8 A frail girl

The creaking sound of a metal door echoed through a silent underground tunnel. I was the one that was the cause of such a huge disturbance. I, who had slowly fully pushed open the metal door to the same room that had brought me to panic earlier.

There was a question in my mind that needed to be answered. The girl who seemed to have finally met her end, I wanted to know if she was really what I feared her to be. Is she really a zombie, or was she that hungry to bite onto my leg?

As far as I could guess, I had my doubts about zombies being a thing. It is not easy for the mind to be directly taken over by another entity, and I believed that it would be even harder against these kids who might have the same mysterious ability like me. 

That's why I had this question. The curiosity to know if she's a zombie or someone who was just hungry. Maybe something else entirely too, like a special ability. 

What if she has the ability to turn others into zombies?! That would definitely be dangerous!

I should tread with caution…

A few centipedes that I had caught before I came here were in my hand. I threw them right at the girl, hoping that she was really dead. I wanted to give up on my curiosity and walk through the wooden doors already like I was supposed to do since the beginning. 

Although I did not wish for the girl to be dead, as that is quite a cruel thing to wish upon someone, I was a bit disappointed to see her open her eyes. The girl, like a hungry shark, brought her mouth to the centipede closest to her. 

Without a single thread of hesitation or dignity, she gobbled up that insect. Her arms started to move, as she became a hunter in front of the insects. In the same way I had satisfied my hunger earlier, she did so too with all of the centipedes that I had thrown at her. 

Her muscles twitched. Like a corpse that was awakened from death, she stood up sluggishly. Seeing this, I subconsciously took a step back while swallowing a drop of my saliva at the same time. I could feel sweat dripping from my forehead.

 I was nervous, my heart beating with the anticipation that I'd run away any second.

But I didn't run away. I stood before her, brave and daunting. My racing heart, it was no longer influenced by fear, but the excitement to use my strength.

Finally! I'm no longer limited by the body of a child!

In front of a frail girl, I was confident I could win. I was certain that I wouldn't get bitten either, because of the simple advantage that I had in length.

"You." 

Huh? Did she just say something? Did I understand her too? So there are others that I can communicate with! Nice.

"Give me more food."

The room was filled with awkward silence after the girl had spoken her second sentence. I did not expect the girl to ask for food all of a sudden. She did not even say thank you. But she is a kid, so I didn't take such a trivial thing to heart.

"Uhm, okay." Was my reply to the little demand of hers. To my reply she gave a few light nods while also showing a cute little smile.

How cute~

Feeling warm inside after seeing such an innocent smile that did not belong in a prison room, I was more than willing to help the little girl out. It is the duty of an adult to help a child in need after all.

Turning around, I headed out of the room. It wasn't a second later when I started to get an uncomfortable feeling behind me. The unexplainable feeling, it was similar to the feeling of someone staring at you blatantly from behind. 

Repulsed by the uncomfortable feeling, I couldn't help but wonder.

Why is she doing that? But why would she be such a creep? Well, some kids do stare… I guess I'll take a quick pee-

I looked behind me, only to see that the girl was no longer where she was a second ago, but almost a metre right near to me! And with her nails looking terrifyingly dangerous!

The anticipation to fight took over me again, like an instinct that was built within me. In a swift motion, I threw a kick at the side of the girl's head. Due to her being frail and light weight, it was an easy feat to send her flying. In response, the girl did not take my attack with a light heart. Her whole face, it was like that of a toddler who got their toy stolen by the neighbour's kid.

With swift speed and with a fuming rage that seemed to be able to set fire to her surroundings, the girl rushed towards me, her claws were ready to pounce! 

Her dark green nails seemed to be dripping with venom. They were aiming straight at me with the intent to strike and kill. 

I, who had already resisted death so many times in this world, naturally did not take her desire to kill lightly. I was prepared to defend myself and survive, even if that means killing her.

Once again, I threw a kick. This time, I had kicked her right at her chest. The result of this is that she flew back farther than before. Surely, as I had thought, she had a hard time breathing after the damage that I had afflicted to her chest. 

If she attacks again, even after being in such a critical state, then I'll be left with no choice. At this point, my fear of her being a zombie might as well be true. 

I can only hope that she stays put…