Fang Zheng would, of course, never go mad enough to strip Rea naked and photograph her for artistic photos. Although her father might be a pervert, Fang Zheng was definitely not that perverted. He simply thought that since Rea was so repulsed by this place, going over the procedure as per the rules might stimulate her to regain her memory.
However, when Fang Zheng and Little Hei returned to the study and saw the empty desk in front of them, they couldn’t help but be startled.
How could such a huge zombie girl just vanish from here?
Looking at the last glimmer of the sunset outside, Fang Zheng frowned. He wasn’t worried about Rea getting into trouble, but it was about to get dark, and who knows how many zombies there were in this mansion. Even if there weren’t any, it still wasn’t safe here. What’s more troubling, if Rea had somehow blended into a group of zombies, finding her would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.
"Quick, go look for her, she couldn’t have gone far!"
Upon hearing Fang Zheng’s command, Little Hei nodded, then she swiftly stepped onto the windowsill and leaped, flipping onto the roof and scanning the surroundings—soon, Fang Zheng heard Little Hei’s voice.
"Found her, big brother, she didn’t leave; she’s in the garden!"
The garden? The young lady has turned into a zombie and still has the mood to enjoy flowers?
Although he didn’t understand what was happening, Fang Zheng hurried to the garden, and soon he saw Rea’s figure amidst it. At that moment, the young lady had already removed the helmet from her head, and was kneeling by a flowerbed, staring at the blossoming flowers before her, then she lowered her head and... bit off a leaf, chewing and swallowing it.
Fang Zheng: ".........????"
Looking at the young lady in front of him eating leaves, Fang Zheng felt his entire worldview was being twisted.
You’re a zombie; it’s already quite good you don’t eat people, but to switch to vegetarianism... that gap is just too big, isn’t it!
We haven’t mistreated you; even if we don’t have human flesh for you, we’d still make you something like late-autumn beef, so are you really reduced to eating leaves?
"......She really is an absurd zombie, why is she eating this?"
At that moment, Little Hei also jumped down from the roof and came to Fang Zheng’s side, helplessly watching Rea eat the leaves.
"Don’t ask me, this is the first time I’ve seen a vegetarian zombie... What kind of bizarre setting is this?"
Thinking this, Fang Zheng sighed helplessly. No matter how you looked at it, this was too exaggerated, right? A leaf-eating zombie... Is that even a thing?
But just then, suddenly, Fang Zheng saw a light gradually emerging within Rea’s normally dark red eyes, and the next moment, she shuddered violently, seemingly jolting awake from a deep sleep, looking around.
"Eh? This place is... my home? How come I am here? I remember... before..."
Murmuring to herself, Rea turned her head, and when she saw Fang Zheng and Little Hei, she was momentarily stunned.
Is that even a thing?
Looking at Rea, who had fully regained consciousness, Fang Zheng and Little Hei were taken aback. A zombie regaining consciousness by eating flower leaves... This must be unique!
What kind of bizarre evolutionary template is this?!
Although there were many parts of the process that one might complain about, regaining consciousness was a good thing for both parties. Even though her memory wasn’t very clear, Rea seemed to vaguely remember some of what had happened before, so she quickly invited Fang Zheng and Little Hei back inside the house, intending to play the good host.
"Apologies, please wait a moment, I remember there should be some Darjeeling black tea in the kitchen..."
Saying this, Rea respectfully bowed to them, then walked to the kitchen door, reached out to open it, but surprisingly, with a "snap" sound, the previously closed door was completely pulled off its frame by Rea!
Seeing this scene, Rea was also taken aback. She instinctively let go of the doorknob, and then the entire door crashed to the ground with a "bang".
"Oh no, oh no, what happened? Could the door be broken? I’m sorry, sorry... I didn’t mean to... Aaaaaah!"
In her hurry to dodge the door lying on the ground, Rea quickly jumped backward, but the moment her feet hit the floor, the solid marble suddenly collapsed with a "boom". Losing her balance, Rea frantically waved her arms, trying to steady herself against the wall. However, where her hands touched, the supposedly solid wall crumbled like plaster. Her fingers had barely touched the wall when she made a large hole and, without support, the young lady fell heavily to the ground...
Speaking of which, this young lady had broken three fire doors before she made her appearance at the base.
"What is this happening to me...?"
Looking at her own hands, Rea seemed quite surprised, while Fang Zheng coughed and then approached her, extending his hand.
"Ah... Thank you... Sorry for making you see that."
Looking at Fang Zheng’s extended hand, Rea shyly lowered her head and then grasped Fang Zheng’s hand to stand up.
"You may have noticed, but I should make it clear to you here."
While saying this, Fang Zheng looked at Rea. The young lady in front of him seemed to have realized something, her nervous gaze shifting away while her hands tightly gripped the hem of her clothes. But Fang Zheng did not pause; instead, he looked at Rea and straightforwardly said the next words.
"You... are no longer human."
Upon hearing Fang Zheng’s statement, Rea fell silent for a moment before she finally asked in a low voice.
"Then... have I become the same as those zombies outside?"
"Of course not, the fact is..."
Fang Zheng then explained the investigation records he had previously shared with others, including how Rea came to the base and sought help from him and others. To help Rea regain consciousness, Fang Zheng and Little Hei had brought her to the school and their home to see if there was any way she could be restored to normal.
"...but I never expected to encounter a vegetarian zombie..."
After hearing Fang Zheng’s explanation, Rea’s expression became somewhat complicated.
"I’m sorry, earlier I felt very confused, as if I was constantly dreaming. I do have some memories of these events, but... I feel like it was all a dream... I always thought it was just a dream, and that once I woke up, everything would go back to normal. But now..."
Saying this, Rea lowered her head and looked at her hands. At first glance, these hands were no different from those of an ordinary person, but the color was unique — not a healthy color but a pale, ashy, bloodless, cold hue.
"What should I do now?"
"That’s a question you’ll have to answer for yourself."
In response to Rea’s bewildered inquiry, Fang Zheng shrugged his shoulders.
"However, for now... I do have a suggestion, if you don’t mind. Stay at our base for a while. I need to examine you further to see why eating those flowers and leaves restored your consciousness. It might help you, and besides, you don’t really have anywhere else to go, do you?"
Hearing this, Rea raised her head to look at Fang Zheng, and after a long while, she smiled faintly.
"Then, I’ll be in your care for now, Mr. Fang Zheng."