A Korean Office Worker Who Became a Nuisance Villainess in a Zombie Story - Chapter 43

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Looking back on it all.
At this point in time, Praha and Cyprus had not yet fallen in love with Yujein.
They fell in love with Yujein because of me.
Because I played the role of an obstacle.
Because I stood beside them, creating crises and fanning the flames so their feelings could ripen.
‘Yet I received nothing in return for my love.’
Praha did not accept my heart.
He fell in love with someone else right before my eyes, even as I adored him.
And in the end, he killed me.
Cyprus was there too, on the day I died.
‘Finish it quickly, Praha.’
‘C-Cyprus… please….’
‘Don’t call my name, Princess. …You know it yourself. It’s better for you too if we end this here.’
He did not stop Praha as he drew his blade toward me.
He merely looked at me with eyes full of disgust.
‘Why….’
In that moment, I think I felt something burning inside me—a suffocating despair.
The despair came before the fear of death.
I couldn’t understand why things had come to this.
‘Why couldn’t I…?’
It felt like facing a problem where no formula I knew could yield an answer.
‘Why am I not enough?’
That was how I felt then.
Now that I’ve regained my memories, I have many choices.
I can resent them.
‘Why did you do it? Why did you kill me?’
I could resolve to take revenge.
‘I will never forgive you. Not for killing me so miserably.’
I could vow to finally obtain love, having traveled back through time.
‘Because I know the answer now.’
So, honestly, what do I feel right now?
Nothing at all.
‘I have a conscience, after all. There are things I did in my first life.’
How many people did I kill? How many people suffered because of me?
I’m not shameless enough to say, ‘I was unhappy! It was because of my unfortunate childhood! Wah wah wah!’
Besides.
‘After living for more than twenty years in another world, I suppose my head has cooled.’
Now that I know the world I knew wasn’t everything, and that I have other choices available to me.
No matter what my situation is now, I find myself viewing it from a step away.
So, you two men—Praha and Cyprus….
‘Be happy, Yujein and I.’
I’ll stay far away, wishing for your happiness, and return to Earth.
I will never, ever overstep with you.
Then you’ll have no reason to kill me.
It’s perfect for both of us.
‘Of course, every time I see these two men, I still feel somewhat complicated emotions.’
Is love really important right now?
My soul is on the line!
Get a grip!
Go back to Korea and go on blind dates!
‘Of course, even if I went on blind dates every single day until I died, I’d never meet a man this decent again.’
So my conclusion: protect myself.
One of them killed me.
The other stood by and allowed it.
I should be careful now that I’m treating them as colleagues at best. Don’t cross the line.
If I show them a little kindness and they get the wrong idea—’Oh? Is there a chance?’—that’s absolutely unacceptable.
And also.
I just remembered why Praha keeps emphasizing his name to me.
‘Praha!’
‘Praha, where are you going?’
‘Praha!’
It’s because my past self called Praha by his name however I pleased….
Wasn’t that insane….
I was literally acting like a dog.
Praha was amazing for not getting angry.
‘Sigh.’
I need to do better from now on.
Distinguish between kindness and love.
It’s time to resurrect the principles of workplace professionalism.
☆Don’t act out of line☆
As I vowed a hundred times over in my mind, the conversation among the others continued.
Praha spoke.
“If corpses have spread across those two regions, cleanup is the priority. It would be ideal if we could capture a few alive for experimentation.”
“How would you do that?”
“Break their jaws and sever their limbs.”
“I’m good at breaking things!”
I asked, listening to the conversation.
“I have a question.”
“Please, go ahead.”
“If a corpse outbreak really occurred in those two regions you mentioned, shouldn’t it have spread to the adjacent areas by now?”
The zombies in this world can run, and a single scratch is enough to spread the infection.
With just one of them, transmission happens in an instant.
But how is it that only those two regions have gone silent while everywhere else remains untouched?
Did the zombies draw a line and refuse to cross it?
Cyprus nodded at my question.
“That’s a fair point.”
Praha replied.
“It’s likely due to population density.”
“Ah.”
Praha said only one phrase, but I understood immediately.
‘Right. Population density. A crucial variable in zombie scenarios.’
This world is what you’d call a typical fantasy world, and since it’s an Empire with vast territories, there are no ultra-high-density cities like Seoul or New York with tens of millions of people.
With low population density, even if zombies emerge, the probability of rapid transmission is low.
No matter how many zombies exist, if the people to infect are scattered far, far apart, it’s meaningless.
If a zombie outbreak happened during lunch hour in Yeouido, it would be catastrophic in an instant, but if one appeared on a deserted island? What could you even do.
“Still, the fact that only those two regions have gone silent is strange, as you say.”
“Yes. There must surely be merchants traveling between cities.”
“There appears to be a variable we haven’t accounted for.”
I quickly moved beside Praha as he unfolded the map.
“Let’s first check if there are any major roads passing through those two regions.”
This map is more detailed than the one we had at home, isn’t it?
Must be because it’s from the Imperial Family.
“Here and here….”
Can’t go this way? There’s a gorge.
Absorbed in my analysis, I hadn’t noticed the silence around me until Praha flinched and pulled back when our cheeks nearly touched. Only then did I sense something was amiss and looked up.
Everyone was staring at me.
“? What’s wrong?”
Tangerine spoke blankly from across the table.
“My Lady, I’m sure you’ve heard this so many times it’s tiresome, but you’re really different from the rumors.”
“Pardon?”
“To be honest, I never expected you to understand all of that from just hearing the words ‘population density.'”
