In the late evening, as the crimson sunset faded from the western sky.
“Woah...!”
Having just entered through LA’s walls, Sadie let out an exclamation as she saw the bright lights twinkling overhead.
Their source was rely ordinary street lamps.
Those unremarkable artificial light sources stretched along LA’s roads in long lines.
A cityscape that had once been familiar to everyone.
But at that sight, the other survivors were also rendered speechless. For the past three years, street lamps had been nothing but obstructions littering the roads.
Seeing them shattered in the middle of the road, blocking the way, had been a common occurrence.
But who could have expected those very lamps to shine with light once more?
“...”
anwhile, Arian, holding Sadie’s hand as she surveyed their surroundings, also calmly let her eyes widen.
The lamp-lit roads seed to extend all the way to the city center in the distance.
Beside them, a brick building around six stories tall could be seen.
And from within that brightly illuminated building, the sounds of people’s voices drifted out.
Occasionally mixed in were even the noises of power tools like motors and drills.
Could it be that LA was supplying electricity to the entire city?
But that wasn’t the only astonishing sight.
Along the four-lane road, in addition to military vehicles, Arian spotted large buses as well.
Stopping briefly at a bus station to let passengers board before departing – their appearance was exactly like buses from the past.
It was as if the society that had crumbled under the zombie onslaught remained nearly intact here.
While Arian had harbored so expectations for LA, this still exceeded even those.
“Everyone, attention!”
It was then that one of the soldiers who had escorted the survivors clapped his hands and spoke those words.
Only then did the people, who had been standing around the entrance in confusion, turn their gazes towards him.
“I’m Sergeant Brown.”
His tone had shifted to a polite one, unlike before.
He first had the survivors line up in two rows on the sidewalk beside the road, then continued speaking.
“All of you are prospective evacuees. And those wishing to resettle in LA have a task they must complete first – evacuee registration and citizen registration. I will be assisting you with those procedures. Do you understand?”
The survivors nodded at Sergeant Brown’s words.
“In LA, those two tasks are handled by the Citizen Managent Bureau. From here, I will guide you to that location. Do not stray from the group, and follow closely. If you fail to comply with my instructions, it can beco grounds for expulsion, so keep that in mind.”
At the ntion of ‘expulsion,’ so people gulped audibly.
They had only just entered through these gates, but they could sense how much they stood to lose by being expelled from this place.
“It will take around 15 minutes to reach our destination on foot. Any questions?”
Sergeant Brown asked.
For a brief mont, there were no questions.
But soon, a hesitant woman, Sophia, raised her hand.
“What exactly is this citizen registration? What do we have to do?”
“There isn’t much you need to do. Just fill out so paperwork and receive a temporary citizen ID.”
“Temporary...?”
“An explanation regarding that will be provided at the bureau.”
Sophia lowered her hand with an unsatisfied expression.
Then, another middle-aged man spoke up.
“Will we get our weapons back that were taken earlier?”
“Within the walls, only soldiers are permitted to carry weapons. If you plan on leaving, they will be returned to you imdiately.”
At Sergeant Brown’s words, the middle-aged man retreated with an awkward look.
While feeling uneasy without a weapon in his hands, he didn’t want to leave the safety of these walls either.
After addressing a few more questions in a bureaucratic manner, Sergeant Brown led the people forward, accompanied by four other soldiers.
Fifteen minutes later, as promised, they arrived at a six-story office building.
On the first floor was a small cafe, and above that was a clean, beige brick exterior with not a single broken window.
Moreover, above the entrance leading to the building’s stairwell were the words ‘Citizen Managent Bureau’ engraved, just as Sergeant Brown had ntioned.
“This way, please.”
Passing through the entrance of that building, Sergeant Brown guided the group to the fourth floor.
The fourth floor resembled a bank.
In one corner was a long reception counter, and in the center were chairs for waiting custors.
“Heh...!”
So of the people who peeked inside let out involuntary chuckles.
It was such an intact scene, unlike the ruined buildings they had passed through up until now.
Sergeant Brown continued leading the people further inside.
As the survivors filed in one by one, a woman erged from behind the reception counter.
“What can I assist you with today?”
She asked Sergeant Brown.
Sergeant Brown naturally responded.
“These are the prospective evacuees we found in Blythe. I believe you received the report?”
“Ah, yes. Thirty-two of them, correct?”
“Thirty-one. One defected outside the wall.”
“I see. Understood.”
The soldiers had the survivors take seats in the waiting area while guarding the entrance.
With that confined atmosphere, as if they were being detained here, so survivors showed uneasy expressions.
Seeming to notice this, the woman at the reception counter smiled faintly before speaking.
“Don’t worry too much. It’s just standard procedures. First, the gentleman over there, please co this way.”
She then began guiding the people to the reception counter one by one.
The others waited their turn in the seats, and those called up began conversing with the receptionist.
The scene was truly reminiscent of a bank or a city hall.
Arian tried to eavesdrop on the conversations between the receptionist and survivors, but soone approached her from the side.
“Heh, ain’t this sothing? Wouldn’t you say?”
It was Logan, who had sohow co to sit beside her.
Before Arian could even respond, his wife Madeline’s voice followed.
“Did you see the cafe on the first floor earlier? I could sll coffee. I never thought I’d experience that scent again...”
“That’s what I’m saying. Look at those fluorescent lights. They even have electricity.”
“Fluorescent lights are the issue? Look inside. They’re using computers.”
The Millers chattered on like primitive people experiencing modern civilization for the first ti.
The other survivors were no different.
Having been excluded from the civilization they had once enjoyed for three long years, they were now awestruck to find it still intact here.
Amidst that atmosphere.
“Next is... your turn.”
