Andrew turned around and saw the two people he had told to hide. When he realized who they were, he lost interest and looked at the people in front of him. Suddenly, the young man in the group—who looked about twenty-two or twenty-three years old, dressed in blue sportswear and holding a sword in his right hand—stepped forward to break the awkward atmosphere and approached the blonde girl.
"So that guy is the swordsman I saw before," Andrew thought silently as he watched him walk toward the blonde girl.
When the young swordsman approached the silver-haired girl, his eyes lit up and, as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders, he smiled. "Sloane, I'm glad you're okay…"
Sloane? Andrew blinked before finally realizing why the girl had seemed somewhat familiar to him.
Sloane Whitaker, a fourth-year student. A girl from a wealthy family in Manhattan, and also the top-ranked student at the institute. And the most beautiful girl on campus.
Andrew knew something about her because he had heard her name a couple of times when he went out with his friends. They used to tell him she was very sexy. However, since he had never seen her in person, she had not been important to him, and he had simply forgotten about her existence.
"I'm glad you're okay too, Chase."
Sloane Whitaker's cold and indifferent gaze did not change much when she saw the young man. However, Andrew noticed that the strange glimmer of repulsion or disgust in her eyes had noticeably lessened when she looked at him.
In any case, since the zombie problem had been resolved, Andrew did not stay to listen to the group's conversation. He turned around and walked away in silence.
"Wait a second, kid!" Jasper shouted quickly when he saw him leaving. His words attracted the attention of the other two.
Andrew stopped and turned to look at him silently, waiting for his next words.
"How about staying here with us?" Jasper proposed. "With the strength of the four of us together, we can easily annihilate those creatures and live a better life."
Andrew had a complicated look in his eyes. He simply turned away and, as he walked off, said casually, "I'm just going to look for the students and teachers I told to hide earlier. I didn't go through all the trouble of clearing this place just to leave casually."
"Huh?" Jasper was puzzled.
On the other hand, Sloane looked at him coldly before turning around and leaving as well. The young swordsman, Chase, quickly followed her while chatting with her.
Ten minutes later, the group of survivors saved by Andrew, Jasper, Sloane, and Chase gathered together to form a large group of about seventy people.
Since the storm was still raging and showed no signs of stopping anytime soon, the blood and metallic smell it carried were washed away by the rain within minutes. This could have prevented other creatures from approaching the area in search of food.
However, it also had its disadvantages. One of them was that everyone's clothes were completely soaked. Unfortunately, for now, they could only endure it.
After discussing for five minutes, the people hiding inside the gym were forced to open the doors despite their fear. Although none of them were willing to risk letting danger in, after Jasper Flynn threatened to break the doors down by force if they did not open them, they had no choice but to give in.
Andrew was surprised to discover that around thirty people were hiding inside the gym. Among them were men, women, and some teachers. All of them looked at the group with apprehension and suspicion.
Andrew ignored everything. He separated himself from the others and began walking through the building, making sure there were no hidden dangers of any kind.
The gym was truly enormous. Despite being called a gym, it was a massive building with all kinds of facilities.
There was a large indoor basketball court, a weight room, and a cafeteria. The latter was Andrew's target this time.
Bang! Bang!
The metal door was tightly shut. Andrew, who had moved away from the group, heard knocking sounds coming from inside.
He could not help but frown slightly as he thought about it. Since the cafeteria had glass windows, some insects might have managed to get in. As for larger creatures, it was impossible, as there were metal bars on the windows. Unless a monster with great strength or sharp weapons like the Great Mantis appeared, there was no way they could enter.
So that sound could only be coming from zombies.
Andrew looked to the right and left to make sure no one else was around. After confirming that he was alone, he opened his backpack and took out the sphere he had obtained earlier, along with the two scrolls.
"How does this color rarity grading thing work?" Andrew muttered aloud, forgetting that there was another existence there who could hear him.
"They are composed of seven colors according to their rarity grade," Brunilde said with a beautiful smile. Seeing Andrew's questioning look, she explained, "From lowest to highest rank, treasures are divided as follows: an orange sphere corresponds to a normal-grade treasure. A red sphere corresponds to a rare-grade treasure. A yellow sphere corresponds to a magic-grade treasure. Green spheres correspond to epic-grade treasures. The color blue indicates a legendary-grade treasure. Purple spheres correspond to semi-divine treasures. Finally, cyan-colored spheres indicate divine-grade treasures."
The corner of Andrew's mouth twitched several times and he could not help but complain, "Why make this color thing so complicated? You should stop explaining rarity levels by color… Now that I'm looking at this red sphere, I suddenly don't think it's worth much even if it's above orange, and here I thought it was some great epic-level treasure…"
"Mmm… I think you're misunderstanding something." Brunilde smiled and reminded him of something important. "Even a red-grade treasure is more valuable than a high-tech machine gun… Let me explain something to you."
"When you defeat a creature, you absorb its soul power. When that creature's soul power is much higher than yours, the Soul Record condenses all the power you couldn't absorb into treasures. The higher your enemy's level, the greater the chance of obtaining a higher-quality treasure, and the greater the remaining soul power, the higher the probability… Therefore, even the red sphere in your hands is more valuable than you think at your current state," Brunilde concluded with a smile.
Hearing her words, Andrew could not help but feel better. Although he wanted to ask more questions, he first wanted to finish what he was about to do. The questions could be asked later.
After pressing the red sphere firmly, it shattered and a new treasure appeared in front of Andrew.
[Anti-Cold Coat (Rare-Grade Treasure): A jacket that covers the upper body. It can block anything from light shotgun pellets to 9mm bullets. Resistant to all cold temperatures and keeps the wearer warm in extremely cold conditions. When worn, all attributes +15.]
Andrew's eyes lit up and his heart filled with joy. It was only a rare treasure, but this jacket increased his abilities by +15 points. This was a huge boost to Andrew's current power!
He quickly put on the jacket, taking off his soaked hoodie, and immediately felt his body become much lighter than before. Now, with 65 points in all statistics, Andrew was more than six times stronger than a normal person before the arrival of the Evolution Register System on planet Earth!
Suppressing his latent excitement, Andrew, now wearing the jacket, began to reflect. With this jacket, he was now immune to several types of firearms! Even if medium-caliber bullets were too powerful, with this treasure his survival rate had risen to a higher level, and he was immune to cold temperatures.
And he no longer had to fear being scratched by zombies! As long as he protected his head, there would be no problem with his safety.
"That treasure is amazing. Among the best in the rare category, just like your fire bow. Congratulations!" Brunilde smiled at him cheerfully.
Andrew was slightly surprised when he realized that she seemed genuinely happy for him, which left him puzzled.
"Brunilde, why are you so kind to me?" he asked, somewhat suspicious.
Brunilde bit her lips and blinked as she spoke in a soft voice, "I already told you… I want you to be mine~"
Andrew rolled his eyes and wisely decided to stop asking. Although he was not bad-looking and had dated a few girls before, he was not exceptionally handsome. Much less did he believe that the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life would fall in love with him at first sight.
Without delay, and fearing that someone else might come to that place, Andrew turned his attention to the two remaining scrolls.
[ Legacy of the Heroes Humanity – Passive Ability (Unclassified) – Level 5
Upon acquiring this ability, your body and mind will be infused with the experience of the greatest warriors in human history and the training of elite special forces. In addition, your body will attain the combat expertise and precision of Special Forces operatives, making you a master of melee tactical combat. Your knowledge of arms and strategic prowess will grow exponentially, combining the legends of historical warriors with the discipline and effectiveness of elite soldiers.]
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