EPZ 35

Chapter: 35

The meal ended quickly in silence.

Though he hadn’t touched his plate, Damian calmly dabbed at the corners of his mouth with a napkin as if he had finished eating, then smiled gently at the group.

“Last night was rather chaotic, so I didn’t properly introduce myself. I’m Damian Maximilian, the owner of this Max estate. And this is my personal physician, Mr. Lennart Grigg.”

“Gasp!”

At the introduction, Maya hurriedly clapped a hand over her mouth. She wasn’t the only one—everyone else stared at Damian in shock.

Only Jigu blinked blankly, looking back and forth between them and Damian, completely clueless.

“What? Why? What’s wrong?”

“Maximilian… you don’t mean the Max Corporation…?”

“Ah, the company my grandfather used to run. It’s just a meaningless name now.”

“Th-Then the chairman…?”

At Maya’s cautious question, Damian slowly shook his head with a faintly regretful expression. Even the chairman of a conglomerate that controlled the business world couldn’t escape the virus.

An awkward silence fell over the group.

Rolling her eyes as she tried to read the room, Jigu nudged Ryan’s shoulder.

“What’s Max Corporation?”

“What? Are you serious?”

“I’m always serious.”

At her confident reply, Ryan gaped in disbelief.

“You don’t know Max Corp? That’s impossible! Did you come from some alien planet or something?”

Oh, Ryan. You really hit the nail on the head.

Strictly speaking, she had come from another dimension rather than another planet.

Feeling slightly guilty—like a thief startled by his own shadow—Jigu whistled innocently and looked away. Ryan clicked his tongue.

“Max Corp is huge. Even I know that, and I’m just a kid. Umm… they sell toys and snacks. Oh! And cars too.”

“They sold off the automotive division a long time ago. When people think of Max Corp now, they think of the defense industry.”

“Defense industry?”

“It means they make weapons. Tanks, self-propelled artillery, missiles—things like that.”

“Ooooh, cool!”

Listening to Ryan and Maya banter back and forth, Jigu finally nodded in rough understanding.

‘So basically, he’s a third-generation chaebol heir.’

The world really was unfair. Unreal looks and a third-generation conglomerate heir? That was straight out of a novel.

‘Well, this is a game world, after all.’

When she glanced sideways at Damian, their eyes met. As if he had been waiting, Damian curved his elegant eyes into a soft smile and looked straight at her.

‘Do I have to introduce myself too?’

Unable to avoid his gaze, Jigu tilted her head slightly.

“Uh, um. I’m Jigu. My surname is Won. Won Jigu.”

“Jigu. Won Jigu.”

In a voice as smooth as a viola melody, Damian repeated her name as if savoring it.

Feeling oddly embarrassed, Jigu quickly looked away and fiddled with her plate.

With his arms crossed, Caliph turned to Damian.

“Are you and that doctor the only ones living in this estate?”

“If you’re asking about the living, then yes.”

At his answer, the group’s eyes drifted toward the window.

In the immaculately maintained garden, uninvited guests were wandering about—zombies that had slipped in through the open main gate.

Caliph closed his mouth.

“You seem to be a soldier, sir. Were you heading to the Rangers Shelter, by any chance?”

In a world where most social structures had collapsed, it wasn’t common to see someone in military uniform. And the watch-type device on his wrist—he was probably a Sentinel affiliated with a military shelter.

Having deduced the answer in an instant, Damian asked calmly. Caliph nodded.

“Yes. I’m Captain Caliph Roxburgh of the Rangers.”

“To reach the Rangers Shelter, it would take at least ten days. Without a vehicle, it’ll be quite a grueling journey. And you even have a patient…”

“Have you been watching us the whole time?”

“This entire area is private property of Max Corp. It was unavoidable for the estate’s security.”

“Why did you let us in?”

“Well… I can only say it was impulsive.”

Just an impulse?

For the master of such a massive estate—one that had survived until now—that was far too optimistic an answer.

An estate with this level of infrastructure could only have remained intact through strict defense against intruders—zombies and humans alike.

Suspicion darkened Caliph’s eyes.

“St-Still, thanks to you, Mr. Edwin survived.”

Sensing the atmosphere turning colder, Peggy carefully spoke up.

Regardless of the intention, they couldn’t deny the overwhelming kindness they’d received. If the gates hadn’t opened, Edwin—or perhaps more than one of them—might have died.

Compared to the shelters they had endured so far, this estate was practically paradise on earth. Warm water, safe and comfortable beds, high-quality meals.

And Edwin still hadn’t regained consciousness. Even if he did, his deep wounds required at least six weeks of absolute rest. In this situation, there was no need to antagonize the estate’s owner.

“…I spoke out of turn. Thanks to you, we’re all safe.”

Peggy was right. This wasn’t the time to question motives, but to offer thanks. Caliph bowed briefly, and the others followed suit.

Damian smiled gently as if it were nothing and shook his head.

“I’m happy to help. You are guests of this estate—please make yourselves comfortable.”

Hearing that, Jigu swallowed a sigh.

She didn’t want to be suspicious… but his answer was far too inscrutable.

* * *

“Jigu! Look! There’s a swimming pool!”

“Oh. Awesome.”

At Ryan’s loud excitement, Jigu responded with a soulless exclamation and glanced at the pool.

In a mansion this vast, a swimming pool wasn’t surprising.

But the fact that it was filled with clear, clean water—that was a little surprising.

Sunlight shimmered across the rippling surface. Willow leaves swayed like curtains in the breeze. Blue hydrangeas sparkled with dew under the bright sky, and small nameless birds chirped in friendly clusters.

And strolling leisurely through this perfect garden…

…were zombies.

The jarring stain made Jigu’s brow twitch.

Grrrrr!

Graaah…

After finishing their meal, the group had headed to the garden. The zombies roaming inside bothered them.

If they hadn’t been let into the estate, the garden would still be peaceful and beautiful. Damian had told them not to worry—but they couldn’t just ignore it.

“There are more than I thought.”

“But it’s manageable, right?”

Maya and Peggy spoke calmly beside Jigu.

There were about twenty zombies in the wide garden. Not a small number—but not impossible either.

They had Caliph.

“Back-to-back. Maintain a circle. Do not scatter, and do not get surrounded. Peggy and Ryan, provide covering fire from the rear. The rest follow my commands.”

Caliph’s instructions completely defied their expectations.

Their eyes widened. It was a stark contrast to his usual tendency to charge ahead alone.

‘…Not bad.’

Suppressing the smile creeping onto her lips, Jigu moved behind Maya and Luke as instructed.

Smash!

Caliph brought down the first zombie’s skull, and the others began rushing in from all directions.

“Three o’clock—three of them!”

Smash! Thud!

Bang! Bang!

At Caliph’s shout, Maya swung her hatchet, splitting a zombie’s temple in half.

A bullet flew just in time and lodged in another zombie’s knee. Seeing it collapse, Jigu thrust a poker down hard into its skull.

“Behind you!”

With Peggy’s shout, bang! bang! Shots rang out. One bullet narrowly missed and struck near Luke’s feet.

“Fuck! Can’t you aim properly?! I’m busting my ass here—ugh!”

Graaah!

Smack!

“Shut up and swing your axe, idiot!”

Maya snapped as she slammed her axe into a zombie that had lunged at Luke while he was distracted.

Luke’s face flushed red as he cursed under his breath and swung at another reaching zombie.

“Uh—uh? Ugh—!”

But in that instant, a zombie on the ground grabbed Luke’s ankle.

Unable to regain his balance, Luke’s heavy body toppled forward toward Maya and Jigu—

And the formation they had barely maintained collapsed in an instant.