Leave a comment

CatatoPatch is a freelance translator, you can support them on:

With a sharp thud, an arrow embedded itself into the zombie’s head, echoing the sound of jam squishing from a tube. Song Zhe ran a hand across the fresh scratch on his forehead, his eyes widening in surprise when he spotted Hao Jian below, his bowstring still humming from the recent shot.

“Man, that was close. Thanks,” Song Zhe muttered, making his way down the stairs, the reality of his near miss sinking in.

Hao Jian, with a smirk, adjusted his ruffled black jacket, “Just doing my part. Can’t let anything happen to my junior’s buddy, can I?”

Song Zhe grinned weakly. “Guess I owe you one.” He pondered on the narrow escape; without Lin Feng’s quick thinking or Hao Jian’s swift action, he might not have been standing there.

Lin Feng clapped Song Zhe on the back, his tone light but earnest, “Be careful, Song.” His heart truly did a number right there when that zombie lashed out at Song Zhe. Thankfully, Hao Jian’s quick shooting was there to save the day. In fact, his speed seemed almost inhuman at this point.

“Right.” Song Zhe meekly nodded. Any excitement from leaving their fetid surroundings at long last was thoroughly beaten out of him from that close brush with death.

Poking his tiny head out of the manhole, Lin Feng scanned the surroundings. Stray zombies loomed in the area, possibly separated from the main group or distracted by something else.

Without hesitation, he sprung up and alighted on a nearby tree. The noise from the manhole cover had garnered the attention of the zombies from the nearby plaza. Sensing new arrivals, they began to close in.

“I’ll lead them away. Get ready to move!” he shouted to those below.

Lin Feng vaulted onto a tree overlooking the plaza. Below him were just a dozen or so zombies. In all likelihood, the bulk of the zombies had left with the larger horde, but a few remained, scattered amidst overturned vehicles.

From his elevated position, Lin Feng notched an arrow and took aim. The others, though novices in archery, joined him, their arrows slicing through the air in unison. The zombies below stood little chance.

Watching some of the younger girls struggle with their shots, Hao Jian advised, “Focus, breathe, and release. We can’t afford wasted arrows out here.”

Once the immediate threat subsided, Lin Feng descended and began gathering the arrows, intending to disinfect and reuse them. Unlike the archery hall in school, there was no ready supply to restock from.

“How many did you retrieve?” Hao Jian asked, approaching Lin Feng.

“Nine in total,” Lin Feng replied, carefully extracting an arrowhead from a fractured shaft. “The others were damaged.” Destroyed as it was, the arrowhead could still be salvaged and remade into an arrow later.

Hao Jian’s face shadowed with concern, but before he could comment, Lin Feng interjected, “It’s their first real encounter. They’ll learn.” He handed the bundle of arrows to Hao Jian.

He then approached Ruo Lian, who appeared especially distressed amongst the girls who struggled. “You okay?”

She swallowed hard. “I… hesitated. It was still moving…”

Lin Feng placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “It’s hard, but you’ll adapt. We all have to.” He glanced around, realizing perhaps he’d been overly protective in the past. If he was going to help the principal set up that new base, these girls would have to learn to survive on their own in this harsh new world.

Taking in the anxious expressions of the group, Lin Feng sighed, sensing the weight of their new reality.