who’s here?”

The revitalized elders rushed toward Antonio.

Just like Victor did, they greeted Antonio warmly.

While the elderly people were celebrating the reunion with Antonio, Victor, who was watching the scene with satisfaction, approached Aiden.

“Head upstairs. There’s no one using it, so you can use any room you like.”

Aiden nodded.

As he was about to turn away, Victor continued speaking.

“Oh, I forgot. You asked for blood. How do we go about that?”

“Do you know how to use a syringe?”

“Of course. Don’t worry, Dr. Aiden.”

Victor chuckled and glanced at Aiden’s business card.

“Even though I may not look like it, I used to be a military doctor. I might be a bit rusty, but I can still draw blood.”

Aiden handed over a few blood collection sets he had prepared in response to Victor’s words.

Then, Aiden’s group went up the stairs to the second floor.

During this time, a few elderly people among them stared at Aiden’s group, but none approached or initiated a conversation.

“Is this place… okay too?”

Arian, who had climbed to the second floor of the museum, looked around.

The second floor seemed to have originally served as offices for staff. A large open space in the center with desks and chairs scattered around, and a few small rooms lined up, possibly used as meeting rooms.

Aiden’s group settled in one of the rooms closest to the stairs.

Although they heard that the second floor was unused, the rooms were surprisingly clean. There were no beds or furniture, but it was comfortable enough to lie down on the floor.

“Well, you must be tired. Rest here for now.”

Aiden said so, standing by the door.

The sun was about to set soon.

Their tasks for the evening were to eat the brought dinner and get some rest.

“What about you?”

“Someone has to stand guard.”

“Is that okay? You didn’t sleep yesterday either.”

Arian said with concern.

However, Aiden wasn’t affected by that concern.

“I’m naturally someone who can’t sleep well.”

“What? Really?”

“You didn’t know?”

Aiden asked as if Arian’s reaction was strange.

Arian recalled the days she spent with Aiden.

But back then, it was undoubtedly…

“You… you didn’t make any sound all night.”

“I shouldn’t make noise at night; it’s a matter of course.”

“So, you just stayed still until sunrise?”

Aiden nodded calmly.

Arian let out a bitter laugh.

For Aiden, spending several hours each night just sitting on the bed in a daze until sunrise seemed to be a routine.

Arian thought about saying something but held back.

Someone had to stand guard at a time like this.

Although the elderly people downstairs didn’t seem to have malicious intentions, complete trust wasn’t warranted.

In such situations, wouldn’t insomnia be a useful ability?

Arian smiled wryly and took out the dinner she had brought. It was military rations brought from the power plant.

Sharing it with Sadie, Arian suddenly looked at Aiden.

“Hey, Aiden.”

“What is it?”

“You’re not thinking of leaving Sadie here, are you?”

Arian stared at Aiden intently.

Now, Arian understood why Aiden wanted to leave Sadie here.

The reactions of the elderly people welcoming Antonio and Antonio’s attitude towards them.

From there, it was easy to deduce the kind of relationship the survivors living here had maintained.

But now, that was just a story from the past.

There were no such survivor groups here anymore.

So, Aiden spoke up.

“Of course. Given the circumstances, there’s no other choice. We probably need to go to the next city.”

Aiden’s words made Arian nod naturally, and she looked at Sadie.

She was just playing with the meal Arian had shared.

At that moment, footsteps were heard coming up the stairs.

“Can I bother you for a moment? First, take this.”

It was Victor.

Handing over the blood to Aiden, Victor quickly scanned the room.

“Having a meal, I see.”

Victor chuckled and cleared his throat.

“Don’t worry. Even if we’re short on supplies, we won’t snatch food from kids.”

“Well then, do you have something to say?”

“I do.”

After a brief pause, Victor began to speak slowly.

“I’d like to request something from you. How about going on an exploration with me tomorrow?”