The Sequel to the Romance Fantasy Was a Zombie Apocalypse – Chapter 11

“What the…?”

Everything around me feels distant.

“…? Why are you acting like this, Lanit?”

In an instant, I almost lost consciousness from the dizzying sensation coursing through my spine.

“Unless something’s wrong, I’m going back…”

“Stop!”

I shout out loud without realizing it.

“W-What’s with the sudden outburst, Lanit! You scared me…”

“Just stay still.”

No, I can’t get worked up or jump to conclusions. It might just be an injury, right?

“Young Lady.”

I call out to Esmela, keeping my gaze fixed on Gilrot.

“…Everyone, stay away from him.”

At her sudden command, all the servants are startled.

“It’s an order, hurry up!”

Only after Esmela pressed them did they start to back away from Gilrot, slowly increasing the distance.

Now, the servants formed a semicircle around Gilrot, leaving only me, Esmela, and Gilrot remaining in the space.

“Young Lady.”

My voice calling Esmela feels strangely unfamiliar.

“The things you mentioned are still just unverified hypotheses. There’s no guarantee that this apprentice, Gilrot, will turn out like them.”

“I understand. However, we should observe his condition for a bit.”

“Young Lady, what do you mean by that? ‘Turn’?…”

Gilrot looks more and more uneasy as he shifts his gaze between Esmela and me.

“Someone bring a rope to tie up Gilrot.”

I shout to the servants surrounding us, but they merely look at each other with confused expressions, whispering to one another… no one moved.

“Hurry!”

Finally, after I got angry, one butler ran toward the supply room.

“What are you talking about! You want to tie me up? Why the sudden change?!”

Gilrot approaches me, whining.

“Don’t come any closer!”

At my shout, he halts.

“Why are you acting like this…?”

Now he looks like he’s about to cry.

“Gilrot, please, I’m not trying to hurt you… just, for a moment. Stay still there.”

My breath is getting ragged; it’s getting harder to speak properly.

“One thing, I’ll ask. How do you feel right now?”

At my question, he hesitantly responds as if he doesn’t understand.

“Why are you suddenly asking about my condition?”

“Just answer me. It’s no big deal. Right?”

I beg him, almost like pleading.

“Um… I’m fine, I think… but maybe my head feels a bit hot… I feel a little dazed…”

As Gilrot continues to speak, his words start to elongate, and his tone begins to change strangely.

I can see his green pupils losing focus and becoming progressively blurry.

“…”

He suddenly falls silent and lowers his head.

“Gilrot?”

I cautiously call his name.

“…Huh?”

As he looks up at my call…

“Gilrot, you…!”

He suddenly starts to bleed from his nose, his complexion pale.

“W-Wha? Suddenly… a nosebleed…”

He slurs his words as if drunk, staggering before collapsing to the floor.

“Gilrot, are you okay?”

One maid from the group of servants expresses her concern for him.

“I… am… fine…”

Gilrot, still seated, struggles just to speak now.

Then…

*Uuugh. Kuweeeek!*

He bends over and starts to vomit blood.

“Ahhh!”

The maid who was worried about him screams, and chaos erupts among the servants.

“We need to treat him…!”

Some of them tried to approach Gilrot to help.

“Stop! Don’t go near him!!”

I shout to stop them, but they instead direct their anger at me.

“What nonsense is this? We need to treat Gilrot right now!”

*Crack.* I grit my teeth.

There’s no other option now—

“Flame of Herta, become a sword and slay the foes of the family!”

I draw the hilt from my coat and chant the incantation.

I point the re-ignited Flame of the Sword at those approaching him.

“I warned you.”

“You’ve gone insane?!”

They recoil in horror at the sight of the flaming sword.

“Young Lady, please stop Lanit!”

Other servants rush to Esmela, pleading with her.

However, Esmela only watches me and Gilrot in silence.

“Young Lady!”

“…Tsk.”

She clicks her tongue and raises her right hand to her throat.

“Announce. Everyone, stop right there!”

Esmela’s magically amplified voice shakes the Central Hall on the first floor.

Only then do the servants freeze, making no sound.

“I’ll explain everything when this is over. So for now, just watch.”

After Esmela’s command, silence falls again in the hall.

Only the sound of Gilrot’s choking and splattering as he vomits blood breaks the stillness.

The blood he spews flows across the marble floor.

Even after filling up a small bucket’s worth of blood, he doesn’t stop.

Please, no, it can’t be happening…

I want to drop the sword gripped in my right hand right now.

I can only wish with a feeling of powerlessness and despair that all of this is just a dream.

He suddenly stops vomiting blood.

