Chapter 12
The Crown Prince had ordered us to investigate Sector 43, which was quite a distance from our current location.
The Imperial Palace boasted ironclad security. Dark magic was strictly forbidden within its walls, clergymen regularly performed cleansing rituals to dispel negative energy, and scientists and doctors conducted frequent sanitation efforts.
There were easily over thirty zombies before our eyes. It was absurd for zombies to appear near the Imperial Palace, not even in the outskirts of the capital. There weren’t any cemeteries nearby.
Except for one place.
“The nearest cemetery is owned by the Daltate Duke family, who have royal blood. The remains of the Duke family members and their loyal subjects are buried there.”
“Gasp. Does that mean the zombies slowly approaching us were once nobles?”
“It’s highly likely. This is troublesome. Damaging the corpses of nobles makes the paperwork a nightmare. Umbram will give me an earful.”
Our master was more concerned about the increase in his workload than the unfortunate fate of the zombified nobles.
“Stay inside the carriage.”
“But there are so many zombies! And how are you going to collect the cores?”
The young master gently lifted my chin with his hand. His faint smile was both incredibly handsome and terrifying. He radiated a coldness that seemed capable of freezing even zombies with ice magic.
“Estella.”
“Yes…”
“What are you?”
“W-well, your maid, Young Master.”
“A maid should obey her master, shouldn’t she? If you don’t want to be fired, that is.”
“Y-yes…”
“Besides, you’re my personal property. Do you know how expensive materials that conduct mana are? If you want a proper finger instead of a tin can, wait quietly.”
“Ugh.”
The young master lightly pushed my shoulder. Even though I was a doll, his treatment of a lady was appalling.
There was a reason he didn’t have a lover. I was already worried about whoever would end up by his side in the future.
It seemed like this loyal Estella would have to serve the Countess faithfully as well. Come to think of it, I’d gotten quite used to the name Estella.
“Estella, go inside the carriage and bring me my staff.”
The coachman inside was still unconscious. I lifted him and moved him aside, retrieving the young master’s short staff from under him.
It was more of a short rod than a staff, about the length of a pipe.
The staff, with magic stones embedded at both ends, was a tool the young master used to enhance his magic.
“Young Master! Here!”
When I stepped out of the carriage, he was taking off his cloak and jacket. I quickly handed him the staff, took his clothes, and offered him his leather gloves.
“You’re not going to touch the zombie cores with your bare hands, are you?”
“Maybe. We’ll see.”
He pushed me back again.
“Be careful.”
If he hadn’t said those kind words, I might have reported his employer abuse to the head butler.
The young master channeled mana into the rod. The magic stones glowed, transforming the rod into a long staff. It became as thick and long as a spear. The silver body turned gold, and the gems shone red.
Instead of casting spells like a typical mage…
Thwack! Wham! Bam!
He used the staff to beat the zombies. It wasn’t much different from my fighting style.
“A battlemage…”
He looked more like a spearman than a mage. Feeling awkward, I scratched my nose.
“Y-Young Master! Can’t you use magic to defeat the zombies in a more elegant way?”
The young master, who had just smashed a zombie’s head and kicked it with his boot, looked back at me. His annoyance was evident.
“It’s a waste of mana.”
“Stingy…”
The young master wasn’t a combat mage in the first place. He claimed to be more of a refined artist.
Well, even my body was proof of that. Outwardly, I was almost identical to a human. In fact, I was even prettier than most humans.
The Zepetto Count family wasn’t particularly fond of participating in wars. They had always been devoted to cultural pursuits like literature, art, and music. The young master had honed his delicate craftsmanship but hadn’t learned any combat skills.
Thwack, bam, bam. The zombies were getting beaten one by one. And they were literally exploding.
“Ugh, unsanitary.”
Pretending to wipe my eyes with a handkerchief, I approached the young master.
“Stay back, you’re in the way.”
“It’s too late, I’m already dirty. I’ll wash up thoroughly later.”
I couldn’t let him fight in this unsanitary environment alone. Whenever he knocked down a zombie, I would stomp on it to make sure it couldn’t get back up.
He might not have thought so, but we were the perfect duo. At least, that’s what I thought. After defeating a few zombies with our practiced routine, no new ones appeared.
Once all the zombies were crushed, the young master shrunk the staff back into a rod and tossed it to me. I quickly caught it and wiped it with my skirt. It was frustrating that the sticky zombie fluids wouldn’t come off easily.
