Strongest Boyfriend In The Apocalypse: Every Girl Depends On Me!-Chapter 26: Level 5 Red Walking Mutant

After walking for hours, the group soon settled to rest.

They settled on benches in the walkway of a roadside mini mart. This part of the city seemed to have been deserted, and it seemed like perhaps they all escaped from the disaster.

But judging by the way the building were tattered just like every other city, one could have a second thought.

’Maybe the zombies around here have evolved enough to understand migration.’

That was what Ethan said before withdrawing his attention from the surroundings.

He had figured that the group were already hungry, as he was also hungry himself... He wouldn’t deny, so he decided to go ahead with the feeding, like he had always done.

With 15470 Boyfriend Credits, they had more than just enough to fill their stomachs, and there would be quite a lot more in the balance to feed them for hundreds or even thousands of days.

That was the value Ethan understood about the credit at this point, now that most of the advance items aren’t opened for purchase yet.

"Ethan... My stomach aches hard," one of the new girls Teresa, said.

It didn’t take long before they protested for their hunger, and Ethan quickly went to service.

Ethan entered the Store, and normally, all they could expect was bread or something other normal snacks.

But today, Ethan had something different in mind.

’System, can I get chicken and hotdogs?’

[Sure... The Food Store is completely unlimited.]

With that said, Ethan quickly went straight to the Food Store to stock lots of chickens and hotdogs. This was one of his favourite meals back when he lived with his family in Atlanta, and now, he’d just be glad to have a taste of it again.

Soon enough, another magic occured as a large package of chicken and hotdogs appeared on his arms.

Teresa, Samantha, Miss Audrey and the rest of the girls were all stunned. They stood still with their mouths agape, and the fact that his friends weren’t surprised made them even more confused.

This should reveal that they were already used it...

’Could it be that that’s how they’ve been surviving?’ Teresa asked inwardly, amazed.

Although they still needed to know how he managed to summon food from thin air. That wasn’t only strange, but unbelievable!

"How... How did you do that?" Teresa had to ask.

"Actually, I don’t know," Ethan responded as he shook his head.

"So... So you mean you don’t know where that is coming from?" She asked again, this time she even tried walking closer.

"Umm, yeah."

"That’s a lie... I don’t why I see it that way, but I believe it’s a lie, Ethan. Tell me where you got these from or I’m not eating it," Teresa said, following Ethan as he tried sharing the meal.

"Alright..."

That was the only response Ethan made as he continued what he was doing.

"Just ’alright’ huh?" Teresa asked with her face turning dark.

And at that time, Ethan made it even worse by not responding this time, and Teresa angrily walked away from him.

When he was done sharing and had settled on his own, he didn’t know when someone angrily walked over to him and reached out with her hand.

"My meal."

Looking up to see Teresa, Ethan couldn’t help but chuckle. He gave her ration and watched her walk back to her bench with a look of unease.

He understood her for sure, but telling anyone about the Boyfriend System was a bad idea at the moment, Ethan believed that solely.

...

They had barely eaten much until it happened.

Eva was tearing chicken into pieces while Mella took a bite of the last hotdog portion with her.

Nina sat a little apart, her rifle resting beside her knee, eyes scanning the area without even realizing she was doing it. Gracie was laughing quietly at something Anna had said, the sound soft, tired, yet real.

For the first time since leaving the university, they felt like they could breathe.

Ethan was just lifting food to his mouth when the ground trembled.

Not a distant shake.

Not something imagined.

A real, heavy impact.

Boom.

Everyone froze at once.

Boom.

The sound came again, closer this time. Heavy footsteps. Fast. Too fast.

Ethan was already on his feet.

"Get back," he said, his voice low and sharp.

They barely had time to react before the thing burst into the open.

It came crashing through a half-collapsed wall like it wasn’t even there. Concrete flew. Dust filled the air. The fire scattered as sparks shot outward.

The monster stepped into the light.

It was insanely huge.

At least nine feet tall. Broad shoulders. Thick legs that looked carved from raw muscle. Its body was red, not blood-red, but something deeper, like exposed flesh hardened over time.

The skin looked tight, stretched, layered with veins that pulsed as it moved. Its arms were too long, ending in thick hands tipped with piercing claws that scraped against the ground as it walked.

Its head was wrong. Not fully human. The mouth opened too wide, jaw splitting farther than it should. When it growled, it wasn’t a zombie sound.

It was deep. Alive. Hungry... Like that of a beast.

This was not something Ethan had faced or even seen before.

The monster roared and dashed forward.

Fast.

Too fast for something that big.

"MOVE!" Ethan shouted.

