Luo Feng walked around the base aimlessly until it was time for dinner.
He thought about a lot of things, but those thoughts only led him to the edge of a cliff—
with no end in sight.
He didn't have enough information to ponder about anything.
The only information he had was two things:
The director is influenced by some entity.
That entity and the system are enemies.
And their enmity is considered to be quite serious.
That disgusted tone couldn't be faked.
But then that opened up his mind to more questions.
Which entity is it, and where does it come from?
Where does the system itself come from?
Luo Feng wasn't that versed in novels involving systems, unless it had to do with a horror genre.
But one thing he was sure of—he had never seen a character doubt the system.
I mean, this thing just appears in your body one day and you just accept it.
Why?
It's practically a parasite.
Just that it doesn't suck you in places you can see.
But it does end up forcing you and guiding you into its plan.
Most main characters who get a system end up getting seduced by it.
With promises of power and a change in life.
It would be suspicious if those poor loser characters didn't accept it.
Or maybe it's because of the gratitude of being saved from death.
But why wait till death to appear?
The system claims to be sent specifically for you—
but is that actually true?
If the system had a host before you, there's no possible way of knowing unless the system said so itself.
What if its previous host died and then it chose you?
You would never know.
If the system is so mighty, then why choose someone who is weak as a host?
It doesn't sound very beneficial.
Unless you wanted to train a loyal dog.
Just think about it—
the system usually binds to people when they are on the edge of despair.
So they seek power and a way to change their life.
And because of that obsession, they never end up questioning the source of this power.
The system sends them on tasks that guide them to completing an objective.
An objective the system wants.
It might not always give tasks, but instead give you abilities that guide you into becoming someone it wants you to be.
Like a puppet on strings, guided by a hand connected to the darkness.
Luo Feng paused at this thought and felt that his entire worldview was about to be shattered.
[ The most important thing is for you to go home ]
The system responded.
It didn't make a sound while he was questioning its motives.
Even though Luo Feng could feel that it was watching.
But the system was right.
Everything that occurs in this world doesn't concern him.
All he has to do is complete his job and go home.
To his apartment.
And his bed.
Then he would sleep in for a week and plan how to get his life on track.
Granted the system isn't lying to him.
[ I always keep my promises ]
[ After all, I operate on the premise of a contract ]
The system revealed this information.
Luo Feng thought the purpose was to comfort him, so that he would be completely focused.
Luo Feng sighed and walked to the cafeteria to have dinner.
He had more important things to think about that didn't concern earth-defying secretaries and mysterious entities.
....
Jae-Hyun sighed in relief as soon as he saw the screen.
He was seated in an empty apartment, resting after searching for the director.
[ System Operations restored ]
"What happened to you?" Jae-Hyun asked.
[ Main task failed ]
[ Hidden task updated ]
[ Please kill the director ]
[ Rewards to be calculated after the mission is completed ]
Jae-Hyun raised an eyebrow at the system, ignoring his question.
But he also knew the system probably wouldn't answer.
He did feel a bit guilty about the death of those kids.
They seemed to have returned to normal and then were stabbed by the system's sneaky attack.
More importantly, he felt it was a loss that they were dead.
They clearly had a great attraction to those chaotic humans and the director.
With their assistance, it would have been easier to find the director.
Heck, he might have found him by now.
"Something wrong?" Park Haeun came into his room, bringing a bottle of water.
"Oh, would sister like to help me relax?" Jae-Hyun winked at her.
Park Haeun smiled coyly and went to massage his shoulders.
Jae-Hyun found that her hands were soft and firm, making her good in this aspect.
Unknown to him, though, her eyes briefly showed a tiny dot of red at the center of the pupil.
So tiny it was impossible to see with the bare eye.
No matter how close one stood in front of her.
"It seems I need a full-body treatment." Jae-Hyun stood up and took off his shirt.
Park Haeun blushed as she was carried to the soft bed.
....
Luo Feng tried to prepare for the horde as much as possible.
He went out to hunt zombies and gather points to buy weapons in the system mall—
and also to upgrade his ability.
But his preparations were interrupted by the announcement made by the principal.
He stood in the cafeteria with an excited smile.
"I rushed here to tell everyone the good news." His appearance was indeed disheveled.
"It seems the voices are still watching, because I discovered that there were some weapons hidden by the Noi family that one of the soldiers brought over." He blinked rapidly.
"While I was escaping, I ended up bringing some random stuff from the Noi family that was given to me."
Luo Feng paused and found his words odd.
You worked in an orphanage.
What on earth were you doing with weapons?
And why would you be given them in the first place?
Were you maybe trying to create child soldiers?
"Don't worry, it wasn't for the kids that I was given weapons."
"It was because the orphanage had extra space, so we were given some weapons to store."
"I also made sure to keep it under strict supervision and tight locks," the principal explained.
"But that's not what we're talking about right now." The principal waved his hand.
"We're talking about the weapons I found that are perfect for resisting a zombie horde." The principal almost jumped in excitement.
"They are perfectly guaranteed to make sure that the owner can survive in the horde." He said proudly while patting his chest.
