Central City was over two thousand kilometers east of The Dead City, built radiating outward from the original capital of Astoria.

Truth be told, the distance wouldn’t have been a big deal with a car and a highway; at most, it would have taken three days of driving. But now... it was hard to say.

Highways were nowhere to be found. Even the original national and provincial roads had been all but destroyed by various natural and man-made disasters, with no one around to repair them. They considered themselves lucky if they occasionally stumbled upon a short stretch of relatively flat road.

Paige Summers and her group spent most of their time driving through the wilderness. If they encountered mountain roads or dense forests, Sweetie would dutifully warn them, and they would detour in advance. It couldn’t be helped. There were only four of them, and Erin Quinn was a child with little combat ability. While Levi Young could barely protect himself, that was only if they didn’t run into anything big...

Paige Summers was handling the situation well. When she decided to go to Central City with Erin Quinn and the others, she had already mentally prepared herself, fully aware that they would face many difficulties along the way. In fact, with no shortage of food and water and a car for transportation, their current situation was much better than she had anticipated.

Sean Raines, however, was getting a headache.

He was used to traveling alone. Suddenly being saddled with others felt incredibly restrictive.

The car’s speed was no match for his talisman paper.

Before, when he encountered Mutant Beasts, he could quickly escape and just focus on his journey. Now, he was forced into combat.

After most of the day, his expression had darkened considerably.

Paige Summers noticed, but she didn’t plan on doing anything about it.

’He’s the one who sought us out. How can he not even have this bit of awareness!’

She was more concerned about Erin Quinn’s and Levi Young’s feelings. The two youngsters knew they were slowing everyone down, and they didn’t feel good about it. This was especially true for Levi Young. As a man, he found his pride taking a serious hit from constantly having to rely on others for help.

That evening, after finding a suitable spot, the four of them got out of the car to set up camp. Paige Summers patted his shoulder. "I can see you’re not comfortable with that knife. Tonight, let’s figure out what kind of weapon would be a good fit for you!"

Levi Young froze for a moment, then nodded emphatically.

With that settled, she went to find Sean Raines, who was setting up a tent.

"Sean Raines, you don’t need to take watch tonight."

Hearing the hidden meaning in her words, Sean Raines asked, "Do you have something planned?"

Paige Summers glanced at Erin Quinn, who was struggling to unload things from the car. "I don’t have any plans, no. But didn’t you say your master is set on taking Erin Quinn as a disciple? In that case, why don’t you start teaching her the basics, as her senior? We still have a long way to go to Central City; we can’t just waste this time. Besides, the more she learns, the better she can protect herself. That’s better than you having to guard her every second of the day, don’t you think?"

Sean Raines let out a breath. "Is that all! Don’t worry, you didn’t have to tell me; that was my plan all along. Back in my day, when I was her age, I could already face two Zombies by myself without losing. Although..."

Paige Summers’s mouth twitched. She hummed in agreement a few times and quickly said, "You get to it, then. I’ll go help unload!"

Even after she had turned and walked some distance away, she could still hear Sean Raines’s disgruntled muttering.

Paige Summers theatrically wiped sweat from her brow.

’That guy is such a chatterbox! If I let him keep talking, we probably wouldn’t get the tents set up by morning!’

’Now, there’s just one last thing to take care of!’

First, she helped Erin Quinn and the others unload the sleeping bags, food, and water. Then she told them to prepare the Mutant Beast for grilling over a fire.

She then went to the back of the car and spoke in a slow, deliberate voice. "I say, you’re not planning to stay cooped up in there forever, are you? Don’t you think you’re running out of oxygen? Having trouble breathing?"

For a long while, there was no movement.

She narrowed her eyes and decided to use her foot.

Just then, the lowest panel in the trunk was slowly lifted, and Claire Chapman crawled out from the flat, narrow compartment in a very contorted, prone position...

’He hadn’t dared to move for half the day! It wasn’t easy!’

’My whole body is numb!’

’But he still discovered me. What a tragedy!’

He looked resentfully at Paige Summers, who stood before him with her arms crossed and a smirk on her face. "You knew all along, didn’t you? So why didn’t you say something sooner? You made me stay crammed in there for so long..."

She raised an eyebrow. "So let me get this straight. You stowed away in my car, used up my gas, and let me protect you, but somehow it’s my fault?"

Hearing this, Claire Chapman immediately put on an apologetic smile. "Not at all, not at all, it’s all my fault! Hehe, haha. Well, look, I’m out now. Wasting gas was unavoidable, but I can be your free muscle! I’m super useful, I promise!"

Paige Summers waved her hand dismissively. "Alright, enough. Just tell me, why were you being so sneaky? If you had just asked, it’s not like we wouldn’t have given you a ride. At most, we’d have charged you a service fee. I’m sure you can afford it, right?"