All eyes turn to Gilrot.

He remains seated, still.

An unbearable silence lingers.

-Grrr…*

From Gilrot emerges a sound that should not be heard.

“Ah, ahh.”

I exhale a sigh.

There’s no denying reality anymore.

As Gilrot slowly raises his head, his now red eyes fix on me.

Blood and saliva drip from his mouth.

-Grrrr…

Like a ferocious beast, he bares his teeth and growls with hostility.

-Kyaaaak!

The incident happens in an instant.

He lunges at me from his seated position with a speed beyond human capability.

Yet, his movements appear to me like they are in slow motion.

I must cut.

He is no longer my comrade, Gilrot, but just a zombie.

What’s so hard about it? I’ve easily burned dozens of zombies with this flaming sword.

I just need to simply slice his head in half with the sword in my right hand—

I tightly shut my eyes.

No. I can’t do it.

With a heart full of despair, I can only wait for him to bite me.

But instead of feeling his teeth on my neck,

*Paak.*

A dull thud reverberates, as if a blunt object struck flesh.

“…?”

I cautiously open my eyes.

Arit is pressing down on Gilrot’s chest with her club while he is lying on the floor.

Light circles bind his hands and feet, securing him to the ground.

*Uugh, Kyaaaak!*

Despite being restrained, he wiggles and struggles to escape with all his might.

“Lady Lanit.”

Arit calls my name in a low, serious tone I’ve never heard before.

“If you can’t do it, I will guide him to salvation in your stead.”

She looks up at me.

Her golden eyes seem to pierce through my heart.

…Now it’s time for me to make a decision.

“No, it’s something I must do.”

Thud, thud.

Reluctantly, I stride toward him.

After what feels like an eternity, I finally stand beside him.

*Grrr… Kyaak!*

The moment he sees me, he roars in hostility and struggles even more.

I suddenly glance at the sword in my right hand.

The sword of Herta still burns black and red.

I grip the fiery sword reverse-handed and plunge it toward the zombie’s forehead—

I open my eyes.

Familiar white ceiling.

I sit up and survey the dark room.

My room.

My room in the annex for the servants on the first floor.

The wardrobe, the desk, the bed where I lay— all the usual furniture.

Yet, this space that should feel endlessly familiar seems strangely unfamiliar to me right now.

I attempt to rise. I’m not tired, but moving my legs feels odd.

Walking to the window, I gaze up at the sky.

The moon rises slightly more than the first quarter in the night sky.

I simply stare at it absentmindedly.

*Grrr…*

“!”

Suddenly, Gilrot’s face as a zombie springs to mind.

“Damn it…”

I shake my head back and forth,


*Thud, thud.*

Even as I bang my head against the wall repeatedly, the image of him transformed into a zombie refuses to fade.

“Hah…”

I slide down to sit against the wall.

…

I wouldn’t call myself a fan, but in my previous life, I occasionally watched zombie movies when I had some free time.

But when watching zombie films, don’t you often see characters like that?

Characters who can’t bring themselves to kill their family or loved ones who have turned into zombies and end up getting bitten themselves.

Every time I saw such characters, I thought inwardly how frustrating it was. Hesitating like that only endangers not just oneself but also those around them.

Just close your eyes and take them out, right? Isn’t that the way?

“Hah…”

A laugh escapes me.

Yet, when I find myself in the same situation, I just close my eyes and can do nothing.

It’s not like I was incredibly close to Gilrot; I had known him for barely two months.

Yet, facing him as a zombie, my body froze, and I couldn’t do anything.

I recall the zombies I killed today.

I’ve forgotten their faces by now, but, when you consider it, they were originally human too.

I became afraid.

I feared the fact that I had unconsciously severed the heads of those who were once human.


I feared that when facing zombies in the future, I would think of Gilrot and hesitate, endangering those around me, including Esmela.

*Knock, knock.*

“?”

Suddenly, someone knocks on the door.

‘Who could it be at this hour?’

I stand up from the floor and walk cautiously to the door, responding to the knocking sound.

“Who is it?”

“It’s Elina.”

Elina.

The Head Maid’s name.

I hurry to the door and open it.

A beautiful woman in a proper Victorian maid outfit that reaches down to her shins.

She stands at the door with her black bobbed hair reflected in the moonlight, her sparkling black eyes gazing intently at me.

“Um… what brings you here? Women servants shouldn’t just be wandering into the men’s quarters…”

“I know.”

She cuts me off sharply.

“Then… is it an urgent matter?”

Elina slowly nods her head once.

“Lady Esmela summons you. You must move to Lady Esmela’s office immediately.”