The safety around the villa shattered the moment Mia raised her weapon.
Her hands trembled—not from fear, but from anger buried for years.
The girl standing a few meters away froze under the barrel of the gun. She was thin, exhausted, her clothes torn from weeks of running. Her eyes were familiar—too familiar.
"Mia…" the girl whispered again.
Mia's jaw clenched. "Don't say my name."
The memories flooded back like poison. Her mother begging. Doors closing. Silence where family should have been.
"You didn't help us," Mia said, her voice cracking. "Your family didn't even answer."
The girl swallowed hard, tears pooling. "I was a kid. I didn't know—"
"LIAR."
Mia's finger tightened.
The world narrowed to that single moment.
Then—
"Mia! STOP!"
Luo's voice cut through the air.
He ran between them without thinking, placing himself directly in front of the gun. Mia gasped.
"Are you insane?!" she shouted. "Move!"
Luo stared at the girl behind him—and suddenly froze.
"…Wait."
He stepped closer, squinting at her face despite the dirt and exhaustion.
"No way," he murmured. "That can't be…"
The girl's eyes widened.
"…Luo?"
He sucked in a breath.
"You're Yuna. SunnyYuna. The streamer."
Mia blinked. "What?"
Yuna's face lit up in pure disbelief. "You remember me?!"
Luo laughed softly despite the tension. "Of course I do. You, me, and a few others—we used to collab before I went back to my country. You were huge. Gaming, vlogs, travel streams…"
Yuna nodded rapidly, tears spilling. "You disappeared. Everyone thought you quit."
"I didn't quit," Luo said quietly. "The world just… changed."
Mia stared between them, stunned. "You… know her?"
Luo turned to Mia, gentle but firm. "She's not lying. She's famous—or she was. And she's harmless."
Mia's grip loosened, doubt creeping in. "Yuna…?"
Yuna stepped forward slowly, lowering her head. "I know I don't deserve forgiveness. But I never stopped regretting it."
Silence stretched.
Then Mia lowered the gun.
"…You can stay," she said coldly. "But don't think this fixes anything."
Yuna nodded quickly. "I won't. I promise."
Lily leaned against the wall, arms crossed, observing with narrowed eyes. "Great. Another girl."
Luo sighed. "Please don't start."
Lily smiled sweetly. "I won't. Yet."
Yuna blinked. "She's… intense."
Mia muttered, "You have no idea."
---
Far across the city, despair hung heavy in the air.
Aria knelt in the ruins, the zombie core glowing faintly in her trembling hands. It pulsed like a living heart—warm, dangerous, cursed.
Her team stood behind her, wounded but alive.
The three cloaked figures remained still, silent, watching her like judges.
"We don't want war," one of them said calmly. "We want balance."
Aria's voice was hoarse. "This core… it's all I have left."
The tallest figure tilted its head. "It's also what binds you."
Her fingers tightened.
She thought of her father.
Of the screams.
Of the blood.
"…Take it," Aria whispered.
She extended her hand.
The core floated upward, drifting into the cloaked figure's grasp. The moment it left her palm, Aria felt something rip away from her chest—painful, empty, terrifying.
Her knees hit the ground.
The shortest cloaked figure stepped forward.
"You've suffered enough," it said softly.
Before Aria could react, the figure raised a hand.
Light exploded.
Symbols—magic texts—appeared in the air, ancient and glowing, rotating around her body. Aria screamed as energy washed over her.
Memories flooded back.
Her childhood.
Her laughter.
Her sickness.
Her father holding her hand.
The monstrous strength drained away.
When the light faded, Aria collapsed.
She was breathing.
Normal.
Human.
She stared at her hands—no claws, no scales, no unnatural glow.
"…I'm back," she whispered in disbelief.
The cloaked figure spoke one final time, its voice echoing like prophecy.
"To survive what comes…
You must choose power again.
But this time—on your own terms."
The three figures stepped backward—
And vanished into shadow.
Aria lay there, crying—not from pain, but from the weight of what she had lost… and what she might still become.
---
Back at the villa, night settled uneasily.
Yuna sat near the fire, nervously twisting her fingers. "I never thought I'd see you again," she said to Luo softly.
"Same," he replied. "Life's strange."
Lily watched from across the room, unimpressed.
Mia stared into the flames, emotions tangled and raw.
The villa felt more crowded.
More complicated.
And somewhere in the dark, forces far greater than zombies or soldiers were beginning to move.
---
END OF CHAPTER 11