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Just as the situation was growing increasingly tense, a familiar young woman’s voice suddenly rang out, breaking the standoff.

“Let him through. He’s here to see me.”

A silver-haired girl in a formal dress stepped forward from behind the group of masked figures.

After confirming the unmistakable presence of the young man standing in the middle of the encirclement—his indescribable aura and the voice that matched her memory—she furrowed her brows and spoke to the Infected surrounding him.

However, they didn’t immediately obey her command.

Instead, their gazes shifted to the masked man standing beside Talulah.

“Miss Talulah, you never mentioned that you’d be bringing along a non-Infected companion.”

The man’s tone carried obvious suspicion, though after a brief moment, he waved his hand, signaling the Infected fighters to back off.

“He came here on his own. It has nothing to do with me—he’s always been this reckless.”

Talulah sighed, rubbing her temple as she looked at the grinning young man casually waving at her.

He should be with Alina right now, shouldn’t he?

The village was so far from this mobile city, and yet he not only made it here so quickly but also found her exact location with pinpoint accuracy.

Did this guy have some kind of Perro bloodline or something?

Otherwise, how was he so good at tracking people?

“Also, let me give you a word of advice—don’t try provoking him for no reason.”

Talulah glanced at the Infected fighters who, despite retreating, still clutched their weapons tightly.

She sighed again and added, “He’s not as easy going as I am. Frankly, even all of you combined might not be able to put up a fight against him.”

She wasn’t exaggerating.

From what she had seen firsthand, Steven was easily strong enough to take on an entire Infected Patrol Squad by himself.

And that was definitely not his limit.

Even she wasn’t confident she could beat him in a one-on-one fight.

As for this group of ragtag fighters, who had nothing but weapons?

They weren’t even qualified to be cannon fodder.

“But he’s not like you. He’s not one of us—he’s not Infected. We can’t trust him.”

The masked man’s sharp gaze locked onto Steven, filled with deep skepticism.

Just as he said, those who had suffered oppression for so long could never trust an outsider who was not one of them.

Steven, who had barely been holding back, finally couldn’t resist speaking up.

“Ahem, actually, I’m just a passing doctor. I only came here to find that young lady over there. As for you guys?”

He waved a hand dismissively.

“I couldn’t care less.”

He was only interested in Talulah—whether these Infected lived or died had nothing to do with him.

Maybe if something interesting happened, he’d stick around to watch, but aside from that?

He had zero interest in getting involved.

Unfortunately, his words had little effect.

The masked man merely let out a cold chuckle before shifting his gaze back to Talulah.

“I’ll vouch for him.”

Talulah exhaled sharply and finally made her decision.

“He really is just a friend looking for me. Whether you believe it or not, that’s the truth.”

Honestly, she wanted to say she didn’t even know this guy, but she knew that would only make things worse.

Why did this guy have to show up now of all times?

Right when she was in the middle of a gathering with the Infected?

“……”

A brief silence fell over the group.

Then, after a few seconds, the masked man finally relented.

“Let him through.”

After giving the order, he turned around and disappeared into a hidden entrance nearby, leaving his cautious subordinates still eyeing Steven with suspicion.

As the Infected fighters finally stepped aside, Steven was finally able to walk freely to Talulah’s side.

“Why is it that every time you enter a city, you end up crawling through the sewers?”

He glanced disdainfully at the masked Infected around them—not because of their status as Infected, but because this place was simply disgusting.

“Alina’s been worrying about you, you know? She was afraid you were sneaking around behind her back, doing something shady.”

“Oh, you have the nerve to say that to me?”

Talulah sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose in frustration.

“Do you have any idea how much trouble you’re causing me right now?”

This guy!

She hadn’t even started scolding him yet, and he was already complaining about her?

Steven shrugged nonchalantly.

“Trouble? What trouble? I just came here to find you. It’s not my fault these guys aren’t very friendly. That’s their problem, not mine.”

If Talulah hadn’t stopped them just now, these fools would’ve rushed him, and he would’ve had no choice but to add a few more bodies to [Yamato]’s count.

