Chapter 1: Awakening
Ding!
---
———————————————————
[#~System Notification~#]
———————————————————
[An anomaly has been detected!]
[Fetching necessary details to take appropriate action...]
---
From deep down a narrow, murky alleyway, a strange glow began to emerge. It grew stronger each second, painting the rundown walls in its hue.
Torn electric wires hung loose at each step, occasionally buzzing with bright yellow sparks. The concrete floor below was uneven and full of cracks, flooded with a layer of sewage water.
For the likes of cockroaches and rats, this place was nothing short of a haven.
At the end of this alley, a translucent cerulean screen was emitting a bright light. In front of this screen, a young figure was kneeling on the ground—trembling.
Over the past few years, his fine silken suit had turned into rugged pieces of fabric barely clinging to his skeletal body. His short black hair had clumped together; his skin had turned the sickly hue of green.
His blood-dyed hands firmly held onto a small clump of spoiled flesh. Long, sharp fingernails dug deep into the rotten meat.
It was a piece of a corpse, half-rotten and soaked in sewage.
Staring at this handful of meat with his lifeless dark eyes, the man couldn’t help but let out wild, unkempt growls.
He slowly opened his mouth and devoured the meat ecstatically.
"Huhuhu..."
Almost instantly, the screen in front of him buzzed and shot out an almost blinding beam of light towards the young man.
---
[The ’anomaly’ has successfully been identified.]
[You have achieved a unique mutation!]
[A one-of-a-kind mutation has been achieved!]
[A new unprecedented achievement has been registered.]
[Calculating an appropriate reward...]
└ [The original world has been identified as ’Earth’.]
└ [Current State has been registered as ’Zombiefied’.]
└ [Consciousness] - [Extremely Weak but Exists]
[Basic conditions have been met! You are qualified to be registered as a ’player.’
[Registering ’Ethan Graves’ as a player...]
[...]
[Failed!]
---
At the same time, Ethan’s body froze. His mind felt as though it was drifting apart, his eyes getting darker.
For years, all he had ever thought about was fresh blood and meat. But now? All sorts of thoughts flooded his mind.
His name, his age, his personality, and the memories of his life—all resurfaced in his mind at once. A sharp pain surged through his brain, but he couldn’t react to it at all.
Though his mind was awakening, his body remained completely unresponsive.
---
[Reward is insufficient...]
[A crucial achievement has been realized!]
└ [You have consumed the blood and flesh of 721,433 unique individuals without completely losing your mind.]
[Searching for an appropriate reward...]
[...]
[A hidden condition has been found!]
[You have met the hidden condition.]
[Transferring rewards...]
---
Bzzzt
The system window began to flicker violently, creating a constant static noise.
Within moments, the light on the screen began to dim. Condensing into countless specks of light, they entered Ethan’s body through his forehead.
Immediately, his body jolted from shock and fell to the ground—his face completely submerged in sewage waste.
His body convulsed as he desperately gasped for air.
---
[Your mind has been deemed extremely weak and fragile.]
[Healing your mind to the fullest...]
---
The words rang inside Ethan’s head, alerting his newly awakened mind greatly.
’Wh-Wha—’ Before he could think about anything, countless nail-sized light orbs appeared in his mind.
One after another, all the orbs exploded in sync—leaving behind an infinitely giant cloud of white dust in his mind.
The dust quickly spread throughout the extent of his mind and restored everything to its previous state.
Memories that had been completely forgotten were created from scratch. Cognitive disabilities that had formed over time were healed perfectly.
’Th-This...’ He thought in confusion.
His mind was restored to the peak of its abilities, his thoughts livelier than ever.
---
[...]
[Success!]
[Your constitution has been deemed utterly weak.]
[Strengthening your constitution to accommodate your reward...]
---
At once, Ethan felt a sharp pain pierce through his jaw, fingers, and toes.
His newly recovered mind was once again strained. Unconsciously, he began to groan loudly. Though most of his voice was suppressed by the dark brown water.
His crooked, yellow teeth and uneven nails fell out of their respective places.
Next, the pain shifted towards his muscles. His spine tightened as his muscles began to shift. The light orbs acted as nourishment for his muscles, tendons, nerves, organs, and bones.
The process was quick but caused great enough pain to push Ethan’s mind to near black out.
---
[Success! Your constitution has been improved greatly.]
[...]
[You are now qualified to accept your reward.]
---
As soon as Ethan heard the voice again, he felt a strange sensation.
He seemed to be...
Drowning.
His lungs were already filled with the murky water.
Instinctively, he pushed against the ground with both of his hands. Surprisingly, he lifted himself off the puddle, letting the water slowly seep out of his body.
"I-I can... Move again!" Ethan stammered, his voice deep and muffled as he vomited the water he had ingested.
Gasping for deep breaths, he slowly stood up and looked at his hands. He closed his palms and opened them again several times.
These weren’t the hands he remembered.
After getting his constitution strengthened by the system, his body had gotten muscular and was much stronger than before.
But his skin remained green.
His eyes drooped low as he gritted his teeth in a mix of anger and regret.
"Only if I hadn’t been bitten by that zombie..." He clenched his hands into fists, struggling to control his anger.
Ding!
The notification sound echoed in his mind; a bright light flashed across his eyes.
Up front, a system window materialized. On its surface, a new set of information was written.
---
———————————————————
[#~System Notification~#]
———————————————————
[Congratulations, you’ve been successfully registered as a ’player’.]
[According to the rules, the most appropriate ’class’ will be automatically chosen for your existence.]
[Hidden conditions have been satisfied!]
[Congratulations! You have become the first player to obtain an ’SSS-Rank Class!’]
[• Class Assigned]:
[SSS-Class: Zombie Overlord]
---