Chapter 3

Savannah successfully implanted the special ability into Edmund's body.

He couldn't wait to test it. A blinding bolt of lightning erupted from his palm, shattering all the glass in the lab.

His face lit up with wild excitement. "I finally have a special ability! I won't have to live under everyone's scorn anymore!"

He grabbed Savannah's hands and looked into her eyes tenderly. "Sav, without you, I would've been called a useless piece of trash my whole life. You're the most important woman in my life."

She shook her head seriously. "Even without powers, you were never a waste. Those people couldn't see your worth. Chase was just lucky that he awakened so many special abilities. How could he ever compare to you? Now, you have a special ability, too. If you ask me, he should step down as captain and let you have it."

She looked so contemptuous at the mention of me that it was as if I were rotting garbage that she couldn't kick far enough away.

Every word out of her mouth stabbed straight into my heart. I heard it shatter, loud and clear.

Yes, I'd awakened multiple special abilities, but I'd also had to train ten times harder than anyone else. I'd never taken even a single day off.

I'd pushed every single ability to its absolute limit. It was only with my power and strength that I'd earned the captain's position and become humanity's hope.

Each time the zombie wave came, I was the one charging at the front, carving out the peace and safety the survivors now enjoyed.

Yet, Savannah easily reduced it to me being lucky.

Edmund couldn't hide the smug curl of his lips, though he pretended to be modest. "Chase has been captain for years, after all. If I tried to take his spot right away, no one would accept it. For now, I'd be happy just being a regular team member."

At that, I clenched my fists so hard that my knuckles turned white. He'd stolen my special ability and was even dreaming of stealing my position as captain. I couldn't wait to see if he was actually capable of holding it!

Savannah suggested they return to Edmund's place to celebrate, to which he instantly agreed.

As an ordinary person, Edmund had a housing allocation that was barely big enough for one. But the moment the door opened, I was stunned.

The place was packed—canned food stacked to the ceiling, sacks of potatoes, and even rare fresh fruit and green vegetables.

Those supplies were things that would cost even me a fortune in points to redeem. How could an ordinary person like him have all of this?

Then, it hit me. I thought about the supplies back home that seemed to run out suspiciously quickly. I would often reach home exhausted, wanting to cook something, only to find the pantry mysteriously empty again.

When I asked Savannah about it, she would just scold me for being useless and for not bringing back enough food. I'd felt so ashamed that I'd upped the frequency at which I traded for items.

Now, I knew the truth. She'd been taking everything I brought home and giving it to Edmund.

Bitterness flooded my chest. All this time, I'd been played for an absolute fool.