American comics: From Hogwarts to God on Earth

Chapter 306 Target: New Hope City

Chapter 306 Target: New Hope City

A sobbing sound came from the wind.

Rune had just arrived and had no connection with Hughie's so-called teammates, so he couldn't empathize with him. After a while, seeing that Hughie had almost finished crying, he took out some canned food from his storage space and handed it to him.

"Where do you want to go next?" Rune asked.

Hughie stared blankly at the brand-new can of food in Rune's hand, swallowed hard, looked up at Rune, then pointed to himself, seemingly unable to believe that Rune was willing to give him canned food.

Rune shoved the can of food into Hughie's hand. Based on the memories he'd just reviewed, Hughie wasn't exactly a hero, but he was definitely a good person. Perhaps some evil thoughts might cross his mind, but they would never be accepted. Therefore, if Hughie was going the same way, Rune was willing to lend him a hand.

Yes, that's right. Rune wants to go see that so-called New Hope City. He doesn't believe Homelander would protect ordinary people. In his mind, Homelander is a narcissistic superhero with a morbid craving for love and breast milk. But whether Homelander genuinely wants to protect humanity or has made a deal with some mastermind, the truth of this world is definitely hidden there.

At least part of the truth.

Hughie pulled out his multi-functional Swiss Army knife from his backpack, anxiously opened the can, and then wolfed it down. It was just a can of macaroni and cheese, but Hughie folded the lid off the can and used it as a spoon, frantically scooping up all the remaining macaroni and cheese.

Finally, still not satisfied, he used his dirty hands to scrape off the remaining sauce until there was no more visible substance inside.

"Thank you." Hughie put down the can and thanked him, but instead of answering Rune's question directly, he turned around and went to the pile of ruins to collect the bodies of the others and count all the remaining supplies.

Ultimately, most of the base's supplies were destroyed in the battle, and even their means of getting to New Hope City—a damaged but barely drivable school bus—was blown to pieces.

Hughie wiped away his tears. He didn't know how many people had died in the attack; many members had been buried in the rubble. He had only found nine people.

"We...we only learned of New Hope City's existence three months ago from a new homeless person." Hughie looked at Rune. "Since then, we've been scrimping and saving, searching for supplies and gathering materials under the watchful eyes of those damned robots. I don't know what we did wrong, but those damned robots, those damned robots took everything from us!"

He then became hysterical, cursing and crying. Perhaps the can of macaroni and cheese provided him with enough energy to release his emotions, or perhaps the deaths of his friends caused him to have a mental breakdown. In any case, his emotions were indeed quite unstable.

Rune could only sigh and casually cast a spell to calm himself down.

Seeing that Hughie had calmed down, Rune asked again, "Where do you want to go?"

"I want to go to New Hope."

Hughie finally said that whether out of longing for life before the apocalypse or to continue the wishes of his friends, he was going to Hope City. Rune nodded in agreement.

If Hughie chooses to stay here, he could never take care of the other person for the rest of his life; he doesn't have that much time.

"Then let's go together."

.：：

Hughie explained to Rune the route they had planned. After Judgment Day, the United States had largely become a wasteland ruled by robots. The surviving humans not only had to evade the Terminators' hunt, but also faced the threats of nuclear radiation, resource scarcity, and extreme weather. Therefore, the route Hughie and his team planned had to be covert, feasible, and had resource acquisition points along the way.

Therefore, their first step was to enter the Mojave Desert along the eastern side of the San Bernardino Mountains, avoiding the main roads that might be monitored by robots. They would rest during the day and advance at night, and Hughie believed that there might be a survivor settlement there.

"Really?" Rune asked, somewhat puzzled.

Hughie, however, said firmly, "Don't worry, there was Fort Irwin before the war. It was a famous national training center for the U.S. military. If there weren't any survivors there, then humanity would really be doomed. I reckon there might be some weapons or radiation protection equipment there. If we have any food or something, maybe we can go and trade for some."

Rune nodded. He didn't know much about American military bases, but if Hughie said so, it must be true.

"Let's go." Hughie packed all the supplies into the bag he was carrying, then turned to leave.

"Are you just going to walk there like this?" Rune asked, puzzled, looking at his posture.

"What else?" Hughie retorted, pointing to the school bus on the other side, which was now just a blown-up chassis. "Do you think you can fix this thing?"

Rune's abilities are clearly offensive; with him around, Hughie doesn't really need to worry about the Terminator. But repairing the car? Forget it. Even the world's best mechanic couldn't possibly fix a car that's been blown up like that.

But Rune simply waved his hand and whispered, "Actually, steel also has memories. It has just temporarily forgotten that it was once a vehicle. All I need to do is make it remember."

Then, Hughie felt the ground tremble. To his astonishment, the scattered screws, patches, and other parts began to vibrate, as if pulled by something, breaking free from the soil and floating in the air. The broken springs straightened again, and the charred seats seemed to have been restored to their original condition, as if time had reversed. The deformed frame groaned and stretched in a black and red light, the metal reforming like dough. Soon, a slightly damaged yellow school bus stood quietly in place. Hughie swallowed hard, then immediately asked, "Can you take my companion—"

"Sorry, no." After Hughie said "no," Rune shook his head. Hughie probably thought he had used some kind of time-reversal ability, but Rune knew that he had only cast a restore spell, and this spell could not repair items damaged by powerful or rare curses, nor could it be cast on living beings.

Hughie nodded in disappointment, then looked at the vehicle. Yes, it was the school bus they had gone through so much trouble to bring back, even the scratches on it were the same.

School buses are vehicles with extremely high structural strength and a perfect safety rating. They are almost undamaged even when rear-ended by a Hummer. Hughie and his team chose school buses not only because they can carry more people, but also because of their safety.

It wasn't until he got in the car that Hughie realized something. He turned around and asked, "Um, can you drive?"