The heavy rain eroded this small town, and the land trembled intermittently for the past few days, even Gwendolyn could see the ever-changing scenery outside her window—truly different every hour. 

In a small house where the light barely penetrated, Jack lay in his room, beginning to feel dizzy and faint.

Mr. Wang was waiting for the tremors to subside before entering with a bowl of medicine. He helped Jack sit up: “Come on, drink your medicine.”

Supported weakly by his father, Jack slowly drank down a large bowl of herbal medicine, his feeble voice breaking through, “Bitter... I... think... I'm... dying... Dad, are you... trying... to... poison... your... own... son?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. It’s chaos outside! If it weren’t for your Uncle Hua having some medicine, you’d be burning up with a fever!” 

“Dad, you said... this illness... spreads... really fast. I just... got it, and you’re... already... better! Haha!”

“Stop joking. You caught a cold because you were out in the rain, just lie down and rest.” 

“Hey? Dad, do you think... Gwendolyn might also... catch a cold after... being around us... for so long?” 

As he spoke, he started to panic: “Oh no! She doesn’t... have a phone. We can’t... contact her. She’s... the only one living over there. If something... happens to her... no one would... help...” 

Thinking back to Gwendolyn’s words, he smiled a bit: “She... even said that... if we had no place... to stay, we could... go to her house... She really is... such a kind-hearted girl.” 

“Stop talking so much, aren’t you tired? Just focus on resting. I’ll go check on her later,” Mr. Wang replied, though he suspected that with the chaos outside, the girl might not be safe.

“Okay, thanks, Dad. Just... be careful, alright?” 

“Got it, you rascal. Just lie there and don’t move around.” 

Mr. Wang put on a raincoat, thought for a moment, grabbed half the bowl of medicine, turned on a flashlight, and headed towards Gwendolyn’s direction.

The journey was mostly filled with strong winds and heavy rain, but fortunately, he didn’t encounter any major issues as he quickened his pace.

Feeling some movement behind him, he raised the flashlight and called out, “Who’s there?” 

However, there was no response. He recalled what Doctor Hua had said—that many people had been falling ill lately and advised him not to meddle too much in others' affairs. Yet he couldn’t shake the worry that if something happened to that girl because of their sickness, he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself. 

Picking up his pace, he spotted a bright container home at the end of the road, the light streaming from its windows providing some comfort to Mr. Wang.

Hearing a knock on the door startled Gwendolyn. She peered through the peephole and saw a figure in a raincoat, but she couldn’t tell who it was.

“Who is it?” 

“It’s me, Mr. Wang from the grocery store in the west side of town.”

“Oh, just a moment!”

In that instant when the door opened, Mr. Wang was taken aback, looking at the bright and cozy little living room—their simple container was far cleaner and more comfortable than he had imagined.

Given the frequent tremors lately, every other house seemed disorderly; it was odd to find such a tidy and bright home. However, he didn’t mention anything.

“Mr. Wang, what brings you here in the middle of the night? Please come in. Are you feeling any better?” 

Looking at the clean living room and then at his muddy pants, he felt a bit embarrassed to step inside.

“No, that’s alright. Jack caught a cold, and I was worried you might have caught it too after being at our place a few days ago. I brought you some medicine from a friend of mine—it's quite effective. The instructions are on this note.” 

He handed Gwendolyn the medicine packet. “Oh, thank you! But I’m really fine, I’m not even running a fever.” 

“Well, that’s good. Just keep it for emergency. I should head back; I’m worried about Jack being home alone.” 

“Thank you, Mr. Wang.” 

“Take care, lock the doors and windows... and stay safe.” 

“Sure, you too!” 

Mr. Wang nodded and turned to leave.

Closing the door and looking at the medicine packet in her hand, Gwendolyn felt a warmth in her heart. Even though many things were still confusing to her, the fact that Mr. Wang and his family, despite their modest means, still cared about her, warmed her spirits.

She placed the medicine down and walked to the window to watch Mr. Wang leave.

Suddenly, a strange feeling washed over her as she noticed a few shady figures slowly approaching along the usually deserted, shabby street. Something felt off.

【Sisi, did you see that? Those people look strange!】

She picked up the heavy-duty flashlight at home to illuminate the scene ahead.

As if it were a spotlight, the flashlight lit up the area impressively.

---

Meanwhile, concerned about his son’s well-being, Mr. Wang noticed the figures ahead and frowned.

He recalled the young girl living in the area, and he felt that these people weren’t friendly.

“What do you want? A bunch of men bullying a little girl? You’ve got no shame! Get lost, or I’ll call the police!” 

Yet, the men seemed to ignore him, continuing to close the distance...

As they approached, a foul stench began to fill the air.

Mr. Wang thought, wondering how long it had been since these men had bathed. 

As they got closer, he lifted his flashlight to check them out, realizing they looked odd.

He recalled what Doctor Hua had said about those infected with the virus turning into flesh-eating monsters, and his heart sank.

Looking around, he quickly grabbed a nearby bamboo stick...

---

【Those people are infected with the virus; they’re monsters, of a sort. Many refer to them as zombies. They eat people, and if you get bitten, you’ll turn into one of them.】 

Gwendolyn gasped in fear! 

【So many zombies and Mr. Wang alone... Uh-oh, they’re fighting now!】 

Panicking, Gwendolyn flung open the door yet hesitated in fear, internally shouting: 【Sisi, Sisi, what should I do? What should I do?!】

【Gwendolyn, don’t panic. They probably followed Mr. Wang because they smelled him. Look, they’re moving slowly. If you just hit them in the head, you can take them down!】 

【Huh? I—I can’t... Ahhh, Mr. Wang, be careful! Sisi, Sisi, what should I do?!】

【... There’s a bat in the shop you can use that costs 5 energy points, perfect for zombies. One hit will do the job.】

Watching as a tide of zombies gathered around Mr. Wang, her heart raced. 

One side reminded her of the grim warning telling her not to interfere in things that weren’t her concern, while the other side condemned her for having the ability but choosing not to help... 

Jack said he was a veteran, but she was just an ordinary person with no special abilities!

Gwendolyn, feeling helpless, closed her eyes.