Nina seemed to have heard what he said, and she only responded with a shaky nod, which Ethan didn't mind taking to heart.
With all the zombies in the area cleared, they continued their walk towards the library.
Ethan had gained some considerable amount of Boyfriend Credits during the clashes, and his bank was already piling up.
He knew that if he kept gathering more of these, sooner or later, he might actually get something quite massive from the Store.
[Boyfriend Credits: 312 BC.]
That was some credits judging by how the prices of items are for now, even though he could only deal with low-priced items at this point.
The last time he tried checking the price of a van, what he saw blew his mind, however, he was only motivated to earn more.
[Name: FORD Twenty-seater Van.]
[Cost: 5000 BC.]
[Description: A twenty-seater large, durable transport vehicle with four spacious rows, wide interior space for passengers and gear, reinforced suspension, and reliable performance for moving large groups safely. Maximum speed at 140 kilometres per hour.]
He didn't even have a quarter of the amount to get one, and that had darkened his face the moment he checked.
He had guessed perhaps the van would be their driving force to escape campus, but that was until Nina gave them an idea of what hell they could face outside.
With that in mind, getting a van was the least of his worries at this point. Obviously, there were many things he had to take care of.
Most importantly that stuff he has between his legs.
Ethan would stop at nothing to protect it no matter what.
They soon reached the library, and it was already 12:32 by then, revealing that the zombies would strike in three minutes.
However, Ethan saw no signs of zombies as they reached the library, and with a seriously curious face, Nina turned to him and asked,
"What kind of supplies do we need from a library?"
Ethan didn't spare a look, as he quickly rushed into the building after breaking through one of the windows.
He didn't know how someone could be here, but he just had to risk it.
He entered the library only to spot nothing but scattered and dusty books, webs, and broken windows around.
The place gave an unspoken explanation of how the disaster had happened.
"Why would someone be here?"
Ethan had to ask, but then he realised that there was probably no assured safe place around.
If they hadn't found the Lecturer's Lodge, it was pretty clear that they wouldn't have gotten somewhere safe to stay.
"Hey."
"Hey... Is anybody here?" Ethan called.
Soon, Nina and the rest of the accomplices joined Ethan inside in no time.
Gracie almost choked from the dust the moment she stepped in, and for Helen and Eva, they were just irritated by the mess, but were attentive.
Nina was the only one putting a frown on her face, as expected from an angry military woman who lost her brother the previous day.
"Hello? Is anyone here? Come on out, we are here to help you," he said, glancing around.
However, no one seemed to show up, and there was still no vital sign.
Somehow, Ethan wasn't just giving up. It was too early to, and he knew it.
They walked down a small hallway near the first reading unit and noticed a door.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Before they could even get to the door, some frail banging sounds rose from that direction.
Sounds of hands hitting hard against something could be heard, and together with those banging sounds were terrifying growls.
(12:35).
Ethan's eyes lit up as he quickly kicked the door open, spotting a dozen zombies gathering around a bent table.
Under that table, a young lady who was expected to be in her late twenties could be seen screaming in tears as she held on to the table, trying so hard to keep the zombies away.
She appeared completely exhausted and was already losing hope.
But then that was when Ethan knew he had to get into action.
Thanks to the fact that he had attracted most of the zombies' attention when he bumped in, they didn't end up getting to her.
"Come to me, motherf**kers!" Ethan shouted as he readied his baseball bat.
The zombies were just about to throw themselves at him, until...
TARR! TARR! TARR! TARR! TARR!
Each and every one of them were taken to the ground, dead without Ethan even raising an arm.
Turning to see Nina, she gave him a slight smile.
"Sorry, just didn't want you to stress out," she said.
Ethan gave her a dark look, however he couldn't help but nod.
"She just robbed me of some Boyfriend Credits, ah!" he shouted inwardly.
He went straight towards the lady hiding under the table and gave her a hand.
Still tensed and terrified, she hesitated before accepting his hand, and she stepped out.
"Thank... thank you."
With a breaking voice, she turned to all of them and said nothing at first.
