Chapter 1063: Hope Has a Price

“You guys, go check if there are any other survivors in this small town,” Ethan said, turning to the group behind him. “And clear out the remaining zombies while you’re at it. We’ll be staying here tonight.”

“Got it.”

The others quickly headed out, leaving just Ethan and Chris in the ruined living room.

“Ethan… my parents…” Chris leaned into him and broke down, sobbing uncontrollably. In that moment, the assassin who moved like a shadow in the dark looked heartbreakingly fragile.

Only in front of Ethan would he let himself fall apart like this.

Ethan gently patted his shoulder, voice low and steady. “Try to stay hopeful. We didn’t find any bodies, and there’s no blood in the house. Maybe your parents made it out. Maybe they escaped.”

Chris’s eyes lit up like he’d just grabbed onto a lifeline. “Right! No blood! Maybe they left the town and made it to a Safe Zone!”

“Yeah. It’s possible.”

Not long after, Sean and the others returned. Sean gave Ethan a small shake of his head.

“No survivors left in the town,” he said. “But we did find signs of a fight. A lot of zombie corpses too. Someone’s cleared out a good chunk of them.”

“Could’ve been a rescue team,” he added. “Or maybe the townspeople organized and fought back.”

“Really?” Chris’s face lit up with hope again.

Ethan let out a quiet sigh. He hated this part—when hope started to rise, only to risk crashing down even harder. But he couldn’t bring himself to say anything harsh. Chris knew the odds. He just needed time to accept them.

“Alright,” Ethan said. “We’ll rest here tonight. Tomorrow, we’ll check the surrounding area—see if there’s a Safe Zone nearby.”

“Okay.”

They picked out a few of the more intact houses to stay in. For a small town, the living conditions weren’t bad at all. Some of the homes were even nicer than what you’d find in the city—well-furnished, cozy, and surprisingly comfortable.

After a quick meal, everyone turned in early.

At midnight, they got up as usual to stargaze and absorb mysterious energy.

They watched the stars all night, eyes fixed on the sky.

Just as the Nine-Star Dipper began to fade, and everyone was getting ready to head back for a few more hours of sleep, a sudden surge of energy pulsed from Ethan’s body.

Everyone froze, exchanging glances.

They all knew what this meant.

The energy wave came fast—and vanished just as quickly. Within two minutes, everything settled down again.

Ethan sat up from the ground, a wide grin spreading across his face.

“Ethan, did you just break through to Tier 7?!” someone asked, excitement bubbling in their voice.

“Yeah,” Ethan nodded, still smiling. “Took three days, but I finally broke through. The second star in the constellation map—Mizar—its first point just lit up.”

“Did it feel any different?” Chris asked.

Ethan closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the changes in his body. Then he opened them and said, “My strength increased by about 4,000 pounds. Physical stats are up across the board. And my mental energy pool is way bigger than before.”

“4,000 pounds?!” Chris blinked. “So your total strength is around 21,000 pounds now?”

“Roughly, yeah. A typical Tier 7 human should be around 19,000. I’ve got an extra 2,000 pounds from my bonuses, so that puts me right at 21,000.”

“Wait, doesn’t that mean you’re about as strong as Goldie now?” Skinny Pete asked.

Ethan shook his head. “Not quite. Goldie’s a tiger—and not just any tiger. Among mutant beasts, it’s top-tier. Even at the same Tier, humans can’t really match a mutated tiger. Its raw strength is higher, and its defense and speed are on a whole other level.”

He paused, then added, “The only edge humans have is our abilities. That’s probably the only reason we’ve survived this long.”

Everyone nodded silently.

At 8 a.m., the group grabbed a quick bite and got ready to head out.

“The back roads around here are way too narrow,” Ethan said as he checked their gear. “We’re leaving the FMTV military truck behind today. It and everything inside stays here. Pumpkin and Goldie too—they’ll guard the supplies.”

“Meow…” Pumpkin let out a protesting cry, clearly unhappy about being left alone with Goldie.

“Pumpkin, it’s not gonna eat you,” Skinny Pete chuckled. “You two should really learn to get along.”

Pumpkin looked like it wanted to argue more, but Ethan didn’t give it the chance.

They weren’t heading out to fight—they were looking for people. Bringing two massive mutant beasts along would only complicate things.

The group found two working cars in the small town and set off.

Their goals were simple: find out if there were any Safe Zones nearby, and get a better read on the current state of Redwood County.

As they drove, they passed one ruined small town after another. Each one was overrun with zombies. Not a single survivor in sight.

The silence weighed on them.

But after about thirty minutes on the road, Ethan suddenly spotted something—off in a field, a group of Enhanced cautiously picking vegetables.

There were about twenty of them, all around Tier 4.

Considering it had been over a month since the apocalypse began—and Tier 4 and Tier 5 zombies were now common—this group’s strength was barely average. At best.

Out here, that kind of power was a gamble. One wrong encounter with a zombie horde, and they’d be wiped out.

The sound of the approaching vehicles quickly drew their attention.

The Enhanced all turned, eyes wide.

Who the hell was still driving around in broad daylight? Didn’t they know the noise would attract zombies?

The two cars rolled to a stop, and a few people stepped out, walking toward the group.

“Hey there,” Ethan called out politely. “We’re looking for a Safe Zone nearby. You know if there’s one around here?”

The man in front—a young guy, maybe mid-twenties—gave Ethan and his crew a long, suspicious look before replying.

“Where are you from?”

“We were living in a small town back that way,” Ethan said, keeping his tone casual. “Barely made it out. Just trying to find a Safe Zone to take shelter.”

“You think we’re stupid?” the man snapped. “You don’t look like people who just escaped anything.”

“…”

“Alright, whatever,” Ethan said, brushing it off. “Doesn’t matter where we came from. Just tell us if there’s a Safe Zone nearby.”

“There’s nothing around here,” the man said flatly. “Try somewhere else.”

“Come on, Harris,” an older man behind him—probably in his forties—spoke up. “They’re just some young folks. Don’t make it harder than it has to be. If they can’t get into a compound, they’ll be zombie food.”

“You don’t get it,” Harris snapped. “Without Knox’s permission, no one says a damn thing about the compound. If he finds out we told strangers, we’re dead.”

The older man flinched at that, his body tensing. He didn’t say another word.

Ethan watched the exchange quietly, taking it all in.

Then he spoke. “This area’s not that big. You really think I won’t find it just because you won’t tell me?”

“If you find it, that’s on you,” Harris said with a shrug. “As long as it doesn’t come from us, we’re good.”

Ethan nodded slowly.

So this Knox guy… definitely not someone to take lightly.