“This is going to be troublesome,” Kaius frowned.
These three creatures’ stats are so high that they make regular zombies look like harmless children. Even with all the bonus attribute points that Kaius got from his passive abilities, he was still not confident that he could kill these evolved zombies.
Without giving Kaius much time to think, the enormous zombie army led by the three evolved zombies began marching south.
Seeing the zombie army on the move, Kaius promptly got back on his motorbike and rode south on Highway 6.
“If they keep heading south, they’ll march straight into the city of Guelph,” Kaius thought to himself. He began combing through the original host’s memory and recalled the information on this city.
“Because this city is too far away from any of the military bases, the Canadian army could only afford to dispatch a single platoon comprised of 30 troops, led by a lieutenant. There’s no way they can defend against a zombie horde of this size, especially since the local police force had been wiped out from the initial zombie attacks.”
“However, that’s not the worst of it. Given the information released by the government, there is another zombie portal located inside the town of Wingham, which is northwest of Guelph. If a similar zombie horde came out of that portal, then they’ll most likely travel southeast on Highway 86 towards Kitchener-Waterloo, which is located just a bit west of Guelph.”
“Kitchener-Waterloo’s defense force is similar to that of Guelph. Once both cities fell, the two zombie hordes will probably merge and head east on Highway 401. If that happens, then Milton will be the first city in their way. We can’t afford to let Milton get overrun since its vast farmlands are an invaluable food source.”
“I need to head to Guelph and warn them of the impending zombie horde!”
After traveling for an hour on Highway 6, Kaius finally reached the main intersection that leads into Guelph.
The outskirts of the city are surrounded by a layer of metal fences. A metal gate is connected to the fences and blocked off the entrance into the city.
A large plaza surrounded this main intersection on all four corners. Two soldiers on night watch duty could be seen sitting on the rooftop of a Canadian Tire store. Once they saw Kaius got near, they both stood up and raised their standard issue C7A2 5.56-mm automatic rifles.
“Get off your bike and put your hands up right now or we’ll shoot!” One of the soldiers shouted from the rooftop.
Both soldiers were on guard and had their automatic rifles pointed at Kaius.
The soldiers are usually not this hostile. However, after hearing the message from the System at midnight, the entire platoon gathered inside the local police department, which they had designated as their temporary base. The lieutenant issued a slew of new orders, including issuing warnings to anyone that seemed suspicious to stop and use lethal force if they didn’t comply.
As someone that is riding into the city in the middle of the night, Kaius fit the very definition of a suspicious person.
Hearing the soldier’s shout, Kaius slowed the motorbike to a stop outside the metal gate.
One of the soldiers ran back inside the store and descended the stairs, while the other soldier kept watch on the rooftop.
A minute later, a soldier came out of the side entrance of the store and slowly moved towards Kaius from the other side of the metal gate while keeping his automatic rifle pointed forward.
Kaius observed the approaching soldier. This soldier was young and looked to be in his early twenties. He had short brown hair and blue eyes.
Kaius spoke loudly, “My name is Kaius. I just came from the direction of Durham. Hundreds of zombies are headed towards this direction right now, including three evolved zombies.”
Hearing this news, the soldier’s expression turned grave. “How can we trust what you say is true?”
Kaius materialized a Basic Short Sword in his hand and swung it against the ground. The slash created a deep cut on the ground, proof of Kaius’ impressive strength. Afterwards, he promptly returned the Basic Short Sword back inside his inventory.
“Look, I’m a high-level Player. Do you really think I would joke around about something this serious? I’m sure you’ve heard the message from the System as well. In fact, you probably have more information than I do since you’re part of the army. I saw with my own eyes the 10-meter-tall green portal in Durham. Right now, I need you to go relay this message to your lieutenant and start building up defenses around the perimeter.”
Witnessing Kaius’ strength, combined with the fact that Kaius accurately mentioned a green portal, the soldier was finally somewhat convinced by Kaius. He slowly opened the metal gate and let Kaius inside, before shutting the metal gate once again.
When Kaius and the soldier walked by the Canadian Tire store, the soldier yelled towards his fellow soldier on the rooftop.
