Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!
The sound of bells began ringing throughout the citadel.
Soon, the sentry on the watchtower shouted at the top of his lungs.
“Giants spotted! Giants spotted! Approaching slowly from 100 paces away—!”
His voice carried a strange note of excitement.
At the same time, commotion erupted all across the citadel.
Thud thud thud thud thud thud thud thud thud!
Soldiers from barracks, mess halls, infirmaries, and training grounds came rushing up to the walls.
Some even burst out while still in the middle of relieving themselves.
Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!
The bell the sentry rang was the ‘Heightened Alert’ signal.
It was used only when anomalies were detected around the citadel.
The actual combat readiness order for situations like a zombie legion invasion came in the form of the war horn.
Therefore there was no real reason for the entire force to gather on the walls like this.
Yet the soldiers had all rushed up because…
“Where are they?! Where?!”
“Over there! North side!”
“I was about to get a stiff neck waiting, man!”
The outsiders had come again.
The soldiers’ faces flushed as their eyes sparkled. They looked exactly like children waiting for birthday presents.
Today marked the tenth day since the outsiders first appeared.
Beyond suspicion, they now felt almost like welcome neighbors.
Soon, singing drifted over from beyond the walls.
[Super Special Girl Play~ Super Special Girl Play~ Super Special Gi~rl Pla~y~ √]
A cheerful melody shook the entire citadel.
The soldiers burst into cheers.
“Wow! A new song!”
“Ooh, this one’s got serious vibes…”
“They brought something insane again.”
“Super Special Girl Play~ Gi~rl Pla~y~”
At first the soldiers had been annoyed by the music that played every workday.
But humming along to the addictive tunes made their anxiety and despair vanish like they had been washed away.
Meanwhile, the outsider was cooking something while the music played.
The soldiers swallowed hard as they watched.
“Man, what is it this time?”
“Fried chicken? It’s gotta be fried chicken, right? Please!”
“It might be that round bread with cheese like last time!”
The savory scent of frying oil and the sweet-salty aroma rode the wind.
This time the soldiers’ stomachs began rumbling violently.
Gurgle— Guuuuurgle~!
The outsider always prepared the food and then disappeared.
Every dish was completely new, yet every single one tasted incredible.
When the soldiers opened the gates and rushed out, the outsider would vanish, leaving only the cauldrons full of food behind.
The soldiers smacked their lips awkwardly.
“Maybe we’ve been treating them too harshly this whole time?”
“Yeah… Shooting arrows the moment they showed up was a bit much…”
“Should we start being nicer to them from now on?”
“Let’s only send out the friendliest guys, and without weapons. Peacefully.”
Music that energized you the more you heard it.
Food that made you happier the more you ate.
It was only natural that the soldiers’ attitudes had begun to change.
Of course, some soldiers still remained suspicious of the outsiders.
What was their purpose?
Why provide such precious food?
In this harsh world, goodwill without intention did not exist.
Still, even they did not object to taking the food.
The citadel’s food situation was simply that desperate.
A basin surrounded by giant mushrooms.
Crops would not grow on the damp, muddy ground. The only forageable food outside was moss, mushrooms, and rat meat.
Exploration teams occasionally brought back wild chickens or pigs, but that happened maybe once or twice a year.
“Alright, let’s take it back.”
The soldiers lifted the cauldron together.
Feeling the heavy weight, they sighed in relief.
Enough fried chicken to fill not only themselves but their families too.
A moment later.
“So, who’s tasting today?”
The soldiers gathered around the cauldron after returning to the citadel.
So far no one had gotten sick from the outsider’s food.
Still, they always had one person taste first to check for poison.
If it was poisoned, it could cause irreversible disaster.
Soon a new recruit raised his hand high.
“I’ll do it!”
He picked up a piece of fried chicken from the cauldron.
Orange powder was thickly coated on the batter.
He took a big bite.
Crunch!
At that moment.
“Huk!?”
The recruit clutched his chest.
His pupils shook. Veins bulged on his neck. His face flushed bright red.
He groaned.
“I… I’m gonna… die…”
The soldiers’ faces turned white.
“What?! What’s wrong with him?!”
“Medic! Where’s the medic?!”
“Spit it out! Spit it out, you idiot!”
Had the outsider finally shown their true colors?
But at that moment.
“N-no, I mean it tastes so good I might die, sir!”
The recruit wore an ecstatic expression.
Curses flew from every direction.
“You little—!”
“Completely lost it, huh?”
“Who’s his squad leader?”
But only for a moment.
“So this is so good it makes a new recruit lose his mind?”
“Hmm! This side smells salty. This side smells sweet.”
“Could it really be better than the spicy fried chicken from last time?”
“Everyone reacts at different speeds. We should all check for ourselves!”
The soldiers began picking up pieces of fried chicken one by one.
Crunch crunch crunch crunch crunch!
A lively symphony rang out from all sides.
“Wow… this is seriously delicious?”
“I can never go back to mushroom soup now…”
“This brown-seasoned one is to die for!”
“This orange-powder one is to die for!”
The soldiers tasted the fried chicken with blissful expressions.
At that moment.
“I heard the outsiders’ food has been retrieved.”
A husky, low voice rang out.
The soldiers instantly snapped to attention and saluted.
“Welcome, Captain!”
The guard captain approached, blue bob swaying.
She pointed at the cauldron.
“Cook, remove the batter from a few pieces and turn them into chicken soup for the patients and elders.”
