Infection

On the coast of Termon where fishing is the most common livelihood, a fisherman was preparing his tools and managing them for any damages.

"The net is good and we could have new coolers."

He wrote up his tiny notebook, marking the date and items up. After that, he went back to his house that was near the shore and placed the notebook on a shelf.

He went back to push his tiny boat to the shallow waters before starting the engine of his boat and went off but not far enough that he met the reefs.

Pulling the net and then throwing it he proceeds to fish in the tradition of his hometown. He wasn't bothered by the amount of work this labor of his, he was quite fond of it, in fact.

When he pulled back the net there was a lot of fish that were caught in, he pulled it up and threw them in the cooler. The amount was enough to fill it up.

Though when the Fisher was about to close the cooler, he saw a particular fish that was bloated, probably pregnant. But that doesn't change anything, it's still going in the catch, is what he thought and closed the cooler.

***

"Now Now, Sister-in-law ~ this is the next phase of our recruitment!"

Lenneza and Yula sat down in monoblock chairs as Lenneza was shocked by the line of people in front of their table, ready to take an interview for the job.

"C'mon, cheer up my assistant! This is where we start where we build our business Empire!"

"When did I become your assistant?" complained Lenneza.

It was an hour ago, Yula suddenly barged into Lenneza's room and dragged her out of her will. When they arrived at a rented building, Lenneza saw the number of people lined up to take up the job.

"A-arent we hiring a team to help Leonard?"

"Oh? Didn't I tell you we need an Advertising team, a Coding team, a management administration, and a legal team?"

"A-all of those?"

"YES!" Yula enthusiastically screamed. "It's all thanks to Leonard allowing me to do this! Anything to be out of that damn household!"

Lenneza was then burdened by hours of interview and a few altercations before finally finishing with Yula on the hiring.

"My god this is more tiring than paperwork…" Lenneza mumbled.

Yula compiled all the portfolio on her lap before looking at Lenneza with a grin, in the first Iteration, her business Empire consisted of entertainment, Manufacturing, and service. And even raw materials where her company involves mining mana crystals and a lot of raw materials for nuclear plants.

But she never touched this type of entertainment, where you go for video games and whatnot, she just hoped this type of business industry wouldn't be as toxic as her last business Empire, where everyone is two-faced.

But now everything could be different! She could have a better relationship with Leonard, she wouldn't be childish anymore, and the best part is that she wouldn't do anything she would regret again.

"Now that I think about it…" Yula actually had this question in her mind, She never voiced it out due to the fact that they had a pact that they wouldn't speak of the first iteration when they met.

Who is Lorraine? Like, Elizabeth is now gone, but who is Lorraine? When they first met each other Yula only knows that Leonard is an only child Since Lenneza is adopted.

She wanted to ask Lenneza, but the pact. In the end, she only sighed, she wanted to know where Lorraine came from but didn't bother, she'd get that information from Leonard once she's trusted enough.

"Here sister-in-law, go and give it to Leo because I might be going home soon."

"Eh?" Lenneza receives the files of the portfolio in a bag. "Aren't you going to say goodbye?"

"I would've… but" Yula looked at the time on her phone, "I think I overstayed my welcome"

Lenneza understands, that even though Yula is engaged with Leonard, she was given a curfew as if she was visiting a friend. It must be the work of her servant following her around.

"Good thing we left him back at the mansion huh?"

"Yeah… "

Yula says her goodbye as Lenneza insisted on driving her home, well she was glad that she did though.

Meanwhile,

The fishes in the market were being sold, in the groceries where produce is being sold in the public a particular fish that was bloated came to the hands of a butcher.

"Yes, please I'd like it to be descaled and cut into three pieces."

The civilian said so and the butcher at hand did exactly as his request, descaled the fish and had it cut into three pieces, placed it inside a plastic, and gave it to the shopping man.

"Now what else is on her list… White onion… potatoes…"

He moved his cart till he got everything on the list and went to the counter to have them billed. Once all of his items were boxed it was shipped to his car back to his family.

For the first few weeks nothing happened, after the tsunami a week and a day ago a lot of fish went to shore and scientists found a new species of fish.

The fish that was bought and placed in a loving family fridge was then brought out to be cooked by the oldest son who's a major in culinary.

Once he placed his hand to wash the fish, a sting was felt in his hand, at first he thought he was careless and got stung by wishbones, so he continued.

He made a soup with fish as meat and was deliciously enjoyed by the family. The eldest son made this to enjoy his internship in a good restaurant, a memento of his knowledge from his hard work.

