Life inside Karmara Forum had finally started to settle into order.
After three days of cleanup, there was not even a single corpse left inside.
The electricity was still working.
The water was still running.
And the food stockpiles were at an unbelievable level.
But the unease inside Karel never faded.
Because they had no news from the outside world.
After breakfast, he stood up.
"I'm going outside for a bit."
Boran looked up.
"Where?"
"Toward Zeytinburnu."
Riven raised an eyebrow.
"Alone?"
"Alone."
"We'll come too."
Karel shook his head.
"No."
"Why?"
"Who's going to protect this place?"
Boran fell silent.
He was right.
There were dozens of people inside.
Karmara Forum was their only safe place right now.
Riven sighed.
"Just be careful."
Karel smiled.
"Are you worried about me?"
"No."
"If you wreck my car, I'll curse you out."
Boran laughed.
"Now that's real friendship."
After a while, Karel went down to the parking area.
He pulled out the military vehicle from its spot.
The engine started.
The doors opened.
And he set off alone.
The city was terrifyingly silent.
In some places, hundreds of cars were piled on top of each other.
In some streets, not a single living soul remained.
In others, there were still wandering zombies.
But Karel focused on something else.
Traces of humans.
About an hour later, he reached the Zeytinburnu area.
From a distance, it looked normal at first.
But as he got closer, he noticed something strange.
There were lookouts on the rooftops of some buildings.
Some streets were blocked with barricades.
And armed people were patrolling the area.
Karel left his vehicle and moved silently.
He climbed onto a building rooftop.
From there, he observed the area below.
For about two hours, he did nothing but watch.
And what he saw did not please him.
A large group had established a small order here.
But what they called order…
was pure oppression.
They had taken control of parts of the streets.
They were giving orders to people with weapons in hand.
They were beating those who opposed them.
They gathered food for themselves…
and forced others to do the work.
Even worse…
They were essentially using some people as slaves.
One warehouse caught his attention.
Its windows were covered.
Guards stood at the entrance.
Karel watched for a few minutes.
Then he saw a man coming out from inside.
The man's face was bruised.
His lips were split open.
He was struggling to walk.
A guard at the door hit him on the neck.
"Move, damn it!"
The man lowered his head in fear.
A slow smile formed on Karel's face.
"So that's how it is…"
He kept watching for a while longer.
Dozens of people were entering and leaving the warehouse throughout the day.
But the expression on those coming out was always the same.
Fear.
Some had children with them.
Some elderly people were sitting on the ground.
Some women were silently crying.
And the men leading that group…
They thought they owned the world.
One of them was shouting loudly.
Another was cursing.
Another was forcibly collecting food from people.
As Karel watched, the old anger inside him slowly resurfaced.
Because in his past life, one of the things he hated most was this:
People who crushed the weak.
But still, he didn't move.
Not yet.
Because there were things he needed to learn first.
He kept observing for hours.
He learned how many they were.
Roughly forty people.
He learned where their weapons were stored.
He learned their guard rotation times.
He learned who the real threats were.
And most importantly…
He saw that there were also people who could be useful among them.
A mechanic.
A former police officer.
A nurse.
A welding specialist.
A cook.
Karel engraved their faces into his mind.
"Maybe they'll be useful."
As the sun began to set, he returned to his vehicle.
Just as he was about to leave, he heard shouting in the distance.
A group of men was dragging a teenager out of the warehouse.
The boy was no older than seventeen.
"Please don't."
"I swear I didn't do it."
"I swear I didn't!"
One of them kicked him.
"Shut your mouth!"
The boy fell to the ground.
The men laughed.
Karel watched them silently for a few seconds.
Then he hit the steering wheel.
"You're lucky."
For today.
He started the engine.
And drove back toward Karmara Forum.
The entire way back, he was silent.
But plans were forming in his mind.
Some of those people would be saved.
Some would be useful.
And some…
Were completely useless.
And Karel didn't like useless things at all.
About two hours later, he arrived at Karmara Forum.
He reached the closed parking entrance.
He opened the door.
Went inside.
But at the very first step, he felt something strange.
Silence.
Normally at this hour, there would be voices.
Conversations.
Laughter.
Now there was…
Nothing.
Karel frowned.
He quickly went upstairs.
First floor.
No one.
Second floor.
No one.
Third floor.
No one.
Fourth floor.
No one.
"What the hell is going on?"
For the first time, his voice came out sharper.
Finally, he reached the top floor.
And he froze at what he saw.
People were lying on the ground.
Doctor couple.
Cooks.
Mechanics.
Cleaners.
All of them were on the ground.
Some were struggling to breathe.
Some were unconscious.
And a little further ahead…
Boran.
Riven.
Mira.
All three were lying there.
The smile on Karel's face completely vanished.
His mood shifted instantly.
He rushed to them and knelt down.
Checked their pulses.
They were alive.
At that moment…
A weak voice came from behind.
"…K… Karel…"
Karel turned his head.
The old doctor was looking at him with difficulty.
"I think…"
"…something is changing…"
Karel frowned.
"What's changing?"
The doctor tried to respond.
But he himself didn't seem to know what was happening.
At that moment Mira's fingers twitched slightly.
Then Boran's hand moved.
Then Riven's.
And strange spasms began in the bodies of several people lying on the ground.
Karel immediately stood up.
"Doctor!"
The doctor's wife was also trying to get up in a semi-conscious state.
No one understood what was happening.
For several minutes, everyone waited in silence.
Then Boran opened his eyes.
Took a deep breath.
Stared at the ceiling for a few seconds.
"Man…"
Karel immediately knelt beside him.
"How are you?"
Boran didn't respond for a moment.
Then tried to sit up.
"Strange."
"What's strange?"
"It's like…"
"…something inside my body has changed."
Riven slowly opened his eyes too.
"Dude…"
"…I feel the same thing."
Mira also sat up.
She looked confused.
"My heart is beating really fast."
The doctor finally managed to stand up.
"Your heart rates are returning to normal."
"How is that possible?"
No one had an answer.
As hours passed, more people started waking up.
But three people…
Were still unconscious.
One man.
Two women.
Karel stood over them, waiting.
The unease inside him grew.
Because he felt this was not normal.
But he didn't know why.
At that moment…
One of the men lying on the ground suddenly began to tremble.
Then another.
Then another.
The doctor stepped back.
"Something is going wrong."
Karel quietly drew his pistol.
And for the first time…
He realized he was facing an event he truly did not understand.
To be continued…