Chapter 135: Is There an Employee Discount?
In the next moment, the Zombie King’s actions shattered Lily Hart’s assumptions. He casually found a sofa, sat down as if he’d been there a dozen times before, and began to read the documents line by line.
’Is this really... the same Zombie King who commands thousands upon thousands of zombies?’
’The lottery shop really must be magical. No matter who comes here, they end up obediently following the rules.’
What she didn’t know, however, was that the Zombie King only wanted to use this opportunity to get close to her—to tend to her, to guard her.
And when the time was right, he would devour her in a single bite!
The Zombie King couldn’t actually stand reading so many words, but he put on a show for a minute before getting up.
He walked over to Lily Hart, who was wandering around the place, and said earnestly, "I understand."
Lily Hart gave him a skeptical look. ’Does he really get it, or is he faking?’ Whatever. She nodded and replied, just as earnestly, "As long as you understand."
She took the two sheets of paper from his hand and scanned them herself. The rules were actually quite simple.
As it stood, the bathhouse was just for bathing. After your bath, you could sit and rest or eat some fruit, but there were time limits.
For example, for 22 points, you could come in for one bath plus a rest, limited to thirty minutes. Only a small part of the buffet would be open, with no fruit.
For 88 points, you got a bath plus a rest, limited to one hour. During that time, the entire buffet would be open.
Lily Hart figured most people would just want to come in for a hearty meal. ’Do they even care about bathing?’
They did and they didn’t. When she had discussed group bathing packages with Douglas Donovan before, not many people had signed up.
But if it were paired with a meal, Lily Hart thought it would be much more enticing and might even become a massive hit.
She had just done a quick count. The men’s and women’s bathing areas could each accommodate fifty people at a time, for a total of one hundred.
’The unlock conditions are probably similar to the hotel’s. I’ll have to earn a certain amount of points to unlock the second floor and more features.’
’Something to look forward to, I guess.’
She’d heard that the bathhouses in the north had everything: movie theaters, buffets, hot springs, mahjong rooms, massages, saunas, and even ear cleaning.
’You can even stay overnight! Oh my god, that sounds amazing. I’ve been in the apocalypse for so long and still haven’t had a massage.’
’But... when the time comes, will the masseuses be real people or robots? Or will they be skilled aunties and uncles like back in the 21st century? There’s no way to know. I’ll just have to keep unlocking things to find out.’
Lily Hart was starting to get excited about the bathhouse. She patted his arm and said, "Do a good job! I’ve got high hopes for you!" Only after pulling her hand back did she remember this person was the Zombie King...
’His disguise is just too good!’
They both froze for a second. Their eyes met, then darted away just as quickly. Lily Hart let out an awkward laugh and was the first to head out of the bathhouse.
The Zombie King quickened his pace to walk on her left. He could tell Boss Hart was quite interested in the place, so he asked, "When would be a good time to open?"
Lily Hart answered immediately, "Tomorrow. You can get this place set up tonight. You should probably clear out a spot for you to sleep. By the way, do you have a Light Brain?"
Owen Warren shook his head, looking baffled. ’A Light Brain? Why would a zombie like me need one of those?’
She’d forgotten this was a zombie overlord completely detached from human society. Lily Hart went to the system’s store and bought the cheapest Light Brain available, which only cost 888 points.
The functions were more or less the same; it was just a matter of an older model versus a new one.
It was designed like a watch. She handed it to the Zombie King. "Here, put it on. It has the bathhouse management software on it, so you can control things from there."
The Zombie King fumbled with it for a moment before putting it on. He studied it for a bit, and with Lily Hart’s guidance, he registered his own account and added her as a friend.
Lily Hart felt a sense of cognitive dissonance. ’I’ve become... colleagues with the Zombie King who’s dead set on eating me? And we have to work together long-term...?’
But on the other hand, it was also a little thrilling. An opportunity like this was rare, and a secret sense of exhilaration began to grow inside her.
After that, Lily Hart showed him how to use the bathhouse management software. When he opened it, a floor plan of the entire first floor appeared. He could long-press on a sofa to move it, for example.
The meals and fruits for the buffet could also be purchased and restocked through the software. The difference was that fruit had a purchase limit, while the other food items had no restrictions.
The Zombie King was a fast learner. In no time, he had figured out the basics of the software, but he didn’t make any changes for the time being.
He decided to wait for customer feedback after the grand opening before making improvements. Lily Hart didn’t concern herself with any of it. After all, it was his shop in name, so how he wanted to run it was his business.
As the sky grew dark, Lily Hart pursed her lips. She decided it was time to head back to the RV. It wasn’t a good idea to be alone with the Zombie King for too long.
She waved at him dismissively. "Alright, you can just... play around here by yourself. I’m heading back." With that, she turned to leave. The Zombie King started to follow.
But she started walking faster and faster, as if she were being chased by ghouls and goblins. Lily Hart strode out the door and marched forward without a pause. The Zombie King stopped at the entrance, watching her go.
As she neared the RV, Lily Hart subconsciously glanced back and her gaze met the Zombie King’s dark eyes. They were too far apart for her to see his expression clearly.
She could only vaguely sense a desolate loneliness about him...? ’Like someone keeping watch at home, waiting desperately for their family to return.’
’Impossible,’ Lily Hart denied in her mind. Yet she couldn’t resist sneaking another couple of glances before shaking her head repeatedly.
’Ugh, spare me! If you’ve got so much sympathy to spare, go waste it on a dog!’
Lily Hart boarded the RV, walking with her head down, and nearly bumped into Roman Rowe coming the other way. She opened her mouth to scold him, but he beat her to the punch.
"Y-y-you! You actually recruited the Zombie King! What are you trying to do?!" Roman Rowe stammered, agitated.
Obviously, everyone had seen the building that had suddenly appeared, and they had also seen her chatting cheerfully with the Zombie King.
This was the same zombie who had wanted to eat Lily Hart, the one who had even launched a zombie horde to attack their RV.
Everyone knew that. He was someone to be avoided at all costs, so why was she getting closer to him?
Frost Shaw sat not far away, pretending to be nonchalant, but he was so desperate to hear that he wished he could cut off his own ears and stick them on Roman Rowe.
Having been put on the defensive, Lily Hart felt a little guilty, but she didn’t let it show. Instead, she started lecturing him. "It’s called strategy. Ever heard of it?"
She pushed him aside with a look of disdain. "If you don’t get it, go play somewhere else. Don’t stand here blocking my way."
’Strategy, my foot. It was pure chance... Who would have thought a zombie could win the grand prize on a scratch-off?!’
She sighed, looking none too pleased. Roman Rowe sidled up to her again. "So that... bathhouse thing is his prize?"
Seeing that he had finally put two and two together, Lily Hart nodded in satisfaction. Roman Rowe let out a long "Ohhh..." as if he only half-understood.
"So does that mean he’s going to be here all the time? What if he loses control and eats us all? I know I can’t beat him."
Lily Hart shot him a glare. "Shut up."
Roman Rowe obediently shut his mouth. He shot a look at Frost Shaw, urging him on. ’Hurry up! Don’t you have a ton of questions you wanted to ask?!’
"..." Frost Shaw decided it wasn’t the right time. Besides, Boss Hart never liked it when people meddled in her affairs.
’Better not to ask,’ he thought. ’No point getting on her bad side.’
It was dinnertime, and Leo Colby showed up. His first words were, "Do bathhouse employees get a discount?"