“Carlos, there’s a large zombie horde coming our way, including three evolved zombies! I’ll bring this guy over to the lieutenant. You stay there and keep watch.”
“Oh shit, are you for real Lucas?” The soldier on the rooftop shouted back. “Hurry up and go.”
Kaius got back on his motorbike, with Lucas on the backseat. They headed straight down Woolwich Street towards the local police department, which is in downtown Guelph.
On the way there, they saw a few houses with lights on, but it seemed that nobody dared to step outside. In less than 10 minutes, they arrived at the police department. They both got off the motorbike and headed inside.
When the duo walked inside, they saw that most of the platoon had gathered in the main hall, awaiting instructions from the lieutenant.
Seeing the duo walk in, everyone’s attention turned to them.
“Bukowski, why the hell are you here instead of keeping watch outside? And who’s this guy?” Lieutenant Saunders fumed.
“Sir!” Lucas Bukowski stood at attention and saluted the lieutenant. “This guy’s name is Kaius. He said a huge zombie horde is coming our way, including three evolved zombies!”
“And you believe him because…” Lieutenant Saunders questioned.
“Uh… well… he said he’s a high-level Player,” Lucas stammered.
Lieutenant Saunders turned his attention to Kaius. “Son, do you have any proof to back up what you said?”
Kaius carefully observed Lieutenant Saunders. This man looked to be in his early thirties. He had dirty blonde hair, green eyes, and a chiseled jaw line. He had a fit build and his back stood straight like a finely crafted spear. Even without using Eye of Mana, Kaius could tell that this man was a high-level Player. In fact, Kaius could even feel a sense of danger coming from the lieutenant.
Kaius recounted what happened while skipping out on some parts. “I don’t have any proof that I can show you, but I was killing zombies near Mt. Forest yesterday. When I heard the message from the System at midnight, I rode my motorbike to Durham to have a quick look and saw the zombie horde gathering there.”
“You expect me to believe a kid like you was killing zombies near a zombie portal in Durham?” Lieutenant Saunders found the notion to sound ridiculous.
“Then why don’t you let me spar with your best guy? If I win, then you have to believe me. And if I lose, then you can just throw me in jail for lying,” Kaius responded calmly.
Lieutenant Saunders narrowed his eyes and kept silent for a moment before he finally spoke up. “Burns, go teach his kid a lesson.”
Although Lieutenant Saunders was fairly certain that Kaius was lying, he still didn’t want to take the risk of ignoring him. Afterall, if Kaius was found out to be weak, then that means he was lying about the zombie horde, which would be the best-case scenario. But on the other hand, if Kaius was somehow able to last a few rounds with Burns, then there’s a good chance that he was actually telling the truth, which means that there’s actually a zombie horde coming this way!
“Yes sir!” A burly man that was 1.9 meters tall responded. Then, he turned to Kaius, “let’s go settle this outside kid. I won’t go easy on you.”
Kaius stared back at Burns.
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Eye of Mana!
Name
Neil Burns
Level
16
Health
Normal
Mana
80/80
Strength
37
Vitality
20
Dexterity
25
Intelligence
11
Skills
???
“For your sake, I hope not,” Kaius responded with a smirk.
A minute later, everyone was standing at the entrance of the police station, looking straight at Kaius and Burns, who stood in the middle of the road. There was a five-meter distance between the two.
“Begin!” Lieutenant Saunders gave the signal.
Burns rushed out right away. In the blink of an eye, he arrived in front of Kaius. Raising his right fist, Burns swung at Kaius’ face without mercy.
Seeing how Kaius didn’t even have a chance to react, Lucas couldn’t help but avert his eyes. “It’s over…”
Thud!
The sound of a body hitting the ground could be heard.
When Lucas looked back at the road, his eyes widened in shock. “How is this possible…?”
Contrary to everyone’s expectations, it was Burns whose body got sent flying into the ground, while Kaius stood unharmed in his original spot.
Standing in front of the platoon, Lieutenant Saunders’ expression froze after he caught sight of everything that happened.
At the last moment, Kaius sidestepped slightly to the right to avoid the punch. Before Burns could react, Kaius launched a palm strike at his chest and sent him flying.
Burns groaned on the ground and struggled to get up.
