Born in apocalypse

Ding! Ding! Ding!

The bell that indicated the end of the shift finally rang. The moment it rang, the expressions of all the hunters—the ones who were killing the slimes—changed, from that of the frown to happiness.

"Phew! Another day gone," someone said.

"Yay!"

"Finally! We can rest," the old man beside Dhruv said as he stopped casting the spell and sat on the floor to catch a breath.

Dhruv nodded with a smile on his face as he shifted his gaze to the slimes. A thought suddenly crossed his mind.

’How are the Gang gonna be controlling those slimes during the rest time? If they were left untouched wouldn’t their numbers increase uncontrollably?’ Dhruv thought, but he didn’t have much time to ponder this question. He quickly focused his mind and established a telepathic connection with Alaric.

[Go secure the sleeping area. Kill anyone in that room,] Dhruv ordered. Alric had already informed Dhruv that he knew all the locations, so he wasn’t worried that he wouldn’t reach the area.

[Yes, master,] came the reply.

He left the connection open, knowing that Alaric would respond when he reached the sleeping area. Dhruv then started following the old man, who was making his way toward the rest area.

Gunmen were accompanying the hunters, so Dhruv refrained from attacking at the moment. He didn’t want these poor people to die after all they were needed for a plan he had thought after seeing those slimes.

They continued walking while maintaining their formation, and Dhruv’s crew continued to inch closer to him, taking care not to arouse any suspicion from the gunmen.

[I’m in the sleep chamber, Master,] Dhruv heard Alaric’s message confirming his arrival at the designated location.

Dhruv was about to reply, but he stopped when he noticed that Azarex was about to address him.

"When are we going to start the killing, Master?" Azarex whispered as he looked at Dhruv with an excited expression.

The instant these words left Azarex’s lips, the old man beside Dhruv shot a glance in Azarex’s direction, as if he could hear the whispered words. However, he swiftly averted his gaze, clearly showing that he didn’t want any part in it.

’This old man sure has a sensitive ear,’ Dhruv thought to himself. He put on a reassuring smile and turned his attention to the Azarex.

[Always remember to communicate through the Mark for important matters. We’ll initiate our plan when we reach our resting room,] Dhruv explained and told Azarex to be cautious about discussing sensitive topics in public.

Azarex nodded, acknowledging his mistake, and fell into step with Dhruv.

Dhruv cast a quick glance at Vexar to gauge how he was handling the situation.

’Not good,’ Dhruv thought, noticing that Vexar was clearly not coping well. Vexar seemed like an active volcano on the verge of eruption, and his anger was apparent. He scanned his surroundings, likely searching for the man who had taken his sword and had aimed a gun at his master.

’I guess today we will witness a hot show, heh heh..,’ Dhruv chuckled inwardly as he quickened his pace to catch up with the old man.

After walking for a while, they finally arrived at the rest room, which resembled more of a warehouse than anything else. Upon entering, Dhruv discovered that there were hundreds of mattresses, each designated for a single individual. Aside from the mattresses, there were only tube lights and fans and the place was totally devoid of any other furnishings.

Fortunately, all the electrical appliances were in working order because of a generator stationed at the station. Without the generator, they have to be forced to work in darkness along with sweltering heat, as the electrical supply has been completely destroyed due to the second quest.

In exchange for CC, the gang purchased weapons, petrol, and various other items from their supplier.

"We don’t have a spare mattress, so you’ll have to sleep on the floor tonight," the guard informed Dhruv and their group. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"No worries, we’re accustomed to sleeping on the floor," Dhruv replied with a forced smile.

"Alright, the food will be served in an hour," the guard said before departing from the area.

Following their instructions, all the guards exited the warehouse and took their positions at the main gate. Their primary duty was to monitor and prevent anyone from attempting to escape, but during these past five days, there hadn’t been a single instance of someone attempting to flee. As a result, they had grown quite relaxed about roles of theirs.

Upon realizing that there were no guards present inside the warehouse, Dhruv issued a command to Alaric,

[Alric, bring Vexar’s sword along with everyone’s weapons to my location as soon as possible.]

[Okay,] came the swift confirmation from the other side.

[Be ready,] Dhruv instructed everyone collectively.

Dhruv turned to Thala and asked if he knew any defensive spells. Thala nodded in affirmation, indicating that he possessed such a spell.

[Create a spell to envelop this entire area. Can you do that?] Dhruv asked.

Thala nodded once more and began to concentrate on crafting the spell. Crafting a spell to cover the entire warehouse would require some time, so he had decided to start the process of creating it.

The people in the warehouse looked at the group with suspicious eyes, but they refrained from taking any action. They understood that anything this new group might do couldn’t be worse than the hardships they were already enduring.

Dhruv purchased three Mana potions from the store and drank them in one swift gulp. These three hundred coins were all he had left after Simon had transferred the rest.

He instructed everyone in the group to drink potions to ensure they were in peak condition as well. Following his lead, everyone bought one or two potions and consumed them.

While the group was busy drinking their potions, Alaric suddenly materialized next to Dhruv. He placed the weapons in front of him before vanishing once more and returning to the sleeping area.

Vexar’s eyes began glowing the moment he saw his sword once again and began to slash air with it to check if it was real or not. It was real.

Everyone picked their weapon, and Thala also indicated that he was ready to cast the spell.

A sinister smile began to form on Dhruv’s face as he said,

"Let the party begin."