Ch.124Chapter 17. Desertion (2)

* * * * *

– Honk! Honk!

I sounded the horn and turned on the high beams. Excited zombies began to gather one by one. But some of them cleverly moved aside to the edge of the road.

“That’s right!”

I tore open the snack bags and canned food I had placed on the passenger seat and threw them to the ones standing by the roadside. Some hit their bodies, but most just plopped onto the ground.

“Grrrk.”

And then the creatures happily eat them. Even the zombies gathered in front of the truck gradually retreat to the side of the road, pretending not to notice as they reach out their hands.

I deliberately drove the truck slowly and shouted at them.

“Isn’t a snack better than raw meat?”

Only one or two growled, but soon they turned their attention to the opened can of yellow peaches.

Unfortunately, I have no idea what kind of food zombies prefer. They just eat whatever I throw at them. Once I mixed in some pebbles when I threw food, and wouldn’t you know it, they meticulously sorted them out.

However, they do seem to be attracted to stronger and more distinctive smells. I was lucky enough to find some salted pork and grilled it in the middle of the parking lot, and the zombies pounded on the research facility fence as if begging for just one bite.

If they’re attracted to food and can distinguish between what’s edible and what’s not, then with that level of intelligence, I figured they could be trained.

So that’s what I’m doing. ‘Sound the horn, move to the side of the road, get food thrown to you.’

It’s what you’d call ‘positive reinforcement.’ Making them remember that when they do something the owner or trainer likes, a reward follows. Until when? Until they understand.

Of course, zombies are stupid, stubborn, and have serious antisocial tendencies that prevent them from leaving alone humans who get angry at them.

Either they’re stupid. Or they understand but have no intention of listening to me. Like that one standing ahead now, who was following along fine until something displeased him and he started growling.

Can’t keep up with the lesson? Then you have to die.

– Bang!

I shoot it. The other zombies, smelling blood, gather around the corpse.

– Honk! Honk!

I sounded the horn again. A military police zombie sauntered out. It saw the fallen body on the road and dragged it to the side.

Smart one. I threw it an unwrapped chocolate. Then the other zombies followed the MP one.

Interestingly, not all zombies move aside when I sound the horn. Maybe three out of ten. The rest just follow because the zombie next to them moved. Or because they know there’s food over there.

The smart ones, or those with at least some awareness—those can be trained. The ones that can’t, I kill.

* * * * *

While the zombies were distracted with eating, I opened the research facility’s main gate and parked the truck.

“So it’s an era where even zombies need to be smart to survive, huh?”

Camilla folded her arms after locking the door behind us. I shrugged and opened the truck’s cargo area.

It was full of items from the mart. Half were groceries, and the other half were moving supplies like tape, cardboard boxes, and hand carts.

“Well, being smart isn’t everything. They need to be social enough to interact with others. At the very least, they should be able to listen to and understand instructions from the person feeding them.”

“It’s a bit creepy hearing that from you of all people, Johan.”

“Somehow I feel like you and I understand each other well, Camilla. Where’s Cassandra?”

Just as I asked, Cassandra walked out of the lobby carrying a laptop bag. The area under her eyes was extremely dark, probably from all the late nights.

“You’re here. I heard the truck.”

“How’s the data transfer going?”

“Good. I’m extracting all the HDDs from the PCs. It’s definitely an intuitive and simple method. Primitive to the point of being crude, but effective.”

Once we learned that West Republic Minsk was sending agents and mercenaries to raid Elza’s Cybele Research Institute to steal information, we couldn’t just sit still.

First, we needed to find a safe settlement. And we also needed to secure a research facility to track, manage, and analyze the virus—the one in my body, Camilla’s, and Cassandra’s.

But finding a place that met both conditions was extremely difficult and time-consuming. Since much of what I knew could be different from reality, we had to go and check places directly.

Naturally, the key issue was how to move the existing research data, and Cassandra’s answer was surprisingly intuitive. Just take the hard drives.

Not a bad method. In case we encountered a difficult situation, we could use them as bargaining chips with Minsk, Elza, or Römer.

In times like these, information—especially about the virus—is incredibly valuable. Why else would Minsk mobilize so many mercenaries?

“By the way. In Elza, there are many people who have completely turned into zombies. But in Römer and Minsk, the transmission rate seems slower. Is it because of strict media control there too?”

Camilla wiped the sweat from her forehead during a short break and asked. Cassandra quickly provided an answer.

“The transmission rate is indeed slower. Until Cassandra left the Disease Control Bureau, the transmission rates in Römer and Minsk were only about 1/3 of Elza’s. It’s probably due to the concentration of the virus.”

“Concentration?”

