NOVGO.NET Chapter 46 Stranded III
Chapter 46: Chapter 46 Stranded III
The inside of the skyscraper wasn’t nearly as bad as they had expected.
Compared to the nightmare outside, it almost felt peaceful.
Most of the debris and strange pathogens crawling across the streets hadn’t made their way indoors. The marble floor was cracked in several places, and there were muddy footprints left behind from when the floodwaters had swept through, but apart from that, the lobby remained surprisingly intact.
There were still puddles of water that hadn’t completely dried up, leaving a damp smell hanging in the air.
Manageable.
That was probably the best word to describe it.
"Dang..."
Luna pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance.
"I seriously need a bath right now because what is this? I don’t think I’ve ever gone this long without taking one."
She had barely taken a step toward what looked like the hallway leading to the restrooms when Rowan stretched out an arm to stop her.
"Where exactly are you going?"
He frowned.
"Where are you planning to find water? And aren’t you supposed to stay close to us?"
Luna slowly turned to look at him before casually flipping her long black hair over one shoulder.
"I’m not comfortable smelling like blood and rot."
She wrinkled her nose.
"I don’t know about you men, but I need a quick bath."
"Or at least a change of clothes."
Kai quietly covered his face.
Women...
He honestly wasn’t sure he would ever understand them.
The world had practically ended, monsters were roaming outside, and somehow fashion and smelling nice were still important.
Not that he was stupid enough to say that aloud.
One look from Luna was enough to convince him she’d gladly bury him alive.
"So..."
She placed a hand on her waist.
"Are you going to move?"
"Or should I just crawl under your legs?"
The words slipped out before she could stop herself.
For a second...
Silence.
Then Rowan’s ears immediately turned red.
His face followed soon after.
Without saying another word, he awkwardly stepped aside while pretending nothing had happened.
Kai’s eyes widened.
"Wait..."
He pointed dramatically.
"Is he actually blushing?"
Every single head turned toward Rowan.
The poor man instantly wished a monster would burst through the wall that very second.
Preferably one that would drag Kai away and eat him alive.
He wouldn’t even try saving him.
Luna blinked before letting out a small laugh.
"Oh, don’t be embarrassed."
She shrugged casually.
"It’s normal."
"It’s not like you’re not a man."
"So I’d honestly be more worried if you didn’t react."
That only made Rowan even more embarrassed.
His face was practically burning now.
Seeing him squirm, Luna chuckled softly before continuing down the hallway.
Naturally...
The four men refused to let her wander off alone.
One after another, they followed behind her while carefully scanning every corner of the building.
The narrow hallway stretched endlessly ahead.
The once gleaming white walls had become dull with age, while patches of strange thorn-like algae had begun spreading across them.
Whatever those things were...
They seemed determined to invade every surface they touched.
The deeper they walked, the quieter everything became.
Even their breathing sounded unusually loud.
Ethan remained at the back of the group, occasionally lifting his head to study the ceiling for any sign of movement.
Halfway through the corridor, something suddenly crossed his mind.
"Hey..."
He looked toward Luna.
"What’s your name again?"
Before Luna could answer, Kai beat her to it.
"It’s Luna Hart."
Luna stopped walking.
She slowly turned around, staring at Kai with narrowed eyes.
"...How do you know my full name?"
For a moment she considered asking him directly.
Then decided against it.
Kai, on the other hand, looked completely unbothered.
He waved both hands innocently.
"Relax."
"It’s not like I stalked you."
"I asked your server back there."
"He told me almost immediately."
"He made it sound like it wasn’t even a secret."
Luna simply stared at him for another second before shaking her head.
She wasn’t sure whether to be impressed...
Or annoyed.
Ethan rolled his eyes dramatically.
"As I was saying..."
He shot Kai a glare.
"Before the cockroach interrupted me."
Kai gasped.
"Cockroach?"
Ethan ignored him.
"Didn’t you say you were giving us guns?"
"If we’re supposed to protect you, then we actually need weapons."
Luna blinked.
Right.
She had completely forgotten.
