My 100th Rebirth a day before the Apocalypse novel Chapter 451

Half an hour had passed without any sign of movement from the other side, and he began to second-guess himself.

Was he truly in danger, or was he merely imagining shadows in the darkness?

The lack of immediate threat made him feel unsure; it was unnerving to be on edge when the enemy remained unseen.

He took a deep breath, grounding himself in the present.

Doubt was a dangerous companion in times like this.

Instead of succumbing to it, he reminded himself of the facts: they had encountered too many organized attacks lately to ignore the possibility of an evolved zombie lurking nearby.

Duke forced his focus back to his team, watching their faces as they remained vigilant, ready for any sign of danger.

Their trust in him gave him strength. They needed a plan, and he was determined to formulate one that would keep them alive, whether that meant confronting the threat head-on or finding a way to slip past it unnoticed.

Whatever lay ahead, he was prepared to face it.

That’s what he thought when he resolved to protect his people.

But just as his determination solidified, who could have predicted another wave of zombies would surge toward them?

This time, it wasn’t just a few hundred—it was a full-on small-scale zombie raid that took them completely by surprise.

"Fall back! Get to safer ground!" Duke commanded, his voice cutting through the chaos.

He conjured another round of ice spears, each one as long as his own spear.

With a force like a ballista, the spears shot forward, pinning two or three zombies to the walls at once.

But it still wasn’t enough—it felt like trying to fend off a hornet swarm with a needle.

Despite his relentless efforts, their numbers barely seemed to dwindle.

"Sir, there’s nowhere left to fall back to!" one of his warriors shouted, hacking his way through the encircling zombies.

"And there’s no end to them!" another called out, as more undead flooded in from every street around them.

For each one they managed to take down, two more took its place, surging forward in an endless tide.

Duke scanned their surroundings desperately, searching for any possible escape route.

If he were alone, he could slip away—but leaving his team behind wasn’t an option.

"Rotate positions every two minutes!" he commanded, voice steady despite the chaos.

"Don’t exhaust yourself before switching out with the person behind you! And if your spiritual energy and stamina are still low after resting and you’re hitting your limit, use the stamina booster and the vial of black liquid!"

"Yes sir!"

"Roger sir!"

"We will!"

A unified shout of agreement filled the air, their voices steadying each other amidst the chaos.

A shiver ran through them—not from fear, but from the surge of determination and resolve to survive.

Knowing they wouldn’t turn into zombies if bitten gave them an edge, replacing fear with a focused drive to fight their way out.

They fought their way through, conjuring earth spikes from the ground with a speed they hadn’t realized they’d gained.