Chapter 4
“Ha.”
The crown prince brushed back his hair and let out a disbelieving laugh.
“…Hey, young lady. Do you really think that makes sense? As you said, this place is a sacred zone.”
Right. A sacred zone.
A sanctuary under the jurisdiction of the temple, protected by immense holy power.
Not only that, but aside from magical tools, neither mana nor aura could be used here.
If you tried to force it, the backlash could cause catastrophic disasters. That’s why in this place, pure physical strength was the only means of survival.
And now, thanks to the zombie miasma, this zone had even turned hostile to holy power.
I shrugged indifferently.
“Sometimes things happen that can’t be explained by words.”
Just like how my very presence here couldn’t be explained.
The crown prince’s face twisted. His expression seemed to say: How can you be so calm?
“I woke up first. So I was able to adjust somewhat stably.”
Total lie.
I hadn’t adjusted at all.
The crown prince let out an incredulous chuckle, then his lips hardened.
“Is there any way to communicate with the outside?”
I took out the brooch attached to my shirt collar, a magical communication device, and showed it to him.
But no matter how much I tapped it, only static crackled through.
“Broken, I guess. It won’t connect.”
“Damn it.”
The crown prince cursed, ruffling his wine-red hair.
He seemed to pause, organizing the situation in his head.
Thankfully, unlike in some stories, he didn’t suggest returning to the empire immediately with a scroll and leaving the other survivors behind.
Survival was a fight of tools, manpower, intellect, and time.
He knew that delaying would only mean more survivors dying.
I felt relieved that this crown prince wasn’t quite as broken as the one in the original story.
Maybe because he hadn’t yet spiraled into the mental ruin he would eventually reach.
Anyway—
“Your Highness, will you cooperate with my plan?”
“…Hmm. Not sure.”
What?
The crown prince shattered my faint hopes in an instant, leaning lazily against the wall with his arms crossed.
He tilted his head slightly, his drowsy gaze fixed on my waist.
“Why should I trust someone who’s the only one armed?”
He gestured with his chin at the hammer hanging on my belt, his eyes filled with desire.
“Is that your only weapon?”
Ah. So he wanted me to share.
I tapped the pouch at my waist.
“I have enough weapons to share.”
“That rigid temple would never have permitted you to carry weapons. How did you sneak them in?”
“Of course I smuggled them in.”
“What?”
The crown prince frowned, looking at me like I’d lost my mind.
But it was the truth.
Weapons and magical artifacts were strictly forbidden in the sacred zone.
If you wanted special permission, the process was complicated and full of exceptions.
I’d considered burying a weapon secretly days before the ceremony, but the strict inspections would have definitely caught it.
So, on the day of the prayer ritual, I used Hayton’s invisibility patch to barely slip past the portal’s inspection.
The temple’s security really was sloppy, but hey, facts are facts.
The crown prince shot me a suspicious look, but I’d said it knowing I could withstand that much doubt.
Lies only attract needless suspicion—better to reveal a flimsy truth.
“Then why bring weapons and a warp scroll?”
“After the prayer ceremony, I planned to relieve stress by hunting monsters. That’s why I brought weapons. But I didn’t expect this situation.”
“So you secretly smuggled weapons in to hunt monsters, and this disaster just happened to break out?”
“Yes.”
I nodded shamelessly. Given Redria’s personality, this excuse was even cute, so I decided to stick with brazen confidence.
The crown prince looked at me, conflicted.
Of course he’d be suspicious.
But the reason he didn’t press further was simple: I was the only person he could rely on.
In times of need, it’s the weaker party who must bend.
“……”
The crown prince stared for a while, then seemed to recall something and nodded as if convinced.
“I heard rumors you’d been hitting servants on the head lately. So that was monster-hunting practice, huh?”
…Fine. If that helps you accept it, just think I’m a lunatic.
By now, even correcting twisted rumors felt like too much effort.
“Well, since we’re talking about it, I’ll share the weapons.”
I lined up several miniaturized weapons on the kitchen island.
A hammer, a spear, a mace, a bow.
Naturally, I picked up the hammer.
“I’ll be using the hammer.”
“I’ll take the spear.”
The crown prince picked up the wooden spear without hesitation.
He muttered the inscription written on it, and the spear extended, growing past his head. Even with its lightening enchantment, I knew I couldn’t wield it properly.
He tested its weight, tossing and catching it with ease, before murmuring that it had been a while since he held one. Then he swung it through the air.
Whoosh—
My bangs fluttered up, then settled down.
Just one swing filled the room with a sharp gust of wind.
That’s “a while since you’ve held one”? With one swing you could send half a dozen skeletons flying.
I gawked at him as he examined the spear.
Well, he was said to be a genius in martial arts, with perfect physical balance. Archery, spear, sword, horsemanship—there was nothing he couldn’t do, and he’d even graduated early from the academy.
Some even whispered he had supernatural abilities, though the original story never confirmed it.
…Meanwhile, I had to swing my hammer until I got blisters just to become competent.
I glanced at my calloused hands, swallowing the bitter taste rising in my throat. But now wasn’t the time for resentment—we had to survive.
The crown prince glanced at me and my hammer with obvious disapproval.
His look screamed: How am I supposed to escape with her?
Of course he knew.
Everyone did—that Redria Arios, infamous for hating even a drop of sweat, had virtually zero combat power.
A month ago, that look would’ve made me cower.
But after a month of training, I’m different now.
I swung my hammer, and the gust lifted strands of his crimson hair like threads.
I caught the slight widening of his golden eyes at my steady swing, and rested the hammer casually on my shoulder.
“…Well, this should be enough combat ability, right?”
I shrugged nonchalantly.
The crown prince’s eyes returned to normal, and he burst into a laugh.
“Well, you’d make a decent shield at least.”
Ugh. I should just leave him behind.
“But young lady.”
“What now.”
The crown prince rubbed the back of his head with a sour look.
“Why do I have a lump on my head?”
“…No idea.”
…What a saint I am, for holding back.
“Groooar—!”
The crown prince stood by the window, parting the curtains. After peeking outside for a moment, he spoke calmly.
“So, do you have a plan to get past that horde of zombies? I assume you’re not suggesting we kill them one by one.”
Well… that might actually be fun.
The crown prince smirked viciously, watching the zombies with interest.
A shiver ran down my spine.
…Did he just say that’d be fun?
I shot him a weary glare.
Forget what I said earlier. He’s definitely not sane.
In the original story, the crown prince had a slick, sociable personality. His dazzling looks let him smile and disarm people before striking when they least expected it.
But deep inside, he was distrustful, walled-off—a misanthrope. Truly a troublesome character.
And his tongue was a weapon of its own. He’d spew verbal bullets left and right, making plenty of enemies.
Can I really handle him?
I massaged my temples like I’d been handed a troublesome child and answered:
“Just as Your Highness said, it’s impossible to kill them all one by one.”
Especially since these zombies didn’t burn in sunlight and were active day and night.
They were skeletal corpses dug from unmarked graves, rising like skeleton warriors and attacking the living. Their weak spot was their skulls. Their reflexes and walking speed were slow.
One small mercy—they weren’t cannibals.
Still, they could bite. Their jaw and grip strength were enough to tear flesh apart.
If a normal human gets bitten, they’ll turn into a true walking corpse—a real zombie.
So if you got bitten on the arm, you’d need to cut it off to prevent infection.
Ugh. Gives me chills.
In short, we needed a strategy to move safely.
Rustle.
I pulled a map of the temple grounds from the wall of the cabin and spread it across the table.
“Come here, please.”
The crown prince let the curtain fall back into place and approached the table.
