Chapter 15
…A corpse?
For a moment, I gasped and instinctively looked down at my feet.
I saw a sticky pool of blood.
Seeing blood splattered across the ground, it looked like it had been attacked by a creature.
“Was this done by a creature?”
“Seems like it. And fairly recently, too.”
At Isis’s response, I tightly shut my eyes.
Since coming to this world, I had never seen a corpse.
Right after arriving, I had seen a creature gnawing on someone, but that was only in passing while fleeing—I didn’t get a proper look.
I’d been in this apocalyptic world for over ten days, and it was truly lucky that I hadn’t seen a single corpse.
After all, people die easily in this world.
“I’ll be seeing a lot of this from now on.”
It wasn’t that I couldn’t see them just because I didn’t want to.
So I took a deep breath and said,
“I… want to see it.”
“Lalliana.”
“You can’t live your whole life avoiding it.”
“….”
Isis and Luca seemed momentarily speechless, but I stood firm.
“I appreciate your consideration, but… if I’m going to see it anyway, it’s better to look now and get used to it than to be caught off guard in an emergency and cause trouble.”
“…You’re right.”
At Jade’s words, Luca’s eyes sharpened.
“She said it herself—she doesn’t want to be a burden.”
“But…”
“But, as Lalliana said, you can’t avoid it forever.”
Jade’s eyes also lifted.
“Are you guys her guardians? She’s one of our comrades, and now she fights well too. You’re not in a position to give orders like ‘do this’ or ‘don’t do that.’”
“….”
Isis turned around and looked straight at me.
“Are you truly okay with this?”
“…Yes.”
He sighed, then slowly moved the body that had been blocking my view. And…
“Ugh.”
A sagging arm, pale skin with no life left, strange objects embedded across the body…
The sight was far more horrifying than I imagined, and I drew in a breath.
I felt my stomach churn and something rise in my throat. Reflexively, I covered my mouth and gagged.
“Lalliana…”
Luca, who had been patting my back, muttered softly.
“Are you okay?”
“….”
As my body and mind tried to cope with the shocking sight, one rational thought passed through my mind.
“I’m really lucky.”
If I had seen this in a moment of panic, my mind would have gone completely blank and I might have frozen right there. In the worst case, I could have died.
I gripped one trembling hand with the other and said,
“I’m not okay.”
There was no way I could be okay after seeing that.
“Still, I don’t regret it.”
At my words, Jade smirked. Coming closer, he patted my shoulder.
“She’s better than Luca.”
“Hey!”
“Why!”
Jade and Luca bickered, but it ended with Jade ruffling Luca’s hair.
Feeling unwell, I slightly staggered while holding my mouth and nose, but a strong arm wrapped around me from the side.
“Isis…”
“I’d like to tell you to rest since you’re shocked… but…”
He sighed.
“As you know, Lalliana, we have to keep moving given the situation.”
Isis stared at me intently, asking with his eyes if I was really okay. I gave an awkward smile and nodded.
“As I said before, I’m not okay… but I’m not unable to move.”
I could move sufficiently.
If we didn’t find a safe place before nightfall, it would be as good as death. There was no time to hesitate.
With my firm answer, we immediately began to move.
“There are too many creatures.”
At Isis’s mutter, I glanced at him. I tried not to show it, but a trace of anxiety slipped out.
“Even I don’t see any safe space nearby.”
Creatures become slower at night.
Probably because their vision narrows in the darkness.
“No one really knows for sure, though…”
Though quieter surroundings make them more sensitive to sound, it’s still much easier to hide than during the day.
Considering that the sun was about to set, we had to find a suitable place for the night quickly.
The problem was that there were only completely ruined buildings around.
Unlike previous times when we could enter a ruined building and hide from creatures, this time we had to sleep fully exposed. Vulnerable.
“We can’t prevent body heat loss without a fire, and creatures could find us anytime.”
Tonight was clearly going to be a major challenge.
Isis lowered his voice and spoke to us.
“Tonight, we will hide our bodies using wood debris and stones and stay here for the night.”
Gulp.
Everyone fell silent, tense, focusing on his words.
“Since there are many creatures nearby, we’ll increase the number of guards to two. Any objections?”
“No.”
“Tonight, Luca and I will stand first watch. Then Jade and Lalliana.”
I glanced at Jade. This was the first time he and I were paired. Normally, it was always Luca and Jade together.
“Casual conversation is fine, but keep your voices low just in case.”
“Yes.”
“First, let’s make a space where we can rest.”
My superhuman strength came in handy again. I arranged some rocks into a circle, and Luca wove plant stems through the gaps.
“…Luca, how about this?”
I drew a round dome-like shape on the ground with branches. Luca’s eyes widened.
“That’s a good idea! This will definitely hide us from the creatures’ sight.”
From afar, Luca’s woven plant stems looked like ordinary vines—perfect for concealment.
The problem was that using too many skills drained Luca’s energy…
“That’s why we haven’t been wrapping buildings in plants unnecessarily.”
But since this was for our comfortable rest, it should be fine, right?
Justifying it to myself, Luca spoke quietly.
“Shall we start right away?”
As soon as he finished, the branches weaving the rocks grew further, slowly forming the dome.
“Oh, whose idea was this? It’s good.”
I raised my hand.
“Mine.”
“In a place with so many creatures, it’s better to make it up to the ceiling.”
Feeling slightly pleased, I smiled quietly. Luca took a blanket from his bag and handed it to me. It was the same one we used on the first night at the mansion.
“Use this while you sleep.”
“Thanks.”
Taking the blanket, I lay down at the edge of the newly completed dome-like space.
“Time to sleep.”
I was unusually tired from using so many skills today. Sleeping to recover my energy was urgent.
I woke up in an empty space.
The dome Luca and I had made, the comrades always beside me—none of them were there.
I alone existed in a void.
“What…?”
Was it a dream?
I looked around. Still nothing. I took a step forward. Luckily, there was a floor beneath my feet.
“Luca? Jade? Isis?”
As I walked around, a soft thump echoed behind me, something falling.
“Who—”
I froze.
Turning around, my legs gave way and I sank to the ground. Reflexively, I lowered my head as nausea rose.
The corpse lying on the floor, covered in blood, staring blankly—looked very much like someone I knew.
