“It’s so nice having everyone bustling around together again.”
Bliss said this like it was a delight and not a logistical nightmare.
Cooking for nearly twice the usual crowd couldn’t have been easy, but there she was, smiling like a proud innkeeper.
We were a little short on ingredients, sure, but the dining table was still stacked with surprisingly decent food.
The plan was to eat heartier than usual today and tomorrow—pack on the strength before things got dicey.
“Well now, young lassie. Keep turnin’ your nose up at food like that, you’re gonna end up with all sorts o’ ailments… not that it makes much difference in your case, I reckon.”
Jeremy, the blacksmith grandpa across from me, tried to give me a lecture but trailed off halfway through.
“Sis Sasha’s fine. She needs lots of meat to stay strong.”
“Heh, that so? Well, you eat up too, son.”
“Yes, sir.”
Derek could be a real menace around Yoan and Rob, but with anyone else? Polite as a prince.
Jeremy treated him like his own grandson, which was weirdly heartwarming.
After we’d eaten our fill, Yoan cleared his throat and launched into the plan.
The attack would happen in two days, on the morning after tomorrow.
“Um, isn’t that cutting it kind of close? Will we have enough time to prepare?” Kira asked, nervously pushing up his glasses.
Jeremy didn’t say anything, but the look on his face screamed agreement.
Yoan just shrugged. “We never have enough time. We could die today, we could die tomorrow. That’s just how things are right now.”
“I mean... you’re not wrong, but still...”
“Look, I’m sorry I didn’t make the call earlier. It would’ve been better if we’d started sooner. But there’s no point worrying about what we didn’t do. Just focus on surviving. I’ll handle the rest.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll trust you,” Rob chimed in.
“That’s a given for you.”
“Tch! Why are you always mean specifically to me?”
Despite Rob’s whining, the mood lightened just like that.
Yoan really was something else. Calm under pressure, shouldering everything without flinching.
I guess that was part of his whole noble upbringing—taking responsibility like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Okay, fine. He’s kind of cool, I guess.
I wanted to help too... but for that, I had to talk to Aria.
If she’s not the antibody carrier and actually plans to be our enemy...
Then what? Would I have to kill her?
And just like that, my brain was a tangled mess again.
***
Somewhere past midnight, edging into early morning.
I was lying on my hard stone bed, perfectly still, when I felt it—a familiar presence, faint but unmistakable.
Aria. I’d known she’d come looking for me eventually.
I slipped out and padded quietly to Yoan’s room.
Knock? Why bother.
“The heck…”
There he was, snoozing away like nothing in the world could possibly go wrong.
“Yoan.”
Dead asleep. No reaction.
“Oi.”
Still nothing.
“Look at this guy…”
What kind of person sleeps this soundly during a zombie apocalypse?
“Eek!”
I yelped and jumped when I realized he was already awake, silently staring at me with those sharp eyes.
My heart nearly leapt out of my undead chest.
“Y-you weren’t asleep?”
Yoan nodded slowly.
“Then why were you pretending?”
He gave me that infuriating half-smile. “Wanted to see what you’d do, Sasha.”
I had never wanted to punch someone more.
But I didn’t want him retaliating with interest, so I restrained myself.
“You’re the first person to ever call me that way,” he said.
“What way?”
“‘Oi.’”
“Oh. Um.”
Was that... a big deal? Should I apologize?
While I fumbled, Yoan sat up with an oddly soft look in his eyes. “What’s wrong?”
“That zombie from before. She’s here.”
“I see. All right. Let’s go.”
“No. I’ll go alone.”
He tilted his head, skeptical. I could already tell this was going to be a whole thing, so I grabbed some paper and pen.
Still took forever to write, thanks to my not-so-cooperative zombie fingers.
If you go, it might backfire. She tried to kill you before, remember?
I’ll go alone and try to talk to her calmly.
Since we can communicate, maybe I can prevent an attack.
“That doesn’t matter. I’m more worried about sending you alone.”
