Chapter 91: Zombie King x Ex-Girlfriend (13)

The next morning arrived far too quickly.

Even though every single muscle in Lyra’s body was aching from yesterday’s chaotic battles, she had no choice but to drag her tired feet behind a cold-faced vanguard guard leading her down the corridor.

"You’ll be working here with the Vice Captain," the guard stated coldly, stopping outside office door on the second floor. "Your job is to assist him with inventory logs, and from time to time, deliver updated reports directly to the Captain on the top floor."

The guard cast a doubtful glance down at Lyra’s fragile frame. Even though rumors were spreading that this girl had somehow protected the Captain twice, was she truly worth holding such a privileged position in their elite vanguard squad? Without giving her a second thought, the guard turned on his heel and marched away into the hallway.

Lyra, who had stayed up far too late into the night chatting and bonding with Senior Sister Claire in the infirmary, let out a massive, kitten-like yawn. But the very second she pushed the office door open and stepped inside, her mouth hung wide open in disbelief!

"YOU?!"

"YOU?!"

Both of their shocked voices echoed off the room

Standing by the central desk, holding a stack of files, was none other than the reddish-haired Vice Captain.

Lyra’s dark eyes flared into an instant glare. "Why on earth do I have to work with you?!"

The reddish-haired guy scoffed loudly, rolling his eyes as he tossed the file folder onto his desk. "As if I am remotely interested in working with you! I have no idea what the Captain was thinking when he assigned a pampered slacker to my office. Tsk!"

"A slacker?!" Lyra snapped, taking a fierce step forward with her hands resting indignantly on her slender hips. "At least I actually fight on the front lines! Unlike a certain someone who loves playing the heroic knight in shining armor, taking credit for my hard work!"

He coughed awkwardly into his fist, his face flushing with a mixture of embarrassment and annoyance. "I-I told you that was an accident! Besides, who told you to jump into a Level 3 zombie fight like a reckless maniac?!"

"I jumped in because I actually have courage!" Lyra huffed out, flipping her silky hair over her shoulder as she marched past him, pulling out a wooden chair on the opposite side of the desk. "Hand over the work before I report your terrible shooting skills to the Captain!"

"Tsk! You really have a foul mouth for someone who looks like a delicate doll," the reddish-haired guy grumbled under his breath, shoving a massive pile of handwritten papers toward her. "Here! Sort the medical inventory by sector codes."

Lyra looked down at the massive stack of yellowed paper, her dark eyebrows furrowing in utter, disbelief-filled disgust. She poked the pile with her finger. "Wait... is there no PC? No tablet? Not even a basic smartphone?!"

The reddish-haired Vice Captain stopped writing, giving her an absolute, deadpan ’duh’ look. "Obviously it’s an apocalypse! The central power grid collapsed two weeks ago! Where on earth would I find a working computer network?! At least we have paper, ink, and pens, so use them!"

Lyra rolled her eyes so hard her head tilted back. "Unbelievable... Back to the Stone Age we go."

For the next two hours, the room fell into a quiet routine of scratching pens and rustling paper. However, recovering from a gunshot wound, a fever, and extreme physical exhaustion was no joke. Slowly, Lyra’s slender shoulders began to droop. Her dark eyelashes fluttered heavily, her chin resting on her palm as her head dipped lower and lower toward the desk.

Within minutes, her pen slipped from her fingers, and she fell fast asleep, resting her head softly against her folded arm over the paper stack.

The reddish-haired Vice Captain paused his writing, turning his head to look at her.

The bright morning sunlight streamed through the high window, illuminating her peaceful, sleeping face. Her hair fanned out over the wooden desk like black silk, her rosy, plump lips pouting slightly as her chest rose and fell in a soft, steady rhythm.

Honestly... the Vice Captain thought silently, staring at her for a long moment, she really is remarkably pleasant to look at... if only her mouth wasn’t so incredibly foul.

Thinking back to the campus rumors he had heard, he recalled that she was formerly Captain Kael’s ex-girlfriend- a notoriously wealthy, pampered heiress who treated everyone like her personal servant. He let out a quiet, sympathetic sigh, shaking his head.

No wonder she acts so stubborn and spoiled... She grew up having everything handed to her. He picked up his jacket, tossing it lightly over her shoulders to keep the draft off her. Sadly, there is no place for such a delicate, pampered girl to survive in a cruel apocalyptic world like this... unless someone protects her.

Meanwhile, on the top floor...

Inside the spacious, dark central command office, Kael Noctis sat behind his desk. His tall frame was perfectly still, his broad shoulders draped in his coat.

He glanced up at the antique pendulum clock ticking on the wall.

According to his explicit command yesterday, Lyra was supposed to deliver the updated Base B supply and survivor inventory reports to his desk at precisely 10:00 AM.

Ten minutes passed. 10:10 AM.

