The light faded quickly. When Kane saw what y in the dirt， he froze.

  A pair of bck fishnet stockings.

  He’d never in a million years expected to pull this from a Star Shard.

  He was desperate for lower-body gear， but there was no way in hell he was wearing these.

  “I’m a grown man. I’d rather die out here， torn apart by the Infected， than wear a woman’s fishnets.”

  He swore under his breath， and tossed them nearly 50 feet away.

  The move was casual， oozing with machismo.

  He turned and marched off into the night， his back straight and fearless.

  A real man didn’t need leggings， even if it meant he was less protected.

  Even if the stockings were clearly above F-Rank.

  Even if they’d make him a hell of a lot safer out here.

  “…One wear won’t kill me.”

  Kane‘coincidentally’ found himself back where he’d thrown the stockings. He frowned， bending down to pick them up， his face twisted with disgust.

  Then he quickly tore off his pants and pulled the fishnets on over his hairy legs.

  He’d never seen these in his past life， and without his old B-Rank True Sight Ability， there was only one way to test their effects.

  Kane tensed his legs and shot forward. In three seconds， he’d covered nearly 300 feet.

  The wind roared in his ears. His speed was way beyond the human limit. Even the world’s fastest sprinter couldn’t have kept up.

  He skidded to a stop， breathing hard， a grin spreading across his face.

  “Wear them under my pants. No one’s gonna know unless I take them off.”

  He muttered to himself.“Shit， these are good.”

  These were definitely E-Rank gear. With his current physical stats， he couldn’t even unlock their full potential.

  He quickly pulled his pants back on， lit a cigarette， and took a deep drag.

  He did the math in his head. So far， he’d pulled three pieces of gear: the F-Rank Military Combat Jacket， the F-Rank Balisong Knife， and the E-Rank Fishnet Stockings.

  Plus three bottles of purified water， one nutrient sandwich， and a pack of instant noodles.

  Wandering around blind looking for more Shards was stupid now. He had something far more important to do.

  It was time to get his old B-Rank Ability， True Sight， back.

  He remembered exactly where it was: the old Veyra City Zoo， nearly 10 miles away.

  He also remembered that the Star Shard holding the True Sight Serum had sat on the surface there for three full months before anyone found it. It hadn’t been devoured by the Infected， because a mutated macaque had made the zoo its territory.

  He had two goals here: get the True Sight Serum， and see if he could tame and bind that mutated macaque.

  Kane hefted the modified bone saw and took off toward the zoo.

  With the speed boost from the fishnets， he was there in 20 minutes ft.

  The zoo’s buildings had been crushed by meteors， the trees and pnts burned to ash. Bodies of humans and animals littered the ground， most of them mangled and broken.

  The macaque hadn’t mutated yet. It was hiding somewhere， deep underground.

  Kane focused his senses， but heard no sign of it. The zoo was dead silent.

  That macaque was smarter than any beast he’d ever met.

  In his past life， he’d spent months helping Liam trap it， failing over and over again. They’d only caught it when it was already C-Rank， using an expensive A-Rank Beast Trap.

  Its growth potential was off the charts. One of the most promising Mutated Beasts he’d ever seen.

  It had died protecting Liam in the second year of the Colpse， by then already a B-Rank beast.

  First things first: get the True Sight Serum.

  Kane headed straight for the crater where he’d found the Shard， all those years ago.

  He jumped down into the crater.

  And froze.

  Where the Star Shard was supposed to be…

  There was nothing.

  Just dirt and broken rock.

  This wasn’t how it had gone in his past life. He remembered it clearly: the Shard had been sitting right here， out in the open， easy to spot.

  Kane couldn’t believe it. He grabbed the bone saw and dug like a man possessed， until his arms burned and he was gasping for breath.

  He dug three feet down. No Shard.

  It was gone. His True Sight Serum was really gone.

  “How the fuck is this possible?” Kane stared bnkly， stunned.

  He’d waited this long because he knew the Shard had been here for three full months before anyone found it.

  Most survivors were still cowering in hiding， too scared to step outside.

  Who the hell would have taken it?

  But it was gone.

  Kane’s blood boiled with rage. He should have come here earlier. This Shard was his. It had always been part of his pn.

  No one got to take what was his.

  “Whoever took this is gonna die.” He snarled through gritted teeth.

