Lucas wrapped his body in makeshift protective gear fashioned from cardboard, towels, and every sturdy yet lightweight material he could find.
"System, show me my status."
[Status]
[Name: Lucas Saint]
[Legacy: Harem King]
[Rank: Iron Rank]
[Talent: Sex and Seduction]
[Skills (1/1)]
[Charm]
Passive Effect: You appear more attractive to others than you truly are.
Active Effect: You can weaken a target's mental resistance, making them more susceptible to your influence.
[Stats]
Stamina (Lvl 2), Strength (Lvl 1), Agility (Lvl 1), Durability (Lvl 1), Innate Karma (Lvl 1)
[Active Karma Points: 53]
[Target: 0/1000]
*Reach the target to upgrade your rank.
____
"Put ten KP into Stamina and Strength."
[Stamina +10 (Lvl 2 → Lvl 3)]
[Strength +10 (Lvl 1 → Lvl 2)]
"That leaves me with thirty-three KP left. Okay, put another ten into Durability and dump the rest into Agility."
[Durability +10 (Lvl 1 → Lvl 2)]
[Agility +23 (Lvl 1 → Lvl 2 → Lvl 3)]
Lucas nodded to himself.
He needed a balanced foundation, but if he ran into a monster, his best chance of survival would be escaping alive.
"And to do that, I'll need speed. Hopefully pushing my Agility to Level 3 helps."
A moment later, his expression stiffened.
"But now that I think about it… I have absolutely no idea how to turn on a power plant. What am I even supposed to do when I get there? I've never even seen one in real life."
[TheSmartOne: Don't worry, I'll guide you. I've watched a ton of TechTok videos about how to restart a power plant.]
"That sounds way too specific to be real."
[Salvation_Father: Our city uses highly advanced technology, so it should be as simple as pressing a few buttons. Still, I wouldn't advise taking the risk unless you no longer value your life.]
[RichFarmer: F*CK all that nonsense. You took my KP and already spent them, so now you HAVE to do it.]
[TheSmartOne: Yeah, give us a show.]
Lucas let out a defeated sigh, "I never said I was going to chicken out."
He opened the door and headed downstairs.
After a brief moment of hesitation, he stepped outside the building.
One cautious step after another, he moved farther away from the safety of the apartment complex.
It felt strange.
From upstairs, the streets had always looked mostly empty aside from the occasional wandering zombie or monster.
But now that he was actually outside, the silence felt wrong.
There was barely any movement at all.
And that unsettled him.
In fact, the entire situation felt unnatural. It was almost as if the monsters weren't trying very hard to kill them.
Instead…
It felt like they were preserving the survivors for something else.
'That would explain why they never entered the houses,' Lucas thought as he walked through the deserted streets. 'Maybe they're intentionally keeping some of us alive.'
Every now and then, he noticed figures peeking at him through windows.
'They probably think I'm insane…'
He shook his head.
'Maybe I actually am.'
As he turned a corner, he froze.
The street ahead was packed with zombies.
Dozens of them laid motionless beneath the dim sky.
The stench of rotting flesh flooded the air, forcing Lucas to clamp a hand over his nose while desperately trying not to gag, or scream.
Some stood in clusters, separated into small groups, unmoving like statues.
[TheSmartOne: Oh sh*t…]
[Salvation_Father: Stay calm. They won't attack you as long as you don't make any loud noise.]
[TheSmartOne: Lol, I already knew that. I was just messing with him.]
"Why are they just laying there?" Lucas whispered. "It's like they're actually dead."
[TheSmartOne: Aren't they? You're seriously not that bright.]
Lucas frowned at the chat window, but stayed silent.
Right now, making noise felt like the worst possible idea.
They were blocking the path towards where the power plant was located, and this was the only way through. Unless he wanted to go all the way around the city.
'Maybe that's a better idea' he thought with a sigh.
Then he forced the hesitation out of his head, 'I think I can make it'
There was a gap in between the clustered groups of zombies so all he had to do was avoid bumping into them while maintaining his silence.
It was a risky move, but it was far better than going the long way round and running into more terrifying danger.
He planned to speed run everything and be back home before nightfall.
"Let's go," he said to himself, summoning all the confidence in his body as he took one shaky step after another.
[TheSmartOne: Don't die! At least not so early…]
Lucas shook his head.
'As if you'd even care.'
He dropped onto all fours and began crawling forward. It was the safest and most practical way to move unnoticed.
Every motion was slow and deliberate.
"Help!!!"
A heart-wrenching scream suddenly echoed from behind him.
Lucas froze.
He turned to see a man sprinting down the street with one hand clutched against his bleeding neck.
"Somebody help me, please!" the man screamed desperately.
The moment Lucas saw him, he already knew the man was doomed.
He still couldn't see whatever had attacked him, but he could feel the shift in the atmosphere around the zombies.
"Grrrr…"
One of them peeled itself off the ground, staggering like a drunk. Then another rose.
And another.
Then suddenly, they exploded into a sprint toward the wounded man.
Not all the zombies woke up at once, but the few that did came dangerously close to Lucas as he curled his body tightly against the pavement.
He could hear heavy footsteps stomping past him while he silently muttered his final prayers.
In the end, the zombies ignored him completely and chased after the wounded man instead.
Moments later, the street filled with horrifying screams as they tore into him alive.
Lucas didn't dare look back.
Those gut-wrenching cries became fuel, pushing him to crawl faster than ever before.
The moment he made it off that street he sprinted like never before, running like a desperate criminal with a police dog right behind him.