Lieutenant Saunders decided to activate his own scan skill to look at Kaius.
Advanced Scan!
Name
Kaius
Level
16+?
Health
Normal
Mana
80+?/80+?
Strength
40+?
Vitality
20+?
Dexterity
30+?
Intelligence
10+?
Skills
???
Although the Advanced Scan skill can reveal more information than the default Scan skill, it is still lacking when compared to Kaius’ Eye of Mana skill. Hence, it can only reveal such incomplete or estimated information.
“Exactly how strong is this guy…” Lieutenant Saunders muttered in disbelief as he looked at Kaius’ stats.
While everyone was still in a daze at the unexpected outcome, Kaius walked up to Burns and extended his hand with a sincere expression.
“Let me help you up.”
“You’re good,” Burns accepted Kaius’ hand.
Kaius and Burns walked back to the front entrance of the police station.
“You’ll believe me now, right?” Kaius asked.
“How did you become so strong?” Lieutenant Saunders questioned.
“I was outside killing zombies every day,” Kaius began to act out the script he prepared beforehand.
“And why would you risk your life every day like that?” Lieutenant Saunders pressed.
“I want to get stronger, sir!” Kaius spoke with a firm determination. “I lost both my parents to these zombies, so I wish to have the strength to protect others so that they don’t have to go through the pain of losing family members like me.”
Lieutenant Saunders was slightly moved by the unexpected answer.
“Hmm, I believe you. Do you know roughly how many zombies are coming our way?”
“I didn’t stay long enough to count,” Kaius shook his head. “Judging by the rate at which the zombies came out of the green portal, I would say we’re up against at least six hundred zombies. There could be a similar sized zombie horded headed to Kitchener-Waterloo as well.”
“Six… six hundred?” Lucas couldn’t help but cry out from the side. “The largest zombie horde our squad ever had to deal with so far was only two hundred.”
Kaius paused for a bit and continued, “however, the main problems are the evolved zombies.”
Deciding to reveal a bit more of his strength, Kaius added, “I have a special Scan skill myself. From what I gathered, every one of them would be a nightmare for the entire squad to deal with, not to mention there are three of them surrounded by hundreds of zombies. Given their current speed, we probably have until this evening before they arrive. If we don’t come up with a plan and build up our defenses by then, the entire city will be overrun.”
Hearing this, Lieutenant Saunders immediately began to issue a slew of orders.
“Smith, go contact headquarters and ask for reinforcements.”
“Johnson, take two guys and organize our weapons and ammo.”
“Williams, contact the platoon in Kitchener-Waterloo and tell them they have a zombie horde with evolved zombies coming their way.”
“Miller, take eight people and setup another layer of barbed-wire fences.”
“Bukowski, go back and keep a lookout with Martinez. I want an update every hour.”
“Gonzales, take seven people and start making ditches and barricades along Highway 6.”
“Jackson, take the remaining people and start evacuating the civilians east towards Milton.”
Every soldier in the platoon immediately left to carry out their orders.
Lieutenant Saunders turned to Kaius. “As for you, I know I’m asking for a lot since you’re just a civilian, but will you stay here and fight with us? I can tell you’re stronger than any of my soldiers here. We can save a lot more people if you’re willing to lend us your strength.”
Looking at the lieutenant and the soldiers that are ready to sacrifice their lives to protect the people, Kaius couldn’t help but feel a hint of admiration towards them.
Seeing that Kaius didn’t answer yet, Lieutenant Saunders was afraid Kaius would decline so he decided to reveal some classified information about himself, “I’m actually a level 20 Guardian. You probably don’t know this, but once you reach level 20 and choose a class, you will be awarded two random skills for your class and bonus attributes. Because of that, you become a lot stronger than someone without a class at level 19. The Guardian class specializes in defense, so I swear on my life that as long as I’m alive, no harm will come to you…”
“You don’t need to try to convince me any further lieutenant,” Kaius interrupted. “I had already planned to fight with you all in the first place.”
“Haha, that’s great!” Lieutenant Saunders exclaimed happily. “After this is all over, why don’t you enlist in the army? The higher ups are currently prioritizing training high-level Players. Given how strong you are now, you can probably get promoted to lieutenant within half a year.”
