Missing

Since they had formed a team, there was no need for any pretense.

Jason piled all the food from his two large suitcases onto the table.

Sakura and Hank both looked at the mountain of food in surprise.

"How come your suitcases are full of food?" Sakura asked, leaning in to get a closer look.

"Well, in the apocalypse, food is the most important thing, right? You don't expect us to live on gunpowder, do you?" Jason replied half-jokingly.

"Heh, gunpowder isn't for eating, but it can certainly help you feed me," Sakura grinned, pulling out her gun and pointing it at the self-heating rice on the table.

"... " Jason fell silent for a moment before reluctantly dishing out the rice, realizing that he had forgotten about the possibility of being robbed.

"By the way, you guys didn't bring any food with you?" Jason asked as he sprinkled some seasoning on his meal.

"I brought some compressed biscuits and water," Hank replied.

Sakura, however, remained silent, staring down at her single bag. Even if she had food, it probably wouldn't be enough to feed all three of them.

"Hank, are you in the military?" Jason asked, trying to make small talk as the atmosphere became more relaxed.

"Yeah," Hank answered casually, without hiding anything.

"So what brings you here?" Jason asked, his curiosity piqued.

"... "

Hank paused for a while before slowly responding, "This card was actually given to me by my father. He told me to come here, but didn't explain anything else."

Jason fell silent, realizing that if this was true, Hank's father must have entrusted him with humanity's last hope.

"So what about you, Sakura?"

"Have you ever heard the saying, 'Heroes don't ask where someone comes from'?" Sakura asked with a teasing smile.

"Uh, no... What do you mean?"

"Before asking about us, shouldn't you introduce yourself?" she retorted.

Jason awkwardly scratched his head. "I'm... just an ordinary guy, mostly working on some programming to make a living. Nothing special about me..."

"I didn't expect my little brother to be a programmer..." Sakura chuckled.

"So, what about you, Sakura?" Jason asked again, more curious.

"Ah, well, I'm just an ordinary person, too. I like to wander around from time to time," she said airily.

Ordinary person? Jason thought to himself, which "ordinary" person owns a gun? Or constantly spins a knife in their hand like Sakura did earlier? He didn't press her further, though, realizing she didn't want to reveal more.

"She's an international mercenary, probably affiliated with the Black Rose organization," Hank suddenly added coldly from the side.

"Ah, wow, didn't expect you to have such a sharp eye and figure me out so easily," Sakura said, her voice mocking.

"Hmph, the Black Rose specializes in assassinations. The rose tattoo on her collarbone is the organization's signature mark. So... you'd better be careful when you sleep at night." Hank turned his head, warning Jason.

Jason's heart skipped a beat. So, Sakura was an assassin? That explained why Hank had been so cautious around her!

Despite this revelation, Jason tried to play it cool and said, "Well, don't scare me. No need to worry about me sleeping, let's just let Sakura sleep in my bed. I'll still sleep soundly."

"Ahhh, you're so bold, little brother," Sakura teased with an evil laugh.

Jason froze, realizing he had just dug himself into a hole. "Uh, I was just joking, Sakura! Don't take it seriously, hahah... Please don't take it seriously..."

"Cheh, all talk, no action," Sakura muttered, clearly unimpressed.

Jason couldn't help but think to himself: This isn't about talking big without the guts. It's more like I'm too stupid to survive in the first place.

"By the way, Linglingyao, how many floors are there in the tower?" Jason asked, trying to change the topic.

"Dawn Tower has five floors."

"What's on the lower floors?" Hank asked.

"Insufficient permissions."

"How do we increase our permissions?" Jason asked, feeling a bit more determined now.

"You can increase your team's level by completing team or personal tasks. Team levels range from 1 to 5. A Level 1 team can have up to 4 members, Level 2 allows up to 5 members, Level 3 allows up to 6 members, Level 4 allows up to 7 members, and Level 5 has no member limit."

"Are there any rules inside the tower?" Hank asked.

"Do not disrupt public order. Do not maliciously harm others."

"So, how do we earn survival points?" Jason asked eagerly, knowing how critical those points would be.

Just then, a task list appeared on the screen.

Task 1: Train for 8 hours, earn 10 survival points. (Time is automatically tracked once you enter the training area with your magnetic card.)

Task 2: Work in the ecological industrial zone for 8 hours, earn 15 survival points.

Jason quickly skimmed through the tasks. While training earned fewer points, it had the benefit of improving his skills. If they managed to train for 8 hours a day, the three of them could earn 30 points a day.

The one thing he still wasn't sure about was how expensive things would be in the tower. If a single meal cost 10 points, they wouldn't be left with much at all.

"Looks like we'll have to be frugal," Jason said after some thought. "Let's eat our own food for now, but we should keep some high-calorie, long-lasting stuff in reserve, just in case."

He began sorting the food he had brought: chocolate, compressed biscuits, instant noodles, beef jerky, sausages, self-heating rice, canned meat, and water. These were his entire stock.

"Alright, let's take a break for now. We'll go train later to earn some survival points."

Jason stretched, then crawled into bed, exhausted from the day's events. He quickly fell into a deep sleep.

...

On the first floor, people continued to trickle in. They arrived uncertain, then shocked and overwhelmed. Eventually, the only thing left was confusion and a sense of helplessness about the future.

Hours later, Jason slowly awoke from his slumber.

He opened his eyes, taking in the unfamiliar surroundings, and suddenly sat up with a start.

After a moment of disorientation, he remembered where he was—Dawn Tower. But to his shock, when he looked around the room, he was alone! Hank and Sakura were nowhere to be found.

And then, to make matters worse, the food that had been on the table was gone, too.

His heart lurched in his chest. Had they left with the food? Had they abandoned him?

The thought gnawed at him. Had he really been so naïve?

In the apocalypse, who could you really trust? He had no power, no wealth beyond enough food for himself for a month. Yet, he had thought that these people would act as his protectors, but in the end, he was the one left behind... What a fool he was.