Apocalypse Healer - Path of Death-Chapter 8B1 - Unwelcome Guests

David didn’t bother alleviating the awkward tension with Jack. On the contrary, he enjoyed the heavy steps as they rang through the hallway. They returned successfully from looting the shopping center, though Jack trudged beside him with a sour expression, as if someone had bitten him on the butt.

David watched with interest as Flora excitedly waved at them, and Jack responded equally enthusiastically. He waved back, the corners of his lips tugging upward. The Hunter’s expression improved, and he rushed to the Mage girl without another comment.

Jack began chatting with Flora, and soon a vibrant smile spread across his face. Flora chuckled at one of his comments and blushed: David wondered what they were talking about.

David watched Jack and Flora's interaction with growing curiosity. Was this sudden closeness a sign they were a couple? Jack leaned toward Flora, his expressions brightening or dimming depending on her reactions. Flora, meanwhile, played with her hair as she laughed at his jokes—though they were far from funny in David’s opinion. If anything, they were disturbing.

Far too much.

David shook his head.

It would be fine if they liked each other, but Jack likes her a lot more than Flora likes him. Or she’s still uncertain. Is that a TV show or what? Escaping a world-ending event with your crush? Are they shooting a drama?

David scoffed and walked past the lovebirds. A strong scent filled the air forcing its way into his nostrils. It was the rich aroma of a perfectly grilled steak.

A faint but familiar sizzling sound rang out from the back of the pizza shop. He found Sebastian grilling a big steak on a large pan using a small camping stove. The window beside him was wide open, acting as an extractor hood.

“I was sure you were joking,” David smirked as he sat down across from him.

“Joking? About food? No way!” Sebastian replied, his tone uncharacteristically grave.

David chuckled softly, but his stomach seemed to agree with the hulking giant. It grumbled loudly enough to overshadow the sizzling steak.

“How can I help you?”

Fortunately, there wasn’t much to do before breakfast was done. Sebastian grilled a few steaks for them and made some eggs on the side, preparing as much protein as possible. It was far from a balanced diet, but nobody knew how long they would have to wait for their next steak or eggs. Neither was easy to preserve for a long time since the electricity was off.

“Is it okay to ask about your Classes? You guys are the first survivors I’ve found, and I think it would be very helpful if we could learn a bit about all the Basic Classes. Devising fighting strategies and plans to kill Infected or to escape should be a lot easier once we know what everyone can do,” David asked after taking the second bite of his steak.

“You really want to go out there again?” Flora’s voice wavered, but her eyes met his for the first time, wide with worry. “Even after what happened?”

Sebastian swallowed his food and nodded, “Your name is Damen, right? It makes sense to fight the Infected strategically. I’ve ranked up twice by fighting the Infected. We’re growing stronger while fighting them Dealing with a larger group of Infected should be feasible once we’ve leveled up a little.

“David,” David’s eyes narrowed.

Sebastian looked at him, cocking his head to the side, “What?

“My name is David, not Damen” David clarified, “Either way. And what do you mean when you say you ranked by fighting?”

Isn’t it normal to rank up after using one’s Skill Runes often? Was that a misinterpretation?

“I ranked up in the fight as well,” Jack said lightly, while Flora added quietly, “Me too. But I only saw the message after I regained consciousness. It popped up after I killed the sixth Infected. There was also a message related to mana exhaustion.”

David’s ears perked up when Flora spoke.

He considered what he’d learned so far: Hunters seemed to grow stronger through combat, Mages perhaps through mana use.

Could ranking up differ for each Class?

“Are the requirements for everyone’s rank-ups different?” He wondered aloud. David thought about it for a few seconds and nodded. That was his best theory at this point. Even though both Jack and Sebastian ranked up from killing, Jack only ranked up once while Sebastian ranked up twice.

Hunters are known for hunting and tracking. Warriors are melee fighters. Mages are supposed to grasp and comprehend the fabric of the universe, manipulating it to their will, and Clerics are healers. Is that how it is?

At least, that was what David learned from the short period he’d spent playing games. His knowledge was far from perfect, but he’d retained the core information.

After mulling it over, David shrugged inwardly and turned to the trio once again.

“Since I asked you to tell me about your Classes, I should tell you what I know about the Cleric Class. I don’t know what items other Clerics receive, but I didn’t receive a weapon or the like after picking my Class. However, I obtained two Skill Runes. One is called [Cleanse], which I used to remove Flora’s infection, and [Cure Wounds], which heals. I was a little injured right after the world turned upside down, which [Cure Wounds] mended. To a certain extent, at least.”

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His entire body was still rattled from falling, but David tried ignoring the pain. Being alive after falling so deep was already a stroke of great fortune. David couldn’t bother complaining about some minor inconvenience.

“I am a Warrior, and you’ve already seen my Skill Runes [Slash] and [Parry],” Sebastian didn’t even look up from his plate. He moaned in pleasure as the juicy meat melted in his mouth, “My Skill Runes use Stamina to activate.”

“I’m a Hunter, and [Eagle Eyes] and [Archer Mastery] are my basic skills,” Jack saidd, though he hesitated.

“I have [Mana Bullet] and [Mana Manipulation]...” Flora whispered.

