Chapter 37: Rise of the Elite Puppeteer

Across the room, Salma drew in a sharp, ragged breath. Her hands twitched at her sides, and her body instinctively surged forward.

She wanted nothing more in this world than to rush across the floor, wrap her arms around her precious daughter, and pull her into a tight, desperate embrace to make sure she was truly safe.

But then, Salma froze completely in the middle of her stride.

Her foot hovered just above the dusty floor as a crushing wave of reality washed over her.

She remembered the blinding steam, the horrifying sound of her daughter screaming in absolute agony, and the terrifying truth that her own touch acted like poison to Summer’s flesh.

Salma’s green eyes shifted through a turbulent storm of raw confusion, deep self-reproach, and heavy guilt.

She realized with a breaking heart that as long as she touched her daughter, she would only bring pain.

’Why is this happening?’ Salma cried out internally, not knowing what to do.

Slowly, the guilt on Salma’s face hardened into a grim, sorrowful resolve. She forced her trembling arms to drop to her sides.

"Since you are fine... I am leaving," Salma said softly, her voice carrying a fragile, hollow weight that seemed entirely uncharacteristic of the ruthless Rogue leader.

Without waiting for any reply or giving Summer a chance to process her words, Salma turned sharply on her heel and strode toward the exit.

Dereck cast one last dark, complex glance toward the ice tub, his massive armored frame turning to follow his leader out of the hall.

The heavy double doors swung shut behind them, sealing off the room once again.

Silence descended upon the damp, ruined aquarium hall, broken only by the faint hissing of melting ice cubes.

"Boss, what the hell just happened in there?" the Professor asked, walking closer to the tub as he rubbed his blistered, half-melted fingertips with a grimace. "One second you were burning hotter than a furnace, and the next you are sitting here staring at the wall like nothing ever happened."

Summer slowly peeled her glowing ruby gaze away from the empty doorway where the strange woman had vanished, turning her head to look directly at the annoying human scientist.

"I saw a fat chicken," Summer replied flatly, her tone completely serious.

The Professor stood completely dumbfounded, blinking behind his fogged-up glasses as he stared down at the pale zombie girl.

He opened his mouth, closed it, and then tried to process the utterly bizarre statement.

"Do you... want to eat chicken?" the Professor asked cautiously, wondering if a fever had somehow scrambled her zombie brain.

"Mm," Summer nodded firmly, her expression unwavering.

The Professor let out a long, exhausted sigh, dragging a hand down his face. "Of course you do. Well, we do not exactly have poultry farms running around this wasteland, but I might be able to hunt down some mutated game or scrounge up some old canned rations from the upper sectors if you are hungry. Just give me a few minutes to salvage my dignity and my burnt fingers first."

Summer ignored his grumbling, leaning her head back against the rim of the stainless-steel tub.

Though she outwardly appeared indifferent, her mind was quietly reviewing everything that had just transpired in her soul.

’System, what happened?’ Summer asked in her mind, drying her pale skin with a small towel as she stepped out of the freezing tub.

[He kicked you out,] the system answered flatly.

’Why?’

[Are you seriously asking me that?] the system retorted, sounding thoroughly exasperated.

[I am damn sure I would do the exact same thing if someone asked me to abandon my supreme Corruption and choose the path of absolute purity.]

’Oh...’ Summer pouted, her pale lips forming a small, dissatisfied line. ’But he is just a shadow of my bloodline. He is courting death.’

[Courting death?] the system paused, clearly taken aback by her choice of words. [Where on earth did you learn that ridiculous phrase?]

’From the Professor,’ Summer replied honestly, recalling how the human puppet muttered under his breath whenever he was frustrated.

[That human is a terrible influence on you,] the system noted with a quiet sigh. [How about we turn him into a zombie?]

’That is a very nice idea,’ Summer agreed instantly, her ruby eyes glittering with dark approval.

Meanwhile, the Professor continued asking endless questions as he gathered clean clothes for her, completely oblivious to the fact that the little zombie girl and her system were silently plotting to turn him into a mindless zombie.

Summer ignored his noisy ramblings entirely, pulling on her clean clothes.

She did not stay inside the Rogue settlement for long. Everywhere she walked, those annoying human survivors would stare, murmur, or follow her around like persistent flies.

At last, Summer simply decided to leave the settlement to rejoin her personal zombie army. The Professor offered to tag along, but Summer bluntly told him to stay behind.

He did not argue much, as he had plenty of unfinished business to do.

Walking alone down the dusty, abandoned asphalt street outside the settlement, Summer called up her personal interface.

’Status.’

A pale blue holographic window flickered to life directly in front of her vision.

[Status]

Name: Summer

Evolution: Elite Zombie Girl (0/1000 Elites)

Racial Traits: Undead Body, Shadow Mirage

Class Skill: Elite Puppeteer (Capacity: 100 / Controlled: 45)

Level: 10 (800 / 1000 EXP)

HP: 240 / 240

Mana: 200 / 200

STR: 24

AGI: 29

CONST: 24

INT: 20

Free Attributes: 18

Skill(s): None

Equipped Gear: Iron Brawler Gauntlets (Common), Swift Strider Boots (Common)

Summer briefly glanced over her attributes, satisfied with her growth, before dismissing the screen with a flick of her hand.

She continued walking toward the ruined courtyard near the edge of the sector where her army was stationed.

As she turned the corner, she saw them standing motionless in the shade of a collapsed building.

Forty-four ordinary zombies and her One.

The moment One sensed her presence, his huge, decaying frame shifted.

He sprinted toward her with heavy, thudding footsteps, stopping right in front of her with a deeply aggrieved look in his dull, milky eyes.

Because of the massive height difference between them, One promptly lay flat on the dusty concrete ground, resting his giant head low so Summer could easily reach out and pat his head.

Summer smiled softly, running her pale fingers over his rough, hardened skull to comfort him.

Once she finished patting him, One scooped her up effortlessly in his massive arms and placed her securely onto his broad left shoulder.

He held one large palm behind her back to act as a sturdy support, ensuring she would not slip.

Summer sat comfortably on his shoulder like a small queen on her throne, looking out across the quiet courtyard.

Forty-three ordinary zombies and Two stood in neat rows before her, waiting silently for her command.

Now that she had successfully evolved into an Elite Zombie Girl, her upgraded class skill allowed her to evolve the puppets under her direct control.

It was finally time for her army to evolve alongside her.

A bright, excited look flashed across Summer’s pale face as her glowing ruby eyes swept over her troops.

She focused her mind, channeling her dark energy directly into her core, and activated her class skill: Elite Puppeteer.