This mattered far more than whether she also came from another world—after all, Leo himself was already in the state of being scratched by a zombie, and was basically done for.
That the girl he had just barely saved was also close to being done for made it all the more depressing.
"Don't say anything yet. Your leg's been scratched too. You've watched zombie movies before, right? You should know what happens after something like this."
Leo pointed at the girl's calf. Blood continued to flow down into her black stockings and delicate leather boots, leaving streaks behind, turning her originally pale leg ugly.
There was no helping it. Once blood got involved, very few things still looked good—especially a wound that savage. There was no beauty to speak of at all.
"Ah!"
The girl named Erina Nakiri cried out, staring at her calf in shock before collapsing to the ground. Though she was a young lady from a prestigious culinary family, she had watched plenty of movies for entertainment and naturally knew about zombie films and their methods of infection. Panicked, she stared at her leg, her pale hands hovering near the wound, not daring to touch it.
The pain she had ignored while struggling to survive suddenly became sharp and unmistakable after Leo pointed it out, plunging her heart back into despair.
Hunger. The so-called God Tongue—or rather, a curse—that made her unable to eat luncheon meat made from inferior ingredients.
And now, just after meeting another person and seeing a chance to live, she was hit with the cruel reality that she might be infected.
All of it pushed her into endless despair.
Tears instantly filled her eyes. She had always been a strong person—proud, even—but that was built on everything she possessed.
Prestigious lineage, outstanding talent, relentless training—these were the foundations of her pride. But in this cruel zombie world, all of those advantages were meaningless.
All that remained was the threat of death.
"Looks like we can only leave it up to fate, huh?"
Leo chuckled. The despair in her eyes was something he had already experienced himself. The difference was that he had run into zombies right at the start, with no time to prepare, while her situation was caused by her own mistake.
It wasn't schadenfreude—more like a helpless feeling at how absurd fate was.
Under her stunned gaze, he untied the bandages around his arm, exposing his own grotesque wound.
"I'm the same. So let's just cherish whatever time we have left. Who knows—maybe getting scratched won't kill us."
He crouched down, took out the bottled water he had scavenged along with the medical supplies he'd saved, then reached for her shoe.
The delicate leather shoe wrapped a delicate foot. Though stained with blood, when Leo pulled her stocking off, he still saw a very pretty foot.
Small, refined, even a little cute.
Just… very bloody.
Erina Nakiri watched him hold her leg. Suppressing her embarrassment, she didn't pull away, only nervously watching his movements.
She had no other choice but to follow his lead.
After rinsing her wound with clean water and gauze, Leo poured all the remaining alcohol onto it, not missing a single exposed area.
The pain made her clench her fists, yet she didn't make a sound, which surprised Leo—he'd already been prepared to stuff cloth into her mouth.
To distract her from the pain, he casually asked, "You said you came to this world suddenly too?"
Erina nodded. She could clearly see there were no antibiotics in his medical kit—meaning Leo had none, or had already used them up.
But if medicine really worked, this world wouldn't be full of zombies to begin with.
She tilted her head back in despair.
"Yeah. I suddenly came to this world."
She'd planned to hide things at first—it was their first meeting, after all—but sharing the status of "infected" made her lose interest in pretending.
"I see. You're pretty good at enduring pain—so why did you make noise just because you couldn't eat?"
Leo knew about the God Tongue, but he hadn't finished the series, so he didn't quite understand. In a situation like this, no matter how bad food tasted, shouldn't you just endure it?
"Because it's a curse."
"A curse?"
"Yes. I bear the so-called God Tongue, a curse people envy. No matter how delicious something is, its flaws are infinitely magnified on my tongue. Combined with my culinary training and what I usually eat, food made industrially like this only tastes like additives, machine oil, inferior ingredients, and crude techniques."
As she spoke about herself, a bit of life returned to Erina Nakiri's face, regaining some of her young-lady demeanor—though blood loss still left her weak.
"I don't really get it, but… honey should be okay, right?"
Leo wrapped gauze around her calf. He'd done everything he could, but that was the limit.
