Surviving the Apocalypse: All I Want Is to Find a Husband
Chapter 68: Two Scared Mice

Chapter 68: Two Scared Mice

When Lucian opened the sliding door of the station, they simultaneously covered their noses because the station emitted a foul odor mixed with dampness.

The fire station was already in a miserable condition. The floor was covered in mud, while the walls were overgrown with moss.

The fire trucks were scattered around the station, the firefighting equipment was empty, probably looted by people when the world was in chaos.

"I’m not sure there’s a place to hide here." Medeia checked the compass repeatedly, and its needle kept pointing toward the fire station.

"He is here." Tian lowered his eyes and looked at the faint footsteps on the mud. The footprints were scattered everywhere, making it difficult for them to find Ren’s location. "I know he is here."

[Ding! You’ve already arrived at your destination.]

The needle of the compass spun around, showing no specific direction to find Ren any longer. Medeia twitched her eyes, annoyed that the compass was not helping her to the end.

[You just need to make a little effort, Host!]

Medeia groaned in her heart, but decided not to confront the system. "Let’s split up to save time."

Lucian rejected her idea immediately. "No. It’s too dangerous to split up in an unfamiliar place. The station is not that spacious, so it would be safe to stay together."

Besides, the rooms on the first floor were damaged, so they only needed to explore the second floor.

"Fine." Medeia sighed. "Let’s move quickly, so we can leave as soon as possible."

The three of them carefully made their way up the cracked and unstable stairs. The condition of the second floor was not much different from the first. The rooms on the second floor were mostly destroyed, with walls collapsing and furniture overturned.

"Do you hear that?" Medeia stopped.

Lucian immediately stopped, his hand gripping the hilt of his swords as he turned to face Medeia. "Hear what?"

Tian paused as well, tilting his head slightly to listen. A faint sound echoed through the corridor, a muffled moan that was barely audible. Lucian motioned for them to keep their mouths shut to hear the sound better.

"It’s coming from that way," Medeia whispered, pointing to a partially broken door at the end of the corridor.

Without hesitation, Lucian led the way. The groaning became clearer as they approached, accompanied by faint, labored breathing.

Lucian pushed the broken door aside, revealing a small, cramped room. Moving their eyes to the corner of the room, they saw a figure covered in dirt and blood. His clothes were torn and his body was covered in bruises and beatings.

It took Medeia some time to recognize the figure, but Tian was able to recognize him at a glance. "Ren!" Tian yelled and ran toward his brother.

Ren’s eyes fluttered open at the sound of his brother’s voice. He tried to open his mouth and spoke weakly. "T ... Tian? Why... Why are you here? Am I imagining things?"

"No, you’re not imagining things, dummy." Tian’s hands trembled as he looked at his brother’s wounds. He gritted his teeth and clenched his fist until his nails dug into his skin. "I’m here ... I’m really here."

"Brother, I’m sorry ... I should have listened to you." Ren wanted to reach out to Tian, but his hand was too weak to move. "You ... you were right. I should have stayed at the base instead of following you. "You... you were right. I should have stayed at the base instead of following you."

"Don’t talk anymore." Tian crouched next to Ren, gently pulling up his shirt to see the wounds on his body. He held his breath at the sight of deep claw marks across Ren’s abdomen, overlapping with other wounds.

The flesh around the wounds was swollen and blood continued to flow from his wounds.

He had been in the X-12 Zone for nearly ten hours, and in that time he had survived against so many mutants and undead. His ability allowed him to run as fast as the wind, but he couldn’t use it for too long.

"It hurts, Tian ..." Ren’s lips trembled as he tried to speak. "It hurts everywhere."

"I know," Tian whispered, his voice breaking. "I’ll fix it." His eyes scanned the room, looking for medical supplies, but he couldn’t find any. "I promise I’ll fix this."

"Brother, I’m sorry ... I always get you into trouble."

"Shut up, Ren." Tian said, "You can apologize to me when you get better."

