A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

To this day, Bray himself still doesn't understand the principle.

At first, Bray also thought that although the fanny pack had a lot of space, it probably wouldn't be able to fit large items inside.

But one day I suddenly had the idea to put the table into my waist bag, so I gave it a try.

The result was success.

Bray looked around; all he saw were ruins, and he would have to search through everything to find anything.

"This is so troublesome," Bray muttered dejectedly.

"Levy, let's take a look at the outer city." He mostly explored the middle city because it wasn't far.

However, by the same token, other adventurers in the Imperial Capital Safe Zone also explore the Central City the most.

Almost no one goes to the outer city. Not to mention that the outer city is the least developed part of the capital, the monsters encountered along the way from the inner city to the outer city are enough to kill a normal person ten or more times.

Bray wasn't afraid of monsters, but he thought going to the outer city was too far.

However, since the central city couldn't sense what was needed for the commission and couldn't find a good mattress, they could only try their luck in the outer city.

It was really luck. After all, the outer city was definitely not as prosperous as the central city, and who knew if there would even be a soft, comfortable bed suitable for Nia.

"Oh!" Levy responded naturally after hearing Bray's words, and naturally picked Bray up and carried him.

Yes, Levy picked Bray up in her arms.

Although the position was quite embarrassing, Bray's expression remained calm.

Because this wasn't the first time, many things aren't so shameful after you get used to them.

The saying goes, "If there's a first time, there will be a second time, and then an infinite number of times."

I got used to being held by Levy, and once I got used to it, I found it quite comfortable to be held by a little girl.

"Bray?" Levy, who was about to start running, asked in confusion after noticing that Bray was in a daze.

“It’s nothing…” Bray raised an eyebrow, realizing he had been thinking about something terrifying.

"Levy, let's go!" Levy's tone was unusually excited, as if something exciting was about to happen.

"Okay, let's run." Bray, who was being held by a girl two heads shorter than him, said expressionlessly.

With a "whoosh," Levy vanished from her spot, having already sped over a hundred meters away.

This wasn't the first time Bray had experienced this exhilarating feeling, but each time he was filled with awe.

Wow, that's fast! When will I be able to be that fast without needing to "in an instant"?

As Brehu was lost in thought, the scenery on both sides changed rapidly, and gradually, they were getting closer and closer to the outer city.

---

At this time, the outer city of the capital was lush and green, even more vibrant than the original outskirts of the capital.

This is practically mocking the current situation of Dark Iron races, where even the wild is more vibrant than the safe zone.

Of course, this forest is not only teeming with life.

There are also scenes that symbolize death.

In the forest, there were countless corpses that had rotted down to their bones, which looked gray and dull in the mud.

You won't find clean white bones in those rotting corpses; those disgusting bones are the normal ones.

"That madman!!!" In this forest where life and death coexist, a person threw the cup in his hand to the ground.

The man's expression was extremely distorted, and he kept muttering something.

If you listen carefully, you'll hear that this person keeps cursing something.

This guy is like a powder keg right now, incredibly irritable.

He's probably thinking about destruction right now, wanting to vent all his frustration and anger through destructive acts.

"Don't throw cups while you're running wild. If you break one, you won't be able to drink any water yourself," a boy who looked to be only thirteen years old said coldly from a rusty magic vehicle.

The magical vehicle was covered in rust, both in its exterior and in its parts.

It's a miracle that it's even running, and one can only imagine the hoarse sound it makes when it's moving.

And the one driving this magical vehicle was this child who was not yet an adult.

The boy's face showed no trace of childlike innocence; his every word and action was mature like that of an adult.

His eyes reflected that as well.

Even surrounded by withered bones in the forest, he remained calm and unhurriedly took a sip of water.

A dead body deserves pity and sorrow.

But when there are enough corpses, they just become a kind of scenery.

The boy was initially moved by the sight of death, but he had already become numb to it so early.

"Tsk." The guy who had been throwing a tantrum seemed to have calmed down and picked up the cup he had thrown away.

While not having a cup doesn't mean you can't drink water, having a cup is definitely more than twice as convenient.

Many things that require adjustment need a cup, which a water bag cannot replace.

"Aren't you afraid that pervert will catch up with you?" After venting his anger, the man seemed much more normal.

The guy who just lost his temper is a normal person, an incredibly normal person, neither a madman nor an evil person.

People always accumulate stress, and losing control of emotions is just one way to release that stress.

“What’s the use of being afraid? Besides, he can’t possibly walk faster than us.” After finishing the dark liquid in his cup, the boy threw it into the back of the truck.

He drank a simple medicine made by mixing water and powder from a cup.

The drive here takes you through many strange places, including miasma pools.

These places were originally ordinary wilderness areas, but they have been irreversibly changed due to the influence of the concept of the Silver Species.

If there's no antidote, they'll probably die along with the magic car while running.

"You're really thick-skinned. That guy's addicted to eating people."

---

PS: Due to work reasons, I can only update once a week. I don't have time to proofread this now =A= Eating people is a terrifying thing, but many people think that it will become commonplace in the apocalypse.

But in fact it is not the case.

