The moonlight struggled through thick gray clouds above the northwestern industrial sector.

Boots thudded softly on the concrete, slow and measured.

Four infantry squads rotated through the interior night patrol.

They paused at each corner and intersection, scanning the shadows. If anything emerged from the darkness, they were ready—be it friend or foe.

One of the soldiers looked toward the center of a large compound; near the old operations tower, the doors have been reinforced; the entrances secured.

A single squad of infantry guarded from the outside. Even a sandbag emplacement has been constructed; the Machine Gunner taking the time of his life yawning at the sides.

A cold draft swept past them, chilling their bones.

Atop the tower stood Hans, overlooking the deployment area. Its narrow windows caught vision of the entire area.

Before the outbreak, supervisors likely used this room to monitor shipments, crane operations, and truck traffic.

Now, it served a different purpose—a temporary shelter for him and the two women.

His eyes shifted to the panel in front of him.

——

[ Gold: 50,020 ]

——

[ 1x Mobile Construction Vehicle queued for training. ETA: 14 hours and 20 minutes. ]

——

He narrowed his eyes. It’s 7 PM right now. Close, so close.

Hans considered two factors to his MCV deployment—MCV training timer and ammo refresh time. Blindly training due to hype would be a foolish decision on his part.

The training timer had to synchronize with the ammo refresh time.

He must provide a second wind opportunity to his troops in case the city zombies became aggressive. Otherwise, his troops would be overrun.

He also wanted to have enough time to check the MCV first before deployment.

A reference for the future can help him anticipate things he would need to prepare or consider—especially if it required transporting an MCV from point A to point B.

“Your mind feels pre-occupied,” a soft angelic voice whispered from his right. Kimmy stood there, silent until now.

“I’m that obvious?” Hans’s mouth twitched.

“Your soldiers are,” Kimmy turned her head slightly toward him. “And your face is telling me this will be for tomorrow.”

His eyes lingered to her longer than before. Though she was blind, Hans’s prolonged gaze made her uncomfortable.

“What are you looking at?”

“Nothing,” Hans took his eyes off her and smiled. “Tomorrow is going to be big, indeed. Be patient, or the surprise won’t be surprising anymore.”

“You always sound very confident.”

“I have to,” he shifted his vision to the squad below. “Or my soldiers wouldn’t think I am capable. You should know how the military works.”

“I know aplenty of that. My brother was an officer, at least before the world collapsed.”

Her reply shocked Hans. “Your brother was a military officer?”

“A Major at twenty-six,” she added. “Infantry division.”

Hans whistled in response. “That’s… extraordinary indeed.”

A Major rank that young was almost impossible to obtain or see. It only meant a few things—influential background, or a highly competent military academy graduate with flying colors.

Or a mix of both.

“He is the most talented in our family. It isn’t as surprising as you think it is.”

Hans held his frustration—Which part of that is not surprising?!

He even felt that tomorrow wasn’t eventful anymore. A wave of calmness washed over him; Hans locked in back to the conversation.

“Now that you mentioned it, Tyrus seems to know your family… Asters, was it?”

Kimmy nodded. “It’s a large financial family, but we’re not as influential as the rest.”

“Why so? Competition?”

“Part of that is the reason. Second, we do not want too much publicity upon us. Another is the family’s recent broken ties with its members, especially a branch of the Asters on the Daikan Technocracy.”

“Your influence reaches that part of the planet too?” Hans’s eyes widened. Having branches near the AWN was understandable, but that was a country of different culture and government.

That’s at least tens of thousands of kilometers away! he shouted inwardly.

“The affluent families are more influential than you think,” Kimmy wore a smile on her face—a rarity even to Hans.

“What about Tyrus’s family then?” Hans wanted to know more as whatever public information was available were just the surface level.

“The Shearmans? They are on a different league. Finance. Business. Politics. Academia. Even private military work. Whether it is domestic or foreign, the Shearmans always has a way for it.”

He gulped at her revelation. Tyrus doesn’t sound as tyrannical as his family’s influence, or do I just not know him enough yet?

That was a possibility. Regardless of what the truth was, Hans felt that he should be treating these people with greater caution.

He leaned against the window frame, letting the information settle in his mind.

Financial dynasties. Military officers. Global influence.

The people around him were far more complicated than he first assumed. He glanced back at Kimmy.

She watched him with interest. Then her lips curved slightly.

“Hmph,” she pouted. “All of that talk, and you still haven’t given me a reward for my efforts.”

This was what she was aiming for? Hans was taken aback. He smiled, his hand suddenly reaching to her shoulder.

“Thank you,” his tone warmed. “I only asked for you to search the hive’s location. I didn’t know you almost sacrificed your life in the process.”

Kimmy didn’t respond, but her head had long turned away from him.

“I’ll be mindful of sending you out for tasks in the future. I don’t want you—”

“It’s okay,” Kimmy cut him off. “I can persevere. It’s okay, really.”

Hans opened his mouth, but she quickly raised a finger. Without giving him a chance to respond, Kimmy turned around and went for the exit.

Just as she reached for the door, faint words echoed in the air.

“At least you have done that.”

Hans barely picked it up, but the door was closed before he could react.

He stood motionless for a moment after the door shut. The room felt colder without her presence.

Women are complicated no matter the world I am in, he sighed inwardly. Still… she was right about one thing.

He gazed at the large open compound one last time. Tomorrow would decide everything.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep