The Perfect Path To Insanity-Chapter 40: Zombie Land End— A Lost Cause

[Stay Alive Till Then!]

Fei Ming approached the barricaded entrance of the abandoned building, his polearm blade extending from his forearm.

He stared long at the makeshift wall of debris.

Touching it, and concentrating hard enough, a wave of red energy rippled out of him.

[Your Skill ’Weight Manipulation’ Is Being Used.]

Under his grip, everything felt weightless and with little strength, he yanked the whole barricade away.

He entered the building.

Inside, Nyx snarled from her tied position against the metal pole, her body jerking forward repeatedly.

Her eyes met his. He lazily scanned her decaying, feral form, noting the bloodshot protrusion in her gaze and the foam flecking her lips.

She tried lunging at him but the tied cords dug deeper into her bleeding wrists, holding her back.

Eris spun toward the noise at the door.

Gripping a metal pole with both hands, she emerged from the dark. "Who’s there? Stay back."

When she saw him standing before Nyx, her eyes went wide. Despite seeing the sharp blades hovering above him, she stood her ground.

"Get away from her!" She swung her weapon, positioning herself between them, her chest rising and falling rapidly.

"You—get out!! She’s not hurting anyone!"

Extending his right arm further, a duplicate of his blade moved forward. "She’s infected. Move."

"RAHHHH!" Nyx lunged against her restraints, teeth snapping at the air toward him.

Her growls turned into high-pitched rasps.

Somehow, her aggression was pointed toward him only and not the other human in the space.

[Time Remaining: 5 minutes 12 seconds]

Eris shook her head, angry tears forming at the corners of her eyes. "NO! Don’t you fucking touch her!!!"

He ignored her. The blade thrust forward, aiming for Nyx’s shoulder.

"Grrahhhh!" Nyx twisted her upper body, the cord now cut deep into her skin.

"I SAID DON’T TOUCH HER!"

Eris swung her pole wildly from the side, the end clashed with his duplicated blade. "Stop!"

Even without any abilities, her swing was powerful enough to send one of his swords flying the opposite direction.

He tilted his head. "Why? I don’t seem to understand. She’s already dead."

"No!" she screamed, standing in front of him and ready to swing again.

Ding!

[Number of Infected Kills: 26!]

"Nyx is still in there. You already have skills, Fateless. Hell, you’re stronger now! What more do you fucking want? This game won’t penalize us from keeping just one zombie left!"

He sighed. This was taking more time than expected. It’ll only take a matter of seconds for Helens to reach him.

"My goals are different from yours. What benefit would it be of mine if I let her live? None," he said.

’Besides... It wouldn’t hurt to see a new expression. It’s been a while. How would she die? In what way? Would she cry? Shock?’

A tremor ran through his body. ’I want to see.’

Fei Ming retracted the blades briefly, pivoting to face Eris while keeping Nyx in peripheral view. "Move."

But Eris was only more determined. Her grip on the pole tightened. "You’ll have to kill me first."

"Then I will."

Snap!

"Nyx!"

Nyx broke one wrist free. Blood sprayed from the torn skin as she reached out, baring her jagged teeth at him.

’What?’

Surprised, Fei Ming jolted back, nearly stumbling before he caught himself.

With intense speed, she charged. Inches away from biting him.

His eyes widened in fear.

He couldn’t get infected like this.

He was this close to winning. He can’t die like this. He can’t. He needed to win. He must win. He must. After all his careful calculations. It shouldn’t all be a waste.

How would he plague the whole city if he doesn’t win this game? How would he get his revenge on the gods who gave him such an ill name?

He must win.

...

’Calm down, Fateless. Panic solves nothing.’

Splat!

The first duplicated Sword of Justice sliced Nyx’s arm off.

She howled in pain, her free hand raking at his chest, nails tearing fabric but missing his skin.

The second duplicated blade extended fully, thrusting into Nyx’s chest once.

She paused, staggering back, which gave him space to flee from her.

Then the duplicated blade retracted and stabbed her again.

Blood welled up, her body jerking violently.

Eris stood there in shock. Watching the only person she had been protecting die again in her presence. It was like her heart had been ripped off by this very man, and was shredded into pieces.

She collapsed to her knees, sobs breaking from her throat. "...Nyx... Nyx."

Heaving heavily, Fei Ming pulled back the blades one final time, clicking them into place on his arm.

Nyx’s form slumped down, motionless. Blood pooling on the floor beneath her.

Ding!

[Number Of Infected Kills: 27!]

[Congratulations, Fateless! You Have Won The Game ’Zombieland’!]

[All Zombies Have Been Eradicated! The Zombie Virus Is Now Extinct!]

[All prizes will be delivered shortly!]

Meanwhile, unfortunately for Helena, she got to the scene late. She was a sweating mess. Her red hair frizzled and puffed as she heaved heavily. The giant sledgehammer dragged behind her. "No," she muttered to herself.

’This monster got there before I did.’

Fateless stood there. Breathing slowly. Looking down at his kill. The black blood pooling to his feet. Should he feel bad for taking a life already taken?

’I won. I got what I wanted. But...’

Glancing down at Eris choking on her sobs, he traced back to Nyx’s corpse. Right on her lifeless face was a smile. Although it was little, he noticed it.

A fucking smile. ’What was she smiling about?’

It was no fun watching someone like Eris cry about a lost cause. It felt hollow and empty to him.

What he enjoyed were the death expressions of every kill he caused.

So why the fuck was Nyx smiling about when she died? Was there even a part of humanity in her even in her zombie form?

’Death should hurt. It’s an ugly thing. Why does my victory feel like a loss?’

This left a bitter taste in his mouth.