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Before the zombie she had kicked could rise, Rose leaped, gripping her dagger firmly in both hands, and plunged it straight into the center of its skull, ensuring it stayed down for good.

Rose had no time to catch her breath as more zombies, drawn by the noise in the hallway, shuffled toward her.

She heard loud banging from the closed doors of nearby rooms, but with those threats contained for now, she focused on the immediate danger, confronting the approaching horde in the hallway with steely resolve.

As Rose fought her way up to the third floor, clearing each number of zombies to ensure the building was safe, a realization hit her—she’d been relying solely on her daggers and had forgotten about her newly awakened ability.

Frustrated, she gave herself a small knock on the head, then smirked, deciding to use her abilities.

With a flick of her wrist, she conjured a series of ice crystal needles, each as thick as an adult’s finger.

She sent them flying toward the zombies down the hall, and in seconds, the undead were covered in the sharp, glinting shards, resembling oversized, frozen hedgehogs.

"That was surprisingly easier," Rose murmured, watching the zombies drop like flies under her assault.

She shook her head, realizing how much effort she’d wasted fighting them one by one when her powers allowed her to take them down from a distance.

A smile tugged at her lips as she acknowledged just how silly she’d been to overlook her abilities, making things far harder than necessary.

Fortunately, Rose had already reached level 1 as a superhuman, allowing her to conjure a substantial number of ice crystal needles quickly and efficiently.

Unlike when Sparrow and Vulture first attempted to harness their awakened abilities, which took considerable time and focus, Rose benefited from her higher starting point.

This advantage enabled her to utilize her powers with greater ease, making her feel a step ahead of her companions.

On the fourth floor, Rose relied entirely on her awakened ability, conjuring an array of ice crystal needles as she ascended.

She didn’t need to pause to kill the zombies; the more she practiced with her powers, the more confident she became.

With each encounter, she learned to conserve her spiritual energy, efficiently producing her ice crystals without any waste.

Before long, Rose reached the rooftop ahead of schedule.

With plenty of time to spare before Duke and his team arrived, she pulled out her binoculars and began scanning the streets for any impending danger.

She settled into her lookout position, remaining vigilant for quite some time as she waited.

As she spotted an incoming zombie within her reach, Rose would conjure a single ice crystal needle and took aim like a sniper, effortlessly shooting down the undead lurking in the streets.

With each successful strike, she found herself enjoying the task more, using the time to hone her skills while waiting for the others to arrive.

Meanwhile, Duke and his team were on the move before dawn, already busy preparing breakfast to ensure everyone had the energy to keep running and fighting until they reached their next resting point.

He hoped that by the time they arrived at the rendezvous point, Rose would have cleared some of the area, making it easier for his men to navigate without having to fight their way through.

Though he hadn’t explicitly mentioned it in his letter, Duke had deduced that by the time Rose left the base to head to the rendezvous point, it would be morning.

He anticipated that Sparrow would also be en route to Port City by then.

Knowing Sparrow’s personality and unwavering loyalty to him, Duke was confident that Sparrow would either drop Rose off nearby or, ideally, right at the specified coordinates.

This arrangement would give Rose the opportunity to clear the area before his arrival.

Duke was banking on this outcome; after all, he was a shrewd strategist who always aimed to secure an advantage.

After their hearty breakfast, which included meat and vegetables, everyone began packing up to leave as soon as possible.

They stopped questioning Duke about the source of the food he provided, simply grateful for whatever was on their plates.

After all, it was a welcome change from the dry ration biscuits that barely filled their stomachs and left them with parched throats.

After finishing their preparations, they departed when Duke gave the signal to leave, heading toward their next destination.

By the time they arrived at Rose’s location, the sun was shining brightly, and the streets were free of zombies.

The building marked by the coordinates Duke had given Kisha was actually one of the key sites for establishing their spider web formation to monitor the sewer system.

Upon reaching the rendezvous point, they wasted no time and immediately began preparing the drones, while Rose trailed behind, observing their actions.

Duke didn’t need to inquire about how Rose had fared while waiting for them; before they even stepped foot in the building, he noticed several dead zombies scattered around the streets they passed.

Each zombie had a gaping hole in its head, remnants of ice crystal essence glimmering around the wounds, making it clear what Rose had been up to.

With Rose’s arrival, their monitoring efforts continued smoothly, and her presence made it easier to kill the zombies, thanks to her great offensive-awakened abilities.

However, that wasn’t the primary reason Duke had called for her assistance.

The main draw was Rose’s impenetrable defense, a crucial asset they needed, especially since they had discovered a collapsed section of ground where the zombies might have used to enter and now roamed the sewers below.

Duke tasked Rose with covering all the holes to ensure no more zombies fell in and added to those already in the sewers.

While Rose focused on this task, the other team members continued their reconnaissance.

After all, Rose’s Ice Crystal was incredibly durable, deflecting any attacks directed at it.

Even if the zombies or mutated rats tried to destroy it, they would fail.

Unlike the earth walls or even Duke’s ice walls, Rose’s creation was superior, making her role in this task crucial.

They wouldn’t have time to return to the same location after completing their mission.

Once Rose finished filling the hole, the others would help clear the debris that had fallen into the sewers. It was a lot of work, but it had to be done.

Duke, meanwhile, was busy drawing a map, but only he knew his true intentions.

The others were puzzled by his work, as no matter how curious they were, they couldn’t decipher what he was creating.

They patiently waited for Duke to explain, knowing that his thought process was often difficult to understand.

Their current task felt like a repetitive cycle, and they only needed to engage in combat when absolutely necessary.

They hadn’t left the base to hunt zombies; their primary objective was to clear the sewers.

Purposefully seeking out and killing zombies would consume valuable time, so they tried to avoid it whenever possible.

With Rose added to the group, she often found herself with nothing to do while the others were preoccupied.

To make the most of her time, she practiced her long-range attacks, using her ice crystal needles like a sniper.