Landlord World - Start with SSS talent-Chapter 44: Lords could kill each other

"A Dead Zone?" Noan frowned at Caleb.

Caleb looked at Noan with a hint of caution and asked, "You... you didn't read about this online? The guides didn't tell you anything?"

Noan's expression darkened slightly. After being sent to the Singularity, he had lost all contact with the outside world—he couldn't return to the city, nor could he communicate with anyone.

It was as if he had been stranded on a deserted island, cut off from civilization, with no ships passing by.

So, everything he knew had come from the System.

And, of course, the System's information was never truly complete.

Noan didn't bother explaining further. Instead, he calmly said, "I don't know. Explain it to me."

Caleb seemed surprised by Noan's honesty. He scratched his head, looking a bit embarrassed. "Sorry... There's so much to explain, I don't even know where to start."

Noan frowned slightly, stroking his chin as he thought for a moment. Then he said, "I'll ask. You answer."

"Ah! Got it!" Caleb immediately nodded.

Noan wasted no time and asked, "Why is this place called a 'Dead Zone'? Are there a lot of monsters here or something?"

Caleb nodded but then shook his head as if the answer was complicated.

"Well... to explain that, I need to talk about the nature of a Chaotic Zone," Caleb began.

"First, in a Safe Zone, you could freely trade for food and resources. Finding food was so easy that you probably never thought about it."

"But here, it's different. All external support functions are disabled. When a Lord is sent here, all their food and resources are completely erased—nothing can be brought along."

"I have no idea how you brought a Universal Food Pellet because nobody can bring anything to this place. Not even a piece of candy, nor a single Energy Crystal."

Noan was taken aback.

Unlike what Caleb described, he had easily brought everything from his Singularity Territory—food, water, and even Energy Crystals.

This shouldn't have been possible...

His ability to bypass this restriction confirmed that he fundamentally differed from other Lords in this area.

Frowning, he asked, "Then how does everyone survive here? There's no food anywhere?"

Caleb sighed and continued explaining, "That's exactly what I was getting to."

"Don't be fooled by the dense vegetation around here—it doesn't mean there's plenty of food. None of these trees produce anything edible; even if you find something, it's never enough to keep you full."

"If you want food, your only options are venturing deep into the forest to gather fruit or heading to the river to fish."

"But no matter which way you go, you'll run into zombies, and more importantly..."

Caleb suddenly glanced around nervously, afraid that someone might overhear what he was about to say.

Then, he stepped closer to Noan, lowering his voice to a whisper.

"You can't just walk into those areas and get food. The paths leading into the forest and the river have been blocked off."

"Blocked off? You mean by monsters?" Noan frowned.

Caleb shook his head. "Monsters couldn't do something like that. You haven't run into him yet, have you?"

"Him? Who are you talking about...?"

Caleb lowered his voice even further, his face filled with genuine fear.

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"Hawke and his subordinates."

Noan nodded slightly. "I've met him. Is he really that terrifying?"

Seeing Caleb's expression, Noan felt puzzled.

He knew Hawke was a Rank E+ Lord, but at the end of the day, he was still just one person—or, at most, a small group.

How could he be so terrified that Caleb was this afraid?

"He's not as simple as you think," Caleb said, his voice trembling.

"Hawke and a few other Lords have formed a group—about ten people. Every single one of them is at least Rank E or E+."

"They were the first to arrive here, and the very first thing they did was block off the only paths leading into the deeper parts of the forest and to the nearest river."

Noan frowned. This felt strange.

"If they're blocking the food sources, that means everyone else here is going to starve to death. Are they trying to kill everyone?"

Caleb shook his head. "No! They still allow other Lords to search for food, but... when you return, you must give them half of whatever you find."

"On top of that, just entering the forest or the river costs a tax—five Rank F energy crystals per trip."

Noan frowned. "Why don't you guys find another way in? It's not like there's only one road leading into the forest or to the river, right?"

Caleb nodded at first but then shook his head with a bitter smile.

"You don't know anything, huh? There's indeed more than one way in, but do you really want to enter the forest?"

"You have no idea—the entire forest is crawling with zombies. And not just regular ones, either. There are species I've never even seen before."

"Many people have tried cutting through the forest to reach the river, but not a single one has ever returned."

"And even if someone did make it back alive, do you think Hawke's people would just let them go?"

"This place, along with the two paths they control, is still under the protection period. Zombies and monsters won't attack unless you enter the Dark Forest."

"The fruit forest is different, though. There are still zombies, but they're weaker, and the numbers are much lower—it's nowhere near as dangerous."

After listening, Noan finally got a clearer picture of how Chaotic Zone 27 worked.

Simply put, as long as you didn't enter the Dark Forest, you were safe.

His expression darkened. "And you all just accept this? Letting Hawke and his people do whatever they want?"

"Shh!" When Noan finished speaking, Caleb frantically gestured for him to lower his voice.

"What the hell are you doing talking so loud? Do you have a death wish?"

He glanced around nervously, and after making sure no one was nearby, he finally let out a sigh of relief.

Then, he turned back to Noan with a sharp glare.

"You might not care, but I don't want to die. Hawke and his people are all Rank E and E+ Lords. In this place, they're emperors. Who the hell dares to go against them?"

"Besides..." Caleb's voice grew heavy with resignation.

"Do you know how terrifying it is when ten Lords at Rank E and E+ work together?"

"Besides, Hawke is already a Level 2 Lord and possesses a Rank D Hero—an incredibly powerful Fire Rhino. That beast can wipe out an entire Rank F army with ease."

Hearing this, Noan fully grasped the power gap between himself and Hawke's faction.

He continued asking, "What about resources? How do you guys collect resources?"

Caleb sighed. "That... I don't really know."

"Honestly, just finding food to survive is already a huge problem here. Who even has the time or energy to gather resources to level up?"

"However, I've heard people say that if you want to find resource storage points, you must go further out. Exactly how far, though? I have no idea."

Noan rubbed his chin, carefully memorizing all the information Caleb had provided.

After that, he asked a few more questions before turning to leave.

Caleb watched Noan's back disappear into the distance, then glanced down at the two All-Purpose Food capsules in his hand.

Something seemed to spark inside him.

Clenching the capsules tightly, he suddenly turned and ran opposite where Noan was heading.

Walking along the road, Noan thought deeply, processing everything Caleb had told him.

Now, he finally understood why no one dared to resist Hawke's group.

Even though this zone was temporarily safe—meaning monsters couldn't attack—Lords were a different story.

That's right.

Lords could kill each other.