When I became a zombie, I had this urge to eat human flesh and other pinkish meat. But I mustered my strength and shoved it far away from my brain. However, I didn't think that this day would come to haunt me in broad daylight….
It was just like I was a human who offered to dine inside a first-class buffet, but the manager never let me eat. With a watering mouth, I glared at everyone and turned them into walking bacon! And like any other normal individual, that person would retort and follow that instinct.
But I was no person….. The world made me a zombie with an intellect.
And that sensation did not exclude me. Regardless of being a human or a zombie, I needed food to fill my stomach. It was a peculiar sense of need, but the situation was even a bigger mess.
That system allotted me some time before taking a life and devouring it into my own hands. My power even specified that I needed to eat only human meat, not other flesh from animals. It didn't even choose to become a vegetarian and gobble green and leafy resources. This system I obtained became a curse and a blessing that I couldn't contain.
And if I disobeyed my system now, I would die because of it. A window in front of me told me that, with the exact words written on it.
With that said, it came back, biting my tail.
"Food….. I am…. Hungry," I growled, while holding the cabinet's edge with my hand.
Those documents, cash, and other useless materials fell on the ground. It was because my shivering hands pulled them from the board. But that noise was not enough to catch a horde inside this station. And that action caught the attention of my peers, which they immediately turned at my figure. All of them had a worried look on their faces while gingerly approaching my back.
Before Asami could even touch my behind, Aiko was quick enough to pull her back. He also grabbed my golden gun and aimed it in my direction.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO HIM!? WHY ARE YOU POINTING THAT GUN?!" Asami asked, but Aiko kept silent.
He wanted to save Asami from her innocent mind and gaze. And the only people aware of my metamorphose were Kane and Aiko. Well, maybe Touma, but my eyes never glimpsed him.
Even though my body coveted food, I could still listen to my surroundings. However, my body resigned itself to follow its instincts. And would do nothing to stop me from getting what it wanted.
"Humans…. Food…... I…. I'm hungry."
Those were the words that escaped from my mouth as I slowly turned around to face them. When I finally stared in front of my team's eyes, those two siblings stepped back. Aiko prepared himself to kill me, knowing that I would be a problem for the team.
However, Asami's words kept ringing inside the hideout, hindering Aiko from pulling the trigger.
"Wait, are you going to kill him? Kawai's innocent! There must be something that we could do to stop that transformation!"
"And let this punk eat us from behind? No way! I've seen this before! You need to get back if you don't want to see this shit!" Aiko interposed, with his eyes still glued to mine. "I know an infected zombie when I see one! Kane always told me about this, right, Kane?!"
Despite Aiko's words, Kane remained silent. He didn't want to say anything to me or this situation.
"Please, Kane! You're the only one Aiko could listen to! Kawai just saved me a while ago! Why are we trying to kill him?! If there's something we know, it's hope, right?!"
Asami looked Kane in the eyes, pleading for him to let me go. However, Kane had a stern look on his face, like a mountain refusing to move.
While Asami did that, my body made its way towards their figure. Aiko noticed my movements and finally took the responsibility for killing me. He aimed at my head and pulled the trigger, knowing that nobody could stop him right now.
If I died right now, I would never be reborn. My system granted me immortality with the price for this hunger session. This time was my vulnerable moment. And anyone could kill me if these zombies or Aiko wanted to do it.
It was the system's flaw. The immortality was just for show, especially with the quests hindering me to to live.
Aiko did what he could to protect the team. And if I were in his position, I would have done the same thing, too.
However, that story didn't pan out. Kane had swifter reflexes and nudged the barrel from the gun using his hand. The bullet crashed upwards and destroyed the ceiling above, even piercing endlessly on the surface. A blaring sound of a gunshot echoed in our surroundings, which I deduced would reach the zombie's ears.
But Kane's action saved my life as he suddenly changed the trajectory of that bullet. He pushed Aiko towards the side and disarmed him from his gun. Kane went towards me and placed the gun in my waiting hands.
"You gave me a reason to see my daughter when I have already given up. And now we're even. I hate owing someone, especially with my life. But you've used your last chance, Kawai. Fight it…... Fight it and return to your team, you hear me?!" said Kane, as he glared into my eyes. "If you don't, I will personally kill you….."
Asami and her brother embraced each other as they listened to Kane's words. They knew Kane gave me a chance to redeem myself. And it was up to me if I would use that chance wisely.
"Fight it, Kawai…. Fight it!"
[Warning! If you don't eat any human flesh right now, you will die! The system will slowly kill your body until it can't move a muscle! Do you still wish to prolong this process?"]
A screen appeared before me and alerted me about my situation. But instead of pressing the yet button, I smacked the hell out of the window and carved my own path.
After countless debates inside my head, I finally punched myself in the face. It didn't hurt since my system told me I wouldn't feel pain. But despite that feature, the agony inside of me left a mark on my face. A throbbing sensation circled on my cheeks, which allowed my infected blood to flow downwards.
However, despite those wounds, I lifted my head and met Kane's gaze. "You asshole…. Who told you I would give up that easily?"
Everyone who witnessed the scene jumped off the ground with their faces filled with bliss. Asami and Touma ran towards me and wrapped their arms around my back. Those two siblings squeezed me until a purplish goo emerged from my skin. Despite these cysts, this pair still cared about me for who I was.
These two siblings were just more than my servants, looking for an electrical outlet. These two were my friends who fought for my life.
"What happened, Kawai? I-I'm sorry….. I just did what I-."
"What could you do?" I interposed. "I know. And I'm not even mad about it, hotshot! In fact, you're a good guy with a great heart. No wonder Emiko likes you as her uncle!"
I complimented the man who was willing to take the responsibility of killing someone. Most people would sink into the bottomless abyss of hatred, since this man would kill them. However, those people were not me.
"Thank you…."
After our exchange, Kane went onwards to the base. He opened the door and revealed the generator filled with gas leaking on the side.
"There's still enough power to fill the handcar…. And to charge your phone," Kane said, and offered me a cord for a cellular phone.
I almost forgot that my goal was to charge this bad boy and read my girlfriend's text. My mouth curled upwards and reached around my ears as I heard Kane's voice. My two little feet hurried inside the engine room and inserted the cord in my phone.
While waiting, Kane ordered everyone to fill the handcar's tank with the remaining fuel we had. "You guys need to place that gas on the handcar! A horde of zombies is coming towards us after hearing that gunshot!"
Aiko and the others rushed to the scene and poured the fuel tank into the handcar. And since we just had water bottles to fill up the tank, the three of them had to go back and forth around four times to load it.
Within a few minutes, my phone finally opened, revealing the missed text messages I received. Among those, emails came from the government, ordering everyone to stay indoors and lock their homes.
"Tell me if you find the message. Aiko and I will keep the zombies at bay," Kane exclaimed, and offered himself to buy me some time.
I could finally know the location of my girlfriend's shelter…. It was all thanks to these wonderful people in my vicinity. Not those zombies that wanted to kill and bite me! But those humans that I considered as my friends….