Three days passed,
Reality settled in.
As the famous saying goes, time heals everything.
No...It just taught to live with the pain.
Vincent learned to live with his grief and the weight of his mistake - the mistake that claimed a young, innocent life.
He sat on the bed in his new room.
Livia cleaned the old room and disposed of the corpses.
But it awoke unpleasant memories.
Vincent couldn't stay in it.
The new room had two beds, facing each other.
He and Livia stayed together, just for extra safety.
'Livia went to check the generators,'
Vincent glanced at the door.
Slowly, his gaze lowered to his bandaged arm.
The wounds have started closing. The pain faded to a bearable degree.
But the wound in his heart...It would never heal.
'Status window,'
He called forth.
A shadow lingered in the back of his mind. Fear.
[Name: Vincent]
[Race: Human (Carrier of the zombie virus)]
[Race: Progenitor (Conditional)] - [Time remaining: 2days 2:11:14]
[Level 1] - [Exp: 98/100]
[Stats:]
[Strength: 8]
[Stamina: 8]
[Agility:8]
[Perception: 8]
[Mana: 50/50]
[Attribute points: 2]
[Skills: (Contract) ; (Command) ; (Probe)]
His eyes landed on the timer.
Time was running out.
Time before he had to consume human flesh.
Memories flashed before his eyes.
Sensations returned.
Sensations of raw, blood-soaked human flesh.
A wave of nausea attacked him.
But he has already gotten used to it.
It's good that he didn't find the human flesh delicious.
It meant he still had time.
'I confirmed one thing,'
His brows furrowed.
'Blood satisfies my hunger. Human blood.'
His memory returned to the blood transfusion device.
He speculated. Speculated that the timer reset back then.
That was the only time anything human entered his body. Human blood.
Goosebumps crawled down his spine.
'I don't ever want to experience it again...'
The feeling of being a spectator in your own body wasn't pleasant.
Especially if you spectated your body indulge in cannibalism.
However, underneath Vincent's grief, deep fear lurked in his heart.
'I haven't received a system notification in the past three days.'
His heart tightened.
The number of infected would keep growing.
And yet he hasn't received a notification.
The number of infected, he didn't want to imagine.
He prayed. Prayed he would never receive the notification.
Creeak!
The door screamed.
Livia walked in.
Her expression serious.
"Something wrong?"
Vincent noticed.
Worry invaded him.
"We don't have much fuel left."
Livia's tone carried graveness.
"So?" Vincent relaxed. "It's not like we'll die from lack of fuel,"
With his aching heart. The weighing grief. The looming bad news. Vincent couldn't care for the generators.
Livia frowned.
Her eyes sharp, piercing.
As if she could see right through him. Read his mind.
"Vincent, I grieve with you."
She approached.
"But enough is enough. Dwelling on the past leads to doom."
Vincent glanced at her.
His fists tightened.
He hadn't let go of his anger.
She supported him mentally occasionally,
Only with her support, he eased on himself. He reduced the degree of self-blame.
But it still influenced him.
Not to mention, she was the cause of everything.
However, no matter how much he wanted to act. He desired to tear her apart.
Ultimately, his fists relaxed in helplessness.
He was powerless. Pathetic.
"Hmph!"
Livia scoffed.
Her eyes shot up, into the ceiling.
Arms opened.
"Vincent, oh Vincent!"
Her pupils trembled in anger. No...excitement?
"Millions of people have died. And you are grieving? REJOICE!"
"Do you know how many would give everything to be in your place? You are alive! Continue persevering! Continue living! YOU ARE THE CHOSEN ONE!!"
Tears welled in Vincent's eyes.
Each word pierced his heart.
Her words cut far deeper than she imagined.
His palms trembled. His body itched.
Iched to pounce on her. Kill her!
REPAY THE DEBT IN BLOOD!
REVENGE AURIELLE.
Tears rolled down his face.
Not tears of grief. Tears of frustration. Tears of self-hate.
"AGHHHHHH..."
