Chapter 86: Everyone’s Progress
So, getting her into the 1st Echelon as quickly as possible was a sensible choice.
Cain shifted his attention toward Nathan.
[Human | Level 35]
That was impressive as well.
Nathan had not spent the entire time hunting for himself.
He had protected a group, helped Evelyne Level, and apparently assisted her in completing whatever Advancement Mission she received.
Yet he had still reached Level 35.
"You did well." Cain nodded in approval.
Nathan smiled.
"Obviously."
Cain did not ask what Evelyne’s Advancement Mission had been as it no longer mattered since she had completed it.
Considering her role as a healer, Cain guessed it had been something manageable rather than requiring her to personally hunt something absurdly strong.
The fact that Nathan’s entire group had made so much progress already told him enough.
Evelyne finally walked closer, her gaze moved toward Sonya, then she looked at Cain.
Cain prepared himself for whatever she intended to say.
Instead, Evelyne smiled politely.
A polite smile that was too polite for someone who glared at him with such expression.
"Who is she?"
Cain pointed toward Sonya.
"Sonya."
"I see." Evelyne nodded while continuing her polite smile.
Looking at her expression, Cain immediately continued, "She’s a survivor I found."
Sonya extended one hand.
"Nice to meet you."
Evelyne looked at the offered hand, then at Sonya and accepted it.
"Evelyne."
The two women smiled at each other.
Cain stared at them.
Nothing openly hostile happened but for some reason, that worried him more.
Ron stood behind Cain with his lips pressed tightly together, trying not to laugh.
Cain suddenly had an idea and looked at everyone.
"We’re heading back."
Nathan nodded.
"Good. The others should still be operating around the surrounding districts."
Since Nathan’s group was already here, there was no reason to remain separated.
They then began moving toward the temporary base together.
This time, Cain did not carry Sonya as their group was much larger now, so they traveled at a speed everyone could maintain.
Sonya ran beside Cain without much difficulty after reaching Level 20.
Occasionally, she looked toward Evelyne.
Evelyne occasionally also looked back in response.
Cain pretended not to notice as he was thinking of what to eat after remembering that he had been running around without having eaten yet because when he wanted to order food, the apocalypse descended out of nowhere.
The journey did not take long.
Eventually, the buses came into view.
Several had been parked together along a broad section of road, forming part of a rough defensive perimeter around the supplies and noncombatants.
People carrying weapons stood between the vehicles.
Others remained near the food, fuel, and equipment gathered earlier.
Cain immediately recognized the person currently coordinating them.
It was Maya.
The blonde fencer stood near one of the buses while speaking with two other survivors. Her posture had changed noticeably since Cain first brought her to the university hospital.
She no longer looked like the nervous girl who needed Cain to disable every zombie before she dared approach it anymore as she stood with a high level of confidence.
[Human | Level 31]
She had also reached the 1st Echelon.
When Maya noticed the returning group, her expression immediately brightened.
"You guys are back!"
Several nearby survivors turned.
Relief spread through the temporary base when they recognized it was Cain.
Cain approached.
"Everything alright here?"
"No major problems." Maya nodded.
She glanced toward Ron and Alex, her eyes widened slightly after noticing their Levels.
"You two..."
Ron immediately raised his chin again.
Cain placed one hand against his face and pushed him away.
"Don’t praise him."
Maya looked confused.
Ron frowned. "I haven’t even said anything."
"You were about to." Cain chuckled and looked around as he continued, "How many groups are still outside?"
"Five."
"Send people to notify them."
Maya nodded.
"Tell everyone that you are back and we’re regrouping here?"
"Yeah." Cain nodded.
She quickly selected several fast survivors who knew the routes each team had taken.
They quickly left in different directions.
Cain finally had a chance to look around the temporary camp properly.
Their progress was better than he expected.
More supplies had been gathered and several new survivors were present among the people he recognized.
A few injured people sat near one of the buses while another healer treated them.
Despite the danger outside, the group had clearly become more organized during his absence.
Professor Holt had done well helping establish basic discipline among the survivors, while the stronger fighters were becoming increasingly capable of operating without Cain constantly watching over them.
He was satisfied with the current progress since that was exactly what Cain wanted.
He had no intention of becoming someone who needed to personally solve every problem.
If the group fell apart the moment Cain disappeared, then gathering all these people would become meaningless.
Several minutes later, the first returning team appeared.
Professor Holt walked at the front. His spear rested across one shoulder, and several fresh cuts could be seen across his clothing.
Professor Irina followed nearby with her bow.
Professor Ian came shortly afterward with the rest of the group.
When Cain saw the levels above their heads, he was satisfied since all of them had advanced to the 1st Echelon and reached level 34, 32, and 33.
Professor Holt noticed Cain immediately.
"You’re finally back."
"Looks like you weren’t wasting time either." Cain smiled faintly.
"We found plenty of things to fight." Holt replied with a smile.
His gaze shifted toward Sonya briefly, but unlike Ron, he did not immediately ask questions.
The professors entered the temporary base and began directing their team toward the resting area.
Another group arrived not long afterward.
Cain heard Jack before he saw him.
"Move that fucking thing!"
A damaged vehicle was pushed aside from the road.
Jack emerged from behind it with his group.
His clothes were covered in dried blood and one side of his armor had been damaged, but he appeared perfectly healthy.
[Jack | Level 34 | 1st Echelon]
Jack looked at Cain, then toward Ron and immediately narrowed his eyes when he saw the information above Ron’s head.
"Why the fuck are you Level 46?"
"Talent." Ron replied with a smug.
"What Talent?"
"Being smarter than you." Ron shrugged.
Jack’s eyebrow twitched.
Cain stepped between them before Ron managed to start another argument.
"Go rest."
Jack glanced at Ron and snorted. "Be careful of getting beaten silly if you keep running your mouth without a skill to back up."
"You can try."
Ron looked completely unconcerned.
Jack chuckled lightly before walking toward the buses.
Now only one major group remained outside.
It was Elara’s group.
Several more minutes passed, then Cain finally sensed familiar presences approaching from a distance.
He turned toward the road.
Elara appeared first.
The pale blue sword rested at her waist as she walked toward the base with the others from her group.
Her clothes had gained several new cuts, though Cain could not see any serious injuries.
More importantly, her Level had risen higher than everyone else who had returned so far as she had reached level 36.
Cain raised an eyebrow.
Among the main group, excluding Ron and Alex who had spent most of their time hunting individually, Elara had progressed the farthest.
Cain’s lips curved slightly as he watched her approach.
It seemed everyone had been busy while he was away.