Chapter 112 A Terrifying Target
Gregory inquired, "What do you guys want?"
Gregory tried to stay calm, avoiding looking at the bloody zombie corpses outside the broken door, their Magic Crystals removed.
William gestured, and Jack and Natalie immediately began checking the building, a habit to detect and eliminate dangers early to avoid unexpected incidents.
Following David's line of sight, William quickly locked onto a burly man in the crowd who seemed evasive. He walked over, and as he approached the crowd, someone tried to stop him but was kicked away. The person fell to the side, clutching his ribs and gasping for air, likely with several bones broken .
William's move quieted many who had been restless, even Gregory bit his lip, hesitating whether to stop this man.
"What, what are you doing?" Joseph stammered as he saw William coming directly towards him.
The situation was overwhelming; these people were clearly not to be messed with, and some were armed with guns and knives.
William didn't bother to speak, directly grabbing Joseph by the collar and dragging him in front of David.
Joseph wanted to say something to David, but a sudden sharp pain shot through his leg, causing him to collapse to the ground. If not for someone holding his collar, he would have been writhing on the ground in pain.
His right leg had been broken by a kick from William.
William extended his hands, squeezing Joseph's shoulders with enough force to crush an ordinary person's bones. Joseph screamed again, but a gun struck his cheek silenced him.
Joseph rolled on the ground, trying to clutch his leg and touch his mouth, but found his hands immobile. Crimson liquid flowed from his mouth, mixed with several teeth. The intense pain, combined with the sight of the blood, caused Joseph to pass out within seconds.
The scene made the others in the building instinctively retreat, but they stopped after a few steps, seeing a fierce bald dog watching them from the stairs, baring its teeth occasionally.
"Mutant dog!" someone exclaimed and recognized Pill. In the post-apocalyptic city, mutant cats and dogs were fewer than mutant ants, rats, and flies, but still numerous.
"He's yours," William pointed at Joseph and said to David, "Knife or gun?"
David shook his head, walked to the broken door, picked up a fallen brick, and approached the unconscious Joseph, softly saying, "Can you wake him up for me?"
William kicked Joseph's intact left leg.
The sound of bones breaking echoed in the first-floor hall of the factory's residential building. The once kind and timid David now used a brick to smash Joseph's head to pieces.
Lucy turned away, unable to watch. She didn't know what conflict David had with this man, but the hatred in his eyes suggested a deep grudge.
Candice frowned, not because she couldn't handle the bloodshed, but because she was puzzled why William was so 'indulgent' towards this middle-aged man.
Though she hadn't been with William long, she knew that while William wasn't a good person by traditional moral standards, he didn't kill indiscriminately unless his interests were involved, and he wouldn't harm ordinary people.
But this time, with this man named David, Candice clearly felt William's different attitude. She couldn't understand why he was so special. William even went out of his way to cause trouble for these ordinary people because of him.
Michelle couldn't stand it anymore, walked over, and grabbed David, angrily saying, "That's enough."
David, restrained, looked up sharply with bloodshot eyes at Michelle, like a beast, "Let go!"
Though not an Evolving person, Michelle was one of the best police officers, far beyond David's ability to resist. The senior engineer couldn't break free.
"You can't..." Michelle tried to stop him, but suddenly felt a numbness in her wrist. William, with a grim face, had come over and released her grip.
William coldly said, "Not your concern, stay back."
If it were Candice or others stopping him, William would be more considerate, explaining David's rage in detail. But Michelle wasn't one of them; their relationship would end once she was with her husband, so William's restraint was already courteous.
"But you..."Before she could finish, William turned away, ignoring her, and led David upstairs.
Natalie, standing guard, approached and said, "Found her, in the room."
David, hearing this, looked dazed, his blood-splattered face blank. He mechanically wiped his blood-stained hands on his pants.
William understood his complex emotions, pulled out a dagger, and handed it to him, whispering, "Go in. Some things you need to decide for yourself."
David nodded, stood at the door for several seconds, then turned the knob and walked in.
Leaning against the wall, William closed his eyes slightly, waiting. Jack squatted beside him, smoking.
Jack curiously asked, "Boss, who is David? What's his grudge with these people?"
William sighed softly, and said, "The world is in chaos, but the hatred of killing one's parents and raping one's wife is an unending grudge for those with a conscience."
This statement stunned Candice, Lucy, and the others, making them realize something. Even Michelle, who looked unwell, was taken aback.
Suddenly, David's roar came from the room, confirming their suspicions. Everyone fell silent, feeling the man's heart-wrenching pain inside.
Sounds kept coming from the room, sometimes wailing, sometimes crying.
About twenty minutes later, the door slowly opened, and David walked out, holding the dagger William had given him, but it was clean.
"I couldn't do it," David muttered, more to himself than anyone else, "Let her fend for herself, let her fend for herself."
William nodded, took some food and water from his bag, and placed them next to the woman sitting on the floor with empty eyes.
"Thank you," David said hoarsely from the doorway, then took one last deep look at his former wife before turning and leaving, never looking back.
The apocalypse had changed many things, most of which were heart-wrenching.
As they left, David's mood improved a bit. He had forgiven some things and was looking forward to others.
A voice said, "David!"
Someone called out to David from behind. Everyone turned to see several of David's colleagues.
Someone asked, "David, can we go with you?"
These people were also technicians, previously left in the hallway to die like David. Now, seeing their former colleague return with a group of powerful Evolving persons, they were tempted.
David hesitated. He wanted to bring his colleagues along, not just because of their good relationship but also because he needed help with his research and preferred having familiar faces in a new team.
But he wasn't the leader of this team and had no say, so he looked to William for help. The others also focused on William.
This young man's decision would directly affect their lives.
William frowned, his eyes flickering. He didn't want to bring along people who were less than ordinary, but he had to consider David's feelings. Plus, some of these people might become David's trusted aides in the future, which made him hesitant.
"David, I can only take five people. Choose the ones with the best skills, those who will be most helpful to you," William said to David. "We have many important things to do, and five is the limit. I hope you understand."
David had already said that if William helped him get revenge, he would be William's subordinate. Now that William had made his stance clear, he quickly agreed and chose five people among the more than twenty individuals.
William watched, nodding internally. It seemed David wasn't just intelligent but also emotionally savvy. He chose people who were alone, clearly not wanting to cause trouble.
The others pleaded, but David, gritting his teeth, apologized and returned to the team.
The next morning, William's team finally approached Hope Base. However, they didn't go directly to Michelle's husband but took a detour to the suburbs.
"This is our target, the last one. After clearing this place, we'll go find Michelle's husband," William stated as he pointed to a spot on the map.
David participated in the meeting for the first time as a team member.
Candice questioned, "A farm?"
Candice looked at the map, puzzled about why they were going there.
William replied, "Yes, a green ecological wild boar farm."
Jack playfully remarked, "Boss, are you craving pork? Makes sense, eating canned food and biscuits every day, must be sick of it by now."
"All you think about is food," Candice scolded her subordinate, but Jack just laughed it off.
"We're going there for Magic Crystals," William stated their objective, "Level 2 Magic Crystals."
Everyone's expressions became more serious, but they didn't think much of it. After all, William had killed Level 2 evolved creatures before, more than once. In fact, with the team working together, they could even take down a not-so-strong Level 2 mutant.
But William's next words made their faces turn pale.
William revealed, "It's not just one Level 2 creature; it's a group, at least fifty of them."
