TAVBZ 2

Chapter 2

Two zombies were wandering near the tightly shut gates of the fortress.

‘I have to get over there… but how?’

I couldn’t approach the stronghold while the zombies were around. Not that I’d be bitten—of course not—but that was precisely the problem.

I couldn’t let the main characters see that zombies didn’t attack me.

Whish!

While I was racking my brain over what to do, an arrow shot down from above and pierced straight through one zombie’s head.

A moment later, two more arrows followed, nailing the others. The remaining zombie turned toward the sound nearby, reacting to the noise but clearly unable to sense any human scent.

The one shooting from the watchtower was the Crown Prince. Without hesitation, he loosed another arrow and killed the last one.

‘Right, they killed zombies periodically.’

Zombies primarily reacted to sound. Because of that, when one stumbled around and made noise, others would often swarm toward it. In the novel, the main characters had taken turns clearing out the zombies near the fortress to prevent that from happening.

Leaving behind the suddenly remembered world-building detail, I hurried toward the fortress.

I raised my hand high as I looked up at the tower—just in case the prince mistook me for a zombie and shot.

He, who had been reloading his bow, leaned forward urgently.

I couldn’t see his face clearly with the light behind him, but the way he leaned half his body out the window told me he was quite startled.

I frantically gestured for him to open the gate.

He hesitated briefly, then began to run. Disappearing from sight, he soon reappeared in front of the iron gate.

“Haa… ha…”

He gripped the iron bars, panting heavily.

“Penelope?”

His eyes trembled violently, as if he couldn’t believe I was alive.

“Your Highness, please, quickly.”

He looked me over, as though checking if I’d been infected, but seeing my completely human appearance and hearing me speak, he finally decided to open the gate.

The massive gate creaked and slowly began to rise.

Just as it opened enough for me to slip through—

“Your Highness, how could you open the gate?”

The Duke, who had followed him out, drew his sword and snapped irritably as I stepped inside.

“The lady is unharmed. I merely let her in.”

“And how can you be sure she hasn’t been infected?”

“Would you rather I left her outside to attract more zombies?”

The duke bristled at the prince’s independent decision but had no rebuttal for his reasoning. His sword, however, still remained pointed at me.

“How did you survive, Penelope?”

The duke studied me closely as he asked.

The difference between a zombie and a human was mostly in the bulging veins and the unfocused eyes.

Zombies’ vision had deteriorated, forcing them to rely on hearing and smell, but they weren’t completely blind. With a bit of focus, they could align their gaze normally.

The real problem—the obvious physical sign—was those grotesquely swollen veins. Yet none of that showed on me.

I had concealed my unfocused eyes and the bulging veins completely.

In truth, hiding those veins was simple. All it took was a cold bath.

“How could a zombie look so human?”

“Because I washed in cold water.”

In the novel, one husband couldn’t bring himself to kill his zombified wife. He tied her up and kept her alive. When he washed her bloodstained body with cold water, her appearance returned to that of a human—except for the bite wound, which, tragically, never healed.

“…Your Grace, do you seem disappointed that I’m alive?”

Fortunately, the part of me that had been bitten was covered by clothing, so I could appear perfectly human—and therefore hold my head high.

Kieeek—!

The duke’s attention shifted as more zombies approached from outside, drawn by our voices.

“There’s no point making a scene. Let’s head inside.”

The prince said that and started walking, but the duke still didn’t lower his sword.

“Those things go wild at the scent of humans. I still don’t know how you managed to make it here unscathed.”

He jerked his chin, signaling me to go first. Even as I passed him, ready to strike me down at the slightest suspicion, I wasn’t afraid.

‘It’s fine. As long as I act normal, they won’t notice.’

They might find my survival strange, but there was no proof I was a zombie.

“Penelope?”

But that was a foolish oversight—forgetting that I really was one.

“Lady Penelope! You’re alive!”

The heroine, Lilia, ran toward me crying and threw her arms around me.

Inside, I cursed.

“Thank goodness… truly!”

The moment her scent enveloped me, my body reacted instinctively.

‘I… want to bite her.’

I wanted desperately to sink my teeth into her.

Her shoulder was slightly torn—probably scraped on something—and a small bead of blood welled up from the exposed skin.

Normally, such a tiny wound would go unnoticed. But the faint scent of blood made my mouth water uncontrollably.

‘No! Don’t bite!’

I didn’t know if it was morality or the fear of the consequences afterward that kept me in check, but I forced my jaw shut. My whole body began to tremble from the strain.

The first to notice something was off was the duke. He grabbed me by the back of the neck and yanked me away from Lilia.

‘I don’t want to die from a beheading! Don’t bite her. Hold it in!’

Thrown roughly to the ground, I looked up to see his sword gleaming, ready to strike. I couldn’t die here—not after struggling this far to get inside.

“Lilia!”

“…Lady Penelope?”

The Crown Prince also noticed my shaking and drew his sword, pulling Lilia behind him. I was thoroughly suspected now.

If I didn’t dispel their doubts, I was as good as dead.

“Do you know what I went through because of you people?!”

I clenched my eyes shut and screamed as if furious.

“‘How did I survive?’ you ask?!”

Thump, thump, thump.

My heart pounded fast. Words that should have come out sluggishly—like before—now spilled out without effort.

“That’s right! You all just wanted me dead!”

Lowering my head, I wiped my dry eyes with one hand.

The sword aimed at me dropped slightly.

When I glanced up, the duke was still expressionless, but the blade’s tip now pointed toward the ground. His suspicion seemed to waver.

“You abandoned me because you wanted me gone!”

Awakening.
The state where zombies, upon smelling human blood, experienced enhanced physical abilities.

‘So this is awakening.’

Every finger moved precisely as I wished. My speech flowed easily. I felt like I could run forever.

I really knew too little about this body. I hadn’t even realized I could react to the scent of blood until now. I needed to learn exactly what I could and couldn’t do.

With that thought, I stood and dashed toward the stairs.

“…Penelope.”

Ignoring the Crown Prince’s outstretched hand, I ran up the stairs and slipped into the room at the end of the corridor, shutting the door behind me.

I wasn’t even winded after sprinting. Zombies didn’t feel pain or exhaustion—apparently, their stamina had no limit. It seemed that in this awakened state, I could run endlessly.

‘Maybe I’m stronger too?’

Not all zombies were, but some possessed extraordinary strength. Curious, I gripped the chair in front of the mirror and squeezed it tightly.