Everyone was finally able to relax for once. After dinner, Ethan, Chris, Henry, Garrick, Sean, Big Mike, and Skinny Pete split into two groups—one table for board games, the other for cards. The room buzzed with laughter and trash talk, like they'd been transported back to the days before the apocalypse.

They weren't worried about security either. Pumpkin, the orange cat, was on watch. If any zombies showed up, she'd sound the alarm immediately. That meant they didn't have to keep checking the windows every five minutes.

Besides, being up in the mountains made zombie encounters pretty rare.

But down at the base of Starlight Ridge, a group of more than ten people had just arrived. Without hesitation, they started making their way up the slope.

Soon, they reached the summit and were heading toward the mansion—until a massive orange cat, easily the size of a tiger, suddenly appeared in their path, blocking the way.

"Mutant beast!" someone shouted.

The group froze, startled, and quickly drew their weapons, ready for a fight.

"Hold your fire," said the woman at the front, her voice calm but firm. She was strikingly beautiful, and clearly the one in charge. "I think this is their pet. I remember hearing they had an orange cat."

At her words, the others hesitated, then slowly lowered their weapons. Still, their eyes stayed locked on the cat, wary.

They'd seen what mutant beasts could do. Even at the same Tier, they were nearly impossible to beat.

The woman stepped forward cautiously and spoke to the cat. "Easy. We're not here to cause trouble. Is your owner home?"

Pumpkin stared at them for a moment, then let out a sharp meow toward the mansion.

Inside, the group heard her call and immediately stood up.

Ethan activated his [True Sight] and peered outside. His expression shifted into something between surprise and confusion. "It's her?"

"Not zombies?" Chris asked.

"No. Military," Ethan replied.

"They still haven't given up? Do they really think we won't kill them if they push us?" The group's mood turned grim. They'd moved all the way out here, and the bastards still came after them.

"Only a dozen or so," Ethan said, thinking it over. "Doesn't look like they're here to pick a fight." He raised his voice and called out, "Let them in."

At his signal, Pumpkin stepped aside, then bounded off with a few graceful leaps, vanishing from sight.

The group outside exchanged glances, each seeing the same shock mirrored in the others' eyes.

A mutant beast that obedient? That was new.

But now wasn't the time to dwell on it. The woman—Mia—took a deep breath and walked toward the mansion, following the voice she'd heard.

She reached the front door and raised her hand to knock—only for it to swing open before she could.

Skinny Pete stood in the doorway. He blinked when he saw the gorgeous woman in front of him, but his reaction was automatic.

"You bring a gift?"

"..."

Mia froze for a second, caught off guard. But she recovered quickly, pulling two Tier 5 crystal cores from her backpack and handing them over with a reluctant expression.

"How about these?"

They'd killed a few high-level zombies on the way here and hadn't even used the cores themselves—planning to bring them back for Zach and the others. But since the guy asked, Mia didn't hesitate.

She knew exactly why she was here, and she wasn't about to screw it up by acting proud.

The soldiers behind her looked like they wanted to say something, but kept quiet.

Zach had made it clear before they left: Mia was in charge. Period.

So even though it hurt to watch her hand over two Tier 5 cores like they were party favors, no one dared speak up.

Then Skinny Pete opened his mouth again—and nearly made them lose it.

"This crap? You really thought this was worth bringing?"

"You—" One of the soldiers looked ready to explode, but Mia held up a hand and stopped him.

"I'm really sorry," she said, forcing a smile. "That's the best we've got."

"No food? Booze? Smokes?"

"Uh…"

"We do! We do!" one of the soldiers jumped in, quick on the uptake. He pulled out a few packs of beef jerky and two cartons of Marlboro Reds from his bag and handed them over.

"Now that's more like it," Skinny Pete said, grinning as he pocketed the jerky and cigarettes without even glancing at the crystal cores. Those? Useless to them now.

The soldiers exchanged looks, their expressions turning strange.

Was this guy… an idiot?

The group stepped into the mansion—and immediately froze.

In the spacious living room, two tables were set up. At one, four people were deep into a game of Monopoly. At the other, two guys held cards in their hands, clearly mid-game. The guy who'd opened the door—Skinny Pete—had already dashed back to grab his hand, joining the poker table like nothing had happened.

"You guys can sit on the couch for a bit," Ethan said casually. "Let me finish this round."

"Uh… okay," Mia replied, still dazed. For a second, she genuinely wondered if she'd time-traveled back to the pre-apocalypse world.

The soldiers behind her weren't doing much better. Their expressions were pure disbelief.

They'd been scraping by, dancing with death every day just to survive—and these people were in here playing board games and poker?

The gap was unreal.

If some of them hadn't seen Ethan in person before, they might've thought they'd come to the wrong place.

"Straight flush!" Ethan suddenly called out, snapping them back to reality.

"Ethan, you're using your ability again, aren't you?" Sean said, staring at him like he'd just pulled a rabbit out of a hat.

"Nope," Ethan said, completely unbothered. "I've got principles. I said I wouldn't use it, and I didn't."

"No way. There's no way you keep getting straight flushes without cheating," Sean said, still in disbelief.

"Exactly. You totally used it. That's straight-up cheating," Henry chimed in.

"Alright, alright. You lost, deal with it. You guys are covering my laundry for the next month—shirts, underwear, socks, all of it," Ethan said with a grin.

"..."

"Anyway, we've got guests. Let's be good hosts," Ethan added, finally turning toward Mia and her group.

They were all still staring at him like he'd grown a second head.

Thankfully, Mia snapped out of it quickly. She stood up as Ethan approached.

"Ethan, sorry to interrupt."

"No worries. Not really an interruption—we were just killing time. So, what brings you all the way out here?"

"Colonel Reyes—the one who met with you last time—he's dead," Mia said, her voice low.

"Dead?" Ethan raised an eyebrow, surprised. "Don't tell me zombies got him."

"No. He was ambushed. We suspect Mayor Marks was behind it."

"So… did you kill him yet?"

"No…" Mia shook her head, clearly frustrated. "We don't have proof. And we're not strong enough. Inside the Safe Zone, we're no match for him."

"So you came here to ask me to take revenge for you?" Ethan asked, his tone unreadable.

"No," Mia said quickly. "We've left the government Safe Zone. Took our soldiers and broke away. We've started our own compound. Food, water, supplies—we've got it covered. And we won't restrict your freedom at all. We just hope that, if we end up fighting them down the line, you'd be willing to help us. Just once."

Ethan looked at her, expression calm. "You think your compound's more comfortable than this place?"

"..."

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