Chapter 256 Two options

Immediately after Ivy finished speaking, two survivors stepped away from the other eight, leaving only six standing together.

The two survivors who separated from the others were a man and a woman, and from the way they remained close to each other, it was obvious they were a married couple. Their sudden movement immediately caught everyone’s attention.

The remaining six survivors stared at the couple in complete disbelief, their expressions filled with confusion and surprise.

The husband reached down and firmly took his wife’s hand, holding it tightly as the woman moved closer to his side. They exchanged a brief glance, as though silently confirming that they had both arrived at the same decision.

One of the remaining six survivors widened his eyes in utter disbelief.

"Huh? Are you being serious right now?" he asked, staring at the couple as though he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

"You really want to leave?" another survivor chimed in with a scoff, placing both hands on his waist. "Where exactly do you think you’re going to go?"

The married couple didn’t hesitate.

"We’re being serious," the man replied immediately. He tightened his grip around his wife’s hand before turning his attention toward Ivy and Darren. "We’ve both made our decision. We choose to leave. We still have things we want to do together rather than spend the rest of our lives trapped inside a base."

He paused for a moment, glancing at his wife before continuing.

"We still want to explore the world together. And even if we eventually end up dying out there, at least we’ll have fulfilled our wish. We’d rather take that chance together than spend the rest of our lives wondering what could have been."

"Trapped in a base?" one of the other six survivors exclaimed, his hands still firmly planted on his waist. His eyes remained wide with shock. "Out of being trapped in a base that provides you with protection, food, and everything else you need to survive, and ending up in the stomachs of monsters as food or worse, becoming monsters yourselves and eventually being killed....you actually picked the second option?"

He shook his head in disbelief.

"Like, seriously? You actually think that’s a better choice?"

"And you’re both talking about wishes?" another survivor chimed in, his expression becoming more serious. "You might actually end up dead before you even get the chance to begin fulfilling that wish. That’s just how crazy the apocalypse is. You never know when you’re going to die."

His words caused the atmosphere to grow tense, but before the others could continue arguing, Ivy slowly raised her hand.

The simple gesture was enough to silence everyone.

The survivors immediately swallowed the remaining words in their mouths, exchanging uneasy glances as they reluctantly fell quiet.

Ivy turned her attention toward the married couple and raised an eyebrow.

"Is that really what you want?" she asked, her voice calm but serious.

The couple looked at each other once more before simultaneously nodding their heads.

"Yes," the husband answered firmly.

"Then I won’t stop you," Ivy replied.

She reached toward the side of her clothing and brought out a carefully wrapped piece of paper that had been hidden away from sight. She held it in her hand for a moment before stretching it toward the couple.

"Here. Take this."

The husband looked at the paper with confusion before stepping forward and accepting it from Ivy.

"It’s a map," Ivy revealed, her tone serious.

The man immediately unwrapped the paper, and his wife leaned closer to examine it with him. As the map unfolded, both of their eyes widened in surprise.

"This will guide you toward wherever you wish to go," Ivy explained, pointing toward several markings on the map. "I’ve also marked different locations where monsters are known to wander. If you pay attention to the markings and avoid those areas, you’ll have a better chance of reaching your destination safely."

The couple stared at the map for several seconds, clearly overwhelmed by Ivy’s generosity.

"Thank you so much, Captain Ivy!" the couple chorused in unison.

Before Ivy could say anything else, both of them suddenly dropped to their knees. Tears of appreciation rolled down their cheeks as they bowed their heads.

Ivy’s expression softened.

"You’re both welcome," she said warmly as she stepped forward and helped them back onto their feet. "You should leave now, before it gets dark. It’s much easier to avoid monsters during the day than at night."

"Yes. Thank you so much," the husband replied, wiping away the tears from his face.

"Goodbye, everyone," his wife added softly.

The couple gave one final bow before turning around and hurrying away, clutching the map tightly between them.

Ivy watched them disappear into the distance before slowly turning back.

She was now standing with Darren and the six remaining survivors.

The six survivors consisted of three young adults in their twenties, two teenagers, and one elderly man who, despite his age, still appeared to be relatively strong and capable.

Ivy studied them for a moment, taking in their different expressions and postures.

"Since the six of you have decided to come with me to my base, why don’t you introduce yourselves?" Ivy asked, raising an eyebrow with curiosity as she turned to face them.

She folded her arms across her chest.

"I’d like to know the names of the people I’ll be bringing back with me."