“Yes. Our bodies have immune systems that can defend against viruses entering from outside. But when too many viruses enter—more than our defenses can handle—it becomes difficult to resist. Elza was an environment conducive to the spread of the Chro virus, and with contamination sources everywhere, infection was faster.”

“I doubt Römer or Minsk were particularly thorough with their quarantine measures.”

“Well, to put it more simply, it’s because of poverty.”

Cassandra didn’t hesitate at all, and Camilla frowned slightly.

“What do you mean? That people got sick because they were poor?”

At my question, Cassandra pursed her lips with a thoughtful “hmm.”

“Simply put, Elza neglected its poor people. There weren’t many jobs, and the social infrastructure wasn’t particularly advanced. But Minsk is a wealthy country, and not only is public hygiene good, but individuals also pay a lot of attention to their personal health.”

“What about Römer?”

“Römer is a bit different. The poor just join the military. And if nothing else, the military is extremely thorough about epidemic management. The point is, Minsk and Römer had smaller blind spots in hygiene compared to Elza.”

Camilla seemed a bit pained by Cassandra’s observation. She answered with a somewhat melancholy expression.

“…That’s true. But no one anywhere gets sick because they want to.”

Cassandra nodded at Camilla’s words.

“Of course. At the Disease Control Bureau, they used to say that because we gave nothing to the poor and marginalized, they harbored resentment.

The urban and rural poor, people no one cares for… if we had paid just a little more attention to such people, things would be very different now. After all, the infection and contamination in major cities started from these very people.”

Listening to Cassandra’s words, I suddenly recalled the strange relationship between the three countries: Elza, Römer, and Minsk. Elza was a country pushed around by Römer and Minsk.

But now the virus that spread from Elza is grabbing the ankles of both countries, slowly pulling them into the swamp.

To call it karma seems too catastrophic.

We finished unloading the truck. Camilla stretched her body and turned her head toward me.

“Anyway, when are you going to Hampton?”

“In about two or three days?”

In the past, I would have immediately set out to find a safe refuge. But now the situation has changed, because of the virus that has taken root in my body, Camilla’s, and Cassandra’s.

We needed to see what state the Chro virus in our three bodies was in, whether it had suddenly changed its nature or remained the same as before.

Also, since our three-way “exchange” had become stronger than before, we needed to check for any resulting changes in our condition.

For that, we needed research equipment and facilities. Cassandra said she could manage with minimal equipment, but it would still be better to work in a place with well-established research facilities.

Most importantly, the fact that the three of us knew the surrounding terrain well was crucial. At least we know where enemies come from and where they go.

We know what traps we’ve set around the area and what battles we’ve fought. If we were to move, if we were to relocate our residence, we would lose all these advantages.

So we came up with a temporary plan. While I go to Hampton to bring back reagents as quickly as possible, the two of them will defend our base here along with the zombies.

“…In the early days, stories of people being bitten after being confined to rooms because zombie transformation was mistaken for a simple cold or fever were common. But the idea of using zombies as guard dogs—that’s the first time I’ve heard it from you.”

Even Cassandra was quite bewildered, but she admitted the concept itself wasn’t bad.

“I don’t see why not. The Minsk guys already got a beating here, so it’ll take some time before the next team arrives. Even if you’re not here, Johan, if Cassandra and I, along with those zombies, set up a defense…”

Camilla is quite positive about it too.

“We can just throw some food outside the fence occasionally. Not too much, mainly stuff that’s about to expire. The Minsk mercenaries… they won’t be coming for a while, right?”

Thanks to the Minsk friends who left some decent materials in the camper, like secret channels or access code tables, we were able to gather quite a bit of information about Minsk’s movements.

Not everything, of course, and it’s limited, but enough to understand which team is going on which mission. We’ll need to pay more attention if the encryption system changes, but for now, Minsk isn’t a concern.

“But Johan.”

Camilla taps the back of my hand.

“Yes?”

“You can come back as quickly as possible, right? The situation in Hampton doesn’t seem good either. The news is too ominous. I’m really worried about sending you alone.”

I have to go to Hampton alone, unavoidably. Not only Cassandra, who has something like a wanted notice out for her, but also Camilla, who has been exposed too much, needs to lay low for a while.

“Don’t worry about that. That woman Letty, she seems to do her job properly. She said she brought not only reagents but also various experimental equipment.”

If she had said something like, ‘The items aren’t actually ready, but if you wait just two days, they’ll arrive,’ I would have left without looking back. I don’t want to waste time on such nonsense.

“But Cassandra. That reagent, is it only used for virus analysis?”

“Not just that. The reagents and equipment at the research facility were sufficient for analysis. What I want to do is synthesize, break down, and reorganize the virus. Why do you ask?”

That’s what I thought. Then,

“Enhancement is possible too, right?”