The World Has Collapsed. Abandon Ship.
The world had always been fucking shit.
Back in high school, my so-called friend borrowed money after claiming his parents were on death’s door, then vanished without a trace. My girlfriend of six years, the one I’d been with since college, dumped me with a straight face for another guy like it was the most natural thing in the world. And then there was my boss.
…Is this for real?
If you cooperate quietly, nothing bad will happen.
But I told you I had family who could verify my identity! If you check the dashcams from the company cars, it’ll clearly show where I was—
We’re looking into all of that.
I know you’re anxious, but if you just cooperate, this will all blow over peacefully. There’s no need to worry.
Peacefully, my ass. That bitch of a boss accused me of sexually assaulting her despite having zero personal connection outside of work, then filed a formal complaint. No matter how much I protested my innocence, the investigation immediately treated her tears as evidence. They twisted everything to fit her fabricated story, dragged me through a botched inquiry, and hauled me into court.
Presumption of innocence? Inconsistencies in the evidence? None of it mattered. People only cared about her emotional appeal. After getting advice from a lawyer, the endless court battles made it impossible to show my face at the company with my sanity intact. The atmosphere grew so toxic that they practically forced me to resign.
And now here I was.
Stuck behind the barcode scanner, listening to some deaf old fart drone on for thirty straight minutes about his worthless life story.
I couldn’t even explain how I’d fallen this far. Looking back, I didn’t understand why I’d tried so hard in the first place. Buddha supposedly said life was suffering. I agreed one hundred percent. What attachment could anyone possibly have to a life like this?
So I wished for it.
Wouldn’t it be fine if this garbage world just collapsed?
I prayed for the end of everything. I wanted the universe to hit the reset button and wipe it all away. And then—
Screeeech!
“Hey! You can’t just run into the street like that—”
“Ugh… ughhh…”
“Excuse me? Why are you acting like this all of a sudden…?”
“Urrrrgh… ugh, ughhhk…!”
“Kyaaaaaah?!”
“What the hell is that?! Aaaagh?! What’s wrong with that person?!”
Well, well.
The street outside suddenly erupted into chaos. I turned toward the window along with the obnoxious old man who’d been lecturing me. Sure enough, it was happening.
—Grrrh… grrrraaah…
“Kyaaaaaaaah! Somebody help! Please, somebody help me!”
Screeeech—screeeeech—
Beyond the convenience store’s glass walls, humanity was being torn apart in real time. Things that were clearly no longer sane—zombies—were lunging at people, trying to bite them. Cars racing down the six-lane road swerved to avoid pedestrians who’d jumped into traffic, only to slam into guardrails. A deafening boom followed as black flames shot into the sky. One of the crashed vehicles had exploded, but nobody had time to care about minor details like that.
It was the textbook beginning of an apocalypse.
“What… what the hell is that?”
The old man, who had been slurring his words just moments ago, seemed to have regained his lost sanity. He stared in panic. I moved faster than he did. I’d read enough web novels to know exactly what to do in this situation.
“Status Window.”
— Command success depends on loyalty and level. Low level or high target alertness may allow resistance.
— Leveling up will unlock additional functions.
Bingo. The stats looked like basic starting values, but King’s Command? Maybe one of my ancestors had royal blood. Not that it mattered—every dynasty had collapsed nearly a century ago. Still, the thought crossed my mind for a second. In any world, though, kings and generals aren’t born with some special seed. They’re made.
“Guess I should test this ability first.”
“Hey, you little shit! What the hell are you muttering to yourself at a time like this?!”
The old fart still hadn’t fully grasped the situation. He was rambling about barricading the store with merchandise and turning it into a fortress. What would we do when they broke in? He was making a huge fuss.
The moment he started frantically shoving display shelves, I snorted.
“Barricade it? With what? Those glass doors are completely see-through. It wouldn’t last five minutes and would just be a pain in the ass.”
“You—can’t you see what’s happening out there?! No wonder you’re stuck working a dead-end job at your age with that kind of brain! This isn’t the time for infighting! Move your ass before we both die, you stupid bastard!”
“Die? Who’s dying? I’ll just go out there and hold them off myself.”
“Who is?! Did the police finally show up? Or maybe the Marines?!”
His head was so far gone he was looking around in confusion, thinking someone had come to rescue us. The old man stared desperately at the sky where only black smoke rose from burning cars, still completely unable to process reality. Perfect prey for natural selection.
I gave him the order he needed.
“Sir.”
“Where? Where are they, you idiot?!”
“Sir, please go outside the store right now and have a UFC match with the zombies.”
A king’s command was absolute. The order activated the instant I spoke it.
“What the hell are you saying, you crazy— …Huh? W-what’s this? My legs… my legs are… what the…?”
