World Apocalypse: Apocalust

Chapter 33: Chapter XXXIII - Brick Wall

Levy covered his mouth, a look of shock spreading across his face as the realization washed over him.

"Oh. Shit."

Noah glanced at him.

"What are the chances?" Levy asked aloud.

Noah didn’t say anything because he was already thinking the same thing.

It couldn’t be a coincidence.

His mind immediately drifted back to the mysterious arrow—the one that had suddenly struck the walker just as Levy called out, only for its user to vanish before either of them could even register the situation.

Then there was the quest.

Recruit Sage, previously referred to as The Red-Headed Archer, to be put simply.

And not long after they met her, a mysterious woman showed up at her door—brandishing a gun, forcing her way into the apartment, insisting on seeing ’Marcus’.

Then there was the timer.

One strange event could be written off as a chance.

Two was a coincidence.

But three?

Noah’s brow furrowed as he tried connecting the pieces.

Was the System leading us to her?

The thought had barely formed when something moved into his peripheral vision.

He blinked, and suddenly Sage was standing in front of him. He hadn’t even realized she had come up so quietly, being deep in his thoughts.

She waved her non-gloved hand in front of his face.

"Hello?"

Noah’s gaze fixed intently on her, emerald green eyes meeting his amber. Her breath caught in her throat, her entire body frozen beneath his steady stare.

For a moment, they stayed silent, caught in a quiet exchange.

Then Levy’s voice floated over from somewhere behind them.

"He does that a lot, surprisingly enough."

Noah blinked again, finally snapping out of it.

"Do what?"

"Zone out."

"I wasn’t zoning out. I was making sure—"

Levy cut him off.

"Sure, sure. I believe you."

Noah kissed his teeth and turned back toward Sage, who had suddenly become absorbed in "fixing" the arrangement of her quiver at her hip. She tugged the strap tighter, loosened it, then adjusted it again, despite there being nothing wrong with it.

Enhanced senses weren’t necessary to notice the flush spreading across her cheeks and climbing to the tips of her ears.

Noah raised an eyebrow.

"You good?"

Sage’s fingers paused against the strap. For half a second, her gaze flicked toward him before darting back to the street. She cleared her throat, though the sound came out softer than usual.

"Let’s keep moving."

"Where to?" Noah asked.

Sage looked at him again.

This time, she held his gaze for just long enough for the silence between them to become noticeable. Then her eyes shifted back toward the street, and she adjusted the quiver once more.

"I don’t know, somewhere less exposed."

Noah nodded.

"Sounds good."

Levy glanced at Sage, taking in the way she suddenly seemed incapable of looking Noah in the eye for long. He then looked at Noah, who appeared completely oblivious to what was happening directly in front of him.

He let out a long, heavy sigh.

Emotional intelligence of a brick wall.

Levy shook his head and continued walking behind the two.

They continued through the streets, stopping only when a walker wandered too close. Between the three of them, the creatures were dealt with quickly—Sage’s arrows dropping them from a distance while Noah and Levy handled anything that managed to get close.

It wasn’t until several minutes had passed that Levy finally broke the silence.

"I think I’m almost level five."

Sage glanced over. "How close?"

Levy grinned.

"You first."

Sage gave him a sideways look.

"I don’t need to know that badly."

"Worth a shot."

She shook her head before looking toward Noah instead.

"What about you?"

Noah didn’t even hesitate.

"I’m still hundreds away from leveling up."

Sage raised an eyebrow, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"What are you at? Level 4 too?"

Noah glanced at her and raised an open palm.

"Level five?"

Noah nodded.

"Wait, so you’re already awakened?"

Her eyes widened slightly as the realization settled in.

"And you’re about to level up again?"

"I wouldn’t say about, but the bar is creeping along."

Sage looked at him for another moment before glancing ahead, seemingly trying to grasp just how far ahead he was. Although he was only a single level ahead, the EXP difference was significant. Eight hundred EXP matched the value of about one hundred sixty walkers, probably more after his awakening.

Levy, meanwhile, couldn’t help but grin stupidly. He’d been just as surprised when Noah’s progress had begun to snowball. Still, after everything he’d witnessed—the strange abilities, the ridiculous encounters, and Noah’s seemingly endless string of lucky breaks—he’d gotten somewhat used to it.

At this point, if Noah were to reveal he could suddenly see lucky encounters, he wouldn’t be surprised. Slightly jealous? Yes. But not surprised.

"Are you close to leveling up?" Noah asked, interrupting Levy’s thoughts.

Levy looked at him, then accessed his system’s interface before dismissing it.

"I’m still about two-seventy away."

Noah nodded before turning his attention to Sage, silently posing the same question.

She considered withholding the information but ultimately chose to share it, noting their openness—which could be mistaken for carelessness.

"About two hundred," she replied.

Noah raised an eyebrow. "So you’re both pretty close."

"Pretty much," Levy said. "Although she’s got a little less work to do than me."

"Not by much," she responded.

Levy shrugged. "Still less."

As if remembering something, he suddenly glanced toward her.

"By the way, do you know anything about the awakening process?"

Sage shook her head.

"Why? Isn’t it similar to leveling up?"

Levy’s grin widened.

"Not at all; in fact, if it’s anything like Noah’s, you’re in for a world of pain and misery."

Noah’s expression immediately soured. "Thanks for the reminder."

"I’m just saying." Levy laughed. "I’m still considering becoming a <anno data-annotation-id="c8492c25-0d22-efbb-7ec0-89b21d4cde11" data-title="porter">porter¹</anno> just so I don’t have to go through that."

Noah shuddered.

The memory resurfaced almost instantly—the sensation of something branching out from the inside, the unbearable pressure building beneath his skin before it felt as though his body was being ripped apart and rebuilt all at once. Even now, if he focused hard enough, he could almost feel that tearing sensation in his abdomen again.

He quickly pushed the memory aside and turned to Sage.

"Don’t listen to him. He’s a coward."

Levy shrugged. "Call it what you want, but after watching you go through that... yeah, no."

Noah shook his head.

"Totally up to you."

He then walked Sage through the process from beginning to end, describing the symptoms she might experience and the pain that could accompany them. He explained that everyone’s experience could differ and that there was no reliable way of knowing exactly what someone would receive until the process was complete.

By the time he finished, Sage had gone noticeably quieter.

"So basically," she said, "I might suffer."

Noah narrowed his eyes at her.

"That’s all you got from that?"

<annotations style="display: none;">a person whose job is to carry luggage</annotations>

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