Chapter 81: The World Outside

The moment Zarek stepped outside, he realized just how much the world had changed.

The road in front of the building was barely recognizable. Thick roots had broken through the asphalt, spreading across the street like enormous veins. Some were wide enough to block the entire road, while others had pushed abandoned cars aside or lifted them off the ground.

A few vehicles had been crushed beneath them. Others were half-buried under layers of dirt and vegetation.

Zarek looked down the street.

There was no clear path anymore. The road markings had disappeared, traffic lights hung from bent poles, and plants had grown through almost every available gap. Even the buildings looked different—their walls covered in vines, their windows broken, and their lower floors buried beneath tangled roots.

The city had been swallowed.

He walked forward, stepping over a thick root that stretched across the road. It felt strange seeing everything like this. Just a few months ago, people had been driving along these streets, going to work, shopping, and worrying about ordinary problems.

Now, there wasn’t even a proper road left to walk on.

Zarek couldn’t help smiling. This was what he had wanted to see. The old world had been full of rules, restrictions, and people pretending that everything was under control. Now, all of that was gone.

A growl interrupted his thoughts.

Something moved between the roots ahead.

Zarek stopped and watched as a creature slowly emerged from the vegetation. It looked somewhat like a wolf, but its body was much larger. Its front legs were thick and uneven, and several hard growths covered its back. Its mouth opened, revealing rows of narrow teeth.

The creature stared at him.

Zarek smiled. "Come on, then."

It charged.

The monster covered the distance quickly, its claws scraping against the broken asphalt. Zarek shifted aside just as its jaws snapped shut. He drove his fist into its ribs, sending it crashing into an overturned car.

The metal body folded beneath the impact.

The creature struggled to stand, but Zarek caught one of its legs and dragged it away from the vehicle. It twisted violently, trying to bite his arm.

He slammed it against the ground. Once. Twice.

The third impact finally stopped its movements.

Zarek released the leg and looked at the corpse. "Not bad."

It was stronger than the ordinary mutants he had encountered inside the building. That was a good sign. If creatures like this were common outside, he might finally find something worth fighting.

He continued along the street.

More monsters appeared as he moved through the district. Some were large, while others were difficult to notice until they attacked. One had been hiding among the roots, its body almost indistinguishable from the surrounding vegetation.

Another jumped down from the upper floor of a damaged building.

Zarek dealt with them without much trouble, though he had to pay more attention than usual. The creatures were faster and more dangerous than the ones he had grown accustomed to fighting.

He enjoyed that.

Still, killing monsters wasn’t the reason he had left. He was looking for a third woman.

That meant searching places where people had gathered. If someone with the potential he wanted was still alive, there was a good chance he would find them among the survivors.

He found the first shelter inside a damaged commercial building. A metal barrier had been placed across the entrance, with several people standing behind it. They were armed with pipes, knives, and a few old weapons.

When they noticed him approaching, one of them raised a rifle. "Stop there!"

Zarek kept walking.

The man tightened his grip, but another person hurried over and whispered something to him. After a brief exchange, the rifle lowered slightly.

They had probably realized that threatening a stranger outside was a dangerous way to start a conversation.

Zarek stopped in front of the barricade. "I’m looking for people."

The man frowned. "What people?"

"People worth keeping."

The group exchanged uncertain looks.

He didn’t bother explaining further. He had entered because there might be someone useful inside, and he intended to find out.

After some hesitation, they let him through.

The shelter was crowded. People sat against the walls, some sleeping, others staring at nothing. The smell was unpleasant, and the place looked as though it hadn’t been properly cleaned in days.

There was very little food.

Zarek noticed the empty containers stacked near one corner. A woman was dividing a small amount of something between several people. The portions were so small that they barely counted as a meal.

He walked farther inside.

A few people watched him with suspicion. Others looked at his clothes and equipment, clearly wondering whether he had brought supplies.

He ignored them and observed the shelter.

There were signs of trouble everywhere. People avoided looking toward a covered corner. A man was arguing with another survivor about missing food, while a few others sat silently nearby, pretending not to hear.

He eventually understood what had happened. Some of them had resorted to cannibalism.

Nobody was willing to talk about it openly, but the covered corner and the arguments over missing residents told him enough. Hunger had pushed them past the point where ordinary rules mattered.

He wasn’t surprised. He had seen people kill for far less even before the apocalypse. Now that food was scarce and the authorities were gone, it was only natural that some would go further.

He searched the shelter anyway.

There were a few people who looked capable, but the System hadn’t flagged any of them as high-potential.

After checking the remaining rooms, he left without offering anything. There was nobody worth taking with him.

The next place was an underground parking structure. Several vehicles had been pushed together to block the entrance, and the people inside had turned the lower level into a small settlement.

Zarek moved one of the vehicles aside and walked in.

Several people immediately turned toward him. A man carrying a metal pipe stepped forward, but stopped when he saw Zarek. "What do you want?"

"Looking around."

"This is our place."

"Then you should have made the entrance harder to open."

The man looked as though he wanted to argue, but decided against it.

Zarek walked past him.

This shelter was in slightly better condition. They had collected canned food, bottled water, and some medical supplies. A few people were repairing weapons while others watched the entrance.

There was also a small trading area near the back.

People exchanged food for equipment, medicine, and information. That part didn’t surprise him. What caught his attention was the way they treated human beings as another kind of commodity.

He saw people being handed over, threatened, and exchanged for things that could keep someone else alive. Nobody seemed particularly troubled by it anymore.

Zarek watched for a moment.

The old world had disappeared quickly. Apparently, some people had needed even less time to abandon whatever dignity they had left.

He searched the shelter. Nothing.

He wasn’t going to waste his time here either.

After a few minutes, he left the parking structure and returned to the ruined street.

The city stretched ahead, covered in roots and vegetation. Somewhere beyond the buildings, another monster let out a distant cry.

Zarek glanced in that direction. There was still plenty of ground to cover.

He started walking.