“Heh.”
The life of a villainess praised for understanding population density alone.
Should I be pleased about this.
“Since it’s awkward to keep calling them ‘moving corpses,’ let’s come up with some kind of code name.”
“Let’s do that.”
“How about ‘zombie’?”
“That’s quite good. What does it mean?”
“It doesn’t mean anything.”
After that, we killed time with various conversations.
I went to the Dining Room and ate salmon cutlet as well. It was the first time in this life that I ate until I was completely full.
While building up my stamina with sit-ups in a corner by myself, Cyprus caught me and taught me some basic combat techniques.
“You’re quite diligent, my lady.”
“I have to be. My life depends on it.”
‘Even if I have regressed, I don’t know what will happen in the future.’
Reason: I died before things escalated further.
The only additional information I possess
is that zombies pour through the gates.
‘How can I reveal this naturally?’
“You’re picking this up surprisingly well, my lady. Just five more repetitions.”
“But you said… just ten earlier…!”
“Hang in there, my lady!”
The gate problem was resolved faster than expected.
Within ten days, to be precise.
* * *
“Your Highness!”
A welcoming delegation from Promé was waiting at the train station where we disembarked.
A man draped in an ostentatious outer garment made of satin and velvet approached with a beaming smile, introducing himself as the Promae Lord’s Son.
Behind him came a procession of Knights and Servants.
“What are you doing? Hurry and unload the luggage for Their Highnesses and the Saint!”
“Yes, sir!”
Watching those broad-shouldered figures—who looked more like organized crime members than Knights—bustle about,
I felt awkward as the true “two Highnesses” who arrived with only servants in tow.
“You must be tired, yes? I’ve prepared a carriage and a masseuse. This way, please.”
The Lord’s Son, who appeared to have grown up eating delicious food, gestured us forward with fluttering sleeves.
Even though the train had been delayed and we had to wait several hours, he didn’t mind and was eager to flatter us.
‘Of course. The other party is the Crown Prince, after all.’
Under normal circumstances, someone of my station would never cross paths with a mere provincial lord’s son in a lifetime.
“You’re as beautiful as I’ve heard, Saint! But who is this person?”
“Imperial Knight Tangerine.”
“Oh my, a Knight! You’re quite beautiful as well, if I may say so!”
Training under the sun every day, yet your skin is so radiant!
“You don’t look like a Knight at all!”
‘I don’t think Tangerine would appreciate being told she doesn’t look like a Knight.’
Sure enough, Tangerine’s expression twisted as she forced her lips upward.
Regardless, the Lord’s Son continued showering praises—Your Highness, Saint, beautiful, magnificent—bowing and scraping, until finally his gaze turned toward me.
He looked me up and down with obvious displeasure.
Thin lips beneath his oily cheeks curved upward.
“Ah, so you’re the young lady. I’ve heard much of your reputation.”
“Yes, well…”
I replied curtly and turned toward the carriage.
Such subtle mockery no longer even tickled my nerves.
It wasn’t as though he were grinding me down like a senior officer would a rookie, drawing tears of frustration.
I simply thought: here we go again.
‘Change your repertoire. Abandon this juvenile snide remarks and try condemning someone with refined, elegant high society language instead.’
Though even then, I wouldn’t be wounded by it.
Fortunately, with the Crown Prince, the Grand Duke, and the saintess—such distinguished guests—before him, the Promae Lord’s Son quickly lost interest in me.
He laughed obsequiously, bowing his head repeatedly.
“Please, do proceed. If you travel diligently, you should be able to dine this evening at our Promae Castle.”
My father is preparing a grand banquet, so you may look forward to it….
‘He really does talk a lot.’
I boarded the carriage, letting the Promae Lord’s Son’s endless chatter pass through one ear while I wrung my hands.
Four hours later.
‘My rear feels like it’s splitting in two….’
We arrived at the Promé region, having learned that carriage travel was far more grueling than anticipated.
Local residents, their reluctance evident, scattered flowers from baskets. Dilapidated rooftops. A massive mountain visible in the distance.
“Just a bit further, and we’ll be there!”
A small territory requiring four hours by carriage from the railway station.
Its ruling Local Lord was a provincial baron who had never ventured into the Capital’s political circles and belonged to no Nobility Faction.
Specialty products? None.
Tourist attractions? None.
With a mountain containing the Ancient Labyrinth, perhaps pilgrims would occasionally visit.
Strategic position? Terrible.
No river access, and the mountain hindered transportation.
Naturally, commerce had never developed.
Apart from the Ancient Labyrinth and sacred relics, there was nothing remarkable.
So when I entered the town center for the first time, I was genuinely startled.
‘There are street lamps?’
The residents’ clothing was shabby, their expressions gloomy, and the population seemed sparse.
The city layout was mediocre.
Everything appeared underdeveloped.
How had they installed street lamps?
And only in the spots visible from the Lord’s Castle.
‘The pavement is cracked, yet street lamps exist. Did they spend money for a beautiful nightscape?’
“Lower the steps!”
I was even more astonished once we entered Promae Castle.
‘Why is it so lavish…?’
The castle’s interior, which certainly hadn’t been this opulent when first built, was entirely gold and paintings.
A jarring discord.
My nose, sensitive from having recently moved through financial circles, detected a foul stench.
“The guests have arrived!”
I watched the castle inhabitants rush out in a tumultuous crowd.
Why are you all so wealthy?
[(Temporary Safe Zone) Promae Castle]
– Yusara, Praha, Cyprus, Yujein, Tangerine (Alive)

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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