Skinwalker Belle – Chapter 43 – Reallocation

The early morning sun pierced through the grimy floor-to-ceiling windows, carving countless paths of dancing dust motes in the lobby.

The stench of blood had been dispelled, and the entire building welcomed a new beginning.

Lei Li stood in the center of the lobby, a crumpled floor plan pinched between her fingers.

“We now have eighteen floors.”

Her voice pierced everyone’s eardrums, carrying an unquestionable authority.

“They must be reassigned.”

Ah Hu was the first to raise his arm, the muscles on his face twitching slightly with excitement.

“Lei-jie, just say the word. We’ll listen to you!”

Lei Li tapped the blueprint with the tip of her pen, making a crisp sound.

“First floor, security. Second floor, cafeteria. No changes.”

“The third and fifth floors will be converted entirely into supply warehouses.”

“Fourth floor, bathhouse and water storage area.”

Lin Fan stood by Lei Li’s side, tilting up the innocent, cherubic face that belonged to Chen Yao, her eyes shimmering with unconcealed adoration.

“Lei-jie, you’re so thoughtful, planning everyone’s lives out so clearly.”

Her syrupy voice brought a faint, almost imperceptible curve to Lei Li’s tense lips.

“Sixth floor, command center and infirmary.”

“Seventh floor, armory.”

“Eighth to tenth floors, for the men. Eleventh floor, for the women.”

A wave of suppressed cheers erupted from the crowd.

“That’s great! We finally don’t have to sleep all crammed together!”

“Can I get a single room? Just a small one!”

Lei Li shot a cold glance over, and the clamor died instantly.

“Twelfth to seventeenth floors, temporarily vacant, reserved for other uses.”

Reαd оn КatReαdіոɡCafе

“Eighteenth floor, observation deck.”

She folded the blueprint, her voice decisive and final.

“Everything moved by tonight.”

“Ah Hu is in charge of the men, Xiao Min is in charge of the women. Get moving!”

With the order given, the entire building was instantly injected with vitality, people’s faces filled with hope for the future.

Lin Fan followed Lei Li step for step to the eleventh floor.

Lei Li directly pushed open the door to the largest office with the most expansive view.

“This will be our room from now on.”

Our room.

Lin Fan mulled over those words, the smile on her face growing even more brilliant, while a flash of calculation flickered in the depths of her eyes.

Too easy.

Lei Li already saw her as her most intimate, private possession.

“Lei-jie, I’ll go get the things from the infirmary then.”

“Go on.”

Lin Fan skipped down to the sixth floor, quickly packing Chen Yao’s pitifully few articles of clothing and medical books.

Just as she slung the backpack over her shoulder, a sudden, violent commotion and cries of alarm came from downstairs.

“Open the door! Hurry, open the door!”

“There’s someone outside! A living person!”

Lin Fan’s brow furrowed. She rushed to the window in a few steps and looked down.

At the building’s entrance, a man covered in blood and filth was frantically ramming his body against the glass door, his movements so unsteady it looked as if he would fall apart at any second.

When she got a clear look at his face, Lin Fan’s breath caught for a moment.

Zhou Ming.

This tool, he’s actually still alive?

Reαԁ οո ΚatRеаdіոɡCαfе

And he even found his way back here?

Lin Fan immediately turned and headed downstairs.

In the lobby, Lei Li had already had her subordinates carry Zhou Ming inside. He was sprawled on the sofa like a heap of mud.

His face was ashen, his lips were chapped and peeling, and his clothes were torn to shreds. The exposed skin was covered with a crisscrossing network of wounds.

“Water… water…”

His throat sounded as if it were clogged with sand, dry and hoarse.

Xiao Min quickly handed him a cup of water. He snatched it, tilted his head back, and gulped it down with loud “glug, glug” sounds. Water spilled from the corners of his mouth, soaking his collar.

“Ruyan…”

After downing the water, he finally caught his breath. He dug his hands into his hair in agony, letting out a roar like a wounded beast.

“I’ve been looking for her for days… I can’t find her anywhere…”

Lin Fan scurried over to him, her voice soft, tearful, and full of anxiety.

“Don’t get agitated. Your wounds are very serious and need to be treated immediately!”

She took Zhou Ming’s cold hand, her eyes instantly turning red.

