Yggdrasil (3-44)
"Um, th-that thing over there... it's a zombie... right?"
Park Seon-hee's words ignited the spark, and the party members around us started screaming and panicking.
"Kyaaah!"
"Wh-what is that! It's real! For real!"
And amid that chaos, Min Hayeon and Han Bom were right there with them.
"Wh-what do we do! It's, it's coming closer!"
"I-it's approaching!"
In a way, it was a rare sight.
Especially Min Hayeon—she was a woman who'd faced everything from grotesque monsters to the overwhelming Shockbee up close.
Yet the mere fact of corpses shaped like humans shuffling toward us had her completely losing it.
Instilled terror.
The fear that one bite would strip away all your intellect and memories, turning you into a mindless hunk of meat shambling around.
Beings so wretched you'd think dying outright might be mercy, endlessly hunting for prey in their pitiful state.
That was the zombie we all knew so well.
And that fear gripped even me—I couldn't ignore it.
Armonia: For now, according to the info from Zodiac in the lower layers, they exist. If bitten, you'll turn into a zombie after some time, depending on your antimagic or poison resistance stats.
'Damn! What do I use to take them down!? Fire arrows? Magic? Tell me quick!'
No matter how many times I'd seen them in games, facing them for real was a whole different beast.
But Armonia responded calmly to my frantic question.
Even I, who stayed relatively cool in most situations, couldn't shake the panic in front of zombies.
If I got bitten, problem. If an ally got bitten, bigger problem.
The moment a single nail grazed Min Hayeon or Han Bom, I didn't want to see what they'd turn into—so I'd have to leave them here and regress.
But it was Armonia who calmed my fluster.
Armonia: Please stay calm. It's curable, so no need to worry.
'Huh?'
A cure for zombie status?
Some vaccine from Umbrella Pharma I could alchemy up? Or craft with Enel?
As those questions swirled, she explained everything.
Armonia: Status ailment removal skills can cure it.
'...Wow.'
I hadn't known that.
Or maybe it was obvious.
In a world overrun by zombies, even a slight spread would be uncontrollable—but I'd never heard of Yggdrasil crawling with them.
The moment I heard Armonia, the fear coiling inside me vanished completely.
I felt the latent terror blooming in my gut wash away the instant I had a solution.
'Zombies are scary, huh. Or... is it the knowledge of them that's scary?'
Zombies we could encounter in any media.
Since they don't exist, we enjoy them as fun content. But seeing them right in front of you? Totally different.
I could feel the raw power of fear ingrained in humanity.
But now, that was over.
Knowing the fix flipped the situation completely.
For me, anyway.
"Su-Su-ho! Th-they're coming!"
"S-sis, shoot already! Hurry!"
"B-but it's, it's a person!"
And ultimately, the key reason Min Hayeon's arrow wasn't flying was...
The monster's form.
"I-it's really zombies!? What if they're, p-people!"
All the monsters we'd faced so far were grotesque, inhuman shapes.
But these things creeping toward us? Rotten corpses, sure—but unmistakably human in form.
Not just humans, either. Elves like Lucien from before. Short dwarves we'd never seen. Even purple-skinned elves... variety galore.
Grraaah.... Kraaah....
Not voices—devoid of any intellect.
Just beastly howls.
'No choice. I'm the only one with my head on straight here.'
The trio couldn't approach the slowly advancing zombies for fear of bites, and even Min Hayeon hesitated to loose arrows at human-shaped ones.
I nocked an arrow and pierced the nearest one's head.
Thwish! Thunk! Grraaah.... Splaaat!
The headshot zombie crumpled on the spot, dissolving into holographic fragments soon after.
I fired another, saying,
"You three, fall back for now! We don't know what a bite does!"
"O-okay!"
The panicking trio snapped to at my shout and scurried behind me.
Han Bom and the trio huddled at my back like baby birds.
One woman stood apart, behaving differently.
"Haa... haa... H-how..."
"Hayeon! Just shoot already!"
I shouted that and nailed another headshot.
The fallen zombie dissolved into harmless holograms, proving the point.
But even seeing that, Min Hayeon couldn't fire.
I knew why she hesitated to release the string.
"Hayeon! Legs at least!"
"O-okay!"
Thwish! Graaah.... Splaaat!
The zombie hit in the thigh by Min Hayeon's arrow flopped and started crawling awkwardly.
They were slow to begin with—no real threat.
But the others' terror showed no signs of fading.
'No helping it. I'll clear them all myself.'
With that thought, I unleashed a barrage of arrows.
..
..
As the last zombie fell, green light burst from the central gem.
I collapsed onto the mat, muttering,
"Hoo... we survived."
"Mister, you okay?"
"Su-ho..."
The fight itself was no big deal.
Zombies or not, human-shaped and one-shot to the head—just like always.
Plus, slower than previous monsters.
But handling nearly the whole wave solo? Exhausting as hell.
The muscle ache in my arms rivaled the brutal embassy training.
Sitting on the mat, I shook out my arms and said,
"I'm fine. Lucky they were so sluggish."
"Su-ho, sorry..."
Min Hayeon, still shaky, clutched her trembling arms and apologized.
Probably beating herself up for not helping when she could have.
"Nah, anyone would've panicked with them popping up like that."
"Haa..."
Min Hayeon looked dejected, scanning the surroundings.
The threatening zombies were gone, leaving only dropped items scattered about.
She circled with a serious expression.
'This won't cut it.'
No guarantee zombies would shamble so leisurely at wave's end.
This volume now? Later waves might charge wildly.
Armonia offered advice for my concern.
Armonia: Su-ho, if you want to keep the others from getting bitten, how about using Han Bom?
'What? You want Bom to get bitten!?'
Let her get bitten, then cure to ease fears? But Armonia cleared it up.
Armonia: Not that. These monsters are what you'd call undead types.
'Yeah, zombies mostly... Ah! No way!'
Armonia: Not sure if it's what you're thinking, but Han Bom's recovery skill will be very useful.
Healers and undead were polar opposites in any world.
And usually, healers held the advantage.
Like the status cure Armonia mentioned earlier.
But a question arose.
'Why didn't you mention it sooner? You knew, right?'
Armonia: I judged it'd be better if you handled everything solo where possible.
Zombie numbers were the issue, but Armonia figured I could manage alone.
They feared bites now, but since cures existed, use that to reassure.
Armonia: If you clear them all, great. If bites happen, you reveal the fix and look like the hero.
'Oh... our CEO never misses a beat.'
Just like how she eased my panic earlier, Armonia coldly calculated ways to dominate the situation.
'Still, better tell them this.'
Status cures aside, healers repelling undead? Share that quick.
"Han Bom."
"Yes, mister? Need something?"
Han Bom wasn't alone—trio and Min Hayeon surrounded me too.
Han Yeoreum, meanwhile, sulked around picking items with a sour face...
The women's gazes completely ignored her now.
Stark contrast in treatment.
Feels good, but the pressure...
I turned to Han Bom, who eyed me worriedly.
"Han Bom, got mana to spare?"
"Yeah, barely used any—plenty left. Wait! You hurt!?"
Everyone freaked at "hurt," staring me down.
Zombie fight—maybe injured? Panic mode.
"No worries. You saw from behind—no scratches. Just wanna check something."
"What?"
"Next wave... use recovery skill on the zombies."