Chapter 15 – The Beginning of the End
Ignes spoke again, as if nothing heavy had just been said.
"Anyway… when are the boys coming?"
"The sermon ended a long time ago."
"Why aren't they here yet?"
---
Alexander narrowed his eyes slightly.
"You changed the topic, Igna."
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Ignes blinked.
"…Did I?"
There was genuine confusion on his face.
---
Frederick sighed.
"Igna… slow down."
"You're thinking too fast."
"It's only been five seconds."
---
(For Ignes, time moved differently.
His brain worked far faster than a normal person's.)
---
Ignes paused.
"…Sorry about that."
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Alexander shook his head lightly.
"Alright."
"Then tell us—"
"What is a Zombie King?"
"What exactly happened in your world?"
---
Ignes leaned back slightly.
Then spoke calmly—
"As for when it started…"
"It was January 14th, 2030."
"The apocalypse began that day."
He paused.
"The virus was called Z-17-D."
---
He continued,
"But it didn't start suddenly."
"On December 31st, 2029—just before the New Year…"
"A shooting star appeared."
"At the exact moment the New Year bell rang."
---
"At first, it didn't seem like anything."
"I thought it was just coincidence."
---
"But then…"
"The same thing happened in another country."
"Again—at the exact moment of the New Year bell."
"And then another country."
"And another."
---
"The entire world experienced it."
"At the same time."
---
Ignes's eyes darkened slightly.
"Once or twice… could be coincidence."
"But when it happens everywhere…"
"It's not."
---
"So I thought it was strange."
"And just in case…"
"I decided to store food."
---
He paused.
Then continued.
"Fourteen days later—"
"The peace of the world ended."
---
"People who had just woken up…"
"People who were sleeping…"
"People who were about to sleep…"
"All of them—"
Stopped.
---
"When the first ray of dawn touched the ground…"
"They collapsed."
---
"They fell asleep…"
"Right where they stood."