Chapter 8: Choices
Emerson pondered, feeling the immense pressure and power in his hands, a burden that could easily break him.
He had to think about how many people could survive now and also plan for the future.
So, a senior official stepped forward.
He issued an order to prioritize the rescue of special talents.
On the day this order was issued, the official recorded a video, took full responsibility, and then took his own life.
It wouldn't be long before this official's video would be posted online.
Perhaps most people wouldn't see the video.
But those who did would be furious, resenting the official, without exception.
Emerson took a deep breath and pulled out a new radio.
"Attention all squads, while searching for special talents, try to rescue ordinary citizens as well..."
"I have one command: every life is important, especially your own!"
Responses came through the radio.
He silently noted them in his mind.
Compared to yesterday, three squads didn't respond.
These people were heavily armed and well-equipped, yet even that didn't guarantee their safety.
...
Meanwhile, on Lotte Street.
A 10-person team moved swiftly, only killing zombies that got too close.
"Minimize gunfire; these creatures are too sensitive to sound."
Leading them was a spirited female soldier.
As a zombie rushed at her, she drew her combat knife, sidestepped, and plunged the knife into the zombie's temple.
Her movements were quick and precise.
Mallory dispatched the zombie, shifted her footing, and swiftly moved forward.
After a few steps, she suddenly stopped and made several quick hand signals.
The team immediately dashed into a nearby shop and pulled down the shutter.
Not far from them, hundreds of zombies surged past, kicking up clouds of dust.
Mallory sat inside the shop, unfolding a map.
"There's a rescue signal inside, with over a hundred students and teachers still alive!"
She clenched the map, crumpling its corner.
"Captain, our target is the person in that school. He holds a master's degree in biology."
Hearing this, Mallory suddenly stood up.
"Over a hundred teachers and students."
"How am I supposed to choose?"
The team members remained silent.
They couldn't make the decision either.
"Change the destination!"
...
At the entrance of the elementary school, inside a small convenience store.
Born looked out from a second-floor window at the school, his mouth twitching.
The zombies here were truly unique.
There were many child zombies, and their movement speed was unusually fast.
The strangest thing was that twenty child zombies were loosely standing in a row, performing radio calisthenics.
Their movements were distorted, looking somewhat comical.
Yet they repeated the exercises seriously, again and again.
There was also a group of child zombies tearing books to shreds, roaring loudly.
Born couldn't help but sigh, "This generation of elementary school students is really hard to handle. Even as zombies, they are unique."
Coming here to find a school bus was indeed a good idea, but the challenge was too great.
"We need to strengthen the legion members first. And I wonder if Lane is still in this school."
Born's visit wasn't solely for the school bus.
Lane was one of the college beauties during their university days.
Born met her in their freshman year, and they had always been good friends.
Their relationship was somewhat ambiguous, and he couldn't deny that he had feelings for her.
Born shook his head, pushing these thoughts aside.
He opened the system shop.
The reason he hadn't equipped firearms was twofold.
Firstly, due to strict regulations, encountering officials might lead to conflicts.
Secondly, firearms were extremely expensive.
A handgun cost 150 points and only came with 100 bullets.
Throughout his journey, including previous points, he had only accumulated 666 points.
Moreover, most of the legion members didn't know how to use firearms.
So, this idea had to be shelved for now.
Now, after upgrading to Level 2 recruitment, an enhancement option appeared for the original legion members.
He opened Mia's panel.
Mia
- Defense: 1.1 (+3.2)
- Stamina: 1.4 (+3.8)
- Spirit: 1 (+2)
- +
The maid combat outfit added 1 point, and the maid attribute boosted base attributes by 200%, resulting in the current stats.
The other members had similar attributes.
The "+" sign at the end represented the enhancement option.
Born clicked on the "+" sign, and a line of options appeared.
Basic Attributes, Special Skills, Basic Skills
Basic attributes like stamina required 50 points for each increase.
Special skills also required 50 points to learn, and the learning options were random based on individual traits.
However, Mia's panel provided a random prediction.
One of the options was "Twist Off Cap."
Twist Off Cap: Twist off the top of the skull with bare hands.
Just reading this made Born's head feel cold. What if she used it on him?
The other option was basic skills such as combat, shooting, driving, etc.
These also cost 50 points to learn and could be freely chosen.
To enhance the combat capabilities of the others, combat and shooting were undoubtedly the best choices.
As for shooting, it wasn't limited to firearms; it could include automatic crossbows.
The automatic crossbow required far fewer points in the system shop.
An automatic crossbow cost only 50 points and came with 50 bolts, which could be retrieved.
Born immediately had an idea.
He stroked his chin, looking at his maid legion.
"Stop looking at these ladies so creepily, okay? With that attitude, my sister will definitely dislike you," Angelica couldn't help but mutter.
Born glanced thoughtfully at Angelica's chest, then looked over his maid legion.
Hmm, being impartial, Pearl's was still the best.
Pearl really was the leader.
"Pearl, you're the squad leader, commanding five members in the ranged team."
"Mia, you're also a squad leader, commanding Laura and Sibley."
At this moment, a delicate girl pointed to herself with an expectant look.
Born spread his hands, "You help me with a shoulder massage."
"Oh."
"Actually, that's fine too."
Angelica rolled her eyes and went downstairs.
Unbeknownst to her, Born needed Angelica to leave.
Born laughed heartily and immediately allocated the points.
Including Pearl, a total of six members formed the ranged team, costing 600 points.
50 points for basic skills and 50 points for the automatic crossbow for each member, with 100 points invested per person.
"Distribute the combat objectives."
Born's expression became much more serious.
He laid out his general plan and warned everyone to stay safe.
"Charge into the elementary school and establish a defensive line in the main building."
"One last thing, if you get injured by zombies, come back to me immediately without delay!"
Born knew this battle would be the toughest they had encountered.
They had only ever dealt with scattered zombies.
At the elementary school entrance, there were at least 500 zombies. This was no small number.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone