Malice.The uneasy feeling emanating from the young man was unmistakably malice. When circumstances point that way, they rarely lie. But how far could the malice of a single individual extend within a group?“You can’t gauge it.”Especially in a world already teetering on the brink of destruction.“If that really isn’t for eating….”There was only one plausible thing to do with a dead infected rat. Poison.If, as suspected, he’d taken the infected corpse for malicious reasons, there was no telling how things might unfold. Still—that didn’t mean I could recklessly follow him. There was no time to tail someone just because they’d pocketed an infected rat. I decided to let it go.But the moment I turned my eyes away, a forgotten suspicion grew louder. It felt like a sharp blow to the back of the head. A ruined city. Not a single of the entities in sight. And a survivor—one who had taken an infected rat. Between clues that barely connected, I sensed a subtle link.Right — even though this place bordered a defense force base, it shouldn’t be this desolate. At minimum you should be able to confirm thousands of entities. So why weren’t they visible? Should I dismiss it simply because this wasn’t their home base? No. That was far too suspicious.The moment I reached the top of the rise, my suspicion only grew: there were barely any traces of the entities at all. It felt unnatural, almost excessive.“What on earth is this?”The answer… would almost certainly be found in the young man walking off in the distance.“Maybe that’s for the best.”His guarded reaction when asked if he had companions actually ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) indicated that he did. If a group was surviving in this wasteland, it would be related to the reason.I moved my feet. There was no need to risk alerting them by following openly. Better to hide my presence and follow quietly. With the [Hawk’s Eye] trait, trailing slowly at distance wasn’t difficult. Soon, exactly as I expected, the scene came into view: the youth glanced around, then reached into his coat and took out the infected specimen.“Huh.”The youth carefully drained the specimen’s blood into a canteen. The meaning of that action was clear. ‘Just as I thought.’He intended to use it as a poison. Of course, there could be other explanations—like collecting a blood sample for research—but:‘If it were for research, he wouldn’t act like that.’No one would conduct research in such an unsanitary way. After drawing the blood, he hurried on. His steps somehow felt frivolous. Even from a distance his nervousness showed. How much farther would he go?“At least it won’t slow me down.”He had covered a considerable distance, yet his path still aligned with the original destination. Even if I had miscalculated, it wouldn’t cost me any time.“Ha…”Still, a sigh escaped from an unexplained sense of foreboding. Before long, the nuclear power plant came into view. If I went a little further I could make out the cultivated-meat farming complex.It was around then that the youth’s steps slowed.‘Is it nearby?’The guess proved correct once more. The youth’s destination was a survivor group. At the same time, I began to understand why the youth harbored malice.— “Ughk!”Shouts and screams carried from afar. A youth doubled over clutching his abdomen after being kicked; the sight gave me a nasty, inexplicable feeling.‘What kind of people are these?’I looked at those dragging the youth. A gang? No. They looked like ordinary citizens — a group of survivors. As I drew closer I realized they were larger than I’d thought.‘Are there a few thousand gathered?’Saying “a few thousand” is one thing, but feeding and housing such numbers is no simple task; the Fifth Defense Unit had painfully learned that with only hundreds. Moreover, their structure seemed organized: people keeping watch, collecting scrap to build something.‘I wonder who the leader is.’He wouldn’t be ordinary. Lost in those thoughts, I sensed an unfamiliar presence. I’d been careful, but I hadn’t fully hidden myself, so a reaction was inevitable.‘Five.’Roughly that many. Their footsteps were faint, yet awkward. Still, anyone carrying guns was a threat. And in groups like this, the likelihood of firearms was high, so I had to stay alert. At least, it looked like:Pistols.They weren’t weapons that could pierce chrome-alloy reinforced armor. Perhaps because I revealed myself first, one of them shouted urgently, issuing a threat.“Wh-who are you!”“If you want to talk, lower your weapon.”“What?”[First Slash Lv.5]A slash. It happened in an instant.From the muzzle, the pistol split in half. The person aiming the gun fell with a dumbfounded look. Thud—“Uh, uh—?”Panic gunfire erupted—rat-a-tat-tat! Even pulling the trigger was hesitant.Shing—whoosh.Barely ten seconds. That was all it took to subdue those armed with pistols.Wearing proper armor feels good.Those pistols couldn’t penetrate the armor anyway, and with my movement speed increased, they don't stand a chance. Unaware of that, they panicked and backed away. I watched them without concern.