Aiden’s group’s journey was more peaceful than ever before.
There was no shortage of supplies, and zombies that popped up or blocked the road in between were quietly dealt with by Aiden or quickly handled by Arian, so no major problems occurred.
And the fact that no mutants appeared on their path also played a role.
Before long, a rusted signpost appeared in front of the group.
[Welco to Las Vegas]
Entering the entrance of Sin City, the city of entertainnt that was bustling with people all year round, Aiden’s group increased their speed and drove non-stop to the survivor camp located in Enterprise. By early evening, they stopped in front of the gate of a fairly large camp, though not as big as LA.
"Stop! Stop!"
Ard soldiers at the gate stopped Aiden’s group’s jeep.
As a group of three soldiers approached the driver’s side, taking defensive positions, Aiden lowered the window and handed the soldier the vaccine delivery order he had received from Ava.
"!!"
The soldier, who had been staring at the order for a while, seed quite surprised and slowly examined the group sitting in Aiden’s car.
"Are you Aiden Lee, the junk dealer?"
"That’s right. Is there a problem?"
There shouldn’t be any issues since Ava’s written order contained information about the junk dealer Aiden wearing a black helt, and a brief description of Arian escorting Sadie, the vaccine recipient.
"No, I was just trying to confirm. Pass through the gate and park the jeep you ca in at the checkpoint inside the wall."
"Understood."
The gate opened and Aiden’s group parked the jeep at the internal checkpoint.
Murmur murmur
People inside the wall could be seen murmuring among themselves as they looked at Aiden’s group.
Sadie seed nervous, her face lowered, and Arian had an unpleasant expression, as if sothing was bothering her.
Leaving the two like that, Aiden took out the suitcase containing the vaccine samples and left visible armants like rifles in the jeep.
anwhile, a soldier appeared in front of them.
"The camp leader of Las Vegas is waiting for you."
As if there had been an order to guide them politely, the soldier used honorifics and guided Aiden’s group.
Following the soldier, Aiden’s group could slowly look around the inside of the camp.
Although inferior to LA, it was a fairly good camp in its own right.
The expressions of people who looked like ordinary citizens seed comfortable, and it seed that public order was being well maintained.
While following the soldier, Arian spoke to Aiden in a low voice.
"It seems the rumors about LA’s vaccine are spreading quickly?"
"Is that so."
With Arian’s hearing, she would have been able to hear in detail what people around were saying.
"So that’s why they were murmuring about us."
While Aiden and Arian were talking quietly about the atmosphere of the camp, a building that looked like a governnt office ca into view.
"Let’s go in."
The door of the governnt office opened and they went inside.
It seed they could use so electricity as the interior was bright, and there were people bustling about, a mix of soldiers and civilians.
"Second floor."
Guided by the soldier, Aiden entered the office on the second floor and ca face to face with a blonde man with a full beard.
"Welco. I am Randy Rayfield, currently in charge of the camp."
Randy unhesitatingly offered a handshake to Aiden.
"I’m Aiden, the junk dealer in charge of delivering the vaccine sample."
Aiden shook hands lightly with Randy and showed him the suitcase.
"Can’t you take off that helt?"
"I have my reasons. I hope you understand."
"Is that so? Alright."
Randy and Aiden’s group sat on the sofa.
Arian and Sadie briefly introduced themselves, and Randy showed great interest in Sadie, who had received the vaccine.
Then Aiden imdiately opened the suitcase to show the vaccine sample and handed related docunts to Randy.
"Hmm, I see. So that child has received the vaccine, and these are the related docunts."
Randy observed Sadie intently.
Perhaps his gaze was burdenso, as Sadie turned her eyes to Arian.
"Haven’t you looked enough?"
Arian was on the verge of losing her temper, perhaps because Randy’s gaze was quite unpleasant.
Then Aiden spoke up.
"Our request is to deliver the vaccine sample and show the health condition of that child who received the vaccine. That’s all. If you’ve confird, please proceed with what LA requested right away."
"Hmm... Do you know what LA requested?"
"Not interested."
"Is that so? We’re also taking ti to prepare."
"How long do you think it will take?"
Randy stroked his bushy beard, seeming to ponder for a mont.
"It will probably take two days. We’ll provide accommodation for your stay."
Aiden nodded and stood up.
Arian and Sadie also got up, following Aiden.
"Marvin! Is Marvin here!"
Randy shouted loudly.
Startled, Sadie tightly grabbed Arian’s hand.
With a crashing sound, the office door opened roughly, and a thin, simple-looking Marvin appeared.
"Yes! D-did you call, sir!"
"These are guests from LA. Guide them to their accommodation."
"LA?"
"Yes! Hurry up and guide them!"
As Randy shouted irritably, Marvin quickly took Aiden’s group and left the place.
