Surviving the Apocalypse with the Young Miss - Chapter 67

Chapter 67: Part Two

Song Ge had always been a light sleeper, but under the influence of the drugs, she had slept the most solid, deep sleep she’d had in over a decade.

By the time she woke up, the day was already bright. Turning her head, she saw the young lady—the one who had promised to keep watch—curled up and sleeping peacefully beside her, looking sweet and breathing steadily. It had to be late. Song Ge checked her watch; it was only 4:30 AM. However, the bright daylight outside was already piercing through the curtains.

Without waking Tong Xiangyu, Song Ge went to the bathroom. Seeing the items in the trash can, she froze for a second, then massaged her temples. This young lady… when she said her period was coming, it really came.

Tong Xiangyu was sleeping soundly until she suddenly had a nightmare. She dreamed that their escape failed, and Yue Yao was standing beside Zeus and Gao He, having replaced Nana’s position and completely turned against them. She woke up in a fit of anger, only to realize Song Ge wasn’t there. Terrified, she bolted upright and shouted, “Song Ge!”

“I’m out here,” Song Ge replied.

Tong Xiangyu’s racing heart finally settled. She climbed out of bed and walked into the main hall. Song Ge looked back at her. “Keeping watch?”

Tong Xiangyu felt embarrassed. “I saw it was getting light and thought I’d just close my eyes for a minute. Just one minute! I didn’t think I’d fall straight asleep… How long did I sleep?”

“I don’t know, but it’s 7:00 AM now,” Song Ge said. “Eat something. We leave after that.”

Tong Xiangyu’s eyes lit up. “You already know the route?”

“Heading North,” Song Ge said, looking at her. “Top student, you can distinguish which way is North, right?”

“Of course,” Tong Xiangyu said. “You don’t need to be a top student for that. I’ll teach you later!”

“No need to teach me.”

“?”

“As you said, one doesn’t need to be a top student to know.”

“…”

“From now on, no overflowing compassion for any small animals,” Song Ge warned her before stepping out the door. “Got it?”

Tong Xiangyu pouted. “Am I really that bad?”

“You even called the enemy’s guard dogs ‘loyal friends’.”

“I said they were ‘humanity’s friends,’ not necessarily mine,” Tong Xiangyu argued. “Even if Zeus’s gang represents the ‘hell is empty and demons are on earth’ crowd, scumbags are still human.”

Song Ge: “Wrong. A scumbag is a ‘bag,’ not a human.”

“I guess that’s true?”

The two stepped outside. The alleys didn’t look as eerie in the daylight as they did at night, but the blinding, scorching sun beat down on the ground, distorting the air with heat.

Song Ge turned right. “I’m not joking. If you see a cat or a dog, stay far away immediately, then tell me.”

Tong Xiangyu reacted quickly. Song Ge wouldn’t repeatedly warn her about something unimportant. She asked, “Do you suspect cats and dogs are infected too, turning into monsters that bite?”

“Yes,” Song Ge said. “The things that bit Zeus’s group were likely animals.”

Since Zeus and his men didn’t operate at night, they only went out during the day. This confirmed that the “hordes come out to feed at night” theory was true. But if the day was so safe, why did several of them suddenly get taken down? It meant the incident happened fast, catching them off guard, or it was something they had never seen before.

Animal mutation must be a recent development. At the very least, Zeus’s group, who had built their “safe zone” three months ago, were unprepared. Song Ge had only heard those wolves bark twice; she had thought the sound was familiar but couldn’t place it until she woke up this morning. It was just like that little white dog at the rocky beach—raspy and quiet.

Song Ge also remembered the unidentified black mass she had seen in Kecheng—long-haired and extremely fast. Looking back, those were likely pet cats and dogs already infected with the virus. At that time, they were only infected and hadn’t fully turned into monsters, which is why their first instinct was to run from humans rather than attack.

But now, those animals turned monsters were starting to hunt people.

Tong Xiangyu found it hard to believe. “But… how? The virus broke out so long ago. Logically, if animals were going to be infected, it would have happened then. Why so sudden? Is there a ‘trigger’?”

“There is no ‘trigger’,” Song Ge said. “The incubation period is just longer. Just like the virus was latent in humans—was there a ‘trigger’ for the outbreak? No, it just reached its time and erupted like a geyser.”

Tong Xiangyu was convinced. Then she suddenly remembered: “Then that little white dog…?!”

