The night dragged on.
But aside from the Creeper's surprise cameo — and the slightly increased frequency of E-rank zombies — nothing major happened.
Just the usual: Walkers shuffling aimlessly.
Runners sprinting like they had unfinished business.
Jumpers committing crimes against gravity.
And in the middle of it all—
Two highly questionable individuals turning zombie extermination into a competition.
• × • × • × •
"Three shots," Nathan said, lowering his handgun with a small nod of satisfaction.
A Runner collapsed mid-stride, sliding a few meters before going still.
Beside him—
"…My previous target also only took three shots," Natsu replied calmly — or at least, she tried to. "…So that's a tie."
Nathan clicked his tongue. "…No, it's not. You used four. Did you really think I wouldn't notice?"
Natsu's ears twitched. "…Excuse me?"
"I used less ammo overall," he said, pointing at his gun like that proved everything. "Efficiency matters."
"That's because you keep using that skill," she shot back immediately.
"…What skill?" Nathan said, attempting innocence.
"The one that makes your shots stronger," she replied flatly. "You think I didn't notice?"
Nathan scratched his cheek. "…Well… yeah."
He paused.
"…You didn't say anything about banning skills."
Natsu stared at him. Her expression didn't change much—
But her eyes?
They narrowed.
Then she puffed her cheeks and looked away. "…That's unfair."
Nathan blinked.
That was not the reaction he expected.
"I— wait," he said quickly. "You're actually upset?"
She didn't answer.
Which was an answer.
…Was she the competitive type?
Like — really competitive.
Well. That explains a lot.
"…Okay, that's on me," Nathan admitted, raising both hands. "I should've mentioned it."
Natsu turned back slowly, still pouting.
"…So you admit it?"
"…Yeah."
…Great. Now I feel like a villain for winning.
"…Alright," he sighed, handing her the handgun. "the next E-rank zombie was yours. And from now on, I'll mark your targets too."
Natsu's ears perked slightly.
"…Really?"
"Yeah. Equal terms," he said. "Fair fight."
She studied him for a moment. "…Okay."
Just like that, her mood lifted.
…That was fast.
Nathan blinked repeatedly.
…Note to self: never mess with her competitive streak again.
From that point on, the "competition" resumed—
Except now, it was completely even.
Hunter's Mark applied to both their targets.
And after an impressive number of ties—
"…This is pointless," they said at the same time.
"…We're too good," she added.
"…Or too optimized," Nathan corrected.
• × • × • × •
Time passed, the sky deepened further into night. And slowly… fatigue crept in.
At first, it was subtle — just heavier eyelids.
Then a yawn.
Nathan covered his mouth, blinking a few times.
"…You good?" Natsu asked, glancing at him.
"…Yeah," he lied immediately.
Another yawn betrayed him.
Natsu raised a brow. "…You look terrible."
"Am I?"
"You should sleep."
"…I'm fine."
"You're not."
"I survived last night without sleep."
"Probably out of stubbornness," she replied.
…She had a point.
Nathan exhaled slowly.
Last night had been… less 'rest' and more 'refusing to die out of fear and spite.'
But now, he wasn't alone.
"…I'll keep watch," Natsu said. "Nothing will get past me."
Nathan hesitated, studying her.
She looked steady, alert. Way more functional than he currently was.
"…Alright," he said finally. "I'll take a short nap."
Natsu nodded.
"As my thanks," he added, pointing at her, "you can go crazy when dawn's close."
Her eyes lit up instantly. "…Really?"
"Yeah. Don't worry about ammo," he said. "The more Walkers you kill, the more I can make tomorrow."
A grin spread across her face. "…Got it."
…I may have just unleashed something dangerous.
Nathan moved to the riverside edge of the wall and sat down, leaning against the wooden railing.
Uncomfortable — but practical.
If something went wrong, he could move instantly, and he wouldn't get in Natsu's way there.
"…Wake me if anything happens," he said.
"I will."
He closed his eyes, and within seconds—
Sleep took him.
• × • × • × •
Warmth.
That was the first thing he noticed.
Nathan slowly opened his eyelids.
Soft, golden sunlight spilled across the wooden platform.
"…Huh," he muttered.
For a moment, he just sat there, processing. He blinked groggily and checked the system clock.
[07:20 AM]
"…Oh."
He rubbed his face.
I slept… for four hours?
"…I feel refreshed," he murmured. "Definitely thanking her later."
Then, A smell hit him — warm and savory.
His stomach reacted immediately.
He stood and followed it.
Down the ladder, Into the center of the fortress. And there, Natsu sat by the campfire, calmly tending two skewered fish propped over the flames.
"…Morning," Nathan said.
Natsu glanced up. "…Morning."
"…You caught fish?"
"Yeah," she said casually. "I got enough for both of us."
Nathan stepped closer.
"…Those are huge."
