Rover was startled when he saw the notification panel, but then joy surged through him.
However, he did not rush to check it. He glanced at Nanoe, signaling her to cover him.
Ga! Ga! Gru!
The Zombies from the floor below surged upward. Nanoe alone held the staircase with a gun in hand, firing nonstop.
The gunshots rang out without pause, and along with them, his score on the leaderboard also rose rapidly.
Even so, what he was paying the most attention to right now was the Zombie Licker.
Rover squatted beside the Licker's corpse and saw a few things that had dropped after it died.
Some food, a bottle of zombie virus solution, but its color was darker than the bottle of zombie virus solution he already had.
A construction blueprint, 1 gold coin, 200 silver coins, along with a purple scroll.
He did not take a closer look. He immediately stuffed everything into his backpack, then used the [Reclaim] function and began reclaiming the Licker's corpse.
[Congratulations, you have successfully reclaimed the Licker's corpse and obtained 25 Omni Points.]
"25 points?" Rover's eyes widened when he saw the number. He had to know, reclaiming the corpse of an ordinary Zombie only gave him 3 Omni Points.
But reclaiming the Licker's corpse gave him 25. The gap was ridiculous. Still, when he thought about the Licker's strength and combat ability, the amount also felt perfectly reasonable.
Nanoe turned her head toward him and said hurriedly, "Rover, the Zombies are almost all dead."
Rover nodded. The staircase was littered with Zombie corpses. Blood and shredded flesh stained the entire stairwell crimson, making it look like the entrance to hell.
He smiled, immediately reclaimed all the dead Zombies, and at the same time picked up every item on the ground.
[You reclaimed 42 Zombie corpses and obtained 126 Omni Points.]
Nanoe then said, "Rover, just now I saw another long-tongued monster like the one earlier, but when it saw us, it ran away."
"That was a Licker," Rover explained. "Maybe we've killed too many Zombies. The game's mechanics have started to change, and the Zombies don't want to provoke us anymore."
Nanoe nodded. With gunfire this loud, the Zombies on the upper floors still did not rush over, which proved that the information in the [Survival Guide] was completely correct.
"Do you still have a lot of bullets?" Rover asked with a frown.
Nanoe nodded. "Plenty. Anyway, bullets can be bought with silver coins, so we won't run out."
Rover handed Nanoe another 200 silver coins, then said, "Let's go. We keep killing Zombies."
Nanoe nodded and went downstairs with him. The staircase that had been drenched in blood earlier had been cleaned spotless by Rover. Although she found it strange, she would not take the initiative to ask about it.
Rover had his secrets. As long as he loved her and did not abandon her, that was enough. She understood clearly… when she needed to be smart, and when she needed to be stupid.
Krit! Krit!
At that moment, a sound like wind slipping through a narrow crack shrieked in their ears.
They looked ahead and saw a Licker crawling on the wall. But unlike the one from earlier, this Licker seemed afraid of them. Yet it did not flee. It only held its position, clinging to the wall, letting out threatening cries from its mouth.
By now, Rover already knew how to kill Lickers, so he felt no fear. Although his Psionics skill was not strong yet, it was enough for him to restrain a Licker for 1 to 2 seconds, and that was more than enough for Nanoe to finish it.
He chuckled. "Nanoe, do it like earlier."
Suddenly, she grabbed his hand and shook her head urgently. "Don't! Rover, you don't need to risk yourself. I have a way to kill it."
"Hm?!" Rover was confused, but he still let her show him.
She aimed her gun at the Licker. Her eyes narrowed, her gaze razor-sharp like a hawk about to strike.
Krit!
BANG!
BOOM!
BANG!
BOOM!
Two shots rang out in rapid succession the instant the Licker let out that scalp-crawling screech, perfectly blasting its mouth apart.
Thud!
The Licker crashed to the ground, dead on the spot.
Rover was a little surprised. He looked at Nanoe and asked in confusion, "Your shooting is on par with an Olympic marksman."
