After accepting the quest, Leo didn't head straight to the objective. Instead, he sold three stacks of robotic turret ammunition, bought some materials, crafted another pipe machine gun, and only then made his way to the mission location.
Along the way, he didn't encounter a single zombie—only ruins left behind by the inferno.
There were probably still usable items buried in the wreckage, but digging them out would take days, if not longer.
So Leo didn't even bother looking. He went straight to his destination.
Because it was so close, he'd barely taken a few steps before he saw it—a massive yellow exclamation mark swaying in midair.
Seeing something so blatantly game-like appear in reality made Leo uncomfortable, but there was no doubt he had to test it.
"Alright… let's see how this system actually works."
Taking a deep breath, Leo activated the quest point.
At the exact moment he expected either zombies to spawn out of thin air—or the quest to auto-complete—a house appeared in front of him.
Yes. A house.
The burned ruins vanished instantly, replaced by a building with its doors and windows sealed shut by metal sheets. Leo stood there stunned for two seconds before spotting, through a window, a zombie standing motionless inside, dormant.
And he was certain he'd looted this place before. He clearly remembered finding a can of luncheon meat on the table here—but now there were two or three cans of peas instead.
"This is actually… great news."
That meant supplies weren't going to run out.
Raising an eyebrow, Leo excitedly pulled out his machine gun and fired a shot straight at the zombie's head.
The gunshot echoed loudly, instantly alerting every zombie in the house—but the one he'd targeted had its head explode on the spot, brain matter and blood splattering everywhere.
Soon after, more zombies stumbled out of bedrooms and closets, snarling as they rushed toward Leo.
He calmly fired precise shots, blowing apart their heads one by one, not missing a single one. Then he rolled forward into the house to finish clearing it.
Interestingly, he noticed red dots appearing on the directional indicator in his field of vision. Whenever he moved toward one, he'd find a lurking zombie.
"So now there's even a minimap… nice."
With a final shot, he destroyed the last zombie's head and finally let out a breath of relief.
The quest completion notification appeared, but Leo didn't rush off. He searched the house thoroughly again.
Unfortunately, the gains were still meager—some canned food and a few clothes, nothing truly valuable.
Returning to the trader, Leo turned in the quest. A reward screen appeared, and the trader's voice rang out once more.
"Thank you for completing this task for me. I really didn't know what I would've done otherwise. Here's your reward—please choose one."
Leo looked at the rewards: 4,500 EXP, 600 Duke Casino Tokens, and a skill point.
As for item rewards, there were two options: a wrench, or a medical kit.
He couldn't help clicking his tongue. Just a handful of zombies, yet such generous rewards. And since quests could reset building states, if he found a resource-rich location, he'd be making a killing.
Questing was pure profit.
"So this is how the world's meant to be played, huh? But honestly, how many normal people would survive long enough to figure this out?"
Glancing at his level, Leo couldn't help complaining.
He'd only unlocked quests at level 50—that meant killing at least a thousand zombies. If he hadn't lucked out by blowing up the gas station, he probably wouldn't even be level 50 yet.
And that was with his relatively strong adaptability.
"This world really isn't friendly to normal people…"
After muttering that, Leo immediately chose the wrench. The medical kit would've been useful right now, sure—but the wrench was far more important.
He couldn't craft it yet, but according to the description, it was a key tool for salvaging mechanical parts from appliances—materials needed for advanced crafting later.
"Perfect. Time to keep doing quests."
Leo accepted the next resource-gathering mission.
But when he saw he had two unused skill points, he hesitated. Opening the skill menu, he tentatively put one point into Stamina to see what would happen.
The skill point went in effortlessly.
The moment it did, a strange surge of power flooded his body. The fatigue from moving vanished instantly. His breathing deepened, his movements grew stronger.
Every cell in his body seemed to cheer at the transformation, making him instinctively want to dump the second point into Stamina too.
And he did—without hesitation.
This time, the sensation was far stronger—almost three times as intense. A wave of overwhelming comfort swept through him, forcing Leo to drop to his knees, gasping for air.
He felt incredible.
Like he'd returned to his teenage years—able to stay awake for two straight days, keep moving nonstop, even go at it six or seven times in a row without needing rest.
It felt like he'd reclaimed his prime.
Then he noticed something else.
Bending over felt easy. His vision was sharper—far sharper. Even objects fifty meters away were crystal clear.
His mild nearsightedness? Gone.
He quickly pulled open his clothes. His slightly protruding belly—mocked endlessly by Erina—was still there, but the little brother below, once lifeless after all the trauma, was now bursting with vitality, standing proudly at attention.
A fierce, surging desire filled his body, screaming for release.
He threw a punch.
Even at full force, it felt nothing like before. He could clearly tell this wasn't his limit—far from it. If he wanted, he could throw dozens of full-power punches without slowing down.
His movements consumed far less energy.
He wasn't the exhausted office drone anymore.
He was a combat-capable office drone.
"This… this is power!"
Clenching his fist, Leo felt brimming with energy. If he ever met Erina again, he'd overwhelm her fair and square with sheer strength.
"Too bad my body didn't change."
Looking at his still-slightly-bulging belly, Leo sighed.
He'd always envied bodybuilders, but clearly, stats alone weren't enough. He'd still need real training for a good physique.
"Well, in this kind of life, give it time—I'll get there anyway."
Muttering to himself, Leo got dressed again and prepared to leave.
He felt energized beyond belief—perfect for clearing out all the trader's quests and seeing whether they refreshed.
If they didn't, he'd mine and dig tunnels. If they did, he'd keep questing. Either way, strength came first.
But the moment he took a step—
A soft-yet-hard friction brushed painfully against his zipper, sending a shock straight through his soul.
Leo dropped to his knees instantly, barely holding back a scream.
"Ah—so why is this thing this energetic? And… does this count as bad luck right out of the gate?"
Crouched on the floor, grimacing in pain, Leo couldn't help complaining.
If he were wearing his old clothes, it wouldn't be this bad—but most of them had been ruined, and clearly cut open to save him earlier.
Before, it didn't matter. Now?
Critical hit damage.
He tried adjusting it, but it didn't help. Changing pants wasn't an option either—the trader didn't sell any.
"…."
Glancing at his hands—calloused, blistered, and rough—he realized they weren't much better than a zipper.
So, helplessly, Leo looked toward the ever-smiling female trader.
"…Sorry. I've got no choice."
Taking a deep breath, his mental pressure skyrocketing, Leo shut the door, blocked the windows with his coat, and bowed deeply to the trader.
"I'm about to do something to you. If you object, blink."
The trader didn't move.
"…Alright then. I'm borrowing your butt. Don't worry—I'll just rub, I won't go in."
Nodding solemnly, Leo climbed onto the table, stepped behind the trader, tugged down her denim shorts, and pressed his wounded, overexcited problem right into the deep softness between her cheeks.
A blissful sigh escaped him.
"…Haaah."