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"If you help us ward off the horde you mentioned, I and my people will follow and join your group."

This was the kind of statement Mathew was waiting for. A pledge of allegiance, even if it was without any real weight.

There was no magic that would force the other group to follow Mathew\'s command now that they submitted to him. There would be nothing stopping them from stabbing Mathew back or simply leaving as soon as he would take care of the horde.

\'But none of that matters,\' Mathew thought, allowing a small smile at the corner of his mouth. \'All I need is a chance to make them realize just how insanely good my offer is!\'

"All the supplies we\'ve gathered during this scavenging run are in…" the former leader of the other group turned around, raising his hand to point in some direction.

"I don\'t care," Mathew cut into the man\'s words before shaking his shoulders. "We don\'t lack resources at all, be it food, fuel, or ammunition," he stated before lowering his eyes and sweeping his attention across the floor. Then, his eyes stopped right when he noticed the only kind of item that could be of real, practical use right away.

"We don\'t have a lot of guns, though," Mathew then added, taking three steps to the side before squatting down with a sigh and picking up the pistol.

Mathew\'s instinctively wanted to shove the gun under his belt… but he held out against this natural reaction of his. Instead, he turned his head and scanned everyone gathered in the place. Then, as his eyes continue to move around, he took notice of the huge number of zombies his group left in their wake a bit before.

\'I guess there is no other choice,\' Mathew thought, heaving a deep sigh.

"Guys," Mathew turned his head back towards the former leader of the other group. As the rest of said group was in no hurry to pledge their loyalty as their leader did, it only made sense for Mathew to address them through the man. "We will need to split up."

This was the one sentence that everyone, even before the apocalypse, already grew tired of. The characters splitting off in a horror movie always led them to get picked out one by one. Heroes splitting up in stories always lead to some of them ending up as sacrifices.

And yet, Mathew still went in, perfectly aware of this bias, and suggested for the group split up.

"Daria," Mathew called out before anyone could as much as say a word of protest. "Can I leave cleaning this place to you?" He asked.

But it was clear to everyone that Daria never really had a say in this matter.

"Sure thing," the girl stepped forward, not bothered by being ordered around at all. She patted her hands against her hips before crossing her arms over her chest. "Who do I get?" she then asked, instantly moving over to the details of the situation.

"I will leave all of them but the two oldest ones with you," Mathew replied. He then turned his head to the former leader and the only other man similar in age to the former leader. "Don\'t get me wrong. You guys will be nothing more but a hindrance," he pointed out mercilessly.

Mathew then looked away and sighed again.

"But I still need you to witness what\'s about to become of the horde, so you two will be coming with us."

"Wait for just a second!" the leader protested. He then shot his hand to the back, pointing at the rest of his group. "Do you want to just throw them aside and leave to die?!"

The man\'s face tensed up. He already learned that he was no match for Mathew alone. And given how the rest of Mathew had yet to make a single move, he knew for sure that he couldn\'t oppose the young man.

And yet, with the responsibility for the lives of his companions now weighing down on his shoulders, the middle-aged man gulped down his saliva.

"If I was leaving them to die, why would I leave one of my wives with them?" Mathew asked, right before the man\'s desperation could spill over and result in him doing something unsavory. "Norbert will keep tabs on this place at all times. If anything happens, we will rush back here," he added with a shake of his shoulders.

"What about me?" the kid with the special abilities came forward. He ignored how tense the situation was, showcasing that getting a system didn\'t change his childish nature. "Can I come too?"

\'It would be good to keep him away from the cores,\' Mathew thought, ever-so-slightly squinting his eyes. \'But can I afford to do that?\'

Mathew looked at the kid for a moment while battling with his thoughts.

"No, you need to stay here," he added after a short moment. "We won\'t be able to afford to babysit you while dealing with the horde," Mathew explained only for his eyes to twitch a little. "And this place needs to be cleaned up as soon as possible. And for that, we can\'t spare to have you sit around and just watch us fight."

"Cleaned up?" the former leader of the group picked up on the hint Mathew intentionally infused into his denial. "And what\'s the rush with doing so?" he kept on the pressure… only to avert his eyes when Mathew gave him a mocking look.

After all, it was the former leader\'s main group that was currently in danger of being consumed by a horde. If anyone should be in rush, then it wasn\'t Mathew but him!

"There are small, shiny stones in the brains of every zombie," Mathew explained after allowing the man to cook in his shame for a little. "They do have some uses, but that\'s not what\'s important about them."

Mathew took three steps away, approaching the nearest zombie corpse before smashing its skull to bits with a single strike down of his heel. He then leaned down and picked up the small core before bringing it up to showcase the item to everyone.

"The main thing about those crystals is that when zombies consume them, they grow stronger and evolve."

Mathew ignored the innate wish to stash the crystal, opting to drop it on the ground instead.

\'For now, it will be best if they disregarded their value,\' he thought, turning his eyes away from the stone and back to the people around.

"You are…" the former leader hesitated.

"Just go with the flow, brother," the leader\'s only age-like companion stepped forth and placed his hand on the man\'s shoulder. "It\'s not like we can oppose then anyway," he added with a shake of his shoulders.

The leader only shook his head.

"You are really not holding back on what information you are willing to share, are you?" he suggested while raising his eyes to Mathew\'s face. Yet, due to the difference in their physiques, rather than looking up, he ended up looking down on the young man instead.

The leader shook his head and reached his hand out.

"I\'m Peter, by the way."

"I\'m Mathew," the young man replied, accepting the offered hand and giving it a tight shake. "And I hope we will cooperate nicely."