Ch.183Chapter 20. Patriot (35)

Camila’s skill in piloting RV helicopters was inferior to the other two. Leticia had experience with drone test vehicles, and Cassandra adapted quickly due to her proficiency with surgical precision instruments. Camila was neither.

However, Camila had the best concentration among the three, along with strong competitive and combative spirit. Above all, her experience as a sniper gave her an exceptional understanding of wind strength and effects, terrain contours, and balance.

That’s why Camila operated the RV helicopter directly above Johan’s head, but in an angle and orbit that would never be detected.

“You’ve been having quite a good time so far!”

Even with keyboard, mouse, and autopilot functions, operating more than five simultaneously was difficult. But Camila managed it. Not just because of her high proficiency. It was thanks to her anger toward her lover.

“Enjoy it more!”

A loud siren blared from the RV helicopter. People on the ground heard the toy’s sound but couldn’t see it.

Additionally, they didn’t see the small explosion that occurred in the can installed on the underside of the fuselage. Though it was just about as powerful as a toy cap gun from a neighborhood stationery store, it was enough to spray the compressed can.

Pheromones were sprayed into the air.

Considering aerial dispersion, the concentration was relatively low. Even the highly transmissible Crow virus couldn’t use air as a medium. Droplet infection was certainly possible, though. That’s why Cassandra deliberately kept the spray’s concentration moderate.

Instead, she increased the density by spraying it thickly over a relatively small area.

* * * * *

“Where is that siren coming from?!”

“It’s not a disaster alert siren! It’s smaller but much closer! Where on earth…!”

People screamed and ran in all directions. Even amid the chaos, Elian tried to establish a defensive line, roughly pushing people into position. It was difficult. The women had lost their reason, and the men were angry.

“If you’re a man who got us excited, take responsibility!”

“Hey, let’s handle this like men!”

“Hoot has no interest in you men! He responds to women!”

“Stop it!”

Catherine jumped into the middle of the crowd, clutching her head. Everyone flinched in surprise as she held a pistol in her hand with her finger on the trigger. Catherine leaped straight into Hoot’s arms.

“He’s mine! Mine! No one can touch him! I won’t let anyone take him! That’s the supervisor’s order! You all go stop the zombies! Hoot, come with me!”

But it was already too late. The unidentified siren sound echoed above their heads. Zombies were gathering not only inside the campus but also beyond the collapsed walls.

– Weeeeee! Emergency! Emergency! Air raid, air raid! Citizens, please evacuate immediately to a safe shelter! This is not a drill, this is an actual situation! Emergency, emergency!

To make matters worse, the disaster alert sirens that had been quiet until now went wild. Eventually, Elian’s patrol members began to howl while looking up at the sky. The air was subtly damp, making it difficult to tell whether it was their tears or something else.

“Defense! Form a circular defense! The zombies are coming! Gather and break through at one point, get into the gymnasium as quickly as possible…!”

“It’s too late! The zombies have blocked the way! We’re surrounded!”

“If that’s how it is, I’ll go out with a bang before I die!”

“No.”

Catherine was pushed aside. Hoot, freed from her embrace, stepped forward. His demeanor showed an inexplicable solemnity, composure, and dignity. A completely different atmosphere from before. Excited men were trying to throw off their clothes.

“Grrrr, I can’t hold back!”

“Wait a moment, everyone.”

Hoot raised his palm. The men exhaled fiercely through their noses. The women were busy both keeping the men in check and watching the zombies’ movements. Only Hoot remained calm.

“You all can survive.”

Everyone looked at him at this unexpected statement. Hoot spoke politely again. His voice cracked slightly from tension, but his delivery was still effective.

“I will lure those zombies away. So that all of you can survive.”

“Hoot, no!”

“What are you saying!”

Men and women shouted in unison. But Hoot was adamant.

“No. You were originally one family. I was an outsider. I came here as an outsider, so I intend to leave as one.”

“That’s a lie!”

Catherine let out a hysterical scream.

“Don’t lie, you made me your family. You made all of us… no, all of us ‘women’ your family. How can you abandon your family like this?”

“Are we not even worthy of being called family? Why do you give blessings only to women and not to us!”

This time Ali shouted. Hoot answered that question by placing his gun on the ground. He put down his rifle, pistol, and even his hunting knife. All he kept was one worn-out bag.

“Being together isn’t the only way to be family, is it?”

Elian stood stunned at Hoot’s observation. He even stammered a little.

“T-then…”

“Because you are family, and because I wanted to become family, I’m stepping up. Though it was a short time, I will never forget the moments I spent with you until I die. I’ve always been lonely since coming to this land. Thanks to you all, I was able to forget that.”

The women burst into tears. The men tried to step forward as if they wanted to embrace him right away. But Hoot shook his head at all of it. The zombies had already broken through to the first-floor lobby. There wasn’t much time left.

“I wanted to return the love I received to all of you. But it seems my presence has only brought division and pain. So, I’m going back to my place. Because I want to see you united again.”

“We can endure it! Sexual desire is just…”

“Th-that’s right! Don’t leave, don’t say you’re leaving! There’s still so much we want to do! If you go like that, we… we!”

Hoot embraced each one of them firmly. Sometimes people collapsed in his arms, but Hoot raised them back up and wiped away their tears.

“Remember me in love. That’s enough. Just as the family members you’ve lost live on in your memories.”

