Read Novel Full Chapter 364: Charm
Chapter 364: Chapter 364: Charm
"I... would be grateful," she murmured. "If you truly mean that."
She lowered her gaze demurely, but inside her heart, a single thought pulsed like lightning.
’Just get inside the base and fetch me food. I don’t care about anything else.’
The moment the man nodded with earnest determination, Hannah softened her expression and allowed relief to fill her eyes like warm light.
She whispered gently, "You should go now. Before the opportunity slips away."
The man straightened his shoulders, nodded again, and turned away.
As he walked back toward the line outside the SiIvy base, Hannah watched his retreating figure with a quiet, unreadable calm.
’He will be useful later,’ she thought. ’And if he isn’t, he will at least feed me for now.’
In truth, Hannah’s strange ability had awakened on the very night the apocalypse began.
She had been sneaking into a man’s apartment, attempting to seduce him for money, when everything went dark, alarms blared outside, and panic filled the streets.
In that moment of chaos, something inside her had shifted. The man who had once tossed her aside with disgust suddenly stared at her as if she were the most beautiful creature he had ever seen.
At first, she dismissed it asa coincidence.
’Maybe he liked me all along,’ she told herself. But the pattern repeated, again and again.
Every house she sought temporary shelter in, every man whose door she knocked on, every person whose gaze she met, if they had even the slightest mental instability, weakness, loneliness, or lack of intelligence, they fell under her charm.
Her ability was far from perfect; she could not control everyone. Strong-willed people resisted her immediately.
Those with stable minds or clear goals barely glanced at her.
But those who carried cracks in their mental walls, insecurities, ego, loneliness, or suppressed desires... fell for her like moths to flame.
Even if she never entered the SiIvy base, she could survive. Men would feed her, house her, protect her.
Yet, if she did enter the SiIvy base, an established fortress with resources, her charm would multiply in impact.
She could seduce capable men, powerful men, men with positions and weapons.
Her cultivation would rise. One day she would gather enough influence to create her own base and rule this ruined world as she pleased.
As the thought bloomed in her mind like poisonous flowers, Hannah turned toward Arthur with large, pitiful eyes.
Even though she dreamed of someday keeping a harem of strong men, Arthur appealed to her taste more than any of them.
He was indifferent, calm, and his expressions were difficult for her to read.
’He satisfies me the most,’ she admitted internally, ’and that alone makes him worth keeping around.’
A gentle smile shaped her lips as she said, "Since they won’t let us inside the SiIvy base, it’s better if we leave."
Arthur frowned. Sweat trickled down the back of his neck; the midday heat was suffocating. "Leave? Where are we supposed to go if we can’t enter?"
Hannah’s smile widened, light and confident. "I know another place, Starfell Base. I’m acquainted with the base leader there."
Kate, Arthur, and Marcus exchanged glances, the air thickening with distrust.
Arthur crossed his arms slightly, suspicion clouding his eyes.
"You promised you could get us inside the SiIvy base, but you failed. Why should we trust you again?"
Hannah’s smile faltered for a brief second. His tone, lazy yet pointed, scratched at her pride, and displeasure flared in her chest. But she smoothed her expression instantly.
"If you don’t want to trust me," she said gently, "I won’t force you."
The heat pressed down on her skin like a blanket of fire. Even in this oppressive weather, her face remained pale and perfectly smooth, her ability always kept her beautiful, even when she was unhygienic or exhausted.
She waved lightly to herself in an attempt to cool down, then started walking toward Starfell Base with effortless confidence.
Arthur watched her walk away with her head high and her body relaxed.
’Is she not afraid of zombies at all?’ he wondered.
Kate nodded, her discomfort growing. Marcus rubbed his arms unconsciously.
There was something unnatural about Hannah’s calmness. She walked through the wasteland as if nothing could harm her.
In that moment, an idea flashed simultaneously through all three of their minds.... sharp, cold, and dangerous.
Does she have an ability that keeps zombies away?
The greed that flickered in their eyes was unmistakable.
If she truly possessed such a power, then keeping her close would guarantee their survival. Without hesitation, they followed her.
But Hannah, who maintained her calm not because of any immunity to zombies but because she knew men would soon gather around her, smiled faintly to herself.
’Men are predictable,’ she mused. ’They never fail to chase after a beautiful woman in distress.’
Her prediction proved true.
Within minutes, several men, broad-shouldered, muscular, and carrying makeshift weapons, hurried toward her.
"Hannah!" one called out. "Where are you going? You shouldn’t walk alone!"
"You’re being impulsive," another scolded, though his eyes traced her figure with barely hidden admiration.
Hannah stopped and looked at them with an expression painted in anguish.
"I’m only trying to survive," she whispered. "If I stay near this base, the representative might punish me again. I need to leave."
Immediately, the men crowded around her, forming a protective ring.
"We’ll lead you there," one declared.
"Yeah, don’t worry!" another added. "You shouldn’t be alone."
"We’ll make sure you’re safe."
Their eagerness spread through the group. Some of the less impressive men, ordinary-looking, average in every way, also stepped forward to pledge their support.
"Hannah needs protection," one said solemnly. "She shouldn’t suffer because of unreasonable people inside."
"If she apologizes to the representative, maybe they’ll give her a second chance," another suggested.
Hannah shook her head sadly. "I know the base leader of Starfell Base," she murmured.
"But the representative here... Ivy... she hates me. She has always hated me. Even back in university."
The men stiffened.
One of them frowned deeply. "Is that why Ivy kicked you out?"
Hannah paused, letting her voice tremble slightly.
"It’s... not like that. I don’t want to speak ill of her."