Nanoe smiled. "My coach once recommended I try for the Olympics, but I only wanted to kill my husband and his mistress."
Rover shuddered at that. Nanoe chuckled, then added, "Don't worry. I definitely won't ever betray you."
He nodded. Just as he was about to walk over to the Licker's corpse, a room door suddenly swung open.
Rover frowned, thinking to himself, 'Trying to snatch my supplies?'
But he was wrong. From inside the room, two men peeked out trembling. One of them spoke in terror, "Y-you… do you have food? I… I'm starving to death. It's been two days. I haven't eaten anything. Please, just a little food, just a little."
"None." Rover replied coldly.
He wasn't a bad person, but he also knew what had to be done in a situation like this.
If he gave one person food, a second would come begging. Then a third, a fourth… And when he stopped giving, they would go crazy at him.
That was the rule he'd seen the most in situations like this.
"Please…" The man moaned weakly, his face waxy pale, lips cracked dry. He trembled as he said, "Even just a little water… Please…"
Rover's voice turned icy. "If you keep bothering me, I'll break down your door and let the Zombies eat you."
The two men turned white with fear and scrambled back into their room.
Rover walked to the Licker's corpse, reclaimed it, along with the items it had dropped.
[Congratulations, you have successfully reclaimed the Licker's corpse and obtained 25 Omni Points.]
Seeing the notification, he smiled and nodded, satisfaction spreading through his chest. Then his gaze shifted to the leaderboard.
[Rank 1: Room Owner 2705 – Rover – 250 points.]
[Rank 2: Tenant of Room 2705 – Nanoe.]
[Rank 3: Room Owner 1302 – Danny – 52 points.]
[Rank 4: Room Owner 1605 – Millan – 28 points.]
…
Rover was a little surprised to see Nanoe's name on the rankings as well. However, her entry had no score displayed after it.
"Is it because all the Zombies she kills count toward my points, but the value still keeps her in second place?" Rover murmured.
Nanoe also spoke up. "Rover, you've seen the leaderboard, right?"
Rover nodded. Before he could say anything, she continued, "If that's how it works, then I want Selina to squeeze her way onto the leaderboard too."
"Heh!? You mean…?"
Nanoe smiled, then explained her plan. After hearing it, Rover laughed. "Do you have enough ability to fight on your own?"
Nanoe nodded. "Rover, my strength has increased a lot. Right now, I still have enough to sweep the floors above and below too. I just hope the top three spots will all be ours."
Seeing her confidence, Rover nodded. Then he transferred another 1 gold coin to her and said softly, "I trust you."
Nanoe nodded as well, warmth spreading in her heart at being trusted.
After collecting the supplies left behind by the dead Zombies, Rover returned to the room. He took out the sword the young man had picked up earlier, before Rover killed him.
[Foil Sword]
[Type: Weapon]
[Rank: E – 54]
[Level: 00 (0 / 100 points)]
[Durability: 15 / 15]
[Special Effect: Increases the user's Strength by 2.]
[Description: Don't let its thin look fool you, this thing can easily pierce a Zombie's skull.]
Rover nodded in satisfaction at the status panel. He looked at Selina with a hint of amusement. "Do you like this sword?"
Selina had been listening to Nanoe's plan, worry and expectation flickering in her eyes. But when she heard Rover speak, her eyes lit up as she stared at the sword in his hand.
"I like it!" Selina walked up to him and kissed the rim of his ear lightly, her voice sweet and clingy to the extreme. "Master! Please give me this sword. I'll definitely help you sit firmly at number one on the leaderboard."
Rover curled his lips into a grin and said softly, "Then after we're done, you know what you'll need to do, right?"
As he spoke, his hand squeezed her round, springy butt.
Selina pressed her lips together, cheeks flushing. In a soft voice, she said, "Mm. I'll definitely satisfy Master."
Rover nodded and silently gave the order: 'Upgrade the Foil Sword.'
[Do you agree to pay 100 Omni Points?]
'Agree!'
In the next instant, the sword burst into a gentle white glow, making Selina and Nanoe both flinch.