[30] Next Steps

Twenty-two days had passed since the Stronghold came online.

In that time, I had fallen into a routine of checking deployment markers, clearing useful routes, scavenging, and learning more about how people were adapting to the zombie apocalypse.

Most mornings started with the Map. During the first few days, it was mostly a way of finding out where I couldn't go.

The roads around the warehouse weren't safe yet. Some intersections were packed with infected, abandoned vehicles blocked entire stretches of road, and I had no idea which buildings were actually empty. More than once, I marked out a route in the morning only to abandon it halfway through.

Yoru and I only started cleaning that up properly after the first few days.

At the beginning, she was still settling into the Stronghold. Her Sanity was barely out of the single digits, she didn't speak well enough, and getting her used to me took priority. I kept our trips short and close to home. A road here, a building there.

Once she became more stable, I started taking her farther. That was when the area around the warehouse really began changing. Yoru cleared infected from roads I expected to reuse, checked buildings with me, and gradually started ranging farther from the Stronghold at night. The more comfortable she became outside, the less I needed to keep her within arm's reach.

Even then, that freedom came gradually. Her volunteering to go all the way to the settlement for me was recent. A few weeks ago, she would've wanted me beside her for the entire trip. Now she was starting to think about what she could do so I wouldn't have to go myself.

By the end of the first week, the immediate area around the Stronghold had stopped feeling completely unknown.

I was still close enough to Lincol that some of the roads eventually led back towards North Lincol, but this side of the district was different from where I'd started. The apartment estates and neighbourhood shops gave way to older commercial blocks, workshops, storage yards and the industrial slope where I'd built the Stronghold.

Most of my trips stayed within a few kilometres of that area. The settlement wasn't far either. Anything beyond that meant committing several hours just to getting there and back on foot. That was also when I finished recovering most of what had fallen from my third ten-pull.

★★★★ Face Projection Skin — Roadghost — Cosmetic

Using this collar, you can access the customisation window to change your face and voice from a preset or your own making. Once chosen, this item will save your final design as its designated projection!

Operational Duration: 72 hours per full charge; accepts compatible external battery units

False Identity: Maintains a stable projected appearance during movement and close-range interaction, including eye & mouth movements.

★★★★ Cyber Katana Mk II — Equipment

A powered combat blade developed for Halcyon assault units, capable of cutting through light armour and reinforced materials with minimal resistance.

565 | Weight: 1.8kg | Blade Length: 80cm

Operational Duration: 48 hours of active edge use per full charge; accepts compatible external battery units

Overedge: Temporarily increases  by 100 at significantly higher power consumption.

Transporter was the only one I couldn't bring back. His cryochamber had landed far enough away that retrieving him wasn't something I wanted to attempt while Yoru was still adjusting. By the time I started checking the area properly, survivors had already begun settling nearby. That at least gave me more time to think about where Transporter's loyalties would lie once I woke him up.

In any case, Roadghost made travelling easier. Survivor groups were already appearing along routes I'd been using, and the EDF had started setting up checkpoints along some of the main roads, so walking around as Jun became an unnecessary risk. My new disguise could ask questions, pass through occupied areas and be seen carrying equipment without immediately connecting any of it back to the warehouse. It helped when I ran into people who needed help too.

The katana was less useful in a fight for someone who didn't know how to use one, but I still found careful uses for it cutting through rubble, chains and stubborn locks, so I kept it in Inventory.

Those recovery trips pushed the Missions along too.

Travel came from moving between deployment markers.

Suppression usually came from whatever infected were blocking the route. Yoru carved through most of them with her haladie, while I used the PZ400 whenever I had a clean shot. My marksmanship improved steadily too, enough that I stopped wasting as much ammunition on easy targets.

Scavenger depended on what I found while stopping somewhere safe or searching the area on the way back. Food and bottled water came first. After a few days, I was bringing back more than Yoru and I could reasonably use on our own.

That was when I started thinking about the warehouse itself. The entrance to the Stronghold was hidden well enough, but an otherwise empty warehouse would only make somebody more curious if they managed to follow me back. So I started filling part of it out, and by the time I was done, the front section looked like a proper survivor shelter. It was more than two people needed, but it was still rough around the edges. 

That kept the first week slower than it could have been.

