Chapter 19: A Life for a Roast Goose

The crowd outside eventually dispersed, having failed to find the gunshot's origin. Unable to open the door or break through the walls, and without finding the shooting point, they had no choice but to retreat. However, Samuel and the others didn't immediately return to their places but stayed at Jones's house. With hail falling outside, even those with protective gear were reluctant to face it, fearing their suits might fail and result in their deaths outside.

They decided to wait until the hail subsided or stopped completely before making a move. Their stay at Jones's house also indicated that Jones still had plenty of food; otherwise, he wouldn't have allowed these three men into his home. This was probably his way of aligning with Charles.

David, on the other hand, thought this was a good opportunity since the delay was giving him more time to grow stronger. After the others left, he resumed his training, running around the spacious living room. After several days of continuous exercise, David felt his body recovering significantly.

He thought about how great it would be to have a gym, a shooting range, a cinema, a library, and even a plot of land to grow vegetables for self-sufficiency. It sounded like a fantasy, but he felt that it could become a reality if he kept up with his daily check-ins. However, to make these visions come true, he first needed to expand his house several times over.

The technology for expanding house space was mysterious. From the outside, his room didn't seem to have changed at all, showing no signs of being out of place. But upon entering, one could see that the interior was much larger than it appeared from outside.

After running until he was drenched in sweat, David stopped to wipe the sweat off his face. He hadn't felt this sweaty in a long time and found the sensation refreshing, unlike the past when he would have found it greasy. He then headed to the bathroom for a shower, a rare luxury in these times.

Though the water supply was limited, it couldn't stop his determination to bathe. However, just as he was about to undress, he heard a loud noise outside. Walking out to look through the window, he saw a nearby building collapse. The sight of the large building falling and raising a cloud of ice dust was shocking. Although he knew buildings were prone to collapse in such weather, seeing it happen was still stunning.

David took a deep breath, thinking, "Who knows when it'll be our turn." He knew he had to be prepared for a building collapse.

He then took a shower, feeling comfortable under the water that was neither too hot nor too cold. Considering the current situation, he thought about living one day at a time.

Previously, he had considered conserving food, in case he encountered several days without receiving food from the check-ins. His current regular diet might not sustain him if the supply ran low. But now, he thought otherwise. Death could come at any time; it was better to die with a full stomach.

After his shower, he checked the surveillance and noticed that the building's collapse had also scared Samuel and the others. They were now wearing their protective suits, waiting for the hail to lessen before leaving.

David shook his head, firmly believing he wouldn't open his door for anyone. He doubted they would use missiles against his house. Moreover, in time, his house might even withstand missiles or a nuclear bomb.

Let them go, he thought. In fact, David was now curious to meet this Charles everyone talked about.

It was around 10 p.m. when the hail finally lessened, and Samuel and his group hurriedly left. David had thought the night would end quietly, but he was wrong. The real drama was yet to come.

Since he had to wait for the midnight check-in, he didn't sleep. Not in the mood for more exercise, he decided to play Red Alert on his computer. The bedroom he had manifested had electricity, though he didn't know where it came from. Like the water in the bathroom, the electricity was refreshed daily.

The power supply was limited, but enough for him to play games for a while. Before the apocalypse, he was a fan of Red Alert, often playing against skilled players online. Now, alone, he could only play against the computer. The computer in his room had old games like Red Alert, CS, GTA, etc., perfectly suiting his 'old man' tastes.

He was deeply engrossed in the game when the terminal monitor sounded an alert. Annoyed, David paused the game and looked at the monitor, thinking those people were persistently disturbing him even after Samuel had left.

However, the image on the monitor took him by surprise. It was just Robert, and behind him was a person, a dead person... William! William was in a terrible state, his body flattened by a hammer, blood and brain matter oozing from his head, and his previously shot left arm oozing disgusting pus.

Stunned, David left the bedroom and approached the door. Robert, speaking calmly, said, "You should be able to hear me. You said if I killed William and smashed his head, you'd give me a whole roast goose. Does that still stand?"

Robert looked like a demon standing next to the mutilated corpse, fixated only on the roast goose. David chuckled and replied, "Even without you, William was doomed. It was just a matter of time. And you think that's worth a whole roast goose? You're thinking too much."