Ordinary people would only attempt cannibalism when faced with extreme food shortages, thus crossing the line of basic human decency.

Due to continuous wars, food supplies were completely disrupted, and food was so scarce that even tree bark was scarce, so cannibalism might become normal.

However, this natural disaster is not quite the same; its nature is somewhat different.

It is also different from man-made disasters like war.

The invasion of the Silver race directly wiped out most of the lower races, but that resulted in a sharp decline in population.

They did not destroy the "resources".

It might unintentionally destroy some important resources, but Silver-tier monsters won't do it intentionally.

Just like a year or two ago, Bray was even able to find nutritional supplements and rice in the ruins.

Civilization has not completely declined; it's just that there are no more people.

It is entirely feasible to resume farming, and the artifacts can also be remade using the remaining waste.

Everything that is lacking can be found in the world of yesteryear, as long as one dares to seek it.

Therefore, people generally do not resort to cannibalism.

Only a few insane people would use hunger as an excuse to do such a horrific thing.

The man who was cursing earlier, and this expressionless boy, are both the kind of crazy people they're talking about.

"Luo Shiqi, you said there's a safe zone nearby, is that really true?" The man remembered a very important question and couldn't help but ask.

“You’ve asked this question no less than five times along the way,” the boy called Luo Shiqi said casually, glancing at the man who had been throwing a tantrum earlier.

Their original safe zone was completely occupied by monsters, and a large number of people were forced to leave the safe zone and come to the dangerous outside world.

There are even more monsters outside, and you might even spot demigods in the distance.

As we traveled along, the number of people decreased, and the resources we brought out of the safe zone also decreased.

Originally a group of people, they split into two groups, then into four groups, and then continued to disperse.

Luo Shiqi and the man also followed a small group, searching for the nearest safe zone.

However, an unexpected incident occurred along the way: someone in the team suggested eating the person who was dragging the team down.

This idea is chilling just to hear; no one would agree to it.

At first, no one agreed with him, and some even rejected the madman. Isn't someone who can say such things so casually a madman?

Moreover, if we actually do that, who knows if we'll be the next one to be eaten?

However, the large number of injured, disabled, and sick members in the group significantly slowed down the pace of their march.

Behind him were frantically pursuing monsters, and not far away were demigods who would die upon contact.

People's hearts quickly wavered, and for some reason, the food was dwindling rapidly. They seemed to be possessed, echoing the words of the madman from before.

Things didn't actually develop as expected afterward; there were quite a few people with humanity, at least more than the irrational ones.

But that madman did something horrific first.

As for what exactly the horror was, there's no point in saying too much. All you need to know is that it wasn't just about killing or eating someone.

This morbid madness seems like a virus, constantly spreading within the ranks.

Once is enough; there will be countless times, and the same applies to things that challenge moral boundaries.

It was nowhere near the point of cannibalism, yet those people did it anyway.

This is not a sudden process, but rather like a disease, it gradually worsens until it finally erupts.

Luo Shiqi and this man chose to run away before they were infected by the insane virus or eaten.

Moreover, they also stole the magical wagon that was supposed to be used to transport goods from the group.

It wasn't that no one had thought of secretly driving the car away at high speed before, but there weren't many people who knew how to repair or drive a magical car.

To recklessly drive alone on this desolate land is tantamount to courting death.

Therefore, even those who know how to repair and drive cars do not try to escape alone, probably because they feel that having someone to look after them is much better than taking risks alone.

Unfortunately, they were quickly eliminated, seemingly intentionally.

Koro Seventeen never told anyone that he knew these things, and no one would ever imagine that a mere thirteen-year-old kid would know about magic vehicles.

The man hadn't expected this either, but he still quickly followed, almost instinctively running away with the boy under the cover of night.

He had originally thought he could take advantage of his age, but he ended up finding that he couldn't beat the thirteen-year-old boy, and he wasn't even as smart as him.

"Although I've asked five times, this question is really important; it concerns my life or death," the man said, pursing his lips in dissatisfaction.

“There must be a safe zone in the capital. This direction is the direction of the capital, and we’ve driven nearly a hundred kilometers... We should be getting there soon.” Luo Shiqi buried his face in his knees and said calmly.

The magic crystals in the car are enough to drive the magic vehicle for over thirty kilometers. With Luo Shiqi's own power and that man's magic power, driving another ten kilometers or so shouldn't be a problem.

"We're so poorly informed, how did you know there was a safe zone in the capital?"

"I guessed," Luo Shiqi said.

"..."

"Just kidding," the boy added.

"This isn't funny." The man's lips twitched a few times.

“Even our town has a safe zone. The capital city is such an important place, it’s impossible for it not to have one.”

"If I were the one placing this safe zone, I wouldn't prioritize it in an ordinary town either; ordinary towns probably wouldn't have a high priority..."

"If we work backwards, then since ordinary towns have them, it proves that this safe zone isn't unique."

"It's not something unique... The capital city, as the core of the country, must also have it."

"What you said seems to make a lot of sense, but it doesn't quite hold up to scrutiny." The man tapped his forehead, looking somewhat troubled. He was starting to doubt the boy and really regretted following him.