The Sequel to the Romance Fantasy Was a Zombie Apocalypse – Chapter 32

“Young Lady.”

In the gentlest tone possible,

“It is my duty as a Butler to ensure your safety.”

Let’s start by convincing her with the proper reasoning.

“Of course, when returning to the mansion from Pirke Plaza, and during our escape, the situation was different as there were many eyes on us now… I understand your concern that carrying you might make it look like I’m just a man carrying a child, which could be unbecoming for an adult lady like you.”

Naturally, that isn’t the real reason for her stubbornness.

However, by presenting what seems like a plausible excuse that a ‘Ducal Family Young Lady Esmela’ might consider, I can avoid prying into her true feelings while still allowing her to follow the persuasion she pretends to resist.

“But if your dignity means you’d run alone and, heaven forbid, fall behind and be harmed by zombies… wouldn’t that be putting the cart before the horse? Above all, the most important thing is your safe arrival at the Royal Palace.”

“…Lanit, why are you being so persistent today? I said I’m fine. I have Ari’s blessing, and I wore low-heeled shoes. There’s really no reason to show the servants, the Kingdom’s Army, and… well, anyone else, this ridiculous sight of me clinging to you. Isn’t that right?”

With a firm flick, she pulls my hand away from her left arm and declares coldly.

Hmm… indeed, as expected of a noble Young Lady, she is quite stubborn.

But I had anticipated this as well.

I still have my last resort.

“…I see. If Young Lady Esmela insists so much… then I must oblige as your Butler.”

From now on, I will act like a puppy.

“…So you no longer need me, Young Lady.”

I put on the most pitiful expression I can muster. Like a small, cute puppy abandoned by its owner.

“…”

With lips tightly pressed, I look at Esmela with my eyes welling up with tears, as if they might spill over at any moment.

The aim is singular: to evoke her sympathy.

“No…”

Esmela seems flustered.

I continue to gaze at her intently.

After all, I’m just a poor Butler, abandoned by the Young Lady he serves, a pitiful young Butler…

“…Fine, fine! I’ll either escort you or not!”

In the end, Esmela throws in the towel. Her face has turned as red as a ripe apple.

“Why are you being so stubborn all of a sudden? I really don’t understand…”

She crosses her arms and grumbles.

“Thank you, Young Lady.”

Before she can change her mind, I swiftly lift her, supporting her back with my right hand and her legs with my left.

“…Hah. Do what you want.”

Still dressed in her nightgown and my jacket, she pouts as if she’s resigning herself to her fate.

“…”

Suddenly feeling a gaze, I look up and find myself locking eyes with the Prince.

He quickly turns away… but the subtle look on his face, impossible to read, lingers in my mind.

Thud, thud, thud.

I run.

Kicking off the streets of Royal Capital Erka, I dash toward the Royal Palace.

Thud, thud…

Everyone around me is also running.

Thud, thud, thud.

Thanks to the Saintess’s blessing, I’m sprinting at a pace quick enough to keep up with the lead cavalry of the Kingdom’s Army.

Thus, a bizarre scene unfolds as twenty-eight ironclad horses race ahead, while I, on foot, follow closely behind.

“Six zombies spotted ahead!”

A cavalryman at the front shouts, his voice carrying back to me as we run.

“Prepare for impact!”

But they don’t slow down. Instead, they kick it into high gear.

-Graaah?

The zombies wandering up ahead don’t realize what’s coming until it’s too late—

Thud!

They’re slammed by the horses, their bodies smashed to the side of the road.

Among them, one zombie that got hit by the lead cavalry and didn’t go flying ends up struggling on the ground, blocking the path for those behind…

Thud, crunch!

But it gets crushed by the hooves of the follow-up cavalry, completely obliterated.

Dividing the cavalry into two waves, the first wave clears out the zombies blocking the path like a snowplow, while the second wave spreads out to escort survivors and finishes off any zombies missed by the first.

A simple yet effective charge.

