Chapter 288 Are those coats?

The next day arrived swiftly, and Erick, the leader of Fierce Hunter Base, didn’t waste any time before leading the team through the remaining streets. His expression hardened as another group of monsters emerged from between the abandoned buildings.

Since everyone had finally come to a conclusion about the mission, Erick had been assigned the task of clearing the remaining monsters outside, along with several soldiers, while the rest of the team dealt with the monsters inside and continued loading their trucks with supplies.

"There are still some stragglers," Erick said, tightening his grip on his gun as he scanned the surrounding buildings. "Clear them out before we head back."

The soldiers immediately spread out, their weapons raised and their eyes alert.

The streets were littered with abandoned vehicles, shattered glass, and dried blood. The once-busy city had long since become a graveyard, with only the occasional growl of a monster breaking the eerie silence.

A monster suddenly lunged from behind a wrecked car.

Bang!

Its body collapsed onto the ground before it could reach the nearest soldier.

"Left side!"

Another soldier shouted a warning as several more monsters stumbled out of a narrow alley.

The team moved swiftly.

They had already fought their way through most of the area, so the remaining monsters were dealt with within a matter of minutes. The soldiers worked together efficiently, making sure none of the creatures managed to slip through their formation.

When the last monster finally dropped to the ground, Erick lowered his weapon and carefully scanned their surroundings.

"Anything else?" he asked.

"No movement!" one of the soldiers immediately replied.

Erick nodded.

"Then we’re done here."

The soldiers quickly returned to the clothing city to join the others. They began gathering the supplies they had collected, loading everything they could into the waiting trucks.

Among the loot were several bundles of clothing recovered from the clothing warehouse, accompanied by other necessary essentials.

There were thick winter coats, sweaters, trousers, children’s clothes, socks, scarves, gloves, and even a few pairs of shoes.

Erick glanced at the growing pile of supplies before turning toward the trucks.

"We’re taking everything," he announced firmly. "I know our trucks are already filled up, but we’re taking as much as we can. If they can’t contain everything, we’ll come back for the remaining resources later."

The soldiers immediately got to work.

One by one, the bundles of clothing were carried into the vehicles until there was barely any empty space left. Some of the supplies were carefully stacked on top of one another while the soldiers secured everything tightly to prevent them from falling during the journey.

After making sure nothing else of value had been left behind, the team finally began their journey back to the base.

They could have decided to spend another night in the clothing city, but the area was contaminated, and the horrible stench of the monsters still clung heavily to the air, making it difficult to breathe.

No one wanted to remain there any longer than necessary.

"We did it!" Ivy murmured under her breath as she settled into the front seat of the Fierce Hunter Base truck, right beside Darren, who was driving.

She leaned back slightly, allowing herself to relax for the first time in hours.

"Now I can’t wait to get back to Hope Base."

"Exactly," Erick chimed in from the seat behind them. "Since the various distribution tasks have been completed, it’s only proper that we all return to our respective bases and reunite with our loved ones."

Ivy and Darren nodded in agreement before turning their gazes toward the road ahead.

The journey back was relatively quiet.

Everyone was exhausted from the previous day’s battle, and after spending so much time fighting monsters and gathering supplies, all they wanted was to return to the safety of their bases.

Ivy, however, couldn’t help thinking about her children.

She hadn’t seen them since leaving Hope Base, and although she trusted Mrs. Smith to take good care of them, she still couldn’t completely stop herself from worrying.

She missed them.

The thought of finally seeing their faces again brought a faint smile to her lips.

---

By the time Ivy, Darren, and Erick returned to the base, word had already spread that they had brought back a large quantity of clothing.

The news spread through the base like wildfire.

Survivors quickly gathered around the warehouse, their eyes widening with anticipation when they saw the trucks filled with supplies.

Winter clothing had become one of the most valuable resources in the apocalypse. With temperatures continuing to drop, having something warm to wear could mean the difference between surviving the night and freezing to death.

Following Ivy’s command, the survivors were quickly gathered around the warehouse so the clothing could be distributed to them immediately.

There was no reason to keep such essential supplies locked away when people desperately needed them.

Ivy stood outside the warehouse, watching as the soldiers unloaded the clothing.

Although she hadn’t even had the chance to see her children yet, she wasn’t worried.

She knew Mrs. Smith was taking care of them, and that gave her enough peace of mind to focus on the task at hand.

"Sort everything according to size and type," Ivy instructed the soldiers. "Make sure the children’s clothes are separated from the adults’ clothes. The winter coats should also be kept together."

"Yes, Madam!"

The soldiers immediately followed her instructions.

Soon, the warehouse became a hive of activity as bundles of clothing were opened and sorted.

The survivors stared at the piles of warm clothes before them, their expressions filled with excitement and relief.

For many of them, it was the first time in a long while that they had seen such a large quantity of clothing gathered in one place.

"Are those coats?"

"There are children’s clothes too!"

People began whispering excitedly among themselves, their eyes darting over the various piles of clothing as though they could hardly believe what they were seeing.