Once he left he felt good, his whole life he stayed average, and everything he did was for his whole family. He got a dorm solely for workers and tomorrow was his first day.

The first time he worked he somehow felt heavy, but not tired and not ill at all. At the end of the day, he got himself a checkup, but nothing. Nothing was wrong with him.

He went to work regularly shrugging off the mysterious feeling, in a hiccup, he accidentally burned his thumb after touching the metallic handle of a pan wrong.

During the week, suddenly every worker in the kitchen felt heavy. Something was wrong, his feeling came true when he tried to get a check-up for some tumor.

The x-ray revealed something long-wired in his brain. The doctor doesn't know what it is either. He went to a mage physician and tried to find out something about the wires in his brain.

His visit was the most eventful in his life.

"Hello, Sir Sean."

"Oh! Sir Wallop. Please have a seat."

The mage physician pointed at the seat in front of his desk.

"You said that your condition is quite weird? And you have suspicions of it being some mild curse?"

"Yeah, something like that. I felt heavy when I went to Klayton dine 3-star restaurant to work. But then it didn't show anything bad, till my coworkers felt the same.

I checked myself for a tumor or something then… a long thing is roped around my brain."

"I got the data that you sent. Since this is a checkup I'll have my mana go in your body, you've had your research in mage physicians right?"

"Yes."

"Okay, let's start."

The physician laid his hands on Wallop's forehead, and inserted his mana, thinking it would be some illusionary curse.

—splatter.

"Huh?"

Blood, bone fragments, and grey matter splattered across the floor. There was no scream. Only a grotesque image of a man's head halved and it became a bigger mouth.

Sean's eyes widened when it sank, and when he processed just what happened, however, it was already too late.

A black worm went towards his eyes at blazing speeds, Sean tried to struggle and fought the worm that incompletely dug itself into his eye.

He struggled and with a lonesome scream, he felt himself being different. Wallop, whose whole head was open, didn't completely fall after his head was crunched open.

—gaaasp…

Instead, he snarled and his whole being felt that it was hungry. It went outside where there were other civilians, then and there, it felt hungry.

The other civilians seeing Wallop's body shivered, his face was open and they could see the inside of his head.

The nearest guy tried to back away, Wallop launched himself towards the poor guy and with a bite force enough to tear flesh he started devouring the man.

The first reaction of the people was to run, a few took it to themselves and saved the guy, pushed Wallop off, and beat him to death.

"What the fuck was that?!"

With adrenaline running in their veins one screamed in terror. The one Wallop bit was snarling.

An unaware man checked up after the guy that was bitten. But then the guy bit the man, Wallop stood up even though he was beaten till he couldn't move.

Wallop bit the nearest man, Sean who was struggling after the worm came out of his office, then lunged towards an innocent bystander and bit it.

The man who checked at the bitten guy started snarling. And then by the chain of events, everyone who was bitten started biting everyone.

***

Leonard was working on his coding when he overheard something when Lenneza and Lorraine who were watching TV in his room suddenly said about a pandemic.

The pandemic started at Termon, the Sea sector of the Empire, it's ruled by a Viscount, and that's not the reason why Leonard was suddenly interested in the news.

"What the… zombies?"

"Zombies… As in undead?"

"No-no, not that."

This world's culture is different from Earth, Leonard knows that, but what the news was telling was a full-on World War Z type of zombies.

Thankfully the cities were cut off and the military acted fast and contained the city from infecting other cities. However, there's a problem and it was the same with any other movies that he has seen in his past life. There are civilians in the city and it cannot be wiped out.

"That's history right there."

"Why do you say that?" Lenneza asked curiously.

"Undead don't make more undead when it bit others, only when someone dies. This one. Zombies in here literally bit others and they became zombies."

"That's… "Lenneza's eyes widened.

"Yeah, an apocalypse could've happened if the military didn't act fast."

Lenneza felt goosebumps, how dangerous would it be if a simple bit would've turned you mindless? Attacking everything without discrimination?

Lenneza placed that thought in the back of her head and instead thought of something that was only logical.

"What caused those zombies to be like that though?"

Leonard pondered, that most of the time the causes of the zombies in his past life only have one in common.

"A virus."

Lenneza then had sweat rolling down her forehead.

"Isn't Termon, near The country of Lazul?"

Leonard was surprised by this conclusion, Lenneza was implying a biological weapon, and the fact that Lazul was on bad terms with other countries would make the Empire suspicious of this event.

"Oh don't say that, Lazul had no reason to do that right?"

Right?