Zombie Domination-Chapter 391- Display

The room was austere, carved from dark, polished stone that absorbed the light from a few strategically placed glow-orbs. It held the solemn, heavy air of a throne room, but without ostentation—only function and implicit power. At its head, seated in a chair of wrought iron and reclaimed hardwood, was a man marked by a scar running across his forehead. His hair was a vibrant, fiery red, and his sharp grey eyes held a chill that seemed to lower the temperature in the room.

Beside him stood a woman of striking presence. Her long, jet-black hair cascaded over her shoulders, framing a face of cold, classic beauty. Her figure was full and poised, and her eyes, a piercing crimson, watched the scene before them with detached interest.

Kneeling on the rough floor before them was a thin, trembling man with grey hair and thick glasses. His clothes were worn, his posture one of utter supplication.

"Please, Lord Darwin," the man, Jeffrie, stammered, his voice echoing pitifully in the sparse room. "I swear, I will follow your instructions to the letter from now on. The delay was unforeseen, the resources were—"

"Silence."

Darwin's voice was not loud, but it cut through the air like a scalpel, cold and precise. "There have been too many failures to tolerate. The directive was clear. The timetable was explicit. Yet, the result was not. It seems my orders are being treated as… suggestions." He leaned forward slightly, his grey eyes locking onto Jeffrie's. "Do you mistake my patience for leniency, Jeffrie? Do you look at me and see someone… soft?"

"N-no! Not at all, my lord!" Jeffrie pleaded, his head bowing so low it nearly touched the floor. "I would never dare to hold such a thought! The circumstances were—"

"Carol," Darwin said, his gaze not leaving the cowering man. "Do I appear soft to you?"

The black-haired woman let a faint, cruel smile touch her lips. "You could look in a mirror and see for yourself. Men piss themselves when your shadow falls upon them." Her voice was a smooth, smoky contralto.

"I did not ask about my face," Darwin replied, his tone flat.

"Ah. Then, no. You are not soft. You are the firm, unyielding hand. The consequence made flesh," Carol amended, her red eyes gleaming.

Darwin nodded slowly, as if a minor curiosity had been settled. He returned his full attention to Jeffrie. "You see, Jeffrie? Your failure suggests a perception problem. One that has led to a disappointing outcome."

"I will rectify it! Immediately! I will pour every resource—" Jeffrie babbled, a spark of desperate hope in his eyes.

"That will not be necessary," Darwin stated, his voice final.

'I'm so fucked. I have to make him understand, I have to convince him,' Jeffrie's mind raced, a frantic, silent mantra beneath his trembling exterior. He had to find the right words, the perfect excuse that would appeal to Darwin's cold logic.

"My Lord, please, I was attempting to reconfigure the resource allocation in a way that would ultimately benefit the Eclipse's expansion—" Jeffrie began, his voice a desperate whine.

Darwin stood up slowly. The deliberate scrape of his chair against the stone floor was the only sound. He began to walk toward Jeffrie, each step measured and heavy with finality. Jeffrie's breath hitched, his body instinctively trying to shrink further into the floor.

Darwin stopped before him, looking down. "Do I look like I care about your reasons?"

Jeffrie fell silent, the words dying in his throat.

"For the past several cycles, you have been warned to align yourself with my commands," Darwin continued, his voice dropping to a chilling, conversational tone. "Yet your actions have run counter to them. I do not require subordinates who hear my words and choose to interpret them. I require instruments that execute."

A palpable pressure began to fill the air around Jeffrie. It felt physical, a squeezing sensation on his lungs and heart. Gasping, he forced his head up to look at Darwin. What he saw in those sharp grey eyes wasn't just anger—it was a kind of predatory, analytical disgust. The evaluation was over, and the verdict was waste.

Instinct screamed at Jeffrie that this was the end. "PLEASE, MY LORD! I BEG OF YOU! I HAVE A FAMILY IN THE WESTERN SECTOR! I—"

Darwin didn't react to the pleas. He raised his right hand, index finger pointing casually at Jeffrie's forehead. The tip of his finger darkened, then swelled with a viscous, crimson fluid that glistened like fresh blood held in suspension.

