Survival in the Class: I'm the Only Boy on the Bus

[BGM: Farewell to the Faraway Star - Mingchao First Appointment Radio]

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Ten troop carriers slowly drove into the fog.

The children at the city wall gate only then realized what was happening, and tears welled up uncontrollably in their eyes, blurring their vision.

Yet they still reached out their little hands and took short steps toward the ten gradually blurring pale yellow shadows.

They wanted to run to the other side of the overpass, to stop their mother and sister from leaving, and to pull them back.

Just like a year ago, they didn't want their father and brother to leave either.

The children have already lost their father and brother, and now their mother and sister are leaving too.

But the grandparents beside them held tightly to the children's wrists and the corners of their clothes.

The elderly people all knew that the woman in white had resolutely gotten into the car so that they and the children could live well in White Dove City.

Once the million-strong zombie horde breaks through the defenses, White Dove City will be reduced to ruins again, just like it was 6 years ago, and this time it will be even worse than it was 6 years ago!

In this way, the home they had painstakingly rebuilt from the ruins would be shattered once again.

The ten troop carriers had already disappeared into the fog, and even their pale yellow and pale red taillights, which were also shrouded in mist, could not be seen.

Most of the elderly people were trying their best to stay upright, holding their crying and fussing children tightly in their arms.

The elderly people comforted the children in hushed tones as they carried them back to the city.

A few elderly people, in a daze, dragged their carts onto the overpass and walked to the bodies of their loved ones.

The elderly people had long anticipated this scene and had prepared a cart to haul the body away.

Even though we had anticipated this, the eyes of these elderly people were still vacant. It was obvious that their eyes had lost focus; in other words, they seemed to have lost their souls.

The elderly people carried the bodies onto the cart one by one, gritting their teeth and working together to pull it toward the city.

From beginning to end, they dared not lift the shroud to look at the group of grown children.

Because it's easy to tell from the outline of the shroud and the bloodstains that they were completely unrecognizable.

The old people pulled the cart stiffly as they walked toward White Dove City.

Some elderly people even opened their mouths wide, their lips trembling, and the facial muscles around their mouths twitching.

They tried to shout, but instead they inhaled into their throats and could only make "uh uh" sounds.

A gust of wind lifted the white ribbons on the city wall and inside the city.

White doves circled and danced in the air, like sheets of white paper money.

The whole city turned into a giant funeral.

A white-haired person attends the funeral of a black-haired person.

But a year later, this scene may be playing out again...

On the other side of the top of the city wall.

Purple Shadow Glaze remained seated by the stone fence.

Those bare feet swayed back and forth in the air.

As a detail, she wore a ring on her middle toe, which was tied with a purple fabric and connected to purple leather leggings, in order to prevent the waistband from slipping up during intense exercise.

Zi Ying Liuli looked in the direction where the troop transport vehicle disappeared into the mist, then glanced down at the corpses on the cart.

She first stretched lazily, then shook her head and clicked her tongue twice:

"Why? Why are they, like those Chinese, so eager to die?!"

"They keep talking about protecting their country, yet they dare to physically shield themselves from a zombie horde."

"How stupid! Knowing they're going to die, why rush in?! Since they're going to die anyway, they might as well be dragged onto the troop carriers and run away. Maybe a lot of people can actually escape."

"If it were me, I would have run away long ago! I'm not going to do something so stupid as to get myself killed!"

She tilted her head to look at Hunter beside her, her tone carrying a hint of coquetry, but no matter how much she tried to coax him, it still sounded very imposing.

"I'll pay my respects first! What do you say?!"

Hunter stood beside Purple Shadow Glass's clone with his hands in his pockets, the wind blowing his tie.

He had a cigarette dangling from his mouth, the smoke drifting away on the wind.

Hunter's eyes remained fixed on the direction where the troop carrier had disappeared. He slowly exhaled a puff of smoke before speaking:

"I think I understand now why, after this global catastrophe, only China was spared from having any land invaded by zombies..."

Hunter frowned:

"But I don't understand why they would help another country? Isn't it better to protect their own interests? Why do they care what others do?!"

After Hunter finished speaking, he took a deep drag of his lit cigarette and gently patted Zi Ying Liuli's shoulder:

"Alright, ma'am, let's get to work. I've already set my sights on a beautiful young lady!"

