After Transmigrating as the Scumbag Alpha in an Otherworld Novel, I Ended Up with the Villain - Chapter 11

Liu Lindong looked around and spoke: “It’s too late to retreat now. We might even lead the trouble back to the base. Running to the outskirts of the zombie tide isn’t realistic either—aside from the risk of getting lost, encountering even more dangerous unknown variables would be worse. We’re better off sticking to the route we decided on for the branch campus.”

Ye Hai frowned, saying anxiously: “That’s the only option left.”

Zhang Tian gripped his blade tightly again and cursed: “Damn it, I’ve never been this unlucky on a field mission.”

Standing at the front of the group, Liu Lindong waved them forward: “Follow me. Entering that underground passage is our only chance to fight for survival.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Lindong turned and took the lead. Seeing this, the rest of the group followed immediately, like drowning people clutching at a life-saving straw.

Su Xinge hesitated for two seconds before following. Things were exactly as Liu Lindong said; this route offered the highest chance of survival and was the best choice in an emergency.

Behind them were the known zombie hordes; ahead was an unknown path.

Seeing An Le being led along by Lin Yuxuan up ahead, Su Xinge’s expression softened considerably. For such a small child to run for so long without crying, fussing, or complaining of exhaustion was impressive. In fact, back when An Le first hugged her leg, Su Xinge had sensed that the girl’s strength was unusual—not what a normal child could exert. She wondered what An Le’s ability would be if she truly were an Awakened.

The team had accelerated to their maximum speed, but the shadow of fear from behind still loomed over everyone’s heads. Even the ordinary people in the squad could feel the heavy thrumming vibration of the earth. The sky seemed to grow darker, and the foul, fishy stench of the dead drifted into their nostrils.

Liu Lindong, still in the lead, whispered: “We’re here.”

Su Xinge looked up to see a steep 45-degree slope leading underground. The passage looked empty, but its depths were pitch black, devoid of sunlight.

Zhang Tian stopped in his tracks and cursed: “Holy crap, this looks even scarier than the sounds behind us. Is this somewhere a living person can actually enter?”

Ye Hai looked at Su Xinge and asked: “How is it? Is there danger inside? Can you use your ability now?”

Su Xinge simply shook her head: “Vertically, there’s no particularly dangerous situation for now. As for horizontally, I’ll have to go inside to detect it.”

She could only answer this way; the timeline of this location in the novel didn’t necessarily match the current one.

The team halted, momentarily paralyzed by the choice. Humans have an innate fear of the unknown dark. As time ticked away, the commotion from behind grew clearer, and they could even faintly see a dense, crushing black shadow in the distance.

Ye Hai clenched his fists and said: “Forget it, let’s go down and investigate first.”

The sounds from behind became more distinct, audible even to the ordinary people. The stench in the air grew thicker.

Suddenly, there was a loud crash.

The sound of shattering glass echoed through the city center.

Everyone turned their heads to see that a window across the street, a hundred meters away, had completely shattered. They could even see swaying black shadows inside the window.

Zhang Tian stepped forward and grabbed Liu Lindong by the collar, hissing in a low, muffled voice: “Liu Lindong, are you out of your damn mind? Don’t think no one saw you. What the hell are you trying to do by making that much noise?”

Liu Lindong gripped Zhang Tian’s arm, trying to break free while explaining: “Since the zombie horde is already coming, we might as well try to make noise elsewhere to distract them.”

Ye Hai stepped in and forced the two apart, advising quietly: “What time do you think it is to be infighting? We need to figure out how to get through this immediate crisis.”

Zhang Tian flung his arm back and spat to the side. He glared at Liu Lindong with eyes that seemed to spit fire: “You’re a ‘wolf,’ aren’t you?”

Su Xinge stepped forward and stared at Liu Lindong, though her words answered Ye Hai’s question: “What else can we do? This path ahead is the only one we have left, isn’t it?”

Liu Lindong’s eyes flickered, avoiding Su Xinge’s gaze. He turned toward the darkness: “Let’s go. I’ll clear the way. If someone has to die, it’ll be me first.”

Zhang Tian scoffed, adding a parting shot: “If you don’t lead, who will? Everyone else, stay close. You’d better put a hand on the back of the person in front of you so no one goes missing while we’re walking.”

Ye Hai added: “Ordinary folks, better put away your knives and weapons. Don’t end up accidentally wounding your own people before you even kill a zombie. We’ll do our best to protect you.”

The other ordinary members put away their weapons. In a place like this, following the orders of the Awakened was undoubtedly the safest way to stay alive.

Zhang Tian crouched in front of An Le and reached out his hand: “I’ll go in front of you. Follow me. I said I’d protect you.”

An Le looked at Su Xinge, and only after Su Xinge nodded did she reach out and grab the edge of Zhang Tian’s sleeve. Her other small hand remained holding Lin Yuxuan’s.

Zhang Tian just laughed: “The little sprout is quite introverted.”

Su Xinge looked at Lin Yuxuan and An Le, whose hands were constantly joined, and said: “You two walk like that. I’ll bring up the rear for you.”

Danger was known behind them, and fear was unknown ahead, so the security of the rear was equally vital.

Lin Yuxuan nodded and handed her kitchen knife to Su Xinge: “Put this in your bag.”

Su Xinge was startled by the sudden gesture, but seeing Lin Yuxuan’s calm expression, she took the knife and tucked it into her backpack.

The group finished organizing their formation. Su Xinge, not being used to contact with strangers, only let the person behind her hold onto her clothes. With the line formed, the team marched into the darkness.

Lin Yuxuan pulled An Le along as they followed the line. At the moment they transitioned from light to shadow, Lin Yuxuan’s wrist was gripped by a warm, powerful hand.

Su Xinge whispered behind her: “This way, you won’t get lost.”

Lin Yuxuan felt the strength radiating from her wrist. A strange sensation surged in her heart—like a ship finally finding a shore to dock at. However, she was only willing to attribute this to an Omega’s biological dependence on an Alpha.

Rarely, Lin Yuxuan said nothing. She remained silent, making no attempt to pull her wrist away, simply allowing Su Xinge to hold her tightly.

Walking at the very end of the line, the dimness brought Su Xinge no fear; instead, her heart felt heavy. She hadn’t chosen to hold Lin Yuxuan’s clothes because she was afraid the fabric might tear or that she might lose her.

Both people in front of her were brought out by her; she had the duty and responsibility to bring them back safely. While field missions were never safe, they usually didn’t involve this many unknown accidents. Su Xinge’s only unease stemmed from these anomalies.