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A Corporate Slave Becomes a Villainous Nuisance ‌‌‌‌in a Zombie Apocalypse
Episode 41
Chapter 7. The Weapon That Never Breaks
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[Topic > Bling Bling]
[Yusara's Imaginary Message Board]
Title: Is there anyone here whose commute is harder than mine?ㅠㅠ
Content: I see some people saying their round trip takes four hours,
and others standing ‌‌for 30 minutes on the Line 9 express,
everyone claiming their commute is absolutely brutal,
I'm on a different level.
Literally a different dimension. That's where I have to ‌‌commute from.
Even zombies have to be dealt with before going to work...
I haven't been able to come in for ten days because I can't resolve the zombie problem.
They won't count this as paid leave, right?
As long as I don't get fired when I go to work... that would be nice... haha
Life is ‌‌really screwed....
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I thought I'd possessed a villainous woman.
Turns out that villainous woman was me.
The absurdity of realizing I'd been wagering my soul without even knowing it.
It's absurd.
Bewildering.
'I mean, I didn't even want to go to work in the first place, and now I have to hunt zombies just to commute?'
Life ‌‌really isn't easy....
'Think positive. At least it's better than suddenly possessing an idol trainee and being told to debut or something.'
Choosing zombies over debut makes me an introvert.
I've recovered my memories, but I still don't know why zombies appeared in this world.
I thought the god who sent me back might give me a hint, so I shouted at the empty air, "O Divine One!" but was ignored.
'They called it the God of Light.'
The god who governs dimensions and portals.
I'll investigate this god slowly.
Counting my life as a villainous woman who died as the first playthrough, my life as a corporate slave who was dragged here as the second playthrough, and this new life as the third playthrough.
The differences in my life now in the third playthrough compared to the first.
1. I can see the souls trapped in zombie bodies as red stones.
2. Yujein has awakened her abilities.
'In the first playthrough, Yujein never awakened, and everyone at the Villa died.'
But now I can see souls and have an awakened ‌‌‌Yujein by my side.
With this, I'll save the people, and in the process prove that I've 'changed' to win my wager with the god,
then use the wish I earn to cleanly return to Earth!
To my second life!
Q. Why do I have to go ‌‌‌‌back? Can't I just stay here? I've recovered my memories, and I'm nobility.
A. Do you really want to live as a notorious villainess with a gaslighting mother and a gambling-addicted younger brother in a mansion that's ‌obviously doomed to collapse—one that's already mortgaged to the bank?
I'm surrounded ‌‌‌by people who do nothing but curse me out, have no friends, and pray for my downfall. And on top of that, I'm actually going to fail soon!
If the house ‌‌collapses, I'd have to work as a tutor just to survive, ‌but I didn't even finish school!
Most critically.
'There are zombies here!'
"I really ‌‌hate this so much...."
I want to clock out of this world right now—or better yet, quit entirely.
-Yusara's Clocking-Out Manifesto-
Clock: ‌‌‌I want to clock out!
Out: But I can't....
'The god's condition to prove I've changed is frustratingly vague.'
Even if I wanted to press the god for more details, ‌‌I ‌‌‌‌‌can't communicate with them.
So I'll just go.
That's why I'm at the Imperial Palace now.
As an official member of the Zombie Incident Investigation Team.
The ‌‌wide courtyard in front of the main gate was in disarray as we prepared for ‌‌‌departure.
Since the zombie incident is classified, our itinerary was officially announced as Crown Prince Praha taking a ‌‌leisurely tour of the Empire with friends.
My presence among them caused a moment of confusion.
But people quickly rationalized it as me forcing my way in.
"I'll conduct a final inspection of the carriages!"
"We already completed the inspection at dawn!"
"That was dawn! It's morning now!"
Amid the flurry of activity from the Crown Prince's impeccably dressed attendants moving things back and forth.
Praha was issuing instructions to an attendant at his side.
Dressed in black garments that covered my entire body, as we'd agreed beforehand. ‌‌
A harness across my chest, a thigh garter on my left thigh.
"...."
The ‌‌leather belt wrapped around my firm thigh was cinching the muscle taut beneath the fabric.
I found myself staring blankly at the thigh garter where the dagger was secured.
Then I looked away.
'This isn't the time ‌‌‌to be captivated by physique. Get your head straight.'
Once he'd finished his conversation, Praha approached me and spoke. ‌
"I don't see the Duke's House knights. You didn't bring them?"
"No."
Praha had given me permission to bring a few Escort Knights for my protection as a civilian.
But I ‌‌‌came alone.
'What good would bringing them do? I'd just end up ‌‌using them as shields.'
"It will be dangerous."
"That's why I'm worried. Please look after me. I'm begging you."
"Of course."
"...."
"...."
Why did he agree so readily, as if it were the most natural thing in the world?
"What about Yujein and the Grand Duke?"
"They're coming now."
"My lady!"
Yujein came rushing over at the sound of my words, her face breaking into ‌‌a radiant smile. Behind her, Cyprus approached at a leisurely pace.
Cyprus was also wearing a black H-shaped harness over his shirt.
Even though it was covered up, I found it difficult to know where to look.
'Do they have no awareness of their own physiques?'
Was the harness such a useful item in ‌‌combat that I'd been ignorant of it?
"It's been so long, my ‌‌‌‌lady! Are you feeling better?"
"Yes, thanks to you."
I asked if she'd received my letter, expressed my concern, and congratulated her on becoming an official saint.