"How did you get here, ma'am?" Ethan asked respectfully.
She, Miss Audrey Paul, was his Department Officer, and even though the world had ended, at least that didn't change the fact that she was still someone worth respecting.
"They... they tried to harass me. They tried to rape me," she responded with her voice trembling.
Ethan flinched in confusion.
"They? Who? Who are they?" he quickly asked, exchanging glances with the group.
"Those guys. They are crazy. They are trying to... to... they are trying to take advantage of everyone," she said, still stammering.
Ethan and Nina became somewhat confused, because they didn't expect something like this. Ethan himself was doubtful that there were many survivors left to conduct such crazy acts.
Perhaps he hadn't estimated well.
"Can you show us where these psychos are?" Nina stepped forward and asked.
Miss Audrey flinched and shook her head.
"No. I can't go back there. I can't. They will kill me... they'll feed me to those things," she said, sobbing.
It was clear enough to reveal that she might have gone through hell there. For a grown lady like her to be this frightened, what do they say for the youngsters?
"Must be one of the survivor hideouts. We have to find these people," Nina said with a serious look on her face.
Ethan nodded, though with his face still unclear, thinking it was best that he stayed out of trouble.
But then that sudden realisation that these people could have females as captives. It was certainly expected, because it was the females that would be harassed and raped.
They helped Miss Audrey evacuate the library with Gracie leading her, and as soon as they stepped out...
They soon heard sounds of bikes coming towards their way. Too fast to hide and observe who these people could be, the bikes stormed into the scene.
"It's them! Run. We have to run!" Miss Audrey shouted.
Too late.
You can't run from people who are with guns.
Four boys, undoubtedly surviving students, stepped down from their bikes and approached them.
They were putting on a strong, confident look. The kind that shows that they were the boss around.
Neither Ethan nor Nina was shaken.
The guy that appeared to be the leader of the group walked over with a smile.
"Hi, Miss Audrey... it's so good to see you again," he said.
He tried to come close for a hug, but Nina pointed her rifle at him.
"Step back," she ordered.
"Ah, easy..."
He raised both hands and backed out at once.
"Miss Audrey? They are your new friends now?" he asked, still smiling.
Miss Audrey couldn't even say a word, as she was covered by fear. She couldn't even raise her head.
"Yes, she is..."
Ethan gave the response.
"She told us how you harass the girls in your group. How you rape them, how you deal with those who don't obey," he added.
"Oh really? But that's not right," the guy said. "Aunt Audrey, please tell them you were joking. We were out here looking for you the whole day and now you are telling them this. Oh, come on."
"She's not coming with you," Nina spoke boldly.
"Tell us where you are keeping the others who don't want to stay. I think it's high time you let them go," Ethan said.
Hearing their commands, the leader couldn't help but laugh.
"How it sounded so easy to say! Damn!" he bellowed. "Seems some lucky rats here have unlocked superhero mode in the end of the world."
The other guys behind laughed hard, all getting intimidating, but Ethan and Nina were still relaxed.
"That's not going to happen, man. We are here for Aunt Audrey, and we are going to get her," he added.
"Like hell you will..."
Nina said as she raised her rifle towards his head.
Suddenly, the bikers raised theirs as well, aiming towards Ethan, Nina, and Eva.
"Chill out, tough lady. You know you can't take us all down before you get knocked out. Just let us go with what we want, and we'll pretend like this never happened," the leader said.
Truthfully, it was clear that Nina couldn't take them all out on her own. She was the only one with the gun, while the latter's men were all armed.
She turned to Ethan who already processed the odds, and he gave her a nod.
She withdrew her gun and dropped it on the floor, turning to Miss Audrey who was already tearing her eyes out.
One of the guys grabbed her forcefully to his bike, and they all turned to leave until...
The leader halted and turned.
"Oh..."
With a smile, he approached Nina and then bent to grab her rifle.
"I'll take this," he chuckled.
He then entered the bike, and they drove off right after.
"Thanks for cooperating! The Boss appreciates!"
That was the last statement they heard before the bikes vanished.