In a command hall, the survivors were argued over like chess pieces.
Pom!
A hand slammed the cold, circular stone table.
Thirteen chairs ringed the table - only eight were filled.
Dim light lit the room.
A weak, electric lamp shone on the stone table.
A dozen documents lay spread around the table.
"Bastard!" A sharp, young voice cut through the room.
He pointed at the man across him.
"Who do you think you are?!"
"Hmph!" A scoff followed.
"I'm the leader of this nation," A chubby, well-fed man replied.
The buttons of his deep red, formal suit barely held on.
A young, adolescent man stood behind him.
A bodyguard. The only one in the room.
His expression cold. Eyes merciless. Unreadable.
"Your title of leader amounts to something? The time of leaders had long passed.
We're scraps of what once were nations- the 2050 war ended that. Your title is nothing more than a reminder.
You're merely a puppet. No army. No heavy weapons. No power."
"Hahahahaha!" The young man spread his arms wide. "Especially now, what power do you have in the end times?"
Bom!
His expression turned dead serious.
Cracckel!
Sparks of electricity erupted from his palm as he slammed the table again. "I can kill you anytime I want."
He threatened, his eyes flashing with murderous intent and electricity.
"Really?"
Deep ravines appeared on the city governor's forehead—a deep frown.
Droplets of sweat rolled down.
"Why don't you give it a try?"
Crackle!
The man slammed his fist.
A streak of lightning ripped across the table.
The documents on the table lit on fire.
BOOOOOM!
The table lamp shattered.
Scraps flew around the room.
The lightning reached the governor.
Plop!
The air rippled.
The lightning spat apart in a shower of light.
An inch before the governor, a barrier revealed.
But as the ripples from the impact dissipated, the barrier once again turned invisible.
The young man behind the governor had his arm raised. He took action.
"Marcus," A cold light flashed in the young man's eyes. "Know your place,"
The air trembled.
The burning documents extinguished.
An invisible force crushed on them.
"Tch!" Marcus clicked his tongue.
He leaned back, crossing his arms.
"Still hiding behind your son? Have you no shame to be a coward? The expedition teams are out, yet you stay in the base, shivering in fear."
A look of disgust appeared on Marcus' face.
"Pathetic,"
BOM!
A fist slammed on the table.
"Enough, both of you!"
A commanding voice rang.
Silence fell on the room like a blade.
Crack!
The table cracked.
Everyone gazed at this man.
Not speaking. Not arguing. Listening obediently.
The man's eyes flashed red.
He wore a clean military uniform. His handsomeness evident despite being in his mid-thirties.
But one couldn't miss his tired eyes and dark circles.
"Marcus," The man glanced at Marcus. "Cease your provocations at once. This is a meeting, not a place to chase your personal benefits."
His voice left no room for discussion.
He didn't request. He ordered, his voice carrying a trace of threat.
He turned his sharp gaze at the governor.
The governor shivered involuntarily.
"Governor, refrain from lowering yourself to his level. You are not acting like yourself."
The governor's eyes widened for a moment.
"Yes," He controlled his expression, backing down.
"What!" Marcus jumped. "What do you mean lower himself to my level..."
Swoosh!
The man glared sharply at Marcus.
The red in his eyes intensified.
Marcus froze.
"Are my instructions unclear?"
The man's voice rang. No more commanding, but threatening.
"I-I apologize, commander." Marcus hurriedly sat down. "I overstepped myself."
The governor clenched his fists under the table.
But his expression showed no flaw.
With more than a decade of political experience, the governor understood the hidden meaning behind the commander's word.
'He's openly voicing his dissatisfaction with me.
'Not lower myself to his level? Since I'm not going out to search for resources, I have no right to complain. I'm not on his level.'
The governor contained his anger.
'If it were before, I would've shown them what it means to mess with me.'
The commander secretly glanced at him.
'Hmph,'
He scoffed internally.
'But it's true I have no power now. ' The governor tightened his fists. 'I can only bid my time and wait for Lucian to grow stronger,'
"Time to focus on the meeting," The commander glanced at the woman beside him.
"Vivian, your report,"
Everyone focused their attention on her.
An elegant woman with short red hair.
She held thick files.
Vivian pushed her glasses.
"Hallways are full. Rations are drying up. The expedition teams can't keep up with demand."
Her sharp eyes swept through the room, scanning every expression.
Her words pierced the hearts of everyone present.
The commander rubbed his temples.
"Sighh..."
A troubled sigh escaped his lips.
"Does anyone have any suggestions?"
"Commander," An elderly man raised his palm.
His expression serious, eyes sunken.
"We can't continue providing shelter for free,"
"Commander,"
A woman, wearing a red dress, raised her hand.