“Yeah, probably infected too.” Song Ge was surprised by the young lady’s quick connection. “It showed signs of aggression but didn’t dare to attack, and its eyes were a cloudy gray, just like the monsters.”

Tong Xiangyu said, “I thought it was just a puppy with a congenital disability!” She couldn’t help but feel a lingering fear. “Didn’t I just brush past the Grim Reaper?”

“You didn’t just brush past him; you were practically rubbing against him to generate heat,” Song Ge said. “If that dog turned into a monster, it would definitely come looking for you.”

Tong Xiangyu was horrified. “Why look for me?!”

“Didn’t you feed it every day? After all that time, it must have developed some feelings.”

“Let’s not.” Talking about this made Tong Xiangyu feel a bit disheartened. “I had feelings for Yao—for Yue Yao—for so long, and didn’t she betray me just like that? Who could have expected it?”

“Unexpected?” Song Ge asked.

Tong Xiangyu was annoyed. “Of course it was unexpected!!”

Song Ge said, “That’s because you haven’t seen enough. Young lady, thank Yue Yao for giving you your first life lesson in human nature. Don’t trust anyone in the future.”

“What about you?”

“What about me?”

“Can’t I trust you either?”

“I’m not ‘anyone’ else,” Song Ge said, her hands in her pockets. “But honestly, it’s best not to trust me either.”

“I won’t.” Tong Xiangyu grabbed Song Ge’s arm and smiled. “I’m going to trust you! You’re the only one I have left. If I don’t trust you, who can I trust?”

“What about your parents?”

“I haven’t found them yet. Until I do, you’re the only person I trust. After I find them, you’ll be one of only three!”

Song Ge chuckled but said nothing.

Tong Xiangyu was still brooding. “But why did Yue Yao do that? Couldn’t she just have pretended she didn’t see anything?”

“Two possibilities. One: human jealousy and the ‘if I’m going down, you’re coming with me’ mentality. She might have realized that place was terrible, but since she couldn’t leave with us, she wanted us to stay with her.

“But didn’t we say we would take her with us?”

Song Ge didn’t mention that this “taking her away” was a one-time thing and couldn’t give Yue Yao a sense of “belonging.” Instead, she said, “So there’s a second possibility. Yue Yao was completely brainwashed. Zeus’s group has a powerful narrative, and Yue Yao’s will is weak. When they throw her a rope that looks like an olive branch but is actually a lifeline, she’d grab it instantly. How could she doubt them?”

Tong Xiangyu sighed, dejected. “So, what do you think will happen to Yue Yao?”

“Nothing to do with me,” Song Ge replied. Seeing Tong Xiangyu’s lingering gloom, she changed the subject. “By the way, my mouth tastes very bitter.”

As expected, Tong Xiangyu’s attention shifted immediately. She looked at Song Ge with concern. “Huh? Why the sudden bitterness??”

“It’s not sudden. I’ve felt it since I woke up yesterday. What do you think is going on?”

Hearing this, Tong Xiangyu recalled the scene of her feeding the medicine. Her face flushed red instantly, her guilt making her feel like her limbs were out of sync, and the tips of her ears burned. She wanted to answer loudly to bluff her way through, but it came out as a stutter: “I-I-I… how should I know?”

“You don’t know?”

“Y-yeah…” Tong Xiangyu agreed, but her mind was a mess. Why is Song Ge asking this? What did that tone mean? Did she wake up back then?! She was scaring herself to death.

Song Ge felt there was no need for Tong Xiangyu to hide it. “Fine, I was going to praise you. You’re so humble.”

Tong Xiangyu froze. “Praise me?”

“It was the medicine you stole from the warehouse, right?” Song Ge guessed. “Something that can force someone awake from a deep sleep?”

Tong Xiangyu finally realized Song Ge was truly only curious about the bitter taste. Her face went from red to white and back again. Finally, she whispered, “Yeah. Not exactly, it’s a hepatic enzyme inducer. It promotes the liver’s synthesis of enzymes to speed up the breakdown of drugs, metabolizing toxins and sedatives out of your body quickly.”

Song Ge: “Okay, sounds like a foreign language.”

Tong Xiangyu tried to explain in plain terms: “Basically, the liver already detoxifies, this just speeds it up so the sedative components break down faster, shortening the effect on the body.”

Song Ge: “No need to explain, I won’t understand anyway. Regardless, you saved me again, Little Milk Tea.”

Tong Xiangyu’s face was flushed as she gave a low “Mhm” with downcast eyes.

