Belle Bloom fled the school in a sorry state. Staring at the blood-soaked main road, she felt lost and terrified. She didn't know what had happened to the world, why the senior who had always doted on her had turned into a man-eating monster.
So many people at the school had died, all killed by these monsters.
She struggled to escape and saw an SUV speeding in the distance. Even from so far away, she saw the girl driving. Although her appearance had changed slightly, Belle recognized her in a single glance.
Her silly and sweet half-sister, Flora Bloom.
'This is great! I'm saved!'
She rushed forward as if she had seen her savior, trying to get her to stop. But Flora Bloom drove on as if she hadn't seen her, showing no intention of stopping at all.
Left with no choice, she shut her eyes, ran into the middle of the road, and spread her injured arms, standing perfectly still. She didn't believe Flora would dare run her over.
What she didn't know was that the reborn Flora Bloom actually did dare. Not only did she dare, but if one pass didn't kill her, Flora would absolutely reverse and run her over a few more times to make sure she was thoroughly dead.
But at this moment, Flora Bloom still chose to stop the car.
It wasn't because her heart had softened and she wanted to save her, but because she saw the suspicious wound on Belle Bloom's arm.
A gear-shaped wound. The cut wasn't wide, but it was very deep and dripping with fresh blood. The blood fell to the ground, its smell thick in the air. Strangely, however, the wound wasn't rotting like a zombie scratch, nor was the blood turning black. It didn't look like she was infected with the zombie virus.
When Belle Bloom saw the car stop, she looked as if she had seen her savior. Ignoring her profusely bleeding arm, she ran toward Flora Bloom with tears streaming down her face, shouting, "Sis, it's so good to see you!"
Flora Bloom glanced at Belle Bloom expressionlessly and said nothing. She had the others get out of the car, parked it on the other side of the school gate herself, and then walked toward Belle Bloom.
She was very familiar with this wound, because in her past life, on the day the apocalypse began, it had originally appeared on her own arm. And the thing that caused this wound was incredibly powerful. As for what it was, she hadn't been able to see it clearly back then.
Originally, she had just wanted to find her parents quickly, then set off to pick up her younger brother. But in this life, that thing had still appeared at the school. This time, however, the one it had scratched wasn't her, but Belle Bloom.
Just then, Belle Bloom watched as Flora Bloom parked the car and walked toward her.
"Sis, let's get out of here, quickly! The school is full of zombies and monsters! It's terrifying. I don't want to die!"
Belle Bloom said, starting to cry pitifully.
With tears streaking her face, she looked up at Neal Wallace and Ethan Monroe. 'Flora is just a helpless little bunny,' she thought. 'She definitely can't be the one deciding whether we stay or go. The two men with her—one tall and burly, the other refined and handsome—must be people she met on the road and begged for help. That's the only reason they'd be traveling with her.'
With that in mind, she moved closer to the big, tall man, looked at him pitifully, and said, "Big brother, let's leave this place right away. Oh, right, let's go to the police station! We can ask the police for help."
Ethan Monroe glanced at Belle Bloom awkwardly, unnaturally dodging her grasping hand. 'This Flora girl is so sharp and tough,' he thought. 'How is her sister such an idiot?'
"My sister and I will go with you. Don't worry, we won't hold you back, really!"
Ethan Monroe rolled his eyes and ignored her, but his reaction didn't seem to embarrass Belle Bloom in the slightest. She just continued her pitiful pleading.
Neal Wallace then came to Flora Bloom's side, handed her an axe, and slung her original hiking pack onto his own back.
"You want to go in?"
Flora Bloom gave a noncommittal nod, her gaze fixed on the school's interior from where she stood.
For some reason, ever since she'd gained her dimensional space and superpower, her physique and stamina were on a completely different level than before. Even her sight and hearing had become exceptionally sharp.
After the baptism of yesterday's apocalyptic arrival, the people in the school should have already been culled by the first wave of monsters that turned into zombies.
The school was so quiet now. If there were any survivors, they were probably all in hiding.
