Chapter 2

Outside the door, it was dead silent. safe house

A few seconds later, Claire's eyes grew moist. "Alex, what do you mean?"

I watched the red mist creeping up behind her and said softly, "The safe house doesn't take dead weight."

Once my words echoed through the loudspeaker, Claire's face drained of all color.

The tall guy next to her lost it and yelled at the camera, "Alex, don't go too far. If Captain Winters hadn't brought you into the squad, you'd have been dead in the red mist by now."

I glanced at him.

It was Ethan Sparks.

He was the lightning-type awakener in the squad, and the one who loved calling me Warehouse King more than anyone back then.

He was the one who suggested I stay behind to guard the safe house three months ago.

I pressed another button.

Sixteen hidden panels on the outer wall snapped open at once, gun barrels sliding out and aiming straight at them in perfect unison.

Ethan's voice cut off instantly.

Claire looked up at the gun barrels, her voice trembling. "Alex, when did you turn the safe house into a fortress like this?"

"After you left," I replied.

"All by yourself?"

"Yeah."

I said that softly, but the three of them outside fell silent.

They never would've guessed that the guy who used to just fix pumps, patch wires, and haul supplies could turn a run-down safe house into a real fortress.

Claire bit her lip. "Let us in first. The red mist is almost here."

I glanced at the monitor. In the distance, shadowy figures were already swaying in the mist.

These things weren't like the infected we used to see. They were way taller and way skinnier.

Three months ago, there were no monsters like these lurking outside the safe house.

It seemed that the world was falling apart even faster than I imagined.

But what did that have to do with me?

"Spots in the safe house are limited," I said.

Claire froze. "What do you mean?"

I pulled up the system interface, and a cold, mechanical voice echoed from the door. [Three survivors detected outside.

[Temporary isolation pod: only two spots left.

[Administrator, please choose who gets denied entry.]

Outside, it went dead silent.

Ethan snapped his head toward Claire. "Captain Winters, tell Alex to open the door."

The woman who hadn't said a word until now suddenly panicked. "Claire, we can't die out here."

For the first time, panic crossed Claire's face.

She finally understood that I wasn't just refusing to open the door. I was forcing her to decide who would be left outside.

Three months ago, when the squad was evacuating, there was only one seat left in the car.

Claire chose Ethan and left me behind at the safe house.

Now, there still weren't enough spots.

But this time, maybe I was not the one who got left behind.

Claire stared at the camera, her eyes turning red. "Alex, do you really have to force my hand like this?"

I gave a cold laugh. "Force you? Back when you all left, did any of you ever care if I wanted to live?"

Ethan's face twisted. "That's different. You didn't have any combat skills, so leaving you behind to watch over the supplies made the most sense."

"So nothing's changed," I said, leaning back in my chair, my gaze steady. "Out of the three of you, the dead weight has to stay behind."

Ethan's eyes narrowed, and he pointed straight at the woman next to him. "She's injured. She's got the highest chance of getting infected. Leave her outside."

The woman screamed, "Ethan, are you out of your mind? I've been keeping you alive this whole time, and now you're kicking me out?"

The two of them instantly exploded into a chaotic shouting match.

Claire stood between them, her face growing paler by the second.

She once left me behind with her squad, believing she'd picked the strongest.

But now, she watched these so-called strong ones turn on each other when faced with death, acting worse than any zombie.

The shadowy figures in the red mist were getting closer.

I didn't rush them. I just played a recording.

Three months ago, the same voices crackled through the comms, just like before. "He's got no combat skills. Bringing him along would just be dead weight."

Claire shivered.

I looked at her and asked quietly, "Now you tell me, Captain Winters. Who's the dead weight?"

She finally broke down and cried.

But inside, I didn't feel a thing.

Just then, the system blared a piercing alarm. [Warning. High-level infected detected approaching.

[Target count: one.

[Abnormal life signs detected.]

I frowned and stared into the red mist.

The next second, a familiar figure slowly emerged from the haze.

He was wearing the same squad uniform from three months ago, a nameplate—snapped in half—dangling from his chest.

I shot to my feet.

I knew that guy.

It was the vice-captain who left with Claire three months ago.

The one Claire herself said had died out there.

But now, he was right outside the safe house, grinning up at the camera.