TFVZ 01

Chapter 1

“Ahhh!”

The instant I regained consciousness, a scream sharp enough to tear through my ears rang out. My legs tangled beneath me, and I crashed to the ground.

“What are you doing, Penelope?!”

The man dragging me by the wrist cursed as he yanked me back to my feet.

Penelope?

The moment I heard that name, a flood of memories and information that weren’t mine poured into my mind.

Penelope Lloyd.

The troublesome villainess of the novel In Search of Paradise—the troll who constantly sabotaged everyone in a zombie apocalypse.

Pushing my confusion aside, I quickly pieced everything together.

The conclusion was grim.

This was the world of the novel.

And I had become Penelope Lloyd.

To make matters worse, just moments ago, the irritated Penelope had caused a commotion, and now we were running through the mountains while being chased by zombies.

The moment I fully accepted that reality—

“You can’t even run properly?”

The Crown Prince, who had roughly hauled me upright by sheer force, growled in irritation.

But what did his anger matter?

What mattered was that he was still holding my hand.

The metallic scent of blood filled my nose, making me instinctively turn my head.

A horde of zombies charged toward us in grotesque, jerky movements, their tattered clothes flapping wildly. Their eyes were unfocused, and swollen veins bulged unnaturally across their entire bodies.

Terrified that the Crown Prince might abandon me out of sheer annoyance, I ignored the sharp pain shooting through my ankle and desperately kept pace with him.

We were running toward a fortress perched atop the mountain.

With its massive gates, sturdy walls, and towering watchtowers, the outer fortress offered an excellent view of the surrounding area. Inside the inner fortress was an armory.

The fortress visible in the distance was the perfect refuge from this zombie outbreak.

Since it had once served as a military installation, there would probably be a decent stockpile of food as well.

“Lilia, take my hand.”

The Crown Prince climbed onto a massive boulder in one swift motion before extending his hand toward the novel’s heroine, Lilia.

Unable to find a proper foothold, she slipped.

I hurriedly shoved her upward while stomping anxiously as the pursuing zombies closed in.

“Ah!”

Just as she reached for the Crown Prince’s hand, Lilia accidentally shoved me, the very person supporting her from below.

As I lost my balance, she nearly fell as well.

At the last second, the Crown Prince caught Lilia’s slender wrist.

Kyaaaagh!

“…”

Holding the heroine safely in his arms, he glanced down at me, sprawled across the ground.

Then, as though deciding I was beyond saving, he turned his back.

“H-Hey! Wait!”

I knew Penelope had been unbearable.

She constantly picked fights with everyone.

She kept dragging the group into danger.

But still…

Wasn’t this too much?

I scrambled to my feet and desperately tried to climb the enormous rock.

Then a freezing hand suddenly clamped around my ankle.

At that instant, a single passage from the novel flashed through my mind.

Behind Lilia, who had stumbled after Penelope kicked her, the zombies were almost upon them.

It was impossible.

They were too late to save her.

Yet his body was already moving toward Lilia.

…You bastard!

The moment the zombie grabbed me, I had no idea where the strength came from.

Driven by a single desperate thought—to escape—I threw myself down the steep mountain slope.

I rolled.

And rolled.

And rolled down the mountainside.

Crunch!

In the end, the zombie managed to bite my exposed thigh.

But at least I avoided the far worse fate of having my entire body torn apart.

You might think that distinction hardly mattered after being bitten by a zombie.

But anyone who had ever been bitten would know just how lucky I was.

Smash!

With trembling hands shaking from the agony, I grabbed a rock and slammed it into the zombie’s head clamped onto my leg.

Smash.

Smash!

Smash!

Whether it was the unbearable pain of its sharp teeth buried deep in my flesh…

Or the terror of knowing everything was over…

I didn’t know.

But I cried like someone who had lost their mind.

“Sob… hic…”

Only after I had crushed the zombie’s skull and cried for a long time did a useless regret surface.

