Bang bang!
The knocking on the door got even louder. If Jayhan didn't know better, they were probably getting even angrier as time passed and they still hadn't been responded to.
They could practically see Jayhan and the girls inside the shop, staring back at them.
Why the hell weren't they opening it?
They didn't need to speak for Jayhan to understand what they were thinking. At the same time, he couldn't help but give it a long thought.
Actually, the fact that both Kara and Veronica hadn't tried to open the door showed they were waiting for him to make the call.
Humans can be monsters, far more dangerous than any skeleton monster he fought.
Based on his calculations, one of two things was going to happen if he opened the door for them.
One, they turn out to be in need, and they take whatever it is they want from the store. It didn't matter if they left or not, as long as they were in no way a nuisance.
Then there's the other part, the much darker part.
The moment he opens that door, they would immediately lead to violence, for whatever reason they might have.
Obviously, Jayhan knew he wasn't a threat to these guys; he doesn't even know who they are.
But that doesn't mean a thing when one has been faced with death multiple times in a day. Things like that tend to mess with the mind of a person, putting them in a frenzied state.
Even from where he stood, he could still see the blood stained across their bodies. Nothing was going to convince him that they hadn't killed anyone.
It was too risky.
Not like he even had a choice to begin with.
These people were going to keep banging the door as loud as they could until someone from inside the store let them in. And if that kept going for too long, it would only be a matter of time before more people began to show up at the front of the store.
A truly difficult situation for Jayhan. But it wasn't one without a solution.
When you're born in a field of wild beasts, in order to survive, you need to adapt to their way of thinking.
"Listen here, I'm going to open the door and let them in."
Both women clearly heard him, even though he was whispering.
"Can we trust them not to harm us or anything? What if they try to steal our coins?"
Stealing of coins? Jayhan had never heard of that since the apocalypse began.
"What did you mean, steal coins?"
Kara managed to beat Jayhan to the question. It was better that way; he didn't want the people outside the store to know they were communicating.
And since his body was covering both women, it would be hard for them to figure that out.
"Uhn? You guys don't know? When you shake hands with someone, you can share your coins with them. Our group figured that out a while back."
For a girl who acts as if her IQ is below average, she sometimes makes some really helpful observations.
Something didn't sit right with him about it. How come their group figured that out? Was there a hidden tutorial or something?
Tsk!
He could figure that out later.
"That brings me to my next point…"
Jayhan had already made up his mind; to him, he felt it was better to have these people enter now than have many other people swarm the place later.
"…I'll open the door for them, and make sure you maintain a good distance. Don't get too close; if they make any move…don't hesitate to kill them."
His instructions were clear and easy to follow. Whether it would be executed well was another thing entirely. He was sure Kara wouldn't hesitate, but could the new girl really stand up for herself when it came to it?
Doubts can be ignored when you already have the facts checked.
Slowly, he approached the door. He was so careful that every step he took seemed to showcase his active readiness to run if anything were to happen.
Having a knife in the hand he hid behind his back was just in case.
Jayhan didn't hesitate, not even for a single second. The moment he removed the hammer from the door handle, he leaped back, watching as the two individuals fell into the store.
It was a man and a woman, both looking to be in their early 20s or maybe even younger.
The girl, who was quick to stand to her feet and close the door, wore a red gown, her short brown hair stained with blood and dirt.
And the other dude was too irrelevant for Jayhan to even take into consideration.
Since the system hadn't alerted him of any danger risk, it's safe to say these people weren't going to do anything.
And if they were, Kara would have—
Just as soon as he looked at her, Jayhan could see the worry on her face, her body yanking up as she was able to race towards him.
He could see her lips move.
"Move away from there!!!"
Alas, it was too late.
Pa!
The sound of the gun rippled through the shop, and with that came Jayhan, falling to the ground, his blood leaking on the floor.
Nothing could have made him think this bastard would actually shoot him in the leg while still being on the ground.
Before Kara could even get to Jayhan's body, the man picked him up and held him at gunpoint, the barrel pressing against the side of Jayhan's head.
The girl behind pulled out a broken glass, a disgusting smile on her face as she stood behind the man, positioning the blade close to Jayhan's neck.
Having two different weapons aimed at you was enough to make anyone panic.
Yet, Jayhan was surprisingly calm, only wincing due to the pain he felt in his leg.
"Stay where you are!" yelled the man.
But Kara wasn't having it.
She reached inside the bag of groceries and pulled something out before falling to her knees, her hand gripping it like a grenade.
"Let him go, or I swear I'll blow us all up!"