In this way, the Kingdom’s Army pushes through the hundreds of zombies standing in their way as they head for the Royal Palace.

Occasionally, zombies leap out from the sides of the road towards the survivor groups, but…

“Ice Needle.”

The Prince, darting lightly on the rooftops like a child on a bridge, expertly takes out the zombies one by one using basic water magic.

For your information, although the Prince can fly on his own, he’s running across the rooftops because…

He suddenly asked Ari how we avoided the zombies in the street, and after hearing her answer, he thought it seemed fun and decided to cast body enhancement magic on himself to do the same.

In any case, the Prince’s claim that we just needed to run without thinking wasn’t empty talk; my fellow servants and I had just been sprinting hard so far, without fighting any zombies.

During the first two minutes of moving, I was tense and on edge, but now I’ve relaxed enough to take in the surroundings.

For Esmela’s sake, I’m deliberately staying at the back of the survivors to avoid drawing attention.

Because of this, I can catch glimpses of the survivors ahead, albeit just their backs.

The servants of House Herta managed to survive against all odds and are now rushing toward the Royal Palace, their final sanctuary.

At the front, some are running hard, carrying elderly gardeners and maid trainees on their backs,


Trailing behind, maidens in stained white aprons are hustling along,


And at the back are Ari and Uncle Zeck running with the other servants,


Though they all looked like a mess, there was a hopeful expression among them because they were alive.

…Except for Helinante, who was slumped against the Head Maid’s shoulder.

I glance down at Esmela, who is slightly leaning against my right shoulder.

“…What are you looking at?”

Noticing my gaze, she turns her head to the right, pouting her cheeks slightly.

“I’m sorry.”

All I can do is smile at her typical reaction that perfectly matches her character.

…Ah, and why was Esmela acting so grumpy earlier?

Probably a complex mix of reasons lies behind her behavior.

A reunion with her ex-fiancé.

That broken engagement, which was part of a series of ugly maneuvers used to separate the Prince and Yuria, resulted in Esmela’s actions being publicly condemned in front of students and faculty at the Royal Arkesia Academy after everything blew up in her face.

Having lived for four years unable to escape the ruins of that love while secretly longing for something she couldn’t have, she unexpectedly encounters the object of her affections—the Prince—once again.

While he lives a shining life as a model heir to the royal family, backed by the people’s support, having genuinely married for love (even if it was derailed due to the zombie incident),


Esmela, having been rejected by him, suffers in the shadows of the social scene as the subject of disdain.

In this context, how would the sight of her clinging to me before the Prince read?

Would the Prince take it as an ugly air of trying to provoke jealousy using another man despite his presence?

Witnessing a woman he once cast aside clinging to a much younger man, would he, and others, deride her for behaving so disgracefully, all while pointing fingers at me, her Butler?

I’d wager that Esmela was worried about all of this when she acted coldly toward me, that’s what I think.

Isn’t that complicated?

The heart of a woman is always such. I can guarantee this having invested nearly a decade in female-oriented games and manga as a lifelong single.

Moreover, as a Young Lady of a Ducal Family, Esmela’s pride likely contributed to her inability to be straightforward with her feelings, leading her to express herself in a convoluted manner multiple times.

“…”

However, there’s still one question I haven’t found the answer to…

Why did I insist on carrying Esmela myself in the face of her determination to walk alone?

Looking back, I could have responded more flexibly, carrying Helinante and leaving Esmela to the Head Maid…

Hmm…

Well, it’s easier to assume what’s in others’ hearts while failing to be honest with my own.

Thus, I hurriedly conclude, turning my gaze inside myself away from that very thought.

For some reason, the faces of Esmela and the Prince keep flashing in my mind.

“Look, the Royal Palace!”

At one cavalryman’s shout from the front, I snap back to attention and look straight ahead.

We’ve finally arrived.

At the end of the straight road, the towering walls of the Royal Palace and the main entrance finally come into view.