Left alone after everyone had gone, Randy took out a vaccine sample from the suitcase and looked at it intently.
"...So this is the vaccine, you say?"
His eyes turned cold.
* * *
The accommodation Marvin guided them to was a hotel not far from the governnt office.
Marvin, who had shown them to a room on the second floor of the hotel, gave a light greeting and quickly disappeared. Aiden made a simple hand sign to Arian.
’Check if there’s anyone around who might be eavesdropping.’
Receiving Aiden’s hand sign, Arian maximized her hearing and started checking the surroundings.
Sadie was quietly watching this.
"There’s no one. It’s safe."
"Haa... I’m so tired."
Sadie sighed.
Although she couldn’t say much and just watched from the side, she had been even more tense because Randy’s gaze on her was quite unsettling.
"Sothing’s suspicious, right?"
"Did you sense sothing?"
Arian’s eyes lit up at Aiden’s question.
"That Randy person, not only was his gaze on Sadie strange, but there’s a faint scent from his body that keeps bothering ."
"Can you rember what kind of scent it is?"
Arian tried to recall her mory.
"It’s a scent I’ve slled before, definitely on the unpleasant side."
"We have ti, so why don’t you think about it slowly?"
Even at Sadie’s words, Arian didn’t stop pondering.
Leaving Arian thinking seriously, Aiden opened the window curtain and slowly examined the inside of the camp.
Sadie must have been quite tired, as she fell asleep at so point.
After a short while had passed like that, Arian suddenly stood up.
"Fanatics."
"Hm?"
"The fanatics’ ritual. Aiden, do you rember? That ritual-like thing those crazy guys were doing. It was the scent I slled there."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course, there’s no way I could forget such a unique scent."
"So suspicion has arisen that the camp’s leader might be a fanatic."
"This has beco troubleso."
Aiden pondered for a mont.
"For now, our priority is to complete the request we’ve been given. Moreover, we can’t accuse recklessly without physical evidence, especially as we’re just outsiders."
"That’s true..."
"I’ll go out for now, to the place where nearby junk dealers receive requests."
"You’re trying to get information, right?"
"That’s right. Arian, stay by Sadie’s side."
"Alright."
Aiden left the hotel room and started slowly wandering around the inside of the camp.
As it had beco evening, so people looked curiously at Aiden walking around in a black helt on the dark streets, but that was all.
Aiden was able to find the pub where junk dealers receive requests by asking a few people.
Despite the late hour, about a dozen junk dealers were scattered around tables or at the bar inside the pub.
As Aiden sat in an empty seat at the bar, a woman sat next to him.
She glanced Aiden up and down once, then spoke abruptly.
"You, are you perhaps Aiden?"
"Do you know ?"
"If you’re the junk dealer who was in Huntington Beach a year ago, it would be strange not to know you. I’m Lois."
Lois introduced herself.
After Huntington Beach beca a den of zombies a year ago, so junk dealers remained in LA, but quite a few also left to find other camps. Lois says it’s been six months since she left LA and started working in this camp.
Thinking this was a good opportunity, Aiden was able to ask Lois in detail about the camp’s situation.
The biggest piece of information was that zombies, including mutants, which once flooded all of Las Vegas, had largely moved eastward.
Surprisingly, multiple Fears, not just one, were sighted and they blindly moved eastward, leaving Las Vegas behind.
Thanks to this, fewer zombies remained in the Las Vegas area than before, and the number of mutants also decreased significantly, allowing the camp to beco active, she says.
Aiden was reminded of the LA incident at this point, but he refrained from speaking as it was sothing he couldn’t judge carelessly.
Then, what Aiden intensively asked Lois about was the existence of missing persons.
Of course, after the zombie outbreak occurred, missing persons were everywhere, but if missing persons occurred periodically in such a stable camp, it could be inferred that fanatics conducting human sacrifices were present in this camp.
On this point, Lois thought about the missing person search requests she knew of, but said they were not regular and the ti differences were quite large.
Aiden told Lois he needed more information related to missing persons, and inford her of items he could trade from the supplies he had, asking for additional information sharing.
As it happened, Lois was thinking of moving to LA after hearing rumors about the vaccine, so she said it could be a good deal and left her seat, saying they should et again tomorrow evening.
After Lois left, Aiden quietly organized his thoughts.
He felt that the vaccine delivery request for bridging LA and Las Vegas was becoming complicated.
However, there was nothing Aiden could do right away.
It wasn’t that he didn’t believe Arian’s words, but they couldn’t accuse this camp’s leader without any evidence, especially as they were just outsiders.
For now, Aiden decided to gather as much information as possible and quickly relay the Las Vegas camp situation to LA.
Aiden left the pub and headed to the hotel.
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