Chapter 32.2 – Bloody Ferrara (4)
◎ Formation of V587! ◎
The three of them returned to the commission center once again. The staff member who had considered Song Ke a “rebellious teenager” repeatedly checked her awakener ID and finally pursed her lips, submitting a team formation application in the system: “Enter the team name.”
Song Ke looked back to ask her teammates for their opinions.
“You’re the captain, you decide,” Zhuang Qingyan said, adopting an attitude of completely deferring to her.
“Sister, I can’t think of anything,” Xu Xing scratched his head.
Song Ke: I can’t think of anything either!
Suddenly, she kind of understood the difficulty of “Three Grandsons and One Grandfather”, naming really was tough.
Seeing her troubled expression, the staff member casually suggested, “If you can’t come up with anything, just use a number. Let me see… you’re the 587th awakener team registered in Ferrara.”
The number on the screen jumped by one digit, stopping exactly at “00587,” next to which was the full name of the Ferrara (Vulala) Special Affairs Agency.
“Then, let’s go with this, V587.”
New Calendar, Year 46, October 2nd.
On an ordinary day, the number one awakener team that would later shake the entire Alliance, V587, was established in such an ordinary manner.
The initial team consisted of only three members: Song Ke (Gold-type Awakener, level unknown), Xu Xing (Ice-type Awakener, level unknown), and “ordinary person” Zhuang Qingyan.
The first thing V587 did after its establishment was to go and complete the B-level mission that Song Ke had set her eyes on.
Using the self-service terminal, Song Ke swiped her awakener ID and searched for that mission from the long list. Luckily, it hadn’t been taken by anyone else yet.
This mission was issued by the Municipal Hall of Luli Port (D150 District), with a reward of 2000 Alliance coins and 200 team points.
The earliest release date was September 25th.
“Help us clear the zombies on the first floor. We’re trapped in the office and can’t get out.”
On September 27th, the mission was updated.
“Is there anyone to save us? We’re running out of food!”
On September 30th, the mission was updated again.
“Urgent!!! The zombies are already outside the door. We can’t hold on any longer. Anyone will do, help, help!!!”
Today was already October 2nd, and the mission hadn’t been updated since then. It’s unknown whether the issuer was still alive.
Song Ke casually checked the system and found that there were quite a few commission tasks from Luli Port, and most of them were related to zombies. It seemed like the disaster situation was quite severe.
She turned to Zhuang Qingyan and asked, “D150 District, do you, do you know about it?”
In her mind, Zhuang Qingyan knew everything.
Sure enough, Zhuang Qingyan just slightly frowned and said, “Luli Port? Hmm… it’s a pretty well-developed tourist city in District D, mostly because of its location by the sea. The other three sides are District C. It became a large-scale resort a few years ago. I remember the artificial beaches and hot springs there are quite popular.”
A vacation paradise? During the apocalypse, it was the peak of tourism in Luli Port. The local attractions and folk streets were bustling with people. Having a large number of zombies stuck there wasn’t surprising.
Song Ke switched back to the mission interface. “So, should I take this?”
Zhuang Qingyan confirmed with her, “The mission location is the Municipal Hall?”
“Yes, why, is there a problem?”
“The Municipal Hall of Luli Port is known for its maze-like architectural style. It’s intricate and complex inside, easy to get lost. Similar to Hua City, it has won the gold award in city planning competitions.”
“A maze?”
Song Ke’s expression became blank. She couldn’t even tell north from south! No wonder this mission was so urgent and yet no one had taken it for so long.
Zhuang Qingyan smiled and said, “If it’s just a simulated maze, even if it’s a real maze, it would still be a bit difficult to trap me.”
With him saying that, things seemed easier.
Full of confidence, Song Ke clicked “Accept Commission” and then “Confirm.” Suddenly, the terminal screen projected a text: “Detecting that you are currently in District C72. The format of this mission has changed. Please refresh and complete it according to local requirements; otherwise, the mission will be considered a failure. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.”
What did that mean?
Song Ke refreshed the screen.
New text appeared on the screen: “In support of the Throne Race Tournament, please try to capture the zombies and bring them back to Ferrara~ You can apply for a free transport vehicle for this commission :)”
Capture… zombies??
And what’s with this “:)”? What is that supposed to be?
Both Zhuang Qingyan and Xu Xing saw this prompt. Xu Xing had little reaction, but Zhuang Qingyan sneered, “Interesting.”
What was once a straightforward task suddenly turned magical.
Song Ke couldn’t help but recall the scene she witnessed on the street in the morning, along with the phrase “excellent nourishment” that the passerby mentioned. The direction of events was becoming increasingly enigmatic. It seemed necessary to figure out what the Throne Race Competition was all about after completing the mission.
After exiting the hall, Song Ke was still pondering where to collect the “free transport vehicle.” The rumbling sound of an engine reached her ears. From the track that stretched across the Ferrara sky, a numbered transport vehicle came rolling along and stopped right in front of Song Ke and her companions.