Some days I barely pushed the Missions past their first stage. Other days a deployment marker took me a few kilometres through the industrial district or back towards the Lincol border, and Travel cleared several stages on its own. Having Yoru in the party usually took care of Suppression along the way. Scavenger rose whenever I stopped for food, supplies or something useful for the warehouse.

I didn't force the later stages. I still tried to push the Dailies as far as I could, and by the end of the first week, my balance had climbed from 1,530 to 2,730. That was enough for two more ten-pulls with room to spare. I waited until late at night before doing it. Ten more objects falling across Eden were difficult to hide no matter when I summoned, but fewer people were outside to watch where they landed.

Another thousand disappeared.

No Aurelia. What I did get was much more immediately useful. My first 5-star item.

★★★★★ R-3D Nightstride — Vehicle

An urban pursuit motorcycle developed for Halcyon response units, built for rapid movement through damaged city sectors while keeping its acoustic signature low.

Capacity: 2

Operational Duration: 320km per full charge; accepts compatible external battery units

Maximum Speed: 220km/h (consumes double charge above 160)

Rider Assist: Stabilises handling and enables autopilot.

A vehicle being in the gacha caught me off guard, but after cosmetics had already shown up in the pool, the surprise didn't last long.

Mostly, it felt like the game had handed me a very nice present. The Field Battery Packs that I kept pulling were compatible too, so keeping it charged wasn't a problem. The other notable item from the pull was the binoculars.

★★★★ SR-12 Field Optics — Device

Mass-produced reconnaissance optics widely issued to Halcyon field units for scouting and route assessment.

Magnification: 4×–20×

Effective Range: 15km

Modes: Optical, Low-Light, Thermal, See-Through (blocked by specialised alloys/shielding)

Operational Duration: 96 hours per full charge; accepts compatible external battery units

Once I had both, my routine changed almost immediately. The Nightstride cut hours out of longer trips, while the SR-12 let me check unfamiliar roads and buildings before committing to them. North Lincol stopped being a day trip, and I could range farther west without losing most of the day just getting there and back.

Travel started clearing more consistently after that, and Yoru was stable enough by then to stay outside with me for longer stretches.

That gave me an idea.

I already knew what the first few stages of each Daily looked like. What I didn't know was how bad the upper stages became, or whether the theoretical 1,000 per day was actually practical. So over the next few days, I deliberately pushed each Mission farther than usual to find its ceiling. And... it was worse than the original numbers made it look.

Unsecured Travel was the easiest to map out. 5km for the first stage. 10km for the second. 15km for the third. Then it jumped to 25km, with the last stage requiring 40km. That was where I learnt "unsecured territory" actually mattered.

I wasted most of an afternoon retracing familiar roads before realising they no longer counted towards the Daily. The farther I pushed it, the harder it became to find enough qualifying distance for the same reward. After that, I usually settled for the first 5km and started charting proper routes so I wouldn't waste usable territory. Even then, I could already see Eden becoming a bottleneck.

Scavenger had the same problem in a different way. 20 resources for the first stage became 50, 100, 150, then 200. The early stages were easy while I was still filling the Stronghold and fake shelter, but the later ones meant deliberately looking for bulk supplies or hauling back things I didn't immediately need.

I usually stopped at 20 or 50 unless I found somewhere worth clearing out.

Infected Suppression was the easiest for Yoru to brute-force. 10 infected became 20, 50, 100, then 200. Ordinary infected went down like butter against her haladie, and my aim with the PZ400 had improved enough that I could pick off the easier targets without wasting as much ammunition.

Once I found the upper limit for each mission, I made a coordinated attempt to clear all three Missions to their maximum together. I started at four in the morning with a mug of coffee I barely tasted, the Map open across the table and an entire day planned around three numbers.

95km of unsecured territory. 520 resources. 380 infected.

Every stage reset the counter after completion, so reaching Stage V meant doing all of them separately. I couldn't afford to treat them as separate jobs either. Every route had to contribute to at least two Missions, preferably all three. I planned the first loop around industrial roads I hadn't used before, with three warehouses and a vehicle depot marked along the way. Yoru handled infected as we moved while I stopped for anything Scavenger would recognise.

The first stages disappeared quickly. Then the counters reset. By sunrise, I was already on my second coffee. Travel II and Suppression II still came naturally enough, but Scavenger II took longer once the obvious supplies were gone. I started opening maintenance rooms, loading bays and storage cages instead of relying on shops.

