"Why aren't you killing me?" Caleb stared at Ethan, eyes bloodshot.

"Oh, we're still going to kill you," Ethan said honestly. "Just need to ask a few questions first."

"…"

"Heh. You think I'll tell you anything?"

"I think you will."

"You're dreaming. I'm dead either way. You'll get nothing from me!"

"That's not really up to you," Ethan said, then turned. "Skinny Pete, charm him."

"…"

Skinny Pete blinked, then leaned in and whispered, "Uh, Ethan… my ability only works for a short time. Not sure I can hold him long enough."

"You're stronger than him," Ethan replied. "Just push harder. Should be able to keep him under for a while."

"Alright, I'll give it a shot." Skinny Pete stepped forward, locked eyes with Caleb, and activated his ability.

Within seconds, Caleb's expression went slack, his eyes dull and unfocused.

"What's your name?" Ethan asked.

"Caleb."

"What's your relation to the Harlan family?"

"I'm the cousin of Victor Harlan, the head of the family."

The group exchanged glances, nodding slightly. That tracked.

"Where's the Harlan family's main base?"

"It's in…" Caleb's eyes flickered with resistance, but Skinny Pete pushed harder, and the dazed look returned. "It's in the Golf Estates, in the Lakeview District."

"Oh, so that's where they're holed up," Skinny Pete said, nodding.

"You know the place?" Chris asked.

"Uh… kinda. Heard it's where rich people liked to hang out before everything went to hell."

"…"

Chris narrowed his eyes. "Why the hell do you know that?"

"I was just curious, okay? Wanted to see how the other half lived," Skinny Pete said, scratching his head awkwardly.

"…"

But the moment Skinny Pete spoke, Caleb blinked and snapped out of it.

"What… what just happened?"

"Nothing much," Ethan said with a smile. "You were very cooperative."

"…"

"Ethan, want me to hit him with it again?" Skinny Pete asked. "We can dig for more details."

"Yeah, ask about the layout inside."

"Got it!"

"You bastards… you won't get anything else from me!" Caleb snarled—and before anyone could stop him, he yanked a dagger from his belt and slashed it across his own throat.

Gotta admit, the guy had guts.

"Henry, patch him up," Ethan said calmly.

"On it." Henry raised a hand, and a soft white glow flowed from his palm, landing on Caleb's neck.

The gash sealed up almost instantly, skin knitting together like time was rewinding. Within seconds, it was like the wound had never been there.

"…"

Caleb stared in disbelief.

"You… you're demons…"

For the first time, true terror gripped him—not just fear of death, but fear of something worse.

Because dying wasn't the scary part.

It was realizing that even death wasn't an escape.

Dear God… what kind of monsters had the Harlan family provoked?

Ethan didn't even look at Caleb. Instead, he turned to Skinny Pete. "Keep going."

"No—please! I'll tell you whatever you want to know! Just… just make it quick, I'm begging you!" Caleb had finally snapped. The last thread of resistance in him broke completely.

"See? Would've saved us all some time if you'd just cooperated earlier." Ethan gave a faint smile, then calmly began asking about the layout of Golf Estates and the Harlan family's internal structure. He also got directions on how to get there.

Once he had everything he needed, Ethan gave Caleb the mercy he'd begged for.

Caleb died with a look of relief on his face.

He'd never wanted death so badly in his life.

Sean crouched down and picked up a strange-looking kukri from Caleb's body. He gave it a few test swings.

"Not bad. This thing's probably custom-made—solid build."

The others also grabbed a few weapons from the fallen. Apparently, the Harlan family had some kind of weapons manufacturing or supply chain going, because the quality was top-tier.

Up until now, most of them had been using barbell bars—great for smashing, but ever since hitting Stage D, they'd started feeling off.

Mainly because they couldn't go all out anymore. One full-strength swing, and the bar might bend.

It wasn't that these new weapons were tougher than the bars—it was about design. The barbell bars were blunt-force tools, relying purely on raw strength. But these blades? They were sharp, with focused impact points, so they didn't need to absorb as much force.

After gearing up, the group set off in the direction Caleb had described, heading straight for the Harlan family's base at Golf Estates.

Evan had mentioned before that the Harlan base was no joke. Caleb had said the same—lots of powerful people inside. No one knew the full picture, but if they could field dozens of Tier 5 Enhanced in one go, they were definitely a serious force.

Under Ethan's lead, the squad avoided several large zombie hordes, moving fast and quiet toward their target.

After more than two hours of travel, they finally arrived at Golf Estates.

And yeah, credit where it's due—the Harlan family had picked a smart spot.

It was far from the city center, which meant fewer zombies and less chaos. A perfect place to bunker down and build strength.

Not long after entering the area, they spotted a medium-sized compound.

Ethan activated [True Sight] and scanned the place.

There were probably over ten thousand people inside. The outer wall stood over thirteen feet tall, lined with sharp spikes. Every ten feet, there was a watchtower, each manned by someone with a rifle, scanning the surroundings.

Heavy machine guns were mounted along every section of the wall. No idea where they'd gotten that kind of firepower.

"This Harlan compound's pretty loaded," Chris muttered.

"No cover in front of the walls," Sean said, frowning. "Those machine guns are gonna be a problem."

Even for someone at Stage D, taking a few rounds was fine—but take too many, and you'd still go down.

Anyone below Stage D? Forget it.

"They're not a big deal," Ethan said calmly. "I'll take them out first. What I'm more worried about is what we can't see."

With a setup like this, there was no way they didn't have high-powered sniper rifles inside.

If they charged in and got surrounded, and the enemy had snipers on the high ground, things could get ugly fast.

Ten thousand people. If they formed a tight perimeter, only Ethan and Chris might be able to break out. The others? Not likely.

And there was always the chance of high-tier Awakened lurking inside.

A head-on fight wasn't the issue—it was the risk of someone sneaking around and targeting Big Mike or Skinny Pete. Neither of them had reached Stage D yet. If a strong Awakened ambushed them, it could be fatal.

Yeah, taking down a compound like this with just their squad wasn't going to be easy.

But the Harlan family had crossed the line too many times. If they didn't wipe them out now, the trouble would never end.

After thinking it through, Ethan turned to Chris. "We'll go in first and take out the heavy machine guns. I'll draw their fire. You stay cloaked as long as possible. If you spot a sniper, take them out immediately."

"No problem."

"Don't reveal yourself unless you have to."

"Relax, Ethan. I've got a whole backpack full of crystal cores. I can stay invisible till nightfall if I need to."

"…"

Ethan turned to the others. "You guys wait until we've cleared the machine guns. Big Mike, Skinny Pete—you two stay out of this one. You're not Stage D yet, and it's too risky inside."

"Alright," the two nodded, a little disappointed but without complaint.

The Fallen Star Squad had been with Ethan long enough to trust him completely. If he said it was dangerous, then it was dangerous. No questions asked.

"Stick together. Don't split up. Use your abilities—don't worry about wasting energy. We've got more crystal cores than we know what to do with."

"Got it."

"Alright. You guys hold here. Chris and I are heading in."

"Be careful."

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