Everything appeared similar to his guesses.

Jack glared at him, his expression tight—David wouldn’t have been surprised if the guy was cursing him silently. As long as Jack answered his questions, David couldn’t care less.

And that was exactly what Jack and the others did. David asked a few more questions about their Skill Runes, their stats, and so forth. At some point, it became confusing—apparently, Flora’s Body stat wasn’t lower than Jack’s, even though Jack was clearly faster and slightly stronger. Still, the discrepancies taught David a lot.

Flora seemed more flexible, and her stamina was surprisingly good. She was small and had to make multiple steps where Sebastian stepped once, but she kept up with the rest. Even though she’d collapsed before and was infected, Flora recuperated rapidly.

Their average of all characteristics forming Body is probably roughly the same. It’s similar enough to put them in the same bracket. Does that mean you can improve your stats with workouts?

David tilted his head, his thoughts racing. The human body might have limits, but with the mystical energy coursing through them now, why couldn’t they replicate techniques from martial arts movies or cultivation novels?

They’re called body refinement techniques, right?

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It might be foolish thinking, unchartered territory, and theorizing with half-knowledge: if one could call it that in the first place: but the corner of David’s lips curled upward when he thought about it.

Jack glared, his lips curling in disgust. “Your smile is creepy, dude.”

“Don’t be like that, Jack,” Sebastian tried to mediate, but something interrupted them. A snarl rang through the surroundings. Jack and Sebastian looked out of the window, “That’s weird. I can’t see any Infected.”

David’s ears perked up. He faintly heard a cracking noise from somewhere. He got up, reached for his baseball bat, and entered the shopping center’s wide-open hall.

The others also got up, leaving the remains of their breakfast behind. Jack’s lips parted, but they shut tight when a cacophony of shattered glass and snarls rang out.

“Everyone, get ready to fight,” David told them with a smile.

He grasped his backpack, slung it around his shoulder, and adjusted it within seconds. In the meantime, the others hurried to do the same. They scraped as much food and drink into their bags as they could before hurriedly grasping their weapons.

David walked to the railing surrounding the inner area of the second floor and bent over to see what was happening on the first floor. First, he only saw a few rotten faces—maybe a handful of Infected. But that was only the first row of undead appearing in his field of vision. The first Infected walked across shattered glass, ignoring the large pieces of glass digging into their rotting flesh.

They spread out in all directions until a groan rang out. It didn’t sound like an Infected, but more like a muffled, pained scream. The Infected turned to the right and headed to the stairwell.

“Someone’s there!” Jack exclaimed, pointing to the stairs on the second floor.

David only saw a glimpse of a black jacket and blood. Droplets of blood sprayed in all directions.

The Infected poured out of the stairwell like water from a broken dam. They spread across the hall, some stumbling over shattered glass while others pressed forward relentlessly.

There were so many Infected that an unfortunate pair was pushed forward until they reached the railing. But that was not the end of it. They were pressed against the railing, yet the force from behind never stopped. It didn’t stop until they were shoved over the railing.

David watched the Infected fall, and though no one spoke, he could sense the unspoken relief in the group—their chances of survival had just increased.

Jack and the others froze, their silence heavy as the Infected poured from the stairwell like a freshly unclogged pipe and stared at David. Their eyes screamed at him, telling him not to make a move and to ignore the Infected. That was exactly what David did. He didn’t make a move.

While the others froze or backed away in fear, David found his pulse quickening for a different reason—anticipation. The chaos, the danger...it thrilled him more than he wanted to admit.

But he remained silent and unmoving.

Flora was the first to step back. All David saw was fear distorting her features. But retreating in fear had been a mistake. Her shoes squeaked softly against the floor. The sound was faint—barely audible to David—but it was enough. As if on cue, the Infected shot around. Their heads flicked in their direction, their dead eyes staring at them like one would look at a delicacy.

Then they inched closer, their snarls transforming into a heinous chorus as the flood of Infected inched closer.

Most of the Infected were slow, making escape relatively easy. However, there were also slightly taller Infected. Their flesh was rotten through and through, their bones were exposed in certain spots, and yellow liquid poured down their lips. They were larger but also stronger and faster than the rest.

They pushed their brethren aside, throwing a few more Infected over the railing onto the first floor, and dashed forward.

David and Jack might have been able to make a run for it, but her overstuffed backpack too weighed down Flora.

Sebastian planted his feet, his imposing frame like a wall between the group and the advancing horde, while Flora hovered uncertainly behind him, clutching her staff tightly.

“Go! I'll hold them off!”

David snorted, walking beside him, “What’s that nonsense? I have been waiting for this!”

His heart was jumping out of his chest, and fear threatened to occupy every part of his body.

Before either of them could make more or say another word, a blue mass whizzed past their heads: probably Flora’s [Mana Bullet].

Her shot missed the Infected's head but struck its side with enough force to send it flying. It smashed against the railing and toppled over, just like the Infected it had pushed aside.

The Infected snarled loudly before it crashed to the marble floor down below.

“Shit!” Flora cursed, earning her a gaze filled with contempt.

“Young lady, watch your language!” Sebastian corrected her sternly, though the corners of his lips twitched upward as he muttered, “Good shot, though.”