Chapter 49
*I Don’t Want to Lose You Again*
Dried, crusted blood clung to her stained lips, and her blue flesh was mangled. The shreds of fabric caught between her teeth must have once been leather.
And amidst the carnage, her white, even teeth.
I finally understood why there were no zombies.
“Hee hee, hee hee.”
She had eaten them all. That’s right. The reason the villagers had abandoned the village and fled…
“Estella!”
The young master had followed me, ignoring my instructions to wait. I stepped forward and covered his eyes. I had to stand on tiptoe because I was shorter than him, which was a bit annoying.
As if sensing my annoyance, he pushed my hands away.
“What in the world…”
He tried to approach the lady. It was absurd. There was no way a zombie who ate people would spare the young master, who looked so delicious and was dressed in such fine clothes.
She would definitely eat him! He looked so tempting! I grabbed his clothes and pulled him back.
“Don’t go near her! What if she eats you?!”
“Estella, wait! That’s impossible. A zombie eating another zombie… I have to confirm this. This shouldn’t be possible.”
“People are eating zombies, so what’s possible and impossible anymore? It seems like the zombies we’ve seen so far weren’t real zombies. This is the real deal.”
The lady, having finished her gruesome meal, looked up. Now the stains and tears on her clothes looked different. That was zombie blood, those were claw marks from a fleeing zombie.
She no longer looked human.
A zombie beyond zombies. She was the true “zombie.” And I couldn’t just stand by and watch. It was too horrifying, and too pitiful.
I couldn’t just do nothing. I wanted to run away from this situation. No, Anna, no, Estella. I couldn’t run. I was the young master’s maid.
I had to work for him.
That was the only way I could escape this sorrow.
“We’re zombie investigators, aren’t we, Young Master?”
He looked at me, startled.
“What are you thinking?”
“What I have to do, of course.”
Something inside me snapped. My trust in humans, perhaps? The immutable truth that humans were human shattered into pieces.
The lady was human, yet she wasn’t. Why did this betrayal and sorrow feel so intense? And why did I suddenly hate myself so much?
A being that looked human but wasn’t.
Was there a difference between me and the lady?
Then wasn’t I… no different from a zombie?
“I’ll collect a sample from her.”
“What?”
“She might have a core too. Don’t you need it?”
Perhaps I just wanted to confirm that I wasn’t a zombie. If I eliminated this zombie lady, I would feel like I was on the side of humans, the opposite of zombies. Was this hypocrisy? I didn’t know. Complicated thoughts were for smart people like the young master.
I just had to do what he wanted.
“I’ll bring you the zombie core if you want. If you want.”
“Don’t.”
He pulled me back, his expression stern.
“Don’t you need it?”
“…That’s not the point. Let’s get out of here.”
“You escape. I’ll take care of it.”
I felt strangely stubborn. I walked towards the lady, ignoring the young master.
“Estella.”
“…”
“This is a warning. Don’t disobey me.”
I was now standing in front of the zombie who ate zombies. For some reason, I saw Estella’s face superimposed on hers.
A being that wasn’t human.
Those words wouldn’t leave my mind. Just as I raised the spear, as if wanting to strike myself down, I heard the young master’s furious voice.
“I told you not to disobey me.”
I briefly looked back, and he was casting a spell. That was my last memory.
“This is bizarre. A woman, once a zombie, consuming other zombies. Horrifying.”
Crown Prince Umbram said, looking at Lupin as if seeking agreement. Lupin replied curtly,
“It requires further investigation. It could pose a threat to public safety.”
“Let’s keep this a secret for now. I’ll take the woman.”
Amidst the commotion, Lupin held Estella close. The doll, her arm dangling limply, had her head resting against his chest, eyes closed. Quiet and still, like when she was first created. Few would imagine that this doll could move and speak.
The doll, silently submitting to his embrace, felt strangely unfamiliar to him. The sinking feeling in his chest from the moment he cast the spell to knock her unconscious lingered.
Even though she was a giggling zombie, there was no telling how she would react after being attacked.
If she were conscious, Estella would have stubbornly continued her attack. He couldn’t stop her.
He had knocked her unconscious to protect her from danger. Lupin kept replaying the moment in his mind, wondering if it was his own selfishness that had driven him. He remembered a strange sense of unease and a strong urge to stop her.
