After meditating for an hour, they slowly opened their eyes.
The first thing they noticed—
Their bodies were covered in a thick, black, sticky liquid.
"Ugh—what the hell is this?!" John grimaced, sniffing himself and instantly recoiling. "Man, this smells like something crawled outta hell and died on me. Can we get a damn shower or what?"
Leon glanced at his arms, unfazed but slightly disgusted.
"In the middle of an apocalypse, you're asking for a luxury spa?" he replied dryly. Then he paused, thinking. "But yeah… we do need to clean this off."
He looked toward the basement.
"There should be a bathroom down there."
Without wasting time, they headed to the basement, stripped off their filthy clothes, and turned on the showers.
Water poured down—
Washing away the black residue, the smell, and the exhaustion.
By the time they stepped out, it felt like a rebirth.
Their bodies felt lighter… stronger… sharper.
John stretched his arms, cracking his neck.
"Damn… I feel like I just respawned with upgraded stats," he smirked.
Leon examined himself carefully. Apart from more defined muscles and slightly paler skin, there were no visible changes.
"Changes are internal," Leon muttered. "That's where it matters."
They got dressed and stepped out of the clinic.
For a moment, Leon stopped.
"…Let's go home. One last time."
The bus roared through the empty streets as they made their way to Leon's house.
When they arrived, Leon stepped inside.
The house was silent.
Still.
Empty.
He exhaled slowly.
"My mom… she went to the USA to meet dad," he said quietly. "At least she's safe."
Relief flickered in his eyes—but it didn't last long.
A faint sound reached his ears.
Crying.
Leon froze.
"…That's not normal."
He followed the sound to the neighboring house.
Inside—
A little girl sat curled up, crying her heart out.
Leon recognized her instantly.
"Sofia…"
She was his neighbor's daughter. He used to play with her often.
He walked up to her and gently placed his hand on her head, patting softly.
She looked up—
Her eyes red, swollen, filled with fear.
The moment she saw him, she clung to him tightly.
"B-Brother…" she sobbed. "Do… do you know where my mom is?"
Leon's chest tightened.
He didn't know.
But he couldn't say that.
"Sofia…" he spoke softly, hugging her. "Hey… don't cry, alright? Your mom… she'll come back. She has to."
He wasn't sure if he was comforting her—
Or himself.
She kept crying, her small hands gripping his shirt.
Leon gently patted her back, trying to calm her down.
Slowly…
Her sobs faded.
Her body relaxed.
And within minutes—
She fell asleep on his shoulder.
Leon sighed quietly and carried her back to the bus.
He carefully handed her to Naina.
"Whose child is this?" Naina asked, surprised.
"She's my neighbor's kid," Leon replied. "Found her alone… crying in the house." He looked at Sofia, then back at Naina. "I didn't know what else to do… so I brought her."
Naina's expression softened as she held the girl.
"You did the right thing."
Leon nodded silently and returned to the driver's seat.
The bus started moving again.
After a while, John took over driving.
Leon moved to the back and sat beside Naina.
She had fallen asleep, holding Sofia gently.
Leon carefully took Sofia into his own arms, holding her close.
For a moment—
Everything felt quiet.
Normal.
He closed his eyes.
After traveling for a few hours, the bus suddenly came to a halt.
Leon opened his eyes instantly.
"What happened, John?"
John pointed ahead.
"There's an old man walking on the road."
Leon narrowed his eyes.
"Drive closer."
The bus rolled forward slowly.
Leon opened the door and called out—
"Hey, old man! Where you heading?" he shouted. "We're going toward a military base. Wanna tag along?"
The old man turned, his face worn and tired.
He raised his hand, signaling them to stop.
"Which military base?" he asked.
"The Kutch military base."
The old man's expression darkened instantly.
"Don't go there," he said firmly. "I barely made it out alive."
The atmosphere inside the bus grew tense.
"What happened?" Leon asked.
The old man's voice trembled slightly.
"It's gone… completely overrun," he said. "A massive horde attacked. Not just zombies—mutants… beasts… things you wouldn't believe."
John frowned. "With all those weapons, how did it fall?"
The old man shook his head.
"Those mutants… bullets didn't stop them. Even grenades barely scratched them."
Silence filled the bus.
Leon's jaw tightened.
"…Then where do we go?"
"There's another place," the old man said. "A safe camp built by the military. About 300 kilometers from here."
Leon exchanged a glance with John.
"Guess that's our only option," John muttered.
Leon nodded.
"Alright. We head there."
After hours of travel, exhaustion started creeping in.
They needed rest.
Eventually, they found a police station.
Leon stepped out first and pushed the door open.
Inside—
A few zombies wandered aimlessly.
"Let's clear this out," Leon said.
John smirked. "Finally, some action."
They stepped in and quickly took down all the zombies.
Once it was secure, they began searching the place.
Leon found a pistol and tossed it to John.
"You're short on firepower."
John caught it and grinned. "Now we're talking."
After more searching, they found a box—
Inside were four silencers.
"Jackpot," John said.
They collected ammunition as well. John kept two magazines, while the rest were stored inside Leon's ring.
After thoroughly checking the building, they confirmed it was safe.
They decided to stay the night.
The girls prepared food.
After eating, everyone quickly fell asleep.
A few hours later—
Leon woke up.
Quietly, he stepped outside.
He sat down in a meditative position, closing his eyes.
Slowly…
He began gathering energy into his core.
Heat built up inside him.
He focused—
Channeling it.
Shaping it.
When he opened his eyes, he stood up and extended his palm.
A small flame flickered—
Then grew.
A fireball formed in his hand.
Brighter than before.
Stronger.
Leon smirked slightly.
"Let's test this."
He hurled the fireball at the wall.
BOOM.
A crater the size of a baseball formed instantly.
Leon raised his eyebrow.
"Not bad…"
He clenched his fist and punched the wall.
His hand sank into it.
Then he infused fire energy into his fist—
And struck again.
CRACK.
His fist went deeper, and spiderweb-like cracks spread across the wall.
Leon exhaled slowly.
"So… infusing fire into my strikes increases the impact."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Now we're getting somewhere."
He went back inside and lay down again.
The next morning—
They packed up and prepared to leave.
John took the driver's seat and started the bus.
As they moved forward, a soft growl echoed.
Leon looked down.
Sofia was awake, holding her stomach.
"Sofia… you hungry?"
She nodded slowly.
"Yes… brother…"
John chuckled from the front.
"Looks like someone's got a fan."
Leon ignored him and handed Sofia some packet food.
"Eat slowly," he said softly. "We've got a long road ahead."
Sofia smiled faintly and began eating.
And once again—
The journey continued.