After exchanging pleasantries with Yujein for the first time in a while, I turned my attention to Cyprus.
"Your arm has healed completely."
"Yes. Though it seems I've lost some muscle."
"The sleeve fits snugly though."
"If you feel it, it's not that bad. Would you like to touch it?"
"What? No!"
"Why not? Go ahead and feel it. Here."
"Stop it."
Praha cut short Cyprus's nonsense as he thrust his forearm toward me playfully.
"We don't have time."
"Right. Then you feel ‌‌it instead. My lady, just wait a moment."
'I don't want to touch it....'
Now that I thought about it, I hadn't heard where we were headed.
I ‌‌‌‌asked Praha, who was grabbing Cyprus's arm and dragging him out of my sight (Ow, ow, ow!), whether he intended to feel it himself.
"So we're going back to that Villa again?"
Praha shook his head.
"We're ‌going to ‌‌a different region."
"A different region?"
"In the Central Empire, there are two regions from which we've heard nothing since that incident. The tribute merchant ships that were supposed to pass through those two regions haven't arrived either."
He ‌‌explained that we would go to those two regions where communication had been lost, find witnesses, and investigate the cause of the situation.
Praha, having finally pushed Cyprus out of the way (Hey!), spoke.
"But there's somewhere we need to go first."
"Where?"
"Prome."
"Prome?"
Prome was a region one had to reach by taking a train from the Capital for about a day, then traveling further by carriage—a small town that hadn't yet warranted a railway ‌‌‌station.
A modest city without rail infrastructure.
Hemmed in by towering mountains and lacking navigable rivers, travel was inconvenient; ‌‌‌there was ‌‌‌naturally a lord governing the territory, but he didn't belong to the Central Empire's noble faction.
The nobility had deliberately excluded him. He was merely a minor noble of little consequence.
'He plays at nobility only among commoners.'
In short, a place of no particular interest.
Why go there at all?
"Because the Ancient Labyrinth left behind by the God ‌‌‌‌‌of Light exists there."
My eyes snapped open at the mention of the God of ‌‌Light.
"The God of Light?"
"Yes. According to a professor at Imperial University, the Ancient Labyrinth contains sacred relics left by the deity who was its master. We intend to ‌‌find the sacred relics of the God of Light that Yujein serves and strengthen her divine power."
I spun around to look at ‌‌‌‌Yujein.
"Yujein, you were a priestess serving ‌‌‌‌the God of Light?"
"Huh? Y-yes!"
"Wow."
I'd been wasting time when I had ‌‌‌‌someone right beside me with a direct line to a deity!
"Then perhaps..."
Can you communicate with the god ‌‌right now? If so, introduce me. I was about to ask outright but stopped myself.
'I can communicate, but why would you ask that?'
What would I even say?
First, I ‌‌‌should gather information calmly, then make my request.
"That's not it."
Praha, noticing that I'd started to speak but was circling around the actual destination, offered an explanation.
"Among us, Yujein is the strongest. Cyprus and I serve more as support, protecting her from attacks while she channels her divine power."
"I understand. I understand."
Tanks: Praha (S), Cyprus (S).
Damage dealer: Yujein (S+).
Freeloader: me (F).
That's our party composition.
Yujein landing a single lightning strike was far more effective against zombies than Praha and ‌‌Cyprus hacking away with their blades all day.
Therefore, increasing Yujein's offensive power was the best way to improve our survival ‌‌‌rate.
The Investigation Team's work was urgent, but the more urgent it was, the more one needed to prepare properly.
"I'm not so foolish as to be unaware of that."
As I waved my hand dismissively, Praha stared at me intently.
"And I will protect the Crown Prince."
He confirmed it once more.
Well, that's reassuring.
"If the opportunity arises, I'll protect you as well."
"If the Crown Prince reaches a state where I need your protection, the situation has become dire. In that case, abandon me and flee."
"Well, damn."
That won't happen.
"Then we'll take a Portal?"
"We'll take the train. Both ‌‌‌Prome, where we're heading now, ‌‌and the two regions we've lost contact with aren't cities with Portals installed." ‌‌‌
For the record, this Investigation Team wasn't the kind of adventure I'd imagined—everyone marching along with their own gear on their backs.
We'd travel by train or carriage, switching horses at each city, and our lodgings would be the local ‌‌‌lord's castle, not an inn.
Apparently, they'd even sent someone ahead to the Prome region to have the lord's family come out to greet us.
The Emperor had just offered to assign Praha thirty Escort Knights, twelve Attendants, and three cooks, which Praha had just refused.
It was less an adventure and more a ‌‌‌royal procession.
"Well then."
"Let's head to ‌‌‌the train station."
"Yes...."
I replied halfheartedly, recalling some zombie film that came out ‌in 2016.
The genre is zombies, so taking a train makes me uneasy.
I'm not the only one who feels that way, right?
"What if a moving ‌‌‌corpse appears on the ‌‌‌‌train?"
"We'll derail the train and have it explode, then we'll jump off with the survivors."
"That's just great...."
After considering every possible scenario ‌‌‌‌that could happen on a train, we arrived at Capital Central Station.
A platform ‌‌that looked like a glass greenhouse.
Blaaaare—
The deafening whistle of the horn and trains painted in crimson and gold.
People bustling back and forth.
"Your Highness!"
An Imperial Knight who'd been waiting for us came rushing over.
He was our new companion.
[(Temporary Safe Zone) Capital Central Station]
- Yusara, Praha, Cyprus, Yujein, ???(Alive)

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