It beca Sadie’s turn, and Arian accompanied her to the reception counter.
“Are you her guardian?”
The receptionist asked.
Arian nodded.
While Sadie and Arian didn’t appear to have a significant enough age gap for one to be the other’s guardian, the woman impassively nodded in acknowledgnt.
“First, please state your nas and ages.”
Arian provided the answers.
For Sadie, she gave her actual age, but Arian stated that she was 18, having just beco an adult.
At that, the receptionist furrowed her brow slightly.
“Eighteen?”
As if unable to believe it, the receptionist tilted her head in puzzlent.
But when Arian reaffird her age, the receptionist lowered her voice as she continued.
“All LA citizens are required to work at their assigned jobs. That’s the rule here. However, minors can attend school instead.”
Upon hearing those words, Arian’s eyes widened.
It was a welco statent.
The ntion of Sadie being able to attend school.
But Arian herself had no such intentions.
To gather information about this city, working at a job would be preferable to attending school.
So Arian once again insisted to the receptionist that she was an adult.
The receptionist then nodded in understanding.
“Alright. Then...”
She proceeded to ask Arian about her place of origin and any skills she possessed.
It was for the purpose of job assignnt.
After a mont’s thought, Arian smiled faintly as she answered.
“I’m good at fighting zombies.”
“So combat is your specialty?”
“Yeah. Is that weird?”
“In that case, you’ll likely be assigned as a soldier. Will that be alright?”
The receptionist spoke as if puzzled.
For most survivors who had risked their lives to reach LA, their motivation was survival and stability.
As such, being a soldier was one of the most crucial occupations in this LA.
But hardly anyone actually wanted to beco a soldier themselves.
However, Arian confidently nodded.
It had been her intention from the start.
From her perspective, fighting zombies was far more comfortable than working at an ordinary factory or job like this receptionist role.
“Yes. I want to be a soldier.”
“...I understand.”
Once the citizen registration was completed, Arian and Sadie were soon issued palm-sized ID cards.
Written on them were Arian’s na, a citizen number, and the words ‘Temporary Citizen ID.’
“Your job assignnts will be provided tomorrow. If you work at that job without any issues for three months, you’ll beco an official citizen. However, if you are derelict in your duties or commit any cris, you will be expelled. Do you understand?”
Arian affird that she did.
The receptionist continued providing further explanations about LA.
It was only after listening to her detailed account that Arian could roughly grasp what kind of city this LA was.
First, as the receptionist had ntioned, everyone in this city was required to work compulsorily.
Moreover, all workplaces were under the jurisdiction of the city governnt, which took the lead in assigning citizens to those jobs.
The governnt even held command authority over the military forces.
Clearly, the nature of this society differed from that of the past.
The only consolation was that the underlying concept of rule of law still existed.
Just that alone made it a far more humane city than most other survivor groups or gangs.
Feeling sowhat satisfied, Arian posed another question.
“Can we change jobs later on?”
“Only if there are special circumstances. For instance, if you are deed unsuitable for being a soldier, you would be dismissed from that role. After which, you would be reassigned to a different job.”
“What about food?”
“It will be provided at your workplace. For the child, it will be supplied at school.”
The receptionist added that while al nus might vary, there would be no discrimination between workplaces.
“Surely we don’t have to sleep at our workplaces too?”
“No. All of you evacuees will be provided with residential housing today. For your reference, changing residences will only be possible after becoming an official citizen, so keep that in mind.”
“Residential housing? You an we’ll have hos?”
Arian’s voice rose slightly in surprise, as it was sothing she hadn’t anticipated.
“Yes. It will just be vacant city-owned housing that’s being provided, so don’t expect too much.”
The receptionist said with a wry smile, but Arian and Sadie couldn’t conceal their anticipation.
After a few minor additional questions, Arian rose from her seat, temporary citizen ID in hand.
And so, Arian and the other survivors finished the citizen registration process and exited back outside.
“Please board this bus. It will take you to your residential area.”
They were made to board a waiting bus, departing from the city center.
The sun had already fully set, but the city remained illuminated.
While not as brilliant as in the past, the faintly glowing streets still captured Sadie’s wondernt.
After all, it was sothing unimaginable from the outside world, where they had needed to take shelter once night fell.
They were transported to an area called Compton, located south of LA.
It was a region mostly comprised of residential neighborhoods.
The survivors were assigned residences scattered throughout those neighborhoods.
The apartnt Arian and Sadie were dropped off at was located on the outskirts of one such neighborhood area.
“We’ve arrived.”
The peeling paint exposed the gray concrete beneath, making the building appear decades old and run-down.
But even so, it was an intact structure with unshattered windows and an attached front door.
The male driver handed Arian a set of keys as she disembarked from the bus.
“Unit 301 of this apartnt will be your residential housing. Have a good rest.”
Saying nothing more, he departed along with the bus.
Arian looked up at the apartnt building.
She could sense the presence of people inside.
Around 20 or so.
It seed the other units already had residents living there.
“Shall we go in?”
Arian asked Sadie.
“...Yes.”
Sadie gave a small nod.
They entered the apartnt building.
The narrow hallway and dilapidated walls made an impression, with a wooden staircase leading upstairs.
Unit 301 matched the apartnt’s outward appearance.
A cramped, tiny room with a moldy bed and dirty bathroom.
But Arian and Sadie didn’t show any dissatisfaction.
Even in such a rundown apartnt, flicking a switch caused a small light bulb on the ceiling to illuminate.
The bathroom’s faucet also provided running water without issue.
Of all the places they had spent nights throughout their journey until now, not a single one had been better than this.
And so, on their first day arriving in LA, Sadie and Arian passed the ti cleaning up their small yet satisfactory new ho.
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