It would have been fine if he had eliminated the zombie himself, or if he had let Estella do as she pleased.
No, letting Estella have her way would have been the right thing to do.
Even though she looked human, she was a zombie inside. How could someone who ate people be considered human?
As Estella had said, they just needed to collect a sample from the zombie and hand her over to the Crown Prince.
‘Why did I stop Estella?’
Or rather, why did he have to stop her?
Because Estella’s eyes, despite being a mere doll, had seemed moist. Lupin told himself it was just his imagination and held the doll closer.
“You’re holding her quite preciously.”
Crown Prince Umbram said, turning to Lupin. Immediately after knocking Estella unconscious, Lupin had sent a message to the Crown Prince using magic. Since Umbram was staying at Edna’s residence, he had arrived quickly.
Umbram approached them, his gaze fixed on the unconscious Estella. The more he looked at her, the more captivating he found her.
She could talk, she had discovered a new type of zombie, and above all, she was beautiful.
His offer to make her his concubine wasn’t a joke. There were many advantages to having a magically created being by his side. The commoners would find it mystical, the nobles would be wary, and the mages would be pleased.
For Umbram, who wanted to maintain a friendly relationship with the mages, Estella was a valuable tool.
And yet, Lupin was treating her like a mere keychain in a maid uniform. Was this also related to the deceased maid? If it weren’t for his obsession with that maid, Lupin Zepetto would also be a valuable asset.
“Are you still not willing to give her to me?”
Umbram reached out and gently poked Estella’s cheek with his pinky finger. The doll was cold and motionless. But her master flinched and protectively pulled her closer.
“I thought that discussion was over.”
“It’s not that simple. We can make this magic doll your nominal sister and my concubine. Me taking this magic doll is equivalent to me supporting the mages.”
Umbram emphasized, as if reasoning with a child.
“Lupin Zepetto. You don’t know how to properly utilize a doll.”
Lupin’s expression twisted. It was a good thing Estella wasn’t conscious to hear this.
“We’ll be going now. I need to repair Estella.”
“Indeed. Her arm has come off. It’s Estella’s misfortune to have a master who’s more suited for playing soldier than playing dolls. Isn’t that right?”
“…”
“I’ll be returning to the capital now. Lupin, I hope you’ll make a wise decision.”
That was the end of their conversation. Umbram left with his knights, who were carrying the zombie-eating zombie in a cage.
“Angel! I’m an angel! He gave me life!”
The zombie’s screams sounded like the cries of a pitiful woman. Her nonsensical words echoed through the empty village.
Once they were out of Lupin’s sight, Umbram and his knights stopped. They were in a secluded part of the forest, where no screams could be heard.
Ravens loved to gossip. Umbram had deliberately entered the eastern forest.
To leave no witnesses.
He gestured, and the Knight Commander approached. He spoke in a low voice,
“I’ll take care of it.”
“Execute any knight who speaks of this.”
As soon as Umbram gave his permission, a blade pierced through the bars of the cage. Startled by the sudden noise, a flock of birds took flight. Small, fragile birds, nothing like ravens.
“Keep an eye on Lupin until he leaves the magic library. I’m worried about the witch and the dragon being with him.”
The Knight Commander reassured Umbram in a serious tone.
“Don’t worry, Your Highness. Baba Porta is considered insane even among witches. And the youngest Dragonuska is nothing but a powerless lizard.”
He repeated the same words for Umbram’s sake.
“Nothing will happen that would cause Your Highness any concern.”
While Umbram was heading for the capital, Castor was tending to the garden in front of the magic library.
“That Estella, she’s good at talking nonsense. Jewels or not, I’ll let them use the workbench when they return. That’s the least I can do.”
Castor muttered as he watered the hyacinths, their vibrant green leaves glistening.
As he was watering the plants, removing stones, and cleaning up the grains eaten by rats, a large shadow fell over him.
“Castor.”
He looked up and saw a distraught man holding a limp doll.
“What happened?”
Castor stood up. Lupin held Estella’s head in his hand and kissed her cold forehead.
But the doll remained unconscious.
“Please, let me use the workbench.”
Lupin’s eyes were red, as if on the verge of tears, but his blue irises were dry.
“Let me use the workbench.”
“…”
“Please.”