Steven loved opponents like these—hotheaded fools who didn’t think before they acted.

Unlike Kal’tsit and those other crafty old schemers, these guys were straightforward.

If they wanted to fight him, then he had every reason to see them as enemies, right?

Talulah rubbed her forehead in exasperation.

“Do you ever stop to think about the reality of the situation?”

“You’re not an Infected. Do you have any idea how deep the divide is between the Infected and non-Infected in Ursus?”

Steven simply shook his head.

“Why would I care? I just think their actions are bad. And if something is bad, does it really change to good just because of the country or the circumstances?”

“I don’t think so.”

To him, Infected and non-Infected were no different.

It wasn’t a matter of ideology or politics—it was just common sense.

Alina was also an Infected, but she never acted like this.

“You…”

Talulah opened her mouth, but for once, she had no idea how to respond.

She had always known she was a bit idealistic, but after hearing Steven’s words, she realized something—

There were people even more naive than her.

Steven gave her a look.

“What? Am I wrong?”

Not waiting for her response, he walked with her through the hidden entrance and began to take in his new surroundings.

Compared to the outside world, where the city still looked normal on the surface, this underground shelter was exactly what he had imagined when he first heard about the wasteland of this world.

Infected huddled together, sitting or lying down wherever they could find space.

Their bony figures and sallow faces made it obvious—they hadn’t seen the sun in a long, long time.

The masked Infected from before now played the role of caretakers, handing out food and water to the others.

Though, when Steven looked closer at what they were distributing…

That black, unidentifiable sludge?

It was hard to even call that ‘food.’

The whole scene reminded him of the poorest, most miserable slums he had ever seen.

“Why are these people living in such misery? Are they not Ursus citizens too?”

Steven frowned as he turned to Talulah, asking the question despite already having a rough idea of the answer.

Talulah let out a cold laugh.

“In Ursus, Infected aren’t considered Ursus citizens at all.”

“Do you think they chose to hide away in this filthy place?”

“No. They were forced here by those in power.”

She wished she could ask this same question to the rulers of this country.

But the reality was cruel.

To most people in this nation, the Infected weren’t even considered human anymore.

“What do you think the Infected Patrol Squads are for?”

Talulah’s expression darkened completely.

“The ‘lucky’ ones they capture get sent to work in the mines until they drop dead from exhaustion.”

“The unlucky ones?”

“They’re executed on the spot.”

She gestured around at their surroundings.

“These people are the ones who managed to escape those patrols.”

“They had no choice but to hide in this filthy sewer, clinging to life however they could.”

Steven raised an eyebrow.

“And what does any of this have to do with you?”

“Are you the leader of this underground shelter or something?”

Compared to the injustice Talulah had just described—things he had more or less already guessed—Steven was far more curious about her connection to these people.

Because nothing about Talulah—her clothing, mannerisms, or attitude—matched the underground refugee leader type.

If he had to guess, he’d say she had the bearing of nobility—not just any nobility, but someone from a high-ranking household, raised with privilege and power.

In fact, rather than the “princess of the underground”, he was more inclined to believe she was the rebellious daughter of some Ursus Grand Duke or high-ranking official.

After all, most movies and novels followed the same pattern:

A villainous tyrant with a righteous, rebellious daughter, who eventually joins the protagonist’s resistance.

After many battles and dramatic conflicts, she finally slays her own father, earning the “filial daughter” title, and fully integrating into the protagonist’s group.

And right now, Talulah perfectly fit that image in Steven’s mind.

Talulah glanced at him, half amused, half exasperated.

“You’re overthinking it.”

She shook her head.

“I’ve saved a number of Infected before, and some of them introduced me to the leader of this shelter.”

“They invited me to join them, and that’s all there is to it.”

Though she had some reputation in this underground shelter, she was hardly its leader.

She had only come here this time to help relocate some Infected out of this mobile city and to secure some medicine for Alina’s Oripathy treatment.