“Ugh, look at this. It’s not even cleaning properly. Damn it.”
I was rubbing the rod so hard that my fingers crumbled. Huh, the dirty rod wasn’t the problem.
I needed to fix my fingers first. Would it have been okay if I had thrown the carriage door a little more gently? I thought I was protected by magic, even though I was a porcelain doll.
The young master, who was rummaging through the zombie remains with his foot, looked back at me.
“Estella.”
Worried that he would scold me for breaking what few fingers I had left, I followed him, hiding my hands behind my back. Thankfully, he wasn’t about to scold me.
“I discovered something new. It seems that animals that come into contact with or are bitten by zombies turn into zombies themselves. You could call it an infection. Look at this.”
Squeak! The rat that was pinned under the young master’s boot squeaked frantically. It was foaming at the mouth, its eyes rolling wildly.
“Young Master, this is…”
We exchanged meaningful glances. I lightly tugged on his sleeve.
“That’s animal cruelty.”
“A zombified rat…”
The young master’s expression went blank.
“Why are you stepping on its tail like that? It’s foaming at the mouth, its fur has turned blue, and its claws are as big as its head because it’s in pain.”
“…”
“Ugh, the rats in this forest are so scary-looking.”
The young master frowned and scolded me.
“You’re hopeless when it comes to using your head.”
“Why would I need to use my head? My job is to survive by reading your cues.”
“You’re so good with your mouth, but you can’t grasp the situation?”
“Are you not going to release the rat?”
He looked like he was about to get angry, but then he opened his hand and created a box with magic. I had heard the explanation before, but I couldn’t remember it. Even if I did, I couldn’t replicate it because I wasn’t a mage.
“If you’re so worried about the rat, take it with you.”
The magic box fell to the ground. As soon as the young master moved his foot, the rat scurried towards me and was immediately trapped inside the box.
Scratch, scratch! The ill-tempered rat clawed at the purple box.
The young master handed me the box containing the rat and a new magic box.
“Can I put the zombie cores in this magic box?”
“I like how quick you are on the uptake. I’ll be resting in the carriage, so report to me when you’re done.”
The young master turned away, rubbing his shoulders, muttering to himself about how stiff he felt after all that exertion.
“Wait a minute, Young Master!”
“What?”
“I understand that I have to collect the zombie cores. But it’s difficult to work while carrying Zomrat. You take her inside.”
I shoved the magic box containing the rat at the bewildered young master. His face crumpled.
“Hey.”
“You can rest in the carriage and research Zomrat’s identity when you have time.”
“Zomrat… Is that the rat’s name?”
“Yes.”
“Why…?”
It was such an obvious question that I simply shrugged.
“It’s a zombified rat. You caught it after it got infected near the zombie core.”
“You understood everything I was saying?”
“Yes. But being a zombie is one thing, and animal cruelty is another.”
“…”
“You don’t like the name? Of course, Zomrat might not actually be female… But who cares if you name a zombified rat ‘Princess Poop’ or ‘Alexander’?”
“…Just focus on collecting the cores.”
The young master, looking displeased, took Zomrat and entered the carriage. He was determined to rest alone, how heartless.
“Honestly. I guess I have to do the dirty work since I’m the maid.”
Rolling up my sleeves, I tucked the magic box under my arm and started collecting the zombie cores like I was harvesting crops. They were surprisingly soft, like jelly, despite their appearance. I wondered if they were warm.
‘I should ask him to install a temperature sensor during my next repair.’
I diligently collected 47 zombie cores and 102 remnants of what were once cores, filling the box.
Thanks to the young master’s magic report, we received assistance from the Imperial Knights and safely returned to the Count’s mansion. The coachman, who had been crying in my arms, was reunited with his family.
“Young Master!”
Head Butler Godora waddled out to greet the young master with his short legs. He didn’t even seem to notice me dragging a bag filled with magic boxes.
“Are you alright!”
“Take the bag Estella is dragging to my workshop. I’ll be in the workshop for a while, so don’t disturb me.”
The young master replied curtly and approached me.
“Your legs aren’t damaged, are you?”
“If they were, I wouldn’t be able to walk.”
“Always talking back.”
Despite his harsh words, his gaze as he examined my ankles was filled with concern. Magic doll materials must be expensive.
“Let’s go to the workshop.”
He scanned me from head to toe and added,
“And take off those filthy clothes.”
“What?”
“Take them off.”
Nice