Dawn Hospital

The black armed helicopter flew through the sky, buildings on either side blurring past. The buzzing roar of the rotors quickly stirred the zombies lurking inside the structures along the road.

They all stared blankly at the object in the sky, instinctively drawn to follow the sound.

But before they could react, it was already gone, leaving them to shuffle dumbly in the direction of the fading noise.

"What are you looking at?"

Kevira, a lollipop dangling from her lips, expertly maneuvered the helicopter between the buildings.

"I'm checking out what these buildings are good for, what supplies they might hold, and whether we need to send a team to scavenge."

Leon pulled out a simple map and made a mark on it.

Kevira lowered the helicopter's altitude and speed, pointing as she helped identify:

"I heard most of the downtown area is taken up by headquarters and office buildings for those big-name brands. Look, that's the Coca-Cola Headquarters."

"And that one, that's USB Tech."

"Ooh! Jinli Solar Energy Company—that's a good one. Our base could use that."

Hearing this, Leon's interest piqued, and he jotted it down on the map.

One after another, they spotted plenty more—well-known companies making clothes, luxury goods, motorcycles, and plenty of OEM brands.

He also found a very practical factory, one that produced various engine models—exactly the parts their blade traps were desperate for. They couldn't keep scrapping a dozen cars every time.

The helicopter was fast; it took them just over ten minutes to get from the base to the city center. But fuel was limited, so they didn't linger long before turning back.

On the return trip, they deliberately took a different route to explore, and sure enough, they found some more good spots.

A TV station, a police station, a museum.

And a real department store—five stories tall, covering thousands of square feet—the nationally famous Cole's Department Center.

There had to be a massive amount of goods inside. After all, months ago, the department store they'd searched on Glory Avenue was only one story high.

Leon marked that building as a priority, and the helicopter took off again.

Two minutes later, Kevira suddenly pointed at a building and said:

"Leon, there's someone on the roof of that building. He's waving at us."

Leon peered through the window and sure enough, saw a man in a white coat waving both arms, dressed like a doctor.

He studied the small building closely. A string of English letters hung at its center: Grady Memorial Hospital, or GMH for short.

Seeing that, a faint memory stirred in Leon's mind. This seemed to be the hospital faction from Season 5—a small camp made up of cops, doctors, and patients.

Beth, the prettiest girl in the whole show, had died here.

But now that he knew the location, everything else could be handled later.

Leon waved a hand at Kevira and said:

"Forget him. The chopper's almost out of fuel. Let's head back first."

Under the disappointed gaze of the man on the hospital roof, the helicopter quickly vanished from his sight.

Back at the base, the helicopter began its slow descent.

As soon as Leon stepped off, he saw Amy walking over with a notebook in hand.

She shot a glance at Kevira, who hopped lightly out of the helicopter, then turned to Leon and said:

"Boss, Miss Maggie is here with a batch of farm produce. Do you want to see her?"

Leon asked, a little puzzled:

"She came alone? Glenn didn't come with her?"

Amy looked even more confused and replied:

"No, Glenn's team sent three members to escort her."

"Why would Glenn need to come back for something as trivial as delivering supplies?"

At that, Leon didn't quite know what to say.

He was about to go meet Maggie when he saw Merle walking over with an awkward look on his face.

"Boss, two of our prisoners got away."

Leon's eyes narrowed. "What happened? Did someone unlock their ankle chains?"

Merle quickly waved his hands. "No, no, Boss."

"One of the guys went to take a piss, and the two prisoners he was watching bolted together."

"Those two idiots don't know when to quit—running off with ankle chains on. Daryl's already gone after them."

Leon felt a wave of speechlessness. The ankle chains were deliberately designed to be five kilograms each, making it impossible to take long strides.

That meant they could only shuffle along step by step—no running, no climbing over obstacles.

These two fools—running off with that thing, once the zombies discover them, they won't even be able to create distance. It's a dead end.

Besides, even though being a captive at Umbrella Corporation means no wages, the food, shelter, and safety here are guaranteed. As long as they do seven or eight years of hard labor, they'll regain their freedom.

Why would these people want to escape? Is it what they call free will?

It's a trivial matter. He shot a glare at Merle and said:

"Keep your subordinates in line and make sure they work more carefully. This time, dock him three days' pay."

"If it happens again, he'll get the whip."

"If you catch him, bring him to me. A captive daring to escape—that calls for punishment."

Merle nodded with a raspy laugh and said:

"Yes, sir, Boss. I'll teach that bastard of a subordinate a good lesson."

Once Merle left, Leon took Amy's little hand, turned to Kevira, and said:

"Miss Kevira, you can rest this afternoon. I'm giving you half a day off. Would you like to come with us to meet Miss Maggie?"

"I'll treat you all to ice cream and cake."

Kevira looked at Amy and Leon, a strange smile spreading across her face as she said:

"Why not, when there's good food to be had? I've just been worn out by you, Boss Blackblood, so I'm going to eat my fill."

Amy furrowed her brow slightly, feeling that Kevira, a girl from a wealthy family, spoke too crudely.

But Americans cherish freedom and don't easily meddle in others' affairs.

In his Private Reception Room, Leon met with Maggie. This farm girl, dressed in denim overalls and a plain linen shirt, sat somewhat nervously on the luxurious leather sofa, watching Amy set down a large serving of cream cake and fruit ice cream, unable to help swallowing.

Girls tend to have a sweet tooth. She hadn't had these desserts in months, and she knew that in this day and age, opportunities to enjoy such luxuries were rare.

The other two girls didn't stand on ceremony, cutting themselves big slices of cake and scooping generous cups of ice cream, starting to enjoy them with blissful expressions.

Leon smiled and made a welcoming gesture to Maggie, saying:

"Don't be shy, Miss Maggie. Eat first; we can talk about business after you're done. If the ice cream melts, it won't taste as good."

Being an American girl at heart, Maggie hesitated for only a few seconds before joining the feast with a face full of joy.

Leon didn't rush to eat. As the boss, he didn't lack for such indulgences. Instead, he picked up the inventory list Maggie had brought.

Hershel's sincerity was clear. Not only had he sent about a ton of vegetables, fruits, and other farm produce, but also a fat pig, twenty hens, and two trained horses.

Even for his farm, that must have been a considerable burden.