◆Chapter 1: Zombies with Furry Ears and Tails?

 

 

 

◆Chapter 1: Zombies with Furry Ears and Tails?

 

DEAR Father and Mother,

Are you well? Knowing you two, you’re still very much in love. How about that big brother of mine? Three months have passed since I disappeared—has he taken his college entrance exams yet? Actually, maybe it's best not to ask after him. He’s always been weak to external expectations: the pressure just makes him nauseous. Just know that I’m cheering you on with limited expectations, Bro!

Oh, you want to know how I’m doing? Don’t worry—I’m fine. Life is going well. Like, I’m getting WAY more exercise than I ever did back home. Cardio matters here. Yeah, it really does because if I don’t run fast...I'll be eaten alive by zombies.

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“GROAHHHHH!”

“NOOOOOOOOO!”

Mizuha Kusunoki here. I’m currently running for my life from a Boneless Ham—no, that’s not some sort of food on wheels. It’s a fifteen-foot-tall zombie that’s all muscle and protruding flesh. Obviously, it’s rotting, and it reeks to high heaven! Get too close, and the stench will make your eyes water.

I bound away from death as fast as my feet will carry me, wondering what I did wrong in life to deserve this. About three months ago, I woke up in an apocalyptic world full of zombies. Just when I thought I was the last person alive, I found out I can purify zombies back to their original human state. So, long story short, I purified Grantz Kingdom—the nearest kingdom to me—and succeeded in capturing the crook who zombified the world.

Thus, I received the right to return to my comfy world by doing everything the wretched Goddess—who ARBITRARILY summoned me without NOTICE or PERMISSION—wanted. But stupid me: I had some lingering attachment to this world and decided to stay.

That was about two months ago.

Part of the conditions for me sticking around is purifying the rest of the world, so my days since have been filled with going on purification expeditions with Grantz Kingdom’s armies as the Priestess. And this time, I came to a large forest that occupies the western border of Grantz’s territory…where I was immediately greeted by a Boneless Ham.

“Lady Mizuha!”

A young man rushes to my side with that booming voice. Golden hair tied back in a samurai hairstyle dances over his silver plate armor. This man who looks just like a fairy tale knight is Lex Irvine. He’s the first zombie-turned-human I met in this world. He is also my personal knight in shining armor—when he’s not a zombie.

“URAAAAAAAAH!”

Lex thrusts his sword into the Boneless Ham’s meaty side. Unfortunately, the hard flesh prevents the sword tip from piercing through, but it succeeds in directing the grotesque zombie’s attention toward Lex.

“Now please, Lady Mizuha!”

“On it!” I respond as I slap the Boneless Ham’s slimy back. I cringe as the putrid zombie stench and goo assaults my senses. It’s the epitome of disgusting every time. Going through with the touch paid off though because its body is glowing brighter than a Christmas tree—evidence the purification was a success.

Puzzle piece–like seams emerge on its body, and from there, dozens of animals fall onto the ground as if emptying a zipped up bag. Boneless Hams—yes, there are more than one—seem to be a zombie type formed from combining a large number of zombie animals. Purifying it always has the same result. Interestingly enough, the animals inside tend to vary. This one was mostly made up of horses.

“I humbly apologize for my late arrival, Lady Mizuha.”

“You made it just in time. Don’t sweat it. Thanks, Lex.” I sigh as I wipe the sweat from my brow. “Anyway, I honestly didn’t expect to run into a Boneless Ham right away. Kinda miss the normos. Those I’ve gotten used to, it’s the unique types I can’t handle…”

“Their strength and abilities are on entirely different levels, after all. On the bright side, our domestic animals increase with every one we take down.”

“Yeah, that’s a great bonus, but definitely not worth the risk…”

Generally, we regain five to ten animals for every purified Boneless Ham. They tend to be the larger farm animals such as cows, deer, pigs, and horses. Thinking of the big picture, securing food and transportation is a huge plus, but as the person risking her life each time, I have my reservations. But I know I chose to stay behind and help—I try not to complain too much.

“Hey, speaking of animals, are all these horses foals?” I ask.

“No, I believe they are simply a shorter breed, m’lady.”

The five fallen horses all have short legs. They remind me of the ponies from my world. They’re so little and cute. I want to pet their thick manes, but it’s viscerally impossible for me right now. Each of them is covered in thick pink mucus from purifying the Boneless Ham.

“BWEOW.”

“Say, Lex, did you just moan?” I ask after hearing a weird noise.

“Do you believe me to be so strange that I moan for no reason? But, to answer your question, no, I do not make sounds like that.”

“Really? I thought it might be something you do for fun.”

“How much of a pervert do you think I am?!”

