Chapter 322: Evacuation and the Price of Survival

Outside the City, evacuation teams merged into an endless line. Urgently rerouted military trucks were crammed with survivors.

Some clung to the truck frames, while others lay sprawled on the roofs.

The trucks, laden with survivors, resembled overburdened beetles, their once-sturdy tires nearly flattened under the weight.

In the midst of escape, all previous identities lost their meaning.

Instinctively, those on board looked back at the home they once knew, tears welling up. A few small-time merchants clung desperately to the compartments, breaking into uncontrollable sobs.

Time was scarce for the evacuation and even the military vehicles were in short supply. Boarding was a stroke of luck in itself.

Thus, aside from the clothes on their backs, no personal belongings were allowed.

They had nothing left.

In the face of such disaster, they were forced to leave everything behind.

Survival after the apocalypse was already a struggle.

Securing a spot in the Safe Zone—even if it was merely a shabby tin shelter—was the culmination of a lifetime of effort.

But now, it was all about to vanish.

“Why didn’t you warn us sooner? Why retreat only now?”

“We’ve paid so many taxes! Is this really how the Military treats us?!”

At the evacuation exit, several middle-aged men, refusing to leave, glared furiously and berated the soldiers on duty. Just days earlier, a shipment of goods had arrived, meant for sale in the East Sea—goods that had been all they could muster after losing everything.

Their route had taken them through the ruins of four city districts and subjected them to two mutant attacks, cutting the caravan’s numbers by more than half.

They’d thought this was their turning point, but fate had other plans.

Clutching a rifle tightly, a weathered middle-aged man bellowed, determined to charge back into the city:

“Let me go back!”

“I want my belongings returned! Give me back my truck! What right do you have to commandeer it?”

Beside him, a one-armed woman knelt, pleading desperately with the soldier before her.

Her husband had already perished on the road.

That shipment was everything to her.

She had come from a Private Safe Zone. In her youth, she and her husband had scraped together a few Credit Points when supplies were still accessible. Over the years, they had taken high-interest loans from Safe Zone leaders to buy a few trucks, pooling together every cent in hopes of one day securing a stable life.

But now, it was all gone.

What would they do if they ever managed to return?

Without the convoy and their hard-scraped goods, they were doomed to be dragged into black market debt collection.

Life was cheap—especially for someone as ordinary as a low-level Awakener.

If regular folks lived like dogs, selling their dignity and strength for meager survival, then they were, at best, disposable resources.

“Sir… Military Lord…”

“I’m begging you—please, let us go back…”

“Without this shipment, we’re as good as dead…”

“Just let us escape on our own and return one truck to us! If you ruin the city, what are we supposed to do?!”

They were seen as insignificant, as insignificant as blades of grass.

The woman, kneeling and repeatedly kowtowing, had a child waiting in the Safe Zone.

Everyone said the apocalypse was nearly over and that things would get better. She dreamed of saving enough money to educate her child, so they could become an engineer instead of an Awakener, instead of constantly risking life in the wild.

Without funds, they wouldn’t even be able to properly bury their fallen comrades.

Overseeing the kneeling woman, the soldier tasked with maintaining order let out a silent sigh.

He was simply doing his duty.

They couldn’t allow anyone to go back.

If someone escaped too late and attracted a Sea Beast, the fallout would be catastrophic.

Confiscating vehicles was an inevitable necessity.

If they didn’t haul the survivors back, everything could wait. But now, expecting ordinary people to outrun monsters on foot was simply unrealistic…

“We won’t destroy the city!”

“Once the Sea Beast retreats, all your possessions will be safe!”

Amid the chaos of shouting and crying, a representative from the Dongqing Battle Zone suddenly spoke up.

“The Military assures you—the frontline is stable! In just a few days, everyone will be home!”

At his words, shock quickly gave way to elation on every face.

“We won’t destroy the city!?”

Hadn’t it been announced that the Military planned to raze East Sea to keep the Sea Beast at bay?!

In a tone laden with sorrow and anger, a middle-level official from Dongqing Battle Zone spoke quietly as he glanced at the Military Awakeneds around him:

“Do you see what this means?”

“How can we possibly destroy the city? If East Sea is leveled, what fate awaits these poor people?!”

“Committee Member Yenir hasn’t thought this through—he’s too young to understand the devastation his orders will bring to East Sea and its surroundings!”

“It’s just a Sea Beast—not exactly a massive threat.”

After saying this, he casually regarded the silent Yenir, a cold smirk flickering in his eyes.

Destroying the city wasn’t just unacceptable to the survivors—it was unthinkable to them.

Which middle or high-ranking official in East Sea had no assets? Ruin it all, and it would be the end for them!

And even if a Sea Beast caught up with these commoners and claimed a few lives, so what?!

As long as the Military could muster a large force later, this disaster could be easily contained.

At the end of the day, it was just a few more casualties.

Hearing what sounded like reassuring news from the Military, the survivors—clinging to memories of their homes—erupted in cheers and gratefully turned towards the stout middle-aged man. Only a few skilled Awakeners exchanged a wary glance.

Compared to the uninformed masses, they clearly saw that the Military’s situation was far from promising.

The Military Third-Stage Awakener, whose constant inquiries for reinforcements had left a sour look on his face, knew full well.

They weren’t even sure the evacuation would go off without a hitch.

Not destroying the city sounded ideal, but what if the Sea Beast caught up?

East Sea was built on a core hub connecting six major battle zones—it had originally been established as a frontline defense against the Sea Beast. With time, its military significance had waned.

Public opinion flowed like water.

Satisfied with the public’s reaction to his words, the Dongqing representative nodded and waved cheerfully at the survivors, as if signaling that the disaster was behind them. With public support, Yenir couldn’t afford to act recklessly…

Destroy East Sea?

Did Yenir truly grasp how many people he would alienate?

On the fringes of the Military, Yenir silently observed the throngs chanting against destroying the city. His calm, unflinching eyes barely acknowledged the middle-level official nearby.

Another one…

Just another fool courting death.