Chapter 10: Caesar's Strength
After wiping the hand axe, Caesar's eyes lowered.
Suddenly, the axe chopped backward fiercely. Just as it was about to hit its target, Caesar lifted his hand slightly.
The axe embedded heavily into the wooden wall nearby. Fine wood chips hit Merle's face painfully.
Merle froze slightly, his breathing nearly stopped as a cold voice sounded by his ear.
"Merle, I'm warning you. Next time, don't appear silently behind me, or it won't be good if I kill you by mistake."
Finished speaking, Caesar ignored Merle and strode forward, walking toward the dark corridor ahead.
Cold sweat appeared on Merle's forehead. He raised his hand to wipe it, saying irritably, "Damn, what a psycho."
Merle, who seemed to fear nothing, could now feel that Caesar was no bleeding heart. If Caesar wanted to kill Merle, he absolutely wouldn't hesitate.
Merle gripped the iron spike in his hand tighter and followed with heavy steps.
In the corridor where light and shadow alternated, Merle walked along and saw walker corpses arranged on the ground.
Every walker had severely broken wounds. You could tell the person who attacked used tremendous force.
Some walkers not only had their heads split in half, but even their chests were torn open, internal organs and uncongealed black blood spilled all over the ground.
The slippery sensation underfoot made Merle curse constantly.
Merle walked through the long corridor and saw Caesar standing among numerous corpses. Caesar coldly dropped a sentence and continued walking forward.
"Walk faster. Your hand is injured, not your feet."
Caesar had perhaps just gotten into the rhythm of killing walkers—his pupils were somewhat bloodshot, making Merle's heart pound with fear.
Soon, all the walkers still moving on this floor had become corpses lying on the ground.
Caesar also found some mineral water and some snacks and small bread loaves.
He casually stuffed everything into a backpack and tossed it to Merle behind him.
Merle stood there dumbly holding the backpack.
"Merle, if you don't have the guts to kill walkers, just be a good porter and carry the pack."
Merle looked down at the backpack, then at Caesar who showed not a trace of doubt in his words, then at the axe in Caesar's hand and the walkers on the ground.
"Okay."
Compared to Caesar, Merle admitted he wasn't that manly.
This building had an emergency stairway outside, typically used for escape during fires.
Caesar smashed the glass, the axe sweeping away debris from the doorframe.
Stepping out of the building, Caesar stood on the emergency stairs, only feeling them shake somewhat.
Looking down, the entire emergency stairway showed a state of corrosion throughout. Many bolts on the side against the wall had already fallen off.
Obviously it had been neglected for years.
"Fuck, these scum who only know how to pocket taxpayer money." Caesar cursed the inhuman American government.
They even cut corners on such important facilities and didn't maintain them.
Bang—
Merle jumped boldly onto the emergency stairway. The trembling sensation became even more obvious.
Caesar immediately raised his hand. "Merle, these stairs are badly corroded. They probably can't hold up much longer."
"Let's hurry down. Move gently."
Hearing this, Merle's hand consciously rested on the railing and he nodded.
On the emergency stairway, each floor was very narrow. There weren't many stairs between floors.
The two rushed downward rapidly.
Some walkers in the building were disturbed by the commotion. They quickly exited sleep mode and extended their bodies to paw at the emergency stairway outside.
Caesar passed before a walker. His axe swept across the walker's cheek, tearing open its mouth. The jaw fell off.
Merle behind him smoothly inserted the iron spike into the walker's pupil, yanked hard, bringing brain matter splattering out with it.
The two didn't finish off every walker. Walkers continuously poured from the building, breaking onto the emergency stairs.
The stairs made overburdened creaking sounds that made Caesar and Merle's hearts skip.
Caesar's feet picked up speed again. "Run faster."
Merle gritted his teeth, his hand pulling the railing to give himself momentum, accelerating.
The two were like characters in a platform game, fighting from the top of the building all the way to the bottom.
From time to time walkers fell from high up, smashing heavily on the ground like tomatoes, pulverized.
When they reached the bottom two or three floors, Caesar could hear screws snapping and the stairs making breaking sounds.
Caesar looked up. At some point, the stairs above had taken on an alarming tilt.
"Jump, hurry and jump down."
After warning Merle, Caesar sprinted and leaped over the railing, his hand grabbing the railing behind him for a moment.
The railing slowed Caesar's speed slightly. After landing, Caesar rolled several times in succession.
Finally he escaped with some danger but no real harm.
When Caesar looked back, he saw Merle had fallen into a pile of garbage bags to the side.
"Fuck, what bullshit..."
Merle let out a string of colorful curses.
The emergency stairway made wailing sounds. Screws burst, the framework broke. The entire stairway crashed heavily toward the ground.
The walkers above, along with the stairs, slammed into the ground together.
The powerful gravity shattered the ground. Dust and smoke obscured the stairs. The ground shook.
Caesar looked at the walkers gradually surrounding the area, a trace of joy flashing in his eyes.
He'd originally planned to use walker blood and flesh to trick the horde and leave Atlanta.
Unexpectedly, the walkers were all drawn to the commotion from the stairs. Now was the perfect time to escape.
"Merle, let's go."
With a shout, Caesar was about to rush forward.
"Hiss—"
Merle let out a pained grunt, then paused before speaking.
"I can't walk. You go ahead. I'll catch up to you later."
When Caesar looked back, Merle said to himself, "Don't worry, that cop cuffed me on the rooftop and I didn't die. How could I lose my life over a sprain?"
Before Merle could finish talking, Caesar grabbed Merle by the collar and hoisted him onto his back.
"Shut up. You talk too much."
At the cold voice, Merle shut his mouth.
With his mouth shut, Caesar carried Merle on his back. The two used gaps in the walker horde, killed a few walkers, and reached the location where Caesar had parked.
The dark, wide pickup—Caesar tossed Merle into the driver's seat and sat in the passenger seat himself.
"You drive."
Merle covered his injured foot and gently rubbed it. Soon it loosened up considerably.
His foot injury wasn't serious, just soft tissue contusion. It would heal on its own after resting for a while.
"Oi, boss, how can I drive with an injured foot?"
Merle's face pulled into a smile, revealing yellow teeth, raising his eyebrows in a show of helplessness.
Caesar sat in the passenger seat, pulled out small snacks from the backpack, tore them open and poured them into his mouth.
He said indistinctly, "If you can't drive, you're useless. I'll kill you!"
"Oi, that really scares me~" Merle's smile became more mocking.
Suddenly, the smile on his face froze. A gun pressed against his face.
Caesar munched on bread while saying, "Drive."
"Yes, boss." Merle raised both hands in a gesture of submission.
The pickup engine roared as it crashed out.