Thud!
Vincent collapsed, slamming his fists on the floor.
His cries tore the air. Echoed in the hospital.
'I am such a coward! I don't deserve to live!! I WANT TO DIE!!!!'
He screamed in his mind.
Yet he dared not take his life.
Ironic.
"It's sad. She was so innocent,"
Livia shed a tear.
She acted as if she wasn't the cause of her death.
But it only ignited Vincent's anger.
'MONSTERRRR! I WANT HER TO DIEEEE! I WANT TO KILL HER!'
His mind screamed.
Yet he did nothing.
Pretentious.
"It must be hard on you. After all, your negligence killed her..."
Livia patted his shoulder.
He was drowning in tears.
'Why is the world punishing me...Why am I so powerless...I don't want to work with her! Why is the world pushing me to work with her!'
He wailed internally.
But the world didn't push him.
It did nothing. It stood still. It rotted.
He pushed himself.
He hated her. But loved his life.
Vincent wanted to kill her. But found her presence reassuring.
Convenient to have around.
He wanted to escape her! But found life hard, struggling to survive on his own.
Abandoning her only lowered his chances of survival.
And it might even provoke her fury.
Ending his life prematurely.
Thus, he did nothing.
Hypocritical.
The room went silent.
Only Vincent's crying rebounded off the walls.
Livia let him cry. Let him pour out his pent-up emotions.
"Enough!"
Livia interrupted sternly.
A few minutes passed.
Vincent calmed down slightly.
"You have priorities. And grieving Auri's death is not one. Not now. Death is a common occurrence. Thousands die daily."
"We must get fuel."
Her eyes burned with determination.
"The hospital is a great shelter. But we need the generators and fuel to maximize the benefits."
She spoke.
"To have the medical equipment working in times like those, don't tell me you don't realize what it means?"
Vincent grieved, fought internally, but was not stupid.
The hospital held a massive amount of medical resources.
In the end times, they were priceless.
"If the generators go out, the blood in the blood bank will go bad."
Vincent's eyes widened.
"In the future, that blood can save many survivors."
Livia knew exactly what to say.
How to guilt-trip him.
'She is right,'
And it worked perfectly.
'That blood can save many injured survivors. Besides...'
The blood in the blood bank resolved one of his biggest fears.
The fear of hunting for human flesh.
He wouldn't personally hunt.
But once he lost control of his body, he knew the outcome.
And what he feared even more, he didn't know the true extent of the transformation.
But if the partially transformed him craved and enjoyed human flesh. He didn't want to imagine the full extent.
He had to prevent it.
And the blood bank solved that problem perfectly.
"We are also running low on food supplies."
Livia added.
"It's already late today, but we must secure supplies tomorrow."
Vincent nodded.
…
The time passed; several hours flew by.
They finished dinner.
After turning the lights off, they went to their beds.
Vincent lay on his back. Eyes wide open.
Every time he closed his eyes, the memories of that day haunted him.
The scenes tormented his dreams. Keeping him awake at night.
The scene of the grandfather eating the intestines of his granddaughter was etched into his mind.
Guilt weighed on his chest.
He didn't notice her.
He didn't notice the grandfather was not dead.
Greed blinded him.
Selfishness moved him.
He feared Livia taking his life.
Thus, he moved selfishly to save his skin.
He got greedy about contracting the awakened zombie.
The thought of the safety it would bring comforted him: he wanted to possess it as soon as possible.
Tears streamed down the corners of his eyes.
He recognized his mistakes. His sins.
And now, admitted them to himself.
But what worth is it? Nothing changes.
[Ding]
His heart jumped.
What he feared arrived.
Thud!
He grabbed the left side of his chest.
His fingers dug in, tightly gripping his chest.
He tried calming his heart.
Badum! Badum!
His heart thumped.
With each beat, he felt a piercing pain.
It would escape from his chest.
His face twitched.
The tears turned into a river.
[The zombie virus successfully spreads]
[50.000 beings infected]
[You received: 2 attribute points]
Vincent's bratjing stopped.