By mid-morning, we were into Stage III. That was where the day started slowing down. I had already used several of the cleanest routes around the industrial district, so I pushed farther towards the Lincol side and picked through streets I normally ignored. Yoru kept Suppression moving while I used the SR-12 Field Optics to check ahead for infected concentrations and occupied buildings. Scavenger became less selective. Anything sealed, intact and useful enough for the System to count. At that point, I stopped hauling everything back. There was a loophole in how the mission worked: once a recognised item stayed in my hands long enough, Scavenger would register it. So I kept a checklist instead, marking off things I'd already "taken". This kept me moving without wasting half the day on return trips.

By noon, Stage IV was starting to drag. I pushed farther west, stitching together roads I had only passed near before and scouting more frequently. Yoru handled the infected while I worked through workshops, loading bays and abandoned storerooms with the checklist.

We stopped once in the afternoon so Yoru could eat and rest. I checked her Sanity, drank another coffee, then went straight back out.

Stage IV finally cleared sometime in the evening.

The last 40km forced me onto roads I hadn't properly explored yet. I kept the Nightstride moving whenever I could, while Yoru cleared infected from quieter stretches and compounds away from populated areas. She still kept pace on foot. I wasn't pushing the bike anywhere near its maximum speed, but watching her run alongside it while cutting through infected was still ridiculous. It reminded me just how far Operators sat outside normal human limits.

Seven minutes before reset.

The full clear paid exactly what it promised. 1,000

—4,430— I was too tired to feel particularly accomplished. I couldn't do this regularly with just me and Yoru.

That was when I started seriously considering putting Lunallu and Charlotte back into the party.

I even opened the party screen a few times.

Then Lunallu messaged me.

Lunallu: Charlotte says she wants to leave the camp.

Part of me had already started thinking about what that meant for coordinating her.

I closed the party screen after a quick reply, deciding against it for the time being. Losing a few Daily stages was fine. I trusted Lunallu and Charlotte to choose where they were needed; they were Operators, and most of them still had that instinct to help people. If they came back to me, I wanted it to be their choice.

Yoru also needed to stay alone in the party for now. So I accepted the losses and kept going with what I had.

The rest of the second week settled into a more manageable rhythm. I pushed the first few Daily stages when they came naturally, worked on Yoru whenever we were home, and spent the rest of the time chipping away at the Stronghold Missions.

Achievements filled in some of the gaps.

Distance travelled. Infected killed. Supplies stockpiled. My first hundred kilometres on the Nightstride. A few Stronghold milestones. Most only paid 10 or 20 Z-Chips, with the occasional 50, but they came often enough that I stopped thinking of them as negligible.

By the end of the second week, my balance had reached 5,550.

I made one more ten-pull— 4,550 remaining.

I got a Transporter Augment, but the standout this time was another four-star.

★★★★ Vector-Impulse Gauntlets — Equipment

Designed by Veyr Dynamics for breaching operations, these gauntlets were built around one simple idea: if it won't move, hit it harder.

100 | Weight: 1kg

Impulse: Scales with the wearer's physical output to create a knock-back effect.

Cooldown: 24 hours

I recovered the rest of that pull over the next few days.

By then, though, Recruitment itself was becoming a problem.

I'd already tried spacing the ten-pulls apart and doing them late at night, but forty Limited deployments over three weeks were difficult to hide. Eden wasn't in the same state it had been during the first few days anymore. Survivor groups had lookouts. EDF patrols were moving between districts. People had enough time to notice strange lights in the sky and enough working phones to record them.

Transporter's chamber was already surrounded by people.

I didn't want the next Character to land somewhere worse.

So the third week passed without another pull.

I kept to the easier Daily stages. The Nightstride made Travel much easier, but I was careful not to burn through too much 'unsecured territory'. Yoru took up the rest of my time, and the currency accumulated.

By the end of the third week, plus yesterday's detour with Celeste, I was sitting at 6,220.

Five ten-pulls in total so far. One Standard. Four Limited. Forty pulls into Aurelia's banner.

Before I spent any more, I should probably deal with the one summon I'd still left behind.

Transporter had waited long enough.

I closed the Status Window and let the total sit in the corner of my vision while the Private Communications tab remained open in front of me.

No new message yet.

I was standing near the landmark I'd given Lunallu, just off the edge of the road beneath the shade of a half-collapsed bus stop canopy. The settlement wasn't far from here.