She had been so distracted by everything happening that the guns had completely slipped her mind.
Her gaze briefly landed on Ethan.
Giving him a weapon...
Was that really a smart idea?
Could he point it at her?
Probably.
Would he actually succeed in killing her?
Not a chance.
She could deal with that later.
"Well..."
She nodded.
"Thank you, Ethan."
"You’ve finally contributed something useful after all that nonstop complaining during our walk."
She smiled sweetly.
"Even if it was just another speech."
The tiny smile on Ethan’s face shattered instantly.
Kai quickly turned away to hide the grin spreading across his own lips.
Luna crouched slightly before reaching into her handbag.
The others watched curiously.
Then—
Thud!
Something suddenly dropped from the ceiling.
All five of them snapped their heads upward, instincts taking over immediately.
Weapons were nearly raised.
Only for them to realize...
It was just a wall gecko.
The tiny creature landed against the wall before scurrying away so quickly it disappeared around the corner within seconds.
Adrain slowly lowered his guard.
"Wow..."
"A living creature."
"Isn’t that surprising?"
His words made Luna pause for a brief moment.
He was right.
Shouldn’t ordinary animals have gone extinct by now?
Between the floods...
The monsters...
And whatever strange energy had transformed the world...
How had something as harmless as a gecko managed to survive?
The thought lingered in her mind only briefly before she continued searching through her handbag.
"Here."
She suddenly pulled out two massive firearms.
Without any warning, she tossed one toward Rowan and the other toward Adrain.
Both men caught them instinctively.
The moment Adrain looked at the weapon in his hands...
His eyes widened.
"Oh..."
He carefully ran his fingers across the body of the gun.
"My..."
His breathing quickened.
"These are incredible."
His voice was almost trembling now.
"Do you even know what these are?"
He looked back at Luna in complete disbelief.
"These aren’t ordinary weapons."
"They’re military-grade."
"No..."
He corrected himself while inspecting the custom attachments.
"They’re even better."
"How did you get your hands on beauties like these?"
Before the apocalypse, Adrain had spent years studying machinery, firearms, and engineering.
He had dreamed of becoming a weapons engineer after graduating from college.
Then the apocalypse happened.
And every single one of those dreams disappeared overnight.
Holding such a weapon now felt almost unreal.
Luna simply smiled.
"I’m sure you can already see where I brought them from."
For a second...
Silence.
Then Ethan burst into laughter.
A loud one.
He practically doubled over while clutching his stomach.
"Oh my God..."
He wiped tears from the corners of his eyes.
"Luna..."
"That was actually funny."
"I never knew you had that kind of humor."
He laughed even harder.
Kai merely sighed.
He already knew what Ethan was thinking.
He assumed Luna meant she had somehow stuffed the guns inside her handbag.
If only he knew...
It wasn’t a joke.
Not even close.
Ethan pointed toward the bag while trying to catch his breath.
"For a second..."
He laughed again.
"It actually sounded like you were saying those huge guns came out of that tiny handbag."
"That’s hilarious."
No one laughed with him.
Adrain had already returned to inspecting his weapon with complete fascination.
Rowan looked as bored as ever.
Luna simply continued digging through the handbag.
Without saying a word...
She pulled out two more guns.
Then casually tossed them toward Kai and Ethan.
Kai caught his effortlessly.
Ethan wasn’t paying attention.
Thump!
The heavy firearm landed squarely against his stomach before dropping into his arms.
"Ouch!"
He bent over slightly, rubbing the sore spot with an offended expression.
Luna looked at him without the slightest sympathy.
"There."
"Now you’re all armed."
She adjusted her bag before continuing deeper into the building.
The others followed immediately behind her.
Ethan hurried after them while still rubbing his stomach.
"What did I even do this time?"
Nobody answered him.
Their footsteps echoed through the empty skyscraper as they disappeared farther into the dim hallway, weapons finally resting in their hands.
None of them noticed the faint shadow stretching across the wall behind them.
It moved silently.
Patiently.
Keeping just enough distance to remain unseen.
And directly behind Ethan...
It followed.