A Korean Office Worker Who Became a Nuisance Villainess in a Zombie Story - Chapter 98

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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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“I’ll bring him back!”
Tangerine bolted forward.
With those long legs bounding in powerful strides, her speed was no joke. Her body was so light that I thought she could outrun a cheetah in a race.
The problem was that General was even faster…!
“Woof!”
Every time General ran, his fluffy white ears fluttered like sujebi dough. The young puppy darted through the narrow Alley, slipping between walls where Tangerine couldn’t follow, and squeezed through a gap in the fence.
“Losing a footrace to a dog, you’ve got to be kidding me!”
Tangerine’s voice, seething with frustration, rang out across the peaceful Village like a scene plucked straight from a movie.
Hey, you’re going to wake up all the zombies in the neighborhood.
Yujein’s mouth fell open.
“It seems Tangerine has no fear….”
“I think she’s doing it on purpose. Trying to provoke any zombies to come out.”
“…She must be getting bored.”
Mysterious footprints and blood trails.
For the puppy to bolt away in a situation where we didn’t know what might happen.
The very scenario I’d been worried about was unfolding, yet I felt no tension at all….
“Hahahaha!”
Could it be because of Tangerine, who was laughing while running—not like a child, but with genuine delight?
Or perhaps.
“Is it because the sun is so bright…?”
The sunlight was so intense it felt ticklish. With the sun already blazing and white Buildings everywhere reflecting the light, everything felt even brighter.
Maybe that’s why zombie stories always darken the color grading. It’s impossible to feel tense like this.
‘Still, I shouldn’t let my guard down. One careless moment and I could get infected.’
“Um, um… do you think we shouldn’t help?”
“We can’t help. Tangerine is the fastest among us.”
“B-but still….”
“Praha is right. If Tangerine can’t catch him, none of us can. Besides.”
Cyprus, squinting one eye with a wry smile, continued.
“We can’t fit through there.”
Cyprus pointed to the narrow gap between two walls where Tangerine was just squeezing her body through.
“Our shoulders won’t fit….”
“….”
The mood grew somber….
Cyprus glanced at his watch and spoke.
“Let’s leave bringing General to Tangerine and focus on the Warehouse right in front of us. If we can’t find any traces of people here either, I’m not sure what we should do next.”
“Understood.”
I nodded and looked around the Warehouse, which was locked from the outside.
The Warehouse, which appeared to be shared by the two Villages, was quite large. The main gate facing the street was secured by a thick padlock and a wooden bar, blocking entry.
There were windows, but they were positioned too high for observation—clearly meant for ventilation rather than looking out. I couldn’t see inside from here.
‘A Warehouse being locked from the outside isn’t inherently strange.’
People don’t live in the warehouse, so there’s no reason to lock it from the inside.
‘The bolt placed across the door isn’t particularly suspicious either.’
It’s a warehouse, after all.
What struck me as odd was this:
I turned to address my companions.
“If I were a survivor stranded on this Island, I would have come to this warehouse regularly to scavenge supplies. Actually, I probably would have attempted to escape first, but let’s assume that didn’t work out.”
The Island had been cut off from the mainland for over a month now, and gathering food by searching house to house would have had its limits.
They would have raided the warehouse first.
Just like how in twenty-first century Korea, if zombies appeared, you’d have to loot the convenience stores or supermarkets near your home first….
“I share that assessment.”
“But there are no signs the door was ever opened, which is what troubles you, isn’t it, Your Grace?”
“Exactly. …Could this door have been too heavy for children to open?”
“Perhaps there was no key.”
“Ah… yes, the key.”
Unless the children were someone like Praha who could smash through a Prison door with bare hands, they would have needed a key to open this one.
So was it simply that they couldn’t open it because they had no key?
As I stared at the door with an uneasy gaze, Cyprus made a suggestion.
“If we break just this lock, we should be able to open it. Shall we try?”
“Not yet. I have a bad feeling about what might be inside.”
“L-let’s walk around it first, shall we? There might be a back entrance….”
“That would be better.”
I began to slowly circle the white, rounded Building, which looked more like a simplified Byzantine-style chapel than a warehouse.
When we rounded to the back of the Building, a Greenhouse came into view.
It was a short glass Greenhouse that protruded outward from the Building—a single-story structure with opaque glass covered in transparent vinyl sheeting, resembling the plastic houses common in Korea.
Grapevines grew thickly against the inner wall of the Greenhouse, which was difficult to see through clearly. From their color, they all appeared to be dead.
“…I’ve never seen grapevines before… Do they normally grow like that, covering the entire wall?”
Were those ivy vines rather than grapevines?
I squinted at the vines that had grown so densely inside the plastic house that the interior was completely obscured. Beside me, Yujein suddenly rushed forward.
“I can see handprints inside the Greenhouse!”
“No.”
Praha stopped Yujein from running ahead, positioning himself in front of both of us. When I glanced up at him, both men—whose vision was far superior to Yujein’s and mine—were frowning.
