Chapter 34: Managing

Speaking of which, Alex was eager to get back to check on them.

Who knows what might have happened while they were away.

There were so many possibilities in these times.

"Let’s get back to the dorm building." Alex said and the others brightened up when they heard him.

It had been a long day for them.

Ever since they had left the dorm building, they had been dealing with so many mutated beasts along the way to the school of Bio-science.

All of them were raring to get back to their rooms and have a good rest.

Then they got out from the cafeteria and walked in the direction of the dorm building.

Thankfully, they didn’t encounter anymore mutated beasts and their mood lightened up as they got nearer to their destination.

The dorm building was the only place that was familiar and safe to them now.

They would try and keep it that way for as long as they could before Teresa was able to make a discovery that could maybe end the Apocalypse.

In comparison, things weren’t going too well for the other students in the campus.

"Psst. Hey, you there, you have any food or water?"

"Can you spare some food for us?"

"Yeah. We’ve been starving for the whole day."

"I can trade some of these with you."

Many of the students called out to Alex and the others when they walked past the buildings.

They tried to plead and beg to get something from Alex and the others or barter trade with them.

Alex ignored their pleads and begging.

It was up to them to adapt and survive like he and his friends had.

Even if he wanted to, he knew that it wasn’t possible to be a saint, going around trying to save everyone, with the limited resources he had.

As for barter trading, what they had on offer wasn’t useful.

It was either some jewelry or luxurious goods like handbags or designer clothes.

Alex might consider if it was things like medicine, machinery, tools or even sanitary products like toothpaste, soap and shampoo.

Anything would be better than jewelry or luxurious goods.

They continued on their way and when their dorm building came into sight, all of them gave out a sigh of relief.

Alex frowned when he saw a few bodies lying in front of the entrance.

Something had indeed happened while they were away.

"These bastards tried to get into the dorm building but we managed to get rid of them." One of the students said with his hand on his belly, covering the wound he had sustained in the battle earlier.

"Thanks to these, we were able to get rid of them easily." The other students who were on guard brandished the pistol they had in their hands.

"One of you can come over to Brian’s room later. We still have some bandages and antiseptic wipes left." Alex said and the students thanked him for it.

He got back to Brian’s room with the others and he took out a piece of meat with some vegetables for Eddy and Lin.

"These are for you." Alex said and handed the meat and vegetables over to them.

"Thank you so much." Both of them were more than happy to get such a great reward.

Alex patted on their shoulders and said, "You deserve it after such a long day.

"However, I do need you to do me a favor, let the others know what you’ve gone through for the day.

"It is important for the others to know that things like these come with a price."

"We understand." Eddy and Lin said and nodded their heads at him.

It worked. Some of the students who weren’t involved with the guard details began to voluntarily help board up the open spaces and repair some of the damaged walls of the dorm buildings.

Alex also distributed the bottles of water and MRE ration packs for those who were involved with guarding the dorm building.

And for those who got injured, he gave them the bandages and antiseptic wipes as promised.

That got him thinking about getting someone who had medical knowledge and skills or healing ability into his team again.

It was, after all, crucial for their long term survival.

There were other Awakened like Joe who were up to no good to deal with.

And the attacks of the mutated beasts were already even more potent and cunning at Stage II of their mutation.

He had better get prepared before they get to Stage III of it.

"I’m starving." Terry rubbed his tummy with his hand and said.

Riley and Brian also agreed with him for the first time.

They too were exhausted from the day.

With only Alex and his friends inside the room, Alex took out a few pieces of steak, vegetables, cereals and some chocolate from his storage space.

"Finally, we can have something fresh." Terry said and he began to start preparing the steaks.

Thankfully, he had been a foodie all along and he had the cooking oil, pans, spices and stove for cooking readily available.

Alex, Riley and Brian waited impatiently for him to be done.

Sizzle.

When the sizzling of the steaks could be heard, it was followed by the aroma of the steak being cooked.

Riley and Brian took a huge whiff of the aroma and they swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

Alex also did the same and gave out a sigh.

Something which was as common as having a steak, had become a rare luxury now.

He was sure that it could get worse, but for the time being, he waited eagerly to savor the moment with his friends.

"Here you go." Terry said and he handed the others plates with a piece of steak on them.

"I take back my word. You are much better than Brian." Riley said and he took a huge bite out of the steak he had.

Terry shook his head and rolled his eyes at him.

Brian sighed and thought about how much the steak could be sold for before taking a bite from the steak.

Sitting in a corner, Alex snorted and shook his head at his friends.

Some things never change. He thought and he chewed on the piece of steak he had in his mouth.

The steak was tender and it melted in his mouth after a few bites.

Alex appreciated the taste in his mouth, while he began to ponder on what had happened and what they would do next.