I was still staring at the window when Yoru called from behind me.

"...M-Master..."

Her voice came out softer than usual. Almost coy, though the embarrassment in it was obvious.

I turned around.

"This... weird..."

Yoru stood a few steps away, fidgeting in place with both hands caught near the hem of her jacket.

"Don't worry Yoru. You look great."

"Uuu..."

She was fully dressed for the outside world.

Or as close as I could get her.

A cute gatsby-style cap with two rounded sections worked into the top around her ears, making them look like part of the design. The rest I'd picked to tone her down just enough to pass at a glance. A beige turtleneck under a white sports jacket trimmed with light purple, loose jeans, and high-heeled sneakers that completed the outfit.

Her long blue hair had been brushed smooth, falling over the jacket in soft layers. With the maid outfit gone, the black collar became more conspicuous over the turtleneck. Even by this world's standards, Yoru would've stood out. But after enough time dealing with survivors, checkpoints and the EDF, I was confident we could handle the attention if it turned into a problem.

Yoru stood beside me as we both looked up at the clear morning sky.

Her ears shifted beneath the cap.

"...Master."

"Hm?"

She pointed towards a utility pole across the road.

"...That?"

A small black bird was perched along one of the cables.

"A crow."

Yoru watched it.

The crow hopped along the wire, pecked at something near its feet, then settled again.

"...Crow."

"Mhm."

Another one landed beside it. Yoru's eyes widened slightly.

"...Oohh..."

I looked at her instead. She was completely absorbed.

Three weeks ago, I would've had trouble getting her to pay attention to anything that wasn't me. Now she was standing beside me in clothes she'd never worn before, staring at two birds on a power line with genuine interest.

Should I send another message...?

I was about to check the time when I heard footsteps coming up the road.

Fast ones. Not the uneven sprint of someone running from infected; the pace was steady and light.

I already knew who it was before she came into view.

Lunallu rounded the corner at a run.

She had changed since the last time I'd seen her. A fitted green tank top underneath an olive cardigan, tight dark-green jeans and a pair of chains hanging loosely around her waist. Frameless glasses rested over eyes that had returned to a much dimmer purple without her powers active. Her hair shifted behind her as she ran, but her breathing hadn't changed at all.

Lunallu slowed when she saw me and gave me a rare smile, subtle enough that I almost missed it.

[Affinity has increased by 2.]

"...I've kept you waiting."

"No, it's okay. It's been some time, Luna. Have you been doing well?"

"Yes. I have, Doctor."

Her profile appeared almost at the same time.

My eyes stopped on the last number. Ninety-one?

The last time I saw her—

Lunallu stopped halfway towards me.

The smile faded. Her gaze had shifted past my shoulder.

A low growl came from beside me.

"...Grrrr..."

I turned my head. Yoru had moved closer without me noticing. Her shoulders had tightened, ears angled forward through the openings in her cap, eyes fixed directly on Lunallu.

Lunallu regarded her for another second.

"Doctor, this civilian is..."

"She's another Operator. Yoru."

I gestured between them before Yoru did something strange.

"Yoru, this is Lunallu."

Yoru didn't stop growling.

Lunallu's expression barely changed, but I caught the slight stiffness in it. Maybe she'd expected to meet me alone.

"Try to get along," I said before either of them could make things worse. "Yoru's another Operator. She woke up not long ago and hasn't adjusted properly yet, so I've been keeping her with me."

That was close enough to the truth.

Lunallu gave Yoru another look, then nodded.

"I understand."

Yoru's growl dropped to something quieter.

"Good. Because we're here for the same reason."

I turned towards the settlement in the distance. Lunallu followed my gaze naturally.

"There's another Operator inside."

Her attention sharpened.

"I haven't been able to retrieve him yet."

Even from here, people were already moving through their morning routines inside the barricades. The entrance was a rough gap between concrete barriers, scrap metal and abandoned vehicles. A few survivors stood watch with shotguns and hunting rifles, while the occasional EDF soldier moved through.

"It's a pity Charlotte can't be contacted right now, but the three of us should be enough."

Lunallu glanced over. "You're saying..."

I started towards the settlement.

"Let's go."

Yoru fell in on my right, Lunallu on my left, the three of us heading towards the settlement together.

"We'll see what survivor life is like in there before we walk out with one of ours."