The intense shaking almost caused Tucker to lose his balance and fall from the high structure. In a panic, he clung tightly to the steel frame, lowering his body and letting beads of cold sweat drip from his forehead as he gazed into the deep night sky.
For a while, a faint cracking sound was drowned out by the roars of the zombies.
Tucker managed to knock one of the approaching zombies down, and the heavy thud it made when it hit the ground made his scalp tingle.
What could be in the plastic bags? Could they be weapons sent by the boss in a moment of mercy?
Tucker's heart leaped with hope. He used the pole to smash the bags open and, with eager anticipation, tore them apart. But as soon as he looked inside, his expression shifted from joy to rage and despair.
Inside the bags were not weapons but the very food he had wasted.
Tucker was overcome with hopelessness and filled with bitter resentment.
The zombies beneath him, however, did not give him a chance to vent his anger. The enraged zombies moved even faster now, and in no time, three or four of them lunged at him, sinking their teeth into his arm. Their sharp teeth bit down hard, tearing away a chunk of flesh with a savage jerk of their heads.
Tucker screamed in agony, his sweat mixing with the blood from his wounded arm. He fought desperately to push the zombies off the frame, grabbing the food from the plastic bags and pouring it over the zombies' heads.
"Die! Die!!"
His eyes were wild with madness. The intense pain in his arm made him grit his teeth and gasp for breath.
The fear that had almost overwhelmed him was now replaced by a furious rage. He poured all the remaining food from the bags into the gaping mouths of the zombies below.
"Eat! Eat your fill!! When you're done, go rip apart the boss of this hotel! Hahaha! Boss, even if I die, I will never forgive you!!"
After emptying the bags, Tucker stood at the highest point with a dramatic sense of impending death.
As the cold wind blew, he shivered, staring down at the abyss below. The sensation of weightlessness made him dizzy, and his palms were sweaty.
No... it's too high... I'll die...
Tucker's expression changed rapidly from a noble sacrifice to one of cowardly survival instincts.
Suddenly, an idea struck him. He looked toward the edge of the square, anxiously searching for that shadowy figure. Thankfully, it was still there.
"Please, save me! I'm begging you!"
As if understanding his plea, the shadow began to move closer.
Seeing this, Tucker's relief was palpable. He desperately tried to fend off the zombies climbing towards him, begging for the figure to hurry.
With a chunk of his arm missing and blood dripping onto the steel frame, the intense scent of blood attracted more zombies, which surged forward crazily.
Tucker fought with all his might, but his hands were overwhelmed by the sheer number of zombies. Amid his screams of pain, he began to fall from the frame, his bloodied body plummeting to the ground below.
The zombies seemed to follow him like a horde of ravenous beasts.
Splat.
Blood and flesh scattered. Tucker's eyes were wide with hatred and confusion, but he was quickly enveloped by the incoming zombies, disappearing into a maelstrom of sharp teeth.
The gruesome scene was too much for Charlotte, who promptly turned off the screen.
Fawna, looking pale, clutched her mouth and rushed outside, vomiting violently.
Jeremy, however, remained calm. Having witnessed far worse, this was just a minor event for him.
The others, however, were not as experienced. Many had turned pale, their eyes filled with awe and fear as they glanced at Charlotte. The newcomers, in particular, resolved to behave and not break any rules, eager to avoid any form of punishment.
Seeing that her message had been received, Charlotte glanced at Belle, who had been silent throughout, and took a sip of water.
"Tucker still owes me 3 level-two crystal cores. Now that he's dead, Belle, what do you propose we do?"
Suddenly called out, Belle shivered, her eyes filled with tears.
Her father was gone, and now there was a debt?
All the crystal cores she had were in her father's hands and had already been taken by Charlotte. Did this mean she would be responsible for paying the remaining debt? Was there any justice in this?
Even though Belle was unwilling, the recent events with her father served as a stark warning. What choice did she have?
"...I... I'll pay it back...?" Belle asked hesitantly, her tone rising slightly with uncertainty.
"Debts incurred by the father are repaid by the child. I didn't expect you to have this awareness. You have one week to return the three level-two crystal cores. If you don't meet the deadline, there will be consequences."
To prevent Belle from escaping while hunting zombies to repay the debt, Charlotte hired a virtual employee named Wensy with a level-one crystal core.
A little girl with yellow pigtails, standing at 1.5 meters tall and wearing a pink puffball dress, appeared before everyone.
Wensy's delicate white hands were clasped in front of her, her tiny face adorned with huge ice-blue eyes and long eyelashes. Her tiny nose was nearly invisible, and her pink lips were slightly pursed. She stood obediently in front of Charlotte.
"Wensy, from now on, you will stay with Belle 24/7 and cannot leave her side."
Following the command, Wensy moved smoothly to Belle's side, standing still.
"What is this thing?!"Belle retreated in terror, but the little girl followed her, maintaining a one-meter distance.
Belle had planned to use the opportunity of finding crystal cores to sneak back to the base, but she never expected Charlotte to assign her a human-like monitor!
What is this thing?! She had only seen such big-eyed characters in anime, but to have one appear in real life, especially following her around, felt like a horror movie!
Just the thought of turning around and seeing those hollow, unsettlingly large eyes made Belle shiver with fear. This was even more terrifying than being thrown into a zombie horde!
"Ladies and gentlemen, I apologize for taking up your valuable time tonight. It's getting late, so please return to your rooms and rest."
Ignoring Belle, Charlotte smiled as she ushered the other guests out. Afterward, she took out a door lock from behind the counter and quickly locked the door.
Seeing that Charlotte was about to turn off the lights, Belle hurried up the stairs. Hearing Wensy's footsteps close behind her, she felt a chill run down her spine. Not daring to stay any longer, she rushed to her room and locked the door from the inside.
After receiving permission from Charlotte, Wensy stood guard outside Belle's door, not moving an inch.
Realizing that Wensy had not followed her inside, Belle let out a long sigh of relief and collapsed on the floor, sobbing quietly.
She couldn't understand how a simple outing had resulted in her losing her father and inheriting a debt of three level-two crystal cores!
All the crystal cores that Charlotte had taken were earned by her during team missions. Forcing her to go out and hunt level-two zombies to pay off the debt was essentially a death sentence!
Belle grabbed her hair and tugged violently, her heart filled with anger and resentment—whether towards Charlotte or Tucker, she couldn't tell.