  He forced himself to calm down. The thief couldn’t have gotten far. He closed his eyes， focusing every ounce of his enhanced senses on the world around him.

  Seconds ter， his eyes flew open， bzing with rage. He shot forward like a bullet.

  A mile and a half away， he heard footsteps. Faint， but unmistakably human.

  Kane was seething with murderous intent. Less than a minute ter， he was 100 yards behind the figure.

  And when he saw who it was， he froze.

  “The Food Supply?”

  Staring at the thin， limping figure ahead， everything clicked into pce.

  No wonder someone had gotten to the Shard. It was her.

  The woman who should have died at Liam’s hands in his past life had lived， because of him. She’d stepped off the timeline he knew， and taken something she never should have touched.

  The Food Supply was trembling， her steps unsteady， limping across the cratered ground.

  Her face was caked in dirt and blood， and she whimpered every time she stepped on a mangled body by the path.

  “You just had to keep living， didn’t you? You couldn’t just hide somewhere. You had to take my Ability Shard.”

  “I gave you a chance. You chose to throw it away.”

  Murderous intent rolled off Kane in waves. She looked pitiful， sure. But she still had to die.

  He tightened his grip on the bone saw and stepped forward.

  The Food Supply heard his footsteps. She turned around slowly.

  “It’s you?”

  There was no fear on her face. Only relief， then a bright， soft smile.“It’s really you. I was looking for you.”

  “You were looking for me?” Kane paused， the bde he’d been about to swing slowing in the air.

  “I know you’re looking for these.” She slipped her hand into her bra.

  A moment ter， she held out her dirty， bloodstained palm to him.

  Three blood-red crystals， the size of her thumb， glinted in the dark.

  “I saw you searching for these everywhere. They must be really important to you， right?” She asked， earnest and quiet.

  Kane stared at her， stunned.“You know what these are?”

  “No. I just saw you looking for them. I didn’t have any way to thank you for saving me， so I looked around for more. I only found three.” She smiled.

  Her face was filthy， but her smile was bright， her teeth white and even. She looked almost giddy.

  “I’m so gd I found you again. I’m sorry I couldn’t find more. It’s only three.”

  Kane stared at her， silent.

  She made it sound easy， but he knew the truth. For a woman with her physical strength to make it all the way out here， she’d been searching nonstop for him since they’d parted ways.

  “What do you want from me?” Kane asked， his voice cold.

  “You saved my life. You already gave me food and water.” Her voice was hoarse， and she broke into a coughing fit.“I know this isn’t enough to repay you. But it’s something.”

  Kane stared at her， his gaze sharp. For the first time， he couldn’t read a person.

  This was the Colpse. Even if she didn’t know the true value of the Star Shards， only an idiot would give away something this valuable for nothing.

  She’d seen Liam trade a Shard for a single sip of energy drink. She had to know they were worth something.

  And yet she was giving them to him， asking for nothing in return.

  Was this some kind of game? A trick?

  Then she grabbed his hand， and dropped the Shards into his palm.

  Kane stared down at them. They were still warm from her hand， stained with blood from cuts on her fingers， from digging through concrete and rock with her bare hands.

  “Please don’t think they’re useless.” She whispered.

  Kane’s jaw tightened. He’d fully intended to kill her and take these Shards by force.

  But now… could he still do it?

  He was torn.

  He hadn’t thought she’d warp the timeline this much.

  If he let her live， he’d probably never see her again. And the timeline he knew， the future he’d pnned for， could unravel completely.

  “Thank you. For letting me do something good， for letting me meet someone like you in this hell.” She said， her voice rough.

  “I should go. We probably won’t see each other again.”

  She smiled at him one more time.

  “Women like me don’t st long in this world. So… we probably won’t meet again.”

  She turned slowly， and limped away. Her feet were bare， her shoes lost somewhere along the way.

  Kane stared at her back.

  In the end， he didn’t lift the bde.

  “Seven years in the Wastend. And I still haven’t turned into a monster.” He ughed bitterly.

  He couldn’t kill an unarmed woman who’d just handed him three Star Shards.

  She walked away. He didn’t call out to her. Didn’t warn her about the Infected rising at midnight.

  Whether she lived or died was up to her luck now.

  He pushed the thought of her out of his head， and raised the bone saw to crack open the three Shards.