The noise and monstrous roars made communication nearly impossible.Even so, a hopeful voice broke out from the middle-aged man’s mouth.“At this rate, we can lose them!”“It’s all thanks to you, Mr. Logan!”He glanced behind him.Thankfully, there was a decent gap now.No matter how fast those monsters were, there was no way they could outrun a motorbike.Up ahead loomed a building.Judging from its shape, it was definitely a Defense Force base.“Damn it. Another dead end.”Maybe it was because he’d seen too many horrific sights to cling to hope anymore,but Logan shook his head internally.“The military base ahead is probably no different from the others.”The police and firefighters had long since fallen apart,and the soldiers near the bases fired at anyone who came close—no questions asked.They were dogs that used to serve the city’s elite, protecting their interests, not the people.Still, something about their behavior felt off.But right now, Logan couldn’t afford to think about that.He had to focus on the bike, grinding his teeth as he kept the throttle open.Then suddenly—Rrrr… rrrr…The bike began to slow noticeably.“Wh—what the hell?”His mind went blank.“Is it… out of fuel?”“What’s going on?!”“Mister!”“Logan!!”Their voices grew distant as his speed dropped,while the monsters’ shrill howls grew louder.KRROOOOAAAAAA—!KHAAAAAA!!!He didn’t dare look back.If he did, he’d freeze on the spot.Trying to stay composed despite the dying engine, he swerved the bike sharply left,breaking away from the group.Please...Logan gripped the trembling handlebars with all his strength.But once the engine finally gave out, it was no different from receiving a death sentence.The roars drew closer.Rational thought «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» was slipping away.I don’t want to die.“S-someone… help me…”There was no dignified final moment.“Help me! Please!!”Deep down, he already knew—there was no escaping this.KRROOOOOAAAR!!KIEEEEEEAAAHHH!!!They were right on top of him now.He could feel their presence even without turning around.“Damn it! Damn it! DAMN IT ALL!!”And then—VRROOOOOM—!!CRACK!“Ghhhaaa!!”His right arm was torn off—or so he thought.But what he actually saw was… empty air.Flailing instinctively, he heard a calm, emotionless voice by his ear.“Debt repaid.”He looked up.There stood a black-haired man in glasses, gripping his dislocated shoulder to stop the bleeding.“Made it in time.”His shoulder was probably dislocated from the sudden grab,but that was a small price to pay for keeping his life.“Didn’t expect to see him again.”He looked over the middle-aged man—the scruffy beard and long, unkempt hair obscured his face,but the badge on his chest revealed his profession: an engineer.He’d seen him before.Back in the criminal containment zone—the same man who had thrown himself in front of an electric bike to stop it.So why had he decided to escape that place?Something about it didn’t sit right.But there was no time to think.He had to stay focused.Then a new voice came from behind.“Wow, impressive. You pulled that off in such a short time.”A woman with short brown hair—one of the core members of the 5th Defense Force,explosives expert Yevgeniya Ivanov.Title: [Bomber].Bzzzt…“—Mr. Han! What’s your status?”“Benjamin, I’ve rescued a survivor.”“We’ve regrouped with survivors on our side as well. Need backup?”“No, that won’t be necessary.”“Understood.”“Yevgeniya, hold on tight.”“Ah, just call me Zhenya—Ghhha!!”VOOOOM!The Black Wing suddenly accelerated,heading straight for Benjamin’s main unit.There was no way they could carry people dangling midair for long.Wuuuung—“Mr. Han!”“Benjamin, he’s injured. A quick shoulder reset would be enough to set things right.”“Ghhk! Hhhah! Hhhah…”The middle-aged man—Logan—was pale as death, groaning in pain.The moment he recognized the Defense Force soldiers,the last bit of strength left him.“Mr. Logan!”“Mister!”Five people joined up soon after.Though they shrank back at the sight of armed soldiers,they quickly moved to check Logan’s condition.“Then, let’s begin as planned.”“Yes, sir. The main unit will stay under cover and proceed to the decoy point.”“Good.”The operation had already begun—there was no time to hesitate.They had to draw attention and move toward the target point as quickly as possible.The Black Wing maintained a low, steady flight.From behind came gasps of awe.“Wow, what a sight.”Kyle—“Mr. Han”—smirked faintly.Mutant-infected creatures were closing in.Drawing their attention wasn’t hard.KWAAAAAANG—!!“If we miss even one, we won’t have time to save them.”“Yes, sir! Don’t worry!”The moment they came close, the Black Wing’s roaring engines drew every creature’s gaze.KRROOOOAR!!KREEEEHHH!!Some even tried to leap up,but none could reach the airborne Black Wing.The mass of creatures shrieking below—it was nothing short of hell itself.“Persistent bastards.”Even so, Yevgeniya remained as carefree as ever.“This thing’s amazing! With it, the captain’s basically untouchable, huh?”Kyle wasn’t so sure.Once the Stage 3 types appeared, even altitude wouldn’t guarantee safety.Still, there was something off about the way she kept calling him “captain.”“You can just call me Kyle.”“Yes, sir! Captain Kyle!”He sighed.Explaining probably wouldn’t change anything.After all, [Bomber] was just that kind of survivor.They’d now drawn the attention of most of the mutant–infected creatures.Like the Pied Piper leading rats to their doom.“Oh! The ones on the left are turning toward us too!”For the moment, this little trick was working.Even monsters had weaknesses, after all.