<h4>Chapter 5: Upromising</h4>
After leveling up, he clearly felt that his speed and reflexes were much faster than before.
Even the pistol in his hand seemed to be lighter.
In theter stages of leveling up, grappling with zombies wasn''t very difficult.
Even tearing them apart by hand wasn''t impossible.
But these things, at this stage, Alex didn''t want to dwell on.
He''d take it one step at a time.
He climbed down from the rooftop and returned to the second-floor residence.
Just as he entered the office, he saw Mia wriggling on the floor like a caterpir.
Two days of hunger had already started to induce hallucinations in her.
"Cough."
Alex coughed.
Mia startled violently.
At this moment, she was like a tightly strung bow, any slight external disturbance was a strong stimulus for her.
Alex just took out a te of fragrant fried rice, and Mia''s green eyes locked onto it.
Alex clicked his tongue inwardly.
He had only seen such a gaze in starving wolves in the animal world.
"Do you want to eat?"
Alex helped Mia up and sat down with the fried rice in front of her.
Listening to Alex''s tempting words, Mia didn''t respond, and the light in her eyes dimmed slightly.
Despite her stomach growling.
Just then, Alex suddenly used his left hand to pinch Mia''s cheeks and opened her mouth.
The tender sensation in his hand made Alex''s heart flutter.
He gazed at Mia, who was mentally exhausted but still had a beautiful face, and was momentarily stunned.
Confused, Mia asked, "Are you insane?"
Alex didn''t say anything, he simply scooped up a spoonful of fried rice and stuffed it into Mia''s mouth.
Mia instinctively chewed and swallowed two bites of the fried rice, the aroma almost bringing tears to her eyes.
But then she snapped out of it.
"You won''t make me submit!"
Alex continued to pick up a second spoonful of fried rice and offered it to Mia''s mouth.
"Want another bite?" he asked.
Mia was just too hungry. Even though she was resolute a moment ago, her mouth involuntarily opened.
But the next moment, Alex turned the spoon around and brought the fried rice to his own mouth.
Then, with a blissful expression, he closed his eyes and said, "Mmm, delicious!"
Mia was furious.
"You! Are you ying with me?!"
Alex swallowed the rice, smiling as he said, "When youe to your senses and decide to follow me, then you can eat as much as you want. But not now."
After saying that, Alex didn''t pay any attention to Mia, who was trembling with anger, and sat back on the sofa, finishing the fried rice.
The reason for giving Mia a bite of fried rice was certainly not out of kindness.
It was just that he feared she had been hungry for too long and might forget the taste of food.
After enduring hunger for several days, tasting a mouthful of fragrant fried rice not only wouldn''t satisfy her hunger, but would also make her stomach react even faster.
Just like an addict, taking the first hit but unable to stop, only making them more miserable.
Alex hoped Mia would be in such a state.
Mia watched Alex enjoy his meal on the sofa and suddenly felt like crying.
This man showed no mercy, only bullying her over and over again.
Feeling Mia''s gaze, Alex looked over.
They locked eyes for a moment, and Alex felt a bit embarrassed.
It wasn''t because he was shy about seeing a beautiful woman, but because he recalled his treatment of Mia over the past few days. Despite notpletely abandoning his modern human mindset, he still felt a bit ashamed.
But immediately, he reminded himself not to soften.
After all, Alex knew very well that in this world, only by abandoning useless kindness could one live longer.
In a world without order, being soft-hearted was a weakness.
Alex took out a bottle of mineral water, added some sugar, and fed it to Mia.
Then, he sat beside her.
Weak Mia copsed directly into his arms.
Alex said with some emotion, "Mia, I have to say, you''re really stubborn... I''ve given you such good conditions, just asking you to be my teammate, and yet you''re still unwilling."
Mia just looked at him quietly, saying nothing.
Alex was speechless for a moment.
Just then, he suddenly thought of a question.
"Mia, if I let you go, what would you do?"
Mia still didn''t speak, and Alex couldn''t be bothered to talk either.
So there they sat, Alex on the floor, holding the tied-up Mia in his arms, both silent.
Suddenly, Mia said, "What''s your name?"
Alex smiled faintly.
"Alex. A....L....E....X."
Mia nodded, then said seriously, "If you let me go, the first thing I''ll do is kill you, you bad man."
Alex was speechless and joked, "Mia, calling me a bad man doesn''t suit me. That''s for swindlers and womanizers. I can''t bear thatbel, especially since nothing inappropriate has happened between us."
"But, if that''s what you''re thinking, I don''t mind."
Mia gritted her teeth.
"Scum!"
"I''ll ept that term. But if your first thought is to kill me, then I definitely can''t let you go."
Alex moved away from Mia, responding with a hint of amusement.
Taking off his clothes, Alexy down on the sofa.
"Mia, it''s time to sleep! I don''t want you to starve to death after surviving hunger. I still want someone to talk to."
Mia alsoy down to rest on the floor. Upon hearing Alex''s words, she opened her eyes and angrily retorted, "Just shut up!"
On the third morning, Alex woke up to find Mia surprisingly still.
He couldn''t tell whether she was deeply asleep or had fainted from hunger.
Approaching cautiously, he gently pinched Mia''s cheek.
"Mia, it''s time to wake up," Alex called out repeatedly, but Mia still didn''t respond.
Alex muttered to himself, "She couldn''t really be dead, could she?"
Then, he ced his hand near Mia''s nose to check for breath.
She was still breathing.
Alex breathed a sigh of relief.
Then, leaning in close to Mia''s ear, he said, "Mia, if you don''t get up, I''ll have to give you a full-body examination."
Mia, pretending to be asleep, had no choice but to open her eyes.
"Go away," she muttered.