A World Outgrown (Part 1)

Rowan carried Emily and walked back up the stairs to the penthouse as he heard the voices that echoed against the walls of the penthouse. "No, we need to prepare the mana users as well. The zombie forces have gathered, and it's a matter of time before they make their way here. They are clearly organized. We need to set up defense lines and prepare for war." The next voice that sounded out was one that Rowan was familiar with. "Did you all not learn anything from the last attempt to stop the zombie with just defense lines? They outnumber us by too much. Our best course of action is to send out all the able-bodied people we can to reach them before they get into the vicinity of the Raid tower. We can put a shooter and a mana user together as a pair and send them into the city to perch on buildings so that they can rain fire on the zombies before they reach the defensive lines. Then ultimately they can act as a pincer force to come help us."

Rowan applauded the strategy in his mind. Add in a couple of bombs and they would have a real plan, that was until a zombie king that could use wind mana appeared and hunted down the pairs, of course. Rowan had been moving on slowly to listen to the conversation when Em spoke up as well. "Big brother, the zombies are all the zombies. Evergreen world's entire zombie population is converging on evergreen city. The other cities have all evacuated here, that's the other voices that you are hearing. The Mayor of calm blue city and the Volcanic city of Ashworth both made it here. The other cities were annihilated before they could."

Rowan nodded his head. "That makes sense. The zombies are capable of a growth speed that we are innately incapable of pulling off. Our world did not give rise to enough talents for the other cities to hold out, one might even say that our world was only capable of producing one true talent and I assumed that spot, so I guess it leaves it to me to handle the situation. Come, let's go tell everyone that none of that bs will be needed."

Rowan finally stopped walking slowly and sped up as he walked into the penthouse in bold strides. The people instinctively turned towards the door, which caused the guard by the door to raise his nightstick and bar the entry. "Important meeting, authorized personnel only." Rowan contemplated slapping the man senseless for the audacity, but instead opted to release the full extent of his killing intent in the man's direction. The result was a whimper before the man completely collapsed and began to pee himself.

Rowan stepped over his unconscious body without so much as a second look while the commotion made it so that he had the whole room's attention. Rowan smiled like a man taking a stroll in the sun while Camille had tears start to stream from her eyes as she dashed forward, much to the surprise of everyone here. She thudded into Rowan and embraced him tightly. If Rowan was any weaker than she would have crushed him with her grip strength. She had grown in the past week as well.

"I thought you were dead, you big idiot! You instead walk back in here like it's just another day with new hair and a smile on your face, you are a real piece of work Rowan Raid." Rowan lowered his head and kissed her on the cheek much to her surprise as he put Em down and strode forward. The only person at the table that he was able to identify was Mackenzie who looked healthier than the last time they met. The mana fluctuations that Rowan's eyes were able to pick up placed him firmly at rank five but much like the others, cultivation done through just the system was incomparable to cultivation done properly. The system was a guide, not a shortcut.

Rowan turned back to Camille and smiled once more after he acknowledged mayor Mack. "You know for a second there I thought that I was dead too, nothing short of a miracle that I'm not if I'm being honest." Rowan thought to himself while he said the words out loud, I mean technically the intervention of his master who was a god would certainly be considered a miracle, so what he said was indeed the truth. "I'll be sure to tell you all about it after this is handled. It's time to handle the zombie issue once and for all. Luckily, they have all been gathered."

The people in the room that did not know Rowan were skeptical, but that didn't matter to him. He looked at the other two people that were situated here, the mayors that had lived to make it here. The one had prepared to say something when Rowan held his hand up. "I really don't have a desire for the extra words and truthfully, the fact that all of you are just in my house kinda skeeves me out, no offense. You can close the meeting and you can all make yourselves comfortable here in the raid tower, of course not here. The penthouse is my living space, but I can handle the zombies myself, so there is no longer a need for most of this."

The entourage that came with mayor Mack all began to pack their belongings in the same instant, while the mayors from Calm blue and Ashworth, both swarthy looking older men, looked at the people around like they were insane. The mayor of Ashworth couldn't take it any longer as people packed in silence. "You all truly think a single kid can beat all of those zombies at the same time? Have all of you lost your shit and given up? That army is teeming with Zombie kings, and who knows what maleficent existence is behind the fact that they have moved like an organized army."

Mayor Mack shook his head. "He looks different with the new hair, but you saw the video of him fighting the zombie king Garda. He is also single-handedly responsible for removing an evil faction from the city which consisted of several level 50 enemies. He was even able to free us of the mind control inflicted by Peter Smithe, a mana user capable of controlling several level 50 zombie kings. If he says he can handle it then I will take him at his word. The current Rowan Raid has more than earned himself that respect while I was nothing more than a pawn, so yes, my people are packing our things and going to find a good seat for it because now I don't need to stress this. Rowan will end this, and then us mayors will pick up the pieces to make this world better for everyone."

Rowan looked at Mayor Mack, who was helping the people present pack, as he spoke out loud. "You've changed, old man." Mayor Mack could only smile and scratch his head, "I only hope that you can forgive me for being so foolish all of this time, you need anything from the people just let me know, I'm going to find a good seat for the show young man." He offered Rowan his hand which he shook before mayor Mack hurried to find a good room but not before Em flashed him a thumbs up and whispered to him as he passed "Told you big bro would forgive you!" He patted her head on the way out with his attendants. Rowan turned to the two mayors left. "I understand being skeptical, you can watch the battle from here in that case."

Rowan walked away and took the two girls to his bedroom and began to tell them everything that had happened in the past year for him. He started with the fight with Azure, skipping over the atrocities he was committing to some of the souls. He saw how both of their faces changed as they were forced to recall the powerlessness they felt in front of the man. He then told them about his body breaking down from too much mana and then his master saving him. He then recounted the past year in its entirety to the two. Em was the first to comment.

"So can you take us to see your master, then? There are no zombies there, right?" This touched on something that he had not told them, though. "That's the thing Em, my master was careful to not give away where he was. He did tell me that anyone that can reach rank 10 should be able to see him. I don't count on that, though. He has tasked me with ridding the universe of certain necromancers before I can return. So that's our plan going forward. I will handle these zombies, but then I will take you two with me to the station that Feng talked about. We will go to interstellar college together. You both will have to apply the normal way, but that should be fine. The system should have gone through some changes as well, I haven't cared to look now that I know how to cultivate on my own." [Rude] Rowan froze for a second at the system, speaking into his mind the way it had. It caused him to freeze because he now knew the voice was none other than Empry, or at least a sliver of his massive consciousness.

He turned back to the girls, but first things first I believe our zombie friends have opted for an early appearance which is just fine, gives me more time to relax before we leave, come you all should watch the show as well, let me show you how marvelous mana truly is.