Her face round, eyes charming. Her red dress revealed her plump body, enough to seduce anyone—a top beauty.
"We must prioritize the well-being of our trained soldiers. We can't have them exhaust themselves for the civilians who iddle all day,"
A deep frown appeared on the commander's face.
He sank into his thoughts, and no one interrupted him.
He expected this. He expected them to target the civilians. But not to this extent. Not to the extent of wanting to get rid of them completely.
Sentencing them to death.
"Reasonable," He nodded, forced.
The eyes of everyone present flashed. Hope. But they quickly hit it away.
"From now, anyone who wants to stay in the shelter needs to pay 1000 Solars each month," The commander ordered.
A deep frown instantly formed on everyone.
'He doesn't want conflict with us, but he doesn't intend to throw anyone out,' Everyone analyzed instantly.
After all, who didn't know money was worthless now?
This was his way of saying he won't throw anyone out.
They saw through his intentions, but it didn't mean they agreed.
But they didn't want to push it too much.
They all knew how much he worked for everyone's good.
Besides, no one wanted the trouble of leading the base.
"Commander!" Marcus burst, slamming the table.
"Money is worthless, just paper for whipping the a.ss. We can't keep iddlers around. If they want to stay here, they need to contribute."
Surprise flashed in the eyes of the people around.
'This idiot did something good for once,'
The governor thought, hiding his surprise.
Now that Marcus brough it out, they would push for it even if the commander refused.
"Ten units," Marcus added. "A unit of food will be enough food to last a grown man a day."
The surprise in the room grew.
No one expected him to come up with such a solution.
Silence fell in the room.
Only the breaths of the people present remained.
They all fell into deep thought.
'Marcus Veldan...' Vivian pushed her glasses, her sharp, intelligent eyes scanning him.
'A political extremist. An unpredictable variable.'
'The commander has taken a vow to protect the ordinary when he became the commander. And he is too kind to hurt innocent civilians.
Marcus doesn't have that problem. An ordinary man awakened on his way here.'
She couldn't be sure of his personality.
'Was it like this before the apocalypse, or had it been buried before?
Now that he has some power to influence the course of action, his true personality appears. Luckily, he respects strength. With the commander here, he should be no problem.'
The apocalypse brought out the true faces of humans—the personas they had buried deep within themselves. Personas even didn't know existed—their true self.
"Why are you silent? We'll sacrifice a few lives for the greater good. It's not the time to think about the ordinary civilians. We should focus on building our strength to combat the invaders!"
No one in the room spoke.
They agreed with Marcus, but didn't want to offend the commander.
'But this time, I agree with him,'
Vivian pushed her glasses back.
The commander opened his mouth, intending to speak.
"I agree," Vivian agreed before he could speak.
A thunder. Her voice rang in the room like thunder from a clear sky, cutting the silence.
No one could hide the shock. No one ever expected this.
She was the commander's most trusted aide—his right hand.
"Vivian, you..."
The commander was at a loss for words.
"Commander, thousands of civilians came to our base, yet only two were awakened, including Marcus." Vivian analyzed. "While our soldiers, who frequently venture outside to combat, more than half have awakened."
The people around looked at each other. Surprise.
They had no idea of those statistics. They never paid attention.
"If our soldiers awaken more because they're forced into life-or-death, then the only way to seed strength is to force risk onto the civilians - or let them die."
Her cold voice tore the room.
Now that she put it like this, everyone knew what to do.
"VIVIAN!" The commander's roar tore the room.
The veins on his forehead bulged up, eyes flashing red.
Anyone who intended to act backed down.
"Commander!" Vivian raised her voice. Not with anger, but sharpness.
"Don't lose sight of what's actually important. We need strength. WE need more awakened humans. The power that the high demon possesses is unimaginable.
And he serves a king. A king potentially far more powerful.
With such a danger looming over us, you want to waste time looking after overgrown babies?"
The anger soared.
He couldn't believe her. He didn't want to believe she went against him like this.
'I apologize, Commander,' Vivian fixed her glasses. 'I tried my best,'
"Commander, a zombie virus has appeared outside. If it somehow reaches here..."
The commander's eyes widened.
The red in his eyes dissipated.
Vivian didn't need to finish her sentence.
If the virus reached the base, chaos will descend.
He gritted his teeth.
"Do we let those innocent people die? Just because they are unlucky? Because they are afraid? BECASUE THEY ARE UNAWAKENED?!"
His questions tore the room.
"Commander, do you have a cure for the zombie virus?"
Silence.
Just one of her questions overpowered his roars.
He couldn't argue. He couldn't reply. He kept silent.
Silence fell like a blade.
Everyone already made their decision.
They waited for him. For his word.
Unwillingly, the commander's fists eased. His heart gave in.
"Let's vote,"