Chapter 31 A Troubling Prospect

Mark left Richard’s office, leaving him alone. He used this opportunity to check his system and see what changed.

[User: Richard Gonzales

Health: 100/100

Age: 21

Level: 21

Experience points: 1,073,272/1,235,094

Skills: Weapon Proficiency Level 2, Melee Proficiency Level 2, Driving Proficiency Level 2.

New Skills Available:

Available Skill Points: 11

Summoned Troops: 215/800

Current gold balance: 22,270,000 gold coins

New skills available:

Tactics Mastery (Level 1): This skill enhances your ability to plan and execute military strategies effectively. It improves your understanding of troop formations, battlefield positioning, and resource management, making you a more formidable commander.]

“That’s the only skill I got after jumping ten levels?” Richard said, a bit disappointed about the new skill that he received. He wanted a combat-oriented skill—wait Tactics Mastery?

Richard recalled all of the operations he conducted for the last three days, and he found out that all of them were ineffective and inefficient. Maybe if he learned this new skill, he would be able to improve his tactical sense. Perhaps he needed it more than the combat-oriented skills.

After all, he hasn’t got a chance to test his melee proficiency skill for example, as zombies were killed before they could even reach him. And the prospect of him getting out in the world is slim, simply because he could have his troops do the operations.

After a minute of contemplation, Richard decided to learn the new skill, Tactics Mastery. There’s no currency exchanged for unlocking the skills, but leveling them does.

He used all of his points to Tactical Mastery, raising its level to 2, and then he felt something strange in his mind. It felt like something was being absorbed or integrated into his consciousness.

After that, Richard went to a shop and there he found that most of the locked products were now unlocked. He would have more choices when it comes to buying military hardware.

However, the problem is space. The garage’s ceiling was small for big military vehicles so even if he could buy something, he couldn’t take them out.

Does that mean they need to relocate?

Thinking about all the prospects is making his head spin with possibilities and challenges. Richard knew that to fully utilize his new skills and the unlocked military hardware options, he needed a suitable base of operations. The condominium simply couldn’t accommodate his expanding ambitions.

Feeling that he had hit a roadblock, Richard stopped thinking for a moment and allowed his mind to rest.

“It’s just been three days, no need to rush everything,” Richard said to himself.

As Richard settled into his moment of reflection, he was suddenly interrupted by a polite knock on his office door. Startled, he looked towards the entrance, then called out, “Come in.”

The door swung open, revealing a familiar face. It was Sara.

She entered the room with a composed demeanor and a folder in her hand.

“Good afternoon, sir,” Sara greeted him with a respectful nod. “I know there’s no appointment but I want to share something with you.”

Richard rubbed his chin, curious as to what she might bring. “Okay, take a seat.”

Sara nodded and took a seat across from Richard’s desk, placing the folder she had brought on the table between them. She opened it and began to explain.

“I have been doing some research about this zombie plague, and here’s what I found. As you can see on this image and its time stamps, the outbreak happened almost instantaneously. Which I found odd because an outbreak usually has an origin or a ground zero, but this seems to have erupted simultaneously in multiple locations.”

Sara presented a series of images and data on the table, showing maps and charts with various outbreaks marked. Her analysis was thorough, and she continued, “It’s as if this plague was deliberately unleashed in a coordinated manner.”

Richard nodded as he regarded Sara’s words. He too found it odd that a zombie outbreak would reach every corner of the planet within a single day.

“Have you been able to find out how the virus, or whatever it is, unleashed?”

“That’s another problem, sir,” Sara brought her tablet up and opened it. She showed him a compilation of footage extracted from the internet from around the world. “We don’t know. But one thing we are sure of is that there is consistency in time. For example in the Philippines. The first outbreak recorded in Manila happened at six o’clock in the morning, three days ago. And let’s pick another city, New York, it was six in the evening. In London, it was 11 p.m…”

“So it all happened at the same time?” Richard observed. “What about the hour before the outbreak?”

Sara showed him another footage, and there he saw footage of a peaceful and normal day in a city.

Richard tapped his fingers on the table as he contemplated the situation. “So, what I’m grasping here is that one hour it was peaceful, and an hour later, it was an apocalypse. We don’t even know where those zombies originated. Did humans inhale or consume something that would trigger their transformation if a clock struck six in the morning?”

“That’s for sure, I could still scour the internet for information,” Sara said.

“Given that I have these powers, we can deny the possibility that this apocalypse is triggered by an alien or a god,” Richard said. “There is also a possibility that I am not the only one who received powers. The more I say this, the more it’s getting deeper. Mutated and normal zombies may not be the true enemy, it’s something more. You can research all you want Sara but there is also something I want you to do.”

“What is it, sir?”

“I have been thinking that in the near future, we might need to relocate somewhere with more space. Cities won’t just cut it. Sorry if I’m being indecisive like earlier I just told Mark to turn my idea into a working plan of clearing a square kilometer grid of zombies and now I’m asking you to find us a suitable location, making my idea useless.”

“It’s okay sir, in fact, it’s a good thing to consider,” Sara replied. “The best place where we could relocate is somewhere remote. Urban cities such as we are in right now, are a bad choice for long-term survival.

“Yeah…thank you, Sara, if there is nothing else, you can leave now,” Richard said with a nod, appreciating Sara’s dedication and understanding of the situation.

Sara rose from her chair, her folder neatly organized with the research materials she had brought. “Of course, sir.”

With a final nod of acknowledgment, Sara exited Richard’s office. Just as she exited, Mark entered.

“Sir, your little sister wants to see you.”

“Ah yes…” Richard rubbed his head, completely forgetting about his little sister. “Let her in.”

With that, Mark signaled Lisa to enter his office.

“Brother…” Lisa said as she walked over to his desk. “Why didn’t you tell me that you already returned?”

Richard chuckled sheepishly. “I forgot…Sorry, I was so engrossed in work.”

Lisa sighed. “It can’t be helped then since you are the leader of this private military company.”

Richard rose to his feet and pulled her sister into a warm hug.

“You made me worried, you dummy..! Do you know that I have been staring at the windows for hours…where I saw hordes of zombies heading towards where you are…”

“And you have seen the convoy return right?” Richard gently said.

“Yes but what if you weren’t inside any of those vehicles?”

Richard was silent upon hearing that. It was true, there is a possibility that he could have died there and not returned. It would be devastating for her as they already lost their parents and siblings. He was the only family she had, and she was the only family left to him.

“My bad…”

“So…what happened, brother? Was your operation successful?”

“Yeah, but we need to make another run because we only got fifty percent of the shopping mall. However, this time, our tactic will be different.” 𝗼𝐯𝐥.𝗻𝐭

“And you will go along with them right?”

“I don’t think I’ll join, I’ll stay here and watch from here.”

“That’s great then…”