Ren smiled, his eyelids closing slowly. "That’s okay, Tian." His voice became weaker. "Maybe I can finally see our Pa and Ma again."

Tian punched the ground beneath him. "Shut up! Just shut up! Pa and Ma will scold you if you see them too soon." He stammered, "They ... they will also scold me for not being able to protect you."

Tian then turned to Lucian and Medeia. "Please ... can you help him?" He knelt before them and begged over and over again. His body was shaking and he looked like a scared mouse about to die. "He’s the only one I have. Please, please do something. I promise I’ll pay you back later."

Interesting.

Tian had always acted aloof and arrogant, but now he was willing to lower his pride to help his reckless brother.

Wouldn’t his burden disappear if his brother died?

Judging from Ren’s condition alone, Medeia was sure that he didn’t have much time left.

[If you saw your sibling dying, wouldn’t you do the same, Host?]

’I don’t have a sibling.’

[Then, what do you do if Lucian is in Ren’s place?]

’Lucian is not my burden.’

[The last time I checked, Lucian was once your burden, but you chose to do whatever it took to save him.]

Medeia paused for a moment. ’That is different.’

[Where’s the difference? The system found many similarities between the two events. Someone would do anything to save their loved ones.]

Ren had always been a burden to Tian, but he was still his twin brother. His love for his brother was stronger than anything else.

And Medeia could use this feeling.

Medeia smiled inwardly. Love was a powerful motivator that often blinded people to logic. If she could use Tian’s desperation to save Ren, she could gain leverage over him.

If Tian owed her more, she could make him do whatever she wanted later.

The first candidate from her loyal followers.

"I can save your brother." Medeia looked at Tian at his eyes, "But under one condition."

Tian answered immediately. "What is it? I’ll do anything as long as you can help him."

A warm smile suddenly appeared on her face, like a kind angel offering medicine to the suffering. "You must take good care of your brother after this."

Tian hesitated and narrowed his eyes at her. "That’s it? You don’t want anything else?"

Medeia tilted her head, her smile softening. "What else would I want? I just want Ren to survive and for you to cherish him. Isn’t that what you want, too?"

Like hell she only wanted that.

She wanted Tian and Ren to be touched by her kindness and then decide to become her loyal minions.

Unfortunately, Tian was too desperate to notice her foul motive. "Of course! Of course I’ll take care of him forever! Please, please help him."

[Warning! Warning! The system has detected malicious intent from the host!]

[Please explain in 10s before the system punishes you for being an evil person].

Medeia had expected the system to react this badly, so she had already prepared the answer. ’What is the problem? Am I going to ask them to jump off the cliff or hurt others to repay their deed to me?

Before the system could answer, she continued, ’No, right? I don’t force them to do anything, I just expect them to be my loyal followers willingly. So what is the problem, my dear system?’

The system was silent from then on, making sure Medeia knew she couldn’t argue with her logic.

Ignoring the system, Medeia decided to took a Grade-S Healing Potion from her inventory and threw it to Tian. "He can heal faster if he drinks it."

Tian caught the vial and rushed over to Ren. He placed the vial on his brother’s mouth. "Drink this."

Ren’s lips trembled as Tian gently tilted the vial, helping the liquid flow into his mouth.

Medeia grimaced slightly as she saw her precious medicine being drunk by others.

But that was not a problem.

She hoped the result would be worth it.

After a while, the potion began to work. His skin was no longer as pale as before, and his wounds healed on their own.

Tian and Ren gasped at the extraordinary sight. Tian lifted his head to ask her something, but Medeia put her fingers to her lips. "Remember, don’t ask me anything."

Tian immediately shut his mouth and shifted his focus to Ren.

"Tian?" Ren touched his body in disbelief. "The wounds ... the wounds are gone! Awesome?! What kind of medicine is that?!"

Tian ignored his ramblings and hugged his brother tightly. He let out a sigh of relief, letting his tears flow out of his eyes.

"Brother ...," Ren was surprised. He had never seen his brother look so scared. "Are you crying---"

"Shut up." Tian cut him off, "Please just shut up for once, Ren."