On the path closest to the school gate, there were only five or six scattered zombies, which the three of them could easily handle. But the thing she was looking for wasn't something the three of them could defeat on their own. Besides, her goal wasn't to kill it.
She had a feeling, but it was a feeling she needed to prove with her own actions. It was a bit risky, but if she succeeded, her future safety would be far more secure.
"Mr. Wallace, how's your recovery?"
Neal Wallace smiled slightly and nodded. "Almost fully recovered." There was something about this girl's every move that made him feel an impulse to willingly take risks with her.
Ethan Monroe finally caught on that Neal Wallace intended to go inside with Flora Bloom. He tightened his chubby hand on his axe, a look of heroic sacrifice on his face, and said, "You can't leave me behind! I'm going in with you."
Flora Bloom nodded faintly and looked at Belle Bloom. "Belle Bloom, are you going to wait for us here, or come inside with us?"
Hearing that they wanted to go into the school now, Belle Bloom's face went pale with fright. She shook her head repeatedly as she backed away.
"No, no, no, I'm not going! My classmates and teachers have all turned into man-eating zombies! I'm not going back in there! I want to go home!"
Seeing her cowardly display, Flora Bloom laughed. "Go home? Do you have any idea how long it takes to get to Sinia City from here? Are you planning to walk back by yourself?"
Belle Bloom didn't know how to drive. In the ten years of the apocalypse in her previous life, she still never learned. With her pretty face and good figure, she had the all-powerful research team leader in the base city completely wrapped around her finger. But behind his back, she was having an affair with Shelton Underwood. What a talent.
In her past life, she had treated Belle as her closest sister, never hiding anything from her. Who would have known that Belle Bloom would play an undeniable role in pushing her entire family into the abyss.
Belle Bloom had never seen Flora Bloom treat her so coldly, and she cried even more aggrievedly.
"Sister, how could you say that to me? Don't we have a car? Let's drive home! Dad is an instructor in the army, he'll definitely have a way to protect us!"
At this, Belle Bloom glanced smugly at Neal Wallace and Ethan Monroe, openly revealing her father's identity and implying that if they took her home, they too could receive protection.
But when Flora Bloom heard this, her expression abruptly darkened. She turned to shoot Belle Bloom a fierce glare and said in a cold voice, "The apocalypse is here. It's every man for himself. I advise you not to think you can survive by relying on anyone's protection, especially not my parents!"
In her past life, it was precisely because Belle Bloom went and told the base commander how capable her father was as a former army instructor that the base leaders forced him to lead a superpower squad to clear out a zombie horde, which ultimately led to his death.
And after their father died, their mother broke down and followed him in death.
It was all thanks to Belle Bloom.
But after hearing Flora Bloom's words, Belle Bloom's face suddenly flushed red. Angrily, she raised a hand and pointed at Flora. "You... you... 'your parents'? He's my father too! Sis, what you said really hurts me! Dad always said family should live in harmony, but you've treated me like an outsider from the very beginning! If Father knew about this, he would be so sad!"
A vicious light suddenly flashed in Flora Bloom's eyes as she looked at Belle Bloom. A sinister smile played on her lips as she said, "I'll be waiting for you to go tattle to Dad. I just don't know if you'll get the chance."
As she spoke, she deliberately stared at the wound on Belle's arm.
Belle Bloom noticed Flora's gaze, hastily covered her wound, and stammered, "What are you looking at me for? This isn't from a zombie! It... it was an accident! I was scratched by something that could fly!"
Flora Bloom's smile didn't fade. She turned to Ethan Monroe and said, "Old Monroe, lock her in the car. When we come out, we'll see if she's turned. If she has, kill her."
Flora Bloom spoke calmly, but her words struck Belle Bloom like a bolt from the blue. Just as she tried to run, Neal Wallace grabbed her by the shoulder and pushed her toward Ethan Monroe. Ethan dragged the struggling and screaming Belle Bloom, shoved her into the car, and Flora cooperatively locked the door.
After this series of actions, the three of them exchanged a look of perfect understanding, then each took an axe and slowly walked through the school gate.