NOVEL NEXT Chapter 258: Negotiation
"Damn, that was close! I really wanted to blow him up with a rocket launcher!" Nicholas exclaimed, looking at the sniper who had just taken out a cloaked zombie.
He then gave a grateful gesture to the team member who had provided him with sniper cover.
"Captain, I have some grenades here. How about I throw a few to help you vent your frustration?" one of the men next to Nicholas said with a grin.
"Does it look like I need grenades? Just one shot and this many zombies show up. Forget the grenades, get back to work!"
Nicholas snapped, punching the man beside him.
He then picked up his automatic rifle and began shooting the zombies attracted by the gunfire.
On either side of Nicholas stood two soldiers each, similarly armed with rifles and wearing camouflage gear.
Their rifles were all equipped with silencers, and as they pulled the triggers, they emitted soft "puff" sounds.
The zombies in front of them fell one by one with headshots, collapsing in batches like wheat being harvested.
Quickly, the group of zombies drawn by the gunfire was rapidly eliminated.
"Stay alert. Reserve team, move forward!" With Nicholas signaling with his hands, the soldiers on either side immediately spread out to cover different directions.
Behind them, another squad appeared, moving forward to advance the obstacles initially used to block the zombies.
At the same time, another team was responsible for dealing with the zombies on the ground—finishing off the zombies, extracting corpse cores, and dragging the bodies to the rear.
The team worked efficiently and swiftly, moving the front lines forward by several dozen meters.
At this new position, they could see some wandering zombies.
Just as the team was preparing to lure another small batch of zombies, a figure darted towards them at high speed from behind.
"Captain, at the 11 o'clock direction, four people are coming in cloaked!" The person ran up to Nicholas and quickly reported.
"More cloaked ones? Why are there so many cloakers now? Are you sure it's people?"
"It's people!" the newcomer replied solemnly.
"Got it!" Nicholas's expression turned serious.
He didn't doubt his comrade's words, even though it was unusual for there to be five cloaked individuals in such a short period.
He had only heard of cloaking abilities once before, and this was his first actual encounter with them.
Was this a nest of cloaked individuals they had stumbled upon? But the information came from the sniper who had just provided cover, a perceptive ally he trusted with his back. No matter how absurd it seemed, he had to believe it.
"Go back and continue protecting Owen!" Nicholas ordered the messenger.
"Yes, sir!" The messenger quickly disappeared from sight.
Nicholas couldn't help but reflect on the situation.
After the virus outbreak, wireless signals had been disrupted, making communication during their operations quite inconvenient.
But with someone awakening speed abilities, they had a short-range messenger who could also protect the rear personnel.
Nicholas shook off his brief distraction and signaled to his team. They all aimed their rifles at the 11 o'clock direction.
"Brothers, since you've come, why don't you come out and talk?" Nicholas called out toward the 11 o'clock direction.
After waiting for a while, no one appeared.
Nicholas's expression remained unchanged as he raised his gun and said, "Sneaking around is the act of a coward. If you don't come out, don't blame us for shooting on sight!"
Elijah was genuinely surprised to encounter a fully armed squad here, especially one that clearly had perceptive abilities. There were no military districts nearby; where could they have come from?
Elijah rubbed his chin, deep in thought.
At this moment, hearing the threat from the other side, Elijah pulled out a cylindrical container from his bag.
He then poured out several extremely sharp metal needles that had been meticulously polished.
These were weapons he had prepared for himself after solidifying Fiona's Telekinesis ability.
The needles did not fall to the ground after emerging from the cylinder but floated in mid-air. Under Elijah's telekinetic control, they hovered in front of the five armed soldiers.
Only then did Elijah voluntarily reveal himself, making his presence known!
While Elijah and Abigail were not afraid of them shooting, Kylie and Elena were another matter.
But this did not mean that Elijah revealed himself out of necessity; he wanted these people to know that he could kill them at any time.
As Elijah made himself visible, the needles, which also had cloaking abilities, appeared in front of the five soldiers, directly aimed at their eyes.
Nicholas was startled by the sudden appearance of the needles, his pupils constricting sharply.
However, he quickly regained his composure, understanding that this was a warning.
They could kill him at any moment and were revealing themselves not because they were threatened, but because they wanted to communicate.
At the same time, the fact that they had not attacked directly indirectly indicated that they wanted to talk.
"Nice trick, brother. We're all human here, no need to be like this!" Nicholas lowered his gun and signaled his team to do the same, showing goodwill to Elijah.
Elijah moved the needles away from them and then made them disappear.
"So, where are you all from, and what are you doing here?"
"By our appearance, you can tell we're here for the supplies. But judging by your tone, it seems like you've already taken over this place?"
"Yes."
"You're not being very honest, brother. If you had taken over this place, why are there still zombies everywhere?" Nicholas's sharp gaze swept over the wandering zombies in the distance.
"That's our business. I'm curious why you're here looking for supplies instead of rescuing the trapped civilians?" Elijah countered.
"Who says we haven't rescued anyone? We have saved some, but the losses within the army have been severe, and we can't cover too many areas at the moment…" Nicholas's eyes brightened as he stared at Elijah. "You have cloaking and Telekinesis abilities, both valuable skills. Why not join us and help save humanity? We're not here just for ourselves…"
"When you say that, shouldn't you ask your sniper to stop aiming at me? I'm feeling quite vulnerable right now!" Elijah sneered.
Nicholas, hearing this, was not the slightest bit embarrassed but responded with a faint smile, "Aren't you also hiding three companions? And those cloaked needles—who knows if they are right next to our heads?"
…
After Nicholas spoke, both sides fell silent. Essentially, it was a matter of mutual distrust.
After all, more than two months had passed since the apocalypse began, and those who survived were not without their own schemes and hidden agendas.
"Then I'll show a bit of sincerity first, so we can talk openly!" Elijah broke the deadlock. Since the other side had perceptive abilities, it wouldn't make much difference if Abigail and the others remained hidden.
In front of everyone, Elijah called the needles back into the cylinder and then deactivated the cloaking of Abigail, Kylie, and Elena.
The moment the three appeared, Nicholas's pupils constricted sharply, and his face showed an expression of disbelief. Then, he exclaimed in excitement, "Elena?"