“BWEOW.”

“There you go again.”

“I-It’s not me!” he protests. Obviously, I don’t actually think it’s Lex. Teasing him is just my feeble attempt at escaping reality. I raise my gaze to the source of the noise. I really wish I hadn’t.

“Zombies are in the trees?!” I cry.

Countless zombies had taken to the trees. I don’t know how long they have been up there, but they are clinging to the branches like koalas, watching us. It’s a bizarre sight indeed. None of the normal zombies have been capable of climbing during the daytime before.

“Uh...is it just me or do they have furry ears and tails?”

Triangular ears stand erect and forward on their heads, and long, slender tails flick behind them. Their fur is scruffy and a sickly purple from the rot, making it hard to distinguish at first, but it looks an awful lot like the cats from my world.

“Could they be—”

“You know what they are, Lex?”

“Yes, I do. They are beastmen of the Lucor Tribe who have lived off these woods as hunters for a great many years. I am fairly positive because of their distinct petite size.”

“Beastmen exist in this world?”

Zombies, goddesses, Dark Djinns—I’ve already faced so many crazy fantasy creatures that nothing fazes me anymore. I adapt frighteningly well.

“Do they not exist in yours, Lady Mizuha?”

“…A select few people like to dress like them,” I say with a dry laugh.

“I see. They must be trying to become more attuned with nature.”

Nah, I don’t think that’s it at all, I think but keep it to myself when there’s a sudden movement above.

“BWEEOOOW!”

“BWEEOOOOOW!”

“BWEEOOOOOOOOW!”

The Lucor zombies let out a round of mewls and leap down from the trees. They land on all-fours, just like a beast. Then they begin circling me, Lex, and the Grantz soldiers.

“D-Don’t they seem a little too fast for daytime?!” I cry. Every normal human zombie I’d encountered moved slowly during the day. The Lucor zombies show none of that weakness. They are so swift, my eyes can barely keep up with them.

“I fear beastmen might not have the same daytime limitations that human zombies do…!” Lex cautions as he holds his sword at the ready.

Boneless Hams consist of animals and are just as fast during the day as at night. Maybe the curse affects beasts and those who share their blood differently from humans? Either way, now’s not the time to think about it!

“Fall in, men! Raise your shields and protect Lady Mizuha!” Following Lex’s orders, the Grantz soldiers encircle me with their shields out. Only Lex stays in position directly beside me.

“BWEEOOOW!”

One of the Lucor zombies rams against a shield. A dull thud cracks the air, followed by the sound of vibrating metal. The impact knocks the soldier into the inner circle and bounces the zombie back onto the ground where it seems to have lost consciousness as it curls in on itself.

“Lex, this is our chance!”

“Agreed! Advance to the unmoving zombie’s position!” Lex orders the soldiers.

As we move, Lucor zombies lunge at us from multiple directions. The soldiers deflect them with their shields each time. Unlike the first one, not all the zombies lose consciousness after being hit by the shields—they get back up and charge at us with animal tenacity.

“Don’t break formation while assisting our fallen men!”

“I’m going to purify the first one!” I let our unit know and swiftly touch the head of the unconscious Lucor allowed into our circle. Bright light transforms its festering skin. The purple fades from its flesh, and the fur on its ears and tail is restored to its former fluffiness.

“Cu—” I don’t finish saying it’s cute because once the light disappears, it turns out to be a much older male Lucor with a dwarven beard.

Don’t get me wrong—there’s nothing wrong about there being old men among beastmen. I just wish that the first one I met was an adorable catgirl.

Even as I’m hoping for a cuter encounter, the Lucor zombies continue to pounce on us. The circle closes in tighter around me. We don’t have time to stop and let him rest.

Just then, the older Lucor opens his eyes and darts them around the area.

“Wh-What in the Great Forest was I—”

“I’m sorry to order you around when you are just waking up, but please keep pace with our formation!”

He seems confused but quickly senses our dire circumstances. He falls in step with our unit without another word.

“Let’s keep this up and purify them one by one!”

“Okay!” I answer Lex and purify each zombie as they are knocked back.

We had no room for error, but thanks to the soldiers’ tireless efforts, none of our members became zombies by the time we succeeded in purifying around twenty or so of the Lucors.

There might still be some lingering in the trees, but since we can’t see any more in our immediate vicinity, we decide to take a brief break. The newly dezombified Lucors are still trying to get their wits about them.

Lex walks over from where he was speaking with his men and talks to me. “Thank you for your valiant efforts, Lady Mizuha.”

“You too, Lex. I was worried for a moment there, but…as long as nothing else about them changes, we can probably take on more.” I let out a long, tired breath and wipe the sweat from my brow.

