A Core Ship From The Start
Chapter 1437 - 974: The Shortest Distance Between Two Points Is A Straight Line_2

Chapter 1437: Chapter 974: The Shortest Distance Between Two Points Is A Straight Line_2

But it doesn’t stop them from having a discussion.

It’s like a group of guys gathering around to admire a tank—even if the tank doesn’t belong to you, just watching it is thrilling, isn’t it?

Miyamoto Rei couldn’t understand this kind of male fascination. She carefully stayed close behind Duanmu Huai, clutching the long spear tightly while keeping her eyes on both sides of the street. The homes on either side of the road had mostly collapsed due to Duanmu Huai’s earlier "cleanup." Even if there were anything alive inside, it probably wouldn’t last long. But as a young woman, Miyamoto Rei was still quite meticulous.

"Crash!"

At that moment, an abrupt sound came from the rubble of a nearby house. Hearing it, Miyamoto Rei immediately turned around, gripping the long spear tightly and aiming at the source of the noise.

"Careful, there’s something over there!"

"What is it?"

The other three men, who had been arguing about whether Duanmu Huai’s Power Armor was powered by nuclear energy or something else, snapped out of their discussion and quickly looked towards the origin of the sound. They silently raised their weapons. As they peered at the rubble of the half-collapsed house, a dark figure suddenly darted out.

"Woof woof woof!"

It was... an Akita dog?

Seeing the dog, everyone was a bit surprised. The Akita, seeming excited to encounter humans for the first time in ages, dashed over and enthusiastically wagged its tail at Miyamoto Rei.

"What’s going on? What’s the situation?"

At the front, Duanmu Huai, who was clearing obstacles, heard the barking behind him and turned back to check.

"Well, look at that, a dog?"

"This is quite interesting."

Gavi laughed while looking at the dog.

"It seems pretty cute."

"It’s filthy."

Ogis, however, held an entirely different opinion.

"Woof woof! Woof woof woof!!"

The Akita appeared genuinely thrilled, wagging its tail non-stop, circling them, and even performing a belly-up roll on the ground. At least from appearances, it seemed quite affectionate.

But Miyamoto Rei stared at the dog with a complicated expression. In the end, she gritted her teeth and tightened her hold on the long spear.

"Shoo, shoo!"

As she shouted, Miyamoto Rei waved her long spear at the Akita, trying to chase it away. The Akita, looking reluctant, dodged Miyamoto Rei’s attempts to drive it off, barking as if pleading. Joel, unable to stand it anymore, fired a shot in the air, startling the dog. It trembled before turning tail and running away.

"Why chase it away? Wouldn’t keeping it be better?"

Watching their actions, Duanmu Huai was slightly puzzled. A stray dog on the wasteland seemed like a perfect fit. It had even come to them on its own, yet they chose to drive it away? And Miyamoto Rei—who would’ve thought such a seemingly tender girl could be so ruthless?

"Animals are nothing but trouble."

After driving away the dog, Joel frowned and snorted coldly. Komuro Takashi and Aiden nodded in agreement.

"Exactly. No matter how smart they seem, they’re still animals. Before, it was a dog that caused all the trouble..."

"Oh, right, now I remember."

Hearing their complaints, Duanmu Huai finally recalled. The last time these survivors had their hideout destroyed by zombies, it was due to a neurotic barking teddy bear owned by one of the team’s older members. The barking had drawn the zombies to them, nearly leading to their annihilation. No wonder these folks had such a grudge against dogs. When you thought about it, it wasn’t entirely unreasonable—the incident had clearly left a mark. After all, a dog is just a dog—even though, in Duanmu Huai’s mind, there was a significant difference between a teddy bear and an Akita.

To be honest, Duanmu Huai thought having a dog on the wasteland could be quite fitting. But... in games, dogs don’t cause trouble.

If this were real life, where you’re stealthily infiltrating a location, and your teddy bear charges out barking, exposing you to enemies, you’d probably feel like killing it and turning it into dog meat stew.

Not that a teddy bear has much meat—probably not even enough for a decent stew base.

In this world, zombies don’t have vision and rely almost entirely on sound. Most wanderers prioritize stealth, and Aiden and Joel are no exception. Naturally, anything that compromises their stealth—well, it’s no wonder they don’t favor dogs.

Given the situation, it couldn’t be helped.

For Duanmu Huai and the others, this was just a small detour. Afterward, the group continued to advance, clearing out zombies attracted by Duanmu Huai along the way. Admittedly, these survivors had some skills. Duanmu Huai initially considered replacing them if they proved useless, but to his surprise, they seemed to have competence.

For example, Komuro Takashi wore a motorcycle helmet and wielded a baseball bat studded with nails. His approach was simple: swing the bat to smash zombie skulls. Despite the fungal infection mutating the zombies and making them tougher, headshots still did the trick.

On the other hand, Aiden excelled at improvising weapons. Duanmu Huai watched as Aiden rummaged through ruins, picking up wood planks, discarded saws, kitchen knives, and metal pipes. With a bit of duct tape, he quickly fashioned a weapon and charged in. These makeshift tools weren’t durable, but they were quick to assemble—and when they broke, he’d simply cobble together another.

Miyamoto Rei, meanwhile, wielded a weapon resembling a long spear she’d found in a mall. Impressively, the girl seemed to have some genuine expertise. Her movements—the twirl, the thrust, the sweeping strikes—clearly showed training. Duanmu Huai grew curious and asked, only to learn she had been part of the Gun Art Society, making her a semi-professional.

Joel, on the other hand, was perhaps the most "normal"... or maybe the most "abnormal" member of the group. With a pistol at his waist, a shotgun slung across his back, and a longbow in his hands, he looked every bit the textbook marksman. Most of the time, he stuck to ranged attacks from the rear. At least he wasn’t engaging in close-quarters combat with zombies like Aiden or Miyamoto Rei.

Duanmu Huai couldn’t help but frown at Joel’s approach—after all, melee combat was the divine path of righteousness.

Even Miyamoto Rei, just a girl, could go head-to-head with zombies armed with a long spear. Joel, a grown man, hiding behind the group? It didn’t seem fair, did it?

Of course, even with solid teamwork, and despite taking out plenty of zombies, reality is no video game. In games, you can keep slaughtering enemies all night without needing food or rest; in reality, fatigue catches up to people. Soon enough, all those handling melee combat were panting heavily, their stamina waning.

Seeing this, Duanmu Huai raised his eyebrows and looked at Ogis and Gavi.

"Alright, they’ve done a good job. It’s your turn to pitch in now."