Chapter 7

Looking at the newbies around him, Kirk also made some speculations about the intentions behind the Space's selection of people. At heart, Kirk was still a brainy otaku. It was just that the excessive entertainment of modern society had somewhat degraded his thinking ability. Now, in the face of harsh survival pressures, what seemed like a trivial matter might very well determine whether you would be alive or dead 24 hours later. Kirk had to force himself to think more and use his brain more, and he dared not be careless.

From the situation of the newbies, it seemed that the Space selected people with certain specialties. When assigning newbies, the Space also seemed to consider the compatibility of the character's specialties, the needs of the plot, and even the compatibility of personalities. Basically, it was a one-to-one pairing in a "mentor-apprentice" relationship. This situation should only occur in the newbie trial plot. With so many newbies being tested together, it was clear that the Space would definitely issue a "teamwork" type of team task to make everyone quickly familiarize and integrate, forming a team.

Regarding teamwork, Kirk's idea was to observe from the sidelines and quietly make a fortune. If everyone could unite sincerely and there was profit to be made, he didn't mind being a pawn that others could use and he could use in return. If they continued to scheme and even harm each other, he wouldn't waste time and energy on these people and would start working alone as soon as possible to strengthen himself.

Kirk continued to observe his potential teammates. The current "captain," Ma Ruiqi, was clearly a type of "white-collar, backbone, elite" (white-collar, backbone, elite) who was adept at navigating the workplace, with high charisma and good basic eloquence, so she was currently thriving. However, Kirk believed that "white-collar, backbone, elite" could be divided into two types: those with real ability and those who just pretend to have it. This woman belonged to the latter. She had risen to her position by relying on her good relationship with the protagonist Rick, but she lacked a broad perspective, persuasiveness, and true leadership skills. In short, "big chest, no brain, scheming" was her description.

Kirk wondered what kind of character the newbies on Governor Philip's side were.

Suddenly, the fat guy beside him said, "Do you know? We can actually die in this scene."

"Huh? Why?"

"Because I saw a newbie girl die. She was Amy's apprentice. Yesterday afternoon, zombies suddenly attacked our camp, and everyone scattered. Amy pulled her and ran, but they were caught by the zombies. She was bitten, and the character abandoned her. She died ten meters away from me. I saw her throat torn open, blood spraying out..." The fat guy was still a bit shaken. "I thought this was a fun game, like a穿越 novel, but knowing that you can die, will die, and be eaten, I realized it's not a game. It's a killing game."

Kirk felt the same way. Just 24 hours ago, he was still an otaku, living in an air-conditioned room, playing games, watching movies, and downloading A-videos, living a life of luxury. Now, he was in this world, feeling pain, facing death, and struggling on the edge of survival.

The car stopped, and Rick's deep voice rang out, "Everyone get out, we're having a meeting!"

Kirk jumped out of the car. After driving for more than five hours last night, it was now dawn. The blood-red sun was just rising, marking another bloody day.

The plot team and the newbies gathered together. This convoy, having rescued 82 people from a nursing home, now had a team of over 100 people, making it a large group. However, there were many elderly, weak, and sick people, and the usable combat strength did not exceed 50. After the intense battle last night, they had very few bullets left. Everyone's expression was serious.

Rick handed his son Carl to his wife Lori and clapped his hands, "Everyone, pay attention. We are now facing several difficulties. The main issues are four: lack of food and fresh water, lack of guns and ammunition, lack of shelter, and lack of knowledge about the surroundings. We need to collect food and ammunition resources in the morning and find a shelter before sunset in the afternoon. Today's task is heavy, and we need everyone to take action and contribute their strength."

Then the Space's prompt sounded, "Contractor 4444, you have officially joined the protagonist's team. To stand out in the team, it's not about words but actions and contributions. Now you need to complete a side mission. Please choose:

1. Pizza Delivery Person. Search for food and fresh water in the nearby 10-kilometer town. Contribution is calculated based on the amount found.

2. Ammunition Loader. Search for guns and ammunition in the nearby 10-kilometer police station. Contribution is calculated based on the amount found.

3. Battlefield Engineer. Find a sturdy shelter within 10 kilometers and clear any potential dangers. Contribution is calculated based on performance.

4. Dangerous Watcher. Establish an observation post on a high point nearby and eliminate all dangers. Contribution is calculated based on performance.

Note: You are now official members of this team. It's time to leave your character mentors. You must complete this task independently and will not receive any help from the plot team."

The newbies began to show interest, but some newbie women looked hesitant. Their combat skills were not high, and surviving in the zombie-infested wilderness was a problem. Fortunately, the Space was considerate and also arranged a task to avoid making them too awkward.

5. Nursing Home Nurse. Take care of the elderly and children in the nursing home, meeting their needs. Contribution is calculated based on performance. Note: For the team leader Rick, the nursing home is a burden, and he may not give your service a high evaluation.

Clearly, this was a consolation task.

The yellow-haired guy and a few other warmongers naturally chose the "Ammunition Loader" task. Seeing their excited whistles, Kirk believed they were planning to enrich themselves and arm themselves first, but the Space probably wouldn't have any loopholes.

