I Built a Safe Zone in the Dead World

Rain poured endlessly across the ruined city while thunder echoed through the dark sky above. Hundreds of infected surrounded the office building from every direction now, their distorted screams mixing with the sound of heavy rain and distant explosions somewhere deeper within the city. Burned vehicles blocked the flooded streets while flickering fires illuminated broken buildings beneath the storm.

Inside the lobby, everyone stood ready.

The atmosphere no longer felt calm, No teasing, No warmth, Only tension.

Arata stood near the shattered entrance while gripping his blade tightly. Something felt wrong. Not zombie wrong. Worse.

The system flickered faintly before his eyes repeatedly.

[Warning: Unknown Signal Detected]

[Warning: External Interference Nearby]

His expression darkened slightly.Reina noticed immediately. "...What is it?"

"...Something’s coming."Before anyone could respond—BOOOOOOOOM!!

A massive explosion suddenly destroyed part of the street outside the building.

Concrete exploded violently while nearby infected were blown apart instantly. Smoke and rain filled the road outside as everyone instinctively stepped back from the shattered entrance.

Then silence followed.Even the infected stopped moving briefly.Through the smoke—

Figures slowly appeared, Humans, Around fifteen of them.

All wearing black tactical coats marked with the same strange silver symbol across their chests.

A black flag with a silver eye.Each carried advanced weapons far beyond anything normal survivors possessed.

And standing at the front—Was a tall white-haired man calmly holding a black umbrella beneath the rain, Golden eyes, Cold expression, Sharp smile.The infected nearby moved away from him unnaturally.

Like they feared him.Akari’s eyes narrowed immediately. "...Why aren’t the infected attacking them?" Nobody answered.Because honestly—Everyone felt it.Something about those people felt wrong, Not normal, Not human.

The white-haired man slowly lifted his gaze afterward, Directly toward Arata.Then smiled faintly.

"...Found you."

The moment those words left his mouth—

Arata’s system glitched violently.

[System Interference Detected]

[Unknown Access Attempt Blocked]

Pain exploded briefly through his head.He staggered slightly.Airi immediately grabbed his arm. "Arata!"

The white-haired man calmly stepped forward through the rain while speaking softly.

"My name is Lucien."

His golden eyes never left Arata.

"And you..." A faint smile appeared across his face. "...look exactly like your father."

Silence filled the lobby instantly, Arata froze.

Not emotionally, Physically.Akari immediately looked toward him afterward.

Because for the first time—His expression actually cracked slightly.

"...What?"

Lucien slowly stopped several meters outside the building entrance while rainwater dripped softly from the umbrella above him.

"Your father was a brilliant researcher." His smile faded slightly afterward. "One of the few who discovered the truth before everything collapsed."

The atmosphere became heavier instantly.

Reina slowly tightened her grip on her blades.

Yuna raised her rifle slightly.Meanwhile Lucien calmly reached into his coat before pulling out an old photograph.

Then tossed it toward the lobby floor.Arata slowly picked it up afterward, And froze.

The photo showed his parents standing inside a laboratory years ago, Young, Smiling,Alive.

Behind them—The same black flag symbol appeared on a wall screen.

Lucien quietly watched Arata’s reaction afterward.

"Your parents died when you were young." His voice became colder now. "But not because of an accident."

The world became silent.Akari’s eyes widened slightly.Meanwhile Lucien continued calmly:

"They discovered what our organization was truly planning." His golden eyes narrowed faintly. "Your father tried exposing the project. Your mother tried helping him escape."

Thunder echoed outside.Rain continued falling.Then Lucien softly finished speaking.

"So they were eliminated."The word hit differently.Not died, Eliminated.

Arata’s hand slowly tightened around the photograph afterward.His expression became unreadable again.

Too unreadable.Akari quietly stepped slightly closer toward him without realizing it herself.

Lucien noticed immediately.

"...Interesting."

Akari instantly frowned. "You keep saying that."

Lucien ignored her completely.Instead—

His eyes remained fixed on Arata.

"You’ve spent years believing fate stole your family." A faint smile returned afterward. "But people did."Silence.Heavy silence.

Yuna’s voice suddenly broke the tension.

"...Why are you telling us this?"

Lucien finally glanced toward her.

"Because he deserves the truth before we take him."

Everyone’s expressions changed instantly.

Reina stepped forward immediately. "Try it."

Several black-coated soldiers behind Lucien calmly raised their weapons afterward.

The atmosphere exploded with tension.

Airi slowly moved beside Arata quietly while whispering softly, "...Don’t listen to him."

But Arata stayed silent, Because inside his head—Fragments of memories kept resurfacing, His father working late nights.

His mother arguing with someone over the phone.

Fear inside their eyes during their final days.

