Chapitre 25: Russia

Russia is enormous.

It is the largest country by land area with a staggering size of over 17 million kilometers square, almost twice the size of the United States of America.

It is structured across two continents, Europe and Asia, and borders 14 countries.

Not only is it home to the continent's biggest mountain, but it is also home to the deepest lake and longest river on the continent, with half of the country covered by trees.

Although the country had the ninth-highest population in the world, the sheer land area of the country caused it to have a low population density. This was especially the case with Siberia, the east part of the country.

After leaving the bunker, Viktor and the group headed east following Captain Andrei and his team.

The plan was to head south, but knowing that Moscow, the city south of the bunker, had become the most dangerous area on the continent, they decided to steer away from the city.

"We will first head east 'til we reach the river, and then head south to Novgorod City. Most of the survivors of Moscow are currently staying there," Captain Andrei briefly explained.

The current situation forced Viktor to act as a very helpful and compliant part of the group.

"Hurry, hurry, let's not drop the goods!!"

He was proactively ordering his friends and crew to bring the bags as well as carry the bunker supplies into three quickly-made carts across the snowy forest.

While the men had to exhaust their energy to pull the carts while keeping up with the others in front, Viktor pulled the women to joke around with the captain and his team.

This brought dissatisfaction among his friends, but Viktor was not concerned about what they thought at all. At the moment, his priority was to obtain as much information as possible, and he would do anything he could to achieve it.

In the few hours he conversed with the captain and his team along with the women, he gained quite a lot of useful information regarding the present condition.

For one, he learned that the Russian government itself was now separated into two, the Rus Imperial that held the west and the new Russian government who named themselves the Red Faction that held the east.

Viktor also managed to gather the names of half a dozen cities that had now become human survival bases as well as the names and locations of some of the known alien constructs in Russia.

The group rarely encountered zombies during their journey, and the zombies that did appear were quickly taken care of by Captain Andrei's team.

How easily the captain and his team killed the zombies assured them of their safety throughout the journey. However, a certain howl often sounded, terrifying the whole group along the way.

Even the captain and his team's expressions darkened when they heard the resounding howls.

"Those mutated wolves are not to be trifled with. I would rather fight a thousand undead than a pack of those wolves," Captain Andrei said.

However, the mutated wolves were not what the captain was most concerned about. The moment the sun almost fell, the captain quickly ordered them to pause their journey and chose a place under a thick tree to stay the night.

The captain explained that it would be best for them to rest for the night as there was a type of creature much stronger creature that fly around in numbers at night.

"If we meet one of those groups, we most likely won't be able to survive," the captain warned.

From zombies to mutated monsters, the vast land of Russia was not safe to be roamed about.

Once in a while, the howls of the wolves would sound from the distance. There were even weird noises similar to the sound of clapping. Although they were exhausted, none of them could sleep on their first night outside.

When the sun finally rose, they prepared themselves and continued to head east for another day.

Along the way, they met a group of undead and a dozen of mutated animals. Of course, Captain Andrei and his men killed them in the end, the process only delaying their journey a little.

Although Viktor was itching to kill a few zombies and mutated animals as well to increase his power, he decided to keep it hidden for the time being.

At the moment, he only appeared as a spoiled young master who always needed to be guarded by his two big bodyguards.

The next day, when they finally reached the Volga River, the captain chose an abandoned farm near the river to stay for the night.

"We will be getting a boat. In the meantime, you all should stay here. You will be safe."

To reassure the crew, the captain also left two of his men to guard around the area to keep them safe. However, Viktor knew better; the precaution was first and foremost to protect the captain's supplies.

After three days traveling together, the two guards were a lot less wary of them than they were the first time they met. After all, what could this group of normal humans without any power possibly do that would pose a threat to them?

Realizing that it was finally safe for him to act, Viktor decided that now was the best time to start doing what he had planned to do all along.

He took some time to entertain the two guards with some drinks, and after he made sure that they had completely passed out, he went toward the abandoned farm's warehouse where all of his friends were staying.

He stood in front of his 20 friends and crew and said something that surprised them.

"I will be leaving tonight. If anyone would like to come with me, now is the time to decide."