"I can swear on my life that it's a 100% guaranteed safety." The principal said solemnly, his hand clenching into a fist on his heart.
The crowd erupted into cheers and some people began to cry tears of joy.
"Sigh." The principal's loud sigh stopped the celebration in an instant.
The crowd became nervous as they looked at him.
"Unfortunately, there is a very limited amount of weapons available." The principal looked so sad as his eyes became downcast.
"There are at most 15 that I found, and the rest were destroyed during the process of delivery." The principal actually looked ashamed.
"And there are no resources to build more, so I'm in quite a dilemma." The principal rubbed his chin.
"Why don't the rest of you fight with your abilities?" The principal clapped his hands as if he had suddenly found an ingenious idea.
Or as if he had just solved world hunger.
"You might get hurt a bit… no, a lot is more accurate." He paced forward.
"But at least you would be barely surviving and could struggle to fight your way out." He paced backward.
"And you might also have to pray for luck not to meet any zombies even after you escape." He paced forward again.
"But you would always be lucky that the zombies don't transmit infection, so you would just stay dead." He paced to the middle.
"Hey, but survival is the most important thing, right?" The principal stopped pacing and said earnestly.
Luo Feng cursed this madman.
He ended up making the situation worse, and the people were now terrified instead of panicked.
It seemed like they were already seeing the rotten zombie biting their arms—
the sharp teeth tearing into their soft flesh.
They would try to stab it, but the zombie would dodge, and then they would be dead.
Some ruthless people were already thinking about how they would chop off their own arm if need be to escape.
But only to see a zombie waiting outside.
Due to blood loss and heavy injuries,
they would become sitting ducks and bound pigs for slaughter.
These visions of death seemed to be whispered into their heads.
"No, I can't die like this!" a person shouted.
His neck was bulging and his eyes were fierce.
Soon people began to chorus with determination.
"That's the spirit, fight for your survival!" the principal cheered their outbursts of determination.
"But as someone who advocates for equal chances, I have something important to say," he continued.
The crowd was hesitant and looked at him in trepidation.
"I hid the weapons in a location only known to me, and then I will disappear from the base in a day's time," he said.
"Oh, and anyone who wants to run the base after the horde is free to do so." The principal waved them goodbye.
He turned away and walked hurriedly.
Some people were not reconciled and tried to chase after him—
probably to ask for the location.
But the principal disappeared after he left the cafeteria.
They didn't see him and turned back.
The cafeteria was buzzing with chatter as everyone started talking about the horde.
Luo Feng felt that the principal had set everything up on purpose.
He was, and always would be, the most suspicious person in this base.
But remembering what he said made Luo Feng cautious to meet him.
After all, a madman is very dangerous.
Especially a madman who likes to sound normal.
Those kinds always know more than normal people and have odd ways.
"Brother Luo," the dark-skinned man came up to him.
"Can you take care of my daughter if I don't make it?" the man directly stated.
Luo Feng didn't answer his request but just stared at him.
"I know you will help me if you can, and thank you in advance." The man didn't mind the lack of response.
He had spent some time with this mysterious Brother Luo and knew he wasn't someone ruthless enough to watch a child die in front of him.
"If I can save her, then you have my word," Luo Feng said solemnly.
"What are you going to do now?" the dark-skinned man nodded, then asked.
Luo Feng thought about it.
He didn't need the miraculous weapon, because he was sure that with the system he could survive the horde.
But saving everyone was beyond his ability.
He wasn't a hero.
"I'm going to investigate the horde by going outside the base," Luo Feng said.
"I might not be back until I destroy the horde—
or the horde is already at the gate," he added.
"Then please take my daughter with you," the man said without hesitation.
"Are you sure?"
"This might be the last time you see your daughter," Luo Feng said.
"She was a quiet girl from birth, and after watching her mother transform it made her even more withdrawn." The man had a soft smile.
"So she'll listen to you and be a good girl, right princess?" he said, stroking his daughter's head.
The little girl had tears in her eyes, but she stubbornly blinked them back and nodded vigorously.
"By the way, my name is Sekou and her name is Nia," the man said, extending a hand.
Luo Feng was surprised.
Because there was a merchant noble family responsible for a string of hotels.
They were lesser nobles, but the hotels had a good record of appealing to different races and accommodating them.
"Yes, that's me," Sekou said sheepishly, embarrassed.
No wonder the man didn't feel simple, Luo Feng thought while shaking his hand.
"Then what about you?" Luo Feng asked.
"I'm going to look for where the weapons are hidden," he said calmly.
"I understand. Compared to me, you are going to the most dangerous place," Luo Feng realized.
"Human hearts have always been the most despicable," he said.
Luo Feng nodded in agreement.
"Then let's have a farewell party for my friend and my daughter." Sekou placed an arm across Luo Feng's shoulder.
His other arm was used to carry his daughter.
He dragged him back to his living space to celebrate.
Luo Feng decided to relax and indulge the interesting friend he made—
knowing that the dangers both of them were facing could easily lead to death.