I should’ve grabbed the Crown Prince’s hand before Lilia did.

…If I became a zombie, I would lose all sense of self and wander endlessly.

Could that really be called living?

Then…

Was I going to die?

Death.

A word that had always felt distant now stood right before me.

An indescribable fear settled heavily over my entire body.

I don’t want to die…

Thud.

That was my last thought before I collapsed.

Or rather—

I died.

How much time passed after that?

“Ghk!”

After several violent convulsions…

I became a zombie.

“Ahh… so this is…”

My words came out clumsily.

Even controlling my own body with precision was difficult.

Yet despite everything…

I was still thinking.

Maybe this was some special privilege granted to transmigrators.

Whatever the reason—

I didn’t care.

I was still conscious.

I wasn’t dead.

“…Thank… thank goodness.”

Just as immense relief washed over me at realizing I was still alive—

Rustle.

A sound came from the base of the tree I was leaning against.

I’d barely survived.

There was no way I was going to sit here only to be bitten again.

Using the tree for support, I hurriedly pushed myself up to flee.

But whatever it was burst through the dense undergrowth faster than I could move.

Its veins bulged grotesquely beneath unnaturally swollen skin.

Just as I’d feared—

It was a zombie.

“Grrrr…”

Apparently hearing something, it sniffed the air while staring in my direction.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

I quickly picked up a nearby rock.

If it charged at me, I’d crush its skull just like before.

But…

The zombie simply turned its head away.

Dragging its feet behind it, it wandered off as though it had lost all interest in me.

Oh… right.

I’m a zombie now.

Zombies reacted only to the scent of humans—

Especially the smell of blood.

And I no longer smelled human.

The frantic pounding of my heart gradually slowed.

…Huh?

Wait.

Zombies don’t have beating hearts…

I placed a hand against my chest and felt a heartbeat.

No—

More accurately…

A zombie’s heart beat very slowly.

Every bodily function in a zombie was severely diminished.

They could only move like humans—or even surpass human physical abilities—when they awakened after catching the scent of humans, especially blood.

But…

That was something I could worry about later.

Right now, finding a safe place to hide came first.

Zombies weren’t immortal.

Destroy their brains, and they stopped moving.

And this forest was home to every kind of wild animal imaginable.

If I stood around here like an idiot, I’d become easy prey.

Wild beasts didn’t distinguish between humans and zombies.

As long as the sun was still up, I needed to find shelter.

I have to survive.

The thought forced its way into my mind again and again.

The agony of being bitten.

The sensation of everything ending as I died.

Both remained painfully vivid.

My heart had gradually stopped.

My breathing had faded away…

Just imagining it made my hands tremble.

I don’t want to die again.

I have to survive.

Why I had suddenly become Penelope no longer mattered.

I simply never wanted to experience that pain again.

I wanted to live.

To avoid wild beasts…

I needed a building.

Somewhere to hide.

Unfortunately, there was only one place nearby suitable for that.

The very fortress the protagonists were heading toward.

It’s just a little farther.

Thinking about the future, staying with the protagonists wasn’t a bad choice.

Eventually, the Emperor would come up with a response to the zombie outbreak.

Once the situation stabilized, they would leave this forest.

And if I stayed with the Grand Duke and the Crown Prince, both powerful fighters, I’d be protected from wild animals…

But…

Would they really protect me?

The last image of the Crown Prince coldly abandoning me surfaced in my mind.

It felt like nothing more than wishful thinking.

Still…

For now, there was nowhere safer than that fortress.

As long as they don’t discover I’m a zombie.

But the arm visible through my torn sleeve no longer looked human.

Bulging veins, swollen as if ready to burst, covered it completely.

What am I supposed to do about this?

I can’t hide it forever with my clothes.

Then, all at once—

A surprisingly perfect method for joining the protagonists flashed through my mind.

This would be more than enough to fool them.