“Why don’t we focus on surviving this battle first?” Kaius let out a wry smile.
“You’re right,” Lieutenant Saunders cleared his throat. “Since you said you used your special Scan skill on the three evolved zombies, what information were you able to obtain on them?”
Kaius began to share the information he had.
“All three are rank 1 evolved zombies at level 20. There is a tall, muscular one called Bruiser. Its strength and vitality stats are both 80. The long, skinny one is called Flicker. It has extreme speed with 100 points in dexterity. The final one with a fat body is called Devourer. It has 120 points in vitality.”
Hearing the absurd stats of the evolved zombies, Lieutenant Saunders felt a headache coming on.
“How on earth are we supposed to kill these things on top of a zombie horde?”
“Do you have any weapons stronger than your automatic rifles?” asked Kaius.
“We should still have one rocket launcher and a few dozen grenades left,” Lieutenant Saunders responded.
Kaius thought for a moment and gave his suggestion.
“Let’s save those exclusively for the evolved zombies. Since the zombie horde is being funneled through Highway 6, we should be able to defend that area for quite some time against regular zombies. When we engage the evolved zombies, we should try to lure them away from each other. We can probably take down both Bruiser and Devourer with the amount of firepower we have, but Flicker’s speed will be an issue.”
“Agreed,” Lieutenant Saunders nodded. “Don’t worry about Flicker. I can be the bait and lure it into a trap.”
Kaius frowned at Lieutenant Saunders’ risky suggestion.
Seeing Kaius’ expression, Lieutenant Saunders patted his own chest with confidence. “Don’t worry, I have the Guardian class. I won’t die that easily.”
“Ok, we’ll follow your plan then,” Kaius nodded.
Nobody got much sleep that night. Half a day passed by quickly.
During this time, the soldiers were able to fortify the area around the Highway 6 entrance with ditches, barricades, and one additional layer of barbed-wire fence. All the civilians had been evacuated and were on their way to Milton.
Kaius and the soldiers gathered at the Highway 6 entrance to the city, waiting for the arrival of the zombie horde. Some soldiers were on the rooftops of store buildings, while others stood atop a makeshift watch tower. Soon, the sun was beginning to set in the horizon.
Off in the distance on Highway 6, several figures began to appear. As these figures slowly marched forward, more figures appeared behind them.
“Zombie horde!” Carlos shouted from the Canadian Tire store’s rooftop.
Everyone immediately began to tense up upon hearing Carlos’ shout. All the soldiers gripped their weapons tightly.
“Hold your position and wait for them to get closer before shooting,” Lieutenant Saunders commanded over a military radio.
As the zombie horde inched closer, the three evolved zombies finally appeared among them.
Bruiser and Flicker walked in the middle of the zombie horde, while Devourer waddled from far behind, attempting to catch up.
2km…
1km…
500m…
The zombies at the front finally entered firing range.
“Hold… hold… fire!” Lieutenant Saunders commanded.
Immediately, all the soldiers let lose their weapons. The sound of intense firing came from all directions. To conserve ammo and maintain accuracy, all the soldiers fired in short bursts.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
One zombie fell after another. However, for every zombie that was shot down, two more took its place. The sea of zombies seemed endless.
The zombie horde quickly reached the 400m mark.
Several zombies fell into ditches or got stuck on the barricades.
Up on the Canadian Tire store’s rooftop, Lucas and Carlos were firing nonstop.
“19… 20… How many you shot so far?” Carlos asked.
“Shit… I only got 16 so far,” Lucas shook his head in exasperation.
“Hehehe, looks like drinks are on you next time,” Carlos looked over at Lucas and chuckled happily.
Lucas continued to shoot when his expression changed suddenly, “Carlos, dodge!”
“Eh?” Carlos had just turned his focus back to the zombie horde when he noticed a large glob of green liquid had appeared in front of him.
The glob of green liquid continued its trajectory and landed on Carlos.
Lucas watched in horror as the green liquid melted the upper half of Carlos’ body within seconds.
Thud!
The remains of Carlos’ lower half body fell over. Guts and blood flowed out from his lower torso and spilled all over the ground.
“Carlos!”