The first scream came at 8:17 a.m.Ethan Kane barely looked up from his phone.Morning traffic crawled outside the warehouse office window. Workers moved pallets across the loading yard. Everything appeared normal.Then another scream echoed through the building.And another.Followed by a crash."What the hell?" Ethan muttered.The warehouse manager rushed past his office."Ethan! Lock the doors!"Ethan stood up."What happened?""I don't know! Someone attacked Greg in Receiving!"The manager's face was pale."Ethan, lock the damn doors!"Before Ethan could ask another question, a horrifying shriek erupted from the warehouse floor.Then came the sounds of people running.Screaming.Crying.Something heavy slammed into metal shelving.The manager bolted down the hallway.Ethan followed.The moment he stepped onto the warehouse floor, his blood turned cold.Greg.The warehouse receiver.A man Ethan had worked with for nearly three years.He was on the ground.Or what remained of him.B

"The zombies are inside!"The terrified scream echoed throughout the supermarket.Panic exploded instantly.People shoved one another in desperate attempts to escape.Several survivors fell to the floor.Others trampled over them without hesitation.The infected surged through the shattered entrance.Their white eyes burned with hunger.Blood stained their mouths.Their twisted growls sent chills down everyone's spine."Run!""Get away from them!"A middle-aged man was the first victim.One of the infected tackled him near the checkout counters.His scream lasted only seconds.Then blood splashed across the floor.Chaos consumed the supermarket.Ethan grabbed Sophia's wrist."This way!"They sprinted deeper into the building.Behind them, survivors were dying.The infected spread through the aisles like a tidal wave.A woman carrying a child stumbled.Three zombies immediately descended upon her.Ethan clenched his fists.He wanted to help.But there were too many.If he stopped now,

The storage room was silent.For a few precious moments, nobody moved.The giant corpse of the Crusher lay sprawled across the floor, black blood pooling beneath it.Ethan leaned against a shelf, breathing heavily.His arms trembled from exhaustion.The fight had lasted only a few minutes, but it felt like hours.Sophia hurried to his side."Are you hurt?""I'm fine.""You're covered in blood.""Most of it isn't mine."That didn't seem to reassure her.Emily approached cautiously, still staring at the dead mutant."You... actually killed it."Ethan glanced at the monster.To be honest, he was still having trouble believing it himself.If not for the System, he would be dead right now.A glowing notification appeared.Special Reward Chest Available.Open Now?YES / NOEthan selected YES immediately.A golden chest materialized inside his inventory.The lid slowly opened.Brilliant light burst out.DING!Congratulations!You have obtained:Military Combat Backpack ×1Beginner Inventory

The courtyard fell silent.Everyone's attention shifted toward Ethan and the woman standing before him.Ava Reynolds.Former Special Forces Operator.S-Rank Destiny Value.Even without the System's information, Ethan could tell she was different.While the other survivors looked exhausted and terrified, Ava remained calm.Alert.Her posture was perfect.Her eyes constantly scanned her surroundings.Like a soldier evaluating threats.And right now, Ethan was one of those threats."Where did you get that gun?" she asked again.Ethan met her gaze."A lucky find."Ava's eyes narrowed.She clearly didn't believe him.Neither would Ethan.A Desert Eagle wasn't exactly something people found lying around.Still, she didn't push further.For now.The older woman who had allowed them inside stepped forward."Enough."She sighed."Everyone's tired.""If we're going to survive, we need to work together."The tension eased slightly.Ava took a step back but continued watching Ethan carefully.The

CLANG!Ava's combat knife collided with the Hunter's claws.The impact sent both fighters skidding backward.The survivors watching from a distance could hardly believe what they were seeing.A human was actually fighting a mutant head-on.And holding her own.The Hunter's glowing red eyes narrowed.Its intelligence was obvious now.This wasn't some mindless monster.It analyzed.Adapted.Learned.Ava wiped a streak of blood from her cheek."Ugly bastard."The mutant hissed.Then vanished.WHOOSH!It appeared behind her instantly.Ava spun.Too late.The claws sliced across her shoulder.Blood splattered onto the pavement.Sophia gasped."Ava!"The former soldier staggered but didn't fall.Instead, she counterattacked.Her knife slashed across the Hunter's chest.Black blood sprayed.The mutant leaped backward.Its smile was gone now.It had finally found prey capable of hurting it.Meanwhile, Ethan carefully observed the battle.He wasn't rushing in.That would only get him killed.T