Song Ge remembered something else. “But how did you…”

Tong Xiangyu, feeling like a thief, was terrified Song Ge would ask how she fed her the medicine. She hurriedly interrupted with a stutter: “Song Ge, I’m thirsty! I want water!”

Song Ge took out the water for her. There was only one bottle in the bag; Song Ge had drunk half last night, so half remained. Knowing water was precious, Tong Xiangyu took only a small sip. Then, a stroke of genius hit her regarding how to change the subject. She handed the water back and said, “By the way, Song Ge, didn’t I scrape my knee yesterday? It hurt quite a bit, but when I looked before bed, it had already scabbed! It healed so fast!”

After confirming both front and back were safe, Tong Xiangyu stopped and pulled up her pant leg to show her knee. Song Ge looked down at the young lady’s pale, straight leg. Forget broken skin or scabs—there was nothing there except a faint dark gray mark where a scab had already fallen off.

“Huh?” Tong Xiangyu touched it curiously. “Where’s the scab?”

“Fallen off,” Song Ge said. “The scabs from your previous allergy fell off quickly too, didn’t they?”

“Yes, yes,” Tong Xiangyu said. “But I’ve never had allergies before, so I didn’t know if it was fast. But this injury—I’m certain it hurt a lot when I woke up yesterday; I was limping.”

Song Ge said, “Maybe you’re mutating too.”

Tong Xiangyu was startled. “What did you say?”

Song Ge looked at her. “I didn’t say you’d turn into a monster. Just… an evolution of immunity? Using that sea of knowledge in your head to explain, it’s basically something like that.”

Tong Xiangyu: “…”

“Don’t they say humans are the most adaptable creatures?” As she spoke, Song Ge led Tong Xiangyu into a courtyard. “We can’t get out of this hellhole. We’re lost.”

Without realizing it, they had been circling the area for nearly an hour. The houses in the alleys were all similar: rotting corpses or mummies, with everything useful removed and everything else smashed. The only difference was that there were many dead people here, whereas the bodies in the Kecheng alleys had all turned into monsters. These people didn’t look like they had turned into monsters before dying, but their bodies bore obvious bite marks.

Song Ge walked into a main hall and saw a small white cat locked in a cage—of course, it had long since become a feline mummy, surrounded by maggots and flies. Song Ge scanned the hall and headed up the stairs.

Tong Xiangyu followed anxiously behind her. “Song Ge, explain yourself. What mutation? Don’t scare me!”

“You actually believe that?” Song Ge walked ahead with large strides. “I was just teasing you. I haven’t mutated, so why would it be your turn?”

“Why would you have to mutate first?”

“Then why would you mutate?”

“Didn’t you say so?”

“Since when did my words count as law? I was just talking nonsense.” Song Ge reached the second floor and continued to the third without stopping.

Tong Xiangyu: “Song Ge, what are you looking for?”

“A way out.”

Tong Xiangyu understood immediately. Stand tall to see far. Since they were lost, they needed to find a high vantage point to look down at the layout of the suburbs and plan a route out. Otherwise, they would just waste time and energy circling.

Song Ge looked out from the attic. As expected, they were getting further from the main road they had used to enter the city. However, Taiyun was a large city with many main roads; further to the right, there was another road with few vehicles. She looked carefully and saw no sign of any monsters nearby. It was just a hollowed-out ghost town.

Do they really only come out at night to feed? If that was the case, would they still face a frontal attack or be surrounded if they chose to cross the city center during the day?

After thinking for a while, she heard movement and turned around. She saw the young lady had stopped asking about mutations and was instead opening drawers one by one.

Song Ge: “What are you looking for?”

Tong Xiangyu: “A map.”

Song Ge was speechless. Why would a local family in Taiyun have a local map… but she didn’t dampen the young lady’s rare initiative. She turned and entered a room.

As soon as she entered, Song Ge paused, but she quickly continued searching for anything useful. Tong Xiangyu couldn’t stand Song Ge being out of her sight and immediately stopped searching to follow her in.

Song Ge didn’t have time to stop her. Tong Xiangyu let out a loud, terrified scream!

Song Ge: “…Don’t come in. I’m coming out.”

Tong Xiangyu immediately backed out, her heart pounding like a stampede. Inside the room, a rope hung from a beam. A mummified woman with waist-length hair and a red dress dangled there—the classic setup for a horror movie.

Song Ge walked out of the room and “thoughtfully” closed the door behind her.

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