"What were the two of you talking about?"
The others, who had been resting on a rock, had kept glancing toward the pair chatting at a distance, curious about what they might be discussing. As soon as Brian returned, Sarah couldn't contain her curiosity and was the first to ask.
Brian could see that although everyone pretended not to care, they were all clearly paying attention. He found it somewhat amusing.
But he couldn't really reveal what Wilfred's infection truly was. So he sat down beside Sarah, ruffled her hair, and replied:
"Not much — just briefly planning our next steps."
Soon after, Wilfred also returned. He stood beside Anna and began talking to her about life ahead. As he gently stroked his daughter's hair, looking at her face so similar to her mother's, tears welled up in his eyes. But he concealed it well, not letting Anna notice anything unusual.
Still, father and daughter shared a deep bond. Anna couldn't help but feel that her father had been acting strangely these past two days. When he spoke, it always sounded like a final farewell. She couldn't help but ask:
"Dad, are you okay? Why do you keep saying things like this today?"
"I'm fine, I'm fine."
Realizing Anna had sensed something off, Wilfred knew he couldn't say any more. He explained:
"It's just... I see that you've grown up. I can't always be by your side. You'll have to walk your own path from now on."
Anna tightly hugged one of Wilfred's arms, playfully protesting:
"Hmm~ No way! I don't want to grow up! I want to stay with you forever!"
Father and daughter laughed together, enjoying a warm moment. Watching them, the children nearby couldn't help but show expressions of envy.
Alan, sitting closest to them, was deeply moved by the emotional connection between father and daughter. Without realizing why, he suddenly thought of his own parents and found the scene unbearable. He turned his head away, unable to watch anymore.
Sarah instinctively linked her arm with Brian's and whispered softly:
"I wonder if my dad and uncle are still alive… Will I ever see them again in this life?"
Feeling Sarah's sadness, Brian gently wrapped an arm around her shoulders and comforted her gently:
"I believe Joel and Tommy are still alive. We'll find them someday!"
Only Lucy remained expressionless, seated silently with her gaze fixed on the clear blue sky above, murmuring something under her breath as if praying.
As each of them got lost in their own thoughts, ten minutes quietly passed. The soldiers stood up and gathered the scattered group back together.
Tracy stood at the front of the line. Seeing people still whispering among themselves, she frowned slightly and said:
"This is the last stretch. I hope everyone stays focused. Whether we live or die depends on us — don't let everything fall apart at the very end."
At her words, those still whispering received warnings from their companions, lowered their heads, and fell silent. In no time, the area grew quiet.
Seeing that her words had worked, Tracy nodded in satisfaction. Taking a deep breath, she turned around and said:
"Alright, then let's move out."
The group set off once again, carefully stepping over the ruins, eliminating infected along the way, using half-destroyed buildings for cover, avoiding the sight of other infected, and continuing forward non-stop, aiming to reach the collapsed apartment building in the shortest possible time.
When they reached the edge of the apartment building, a soldier climbed up first, peering inside through a window frame to check the situation.
Due to the total collapse, the first and second floors near the edge had been completely destroyed by the impact. Other floors were passable, though many areas had been damaged and required careful navigation.
Moreover, the corridors had flipped upside-down — the original height and width had swapped entirely. People could only crawl or crouch while moving. For nearly a hundred people to pass through here would certainly take effort.
But there was no choice — despite the difficulties, they had to go through. Several soldiers entered the building first, tying curtains together into ropes, securing knots, and throwing them from a third-floor window for use in climbing.
The height from the ground to the third-floor window was about ten meters — practically effortless for any adult present.
But for children only a few years old, it was quite difficult. Fortunately, being light in weight helped. With the soldiers pulling and assisting, they managed to lift the dozen or so children up.
"Geez, this is so uncomfortable!"
Walking through the wide yet low corridor, Brian bent halfway over, stepping on what used to be walls, slowly following the person ahead and feeling increasingly uncomfortable.
He turned to look at Alan behind him, who was able to walk upright, and suddenly realized that sometimes, being short could actually be an advantage.
After walking hunched over for several minutes, the path ahead became blocked by rubble. They changed course toward a room with an opening in the ceiling and climbed upward.
Then, when that route also proved impassable, they climbed through another collapsed section to the fifth floor before entering a neighboring hallway to continue onward.
They kept stopping and starting, moving up and down through the entire building. Everyone wanted to leave this suffocating place as quickly as possible, but many paths and structures had already been destroyed. They had to search like navigating a maze, seeking every possible way forward.
"Ouch! I can't do it anymore!"
Finally, a fat man with a thick beard had simply had enough. He cried out in frustration, soaked in sweat, clearly exhausted, and plopped down on the floor gasping for breath.
His sudden stop naturally blocked those behind him too. An elderly man with white hair but full of energy stepped forward and said:
"Son, try to hold on a little longer. If you must rest, wait until we reach a wider space. Right now, you're blocking everyone else."
But the fat man merely glanced sideways at the old man, indifferent, and replied:
"I rest where I want. You can just walk around me — why so many complaints?"
"Ah! How dare you speak like that!"
A beautiful young woman standing beside the old man couldn't help but angrily confront the man:
"Hmph!" The fat man looked at the woman again, sneered, and with even more hostility, snapped back:
"What's it to you, nosy old cow? Mind your own business!"
"You! You!"
Hearing such an insult, the woman flushed red with anger. No one had ever dared to talk to her like this in her entire life. Yet she stammered for a while without managing to say a word — her good upbringing and manners simply wouldn't allow her to curse back.
"Crack! Crack!"
Just then, an odd cracking sound came from somewhere, instantly drawing everyone's attention.
"Huh! What was that noise?" Everyone started looking around, trying to locate its source.
This congestion naturally drew the soldiers' attention. A young soldier approached quickly, seeing the crowd stuck in place, and asked:
"What's going on? Why aren't you moving forward?"
Seeing the soldier arrive, people stopped searching for the source of the sound and automatically shifted aside — some choosing to continue forward, others opting to sit and watch the drama unfold, since they were already tired anyway.
Brian and his group glanced at the situation, wrinkled their noses at the unpleasant smell caused by the overcrowding, quickly pinched their noses, and hurried forward, not wanting to remain in that place for even a second longer.
"Officer, you're just in time! This guy is blocking the way and won't listen to reason — when we tried to politely persuade him, he didn't even appreciate it and started cursing at us!"
Seeing the soldier arrive, the young woman perked up and immediately recounted the entire incident.
Upon seeing the pretty girl and hearing her address him as "officer," the young soldier showed a brief flash of pleasure on his face.
After listening to the story, he frowned, looked at the fat man sitting on the ground with a thick beard, and walked up to him:
"Sir, I understand you're tired, but you shouldn't block others' progress here. Please walk a bit further — there's a room ahead where you can rest."
"Pfft! How do I know you're telling the truth?" The fat man clearly doubted the young soldier's words, scoffed, and wore a suspicious expression.
But as soon as he finished speaking, he noticed how everyone around was glaring at him like trash. Enraged, he raised his hand and slammed it hard against the ground, pointing at everyone in front of him and shouting:
"You—"
But before he could finish his sentence, the moment his fist hit the ground, countless spiderweb-like cracks suddenly spread across the floor. And faster than anyone expected, the cracks multiplied rapidly, until finally the floor could no longer support the weight of the crowd.
"BOOM!"
The entire section collapsed downward, swallowing everyone in a deafening crash.