The last embrace ended. Men and women sobbed.

“Hoot, where are you going…?”

“I’m going to open a path. And.”

Zombies coming up the stairs pushed forcefully against the barricade. It was a flimsy barrier made of desks and furniture. In front of it, the man smiled gently.

“My real name is…!”

The man’s last words were drowned out by the sound of the barricade collapsing. The men quickly took shooting positions, and so did the women. But Elian and Catherine jumped in front of everyone.

“Wait, wait!”

Something was strange. The zombies didn’t come any closer. Like a rough current blocked by rocks, they looked confused, bewildered, and even stood blankly.

Clank.

Clank.

A chilling sound was heard. It was the sound of chains. Dragging chains fiercely scratching the cement floor. The survivors cautiously approached the stairs.

Hoot was standing quietly among the zombies. He wasn’t bitten or scratched. The zombies were just staring blankly at him, and he was doing the same.

A zombie with chains wrapped around its arms approached through their midst.

It was bigger and taller than the other zombies. It wore worn-out National Military Police combat uniform and had many wounds on its body. It even had many scars. The members of Elian’s reconnaissance team knew what that meant.

It was a strong one. A zombie that had survived and fought long enough to carve countless scars on its body.

“GRAAAAH!”

It roared fiercely at Hoot. Hoot carefully took off his outer garment. He handed over his sweat-soaked clothing to the creature. The military police zombie carefully sniffed it, tilted its head, and backed away.

“…Hoot. Who exactly are you…?”

A groan came from among the onlookers. Elian and Catherine were confused, but they couldn’t move further because of the command from the person who was both their lover and idol. They wanted to strip off all their clothes and offer everything to him, but.

“Ah.”

Hoot was looking up from below. His eyes were clear, and his face was full of smiles.

“As I have loved you, love one another.”

Hoot took a step. Surprisingly, the zombies moved alongside him. The creatures that had been frantically climbing up until now quietly went outside the entrance.

Outside too, there was a crowd of zombies. Some tilted their heads at the sight of Hoot, some bared their teeth, and some walked with them.

But there were far more that didn’t.

The zombies split into two factions. Those who quietly surrounded Hoot, and those who surrounded them. Harsh shouts were exchanged between the two groups. What started as shoulder bumping turned into grabbing collars, then biting off ears, and finally evolved into barbarism and slaughter where they ate each other alive.

The outside forces had greater numbers. But Hoot’s side was winning.

“He’s… opening a path.”

Someone stammered. Indeed, Hoot was “opening” a path. Unable to hold back any longer, Ali ran down the stairs.

“Hoot! I…!”

“GRRRRRR!”

The zombies behind Hoot all pounced on Ali. His body froze at their ferocity. A black shadow wrapped around him and dragged him back into the building. It was his childhood friend Maya.

“We’ve lost Hoot…”

Ali sobbed. Maya’s heart felt like it was being torn apart too. So Maya shouted.

“Hoot! You must come back! If not today, then tomorrow!”

The two childhood friends who had experienced a heartbreak that wasn’t quite a heartbreak held each other and cried. The two who had once competed for one person now became one heart in the face of emptiness. And that wasn’t just their experience.

“We need to get out.”

Catherine bit her lip and stood up. Elian also agreed with the supervisor’s words.

“He said it. That he would open a path. We must survive. We must not die here. We must spread his love, the truth of love that Hoot… told us about. We must spread the miracle. Look at him standing tall amidst death! Rather, leading death…!”

Hoot was walking calmly in the midst of zombies. Wherever he went, a path opened. Some zombies tried to eat him, some tried to protect him. Some just walked quietly, keeping their distance.

A human, one human, was walking among monsters. For the people, for the people he called family, he was showing a miracle.

Catherine and Elian’s reconnaissance team left the building. The streets were already empty. The zombies that had been trying to eat them just moments ago now ignored them.

After running and running for a long time, they reached the Humvee defense line. There were no zombies there either. Hoot had truly opened a path for them. The Humvees were in fairly good condition, so starting them wasn’t difficult.

The road was still full of corpses. But since quite some time had passed, they were decayed. They were obstacles that could be easily overcome with the weight of the Humvees.

It was a lonely retreat of death and decay, the exact opposite of the path of love.

“Who exactly are you…?”

Someone sobbed.

“You who make people fall in love, who even lead zombies, who exactly are you? Supervisor. What are we witnessing? What exactly… have we done?”

But even Catherine had no answer. Was it because the effect of the pheromones had faded? Or was it because what they had just witnessed was too shocking?

“What exactly happened?”

Twenty humans fell for a wandering man they happened to meet. That wandering man had relations with all the women except the men, and eventually threw himself among zombies for the people he loved and cared for.

And he led the zombies and opened a path.

That was the truth.

It couldn’t be denied.

There was only one explanation.

“It’s salvation.”

“…What?”

“The Goddess of Hunger has given us salvation. You all saw it. The apostle of love. A man who embraces both zombies and humans. How could anyone do that unless they were a savior, unless they had received revelation?”

Joy settled in Catherine’s heart. Ah, yes. She had been embraced by a savior sent by the goddess, and shared love with him. Faith. The god she sometimes doubted and worried about—if there was a god, why would he give such pain—had taught her the answer of love.

And his proxy had taught her a very intimate name.

“Johan.”

Beyond the crushed corpses, toward the living love, Catherine shed a tear.