Chapter 2

Jake's pupils contracted slightly.

A golden wheel appeared before him—visible only to him.

The wheel spun slowly, then came to a stop.

A card radiating brilliant golden light materialized in the air.

[Mod Name: Infinite]

[Quality: Golden Legendary]

[Type: Rule-Class]

[Effect: Grants the target the "Infinite" trait. If applied to a vehicle-mounted weapon, ammunition becomes infinite. If applied to a water tank, fresh water becomes infinite...]

[Use immediately?]

Staring at that word—Infinite—Jake's usually steady heart gave two hard thumps.

In this resource-starved apocalypse, what mattered most?

Water? Food? Ammunition?

No.

For Jake right now, as long as the wheels turned, anything was possible.

If the wheels stopped, even mountains of gold were scrap metal!

Jake instinctively glanced at the left side mirror.

In the reflection, a bone-chilling sight greeted him.

At the horizon where sky met earth, a massive gray wall of fog—stretching from ground to heavens—was advancing slowly.

That silent, crushing pressure was more despair-inducing than any tsunami.

Jake took a deep breath. He didn't hesitate any longer. He reached out and tapped the air.

"Apply mod. Target—motorhome fuel tank!"

Bzzz!

A beam of golden light shot into the chassis.

The next second, something miraculous happened. The fuel gauge, which had been blinking red, shot upward like it was on adrenaline.

A quarter... half... three-quarters...

Until it slammed hard against the "F (Full)" mark—and even trembled slightly, as if it were overflowing!

[Mod applied successfully!]

[Current vehicle fuel tank has been upgraded to: Infinite Fuel Reactor.] (Cannot extract petroleum.)

[Trait 1: Fuel remains at 100% at all times. Never depletes.]

[Trait 2: Engine never fails. Combustion efficiency increased by 200%. Power output doubled.]

[Trait 3: No need to idle. Excess energy automatically converts to onboard electricity.]

"Heh..."

Jake couldn't help but laugh out loud.

In this world, fuel was blood. Fuel was life.

In a world where everyone was clawing each other's eyes out for a single drop of gas, he had unlimited energy.

That meant—as long as he didn't do anything stupid—this motorhome was a true mobile fortress.

Meanwhile, the regional chat was still a symphony of despair.

[I've started the engine! But I'm scared to step on the gas. Does coasting in neutral save fuel?]

[To the guy in front of me, don't brake! Use momentum!]

[20 km/h should be the most fuel-efficient, right? But the Gray Mist is at 30 km/h! We're dead!]

[As long as I'm slightly faster than you, you'll die! Everyone, run!]

[To save weight and cut fuel consumption, I threw my mattress out the window!]

Watching these players haggle over every drop of gas, stripping their vehicles bare to save weight, Jake shook his head.

He sat up straight, adjusted his seat, and buckled his seatbelt.

Then, he slammed his right foot down.

Not a tap. Not a test.

Full throttle.

ROOOOAAAAR—!!!

The old diesel engine, enhanced by [Efficient Combustion], roared with a fury no vehicle of its weight class should possess.

It was the roar of a beast awakening.

The sudden G-force slammed Jake back into his seat.

This clunky motorhome shot forward like a runaway bull. Black smoke belched from the exhaust pipe. The tires screamed against the desolate asphalt.

Screech—ROAR!

The motorhome launched!

The speedometer went wild.

0... 20... 40... 60... 80... 100!

In just a few seconds, the beat-up RV was hitting 100 km/h!

The scenery outside blurred past. The wasteland became streaks of color.

…

At that very moment, on the same highway.

A few hundred meters ahead, a player was carefully feathering his throttle, trying to keep his speed at exactly 35 km/h—when he heard a thunderous roar from behind.

"What the hell? An earthquake?"

He glanced in his rearview mirror and froze.

A massive white behemoth, kicking up a rooster tail of dust and gravel, shot past him like a cannonball—with an arrogance and fury that was downright obscene.

WHOOSH—!

The shockwave sent rocks and sand pelting against his windows.

The player sat there, jaw dropped, watching the RV's taillights shrink into the distance until they vanished over the horizon.

"HOLY—?!"

"Yo, dude! You think gas is free?!"

"Is that an RV or a rocket?!"

"DUDE! TAKE ME WITH YOU! I'LL DO ANYTHING!"

Jake couldn't hear the shouts behind him.

With one hand on the wheel, he felt the endless, surging power of the engine. He glanced at the fuel gauge—stuck firmly at Full, not moving an inch.

This. This was survival.

This was what security felt like.

[Current Status Updated]

[Vehicle: Civilian Class C Motorhome (Heavily Modified)]

[Level: Lv.1]

[Defense: 20]

(Note: Barely withstands a Level 1 zombie's scratch.)

[Weight: 3 tons]

[Storage Space: 8 cubic meters]

[Durability: 50%]

(Left front tire moderately worn. Replacement recommended.)

[Fuel: Infinite]

[External Weapons: None]

[Current Speed: 100 km/h]

(Flooring it)

[Overall Rating: A mobile fortress with unlimited power. As long as that left front tire doesn't blow, even Death can't catch you!]

Jake squinted at the endless road ahead.

'Step one: survived. Next up... find those supply crates. There are ten thousand crates scattered out there... how many can I grab?'

One minute later, Jake spotted a supply crate on the highway. It looked like a wooden treasure chest, but it glowed faintly green.

Seeing no zombies nearby, Jake hopped out, dragged the crate into his RV, and popped it open.

Inside was a single can of black, oily liquid.

A system notification appeared.

[Name: Universal Fuel x1]

[Type: Consumable]

[Quality: Common]

[Effect: Can be used as fuel for any vehicle. One unit of Universal Fuel provides 100 km of range.]

Universal Fuel...

Even though he had infinite fuel and didn't need it, Jake wasn't disappointed.

He didn't need it. But other players did.

In a survival game where your vehicle was everything, Universal Fuel was liquid gold—incredibly valuable.

Over the next while, Jake drove his motorhome along the Zombie Wasteland highway, sweeping up every supply crate he came across.

…

Meanwhile, on the same stretch of road, other players were losing their minds.

"Where are all the crates?! This game's rigged! If you want me dead, just kill me already!"