The old man kept his head turned toward me while his body mimed walking toward the convenience store door like a puppet. His survival instincts must have been screaming; his whole body trembled violently. But he couldn’t resist.
Ding-dong!
He stepped outside, leaving behind the cute chime of the door sensor. He had willingly walked into the dangerous wild where zombies were spreading. He kept screaming that something was wrong with his body.
—……Ugh?
The more he screamed, the more he simply signaled to the zombies that a fresh meal had arrived.
“Please stop— Don’t come near me! I told you not to come, you son of a bitch! Do you know who I am— …Aaaaaaaaagh! Don’t bite me! Don’t bite, you crazy fucking mutt!”
—Urrgh, urrrrraaah…!
“Save me! Save me, you bastard!”
“Oh, he’s actually putting up a decent fight.”
“What the hell is this?! What is happening?!”
Even as the zombie bit into his neck, the old man’s head resisted while his body faithfully carried out my command. He wasn’t particularly smart or skilled, but he punched the zombie in the stomach, fought back, and bit its throat in return. The old man’s final, desperate UFC match in the last moments of his life was more entertaining than I expected. I grabbed a bag of snacks I’d set aside for later and munched on them while watching his final flying knee strike.
By the time I’d had my fill of the show—
—Urrgh… urrrrraaaah…
The old man who had been giving me such wonderful life advice finally turned into a zombie himself. The moment he transformed, the command seemed to break. He released the headlock he’d had on the zombie and began staggering around on the road, looking left and right.
“All right. So it takes about five minutes after they turn before the command wears off.”
I’d gained quite a bit of useful information. I licked the snack crumbs off my fingers.
Congratulations, Your Majesty.
You have made excellent use of a dominated slave.
You have acquired 20 Ability Points.
So using the ability converted into experience points. Nice.
“This experience system is fucking sweet.”
“Urrgh… urrrrraaah…”
“Sorry about that, sir.”
The price for his life advice had been steep, but once things reached this point, morality was already dead and buried. In an apocalypse, the stupidest thing you could do was cling to ethics.
“Yeah. The world’s finally starting to get a little interesting.”
Therefore, I made a vow right then and there. From today onward, I would indulge in unlimited tyranny, pleasure, and exploitation. And—
Ah, maybe I should take care of some old grudges before announcing my grand ambitions?
A gentleman’s revenge is never too late, even after ten years. But I was no gentleman, and even the last two years had felt too long. Since I’d come to work this shift as a protest, the convenience store was close to the company building. Given the state of the roads, they probably hadn’t been able to escape by car. So I left.
I was going to settle the bill for all those years of suffering.
Skill level of King's Command has increased.
King's Command Lv.2 Bonus
Unique Ability The King Needs Slaves has been unlocked.
The King Needs Slaves
— Detects usable slaves within a 100-meter radius.
— Can locate targets even if they conceal their abilities. Effect activates on eye contact.
— Can analyze a target’s abilities if they come within 5 meters.
It leveled up easily since it was still early. And the ability that unlocked was perfectly timed. I had a specific person in mind, and now I had a custom tracking skill. The only problem was that zombies were multiplying outside, but—
“Hey. You, the son of a bitch who just shoulder-checked me.”
“What?!”
“Sorry to bother you since we’ve never met, but could you be a zombie shield for me?”
“What the hell are you talking about, you crazy bastard?! …Huh? W-wait, why is my body— What the—?”
“Thank you. I needed a meat shield to block for me.”
“Wait! Something’s wrong with my body! I said something’s wrong!”
“That’s far enough. Yes, Mr. Nameless Son of a Bitch, please stay there and keep those zombies occupied a little longer.”
“Wait! What the hell is this?! My body— my body is—!”
—Grrrh… grrrraaah…
“Fuck, it hurts! It huuuuuuurts! Somebody save meeeeee…!”
You have made excellent use of a dominated slave.
You have acquired 20 Ability Points.
I cleanly resolved the situation by using a passing citizen as a shield. I specifically chose people who were desperately trying to survive by pushing others aside and turned them into useful zombie bait.
Amid the chaos, I slipped into the company building. The glass windows here had all been smashed too, and it looked like the people inside had fled in panic. But I was certain.
She’s in here.
No doubt about it. The ability was pointing right at her. Seventeen people in the high-rise. The office was on the third floor, so that bitch had to be there. Since she was within range, I could even pinpoint her exact location.
The only problem was—
“Mmph! Mmmph!”
“Hurry up and kill it already!”
“But still… doing it like this… If you’re so eager, you do it!”
“We don’t have time! Those monsters might reach us any second. …Wait, something’s really coming!”
What the hell is going on here?
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