Daryl, who came out of the small building, looked around, headed towards the base of a wall to attend to his personal matters, then fastened his belt and walked towards the two people at a bonfire.
As soon as Airon saw this, he stood up, took out a parabolic microphone, and opened the window to set up the equipment. He aimed it in the direction of Daryl, who was no more than ten meters away, and listened to Daryl's familiar voice coming through the headphones.
"Arturo, are you on the night shift?"
"Yes, why aren't you sleeping?"
"There are too many people, and I'm not used to sleeping in these kinds of places. Didn't I tell you I like to travel alone? By the way, do you still have cigarettes?"
Although the voices weren't clear, the only thing that mattered to Airon at this moment was to gather as much information as possible about these people and the conversation Daryl was having.
Now, some people might have doubts in this situation: Why is Airon paying such meticulous attention to details? It's simple. Since the last time their group directly confronted a community, there were many civilian casualties. While they couldn't be avoided entirely, Airon sensed that this time could be different.
As a leader, Airon had learned to be considerate of his soldiers. He didn't want to send them to kill civilians indiscriminately, as it would only cause psychological harm that would be difficult to resolve.
Airon was highly observant and could see the doubts in some soldiers. Some didn't know why they were suddenly in this place, while others simply followed orders. But that's not how things work. He was now the leader of an organization with over fifty thousand survivors. If some didn't agree with his leadership, it could lead to unrest.
This was something Airon wanted to avoid, so he sought all possible information about these people before ordering his troops to attack.
"Zz..."
Suddenly, there was a crackle from the headphones, followed by a puff of blue smoke from the mouths of the two people in the distance.
"How was your conversation with the leader today?"
"I'll stay here for ten days before they let me go out to search for supplies."
"Hehe, behave yourself. We all came here and were treated the same way. Ten days isn't too long. At least you haven't been assigned to night duty yet, right? Rest well for a few days. You won't be as free once these ten days are over."
"I still like being outside. That feeling of freedom is unique."
"You're quite strange, old man. Many prefer being in a base rather than wandering around unfamiliar places."
"Hahaha!"
Everyone around burst into laughter, but they didn't dare raise their voices beyond a normal level, as if they were afraid of disturbing the rest of the people in the building.
Daryl looked at these people without any visible emotions, then glanced around intentionally or unintentionally, quickly memorizing the entire place.
It's curious that many consider Daryl to be foolish or unintelligent because, to put it plainly, Daryl is one of the smartest men in the group. He had mentored Carol and helped her become a formidable woman feared by all. He had also been of great assistance on numerous occasions.
At this moment, Daryl didn't know that Airon already knew he was trapped here, so he would observe the surroundings whenever he had the chance.
Arturo noticed his movements and didn't think much of it, assuming he was curious about the environment here, so he took the initiative to introduce it.
"Is the environment here okay?"
"Not bad for a settlement."
"Haha, you didn't get a good look at the place when we arrived here."
Speaking of this, Arturo's expression suddenly became mysterious. He looked around and said in a low voice, "Let me tell you, the current leader of our organization is not from around here... Everyone says he came from the north. I didn't know that because I joined them when they passed through Birmingham, but I heard they came to escape certain people and others for revenge."
Upon hearing this, Daryl's eyes couldn't help but narrow slightly, and his facial expression also changed a bit. However, Arturo, who was speaking enthusiastically, seemed not to pay attention to it and continued talking on his own.
"The question I hear the most during this period is, have you ever seen a modified RV with a damn turret? Have you ever seen soldiers or men driving military Humvees?"
"No, I rarely come across survivors."
"Alright, but I heard that those who provide information will be rewarded. It seems like we're dead, treated like tracking dogs."
...
In that distant building, Airon's expression became truly confused. What this man had just said seemed extremely familiar to him... Those people come from the north and apparently are looking for a modified RV, but there was too much confusion as he didn't have the complete information.
Since when have they been looking for the modified RV?
If it's recently, that means someone survived from the people they killed. But if not, Airon could think that the remaining people from the Saviors had arrived at this place.
Have the Saviors moved to Florida?
By then, Daryl seemed to lose interest in conversation. He finished smoking quickly, patted Arturo on the shoulder, and entered the small building.
Airon also cautiously left the building and without hesitation, ran directly towards where his people were. His figure gradually disappeared into the night.
In the makeshift camp, it seemed that everyone had found their places to rest. However, for those who were closer, they would discover that no one was sleeping, and the modified RVs that should have been filled with snores were eerily silent.
"Someone is here!"
Glenn, who was keeping watch, gently tapped Rick on the shoulder, and the latter suddenly sat up, showing no signs of sleep on his face.
The rest of the people also stood up one after another, exchanging several glances, and everyone smiled with relief. Glenn didn't find it strange when everyone woke up, but he continued to focus on the outside.
"It's Airon, everyone lower your weapons."
Airon quickly ran and emerged from a bush, greeting all the people and entering a modified RV.
"How did it go?"
Before he could take off his gear, several people approached nervously to ask.
After removing his helmet, Airon nodded as he took off his gear. "Daryl is there!"
Seeing the anxious expressions on everyone's faces, Airon explained in detail, "Everything is better than we thought. That group seems to have accepted him, and now he is one of them, so he's not in danger."
After hearing this, everyone let out a sigh of relief and waited patiently for Airon to catch his breath.
"Based on my previous observations, the security is tight, but there won't be any problems infiltrating the place. Once we subdue the tower guards, getting in won't be difficult."
"So, we just wait?"
Rick didn't seem entirely convinced and asked somewhat reluctantly.
Airon nodded and said, "For Daryl's safety, it's the only thing we can do for now. Once the operations start tomorrow, we will have to get Daryl out of there."
"Yes, sir!"
Novel finished on level 3 of my Patreon: SrCuervo