“Their eyesight’s deteriorated.”At this stage, the creatures relied only on hearing and smell.Perhaps that was why—despite being weighed down with unstable explosives—Yevgeniya was hurriedly jotting something down.“Are you analyzing them?”“Yep!”Her curt answer didn’t bother him. It was easier this way.After finishing her notes, she tucked away her notebook and pulled out something else—a laser rangefinder.Her murmuring voice made it clear what she was doing.“Creature density: five to six per thirty-five square feet…”She was calculating the blast radius needed for the bombs they’d plant at the final lure point.Smart preparation.Leaving Yevgeniya to her work, Kyle scanned the area around them.Behind them, the Defense Force soldiers followed at a distance under cover.They were the real key here.They needed at least a hundred of them for this plan to work.These tactics had limits.There was only so much explosive a hover bike could carry.And unless they had nukes, a few bombs wouldn’t be enough to wipe out the thousand-plus creatures chasing them.“A direct kill might take out a few hundred at best.”The rest would have to be cleaned up by the Defense Force.But he wasn’t worried.Anything that survived would likely be maimed—missing a limb or two—and easy prey.They also had contingencies prepared.That was why the lure route wasn’t a straight line.“They can’t run forever. The longer they move, the slower they get.”Mutant–infected or not, they were still living beings.Without consuming something, they’d eventually die.Right now, at this early stage, their instincts drove them to reproduce—but that wouldn’t last.“Hmm…”His thoughts deepened, spiraling.“At first, they hunt humans and animals.”“But when there’s nothing left…”That’s when [Cannibal Mutation] begins—one hell spilling into the next.And that’s when the real nightmare starts.“Cannibal Mutation… it evolves them.”He exhaled slowly.“Once they reach the point where they no longer need to feed—”“Captain!”Yevgeniya’s sharp voice snapped him out of his thoughts.Her expression was no longer the easygoing grin she usually wore—her face was grim and cold.“Sir, you’ll want to see this.”She pointed ahead.“...?”Kyle’s eyes narrowed.“That’s—”It wasn’t hard to figure out what it meant.Roughly a hundred creatures were clinging to the walls of a circular building,their bodies writhing and pounding against it—a sight that chilled the blood.“Captain, there must be people trapped inside that building!”“Doesn’t look like it’s just that one.”Some buildings had dozens of creatures clinging to them, others hundreds.That meant—there were more survivors nearby than they’d thought.“Benjamin.”Bzzt…“Yes, sir?”“There are more creatures than expected.”“…How many are we talking?”“Can’t estimate yet, but still within the expected range. No change to the plan.”A brief silence.Then Benjamin’s uneasy voice came through the comm.“Understood.”Kyle clicked off the line.“It’s about to get busy.”“Holding on tight, sir!”VROOOOOM—!!The wind hissed past their ears like needles.Could they lure even those stuck to the buildings?To do that, they’d have to get dangerously close.As those thoughts ran through his head, something caught his eye—a large building, the biggest in sight.Thankfully, no creatures clung to it.“Yevgeniya!”“Yes, sir!”“How much food is left at the base?”“If we ration it right, maybe a week’s worth!”“Just as I thought.”A military base should’ve had at least a thirty-day supply,but as he’d already known, the 5th Defense Force’s stores were severely depleted.And that was precisely why he’d asked.His gaze fixed on the building ahead.“Since we’re already out here, we might as well stock up on food and essentials.”“Sir?! What was that?!”The rushing wind made communication difficult.He ignored Yevgeniya’s reaction and focused on the structure’s signage.[Northwest Joint Logistics Warehouse]One of the massive storage depots on the city’s northwestern outskirts—and apparently still untouched.It might’ve been partially looted early in the crisis,but there would still be mountains of usable supplies left.That warehouse alone could solve most of their immediate needs.“But to reach it safely, we’ll have to clear out every nearby creature.”Even if they ignored the warehouse, there were still plenty of buildings worth scavenging.The only real issue—combat.Once fighting broke out, creatures from a wide radius would converge on them.“Still… there’s a way around that too.”He had a countermeasure in mind.“Time to pick up the pace.”The Black Wing accelerated, weaving between buildings,its engines screaming to keep the monsters’ focus.But then—maybe that was what triggered it.A deafening roar, far louder than before, shook the air.KRWOOOOOOOAAAAAAR!!!!“...!!”VUUUUUUN—!Kyle instinctively pulled the Black Wing upward.The craft shot vertically—and something massive swept past beneath them.“Wh–what was that?”“No way…”A chill ran down his spine.Every hair on his body stood on end.“What the hell… what the actual hell is that?!”Yevgeniya stammered, her eyes wide in disbelief.Two enormous arms.A body covered in fur.Jet-black skin.“...Shit.”The curse slipped out on its own.He’d never imagined it would appear here, now.This wasn’t a human-turned mutant—it was an animal mutation.One of the beasts that had evolved beyond its kind,now holding the torn limb of another mutant as it let out a thunderous roar.KRWOOOOOOAAAAAAR!!!Kyle’s breath caught. His voice came out as a whisper.“...Jimba.”The newbie-slayer of Apocalypse City.[JIMBA].

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