Jeffrie's words dissolved into incoherent sobs and raw, guttural pleas, tears and snot streaming down his face.

Darwin's expression did not change. The droplet of red liquid shot forward with a soft, wet snick.

It pierced Jeffrie's forehead cleanly between the eyes. His desperate, weeping monologue was cut off mid-syllable. His body stiffened for a fraction of a second, then collapsed sideways onto the cold stone, a thin trickle of blood and strange red fluid leaking from the perfect, tiny hole.

Silence returned to the room, deeper than before.

Darwin lowered his hand, glancing at the residue on his fingertip before it was reabsorbed into his skin. He turned and walked back to his seat. "Dispose of it," he said to no one in particular, though several figures shrouded in shadow near the walls moved forward silently. "And find someone competent for the eastern watch post. The signal we detected from the old suppression zone… it warrants attention. I will not tolerate another failure."

Carol watched the body being dragged away, her beautiful face an impassive mask. "Your message will be received."

Darwin settled back into his seat, the harsh lines of his face softening into an expression of cold contemplation. "Do not forget about what lies beneath that fool," he said, his voice cutting through the quiet. "Display it where the others can see. Let them understand the cost of misplaced ambition and failed obedience."

Carol gave a slight, respectful nod. "It will be a lesson written in flesh and bone." She paused, her crimson eyes narrowing as she shifted to the next matter. "And the energy signature our scouts detected in the Verdant Syndicate's territory? The one that spiked after the global damping field collapsed. It's raw, potent, and unclaimed. What are your orders?"

A faint, ruthless smile touched Darwin's lips. "We discovered it first. That makes it ours. Send the Vanguard to secure the site immediately."

"Understood. However, the Verdant Syndicate still operates there under the terms of our non-aggression pact. Moving openly will be seen as an act of war. It would shatter what remains of our cooperation with them," Carol noted, her tone analytical, not dissenting.

Darwin's smile didn't waver. "Our cooperation? Ah, yes. That." He leaned forward, his grey eyes glinting. "That pact served its purpose when they controlled the region's logistics. They no longer do. We have what we needed from them. Therefore, they have outlived their usefulness." His voice was devoid of malice, merely stating a simple equation. "Useless things are to be cleared away. Efficiently."

Carol absorbed the logic, her own expression mirroring his cold resolve. "I understand. I will mobilize the Vanguard and lead them personally. We will secure the energy source."

"Good," Darwin said, his gaze drifting toward a map etched into the wall. "If the Syndicate resists... make sure their resistance is terminal. Leave no one behind to nurture a grudge. A clean break is the most merciful kind, in the long run."

Carol paused at the doorway, looking back over her shoulder. "Understood. I will carry out your will."

Darwin's sharp grey eyes followed her, a flicker of approval in their depths. "I do enjoy a woman who understands efficiency. It's… a pleasing trait."

A dry, almost imperceptible smile touched Carol's lips. "I have no desire to become a lesson displayed for the others."

Darwin let out a low, soft chuckle that held no warmth. "I am not that barbaric, Carol. Now, if you were as foolish as Jeffrie… well, your skull would already have a new ventilation hole."

"Noted. And… thank you," Carol replied, her tone flat yet carrying a thread of dark understanding.

As Carol began to turn again, Darwin spoke once more, his voice contemplative. "There are still rats scurrying within our own walls. Whispers that think they are too quiet to hear."

Carol stopped fully, her posture straightening. "They should be rooted out quickly. Before their tunnels become a structural problem."

"Nah, no need to rush," Darwin said, leaning back and steepling his fingers once more. A cold, predatory light gleamed in his eyes. "Let them scurry a little longer. Let them believe they are hidden. A drawn-out hunt… is so much more satisfying than a swift execution. Panic is far more informative than silence."

A slow, understanding nod from Carol. She saw the logic—not just punishment, but intelligence gathering through induced paranoia. "As you wish. I will watch, and I will listen."