The transport vehicle was entirely silver-gray in color. The cockpit was narrow, but it had a total of eight carriages at the back. What was even more chilling was that each carriage was filled with iron cages adorned with barbs. Bloodstains crisscrossed inside, the colors dull and gloomy, having captured countless zombies.
The terminal made a “ding” sound, displaying the vehicle information. This vehicle was equipped with automated driving and preset round-trip routes. In theory, Song Ke only needed to capture the zombies and toss them onto the vehicle. It would return on its own.
Song Ke and Zhuang Qingyan boarded the cockpit, and as the door was about to close, Xu Xing caught the hem of Song Ke’s clothes.
“Sister, I… I want to go too.”
“Aren’t you, afraid?” Xu Xing was terrified of zombies to the core. Both instances of his supernatural ability going out of control were due to zombies.
Xu Xing’s hand trembled for a moment, gradually releasing Song Ke’s clothes, but the next second, he grabbed them tightly again!
He saw Zhuang Qingyan inside the cockpit, looking at him with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile.
Although Zhuang Qingyan hadn’t said a word, Xu Xing sensed the disdain in his gaze, as if he were saying, “Oh? That’s it?”
Initially hesitating, Xu Xing’s inner sense of pride was completely aroused. With his neck held high, his voice full of enthusiasm, he exclaimed, “I’m not afraid! I want to help you. I won’t cause any trouble!”
After a moment of thought, Song Ke agreed. Although Xu Xing was an unstable element, it wasn’t a big deal. She just needed to keep a closer eye on him.
“Come on board.”
…
The transport vehicle distributed by Ferrara had a steam-driven engine and didn’t use the energy of “Yiyu,” so its speed was considerably slower compared to a starship. Nevertheless, it could utilize the aerial track. After approximately ten hours of travel, Song Ke and her companions arrived at Luli Port.
It was approaching midnight, and the Municipal Hall of Luli Port was less than three kilometers away. Hordes of zombies were roaming the outskirts.
Without clearing a path, they couldn’t get in.
Song Ke opened the window, hooked her finger, and agilely flipped out, landing on top of the vehicle.
In her hand was a repeating crossbow similar to the one Zhuang Qingyan had. “I’ll distract the zombies on the left. Xu Xing, freeze them on the right.”
Xu Xing clenched his fists and nodded nervously, “Okay!”
Shouldering the crossbow with one hand, Song Ke squinted her eyes, aimed, and lightly pulled the trigger. Ten arrows shot out simultaneously, accurately piercing a small group of isolated zombies ahead. Those zombies noticed the movement and rushed towards them.
Xu Xing also stood up, his ability followed suit. A sudden blizzard engulfed the area, and the zombies that were lured out were instantly frozen.
The vehicle’s surveillance detected the zombie movements. A long mechanical arm extended from the rear compartment, sweeping these zombies into iron cages like garbage. Once a compartment was filled, the door silently closed, automatically shifting to the front, and the second-to-last compartment was then pushed out.
“Keep going,” Song Ke changed direction and continued shooting arrows to attract the zombies’ attention.
“Alright!” Xu Xing was full of enthusiasm.
The first carriage transporting zombies slowly passed the cockpit. Dripping water droplets fell, and one of the frozen zombies had unknowingly melted. Suddenly, it began to roar restlessly. “Swipe!” Sharp claws protruded from the iron cage, almost touching Xu Xing’s nose through the window glass.
Xu Xing’s attention was focused forward. He was startled by the attack that came out of nowhere. His pupils trembled, and the blizzard that had been swirling all around him turned into ice spikes.
“Crunch, crunch, crunch—”
Several skulls of the supposedly frozen zombies were pierced by ice shards, but the remaining ones kept pushing forward.
Xu Xing’s rhythm became chaotic, affecting Song Ke’s concentration. Her arrows couldn’t attract so many zombies, and a small group was already rushing towards their position.
Song Ke put down the crossbow, reached back, and pulled out two dual-bladed knives from her backpack. “Swoosh!” She leaped off the top of the vehicle, charging towards the approaching tide of zombies. The moment her feet hit the ground, she swung her blades horizontally, killing the zombies that came rushing.
Zhuang Qingyan frowned and yelled in a low voice, “Song Ke, capture the live ones.”
Song Ke’s silhouette stiffened for a moment, her actions momentarily delayed, as if she were contemplating how to capture the zombies alive.
Then, the catastrophe began.
Everything descended into chaos. Xu Xing started yelling frantically, his ability alternately turning into blizzards and ice shards. Song Ke was dashing up and down within the swarm of zombies, incapacitating one by kicking, chasing another to the left, knocking one down, only to have another on the right run away.
After much difficulty capturing a group, just as she was about to throw them into the transport vehicle, ice shards from Xu Xing flew over, killing them all.
Song Ke: “…”
In the midst of endless chaos, Zhuang Qingyan covered his face.
V587’s first mission, a massive failure!
