Her throat felt tight. Slowly, Ivy reached out and took the bag. Then, without holding back, she pulled out one cookie and bit into it.
The sweet taste melted in her mouth. She closed her eyes in delight.
’She is looking like a cute pink hamster.’ Talia thought in her heart.
If Silas had heard, he would have nodded right away. Both siblings had the same thought. To them, Ivy was not just a girl. She was like a small pink animal, soft and cute, without realizing it herself.
Later, Ivy and Silas returned to their apartment. As they stepped into the kitchen, Silas said, "Tonight, I will make dinner."
He cooked, and they ate together quietly. Afterward, they both prepared for bed.
But as soon as they lay down, the mattress gave a strange groan. Suddenly, the whole bed collapsed beneath them with a loud crack.
Both of them jumped in shock.
"What just happened?" Ivy gasped.
Before they could move, the chandelier above began to sway wildly. It rocked up and down, side to side, as if some invisible hand was shaking it.
"Move!" Silas shouted.
They rolled away just in time. The chandelier crashed down, shattering into countless sharp shards. Glass flew in every direction, sparkling under the dim light.
Silas grabbed Ivy’s arm and pulled her farther back. They both stared at the broken mess on the floor.
"What... what is going on? Why are these things moving by themselves?" Ivy whispered.
’Is this a ghost?’ she thought nervously.
But before they could think further, a loud banging echoed through the apartment. Someone, or something, was slamming against their front door.
Silas rushed forward. Ivy followed. Looking through the peephole, her eyes went wide.
"Zombies," she whispered.
Several of them were outside, pounding on the door. Their rotten hands smeared blood and filth across the wood.
Silas frowned. "So zombies have breached the base?"
But Ivy shook her head, pale. "No. This is impossible. How can zombies be here? Inside the military base? It should not happen."
Silas shot her a quick glance but said nothing. Instead, he opened the door slightly and rushed out with his weapon. He began to fight them off, cutting down the first two.
Ivy hesitated only a second before running after him. Together, they fought side by side. But then, something strange happened.
Several zombies suddenly moved faster. Their eyes glowed faint red, and their bodies seemed tougher. Their claws ripped through metal like paper.
"What... what is this?" Ivy gasped.
"They are evolving!" Silas shouted, blocking one blow with all his strength.
Ivy’s heart pounded. She threw herself into the fight, using every ounce of power she had. After a long and desperate struggle, they finally managed to push most of the zombies back.
Breathing heavily, they stumbled toward the apartment door. Silas pushed it open. But before they could close it, one zombie slipped through the gap.
It lunged straight at Silas.
"Silas!" Ivy screamed. Her heart jumped into her throat.
Without thinking, she raised her hand. In an instant, Silas vanished. She had pulled him into her temporal storage.
The zombie turned its blood-red eyes on Ivy. It let out a deep, growling snarl.
Ivy froze. She could feel the power radiating from it.
’This is not normal,’ she thought. ’This is... a level 2 zombie.’
Her whole body shook.
’But that is impossible. Level 2 zombies should not appear yet. Not for months. Why is it here now?’
The zombie stepped forward, its claws raised, its eyes fixed on her.
Ivy tightened her grip on her weapon and swallowed hard.
’No matter what, I cannot die here. I have to survive.’
With a loud cry, the zombie lunged at her. Ivy rolled to the side, gripping her knife tightly. She slashed upward, cutting into its arm, but the creature barely flinched. It roared, spinning around and striking with its claws.
The attack missed her by a hair’s width, scraping the wall and leaving deep marks in the concrete.
Her heart pounded. ’Too fast. Too strong. This really is a level 2.’
She steadied her breath. She remembered the training she had forced herself through in her previous life. Level 2 zombies were different from normal ones.
Their weak points were not just their heads, but their balance. They could be outmaneuvered.
She dashed forward suddenly, catching it off guard. Her blade dug into its side, and black blood splattered across the floor.
The zombie screamed, twisting around with shocking speed. Ivy barely had time to duck before its claws tore through the air above her head.
Her chest burned from the effort, but she didn’t stop. She kicked its knee hard, making the creature stumble. With both hands, she stabbed her knife into its throat.
The zombie howled and thrashed. Ivy yanked the blade out and, with one last burst of strength, jumped up and drove the knife straight into its skull.
The monster jerked once, twice, then fell still.
Ivy landed heavily, her hands shaking. Sweat ran down her face.
She stared at the corpse for a long time, panting. Then slowly, she crouched down and split its skull open with the knife.
But there was nothing inside. No crystal.
Her eyes widened. "What? This... this is not right."
She pressed her lips together tightly. ’A level 2 zombie without a crystal? That almost never happens. In my past life, I never saw this even once. Yet here it is. Why?’
Her heart sank. She suddenly thought back to something.
One month ago, strange things had happened too. At that time, she had brushed it off. But then, right after that, misfortunes had come one after another.
Her hand trembled as she checked the calendar on the wall.
The date was exactly the same as that time before.
’No... no, it cannot be. Am I... cursed? Is it like a monthly period of misfortune? Every month, on this date, something terrible happens and someone close to me gets hurt... or even dies?’