Chapter Forty-Four: Not a Puppet (1/2)

Humans and zombies are different, for humans know fear, while zombies do not. The only thing zombies possess is appetite—a most primal instinct.

Liu Mengchao stood in front of Saeko Busujima. The people behind him looked utterly helpless, their entire bodies trembling uncontrollably. Further away, more zombies were trickling in, surging toward Liu Mengchao’s position. Ordinarily, with Liu Mengchao’s speed, they could have crossed this park swiftly and without incident. Yet now, their steps were hopelessly slowed.

“Damn it,” Liu Mengchao muttered, standing protectively before Saeko Busujima. He understood—this time bomb buried in every human heart was about to explode again, and this time, right beside him.

“Hah!” With a sharp exclamation, Liu Mengchao shot forward, his hands flashing over the children’s heads. He was so fast he almost doubted whether he had somehow gained another ability. By the time he collected himself, the ground was littered with bodies—children’s bodies.

“Come with me!” Without pausing to gather his emotions, Liu Mengchao grasped Saeko’s hand. The touch of a girl’s hand in his own brought a sudden, gentle warmth—a feeling jarringly out of place amidst the chaos surrounding them.

No, this entire world was out of place.

Spring scenery was everywhere, cherry blossoms fluttering down, settling on the ground, where puddles of blood pooled. Even stepping over them, Liu Mengchao could almost hear the dying screams of the people who had fallen there—cries of defiance, of the desperate will to live.

“I’m sorry!” He realized he was holding Saeko’s hand, but the woman showed no resistance. Without hesitation, Liu Mengchao turned and scooped her into his arms.

A subtle fragrance drifted inexplicably, yet naturally, to his nose, accompanied by the sensation in his hands—warm, smooth, with a hint of elasticity.

“Liu Mengchao…” Saeko struggled to rise, but her helplessness became clear. She closed her eyes, long lashes trembling, and buried her face in his chest.

“Liu Mengchao…” Only then did her soft voice reach him from his embrace. “Please.”

“Then, let’s go,” Liu Mengchao replied with a smile. He darted forward like an arrow, and in an instant, stood atop the steps.

Saeko, eyes closed, felt the rise and fall of Liu Mengchao’s chest. An unbidden wave of concern washed over her.

At the edge of the park stood a shrine, silent and wooden, nestled among the trees. It seemed to stand like a gentle, kind miko in red and white robes, smiling and waiting for Liu Mengchao’s arrival.

“You can put me down now,” Saeko murmured, her face involuntarily flushed, still buried in his arms.

“Just a bit longer.” Liu Mengchao glanced back; zombies were still trailing behind, drawn by the slaughter that had just taken place in the park, crowding onto the steps one after another.

Creak…

Liu Mengchao slid open the shrine’s door. It was small—one glance took in everything inside.

Click—

He closed the door behind him, shutting out the last rays of the setting sun, as if refusing a tardy guest entry.

The entire shrine was suddenly plunged into gloom.

Whoosh—

A soft sound. A single flame flickered to life before Liu Mengchao.

Saeko knelt before him, a solitary lamp separating the two. Liu Mengchao said nothing, knowing his priority was to ease Saeko’s turmoil. Time was running short.

Qi Xiaoxiao’s condition also worried him. She had lost the will to live; if he didn’t bring the story of the apocalypse to a swift end, she might not last until the world’s conclusion.

Liu Mengchao would never allow that to happen.

“Liu Mengchao…” In the silence of the shrine, Saeko finally spoke her first words.

He didn’t answer, understanding that what she needed most was a patient listener—someone to hear the voice of her soul.

“Do you know about my past?” Saeko’s tone was eerily calm, as if recounting another’s tale. “Back when I was in junior high, I was a member of the kendo club.”

Liu Mengchao nodded slowly, his gaze patient and attentive.

“One night…” Saeko continued, her body beginning to tremble uncontrollably, “I realized a man had been following me…”

The candle flickered, as if it too sensed the oppressive atmosphere. No outside light could pierce the gloom; this little flame seemed to embody all that remained of brightness.

Saeko fell silent, staring blankly at the lamp before her, a quiet smile on her lips.

“You know my bokken, don’t you?” she said, her mouth twisting into a grin before she suddenly burst into wild laughter and sprang to her feet.

The flame was snuffed out.

Darkness fell, thick and impenetrable. Liu Mengchao looked up, but found not a single glimmer of light—only Saeko’s violet eyes, shining like stars in the void.

“I lured him on purpose, then broke his thigh and scapula!”

In the darkness, Liu Mengchao couldn’t see her movements, only sense the impulsive energy radiating from her.

“You can see through people’s hearts—why can’t you see through me? See through my true nature!”

A surge of fragrance assailed him as Saeko’s violet eyes drew so close to his own.

“Your eyes are beautiful,” Liu Mengchao said instead, offering an irrelevant compliment.

“No! I’m a woman with a heart as venomous as a viper! I revel in the thrill of killing! I don’t want to live anymore! I don’t want to kill…” Saeko’s voice, once raised in agitation, quickly dropped, tinged with sobs. “Do you know how hard it is for me to hold back? I want to kill, but I’m human…”

Before she could finish, she rushed into his arms, knocking the candlestick aside and burying herself in his embrace.

“I… am a woman too!”

“Mmm…” Liu Mengchao whispered softly into her ear, “You’re a good woman—a very good woman.”

“Then…” Saeko, in the darkness, groped for his face, gently cupping it in her hands. “Give me a reason to keep living.”

“A reason to live?” A faint smile curved Liu Mengchao’s lips. His right arm slipped around her slender waist, drawing her close until their bodies met.

Their lips slowly found each other.

“The scent on you is different from last night.”

“So you noticed?”

He gave no answer, merely holding her tightly.

“Not yet,” Liu Mengchao said, feeling her tremble in his embrace as he gently pushed her away.

“Why?”

Even in the dark, he could hear Saeko’s soft, uneven breathing.

“I don’t like taking advantage of others’ weakness,” he replied, bending to relight the fallen candle.

The tiny flame illuminated the shrine once more, revealing the blush on Saeko’s cheeks and the confusion in her eyes.

“This lamp may be small,” Liu Mengchao said, “but it still strives to shine. I like you, but I don’t want you to become my shadow. Don’t turn into a decorative vase—I love Saeko Busujima, not a puppet who survives only by my will.”

“A puppet?” Saeko swayed, her long violet hair trailing behind her. In a flash, she moved like a startled gazelle, slender hand seizing the shrine’s katana and drawing it with a steely hiss.

“You’ll regret this!”

Saeko’s blade rested against Liu Mengchao’s head.

“I won’t,” he said, eyes closed.

A smile blossomed slowly across Saeko’s face, like color blooming in water. She plunged the sword into the floor, leaving a deep mark.

“Once a chance is gone, it never returns.”

“Then, do you regret it, Saeko Busujima?” Liu Mengchao opened his eyes, watching the sword in her hand. At the tip, the candlelight flickered.

“I don’t regret it, because I think I’m starting to like you too, Liu Mengchao!”

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So this chapter isn’t what I originally wrote—I can’t recreate the same chapter because I’ve completely forgotten it… That chapter was more beautiful in my memory… What an annoying feeling o(>﹏<) I’m hurrying to catch up with my writing…

I have classes all day, so this chapter was scheduled in advance… (╯▽╰)

Thanks to Starlit Years, Moe Is Justice, Frozen Silence, and Golden Ladybug for your support!