"Yes, swing it this way," Lucas instructed, glancing at the three individuals in the room. Since John had opted to face the zombies alone, Lucas could only observe and guide the trio, who clearly lacked experience in solo zombie combat.

"Jeremiah, please avoid any mistakes this time; it could have cost you your life." The boy, just a year younger, absorbed Lucas's words, assuming the role of a mentee.

"Tomorrow, the three of you will be heading out, excluding John. Meri will be your only support; I have other commitments." The trio nodded in understanding. Lucas added, "Give it your best shot; there might be achievements, and you can earn your weapons and possibly coins."

"But Lucas, what about the items from our base? Can't we use those?" Kristian, the boy with wavy blonde locks, interjected.

"No, those are no longer yours. If you want something, obtain it yourselves. I'll hold onto these for now." Despite Kristian's apparent desire to protest, he held back, his defeated expression evident. Lucas playfully slapped his shoulder. "Do your best; it's already fortunate enough that we didn't kill you."

While it may sound harsh, it's the reality, considering Lucas had come close to death. The remaining coins Lucas possessed needed to be repaid to Lucy for obtaining the elixir to heal him. Gazing out the window, he saw Meri joining John in battling the zombies at the entrance. "Alright, let's continue," he sighed.

***

The moon cast a gentle glow across their window, and the quietness of everything was juxtaposed with the distant sounds of zombies whispering in hunger for what once were their companions, friends, and compatriots.

In the makeshift kitchen, which was once the university canteen, a young boy with golden-toned skin was attempting to light a gas stove. His other hand held a frying pan filled with rice.

"Lucas, why are you frying already cooked rice?" a young girl asked, her hair now in a bun as she looked at the boy before her.

"Trust me, this is going to be the best thing you've ever eaten."

To the side of the boy stood a man holding a bucket of clean water, washing vegetables that looked perfect and were already cut at the stem.

"Kids, I don't even know why I have to do this." To John, the vegetables seemed already free of bacteria, yet the boy before him insisted on washing them.

Just beside them, two people were cleaning the floor, while another person was washing dishes. A grown-looking woman was setting up the table with food. On the floor, a young boy happily ran around, helping the woman by handing her plates full of food.

"Nothing is better than cooking," the boy said, reigniting the gas stove and continuing to add soy sauce, fish sauce, ketchup, and all the necessary ingredients to the carrot and chive mix. Lowering the heat, he mixed everything together.

The man finished washing and handed his cleaned vegetables to the girl beside the boy. Lucy took them and proceeded to chop the vegetables.

"I don't even know why I have to do this," she muttered as she chopped each piece and separated the lettuce. Placing everything on a plate, she handed it to the young child, who carried it over to the grown woman.

Finally finishing his fried rice, Lucas took a plate and poured the contents of the frying pan onto it.

"You might think this is useless, but there's nothing better than working in coordination. We are not just four people or two people like before, Lucy. We need to know our roles to work together properly."

"By cooking?" she asked, complaining.

Shaking his head, "It's either cooking or cleaning the university, but I doubt any of us want to do that. The university is too big and dusty right now; it will take days if we choose to clean it."

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"After this, Jeremiah, Kristian, and Belle will be going to fight the zombies alone, with Meri watching over them." He handed the plate to the young boy, Cale. "And you, Lucy, learn to work with them. I won't be here tomorrow; I have somewhere else to be."

"Somewhere else?"

"It's a secret."

Dropping the knife onto the chopping board, Lucy looked at him in the eye. "You promised me you won't do anything reckless anymore."

"I won't. It's not dangerous."

Not wanting to talk to him anymore, she just took the vegetables from John and chopped them down.

"Lucy, listen. I've had you work together with them these days to get you used to working with them. It's not just the two of us anymore."

Still, she did not respond. "Think what you might, but I will only be gone for a few days. I've already told John about this; he won't harm you. He is my knight now, and I can decide his life with my will."

To this, Lucy just shot John a glance. John, who had heard their conversation, was nearby. He looked back at Lucy and nodded, her expression seeming to ask, 'You know about this!?'

Knowing Lucy wouldn't respond, Lucas handed the empty frying pan to Belle, who was cleaning the dishes. He walked to Lucy and tapped on her shoulder. "You stay here and look over them. John will take care of it. He used to be a manager too, so I think he can handle it. Meri will be watching over the three and Cale."

"I know you're mad at me. I'm sure it comes as sudden to you, but I've been thinking about this since our last dungeon together. There's something I need to figure out myself. I've already set up to make sure everything will work out in my absence. You'll be just fine."

Turning her to face him, he could see tears in her eyes—a somewhat dramatic reaction to his leaving in just a few days. But something else mattered more. "And I'm sorry that I hid this from you. This food I cooked is my gift before I go tomorrow."

Lucy, for once, still didn't answer him. She refused to look up at him. That's why he forced her to train, discussed the emblem with her, knighted John, trained everyone else—to not be a burden.

Thousands of thoughts surged like waves, realization struck, and yet she couldn't force herself to answer. She felt betrayed and useless. It wasn't just the two of them anymore, and he could just leave her here. All she could do was shed tears of anger and refuse to speak.

Lucas sighed and walked over to the table, telling everyone to come eat. The food on the table was diverse—leftovers stolen from the dungeon, the food Lucas had cooked, and fresh vegetables stolen and rewashed.

"Tomorrow I will be leaving," he dropped the bomb, earning a shocked look from Meri.

"I have to go somewhere," he repeated, glancing at Lucy, who remained silent and stunned as she slowly ate everything on the table.

"John will act as my stand-in, and so will Lucy." No matter what he said, all Lucy heard was that he would be gone. Meri shifted her gaze between John, who silently ate, and Lucy.

The meal was quiet, with everyone savoring the various feasts on the table—chicken, beef, pork, and a variety of cultural foods, the last of their stolen fresh supplies. Amidst the feast, Lucas ate in silence, partaking in fried rice and meat from the feast. Yet, despite the abundance of food, a heavy mood hung over the table.

Only John, however, ate without concern. While Lucas leaving was unfortunate for everyone, it meant one less source of stress for him. He had no intention of rebelling or creating chaos, finding the everyday life here more peaceful than his month-long acquaintance at the gym.

As everyone finished their food and walked away, leaving the dishes for Belle to clean while Meri tidied the table, Lucas retreated to his room. Beside the table, Lucy remained seated, various unfinished foods in her bowl, not a single strand of rice from the fried rice Lucas had prepared entering her mouth.

Tears streamed down her face as she forced herself to stand up and walk to her room, which she shared with Lucas. Reluctant to go, her anger preventing her from wanting to see his face, she opened the door.

Surprise escaped her lips, "Huh..."

In the room, Lucy could only gaze into the darkness of the night illuminated by the window. No one was inside. Panic swept over her, and she frantically searched for him, but he was nowhere to be found.

Then, she spotted something—a letter on a table near the window. Scared, she forced herself to open it.

The words within felt heartless, leaving her questioning why he would write such a letter before leaving, especially when he had said he would depart the next day. But what could she do? She couldn't turn back time to stop him.

Tears fell uncontrollably, worsening as she continued reading the letter. Each word intensified the pain in her heart and the ache in her gut. Her legs gave way, knees losing strength as she stared blankly at the window, tears falling. In a wailing tone, as her tears continued to fall, she muttered, "You crazy bastard."