Seeing that the little girl didn't show the flushed complexion of a fever, Lux guessed there was another patient here.
"Okay, okay—give them to me quickly."
The little girl didn't bargain at all. She folded the switchblade and anxiously held out her small hand.
"The medicine's in the truck. I'll go get it."
Lux walked out of the store and back to the heavy truck, signaling with his hand while keeping watch with his katana.
Bob, MDR, and HK416 quickly jumped down from the truck and ran into the outdoor equipment store.
Lux entered last, then pulled down the rolling shutter. The entire shop fell into darkness.
"Where's the medicine? Hurry, give me the fever medicine."
The little girl's urgent voice carried a hint of crying.
Lux took out his phone and turned on the flashlight, illuminating the shop.
"HK416, give her ten fever pills."
"Roger."
HK416 reached into the shoulder bag she was carrying, took out a bottle of ibuprofen sustained-release capsules, and poured ten pills into the little girl's hand.
"I have some medical knowledge. If you don't mind, let me take a look at the patient."
HK416 smiled gently.
"Thank you, big sister! This way!"
The little girl pulled HK416 toward the living quarters at the back of the shop. Lux followed behind, phone flashlight on.
In the dim room, a single bed stood against the wall. A middle-aged man with a square face lay on it, barely breathing. Several thin nylon ropes were tied around his neck area, forcing him to remain flat on his back.
His upper body was wrapped in large amounts of bandages. What should have been white had turned dark red-black from dried blood—it was obvious the bleeding had once been severe.
"Dad! You're saved! These kind big brothers and sisters have fever medicine, and the sister is even a doctor!"
The little girl ran to the bedside, looking at the man with joy.
"A doctor… thank you so much. I know my own injuries. I'm just a burden now. Could I ask you to do me a favor and take Candice to a settlement?"
"Let's not talk about that yet. Take the fever medicine first."
HK416 took out a capsule and handed it to the little girl, her gaze lingering on the nylon ropes tightly restraining the man's neck.
"I was afraid that after I die and turn, I'd bite Candice. So I had her tie me up like this. If I really become like those things outside, when I struggle off the bed, only my head would be left. Then I wouldn't be able to bite her. Don't misunderstand."
Noticing HK416's look, the man explained calmly.
HK416 opened her mouth, but no words came out. Beside her, Bob looked equally horrified.
The man, enduring immense pain, had already begun thinking about how to protect his daughter after his death.
"Let me take a look at your wound… maybe there's still hope…"
HK416 hesitated for a moment before speaking calmly.
In truth, she knew perfectly well that judging from the man's complexion, he was severely anemic. The fact that he was still alive was nothing short of hanging by a thread. He couldn't bear the thought of leaving his daughter alone in such a world.
Still, she decided to examine his injuries.
"Dad, don't say such discouraging things! You'll be fine!"
After taking the medicine, the little girl angrily untied the nylon ropes while scolding him.
"Candice, I just wanted to see your mom. You don't need to be so afraid," the man said calmly, as if discussing something completely ordinary.
"Then why didn't you take me with you?"
The persistent questioning from the little girl darkened his expression. He couldn't answer.
Bob helped the man sit up, and Lux brought a few camouflage jackets from outside to support him. HK416 began unwrapping the bandages.
MDR, usually noisy, sat quietly in the corner.
Once the man's upper-body bandages were removed, a massive slash wound was revealed.
The flesh around it had blackened and rotted. Bob drew in a sharp breath; he couldn't imagine someone surviving such a serious injury.
"H-how is this a knife wound? Do those monsters even use weapons?"
Bob asked in shock.
"No, this was from another survivor. When the disaster struck, we hid here. That day, a deranged young man came and harassed Candice. I had no choice but to kill him, and this wound was inflicted during the fight."
"By the way, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Darren, this is my daughter Candice. The store owner, Pete, is my brother. Unfortunately, he was already bitten when I arrived—I personally sent him off."
"I heard on the radio that outside the city, at the Hongi Commune, the military set up a shelter. Could you take my daughter there? In return, you can take anything in this store."
"There's also plenty of military compressed rations here. Bringing those should help you survive a bit better there."
Darren coughed, then looked at Lux expectantly.
"Mister, it's not that I don't want to help, but my daughter is still in the city's X High School. To rescue her… as a father, you know I can't just leave her behind and run to that shelter."
Bob sighed, then gestured toward Lux.
"This guy's capable, really good at killing zombies. Now that he knows the shelter's location, I won't mind if he doesn't go with me to save my daughter at X High School. You see if he's willing to take your daughter there."
Lux had helped him a lot so far. Originally, the plan was to get to X High School, and he didn't want Lux to die because of him.
"Dad, what are you talking about?! If you're going, I go too!"
Candice nearly cried as she said this.
"Listen! You can't be willful anymore. From now on, you must be strong on your own! Cough…"
Darren barked sternly. The harsh words aggravated his wound, and some blackened blood seeped out.
He coughed heavily, his face twisted in pain.
"Don't be angry. I'll be good. Please stop being mad. Sister, help Dad stop the bleeding!"
Seeing the wound reopen, Candice stomped anxiously.
HK416 sprayed Disinfectant on the wound, then wrapped it again with a clean bandage.
Darren looked at Lux pleadingly. Lux found himself in a dilemma.
[TL: The OC characters have chinese names, so I decided to give them a more common name for convenience sake.]