The group scattered just as the monster slammed its fist into the ground where the benches were arranged. The impact cracked the concrete. The shockwave knocked everyone off balance.

Ethan slid back several feet, catching himself with one hand.

His heart slammed against his ribs.

Before the fear could take over, his vision blurred slightly as the familiar interface appeared.

[Identifier Skill Activated.]

He had to use it at this point.

The monster stood up straight, rolling its shoulders as if warming up.

[Name: Walking Mutant.]

[Species: Monster.]

[Kind: Second Yard.]

[Level: 5.]

[Evolution Manifestation Rate: 17% (No Manifestation).]

Ethan’s breath caught.

Level 5!

His mind went blank for a second.

This wasn’t like the others. This wasn’t a stronger zombie or a faster one. This was something else entirely.

And it was already moving again.

"Shoot!" Ethan yelled.

Gunfire exploded all at once.

Muzzles flashed. The night lit up with noise and fire. Bullets tore through the air, slamming into the mutant’s chest, shoulders, arms.

Nothing happened.

The rounds hit, but instead of tearing flesh, they flattened or bounced off, leaving shallow dents that closed almost instantly. The monster didn’t even slow down.

"Why isn’t it stopping?!" Gracie screamed.

"It’s not working!" Eva shouted, reloading in panic.

The Walking Mutant swung its arm.

The force was unreal.

Ethan, Nina, Eva, and Gracie were hit at the same time. Not directly, but by the sheer power of the strike. They were sent flying like rag dolls.

Ethan crashed into a broken car, the air knocked clean out of his lungs. Pain exploded across his back and ribs. His vision went white.

Nina rolled hard across the ground, losing her axe. Eva slammed into a wall, crying out as she dropped her rifle. Gracie hit the ground and didn’t move for a second.

The monster turned toward them again.

Ethan forced himself up.

His chest burned. His arms shook. Blood ran down his forehead.

No time.

He grabbed his axe.

"Get back!" he yelled again, though his voice cracked.

The Walking Mutant charged him.

Ethan ran toward it instead.

He jumped.

The axe came down hard, biting into the monster’s shoulder.

The impact nearly tore the weapon from his hands.

The blade sank in, but not deep enough.

The mutant roared and grabbed him mid-air.

Ethan felt his ribs compress as the monster squeezed.

Pain ripped through him.

He slammed the axe handle into its face again and again. The blows did almost nothing.

The mutant threw him.

Ethan hit the ground hard, rolled, barely stopping himself from blacking out.

He pushed himself up, coughing.

His body felt heavier. Slower.

The monster was already on him again.

Ethan dodged, barely. The claws tore through the air where his head had been a second earlier, slicing into concrete like paper.

He jumped again, using debris, broken walls, anything to keep moving.

Jump. Roll. Strike. Retreat.

Again and again.

Each hit chipped away a little more. The axe started cutting deeper. The monster’s movements slowed just slightly.

But Ethan was worse off.

His legs burned. His arms trembled. His breathing was ragged.

He could feel himself reaching the limit.

The Walking Mutant slammed him into the ground again.

This time, Ethan didn’t bounce back up.

He lay there, staring at the dark sky, ears ringing.

The monster raised its claw.

Images flashed through Ethan’s mind. The university. The girls. The fire. The road. The promise he had made without realizing it.

Not like this.

He roared and rolled aside just as the claw smashed into the ground, inches from his head.

Using the last of his strength, Ethan forced himself up and ran straight at the monster.

It laughed.

A deep, ugly sound.

Ethan jumped higher than he thought he could.

The axe came down with everything he had left.

This time, it went in deep.

Right through the neck.

The blade stuck.

The Walking Mutant staggered.

Ethan held on.

The monster thrashed, roaring, clawing at him. Blood sprayed, thick and dark. Ethan felt the world narrowing, his vision tunneling.

He screamed and pulled.

The axe tore free.

The head fell.

The body took one step.

Then collapsed.

Silence crashed down.

Ethan stood there for a second longer, then dropped to his knees.

His whole body shook.

His ears rang.

His chest hurt with every breath.

The interface appeared quietly.

[You have slain a Level 5 Walking Mutant.]

[+1000 Boyfriend Credits gained.]

Ethan barely registered it.

Then another message appeared.

[You have received a Boyfriend Skill.]

[Skill Acquired: Emotional Endurance.]

Ethan slumped forward, palms on the ground.

The girls rushed toward him.

"Ethan!"

"Are you okay?!"

"Don’t move!"

He didn’t answer right away.

He just sat there, breathing, alive.

The monster was dead.

And for the first time, Ethan understood something clearly.

This world was not done testing him.

Not even close.