"We've got company!" Nile stated as he glanced at the dot on his System Map. The dot was colored gray, signifying it was another human survivor.

Estimating the distance between them, he concluded that at least 50 meters must be traveled before they met each other.

"The System Map isn't really reliable as I imagined it would be. Even a human can sneak up to 50 meters around me before getting discovered."

"Well, it's better than nothing..." He said as he contemplated whether he should continue ahead while having the risk of meeting the survivor or turn around to avoid the hassle.

The said human survivor was blocking the way towards the area he was set to go.

He surveyed his surroundings and made a sigh upon seeing the almost dense forest around him.

Calling this a town would no longer be appropriate. The buildings were already replaced by the towering trees, after all. It is only a matter of time before this town would be transformed into that of a full pledge forest.

"I guess I'll just have to ignore that survivor while passing by." He decided to ultimately go to that open area, and if he was discovered by the survivor, he was ready to play pretend that he was deaf or even blind.

"Croc, you should hide around us for now! You're an assassin right? So you should be able to do this much. Don't let yourself get discovered, unless necessary or unless when I told you so. " He instructed after pondering for a second. Croco had such a menacing appearance, he doubted that they could not pass by the survivor peacefully if Croco was there.

He let Maximo lower his speed, hoping that the survivor might go away after a few minutes.

Alas, his wish did not come true as after a few minutes, they already arrived near the survivor but the survivor had still not moved away.

He even suspects that the survivor was a cripple or something like that.

What's more aggravating is that the survivor had even noticed his arrival. To be precise, the survivor had noticed Maximo before seeing him riding on its back.

"Help… Help…. Mister, please help me…" He said as he extended his hands as if to reach for Nile that is above Maximo.

Nile decided to ignore the man's plea as he beckoned for Maximo to continue striding.

Seeing that he was ignored, the man was taken aback for a second before he stood up from the ground weakly. Not a moment had passed when his knees went noodles, causing him to fall with his knees on the ground.

"Please mister, I just want to confirm if my daughter is really dead. Please help me reach the school…" The man said, tears were slowly forming from the corner of his eyes as he kowtowed towards Nile.

Nile ordered Maximo to halt with a thought, conveying it through the earrings of loyalty.

Seeing him stop, the man was overjoyed, he continued, "Mister… I'm dying... please… please help me reach the school ground, I just want to confirm if my daughter was really dead. I just want to try my luck, maybe… just maybe she was still alive?" He said with great difficulty.

Nile took a glance at the man before him, a usual apocalypse feeling arose inside him while staring at the man. The man had such a pitiful appearance, he was dirty all over and his clothes were torn like a beggar who had not taken a bath for over a year.

Nile guessed that his age must be at mid or early 30.

As much as he hates interacting with survivors, he just couldn't ignore his plea. Even more so after hearing that it was for his daughter.

"By school? Do you mean the place where this road leads to?" He asked the man.

The man nodded his head vigorously upon hearing his reply.

"How old was your daughter?" Nile inquired.

"Uhm… thirteen? Yes, she just turned thirteen."

The Nile nodded his head upon hearing the man's reply, 'Too young, his daughter should have died already by now if no one saved her.'

"My pet carabao is a bit over hygienic, he doesn't want anyone other than me riding his back." He said after feeling the carabao's dissatisfaction.

"I also have a business at that school. You are already a level one human, so you will not have a problem going there right? Why do you still need help?" He continued.

The man was surprised to hear what he said, however, he calmed down in an instant and said, "Yes… I'm only worried that I might come across strong zombies along the way… but if there are two of us, I think I can reach there safely."

"Kind mister, please help me." He begged again with a kowtow.

"Alright… but I'm not responsible for your safety alright? Let's just say that we are only going to the same destination, and we happen to help each other if a zombie pops up." Nile agreed to help the man.

Although he finds it bothersome, he was not some heartless person after all. Seeing that the man was sincere about finding his daughter, he couldn't just leave him there. They are going to the same destination anyway.

Of course, he didn't let his guard down. He already read countless web novels about the plot of main characters coming across and helping weak people only to succumb to their ambush afterward. Of course, those main characters will manage to pull it through with some shit luck, but he believed that he was not someone like that.

That's why he didn't let the man ride, Maximo, aside from his possessive nature, he wouldn't turn his back on some stranger he just met. Even though Maximo's back still has some wide space, he was not willing to let the man ride on his front or back as that would look very inappropriate.

"Lead the way…" He said towards the man who looks like a beggar with his tattered clothes.

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Thanks for reading guys.