The warehouse was a bloody mess, with flesh flying everywhere. Claire Harris’s expression was tense as she swept through the chaos with her Divine Sleep weapon.

　　The moment she caught her breath, Claire Harris grabbed Helen Ford by the collar and looked back at Ryan Bennett, her eyes blazing with thunderous intensity: “Ryan Bennett! Get him out of here for me!!”

　　Ryan Bennett was covered in blood, looking utterly disheveled. “There are too many! Let’s go together!!”

　　Helen Ford’s face was smeared with someone’s brain matter, and he stumbled back a few steps as Claire Harris yanked him.

　　With one hand, Claire Harris shot down a new wave of zombies, then shoved him hard. “Didn’t you want to help? Cut the damn crap! All of you, get out!! I’ll cover the rear!”

　　More and more zombies poured in, and even those outside the alley were being drawn in.

　　Seeing that Claire Harris was barely holding on, Ryan Bennett hesitated no longer, shoving Helen Ford and leaping out the window.

　　Emily Thompson shouted from the driver’s seat of a car not far away: “Get in, quick!!”

　　“Bang!”

　　After landing, Ryan Bennett took out a charging zombie and quickly got in the car with Helen Ford.

　　Deafening gunfire erupted behind them.

　　“Where’s Captain Song?!” Ryan Bennett heard Eric Morgan ask from inside the car, “Helen Ford!! Where’s Captain Song?!”

　　The intense gunfire inside the warehouse suddenly stopped.

　　In that instant, Ryan Bennett understood. The look of grim determination on Claire Harris’s face flashed through his mind.

　　He whipped his head toward the window they’d just jumped from. Zombies were pouring out in droves, but there was no sign of the domineering Claire Harris.

　　Eric Morgan’s voice broke, half crying, half howling: “The ID card!! Find it, quick!!”

　　Dozens of zombies surrounded the car, their pounding echoing in everyone’s hearts.

　　These days, cars required fingerprint locks to start, so the usual methods wouldn’t work. Emily Thompson, trembling, finally found the spare ID card in the glove compartment.

　　The car roared to life, tires screeching and smoking as they dragged a trail of dark red blood from the zombies crushed beneath.

　　Outside the back alley, the street was as before, bathed in bright sunlight.

　　In the distance, the black wall loomed as the city’s backdrop.

　　At that moment, time seemed to slow. The look of disbelief and terror, pupils dilated, was frozen on every face.

　　In the sunlight, a massive space vehicle was speeding toward them from not far away.

　　They had just escaped death, only to be wiped out completely, crushed into pulp.

Chapter 7

　　“Everyone get ready. Skyguard Team Seven, thirteenth A-level mission, move out!”

　　A deep male voice swept past his ear.

　　It rang clear in his mind, sending a tingling sensation through his auditory nerves.

　　[Warning! Warning! You have deviated from your destination coordinates! You have deviated from your destination coordinates!]

　　Red warning lights flashed wildly inside the capsule pod. The transparent panel flickered with countless bizarre images, and then a flash of white light shot across his vision, followed by a sudden, piercing ringing in his ears.

　　[Illegal jump detected!]

　　[Illegal jump detected!]

　　Something went wrong!!

　　Ryan Bennett gritted his teeth and tried to press the warning button, but the capsule pod spun violently. He had to grab the safety chair’s armrest with all his strength to avoid being thrown out and smashing his head open.

　　After a long, jarring ride, the capsule pod finally stilled. The moment peace returned, Ryan Bennett grabbed the nutrient solution offered by the mechanical arm and gulped down several mouthfuls, taking a good ten seconds to recover.

　　Wait...

　　Why does this scene... feel so familiar?

　　It was as if he’d already experienced this once before.

　　But the feeling vanished quickly. Ryan Bennett couldn’t catch hold of it before it slipped away.

　　[？？p0754%$#37]

　　[：“LRR”/'l'89'']

　　Garbled code appeared on the transparent panel—it had completely crashed.

　　Voices of his teammates drifted in from outside the capsule pod.

　　Ryan Bennett stepped out and found they had arrived in a forest. The sky was a deep gray, the dark woods looming. Aside from the seven glowing capsule pods, there was no other light—everything was silent and shadowy.

　　His teammates were complaining about something.

　　Claire Harris’s voice came: “I told you, you’re not allowed on another mission until you’ve ridden the giant pendulum ten times. Be honest—how many times did you actually ride it?”

　　Another voice, sounding a bit miserable: “Twice... ugh—”

　　Someone was throwing up.

　　Ryan Bennett: “……”

　　By the glow of the capsule pods, he saw that the one vomiting was Emily Thompson, whose pod was right next to his. Some of the unidentifiable mess had even splattered onto his own pod.

　　Ryan Bennett instantly held his breath and backed away several steps.

　　He... kind of wanted to throw up too.

　　The others kept teasing Emily Thompson as Ryan Bennett stood in the cold wind, waiting for the smell to dissipate—and for the teasing to end.

　　Emily Thompson finally seemed done, his voice weak: “...Seriously, didn’t you guys smell it? The air here stinks.”

　　Someone said, “Chun’er, stop making excuses. Go rinse your mouth.”

　　“Thanks, Wen-ge... Eh? Where’s Consultant Bennett?”

　　As soon as Emily Thompson said this, Ryan Bennett instinctively replied, “I’m here.”

　　So fast, it was as if he already knew Emily Thompson would ask.

　　Ryan Bennett: “……”

　　That sense of déjà vu returned.

　　Claire Harris seemed to glance his way, her expression rather indifferent, then lowered her head to check her communicator.