‘No combat experience at all.’I’d diagnosed that earlier, but it still called for caution. Now that the assessment was complete:“Keep moving, and you might end up losing your heads.”I made my warning clear.“Huh, huah!”A bold move, to be sure. There might have been subtler options, but I had no intention of taking them. The sights before me had extinguished any trace of leniency I might have felt.“Sigh.”This place—“I never thought something like this would already exist.”A cult.A cult. Or perhaps more accurately, a proto-cult. Not enough time had passed since the apocalypse for a full-fledged cult to form, yet it was clear this was their inevitable path. First, there were the guards’ garments: as if by decree, each of them was wrapped in white cloth, marked with red symbols that resembled blood.From the moment I noticed that, odd sights began to appear. At first glance they might look like an ordinary survivor group, but under closer inspection, they were not.‘So that’s what it is…’They were building scrap-metal barricades. That in itself was normal, but hanging from those barricades were human limbs.At the same time, those constructing them were in terrible condition—bruised, with flesh badly torn. If malice could be felt even in such a simple task, then what lay within must be far worse.“Phew.”Putting that background aside for a moment, I watched the ones fleeing. I didn’t chase them; that too was calculated.‘I’ll see how they react.’The reason I sent them back was simple: they would certainly come running back with reinforcements. Assessing their strength was an essential procedure. I planned to check their armaments before deciding my next move.“Hmm.”Honestly, most weapons didn’t matter — I could handle a military rifle. But if they had something fatal to me, the plan would change.Such fights tend to end with someone dying. I didn’t think highly of the cult, but I hadn’t come to kill. I only wanted to know why no entities were visible nearby. Of course, I wouldn’t hesitate if necessary...Such groups crumble if you take out their core, so I would avoid unnecessary force.“They came out.”Fortunately, just as I’d hoped, the ragged survivors’ armaments were poor.‘Mostly pistols. About five shotguns?’About thirty people approached, keeping watch. My eyes met the leader; for an instant my head spun. Why?It was utterly astonishing.“Huh?”Because I knew him well.“Isaac Lucas.”Why was he here?.Isaac Lucas. Title: [Iron Heart]. A named survivor nicknamed the Iron Heart was the last person you’d expect among cultists. Of course — he wasn’t supposed to be here.‘City Reconstruction Committee.’Isaac should be at the City Reconstruction Committee. He was meant to be its central pillar — or rather, he should already have been that pillar. Isaac offered a friendly smile and spoke in a formal, measured tone“We came quickly when we heard guests had arrived. I’m Ion.”He extended his hand casually. Even while lying, his expression remained steady. If he was deliberately concealing his identity, there had to be a reason. I murmured “Kyle” under my breath as I regarded Isaac.“Kyle.”“Heh...”Isaac awkwardly withdrew his outstretched hand and laughed. He didn’t seem offended at being refused a handshake; as a blade-wielder, there was no reason to recklessly offer a hand and create an opening. Had he sensed that? A strange glint flickered in Isaac's eyes.“It seems there was some misunderstanding between us. Why don’t you step back now?”“You were the one who pointed a gun first.”“I’ll apologize for that.”“Apologizing while surrounding someone is just another form of intimidation.”“Haha, we’ve had losses too, so we must be careful.”With that, Isaac’s gaze shifted to the people surrounding me, and they lowered their weapon.“If you step back, nothing will happen to either side.”Isaac urged Kyle to step back once more.But if his goal was truly to step back, why create all this commotion in the first place?“This is sudden, but I’d like to have a word.”“Of course.” At my reply, a smile appeared on Isaac’s face.He swept back his hair and spoke in a cold voice.“If you've been following the deserter, you must have reasons.”“……”“Judging by the clothes, are you military? From the Seventh Defense Force?”It’s awkward to admit here, but I don’t like Isaac much. I can’t help it—he’s exhausting to deal with.“You didn’t open the Defense Force base entrance, did you? That would make things difficult here...”“Looking for an apology?”“No — rather I’m curious why you came all the way here.”Wiping the smile from his face, Isaac's eyes turned cold, and his words cut straight to the core:“Are you curious about how we dealt with the monsters?”“Why do you think that?”He leaned in, speaking just quietly enough to keep others from hearing.“I was curious too, so I came to see for myself.”The expression in his eyes was exactly as I remembered.

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