The soldier holding the ladle rushed forward.
“Yes, ma’am! I’ll bring your personal portion to your room separately!”
“No need. I’m fine. Make sure everyone else gets one more piece.”
She looked at the soldiers and continued.
“It is you who support Hecate Citadel. Only when you eat well and regain your strength can our families sleep peacefully tonight.”
“Captain…”
The soldiers’ eyes grew moist.
At that moment the cook came forward carrying something.
“Oh right, we also had these today!”
Colorful fruits skewered on sticks rested on a pure white plate.
A glass-like transparent coating wrapped each piece.
“We already tasted them to confirm they’re safe. Would you like to try one, Captain?”
“Then I’ll take one.”
It was a small, red, inverted-triangle fruit.
The thumb-sized flesh was densely studded with yellow seeds.
A fruit none of them had ever seen in this region.
The captain took a big bite.
Crack!
An entirely unexpected sound.
It sounded exactly like breaking glass, and the texture felt like chewing glass.
Yet.
Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!
The more she chewed, the more her expression changed—first surprise, then admiration, finally pure joy.
Her blue eyes sparkled.
But only for a moment.
“This fruit candy…”
The captain smiled faintly.
“The children will love it. Distribute them.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
Soon the captain entered the large tunnel entrance at the center of the citadel.
After she left, the soldiers wiped their eyes.
“Sniff… Captain…”
“No one cares for us like she does.”
“The other day she even gave her own share of fried chicken to a pregnant soldier’s wife.”
Even though she was young enough to be their daughter, the soldiers felt deep respect and loyalty toward her.
Soon they lifted the cauldron again.
“Let’s hurry and share this with everyone else!”
***
Sen Hyal.
She was the guard captain of Hecate Citadel.
And Hecate Citadel was a defensive fortress built to protect the tunnel entrance.
The people lived inside the complex network of tunnels.
The tunnels maintained a constant temperature and humidity regardless of outside weather, providing the perfect living environment.
Of course, the citadel’s people had not dug these tunnels themselves.
…This place had originally been an ant nest inhabited by zombies.
A hundred years ago, Hyal’s great-grandfather had exterminated the zombies and settled here, finally ending their long wanderings.
At first they built wooden fences around the entrance, then stone walls, and eventually completed a sturdy citadel.
Soon, Captain Hyal arrived at the door to her room.
Creeeeak— Boom!
Walls, ceiling, and even the door were covered in fluffy white moss.
The moss provided excellent soundproofing and gave off a faint citrus scent.
Firefly lanterns cast a soft green glow throughout the room.
Hyal removed her helmet, armor, and weapons.
The equipment had been crafted from the exoskeleton of elite zombie soldiers.
Heirloom treasures passed down through the Sen family since her great-grandfather’s time.
“Whew…”
Her body was covered in lean muscle without an ounce of fat.
Her peach-colored skin was marked by countless large and small scars.
Yet her youthful face still belonged unmistakably to a woman in her twenties.
Hyal lay down on her hammock.
Suppress desire.
The watch captain is the pillar of the citadel.
Never reveal emotional turmoil to others.
The final words her father, the previous captain, had left before he died.
Hyal had followed them faithfully.
At least in front of others.
She reached for the object beside her pillow.
A mushroom as large as a puppy.
Its insides had been hollowed out and filled with spores, creating a soft, fluffy texture.
“Bunny, were you guarding the house well?”
Hyal’s voice was impossibly soft and gentle.
If any soldier had heard it, they would never have believed it belonged to the guard captain.
Then.
“Aaaaaah! I want another one of those fruit skewers from earlier—!”
Hyal hugged the mushroom doll and shouted.
Like a child throwing a tantrum, she cried out while staring at the doll.
I can hold it in! But that fruit skewer is weird! It’s too delicious! What do you think, Bunny?
The fried chicken too?
Naturally the mushroom doll did not answer.
Recently Captain Hyal had been troubled.
She had never felt this restless even during battles against the zombies.
The cause was the outsiders who had appeared outside the citadel ten days ago.
The songs that played during every work shift.
She couldn’t sleep because she kept wondering how the chorus ended.
At night the melodies looped endlessly in her head, but she didn’t know the next lyrics and it drove her crazy.
And the food.
It tasted more heavenly than anything she had ever eaten in her life.
“Sweet fruit skewers… I want to eat more…”
Hyal hugged the mushroom doll tighter.
What do I do?! Sis, I want to eat more of that—! I want to pile them up like a mountain and eat them all~! But Bunny, I have to hold it in~! Ughhh, the captain must maintain dignity~!
While she rolled around restlessly on the hammock—
Thud thud thud!
Someone knocked urgently on her door.
A voice came from outside.
“C-Captain… Captain—!”
It sounded as if the speaker might collapse from lack of breath at any moment.
Hyal’s voice returned to its usual grave, husky tone.
“What is it?”
When she opened the door, a soldier with a deathly pale face stood there.
“P-please come out immediately! It’s… it’s an emergency!”
He had run so hard he could barely breathe.
“Has the outsider brought more food?”
“N-no, ma’am!”
“Then have they brought another singing device?!”
“N-not that either!”
Only then did Hyal sense that something truly serious had occurred.
Bwooooooo~!
The sound of war horns echoed through the tunnel passages.
At the same time.
Rumble rumble rumble rumble~!
The entire tunnel began to shake.
The soldier shouted at the top of his lungs.
“The zombies are coming! Thousands of them!”