Nearby, he'd only found alcohol, gauze, and various random vitamins.
"It should… be fine?"
Erina nodded, though uncertain. Honey also had grades, storage conditions, and plenty of factors that could make it taste bad.
But it should be swallowable.
"Then, a toast to despair."
Wiping his hands on his clothes, Leo took out an unopened jar of honey, thoughtfully opened it wide, and handed it to her.
Smelling the honey, Erina's tears fell again. She couldn't understand how Leo could still smile in a situation like this. Still, she wiped her eyes and gently tapped her jar against his.
"To despair."
Leo laughed, took a huge gulp of honey, and gave her a thumbs-up. He'd thought he'd die alone—but instead, he'd met a cute girl.
That alone made him lucky enough.
At least, at the possible end of his life, he wouldn't die alone.
The honey was thick and not very tasty—far too sweet, and clearly low quality.
All she tasted was stickiness and chaotic floral notes.
But it was sweet. Very sweet.
Erina Nakiri could barely swallow it. Hunger, death, and fear—those were the best seasonings of all.
She still couldn't help speaking as she wiped her tears.
"Really awful…"
Saying something she didn't mean, she sealed the honey again. With Leo's help, she stood up and managed to take a few steps.
"It can't be helped. Times like these."
Leo smiled to comfort her, then let go so she could try walking on her own.
Unfortunately, weakened and injured, she couldn't move at all. Leo had no choice but to undo his backpack and carry her on his back.
Only when her soft chest pressed against his back did he realize just how generous her figure was, giving him a rare, slightly dangerous sense of temptation.
When he handed her the supplies and grabbed her thigh, her softness gave him a rare sense of warmth and gentleness.
That smooth, tender feeling was an almost unbearable stimulus for him, while she frowned slightly from the smell of sweat and blood on him.
But that discomfort couldn't compare to the sense of safety Leo gave her. Being carried by him made her feel a little safer.
Without realizing it, she rested her head against his shoulder.
Leo carefully made his way toward the shelter he'd chosen—the RV with the flat tires.
He'd checked it before. Though all the tires were flat, it had two rooms, solid metal walls, and barred windows.
Most importantly, the tank was full, and the keys were still in the door. It was obvious the owner had tried to escape—and failed.
Ordinary zombies couldn't get inside. Even zombies were still flesh and blood.
Bones couldn't compete with steel.
They moved cautiously through the forest. Though zombies weren't guaranteed to be there, Leo conserved his strength, making sure he'd still have energy if something unexpected happened.
Neither of them spoke much, quietly sensing each other's presence while watching for danger.
It took them over half an hour to return to the RV—something that normally took Leo only ten minutes. Seeing zombies still wandering in ruined houses, Leo quietly shut the RV door and finally relaxed.
"Alright. One room each."
Only inside did Leo truly relax. He pointed at the two separate rooms, smiled at Erina Nakiri, and handed her an axe.
"Lock the door, and keep this with you. That way, if one of us turns into a zombie, the other can deal with it and keep living. It's best to block the door with a cabinet too—it'll help."
He paused, then took out the luncheon meat she'd put back in his bag, the honey she'd drunk from, and a bottle of water, handing them to her.
"The rest of the food stays in the RV kitchen. Don't eat it all—we'll need strength tomorrow."
He was completely calm about it, not making any demands, even though the girl in front of him was beautiful, and he'd definitely reacted while carrying her.
But…
He felt like the first half of his life had been miserable enough—school, work, endless social obligations.
So at the end of his life, he wanted peace.
Even if this wasn't very peaceful.
Of course, if she were willing, he wouldn't refuse—but right now…
Food was scarce. Strength was limited. And what if he wasn't infected after all?
Most importantly—
He was exhausted.
Touching his forehead, Leo felt the heat and sighed.
He'd already pushed himself hard fighting zombies earlier. Carrying a girl for half an hour afterward was proof enough.
The signs of infection were already there.
Fever. Weakness. Fatigue.
If that wasn't infection, what was?