Praha spoke.
“Those aren’t handprints. And they’re not vines either.”
“Then….”
“They’re people.”
“…!”
Only then did I see it.
The Greenhouse was packed with people.
Like the express train on Line 9 during rush hour.
Except unlike Line 9, the people weren’t standing—they were collapsed, piled on top of one another, trampling and tangling and stacking grotesquely, their bodies twisted together in a nightmarish heap.
‘So that’s why it looked so densely tangled.’
What I had mistaken for a withered grapevine was actually a mangled human body—limbs twisted and broken, crushed against the wall, drenched in blood.
And what I thought were grape clusters were not grapes at all. They were human faces.
“…Ugh.”
Yujein covered her mouth and stumbled backward, landing hard on her rear.
Faces pressed against the translucent glass, packed shoulder to shoulder. The eyes of those trapped within rolled in unison, tracking the sound Yujein had made.
Thud.
A twisted hand jutted out and pressed against the greenhouse wall.
That was the beginning.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
The tangled mass of bodies—no, zombies—began to writhe. Palms, faces, torsos all convulsing at once.
Crack.
The glass fractured.
I quickly hooked my arm under Yujein’s armpit and hauled her to her feet.
We began backing away slowly, whispering urgently.
“What we need to do now… you understand without me saying it, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Haha.”
“I’m so sorry, it’s all my fault, truly I’m—”
Crack. Crackle.
Shatter!
“Hyaaah!”
Yujein raised her hands and sent lightning crackling through the widening gaps in the glass.
Boom! Boom!
The moment her attack ended, we spun around and bolted.
“Even with your feet off the ground, you can still channel your divine power without issue, yes, Yujein?”
Cyprus shouted as he tucked Yujein under his arm. She dangled from him, her voice trembling with sobs.
“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry, it’s because of me!”
Boom! Boom!
Her mouth wept, but her hands worked dutifully, striking down zombies…
“Yujein, huff, this isn’t your fault!”
“She’s right. That greenhouse was destined to break eventually.”
“Exactly!”
Packed so impossibly full of zombies—it’s a miracle it didn’t shatter sooner!
“The entire warehouse must be filled with them! They’re pouring out through the greenhouse!”
“Oh no!”
Cyprus, still carrying Yujein, took the lead and set our course. We followed the trail left by Tangerine, who had chased after General.
That nonsense about his broad shoulders preventing him from squeezing through narrow passages was a lie. He vaulted over the wall without hesitation and kept going.
As we broke free from the alley, I refused when Praha tried to lift me.
“I’m… fine!”
Cyprus is holding Yujein, Tangerine is nowhere to be found, so someone has to be able to wield a sword!
Boom!
Behind us as we ran, Yujein diligently summoned lightning from the clear sky.
Of course, I had no time to look back. I could only guess from the sound.
Someone once told me that in a chase like this, an ordinary person like me shouldn’t waste energy turning around!
“Huff… huff….”
Running, running, and running some more….
That was when it happened.
“This way!”
Tangerine gestured from atop the narrow Staircase that led into an Alley.
Unable to stop, Praha grabbed my wrist as I rushed forward and shoved me in front of him.
We barely slipped aside to avoid the pursuing zombies.
“Grrrrgh!”
The zombies continued past us and charged ahead.
“Gasp… huff….”
I was dying….
As I collapsed onto the ground, someone handed me water.
“Thank… cough.”
I couldn’t even drink because of the coughing. I barely managed to look around.
We were in a narrow passage that would have been easy to miss at first glance, winding around steep Staircases and leading to the entrance of some Building.
With a path like this, there’s no way the zombies could find their way in.
I caught my breath for a moment.
Beside me, gasping for air, Praha and Cyprus peered outside and talked.
“So there were no zombies in the Village after all. They were all in the Warehouse.”
“How did they all end up trapped there?”
“Who knows. Maybe they followed someone fleeing to the Greenhouse, got stuck in there all together, and couldn’t get out.”
“I think I might be able to tell you about that!”
Tangerine interjected. Yujein, who had dismounted from Cyprus, turned to look at Tangerine.
“Tangerine! What about General?!”
“I’m sorry! I haven’t found him yet! I found something else instead!”
Tangerine pointed to the narrow passage leading to the Building.
All three standing figures and I, sprawled on the ground, looked in the direction Tangerine indicated.
There were children there.
About ten children were looking at us with curious eyes.
The youngest was kindergarten age, the oldest was about middle school age.
My eyes met directly with the Brown-haired Girl holding a teddy bear.
“…Hello?”
I awkwardly raised my hand and waved.
“Huh?”
The girl’s eyes widened as she pointed at me and shouted.
“What a wicked woman!”
“….”
Ah, that’s right.
I’m the infamous villainess of the Empire.
[Inhabited Island]
– Yusara, Praha, Cyprus, Yujein, Tangerine (Alive)
– General (Departed)

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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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