He couldn't breathe.
He couldn't gulp.
Fifty thousand. The sheer number. He couldn't comprehend.
Yet his actions claimed that many lives.
His body started trembling.
A wave of nausea attacked him.
Scenes of rotting, flesh-eating zombies flashed in his mind.
Innocent girls like Auri dying, turning into rotting corpses.
He rose from the bed.
Legs trembled.
Step shaky.
But somehow reached the door handle.
"Where are you going?"
Livia's voice cut the silence.
He froze.
"T-The bathroom,"
His voice failed him. It broke.
But he didn't care.
He left the room.
"Sighh…"
Livia let out a breath of turbid air.
She turned on her back.
Emotions flashed in her eyes.
Deep emotions.
A rare sight.
"I can't believe it. If it were me…"
She paused.
Instantly, she suppressed her emotions, bringing them in check.
"Never mind,"
She calmly closed her eyes.
…
Thud!
Vincent barely took a few steps from the door.
His legs gave out.
He collapsed.
"Hic…Hic…"
He grasped his throat, struggling to breathe.
The stone stuck in it wouldn't go down.
Ultimately, the accumulated deaths and tragedies he witnessed shattered him.
He crawled forward, trying to distance himself from the door.
"I'm sorry…"
His low, breaking voice bounced off the walls in the darkness,
Teardrops stained the floor.
"I'm so sorry…"
He shook his head, thinking of Aurielle.
"Had it not been for me…Had I not come here…You all…"
Her bright smile as she held her grandpa's hand haunted his eyes.
It stung his heart.
"I'm just so powerless…I can't get revenge for you…for your grandpa…for all of you."
How could he get revenge for her? When he was the reason for her death.
No matter how guilty one felt, could it compare to his own life?
"I'm… I'm just a coward,"
Thud!
He slammed his forehead on the floor, crying silently.
His voice occasionally leaked.
He cried.
Thoughts clashed: on one side, his thoughts to justify himself; on the other, his self-blame.
The hours flew by.
He lost track in the darkness.
But his crying died down.
"I may be powerless..."
He raised his head, looking into the darkness.
His eyes burned. Burned with unknown determination.
"I can't bring you back to life…But I promise you.
"I'll get stronger. I'll create an environment where children like you can live happily and safely like before."
He came to terms with himself.
His eyes sharpened.
With a thought, the status window appeared.
[Name: Vincent]
[Species: Human (Carrier of the zombie virus)]
[Level 1] – [Exp: 98/100]
[Stats:]
[Strength: 8]
[Stamina: 8]
[Agility: 8]
[Perception: 8]
[Mana: 50/50]
[Attribute points: 4]
[Skills: (Contract);(Command);(Probe)]
'If I want to achieve my goal…to create a space for children…I need to survive first.'
[Agility: 12]
All attribute points poured into his agility.
"AGHH…"
He groaned.
Pain!
Intense pain surged through his legs.
His muscles burned, contracting, as if tearing.
The purple veins bulged, about to burst.
'Aghhhhh…'
Teeth creaked.
Vicent bore the pain.
The memories of Aurielle flashed before his eyes.
But this time, they were not a source of grief and sadness.
They became a source of strength.
'No innocent child shall suffer…especially not because of my greed.'
THUD!
He slammed his forehead.
A violet line of blood slid down.
He buried Aurielle in his heart.
Vowing never to forget the incident.
With it, he also suppressed the grief for the casualties of the virus.
'Since my mistake killed so many people, and I can't reverse it, I must use the powers it can offer to save as many innocent people as I can.'
The pain slowly diminished.
Vincent steeled his resolve.
He returned to bed.
Determined to make the most of tomorrow.
...
But what did his struggle amount to?
What did it matter?
Just a grain of sand in the sea.
Not enough to even catch the attention of the entity on the throne of fallen foes.
Just ants struggling. Crying. Breaking. Scheming. Dying!
All futile.
Ants will remain ants.