“First, tell us what happened. We’ll all work together to find clues, okay?”

As if seeing a glimmer of light in the darkness, Zhou Ming grabbed her hand and nodded repeatedly.

“Okay… okay…”

Under Lei Li’s scrutinizing gaze, Lin Fan helped him back up to the infirmary on the sixth floor.

“Where on earth did you go?” Lei Li followed them in, asking bluntly.

While Lin Fan carefully cleaned Zhou Ming’s wounds with an alcohol-soaked cotton ball, her ears were pricked up straight.

The sting of the alcohol made Zhou Ming grimace. He began to recount his experience in fits and starts.

“I… I went to the police station… I wanted to find official help… but there… it was completely finished…”

His eyes were unfocused, filled with an inextinguishable terror.

Rеαԁ oո KatReaԁinɡCafе

“All the police officers… they all turned into monsters… monsters in uniform…”

Lei Li wasn’t surprised by this. She simply blew out a smoke ring.

“And then?”

“I remembered there was a military camp in the suburbs… I thought… the army must still be around…” Zhou Ming’s voice began to tremble uncontrollably.

“I walked for two whole days… to get there… but… but that place… was even more terrifying…”

Lei Li’s brow furrowed deeply.

“What do you mean?”

“Those soldiers… those soldiers turned into zombies too!”

“But they’re different! They’re completely different from the ones outside!”

Lei Li’s smoking paused as she asked calmly, “How are they different?”

“They don’t have any wounds on them!” Zhou Ming shouted excitedly, spittle flying. “Not a single bite mark! They’re perfectly clean! It’s like… it’s like they fell asleep as humans, and when they woke up, they had turned directly into those monsters!”

No bite marks?

Direct mutation?

Those words made the air in the infirmary turn thick and heavy.

Lei Li stubbed out her cigarette, her brow knitted into a tight knot.

“Say that again. Those soldiers had no bite marks on them?”

“Right!” Zhou Ming nodded forcefully, his voice trembling with fear. “I saw it with my own eyes! I hid in the bushes and watched for a whole day! Those things were wearing complete military uniforms, their boots were shiny enough to reflect light, and they were still holding guns!”

Lin Fan reached out a small hand and gently patted the back of Zhou Ming’s, her voice as soft as dripping water, full of comfort.

“Then… then how did you escape? It sounds so dangerous.”

Zhou Ming’s body was shaking like a leaf.

“I was going to get a little closer to see, but I’d only taken a few steps before I was discovered!”

“Those things have incredibly sharp hearing. We were at least fifty meters away!”

Lei Li shot back a question. “Fifty meters?”

Rеαԁ oո ΚаtReаԁіոɡCаfе

She said in a low voice, “A normal zombie’s perception range during the day is ten meters at most.”

Zhou Ming swallowed, his face full of lingering fear.

“Luckily, it had just rained that day. My foot slipped, and I fell into a stinking ditch by the side of the road, getting covered in mud.”

“Maybe the smell covered my scent. They just milled around for a bit and then left.”

The entire army mutated… while retaining their equipment and enhanced senses.

This was definitely not a simple viral infection.

Lin Fan tilted her head, her face full of concern.

“So your injuries are from that fall?”

“Yeah, the ditch was full of broken rocks and rebar,” Zhou Ming said with a bitter smile. “But I guess it saved my life.”

Lei Li paced back and forth in the room, her high-heeled leather boots making a “tap, tap, tap” sound on the floor like a death knell.

She suddenly stopped, her eyes erupting with a scorching light called ambition.

“If the soldiers in the military camp all turned into those kinds of monsters…”

“Then the weapons in their hands… the ammunition… are they all still in the armory?”

Lei Li stubbed out her cigarette, her heart pounding with excitement.

Liu Ruyan’s disappearance had been vexing her, but the news Zhou Ming brought back was like a key that had unlocked a great door.

She looked at Zhou Ming and patted his shoulder.

“You stay here for now and rest up. Once you’ve recovered, we’ll figure something out together.”

“Really?” Hope reignited in Zhou Ming’s eyes.

“Of course,” Lei Li promised with a nod.

Lin Fan stood to the side, her head obediently lowered, her long bangs concealing the bottomless chill in her eyes.

The army… weapons…

The truth of this world is starting to get interesting.