Though it hadn't affected him severely yet, Leo didn't want to waste nutrition on it.
And if she resisted, things would get messy. If she chose death over submission, it could end in mutual destruction.
He just wanted to enjoy what little life he had left—not scheme and fight.
Erina Nakiri said nothing. She knew this was for her sake, and the best solution. That way, if one of them turned, the other could escape.
Even if the door was breached, they could still kill the other with the weapon in hand.
Why could this man accept such despair so calmly?
"Mr. Leo."
Erina Nakiri pressed her lips together.
"Why are you so good to me?"
She'd read novels like this. She knew what kind of fate awaited girls like her in worlds like this. Yet Leo gave her weapons, food, and even treated her wounds. He clearly had no such intentions.
"Because I want to live the rest of my life without regrets."
Leo smiled, shoved a cabinet against his door, waved at her, then took his share of food into his room and locked the door.
"Living without regrets… until the end?"
Staring at his door, a wave of weakness and unease washed over Erina Nakiri—along with deep sadness and helplessness.
She took the food into her room. After hesitating, she brought the axe in as well.
Back in his room, Leo started eating.
The luncheon meat really didn't taste good. If possible, he'd have liked to heat it, but despite the RV having cooking facilities, he didn't dare make too much noise.
The sweetness of the honey eased the regret a little. Even though the thick honey wasn't great either, it was rare sweetness. By the time he finished the luncheon meat, he'd already eaten half the honey.
After eating, he lay down on the soft bed. The comfort was something he hadn't felt in a long time.
"Come to think of it, it's been a long time since I slept like this. No worries. Nothing to think about. No work, no social games… how ironic."
Leo closed his eyes. All he wanted was sleep.
Drowsiness quickly overtook him. Before drifting off, he glanced at the cabinet blocking his door, then finally slept.
After all, he couldn't be sure he'd wake up again.
The heavy sleep didn't last long. A sudden urge to pee woke him. He got up to head for the bathroom—but then he heard something wrong.
Something was hitting the RV.
Leo instantly became alert, axe in hand, quietly approaching Erina Nakiri's room.
"Did she turn already?"
Sighing helplessly, he grasped the doorknob.
The door wasn't locked, which surprised him. Even worse—it wasn't blocked by a cabinet.
"Is she going to jump me the moment I open it?"
Concerned, Leo picked up his hammer. If she lunged at him, he could knock her back.
Taking a deep breath, he shoved the door open.
A short scream rang out.
What Leo saw was a brightly lit room, and Erina Nakiri curled up in terror in the corner.
The source of the noise wasn't her.
It was the window.
More precisely—wolves with green-glowing eyes.
Seeing Leo rush in, Erina almost screamed again, but realizing something was wrong, Leo immediately covered her mouth and turned off the light in one motion.
Her soft body struggled briefly in his arms, then froze. Outside, countless swaying figures appeared, charging at unbelievable speed toward the wolves pounding the RV, tearing into them!
One figure even slammed into the RV, producing a loud boom. In the moonlight, their grotesque appearances were revealed.
Zombies.
"So fast? Were they weakened during the day?"
Watching the zombies maul the wolves and move away from the RV, Leo's mouth fell open. These were nothing like the shambling zombies he'd seen before.
If they were all this fast, he'd never survive.
The wolves' howls woke the entire town. Zombies of all shapes burst from houses and windows, moving faster than Olympic athletes—each one like Usain Bolt.
Facing so many zombies, the wolves abandoned any thought of fighting and fled.
What Leo and Erina saw was dozens of zombies chasing the wolves at full speed.
The noise drew even more zombies out. More doors opened. More zombies joined the chase.
Zombies passed right by the RV. Some glanced at it, but the wolves were louder and more enticing, so they ignored the RV and kept chasing.
Only after the last zombie disappeared did Leo finally release Erina Nakiri.
He didn't speak or turn on the light. He stood up, planning to return to his room.
That had been terrifying.
But Erina Nakiri tightly grabbed his hand. Bathed in moonlight, wearing only a shirt, she spoke in a voice barely audible.
"Don't go…"