Chapter 3: The High-End Community

Carrying a backpack and holding a heavy bag in each hand, I didn't get far before I started to gasp for breath. I've been a homebody since graduating from high school, never working, gradually disconnecting from society, and immersing myself in otaku culture from Japan. My physical condition was weak, and I couldn't tell grains apart.

Then, I saw a black moped by the road. The motorcycle was on its side, keys still in the ignition, and not far from it lay a skeleton, the remains of its owner who apparently tried to escape on it. He must have crashed and was then devoured by a group of zombies. Luckily, I knew how to ride a motorcycle. I picked it up and started it. The engine noise attracted the attention of nearby zombies, but they still didn't attack me. I calmly loaded my bags onto the motorcycle and set off.

Riding the moped was straightforward, not much more complicated than an electric bike, and faster. As I rode along the road, zombies and even some surviving residents peeking out from their buildings watched me. But no one cried out for help. Perhaps I was the only living being on the road brave enough to make such a noise.

I arrived at Xincheng Bay community, a high-end residential area located by the river, famous for its night views from both banks. The housing prices here reached 80,000 yuan per square meter. On regular days, you'd see luxury cars like Mercedes, BMW, Range Rovers, Porsches, and Ferraris, driven by the rich or their mistresses. The electric gate of the community was open, and the security guard was nowhere to be seen. I rode straight in.

I remembered from a school yearbook that Guo Ni Ni lived in room 1401 of building 6 at Xincheng Bay. Soon, I found the building. With the city's power down, I couldn't use the elevator and had to leave my things downstairs. Carrying only some Snickers, soda crackers, and two bottles of water, I climbed the stairs.

Inside the building, I encountered a few zombies and gnawed corpses, but not many. This was a high-end community, after all, where the wealthy rarely stayed home, often traveling abroad. The mistresses, typically asleep during the day and active at night, were probablyinfected during the daytime outbreak and confined to their apartments.

Minutes later, I reached room 1401 and started knocking.

Knock, knock, knock.

No answer.

Had she escaped?

Bang, bang, bang.

I knocked harder, attracting zombies from upstairs and downstairs.

Ugh...ugh, ugh...ugh...

Heh, heh...heh...

The zombies, seeing it was me making the noise, began wandering again.

"Guo Ni Ni, are you in there?" I asked.

Still no response.

Had she really left?

I wanted to use my immunity to zombie bites to keep her safe with me during this apocalypse.

Just as I was about to leave, the door behind me suddenly opened.

The door was opened by a woman wearing an orange pajama, revealing her long, fair legs.