CHAPTER 70: CHAPTER 70: SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST

Zerra sighed when she heard Laziel’s words. But it was understandable. People with criminal minds would be more rampant in the times of the apocalypse, where law and order was like a layer of tissue, easily broken.

Likewise, people who possessed decent morality would need a while to come to terms with their current reality: the survival of the fittest reigned over the current era.

She didn’t mock Laziel because of his words and naivety. Still, in a meaningful tone, she reminded him. "This is exactly what he was about to do to us. The difference is that he didn’t succeed in his plan."

"If it hadn’t been for Cassias waking up in time after he was trapped in illusions, you might have lost some chunks of flesh and limbs now."

Laziel visibly shuddered as his mind conjured such an image. From the peripheral vision, he saw the unconscious man with his missing hands; his skin crawled.

"Thanks to you too," Laziel muttered, his voice tinged with a hint of awkwardness. He wasn’t used to thanking this spoiled sister of his. Even before the apocalypse, he never dreamed that such a day would come.

Yet, when he thought of Zerra’s unconscious state after Cassias woke him up, he was overcome with myriad emotions he couldn’t quite describe–shock, confusion, gratitude, then guilt.

Right, Zerra had become more sensible too lately. When did she change?

Suddenly, he seemed to have thought of something and asked in concern. "How are you feeling? Does it still hurt?"

Zerra was leaning back against the tree trunk behind her. The six unconscious people were sprawling near them. When she heard Laziel’s question, she subconsciously glanced at the bruised spots on her exposed skin.

"I still feel very weak," she admitted. Although her skin wasn’t as delicate as before, where a light touch would leave a deep bruise, a slight movement still hurt her.

She couldn’t even walk by herself.

"I can carry you on my back later." Laziel muttered until he remembered that one of his feet was injured. A sheepish look crossed his face. In his current condition, even he struggled to walk properly.

Zerra hummed. She squinted her eyes, her expression like a calculating fox. "Once you get better, you can carry me."

As the two siblings conversed in an unusually friendly atmosphere, Cassias already walked over to them.

He took a seat beside her and brought out a bottle of water. She didn’t refuse, knowing that the water actually came from the spring in his space. Very fresh and it gave her a cooling sensation in her throat.

The hint of spiritual energy in them helped to speed her recovery. When Cassias wasn’t around, Laziel just told her Cassias had used water to clean her exposed skin when she was unconscious. It must have been this water too.

"Do you want to drink more?" He asked after she had drunk half of the water in the bottle.

"That’s enough," Zerra muttered weakly and closed her eyes.

Laziel observed their interaction quietly. His eyes flashed. When he saw Zerra closing her eyes, he suggested. "Just rest for a while or take a nap."

She didn’t respond, but since she didn’t open her eyes again, it was like a silent acquiescence.

He turned to Cassias. "How are we going to deal with them? Then, there are also people from this residential area who want to go to the base. What if we accidentally bring people who had committed cannibalism there...?"

His concerns were reasonable. Such people would turn the base upside down. Even until now, Laziel still couldn’t accept how people could eat a fellow human easily and not have qualms or psychological shadows about it.

The ordinary modern life was only a few months ago, but it felt like a lifetime away for him.

Cassias had a look of contemplation in his eyes. His gaze landed on Zerra, subtly softened, then shifted to the unconscious people.

"We can tell Darren about it and let them decide," he said. Then, he carefully added, "Some of them might have been brainwashed."

There was mutated mushroom that could induce hallucinations among them. The effect had time limit, but prolonged usage would eventually distort one’s worldview; right things became wrong and vice versa.

When Zerra closed her eyes, she didn’t even need to expand her senses to guess what had happened to Scott. There were screams coming from the barn.

"Mom, don’t bite me! Don’t!" Scott let out a desperate shriek. "I am your son! You shouldn’t do this to me..."

"Someone, help! I don’t want to do it anymore. I won’t dare to do it again..." he choked out, followed by a groan of pain.

Initially, he still addressed the zombie as his mother, but his word eventually changed. He yelled on top of his lungs, "You monster. Get away from me!"

She felt nothing in her heart. Some people, once they crossed a certain line, were regarded as irredeemable for her. It included what Scott had done, even if he hadn’t committed the cannibalism himself.

Before long, Scott’s screams might attract the neighbors to come to their place to check, so Cassias decisively went to Darren.

When he arrived there, Darren was with Nyra, Henry, and a few other members. They were squatting beside a truck. Cassias had just disturbed a discussion about how they would arrange the people who would follow them to the base.

For this, they also had to touch the topic they didn’t want to face the most. Far too many people had died on this mission.

"We originally had fifty people. Fifteen people had died on this mission, and we hadn’t even arrived at the base yet." Henry’s face was ugly as he mentioned this. All of those people were ability users, and most of the casualties came from his side.

At this moment, Cassias interrupted their discussion. Seeing him, Darren gestured for others not to speak after he saw Cassias’ expression.

"Is there something you want to tell us, Cassias?" Darren asked.

Nyra also snapped her head toward him.

"You might want to see it for yourself." Cassias told him.

Henry snorted and sent him a dirty look, but he said nothing. He still followed when they decided to check out what had happened.

Every single one of those who followed was puzzled when they witnessed the six unconscious people. Their confusion, however, morphed into shock when they heard Cassias’ narration. Laziel chimed in once a while to add details to Cassias’ words.

"This is outrageous." Darren spat indignantly, his eyes wide, glaring at none in particular.

Henry didn’t speak, but his eyes also showed disapproval and hesitation.

They couldn’t take such a high risk of bringing people who practice cannibalism into the base. Thus, they called the person whom they regarded as the representative of this residential area, Jake.

A stunned look crossed Jake’s countenance; his face paled when he heard their stories.

"Did you know about this practice of cannibalism here beforehand? It’s also absolutely outrageous that some of us humans even sacrificed others to zombies!"

"He might be in cahoots with them too!"

"Right, what if they turn against us halfway and use dirty tricks on us?"

All sorts of unpleasant words were hurled at him. A look of fear crossed the people’s faces. They had goosebumps when they heard that people in that place eat fellow humans. What if they became the next victim?