Although they were all on top of the city wall, Hunter and Ziying Liuli were still quite a distance away from Jiang Chen and the others.

Wu Maiduo had been keeping an eye on the two people in the distance, but she didn't notice anything unusual about them.

The white silk in the city was put on by Hazar using white doves, which almost exhausted her mental energy.

Fortunately, many of the white doves were quite clever, such as "Little Fatty." They seemed to know that it was time to change the red ribbons, so they spontaneously paired up and took off the red ribbons from the wooden poles and replaced them with white ribbons.

Apart from Hazard, the girls' eyes were all red-rimmed. They kept wiping their eyes and staring blankly down at the corpses being carried to the city gate below.

Bai Nuonuo threw herself into Wen Ruyan's arms and cried, her shoulders shaking and sobbing constantly, her ahoge drooping down.

Having lost her parents, she understands how the children feel right now.

Wen Ruyan could only squat down, gently pat Bai Nuonuo's back, and comfort her.

Although Qin Hongkou's eyes were also a little red, she was still able to maintain a calm demeanor, having seen many ups and downs.

Her gaze fell on Jiang Chen.

She was very curious about what Xiao Chen, who was good at coaxing girls, would say to Hazard, who was putting on a brave face.

Jiang Chen quietly looked at Hazard.

At this moment, Hazard seemed very calm. He simply squatted down and picked up the red ribbons on the ground one by one, folding them neatly.

The white doves seemed to sense Hazar's unhappiness and gathered around, rubbing their fluffy little heads against her legs.

In fact, Hazard's eyes were already red.

She was probably the saddest person in the whole city.

Hazard knew all the men who had died in battle and the women who had just left in troop carriers. He could not only call them by name accurately, but he also had a good relationship with them.

Scenes of his time with them kept flashing through Hazard's mind.

But now, they're all gone...

Just like those friends who risked their lives to protect you back then, one by one, they're all gone...

Hazard squatted down in a daze, picked up the red silk, folded it neatly, stood up again, walked to the next wooden pole, squatted down again, and repeated the process over and over.

The white doves followed in Hazard's footsteps.

Gradually, Hazard distanced himself from the girls.

Tears welled up in her eyes and slid down her cheeks, accidentally hitting the pigeons at her feet.

The pigeons, struck by tears, merely flapped their wings twice before following Hazard's lead.

Jiang Chen followed behind Hazard, several steps away, silently watching the girl who was suppressing her grief.

He could sense that Hazard was trying his best to suppress his emotions, and that if he didn't release them, it would cause serious harm to his body.

Jiang Chen sighed softly and quickly walked behind Hazard.

Hazar, who was holding several rolls of red silk in his left hand, hurriedly raised his left hand after hearing footsteps and wiped his eyes hard with the red silk several times.

The red silk was made of a stiff, coarse cotton cloth, unlike the fabric of clothing. So when Hazard wiped the corners of his eyes, it directly turned them red.

With his back to Jiang Chen, Hazard took a few deep breaths before turning around, bowing slightly to Jiang Chen, his voice choked with emotion:

"Brother Jiang Chen, I'm sorry... I need to put the red ribbon away first..."

"If it rains later, it'll be hard to clean up if it gets wet..."

At this moment, the sky was completely cloudless, a deep blue.

As Hazard spoke, his little nose twitched, his nasal voice grew heavier, and he lowered his head.

She felt tears welling up in her eyes again, and quickly wiped them away with the red silk in her left hand.

Jiang Chen noticed that a large patch of the red ribbon on Hazard's left hand was soaked, turning from bright red to dark red.

Hazard himself also noticed the change in Hongling.

Afraid that her brother Jiang Chen and sisters would worry, she quickly raised her head, tilted it slightly, and her eyes curved upwards again, but tears kept squeezing out from the closed corners of her eyes.

Hazard stretched his lips into a wide grin, jokingly pretending to be relaxed:

"Ouch! The wind was so strong just now, sand got in my eyes, hahaha...!"

Halfway through her laughter, she seemed a little embarrassed:

"Okay... that joke was lame, hahaha! Haha..."

The last two laughs subsided.

"Brother Jiang Chen, I'm fine~, really fine~, don't worry about me, I'm doing really well now! Hehe!"

Jiang Chen looked at Hazard quietly, at her forced smile, his eyes softening.

Finally, Jiang Chen said this sentence calmly:

"Hazard...it must be tiring to keep smiling..."