Chapter 39: Chapter 39: Kill, Kill, Kill
Faye Yardley had no idea how long she’d been killing or how many she’d slain. Her current state was far from normal, yet she felt no discomfort. The word "kill" was practically taking physical form in her mind.
The longer she fought, the more she felt that her current environment was too restrictive.
By the time the system notified her that the third round of the zombie-killing quest was complete, the sky within the dungeon had already begun to darken.
The zombies seemed endless, coming in a ceaseless tide.
Caleb Colby’s sword-wielding hand was trembling. When it was his turn to rest, he couldn’t help but complain, "What kind of stimulant did Yardley take? How come it feels like she’s just getting better and better? Does she seriously not need a break?"
The others didn’t have the spare energy to answer him.
Aside from Faye Yardley, everyone else had already rotated through eating and drinking, not to mention using Bandages and Hemostatic Pills.
But Faye Yardley was on another level. Zombies that were clearly charging at her would inexplicably make all sorts of mistakes just as they were about to strike, and the damage would be redirected to other nearby zombies or even to them.
She hadn’t suffered a single scratch, yet her own combat prowess was constantly increasing. It was simply absurd.
After his brief complaint, Caleb Colby seized the opportunity to replenish his energy.
To be honest, now that they had survived the phase where the zombies had all gone berserk, the horde was no longer as frenzied as before. They had returned to roughly their initial state, which was good news for the group.
"Yardley, Yardley!" Zachary Pierce tried to snap Faye Yardley out of it, but it was clear she was in a world of her own, completely lost in the moment.
Gavin Donovan glanced at Zachary Pierce, then called out softly in a peculiar tone, "Boss, wake up!"
At Gavin Donovan’s call, the blood-red color in her eyes gradually faded, and clarity slowly returned to Faye Yardley’s gaze.
Her heart, however, kept urging her to get stronger, and stronger still.
’I’m still too weak right now. It’s not enough. Not nearly enough.’
"You should fall back and eat something to restore some energy. Whatever you do, don’t let your Hunger Level drop to zero."
Zachary Pierce felt he had to remind her. The battle had been raging for two or three hours now, and he had no idea what her Hunger Level was to begin with. If it dropped below 30, it would start to affect a person’s condition.
Maybe high Spirit could help her hold on for a bit, but if it accidentally dropped below 20, it would absolutely impact her combat performance.
’Although she always manages to dodge attacks at the last second through some mysterious good luck, that luck can’t possibly last forever, right?’
He had activated his Talent, but it was called: The Unkillable Cockroach. Talent Description: What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.
So far, he still had no idea how to actually use this Talent.
Faye Yardley grunted in acknowledgment. "System, check my Hunger Level."
[Hunger Level: 72 (Are you a pig? All you know how to do is eat, eat, eat all day). Friendly Reminder: Mild hunger can help a person stay more alert.]
"Don’t worry, I’m still at 72. I can wait until it drops below 50 before eating. The system even told me not to eat too soon."
Four people answered her with silence.
Even while they were talking, their hands never stopped moving. However, after coming out of that blood-eyed, frenzied state, Faye Yardley’s zombie-killing efficiency dropped significantly, which instantly increased the pressure on the others.
"Just holding our ground at the stairwell isn’t a long-term solution," Zachary Pierce said. "We need to find an office with concrete walls on at least three sides. That way, only one or two people will be needed to guard the door, and the rest can get some proper rest."
The others agreed with Zachary Pierce. They had originally thought that the number of zombies would surely decrease after everyone had completed the third round of the killing quest, but in reality, it hadn’t. In fact, everyone had the feeling that no matter how many they killed, the horde was endless.
"We’ve all been inside that first office on the seventh floor," Faye Yardley said, instantly recalling the office she had tidied up earlier. "It has an open-plan office space outside, but inside there’s a break room, a manager’s office, and other rooms that would meet our needs. It’s more convenient to go there than to search for a place on another floor."
Since they had all been there before, they quickly reached a consensus and began to deliberately fall back in that direction.
...
In Faye Yardley’s small group chat, Bonnie Callahan had already @’d her many times and even sent a bunch of private messages, but there was no reply.
Bonnie Callahan: Strange, I can’t reach our dear group owner. Have any of you tried contacting her?
Wade Warren: Actually, it’s not just the group owner. Donovan and the boss are also unreachable. People are shouting in the regional channel about buying Dungeon Fragments, right? And while there aren’t any for sale on the trading market, there are buy orders up. My guess is the three of them went into a Dungeon.
Bonnie Callahan: Wow, Mr. Warren, you’re amazing! A true strategy master. If they all disappeared together, does that mean you can party up for Dungeons?
Wade Warren: It’s very likely. But I’ve never even seen what a Dungeon Fragment looks like, so I can’t give you a definitive answer.
Leo Sloan: [Dungeon 3 Fragment.jpg] It looks like this. Just got it today. I’m not short on food or water right now, so I’ll just hold onto it and see what happens when I can craft with it.
Wade Warren: Mr. Sloan, how many fragments do you need to craft it?
Leo Sloan: No idea. I’m guessing there’ll be a system prompt only when you’ve collected a certain number.
Bonnie Callahan: Um, asking for a friend... if you can party up, would you two big bros be willing to carry me? I can provide fragments, too. [Dungeon 1 Fragment.jpg].
Wade Warren: So I’m the only one without any fragments, huh? Let’s wait for the group owner and the others to get back from the Dungeon and ask them for the details. No need to rush into talking about partying up. By the way, did you need the group owner for something specific?
Bonnie Callahan: I got two pretty hair ties from a chest and wanted to ask if the group owner would want them. They’re totally useless to you guys, so I didn’t mention it. I’m going to post a buy order for fragments, too. I’ll start by looking for Dungeon 1 and Dungeon 3 fragments.
Wade Warren: Have you guys noticed? It started drizzling after midnight. Try to buy a Fire Pit to keep burning at night to raise the indoor temperature.
Wade Warren wasn’t the only one who’d noticed. Many people who were still awake were talking about it in the regional channel.
As a result, sales of Eleanor Jonas’s Fire Pits skyrocketed, to the point that people were waking her up to post more on the market. It was giving her a major headache. ’Can’t we get someone else to handle sales?’
’And why are the boss and the others taking so long in that dungeon? What kind of dungeon are they in, anyway? Dammit!’
The group that was on everyone’s mind, Faye Yardley and her companions, had finally, with great difficulty, retreated to their target office. Faye was now guarding the door—which was only wide enough for two skinny people to pass through at once—and killing with absolute relish.
As for the other four, on Gavin Donovan’s insistence, three of them were now sleeping against a wall.
Seriously, a full day had passed before they even entered the Dungeon. After entering, they had been constantly fighting and traveling. The last two or three hours, in particular, had been a high-intensity battle. It would be stranger if they weren’t exhausted.
Gavin Donovan leaned against the wall, gun in hand, ready to act at a moment’s notice. Watching Faye Yardley, he thought, ’She might not even be human.’