Then there’s an abrupt heavy, thud behind me. I slowly turn around, certain I’ve spoken too soon, and find a furry zombie down on all-fours, hissing at me.

From the triangular ears and tail, I’m guessing it’s another Lucor zombie that just jumped down from the trees. It’s only a guess because this Lucor is well over six feet when all the others seemed shorter than five feet. This one is around the same height as Lex, if not taller.

“H-Hey, Lex? Didn’t you say this tribe is distinct for its petite size?”

“…It appears my memory has failed me.”

Meanwhile, the large Lucor zombie is continuing to hiss at us. Their hisses might be kind of cute if they got rid of the bw- and just moaned -eow. That’d be a little more catlike. Then again, not even the cutest cat in the world would be counted as cute if it was rotting and smelled of death.

“BWEEOOOOOOOOW!”

It lets out the loudest roar yet and pounces. Lex steps forward and deflects it with his shield. But the tall zombie immediately catches its balance. It even uses the momentum to hop into the trees and circle us from above by leaping from branch to branch.

“U-Ugh…it’s not only big but faster and more agile than the others…!” I groan.

“Please do not leave my side, Lady Mizuha!”

The other soldiers can’t get too close with it in the trees. We don’t know when or where the Lucor zombie might pounce. Then, the deadlock is broken with the sound of a branch snapping.

The tall zombie drops down on Lex’s shield from the tree directly above us. The force is ten times what it was before. Lex catches its claws with his shield, but the impact throws him back.

“Lex!”

“I’m fine! Please run away!”

He doesn’t have to tell me twice. I break into a run—but the Lucor zombie is already on me. Its right hand arcs through the air toward me. I reflexively duck, and somehow manage to avoid its claws. A sharp whistle and a cool breeze whoosh over my head.

Dodging that was sheer dumb luck. I need to get out of here now. But I doubt I can outrun a creature that is clearly several times faster than me.

Listening to my instincts, I thrust out my right hand. It conveniently smacks the Lucor square in the face. A nice, crisp slap echoes through the woods just as purifying light illuminates the area. Delighted cheers erupt from the Grantz soldiers.

“There it is! Priestess Mizuha’s Full-Face Smack!”

“Will you please quit naming my slaps like they are special moves?!” The trouble is that when they say it, there’s no malicious intent. They truly mean it as a compliment. And that’s why I’m forever stuck being unable to really make them stop.

Thus, the immediate area’s zombie purification ended with the realization that I was surrounded by people with very odd perspectives.

The last zombie I purified is a woman, which I kind of guessed from her more pronounced chest. I can’t tell how old she is, but she seems close in age to me.

“I was just a zombie…how…?” She seems to have fallen into the confusion that often follows dezombification. She curls up on the ground and begins checking over her body.

Her waist-length hair is tied back in a ponytail. Lucors seem to share some traits with cats—her large yellow eyes have pupils that narrow into slits. But, overall, she gives off a gentle impression rather than a scary one.

Perhaps her moving ears and tail help with that. Her fur looks much softer and fluffier than the mangy appearance she had as a zombie. I have the urge to pet her. Typically when someone is tall and slender, most people immediately think of them as beautiful or cool, but I have the complete opposite reaction.

“Cute…!”

“…P-Pardon?”

She blinks at me. It’s only natural to be bewildered when a stranger calls you cute while you have absolutely no idea what is going on. But I just couldn’t help myself! Especially after my first Lucor turned out to be a bearded old man, and the rest weren’t any better. I hope she will forgive my urgency.

“Lady Mizuha! More Lucor zombies have come from deeper in the woods! Hurry!” Lex calls after me.

I look in the same direction as him and see another horde of Lucor zombies traversing the trees. There’s less than the last batch, but still more than ten. And there’s no telling if there aren’t more behind them. Taking them on sooner rather than later is a necessity.

“Sorry! I’m coming now!” I shout back to Lex, then offer a final word to the female Lucor rather than just run off. “I’m sorry, I’m in a hurry. Um, what’s your name…?”

“Nady Ol Theos La Quim Rom Lucor.”

Yeah, that was longer than expected.

“Nady O-Oltheo—what?”

“Nady is fine.”

“Okay, see you later then, Nady,” I say and sprint off toward Lex.

“U-Um! Thank you very much for saving me!” she shouts after me.

“You’re welcome!”

It’s not like I’m purifying zombies for the gratitude. But, it’s always nice to be thanked. It helps me endure the offensive stench wafting from my right hand. I keep my hand as far as possible from my face and get a good count on our incoming Lucor zombie horde.

“M’kay, time to round up and purify another batch of zombies!”