Apocalypse: King of Zombies

Ethan had originally planned to use these humans as bait—let them scout ahead, maybe help clear out the outer perimeter of the Zombie Cultivation Grounds or something.

But then they ran into a Big Head, and now things were spiraling fast.

”You guys better hang in there!” he shouted, though even he wasn’t sure how much longer they could last.

The humans were in bad shape. Travis looked like he was about to collapse, his face pale from the massive drain on his mental energy.

The girl who’d been bitten was barely standing, her body trembling with pain. She was practically out of the fight.

Brian frowned, glancing over.

”Hey! You okay?”

”I... I feel kinda dizzy,” the girl mumbled, swaying on her feet.

A young man nearby couldn’t just watch her fall. He stepped in, wrapping one arm around her waist to steady her, while swinging his blade with the other, cutting down a few zombies that got too close.

”Brian, I swear, you’re such a damn straight-laced guy. Ever heard of helping each other out?” he called over his shoulder.

”I’m not exactly in a position to help her,” Brian shot back bluntly.

But the girl was fading fast. Her eyes were bloodshot, capillaries bursting until her vision was soaked in red. Fine hairs began to sprout across her face—clear signs of mutation.

The young man holding her was too focused on fighting to notice.

”Rrrgh—”

The girl let out a low, guttural growl. Her teeth had sharpened, and before he could react, she lunged upward and sank them into his jaw.

He screamed in agony, panic flooding his eyes. He shoved her away with all his strength, but not before she tore a chunk of flesh from his face, exposing blood-slick teeth and raw muscle.

”Wh-what the hell just happened?!”

The pain distorted his voice, making it crack and slur.

Travis and the others turned toward the commotion, their faces twisted in shock. Something wasn’t right. The girl was a B+ level fighter—she should’ve had enough resistance to fight off a standard zombie virus.

Elite zombies shouldn’t have been able to infect her.

”Wait a second...” Travis narrowed his eyes, watching the girl now snarling like a rabid dog, her face twisted and unrecognizable.

Then it clicked.

”She’s not just infected with the zombie virus—she’s got rabies too. The combination’s made the infection way more aggressive!”

”What?! Then... does that mean I’m gonna mutate too?!” the young man gasped, his heart dropping like a stone. The pain in his face was nothing compared to the fear now gripping him.

Brian gave him a look that was half pity, half resignation.

”Well, guess you’re not a straight-laced guy after all. Too bad you’re probably gonna die.”

The young man: ”...”

But there was no time to dwell on it. More monsters were closing in. Even after killing over a thousand zombies, they were still surrounded, still trapped.

Worse, some of the zombies were Rabies Zombies—hyper-infectious, even more dangerous. Everyone was doing their best to avoid getting scratched or splashed with blood, terrified of catching the same fate.

Brian, a speed-type Awakener, was still holding his own. His movements were fast and fluid, and with a kukri embedded with a fire-element crystal core, he was cutting through the horde like a hot knife through butter.

But even he was starting to wear down.

His breathing grew ragged, chest heaving like a busted bellows. His dodges lost their grace, becoming sluggish and clumsy. A few times, he barely avoided getting hit.

Death was circling closer with every second.

The others weren’t doing much better. Everyone looked exhausted. At one point, a teenage boy got pinned by two zombies, unable to move. More of them piled on, and within moments, he was swallowed by the horde.

His screams tore through the night sky.

But no one could help him.

”Damn it!”

The brawny power-type fighter clenched his jaw, muscles tensing. In the split second he lost focus, a sharp pain shot through his elbow.

He whipped his head around—one of the zombies had sunk its teeth into his arm.

Thank God… it wasn’t one of those hyper-infectious Rabies Zombies.

With a grunt, he reversed his grip on his dagger and drove it straight into the zombie’s skull. Black blood splattered as he yanked out its Neurocore, still pulsing faintly in his hand.

Nearby, Brian’s vision was starting to blur.

Even the zombies in front of him were doubling, their outlines flickering like ghosts. His hand trembled around the hilt of his kukri—he was completely spent.

He shook his head, trying to stay conscious.

”Shit… I’m gonna die…”

”Hey! Hang in there!” Travis shouted from behind. ”If we break through, we can make it to Mount Elbert Shelter. They’ve got supplies, food, everything! It’s the last safe haven for humans—paradise is waiting for us!”

Brian gave him a sideways glance, his voice dry and cracked. ”Captain, I’m dying and you’re still trying to sell me a dream.”

”...” Travis was speechless. But deep down, he knew—if Brian went down, the whole squad was screwed.

And right then, another wave of zombies surged toward Brian.

He tightened his grip on the kukri, but this time, the blade didn’t ignite. The fire-element crystal core embedded in it stayed cold—he didn’t have enough energy left to activate it.

A bitter smile tugged at his lips.

So this is it, huh?

The weight of despair settled over him like a shroud, swallowing him whole.

But then—something changed.

A sudden wave of heat rolled over him. A blinding blaze erupted in front of him, sweeping forward like a fire dragon. The zombies in its path were instantly incinerated, reduced to ash in seconds. A vacuum of silence followed, the battlefield momentarily cleared.

”Huh?” Brian blinked, stunned, the will to die momentarily forgotten.

He slowly looked up.

As the flames faded, a figure emerged from the inferno.

Even surrounded by the carnage of the undead, the man looked calm—almost bored. His face was striking, effortlessly handsome, and he muttered under his breath like he was annoyed.

”Useless humans…”

”????” Brian’s brain short-circuited. He just stood there, completely dumbfounded.

Behind him, Travis and the others stared in shock.

”Who the hell is that?”

”Is he here to save us?”

”Holy crap… what a saint.”

”He’s so strong… and damn, he’s hot!”

”...”

The two remaining girls in the squad had stars in their eyes, awe written all over their faces.

There stood Ethan, alone in the middle of the zombie horde.

With a flick of his tachi, he carved through the undead like it was nothing. Every movement was clean, efficient—like he was playing a game of zombie lawnmower.

But then came the real showstopper.

A red glow flared in Ethan’s eyes. A crushing pressure exploded outward from him, sweeping across the battlefield like a tidal wave.

Wherever the Domain of the Dead passed, zombies didn’t just fall—they exploded into chunks of gore and bone.

”What the hell?!”

Far off, the Bighead zombie—one of the elite—watched in horror as the wave of power surged toward him. The oppressive aura of a Zombie King washed over him, and his entire body trembled.

”This is bad… real bad… Buddy, we gotta run!”

”Awwoooo! Awooo—!”

The Husky, who had been standing tall and proud atop a boulder, commanding the horde like a general, immediately leapt down and bolted into the forest without a second thought.

In just a few seconds, both of them vanished into the dark woods.

With Bighead gone, the horde he’d been leading fell apart. The zombies scattered in all directions, fleeing like rats from a sinking ship. Within moments, the battlefield was empty, the tide of undead receding like a broken wave.

And there stood Ethan, alone in a white dress shirt, untouched amidst the carnage.

At his feet, the ground was littered with mangled corpses and rivers of black blood—a stark contrast to the pristine white of his clothes.

Behind him, Brian and the others stood covered in blood, battered and barely alive, staring at his back like he was some kind of god.

”…It’s over?” Brian whispered, still not quite believing it.

…