Ugh, that stubborn tone again.
“What if it’s a trap? An ambush while you’re away?”
Hmm. Good point. He did think sometimes.
“Fine. But if you’re not back in an hour, I’m coming to get you.”
“Mhm.”
“Be careful.”
“Mhm.”
“Sasha.”
“Mhm?”
“Don’t get hurt.”
Honestly, what a weird thing to say to a zombie.
I gave him a thumbs-up. “It’s fine. I heal fast.”
“...”
He still looked worried. Sometimes I had to remind him I was undead now.
I headed out immediately, following the sounds Aria was deliberately making.
She wanted to be found—no doubt about it.
As expected, she was waiting for me.
Her forehead should’ve had a gaping hole in it. Yoan had nailed a shot right between the eyes… but nope. Not even a scar.
That regeneration was downright scary.
Also, she looked furious.
Aria let out a low growl.
Grrrarg.
“Can’t talk. Remember?”
She raised her hand silently and started writing in the air with her finger.
[That bastard tried to kill me. Humans really do deserve to die. They’ll do anything to destroy what’s different.]
Technically, it was the other way round… But I figured I’d hear her out first.
[But we’re stronger. We don’t need to worry about their opinions or do them any favors.]
Very eloquent for a walking corpse.
But I wasn’t so weak-willed to fall for such shallow persuasion.
Though I was a bit of a scaredy-cat.
[Are you still siding with the humans? You’re not stupid enough to do that, right? You’re a superior being now.]
Me? A superior being? That was a first.
But I wasn’t here to get talked into joining her little zombie revolution. I needed answers.
[Let me ask you one thing. Do you have memories from before?]
[Why does that matter?]
[It matters to me. My decision depends on your answer.]
She hesitated, then wrote slowly: [Yes. I remember. I was the Holy Maiden of the capital.]
Oh. So my suspicion was right. She really was the Aria from the original story.
But then... how did she end up like this?
The Aria I knew was righteous and warm. She’d been the first to offer herself up to stop this disaster.
“Then why?”
[Because they made me like this.]
“They?”
[That’s enough. I’ll tell you more if you join me. Be my ally.]
Of course. A catch.
I wavered. Maybe I could pretend to side with her and dig for more info later?
But if I left with Aria now, Yoan would definitely misunderstand.
While I hesitated, she bared her teeth in a grin that didn’t reach her eyes.
[You’re hesitating. That’s my answer, then. If you’re not with me, you’re in the way.]
“Eh?!”
She moved fast—far too fast for someone who should’ve had coordination issues with half-dead muscles.
Panic seized me. My legs wouldn’t move.
All I could do was cover my head and hope I didn’t die twice.
A sharp shing! rang out. Black blood sprayed like a fountain.
“Ugh... Y-Yoan.”
He stood in front of me, sword in hand, one of Aria’s arms on the ground at his feet.
“Well… guess I don't got the patience to wait a whole hour.”
I clung to his clothes, trembling like a leaf.
Strong body or not, my soul was not built for jump scares and sudden death.
“If you were going to be this terrified, why insist on going alone?”
Because I had to. And I got what I came for, even if it was only half the truth.
Aria had said “they” did this to her. As in, someone made her like this.
Could it be...
No, surely not. How could the clergy commit such an outrageous deed?
But they’d been first in line to offer free cures, helping the injured, doing good work...
There’s something I’m missing… and it’s driving me nuts.
Too bad Aria was no longer in the mood for conversation.
Grarrr. Grrrhk.
“That’s quite the trick.”
Yoan’s voice was calm, but his grip on his sword had tightened.
The arm he’d sliced off was already reattaching. Not fully healed yet, but getting there fast.
Regular zombies could regenerate a little. But this?
This was something else entirely.
Aria had once been gifted with miraculous healing—was this a twisted extension of that?
This is bad. This is so bad.
Not only was she smart, she was practically immortal.
Suddenly, she threw her head back and began to howl.
“Krahk! Krahk! Krahk! Kraaarr!”