Ma Ruiqi gathered a group of newbies who leaned towards her to do the "Battlefield Engineer" task. Listening to her talk, she was a hardcore American TV show fan and knew the plot's development. The protagonist's team should have found an abandoned prison in a valley five kilometers from the highway, which was very safe. She was now gathering people to complete this task, which was equivalent to completing the main mission in advance! The reward would naturally be substantial. This woman had considerable charisma and appeal, taking away the majority of the newbies to find the prison.

Sally, of course, wouldn't follow Ma Ruiqi's command. She gathered the Japanese cross-dresser Mori Ranmaru and the Korean newbie to do the "Pizza Delivery Person" task. The familiar fat guy also came to persuade Kirk to join, saying it would be safer with more people. Kirk politely declined.

He chose the "Dangerous Watcher" task. To balance, the difficulty and rewards of each task should be about the same. If so, choosing any task should yield a good reward. With more people, everyone would vie for the benefits, and the contribution points would be diluted. Based on Kirk's experience of borrowing a gun and setting fire to kill zombies, the Space was highly intelligent and had no obvious loopholes. The yellow-haired guy's search for guns and ammunition and Sally's search for food and water would likely not be kept private and would need to be returned. Ma Ruiqi's claim of "finding the prison early and completing the main mission" was nonsense! This was just a side mission, not a main mission. Even if they found the plot prison, the Space had clearly stated that the characters would not support them. With just a few newbies and a few broken weapons, they would be wiped out and could never capture it. Many characters had died to clear the zombies in that prison!

As a "Dangerous Watcher," Kirk would be doing a side mission alone, so no one would steal his rewards. Additionally, being near the camp, if he really couldn't handle it, he could escape into the camp. The characters wouldn't support him, but they would defend themselves.

Before the newbies set out, they were all called by the characters. Mori stood in front of Kirk and carelessly said, "Be a man and toughen up," then patted his butt and left.

Kirk was speechless. There was a hidden meaning in those words, wasn't there? I'm already tough, you know?

However, Rick took the initiative to find Kirk. "Are you ready, rookie?"

Kirk: "Boss, I'm ready." Rick showed a satisfied look, and Kirk immediately followed up, "But I only have a police pistol, and there's no one else to support me..."

Rick: "Alright, I know. Rookies are like that, always wanting to fly far away, but they don't understand the cruelty of the wilderness. Some may not return. We considered that you are the only one serving as a lookout, so we are providing you with necessary equipment. Return it after the mission, and do a good job." Rick patted Kirk's shoulder and left.

An old M16 and a telescope were given to Kirk. Kirk wasn't surprised because he had already gained the [Firefighter] status, which automatically earned him the favor of the human camp leader Rick and a +2 charisma effect, partially compensating for his low charisma. Plus, the newbies were like bandits, rushing out to grab guns, food, and women, leaving Kirk alone to guard the camp. It wasn't strange for the characters to provide temporary weapons and equipment.

However, Kirk sighed, fearing he had taken on a big task again. The Space was balanced, and giving him an M16 and a telescope was to make him fight hard. It seemed there would be work to do today.

Kirk first needed to choose a location for the observation post. After observation and consideration, he chose a water tower on a hill 200 meters from the car camp. The abandoned water tower was 40 meters high, and the hill itself was 50 meters higher than the car camp. Together, Kirk was standing 100 meters above, overlooking the entire plain. With the telescope, he could see everything within 2000 meters.

Zombies would need at least 15 minutes to walk 2000 meters during the day, giving Kirk enough time to sound the alarm, attack, and retreat to the camp.

However, the characters were also poor, as evidenced by the old M16. It was not only old but also came with only four 30-round magazines, which was very poor. Including his police pistol, he had five magazines, 60 rounds, and limited resources, so he had to use them sparingly.

On the way to the water tower, there were some wandering zombies, which was a rare opportunity for practical combat. Kirk held a dagger in his mouth and a police pistol in his hands. When he found a chance to ambush, he used the dagger. When in danger, he used the pistol to shoot their heads. He fought his way through.

Kirk had always been patient, otherwise, he wouldn't have stayed indoors so much. He could play Diablo without cheats and level up to 99. Now was the time to grind levels, with no one to steal his kills, and he could fight to his heart's content. As an unknown factor, if he needed to retreat in danger, it would be troublesome if the zombies behind him hadn't been cleared.

So, it took Kirk an hour to clear about 30 zombies within 500 meters of the water tower. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and walked towards the water tower, satisfied.

On top of the water tower, there were two zombies, probably maintenance workers who had been trapped and turned after death. Kirk was a bit scared. He needed to climb the ladder, and they might be waiting to bite him. He was still timid, not afraid of zombies in long-range combat but afraid in close combat.

However, there was no turning back, so he steeled himself and climbed up.

Halfway up, the two maintenance workers smelled the living and gathered around the ladder, growling.

Kirk cursed, "Damn, are you two Mario brothers? Wearing maintenance worker clothes and climbing ladders everywhere? Do you think I'm here to deliver mushrooms? Take this!"

He tore a piece of his shirt to cover his eyes, preventing dirty blood from getting in, then took out his pistol and fired several shots, emptying a magazine to knock the unlucky Mario brothers off the top of the water tower.

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Kirk's journey to the top of the water tower was fraught with danger, but he managed to secure his position and prepare for the challenges ahead.