The Abandoned Villainess Became a Zombie - Chapter 9

“What?”

“I heard you told His Highness that the blood was mine.”

“His Highness mistakenly assumed it was mine, so I simply corrected him.”

“But why…?”

After a brief silence, Lilia asked urgently, “Is this about what you asked me to keep secret? Did you want me to deliver it myself while telling His Highness it was my blood?”

“…Yes.”

I recalled what I had told Lilia that day.

“But young lady, I would appreciate it if you could keep this request a secret.”

That was exactly what I had said…

“Ah, I see.”

Lilia, clearly flustered, paced in front of the door for a moment before abruptly sitting down.

“I thought you wanted to deliver it yourself. I assumed you were asking me to keep the fact that it was my blood a secret.”

Even in her confusion, Lilia spoke cautiously, as if trying to be considerate of me. But her words ultimately meant one thing.

She had thought I wanted to take credit for her sacrifice and win favor with the crown prince…

“I…”

I almost asked if she thought I was trash but stopped myself.

The many misdeeds of Penelope Lloyd flashed through my mind. More than anything, she was someone who always wanted to be in the spotlight, especially when it came to Idorian.

Taking credit for someone else’s achievements was one of Penelope’s specialties.

“I’m truly sorry.”

Lilia sighed deeply as she apologized. Her voice was slightly muffled, as if she had buried her face in her hands.

…But wait. If she had really thought that, then why had she seemed so pleased last night?

“You had to endure unnecessary trouble because of me.”

Although I did feel somewhat wronged, I also acknowledged that I had not been entirely clear in my explanation. I had never imagined she would interpret my words that way.

“I sincerely apologize.”

Lilia continued to apologize profusely, but since the misunderstanding had been cleared up, I no longer minded.

“Even the grand duke and His Highness misunderstood you and got angry.”

The crown prince and the grand duke had always despised Penelope Lloyd. Would it really make a difference if they disliked her a little more? Compared to my current concerns, their hostility was nothing.

What truly mattered now was how sensitively I reacted to blood.

Would this heightened response fade with time, or was it permanent? Would I ever return to how I was before, or was this an irreversible change?

I simply needed to reassure Lilia, send her on her way, and move on.

“…Then, young lady.”

Even so, there was something I had to ask.

“Why did you seem so happy yesterday?”

“Sister Lilia! Aren’t you coming to eat?”

Just as I cautiously posed my question, Uben’s voice completely drowned it out.

“Oh, Uben. I’ll be right there.”

She had thought I was using her, yet she had been so pleased. I couldn’t understand it.

…After everything Penelope had done to her, was she really that naïve?

“What did you say? I didn’t hear you.”

“…Is your wound alright?”

“Ah, yes!”

“Has the bleeding stopped?”

“Yes, it stopped around lunchtime. It wasn’t a deep cut.”

“That’s a relief.”

I heard Lilia’s soft laughter from outside the door.

“Lady, would you like to join us for dinner?”

“No, I think I’ll rest tonight.”

“Will you come down for breakfast tomorrow?”

“Yes.”

Lilia, embodying the very essence of a heroine, told me to rest well and once again reminded me to come to her if I needed anything.

Even if only for a fleeting moment, she had made me feel guilty for ever resenting her.

“By the way, have you seen the grand duke? I think he was looking for you.”

“I haven’t.”

“Maybe he went out to hunt zombies?”

Their murmuring voices gradually faded into the distance.

‘No matter what happens, I won’t bite Lilia.’

Even as a zombie, I would be one who knew gratitude—that was the promise I made to myself.

The moonlight, unobscured by clouds, filtered through the ivy-covered window and illuminated the room in a pale glow.

In the light that reached deep into the room, I saw it.

“…What is this?”

My gaze locked onto the mirror I had glanced at in passing.

The reflection showed a woman’s face, with sharply upturned eyes, a gently curved forehead, high cheekbones, and perfectly shaped red lips—features that had once been her pride. But now, her expression twisted in shock.

A vein had surfaced on her once-spotless, snow-white skin.

A bluish vein, starting from her neck, ran across her right cheek. It was the very mark of a zombie—the very thing I had desperately tried to conceal.

“Why is this happening…?”

The novel had clearly stated that soaking in cold water restored a zombie’s appearance to that of a human. It was thanks to this method that I had deceived everyone and made it into the fortress.

Then why had the veins resurfaced?

Fumbling with my fingers, I traced my face before hurriedly stripping off my clothes.

Around my heart and the area near my bitten thigh, the veins had swelled again. The change that had begun from my chest had crept up my neck and onto my face.

Only one had reached my face.

Just one, yet the unexpected situation sent my mind blank, halting all rational thought.

“……”

Snapping back to my senses, I pulled my clothes back on. This was precisely when I needed to think rationally.

There were two possible reasons why the veins had reappeared. Either time had passed, or I had reacted to the scent of blood.

I couldn’t determine the exact cause yet, but if I submerged myself in water again, I might be able to return to normal.

…I would return to normal, right?

No, I had to return to normal!

I stuck my head out the window and surveyed the area outside. The water channel that flowed from beyond the outer wall entered the fortress from the northwest, passed through the inner courtyard, and exited to the northeast.

This created a large canal running through the middle of the fortress. It wasn’t used for drinking water, but for washing clothes and similar tasks. Still, it was deep enough for me to submerge my entire body.

I struggled to push the heavy desk blocking my door aside and slipped out.

Moving stealthily in the dead of night would have been ideal, but zombies stopped moving and slept after sunset. Though the exact timing varied for each one, once night fell and no external stimuli remained, they drifted into slumber.

I, too, was now among those zombies that slept at night. And the sun had already set.

‘I have to do this now.’

If I waited until dawn, I might fall asleep as well. And if Idorian had used Lilia’s blood properly, he would return by tomorrow at the latest. The moment he did, he would undoubtedly come straight to me to voice his irritation.

That meant this was my only chance—while everyone was still gathered in the dining hall for dinner.

‘Five minutes should be enough.’

Without hesitation, I plunged into the canal.

***

When the crown prince entered through the fortress gates holding Lilia Sweedy’s hand, Heresden Dwayne immediately grasped the situation.

Penelope Lloyd was dead.

Yet, he felt neither sorrow nor surprise. It was a conclusion of her own making from the very beginning.

If Penelope hadn’t stirred up trouble, more people could have reached the fortress alive. Instead, her thoughtless actions had cost countless lives—including, in the end, her own.

There was no sympathy to be had for a death she had brought upon herself. No, there was no sympathy for Penelope Lloyd’s death.

However, Lilia Sweedy’s eyes were swollen, as if she had spent nights crying alone, and even the crown prince occasionally stared blankly, as if lost in thought. They were mourning her death.

It was no surprise that the kindhearted and sensitive Lilia grieved. But to see the crown prince, of all people, mourning Penelope? That was unexpected.

Yet his real shock had only just begun.

The Penelope Lloyd who had struggled to walk properly, who had shown no survival skills whatsoever, had returned alive.