"Okay, I didn't say that..."
Madison patted the carpet to stifle her laughter, though her smile gradually faded.
Once he regained his composure, Gavin turned his gaze towards Madison's face.
Meeting her steady gaze, Madison spoke.
"Let's not discuss that damned Aston Martin, Gavin."
"If you want to draw the zombies away from the helicopter and across the parking lot, you need to step outside the villa, stand on the terrace, and throw bottles."
"Then let me go out there and do it. I'm a pretty good passer."
Without waiting for Gavin's response, Madison moved toward the door, holding up the bottle and gesturing for him to open it.
However, Gavin halted her at the threshold and whispered, "Don't get too excited over this trivial matter. This room may offer us a sense of security, but it cannot protect us."
"It's only a matter of time before I have to leave the house. There's no point in you stepping out before me. Besides, I still have some details to observe."
After finishing his sentence, Gavin pushed Madison aside and positioned himself in front of the door.
Gazing at the throng of zombies in the parking lot from a distance, he took a deep breath and continued, "When I open this damned door, if it lets out an unexpected screech that draws the zombies' attention..."
"Then we'll just run to the boss's room."
"As the master of the manor, his room is better equipped than the guest bedrooms. If we can take refuge in there and endure the initial waves of assault, we might still have a chance of survival."
"Moreover, I'm concerned that some may have slipped through the cracks in other rooms of the villa."
"I'm more worried that they weren't lured away by the sound of the helicopter crash, but rather attracted by the bottles I threw, becoming so frenzied that they made noise inside the villa, which would draw the zombies from outside to attack the villa and flood the corridors."
"So, Mac, if it comes to that, you must be ready to clear a path for me!"
After saying this, Gavin looked at Madison intently.
After a moment of silence, Madison nodded firmly in response. "I know how to fight!"
Once he spoke, he cautiously positioned himself behind the door, leaving enough space for Gavin.
Noticing Madison's clenched jaw, Gavin nodded and continued, "Of course, if an accident occurs, countless possibilities could arise."
"If I determine that our room is a safer hiding spot, or that rushing directly to your car offers a better chance, I will signal you."
"You must keep an eye on me and not miss my signals, Madison."
"I will, Gavin, just like in the game!"
"Yeah, just like in the game!"
Gavin and Madison bumped arms and then turned the doorknob, pulling it open as gently as possible.
Opening the door would inevitably lessen their sound insulation, so Gavin was extremely cautious, taking more than ten seconds to open it.
Yet, a longer duration was not necessarily a bad thing. The sound of the door hinges moving, barely louder than a breath, did not attract the zombies' attention.
Once he confirmed it was safe, Gavin stepped out of the villa in small increments, standing on the terrace connected to the stairs while observing the entire parking lot.
At that moment, the horde of zombies was gathering at an angle of about sixty degrees to the left of the terrace.
Due to their large numbers, the zombies on the periphery were only about fifty meters away from Gavin.
After ensuring he had not drawn any zombies' attention, Gavin rolled up his right sleeve, picked up the bottle, and threw it forcefully toward the far right side of the parking lot.
As a quarterback, long passes were merely basic skills. In less than two seconds, the sharp sound of shattering glass echoed in the distance.
The sound of breaking glass was followed by the blaring siren of a Chevrolet, its window shattered by Gavin's bottle.
The instant both sounds reached the air, hundreds of zombies turned their heads in unison!
Immediately, the zombies closest to the noise surged forward like cheetahs, racing toward the source of the sound in a frenzy.
This activation was essentially a chain reaction. The horde of zombies began to rush like a tidal wave toward the distance with overwhelming force.
The sheer number of them and this scene, even in the dim light of night, sent chills down Gavin's spine.
Yet, despite the lingering fear, Gavin braved the cold February wind and approached the terrace, scrutinizing the details of the zombies' movements.
This would not only inform him of their average running speed but also allow him to summarize the zombies' common choices and reaction times when faced with obstacles.
The distance between the helicopter landing point and the wine bottle's landing point was about 110 meters.
As a rugby player, Gavin was keenly aware of distances, making his visual data more reliable.
It took only nineteen seconds for the first zombie to start moving until the last one lunged at the source of the sound in search of its target.
While that may not seem fast, numerous obstacles were involved.
Every zombie that encountered an obstacle had to leap or hurdle, which impeded the speed of a significant number of them.
After briefly recalling how frequently zombies encountered car obstacles, Gavin was astonished to realize that, had the road been flat, it would take only about fourteen seconds for zombies to cover 110 meters.
It might even take less time!
What does that imply?
You should know that the average human's 100-meter sprint time falls between thirteen and sixteen seconds.
For women, the average 100-meter time should increase by roughly one second, ranging from fourteen to seventeen seconds.
In other words, once a zombie locks onto its target, it runs at the maximum speed of that body.
Moreover, zombies who do not feel pain are destined not to tire like humans.
Let's not even discuss how many ordinary people could outrun zombies; let's just consider how far an ordinary person could run at a 100-meter sprint pace.
Five hundred meters?
One thousand meters?
And the zombies...
Gavin ceased his thoughts and continued to observe the zombie horde with a grim expression.
After all the zombies arrived at the source of the sound, they did not halt their actions immediately. Instead, they moved excitedly like alert dogs, striving to get closer to the beeping alarm.
With each alarm sound, the horde shrank as a whole, resembling a stack of human figures.
One minute later, when the alarm ceased entirely, the zombies remained vigilant, tightening their circle and maintaining a density akin to that of a human pyramid.
Gavin glanced at his watch, then continued to observe.
One second...
Two seconds...
When the zombies finally stopped crowding around the car that had summoned the police and began gradually spreading out to patrol the area.
Gavin looked down at his watch, noting that thirty-four seconds had elapsed.
In other words, once he is detected by the zombies, even if he hides in a safe zone, he must hold off the zombies in that safe zone and remain silent for at least half a minute before the zombies abandon their target.
This is merely a possibility, as we also need to consider the impact of sight and smell on the zombies.
However, after observing and summarizing the situation thus far, Gavin felt that was likely sufficient.
As for the zombies' sensitivity to light sources and their detection range, along with the relationship between sound decibel levels and listening distance...
After surviving the Party Manor, finding a suitable camp to stay in and maintaining its stability would provide another opportunity to test these theories.
So Gavin slowly backed away and quietly closed the door, responding to Madison's anxious greeting.
"Call..."
Even Gavin couldn't help but exhale in relief as the door clicked shut.
Beside him, Madison swallowed and asked softly, "How did it go?"
"What about our plan?"
Gavin replied, patting Madison's shoulder.
"The plan remains intact. Nothing unexpected happened just now. Let's head to your room and the terrace opposite the villa to continue throwing bottles."
"Hold on tight; I don't want to linger in this damned place for even a second."
After he finished speaking, Gavin strode directly to Madison's chamber.
Madison adjusted the two sabers strapped to her back, careful to avoid striking the potted plants that lined the corridor.
"Gavin, you just acted like we did in the finals. Tactics and plans flowed one after another, and you anticipated nearly every possibility."
"What else?"
Without glancing back, Gavin replied to Madison's words.
"What else should I do? Seize every fleeting thought and charge ahead, relying on Lady Luck to cover the unforeseen?"
"Enough! I dislike taking risks, and accidents are risks. Therefore, I prefer to prepare for potential mishaps, Madison."
Having spoken, Gavin entered Madison's room and approached the window to survey the surroundings.