CHAPTER 48: CHAPTER 48: ARRIVING AT THE HOTEL

"Well, will you?" His voice became low, bordering on dangerous.

Zerra’s heart palpitated. She was gawking at him now. His eyes slightly squinted while his lips curled up; it looked like a challenge.

She plopped down on the folding bed again, her hands on her cheeks. "It would depend on you."

"On me?"

Her hands reached to the long pillow, and she clenched her hands on it roughly. "Yes, if you hurt me. I will make sure that the whole world knows!"

"Why do you think I will hurt you?" Curiosity brimming in his voice.

Zerra thought about it for a while. An idea popped into her head. "Because... your face doesn’t look like you are a good person."

She had hoped that he would be severely offended, but she heard a loud chuckle from the front seat. Annoyed, she added, "Who knows, you might be the villain of my life."

Which was technically correct. From her point of view, it was ingrained that he was a scumbag fiance even if he had become the male lead in someone else’s story.

No longer interested in talking with him, she ignored him, no matter how he tried to talk to her. She preferred dreaming about the crystal cores she could swindle from him...

They arrived at the hotel a few hours later than the original expectation. Henry was the one who had pointed the way. He told everyone he had been around this place before.

Halfway, they encountered a few fallen trees blocking the road, so they had to go out and clean them.

"We have arrived, panda." Cassias shook her off.

Zerra sat up. In fact, she was already awake before he tried to wake her up. She was just curious. What he would do in that situation. Calling Laziel?

Oh, he woke her up on his own.

She was about to pretend to sleep longer, but her stomach already protested.

"The hotel looks like something that came out of a horror movie." Laziel commented. Zerra rubbed her eyes and yawned.

It was dark all over. With occasional zombie roars somewhere. They knew that because of the noise they made, those zombies were most likely heading toward them right now.

"Where’s the flashlights?" Darren asked them. "Kill as many as you can before we go in. If we don’t kill them today, we have a lot of work to do tomorrow."

Zerra took out her pitchfork and joined in the battle. She was using her senses to locate those zombies accurately.

There weren’t many zombies, but some mutated animals appeared. They were the neighborhood cats and dogs. With the joint effort of the ability users, they managed to solve them all.

Zerra dug out the crystal from the zombie cat she just barely killed. She was puzzled. Weren’t zombies supposed not to feel any interest in a fellow zombie?

They went after her just like a tiger seeing fresh meat.

"Let’s go in." Darren wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Be careful inside. You might find some zombies hiding."

"Why are you so afraid? We have solved zombies here, we can solve the ones inside too." Henry’s people jumped to interrupt him.

"Don’t be too scared, Mr. Valez. We will help you solve them." Some of them snickered.

They all knew the predicament of the Valez family after losing a lot of ability users on their side. Now, with the Brown family vaguely surpassing the Valez family’s power, they were even more lawless.

Zerra raised her eyebrows at them. She was busy digging some crystal cores. After she was done, she went to Laziel.

"Water, please, elder brother." She flashed him a smile as she held out her hands, which were filled with some crystal cores.

Laziel snorted, but he still did as she requested. Once her hands were clean, he spoke to Nyra, who was beside him indignantly. "Those people are so arrogant."

"Just watch." Cassias spoke. He gave the crystal cores he had dug out to Zerra as if it was the most natural thing he should do.

Zerra’s pupils dilated in surprise. She blinked repeatedly as Cassias threw her a confused look.

She whispered in a bewildered tone. "Did you put the crystal cores to the wrong person?"

Cassias blinked innocently and shook his head. Deep down, there was nothing innocent about him.

"Alright..." Zerra’s heart jumped. Although she was extremely baffled, she still accepted the crystal cores. Cassias had confirmed it was for her anyway.

With that, she trotted to Laziel again, flashing a similar smile, just like earlier. "Elder brother, water."

Laziel frowned. "Haven’t I helped you wash them earlier?"

"There’s more." She argued. "I will give you the ones with the water attribute."

"Really?"

"Of course, I always keep my words." Zerra told him seriously.

Laziel sneered when he heard that. Zerra coughed, pulling the strands of her hair behind her ears.

In the end, he just sighed and helped her clear the crystal cores, muttering the word ’troublesome’ under his breath.

As Zerra was busy nagging Laziel for water, something happened on the other side. Henry’s people had successfully opened the locked door of the hotel with some force.

They were smiling smugly, as if showing off their power. "Let’s go in, Mr. Valez. If you are scared, you can stand behind us."

One by one, they entered the hotel. Less than two minutes later, screams rang out from inside.

Darren’s words proved to be true.

"Flashlights, use your flashlights! Where are the fire ability users?" Henry shouted with a sense of urgency.

The ability users who had entered first were busy fighting the zombies.

"Don’t just stand there!" Henry growled at the people around Darren. They all hesitated, glancing at the eldest son of the Valez family.

"Help them." Darren waved his hand. For the next hour, they were busy getting rid of the zombies.

Before they used the available rooms, they also made sure that no zombies were lurking inside.

"William, how are you? Do you have any wounds? Let the doctor check them." William’s smile stiffened, and he shook his head.

He was one of Henry’s people, and among the first who had entered the hotel. He did receive a scratch from the zombie, but once he told them...

Thinking about the fate of those people and Henry’s ruthlessness, he shuddered. Henry didn’t even hesitate to end the lives of the people who already got bitten, believing their lives to be useless.

"I am alright." He lied. "The blood isn’t mine. I smashed a zombie with a nearby vase earlier and the blood is all over me now."

The man looked at him with a suspicious gaze, but he still nodded with a sliver of doubt. "Go pick your room and clean yourself."

Henry really showed no mercy to the people who were once his subordinates. "For those who get scratched or bitten, leave them outside."

"Boss..." Their bodies trembled when they heard Henry’s words, eyes flashing with panic. "We will be alright."

"We have no observation room here." Henry frowned in displeasure. "Bringing you zombies will only hinder our mission."

Blood-soaked, they still begged him, "Boss, you can tie us with a rope. Please don’t abandon us!"

Darren couldn’t bear to watch anymore. He stepped forward, and the moment he did, they shifted their attention to him. They could only toss away their shame. "Mr. Valez, please help us..."

Henry’s face bristled, as red as a boiled lobster. Just as he was about to explode, Darren opened his mouth. "It’s just three people. We still have some space for them in our trucks."

Henry scoffed. "Fine, you take care of them, then."

They turned to Darren as though the man was their last hope. Embarrassment crossed their faces, but the desire to live was greater.

Darren ordered someone to get the rope from their car and proceeded to tie the bitten people with a rope. The three of them shared a room. None objected.

Henry stormed off to the hotel, slamming the room to his door. William, who had watched the entire scene and followed inside, flinched.

"What are you looking at?!" He snapped at the innocent Zerra, who was about to walk past.

Zerra’s radar for trouble immediately blared loudly in her mind. Especially when she saw the nervous-looking man. She didn’t even do anything, and he yelled at her.

It was incredibly suspicious and unsettling.