Longwan.
Known as Dragon Bay by the foreigners.
The second-tier city that I have lived in since birth.
Longwan was once a mid-tier trade hub, a city of industry and commerce that thrived on shipbuilding, manufacturing, and black-market trade.
Nestled between dense forests and winding rivers, it connected the rural provinces to Xiansheng's massive megacities, acting as both a gateway and a dumping ground for the ambitions of larger powers.
Imagine how difficult and unfair a city ruled by the rich might be for the weak and poor.
I could only be grateful that the Mu family carried a semblance of respect.
However, the same couldn't be said for clans like the Gu family, who were nothing more than a glorified mafia.
[Shen Yifei has cooked a meal and cleaned up: Gained 50 Experience]
'Eh?'
I turned to face her as she tossed the trash into the bin while acting naturally. The fact she could help me in this fashion instantly made my sour feelings vanish.
"Qinglan, Miss Jiang, we should probably head out before it gets dark."
"You're right, we should."
Jiang Roulan gazed out into the orange sky.
She seemed a little reluctant to leave the apartment, but that couldn't be helped.
Shen Yifei didn't speak and instead folded the cloth she used to dry the dishes and sat beside me, her delicate hand brushing along the leather cover.
Though I wanted to discuss our plans for the future, there was something more important with a growing team.
Not to mention, when I ranked up to a certain level, there would be huge benefits from the system.
I could create a [Base] or [Safe Zone] that nobody I didn't trust could enter.
As I was distracted by the system panel, the three girls gathered before a knock came to the door. When I gazed up, Mu Qinglan looked at me with her vibrant blue eyes, seeming to ask me what to do.
"Can you get the door, Qinglan?"
"Sure."
Without delay, Qinglan opened the door and greeted our *guests* who turned out to be the males from the other apartment.
Old Lei looked quite healthy, with a bright complexion. However, the other guy, Wang Jun, looked at me with a hostile gaze while rubbing his right arm.
I couldn't help but feel sick looking at him.
I knew he would become troublesome, but so soon after meeting, he seemed attached to Shen Yifei, or maybe it was Jiang Roulan. Did the kid think he was some kind of protagonist and would awaken a magical system?
Well, not like I could say anything there...
"Morning, Old Lei," I called out, trying to break the weird atmosphere.
"Morning, well... I guess you could call it that. I wanted to suggest something."
"About going out?"
Because Old Lei didn't cause issues, I tried to be more considerate. People who helped the group should eat, after all.
"Yes, do you have any locations or thoughts?"
Jiang Roulan and Shen Yifei didn't speak and gazed at me out of the corner of their eyes. Meanwhile, Mu Qinglan remained silent and sat on the black sofa, which she filled with things at some point.
"I was planning to take it slowly to avoid unnecessary danger, but maybe we should strike somewhere like the Dragon Mall first and get as much as we can before the gangs and thugs take over the city."
I noticed Old Lei's eyes shine, and something about my words made him nod and smile.
"Good, good. Then let's head towards the Dragon Mall today and see how it looks."
"How about everyone else?" Old Lei asked while leaning against the kitchen table.
"I think that's the right choice, but we should be careful." Jiang Roulan answered while avoiding Wang Jun's gaze.
There seemed to be a dynamic around me and Old Lei, which made it a little difficult. However, for now, it just meant I needed to grow and improve as a leader. Old Lei didn't look at me like competition but like a protégé.
"We should try to find some kind of weapons too..."
I turned to face the voice and became quite shocked.
It was Shen Yifei!
To hear that Shen Yifei considered this made me feel like the improvement to spirit attribute made a wonder of difference!
Unable to resist the temptation...
I stretched out my hand and stroked her hair.
To my surprise, she didn't resist me or pull away—instead, with a huff, she swayed on the spot and seemed to enjoy my touch like a tsundere cat.
"See, I am not useless..."
[You have gained 10 Affection Points with Shen Yifei]
'Eh?'
Despite her glaring at me with puffed cheeks, her affection for me increased. Was this the class difference between a B-Tier woman and an S-Tier?
Good looks were enough to charm them... or maybe there's something I haven't noticed. Let's keep observing what helps improve affection.
"Haa... she has a good point, so what do you think, Jiang Roulan, Old Lei?"
Because of my past, there wasn't much I knew about those things in this city, although I could purchase a weapon from the system store.
'Why would I do that in front of these people and expose myself?'
"How about the police station?"
Old Lei gazed at Jiang Roulan, who shuddered, returning a sharp gaze as she grasped the holster at her waist.
"You know I cannot do that... there were hundreds of those things out there."
"What about a sports store or a pawn shop... that one near the mall should have something interesting, right?"
"You mean the Fallen Noble?" Old Lei responded to Wang Jun.
I was surprised that Wang Jun could actually help us and refrained from commenting.
The sooner we got weapons, the easier I could have Qinglan and myself farm points to make myself and Shen Yifei stronger.
'I wonder if Yifei can get points normally.'
[Tutorial Hint: Shen Yifei can earn ZKP but not Experience for killing zombies!]
"Since we're wasting time right now, let's grab whatever can be used as weapons here and leave. If we take too long, what happens if everything is gone?"
I didn't want to waste more time speaking about what we could do, so I grabbed my knife and gazed at Shen Yifei and Qinglan before rushing to the window.
"I'm heading out—the Z's are already crawling around."
To the others, I might have seemed a little blunt and cold, but in my mind, was the system stored with my current points. I wanted to arm myself and Qinglan with the best possible items.
Because I saw something about Shen Yifei in her status... I positively considered her, too.
Though the apocalypse only started a day ago, this city fell apart more than ten years ago with the crash of our kingdom's economy and military might...
And was the reason for my Father leaving.