Trash in the Apocalypse

Chapter 257: Journey to the East

"It was just luck." Errol scratched the back of his head shyly. "Hunters move in packs and uses their instinct when hunting. I just had to set a door trap with another trigger trap to activate the spiked mower to kill them. Well, if the first trap didn't work, I just have to collapse the doorframe then kill the Hunters after getting trapped in the rubble."

Jun listened to the man and found nothing he could understand. He just smiled and turned to the muscled man staring at him. 

"The name's King, an amateur boxer." the man said, then continued with a condescending tone. "Are you the guild leader?"

Jun's eyebrow rose in surprise hearing the question.

Everyone turned to the man and looked at him strangely while having the same thoughts, What was this guy thinking?!

"As far as I know, yes, I am the guild leader. Is there anything you want to say?" Jun said feeling entertained. He became interested as to what the man wanted for him to ask such a question in that kind of tone.

Adrian wanted to subdue the man for disrespecting Jun, but he was stopped by a single gesture from Jun that told him to remain still.

"Please allow me to spar with you." King bowed respectfully. "I've heard that you're strong and I want to see it for myself. I want to see whether you really have the strength to protect everyone that works for you. I only joined Black Haven for my family. People who join the Scavenger and the Elite unit only works for one thing, their families safety. Other groups have the numbers and are catching up in terms of power. Besides the weaponry, there's not much advantage in working for Black Haven."

Jun scratched his chin. "Then why are you still here?"

"Because... unlike the Frontier and the National Police, Black Haven strictly advertises that they will defend our family. I don't know if you have the strength to do that or if you would even keep that promise, but I want to know if how strong you are."

"Okay, sure. Just wait a second."

After listening to King, Jun operated his smartwatch and sent Evo a message. 

[Jun: "Also look further into the recruitment styles of the Frontier and the National Police. Moreover, collect feedback on the Scavengers on what aspects could the organization be improved on. Just a heads up, I'm planning to build an army. That would make the Scavengers solely assigned for looting, the Black Haven Army to dungeoning and protecting the town and other locations, and the Elites, who only do special missions and hunts on their own. If you have any questions or suggestions, I'd like to hear it."]

[Evo: "asd@Kjqwdni!!@#! Feedback? Leave me alone..."]

He's sure quick to reply... must be doing something. Well, back to business.

"You're a boxer, right? Go and punch me, I'll only block. Is that fair enough? Nevermind, just do it. We can't be wasting time here." Jun said then stretched his arms while waiting.

"Thank you." King bowed once again and activated his skill, Power Punch as he got up. Power Punch was an auxiliary skill that doubles the attack damage for the next attack.

"Please be careful! Here I come!" King shouted as he took a step forward.

While moving forward, he used his other skill and moved slightly to the left. His other skill was Feint, it allows brief invisibility while creating an illusion that follows the original path that his body should take.

Most of the time, the skill works on both nasty survivors and Evolved Carriers, however, Jun was the natural nemesis of invisibility due to his ability to see names above the person's head.

Jun felt strange when he watched two bodies separate directions, but he still blocked the named one. He caught the fiery red hand and stopped it from moving.

For the people watching, Jun appeared reckless and ignored King.

Until Jun caught something in thin air, where someone reappeared. "King" disappeared and Jun was now holding into King's right fist like how an adult catches a little kid's fist.

King's eyes widened in shock when he saw Jun caught his fist. There wasn't even the slightest movement of getting pushed back!

"Is that all? Now listen. In the future, you will not be a member of the Elite Scavenger Unit anymore."

Jun's announcement came as a surprise to everyone. It was a harsh punishment but it must be accepted. Adrian was about to step forward when Jun continued speaking.

"I'll be forming an army. An army that protects our people and deals with other tasks that the Scavengers and the Elites can't deal with. Clearing dungeons, enforcing rules and protecting our properties. We will be using a business model to assemble the army. You will be reassigned and become the first Director. We'll discuss this further at a later time, but for now, do you accept the task of protecting the citizens of Black Haven?"

King was feeling overwhelmed. He just wanted assurance that whether he lives or dies in the future, his family would be taken care of and kept safe.

Hearing Jun's proclamation, his heart turned warm and started feeling the burden of his future actions. 

What am I even hesitating for? I want to protect them, right? If I have a higher position, then I could make sure that everyone will be safe!

With a will in his mind, King bowed once again, and yet this time, there were tears dropping to the rough ground. 

"Yes, I am willing to protect everyone!"

The group passed by the Calvary Hill to receive the XP Buff. Although Jun already received the buff yesterday, he still came to watch how things would go. 

The rainbow seed at the second resting area only grows once a week. It was specially timed whenever he could receive the XP Buff.

Since Adrian already reached level 11, climbing Calvary Peak has become much easier than the past. Everyone also experienced their own yearnings in the form of illusions. Unfortunately, no one has ever experienced the same illusion again.

They didn't spend much time and immediately made their way to Cardona, the fishing town.

The road winded around mountainous cliffs with the picturesque scenery of the lake before reaching the town.

Since the town was already moderately cleared there were no carriers visible on the national highway. Most of the survivors of this town have already fled on their boats while the unfortunates ones left behind took refuge in Binangonan.

Numerous people can be seen from time to time. Most of them running away from the sound of the vehicles since carriers would get attracted to the area.

Jun looked out of the passenger seat and watched the current state of the town from the small window. The town was desolate and if it weren't for the people scavenging here, the town could be considered as a ghost town.

Edward loved to chat while driving. Usually, he had no one to talk to since no one was sitting on the passenger seat. However, this time, someone actually did.

"Yeah, the town was basically empty, so we just breeze through it. There are only a few locals left and you can count them in one hand. A blind beggar that refuses to leave his spot, a baker that won't abandon his house, and an old butler. After we scoured the town last week, we found them and invited them to come with us, but they rejected help. I guess people still feel sentimental about things, so we let them go."

As Edward finished talking, Jun saw a ragged man staring off to the distance at the center of the bridge. He was standing on the outer side of the bridge fence and any sudden movement could cause him to fall into the river.

On the distance, carriers could be seen running towards the ragged man.

Jun felt intrigued whether the man would really jump, so he watched intently. Edward noticed that Jun wasn't paying attention to him, and when he looked to the side and followed Jun's gaze. He then saw the ragged figure slowly fall forward into the water.

"Oh, he let go," Jun stated.

"What the h*ll!? That's him! The blind man I was talking about!" Edward shouted then drove towards the bridge.

After feeling the sense of urgency in Edward's driving, everyone on board became alert.

"What's going on?" Adrian asked habitually. Every time there would be a strange situation, he would be the first to react among the group.

Sheila patted his back. "Calm down. Edward, what's happening? Are there carriers in front?"

"No! Much worse! The blind guy jumped off the bridge." Edward answered, then hit the brakes before jumping out of the driver's seat.

"Is he talking about the old man we found in the town hall?" Sheila said,

Adrian responded. "Probably. He's the only blind guy we encountered after all. Let's go out and secure the area. Check for any signs of Evolved Carriers then regroup at the bridge. Be careful everyone, they have become smarter after living for a month."