Twenty minutes passed. 10:20 AM.

Thirty minutes passed. 10:30 AM.

As the minutes ticked away, Kael’s piercing emerald-green eyes grew progressively colder and darker. A pitch-black shadow swirled deep within his pupils, making the air in his quiet office freeze into an icy draft.

A cold scoff escaped his lips.

As expected of her... Kael thought, his jaw setting tightly as his knuckles turned white against the desk. She hasn’t changed at all. Arrogant, lazy, and completely dismissive of rules.

Without uttering a word to the guards outside his door, Kael stood up to his full height. His boots echoed down the staircase as he descended to the second floor, radiating a dark, terrifying aura that made every passing survivor freeze in terror.

He reached the Vice Captain’s office door. Pushing it open without knocking, he prepared to lay down a harsh punishment-

Only to find the room completely silent, devoid of the Vice Captain, who had stepped out to check the courtyard guards.

Standing in the center of the room, Kael’s cold gaze landed directly on the desk.

Lyra was sleeping peacefully, completely oblivious to his dangerous presence.

Kael stopped dead in his tracks. The harsh reprimand on his tongue died instantly. He slowly walked over to the side of the desk, his towering shadow completely enveloping her small form.

He leaned down slightly, his handsome face hovering just inches away from hers.

For some inexplicable reason, as his emerald eyes locked onto her sleeping face, Kael dazed off into a sudden trance. Her rosy, plump lips were pouting softly in her sleep, her delicate, high nose bridge looking impossibly soft under the sunlight.

A sudden nostalgia slammed into Kael’s chest like a sledgehammer.

He vividly remembered two years ago, back during their university days. Back when she was using him to write her academic papers and manage her GPA, she would often get bored, slump onto the library desk right beside him, and fall fast asleep just like this while he quietly worked through her homework. Back then, whenever she fell asleep, her brow would furrow into this exact same adorable, tiny pouting frown. And back then... he used to reach out, gently brushing his fingers across her forehead to smooth away her frown.

Without even realizing what his body was doing, driven by a deep, subconscious muscle memory that years of bitterness had failed to erase, Kael slowly raised his hand. His long, calloused fingers reached toward her soft cheek, guiding his hand closer to touch her-

FLUTTER!

Lyra’s dark eyes suddenly snapped wide open!

The very second her vision cleared, she was met with the sight of a towering, pitch-black shadow hovering directly over her, and Kael’s large hand reaching straight for her face!

Lyra’s entire body went ice-cold rigid! A terrifying wave of cold sweat exploded across her skin!

HOLY SHIT! Lyra screamed in absolute horror inside her soul! WAS THIS ZOMBIE KING MALE LEAD ABOUT TO STRANGLE ME TO DEATH IN MY SLEEP BECAUSE I WAS THIRTY MINUTES LATE WITH HIS REPORT?!

She flinched, shrinking back into her wooden chair with her drk eyes wide and shaking in pure terror!

Seeing her wake up so abruptly and flinch away from his hand as if he were a terrifying monster, Kael’s hand froze mid-air.

His emerald-green eyes flickered with a sudden glint of annoyance and embarrassment. He quickly straightened his tall frame back to his full, imposing height, tucking his hands coldly into his coat pockets as if nothing had happened.

His jaw set tightly, his face turning cold once again.

"You are thirty minutes late, Miss Vance," Kael declared in a deep, raspy, and strictly cold voice that echoed through the quiet office. "Do you think being assigned to my personal vanguard team gives you the privilege to sleep on the job? In this base, slacking off during active inventory duties is grounds for immediate expulsion."

He stood there towering over her, his cold, piercing eyes boring straight into hers, laying down a stern scolding that would have brought any other survivor to tears.

However, throughout his entire cold lecture...

Lyra stayed completely silent.

She didn’t talk back. She didn’t roll her eyes. She didn’t even offer a single sarcastic remark or throw a spoiled tantrum like she usually did.

She just sat quietly in her chair, clutching his jacket around her shoulders, her eyelashes lowered as she stared down at the wooden desk with a pale face, quietly accepting every single word of his scolding.

Seeing her unusually quiet, submissive, and speechless reaction, Kael’s harsh words gradually trailed off. A strange, uncomfortable knot tightened in his chest, making him feel an odd, unexplainable sense of irritation.

"Deliver the Base B manifests to my desk in ten minutes," Kael added in a slightly lower, flat register.

Without waiting for her response, he turned, his broad cloak swishing as he swept out of the office and slammed the door shut behind him.

The moment the heavy door clicked shut-

phew...

Lyra let out a massive breath, her slender hands flying up to clutch her racing heart!

System... Lyra whimpered frantically inside her mind, her soul rolling around in madness! Did you see his face just now?! He was literally two seconds away from snapping my neck! I am NEVER taking a nap in this base ever again!