Things he never understood as a child, Until now.

Lucien slowly lowered the umbrella afterward while rain fell across his white hair.

"You inherited something important from your father." His golden eyes sharpened slightly. "Something our organization has searched for a very long time."

The system flickered violently again.

[Warning]

[Identity Recognition Detected]

[System Stability Fluctuating]

Pain shot briefly through Arata’s body again.

Akari immediately noticed. "...Arata?"

Lucien smiled softly afterward.

"There it is."

Yuna instantly raised her rifle directly toward Lucien. "Okay creepy anime villain, I’m officially done listening."

Lucien looked mildly disappointed. "...That was rude."Yuna fired instantly.

BANG!!

But before the bullet reached him—One black-coated soldier suddenly appeared in front of Lucien impossibly fast.

CLANG!!

The bullet stopped against a metal blade, Everyone froze.Too fast, Far too fast.

Reina’s eyes narrowed immediately. "...Enhanced humans."

Lucien nodded slightly. "Prototype system users."

Silence.

Then Akari blinked slowly. "...Prototype what?"

Lucien calmly stepped forward through the rain again.

"Years before the apocalypse, organizations across the world researched human evolution." He looked toward Arata afterward. "Your father helped create the first system framework."

Arata’s eyes narrowed sharply. "...No."

Lucien smiled faintly. "You didn’t know?"

The atmosphere darkened immediately.

"Your father believed the system could save humanity." Lucien’s voice became colder afterward. "Others believed it could control humanity."

Thunder exploded across the sky above.

Meanwhile the infected outside slowly surrounded the entire building silently.

Waiting.

Like trained animals.

Akari noticed that immediately. "...Why are they acting like this?"

Lucien answered casually:

"Because we learned how to guide them."

Everyone froze.

Even Reina looked disturbed hearing that.

Yuna slowly lowered her rifle slightly. "...You’re controlling zombies?"

"Not perfectly." Lucien shrugged calmly. "But enough."

The little girl hiding upstairs suddenly cried faintly in fear after hearing the noise below.

That small sound changed something instantly.

Arata’s eyes sharpened again.

Lucien noticed.

Then softly smiled.

"...You really are like your father."

Silence.

Then suddenly—One black-coated soldier moved.

Instantly.

Too fast for normal humans.

He appeared directly inside the lobby before attacking Yuna violently.

BOOOOOOOM!!

The impact destroyed part of the wall while Yuna crashed across the floor hard enough to shatter concrete.

"YUNA!"

Chaos exploded immediately afterward.

Reina attacked first with terrifying speed while Kaede fired arrows from behind instantly. Akari rushed forward with the baseball bat while Arata moved directly toward the enhanced soldier.

CLANG!!

Steel collided violently.

Shockwaves spread across the lobby floor while sparks exploded through the darkness.

The black-coated soldier smiled beneath his mask.

"...Target confirmed."

Then attacked Arata again.

Fast.

Extremely fast.

The entire lobby erupted into combat.

Gunfire echoed.

Glass shattered.

Rain poured through broken walls.

The enhanced soldiers fought like monsters themselves. Their movements looked unnatural. Precise. Mechanical.

One soldier blocked Kaede’s arrow with bare fingers.

Another kicked Reina through a desk violently.

Meanwhile Yuna slowly stood again while blood dripped from her forehead.

"...Okay," she muttered angrily while reloading her rifle. "Now I’m pissed."

Akari fought beside Arata immediately while shouting, "WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?!"

"Artificial system users," Lucien answered calmly from outside the battle. "Failures chasing perfection."

His golden eyes locked onto Arata again.

"But you..." His smile slowly returned. "...You are different."

The system glitched violently again.

[Unknown Recognition Accepted]

[Synchronization Increasing]

Pain spread through Arata’s arm instantly.

Black markings slowly appeared across portions of his skin afterward like living shadows.

Akari’s eyes widened. "...Arata?"

Lucien’s smile deepened slightly.

"There it is."

One enhanced soldier suddenly moved behind Airi afterward before grabbing her violently.

A blade pressed against her throat instantly.

Everything froze.

"AIRI!"

Yuna immediately aimed her rifle.

Reina stopped moving.

Kaede slowly lowered her bow.

Meanwhile the soldier holding Airi spoke coldly:

"Surrender the target."

Silence filled the ruined lobby.

Rain echoed softly outside.

Then everyone slowly looked toward Arata.

And for the first time—

The atmosphere around him became terrifying.

Cold pressure filled the room.

The black markings across his arm spread slightly farther now.

Even the enhanced soldiers hesitated.

Lucien quietly watched with fascination afterward.

"...Excellent."

Arata slowly raised his head.

And his eyes no longer looked completely human anymore.