Each fish was easily around forty centimeters long — thick , meaty, and… suspiciously impressive.
"…You said fishing was hard," he said. "How did you even manage securing two?"
Natsu raised her hand.
*Fwoop.*
Her SMG appeared.
"…This."
Nathan stared.
"…You shot them."
She nodded. "…Is that bad?"
"…No," he said slowly. "That's… actually amazing."
He tilted his head. "…But why not use the handgun?"
Natsu looked away slightly.
"…Well…" she hesitated. "…I might've gotten a little too excited before dawn."
Nathan narrowed his eyes.
"…Define 'a little.'"
"…I used up all the ammunition in your storage," she admitted quietly.
Nathan blinked once.
Then twice.
…Right.
I gave her the ammo access from my Storage.
…and I did tell her to go crazy.
He exhaled through his nose.
Note to self: implement ammo regulations…
"…Don't worry about it," he said instead, waving it off. "That one's on me."
Natsu looked back at him, surprised. "…You're not mad?"
"I literally told you to go all out," he replied. "Would be weird if I complained now."
"…Fair."
She checked the skewers, then nodded.
"I think it's ready," she said, handing one to him. "Here."
Nathan took it, and the aroma hit instantly.
Warm and savory. Smells like an Actual food.
"…Wow," he breathed. "This smells incredible."
He took a bite.
"…Ack—!" he jerked back, eyes widening. "It's hot!"
"Of course it's hot," Natsu said flatly. "I just finished cooking it."
"…Right. That makes sense," he muttered, fanning his mouth.
Then, without learning anything — he took another bite.
"…Still worth it," he said, chewing through the pain.
Natsu watched him, then shook her head.
"You're weird."
"Noted," Nathan replied, already halfway through the skewer. "But this is really good."
A brief pause passed.
"…So," he said between bites, "how did you actually catch them?"
Natsu tilted her head.
"…With the gun?"
"I figured that part," Nathan said. "I mean — bullets and water don't exactly cooperate the way you intended."
"Yeah," she nodded. "I noticed that too."
She gestured slightly.
"The first few shots didn't work. I didn't hit anything at all."
"…Makes sense."
"So I adjusted," she continued. "I targeted the ones near the surface."
Nathan raised a brow.
"…And that worked?"
"It did," she said. "Though they were far from the riverbank."
"…Let me guess."
"I had to swim."
Nathan paused mid-bite, then slowly lowered the skewer. "…Of course you did."
And somehow, she's completely dry.
I'm not even going to question it.
Natsu blinked. "…What?"
"…Nothing," he sighed. Then nodded. "Just — thanks."
"For what?"
"For the food," he said simply. "And the effort."
She looked at him for a moment.
"…Glad you like it," she said softly. "Though it would be better with some salt."
"Yeah," Nathan nodded. "That would've been perfect."
They ate in comfortable silence.
The kind that didn't need filling.
Nathan glanced at her.
This is… nice.
Weirdly nice.
• × • × • × •
Later—
Nathan leaned back, hand on his stomach.
"…I'm dying."
"That's dramatic," Natsu said.
"But I regret nothing," he replied.
That fish had been massive.
"I'm a little disappointed no Beast-type monsters showed up," she mused. "But at least we got real food."
"…What should we do now?" she asked suddenly.
"You know… rest?"
"I don't know," she admitted. "I'm not used to doing nothing, it makes me… restless."
Nathan thought for a moment.
"Then… can you gather the runestones?"
"Sure."
She stood up immediately and walked off.
Nathan watched her go.
"…She's too efficient."
He turned toward the river.
"…Alright." a small grin formed. "…Time for a proper bath."
• × • × • × •
Cold water hit his skin.
Nathan exhaled sharply.
"…Hah—!"
He resurfaced, pushing his hair back.
"…I'm alive again."
Why does this feel better than anything else right now?
He dunked himself again.
Then again.
Washing off sweat, grime, and questionable life choices.
He even washed his clothes—
Green pants.
Green button-up shirt.
Still a terrible camouflage strategy, somehow.
And after some experimenting, he found out — clothes stored in the Storage came out dry and clean, just like how stored wood works. Though scratched and ripped part stays.
Okay… so I actually didn't need to wash them at all.
How convenient.
Still, he needed better gear.
Preferably something that didn't scream 'lost hospital patient in a zombie invested forest.'
• × • × • × •
When Nathan returned—
He stopped. "…What?"
Natsu glanced up.
In front of her, sat a wooden crate the size of a small bucket he'd created earlier, now completely filled to the brim with runestones.
Nathan stared.
"…I don't remember killing this many."
"Oh," she said casually. "Since you said it's better to kill as many as possible…"
Nathan felt a sudden sense of dread.
"…Yeah?"
She continued—
"When I ran out of bullets, I jumped down and until dawn, I killed as many as I could with my sword."
Nathan stared at her.
"…You what?"