"Is this God's way of testing me?" I questioned as I opened the door to the 16th floor, a floor that was familiar to me. Especially because I used to visit here once in a while to cheer myself up.
Perhaps because it was the apocalypse, or maybe because all the things that had happened in the past few hours were too shocking, I totally forgot about this floor.
If I had remembered even a speck of what this floor had, I would never have chosen this as a part of my sub-quest. I mumbled in regret as I looked at the banner hanging at the entrance of the gate.
[Paediatric Ward!]
This one had a pediatric ward, the place kids usually stayed after surgery or in case they had to be admitted.
"Fuck…" I cursed at this twisted fate before moving forward. From the window, as I walked closer, I saw the interior of the ward. 7 small zombies were scattered across the area and stood in a daze, staring into oblivion.
As fate would have it, all the zombies here were children.
Did the adults run away, leaving the children behind? I couldn't help questioning that. It was odd not to see a single adult zombie, despite the fact that nurses and guardians usually stayed with the children.
Nurses I can understand, but why would a parent or a guardian leave behind their children in crisis?
Entering the ward, I looked around the beds to find anything useful. There were a few baseballs here and there, with a bunch of toys, but nothing too useful. Though as I traced the beds at the corners, my eyes landed on a neatly wrapped baseball bat placed beside an empty bed.
First things first. I reminded myself before using the [Inspect] skill on the zombies. Confirming that they were all [E-Grade], I nodded before moving to the closest zombies, a 12-year-old girl, until she noticed me.
-Grrr!
Though instead of immediately moving out of the ward, I moved to the nearby bed first. Only after picking up the bedsheet, I moved out of there, at a pace that the zombie girl can follow.
This is fucked up. I couldn't help but curse as I looked at that innocent girl's face, now zombified. And then, sighing, I did what I could do best in the situation.
"Grant eternal rest, O Lord, to the souls of our departed loved ones, and let perpetual light shine upon them," I prayed before putting the bedsheet all over her.
"May the departed souls find a peaceful journey into Your loving embrace, guided by Your mercy and grace," I finished my prayers before holding that child's head, and then placing the osteotome near her neck and…
-Pierce!
-Pierce!
[You have killed an E-Grade Zombie!]
Honestly, it did not reduce the burden on my heart at all. Despite them being zombified, it wasn't easy to do this. But then again, if something should be done, it must be done.
Taking out the osteotome, I then moved back into the ward again before catching the attention of another zombie boy. Bringing him outside, I prayed again.
Once again, I repeated the same thing before killing the boy, killing the zombie.
[You have killed an E-Grade Zombie!]
No joke came into my mind to take my mind off of this. I couldn't even speak a single extra word throughout this as I just kept praying before killing them one by one.
[You have killed an E-Grade Zombie!]
[You have killed an E-Grade Zombie!]
[You have killed an E-Grade Zombie!]
.
.
[Side Quest: Kill all the zombies on the 16th floor west wing tower completed!]
[+2 Constitution!]
[+1 Charisma!]
Indeed, it is a nightmare. I sighed.
Moving on to the 17th floor…
[Physiotherapy: Differently-abled Ward]
…I then looked at the disabled zombies for a few seconds.
"Well. Let's just get this over with," I thought as I shook my head before moving towards those zombies with the same intent as those with the kids on the last floor.
"Grant eternal rest, Oh Lord…"
[You have killed an E-Grade Zombie!]
[You have killed an E-Grade Zombie!]
[You have killed an E-Grade Zombie!]
.
.
.
[Side Quest: Kill all the zombies on the 17th floor west wing tower completed!]
[+2 Charisma!]
[+1 Constitution!]
[+1 Dexterity!]
[+1 Strength!]
Finishing my work on this floor, I then got back to the emergency stairs once again, and once more paused for a bit.
How long will it take for the zombies to come down from the 18th floor?
[4 Hours 11 Minutes 8 Seconds!]
How long will it take for the zombies to come up from the lower floors?
[8 Hours 22 Minutes 11 Seconds!]
There was still time.
"I guess I can take a short break," I thought, as it was both physically and mentally exhausting. I wanted… no, I needed a break to recover and re-energize for the time being. Anymore, and I might lose my focus and end up making a mistake.
Thinking that, I went back into the physiotherapy department, and reaching the far end of the corner, I sat against the window, observing the apocalyptic scene in front of me.
Tall buildings in the distance had a few visible survivors on the roof, while on the ground, I saw zombies crawling everywhere I could see. There were also a few helicopters far away from here, but other than that, it was pretty desolate.
The cold wind brushed against my face. I closed my eyes for a brief moment before taking a muffin from the bag and then eating it lightly. Then, taking out the bottle of water, I took a sip as I tried looking down, checking if it was safe to go outside.
The number of zombies is… a lot. I sighed in the end as I believed it to be suicide at my current level. There were at least 100s of zombies trying to tear through everything they could see.
"All right. That's enough of a break," I spoke out before eating the rest of the muffin, and then sipping another gulp of water. Throwing the wrapper outside and placing the water bottle in my bag, I then walked outside the ward, towards the emergency exit stairs.
Then, moving up towards the 18th floor, I stood in front of the door before asking,
"How long before the zombies will come towards me from that door?"
[3 Hours 57 Minutes 8 Seconds!]
Confirming my safety, I slowly opened the door while recalling the path to the on-call room. It was a straightforward path that reached from this point to the other end of the floor, inside the nurse room.
"Eva… please be alive," I mumbled as I tightened the grip on that baseball bat before taking the first step into 18th floor, and focused on the first zombie, not too far from me.
[Inspect]
[Zombie: Decaying Zombie
HP: 1000/1000
Description: A zombie whose shell had been decaying at a faster rate, concentrating and getting denser near the skin. The more time passes, as it evolves, the harder its shell will become.
Type: Lesser D-Grade!]
"All right. I knew that I was missing something," I smirked as I then prepared the bat before activating my skill.
[Eyes of the Timekeeper!]