“ Ahh….” 

“ Kael….” 

“ Waahhh….waaahhhh” 

Young woman placed her baby in the officer's arms and took her last breath.

The baby's half head and face were burnt.

The baby kept crying due to pain and hunger.

Five years after the incident…

The little kid wanted to interact with other kids in the orphanage, but everyone avoided him like he was some kind of plague.

Every day, he was constantly bullied. Since he was very kind and innocent, he didn't even know how to fight back, so he always took the beating and slept with wounds all over his body.

He was hated and despised by everyone at the orphanage for his ugly looks.

He grew numb to everything and started hating himself for being born as a human.

Amidst all the chaos he was going through, he saw someone approaching him and giving him candy.

Kael looked at the boy with an absent mind. He never thought there would be someone who would approach him and even offer candy to him.

"Are you really giving it to me?" asked Kael in disbelief.

"Yes, take it," the boy said with a gentle smile on his face, but Kael didn't recognize the disgusting look in that boy’s eyes.

"Hmm, thanks," Kael said as he put the candy in his mouth.

Ptui… ptui…

Kael felt mud and sand in his mouth after savoring the candy.

"What happened? Don't you like candy?" asked the boy with an innocent look on his face.

Kael thought that if he said sand and mud stuck to the candy, the boy would get angry and avoid him like everyone else, so he forced a smile and said, "No, no... the candy was so good. It just slipped into my throat while I was savoring it."

"Hmm, okay," the boy said, smiling evilly as the edges of his eyelids curved upwards.

A few minutes earlier...

"Brother Rey, where are you going?" asked one of the boys.

"I'm going towards that ugly monster," said Rey, looking in Kael's direction.

"Why are you going towards him?" asked another boy, looking confused.

"We're all eating candies, so he also has to eat one, right?" asked Rey, then he dropped the candy on the ground, stepped on it, and picked it back up.

Seeing what Rey did, all the boys close to him understood and smiled with sadistic smiles on their faces.

Cough… cough…

Kael ate the candy while coughing relentlessly.

Seeing this, those boys kept smiling while Rey smiled with his arched eyes.

Bullying and beatings happened secretly, but this situation was occurring openly. One of the girls couldn't take it anymore and brought a glass of water to Kael.

"Thanks," said Kael.

The girl nodded her head in response to his words.

"Sorry, my throat feels uncomfortable. Can you please wait? I'll be back in a minute," said Kael, looking at Rey, and walked away from that place.

After a few minutes, he was back and gave the glass back to the girl. Rey looked at Kael with a jealous yet angry look in his eyes.

No matter how hard he tried to interact with that girl, she didn't even spare a single glance at him, but she brought a glass of water for this ugly bastard? The more he thought, the angrier he became.

He came back to his senses when he heard the words said by Kael.

"Hello, my name is Kael. What's yours?" He extended his hand to shake.

Rey looked back at him condescendingly and walked away.

Kael smiled dryly and slowly took his extended hand back.

"My name is Sisili." The girl reached out her hand to hold his and shook it with a gentle smile on her fair-looking face.

At the beginning, Sisili also avoided him like everyone else. She hesitated to have a conversation with him because she feared that everyone would treat her differently, like they did to him.

She is a good girl and sympathizes with him.

She took the initiative to introduce herself solely due to sympathy towards him and nothing else. Kael also understands this and knows his place, so he didn't have any thoughts on her and just treated her like everyone else.

But it appeared different in the eyes of Rey. He clenched his fist tightly with bloodshot eyes.

He had never thought of killing someone in his life, but at that moment, he wanted to kill Kael very badly.

"My name is Kael. Nice to meet you," said Kael with a dry smile on his disfigured face.

"Nice to meet you too," Sisili nodded and walked away.

"Sisili, don't tell me you're interested in that ugly monster," asked one of her friends after she returned to them.

"Shut the hell up. Even pigs wouldn't be interested in him. Don't mention me. I just felt bad looking at how he was treated by those hooligans, and out of sympathy, I just had a few words with him, that's all," Sisili said with an annoyed look on her face.

Kael, who was close to them, heard the entire conversation.

Everything around him became blurry in his eyes, and he reached out his hand to wipe his eyes before silently walking away.

Soon, he came close to his bed, reached out his hand to gently caress the burnt part of his face, with a painful yet inexplicably sad look in his eyes.

Rey, who was with his group, looked at Kael and said through gritted teeth, "He dared to touch my goddess. I want his right hand disabled."

One of his bootlickers intervened, "Brother Rey, we considered him an eyesore the moment we saw his disfigured face. It would be best if he disappeared from the orphanage completely."

"Disappear," Rey murmured, a ruthless glint flashing through his eyes.

He moved close to one of his bootlickers and whispered in his ear. The bootlicker's eyes lit up brightly with excitement.

"Ok, brother Rey," said the bootlicker, then walked out of the dormitory.

Kael and Sisili always greet each other whenever they meet, though they harbor no particular thoughts about each other. It's just a normal exchange, but it's perceived differently by others.

Various rumors began circulating throughout the orphanage, each one heard by Rey causing him to boil with rage. Meanwhile, Kael, oblivious to the gossip, continued his daily routine.

The more Rey heard the rumors, the more his anger simmered. He was nearing his breaking point, with the ruthless demon inside him ready to unleash at any moment.

"Brother Rey, I believe today is the day the order will arrive," exclaimed one of his followers, excitement evident on his face.

"Today?" A glimmer of joy flashed in Rey's eyes as he smiled broadly.

He checked the time on his wrist. "I think it's time for the delivery. Let's go."

Rey and his followers made their way behind the orphanage where a masked figure awaited their arrival.

After a few minutes, they all arrived at the spot, and Rey approached the delivery man, asking, "Did you bring it?"

"Yes," the delivery man replied, taking a small package out of his pocket and holding it up.

"Where's the money?" the delivery man inquired.

Rey produced a handful of currency notes, and they exchanged the money for the package, completing the transaction.

He extracted the bottle from the package and examined it with a maniacal smile. "Colorless, tasteless, and a few drops are enough to kill an elephant."

Rey was connected with gangsters and had plenty of money, so obtaining a few drops of lethal poison wasn't difficult for him.

"We've had enough of him for years. It's time to remove him from this orphanage. This is our territory. How can I allow an ugly bastard like him to live here?" Rey muttered, gripping the small bottle tightly.

They all returned to their dormitory and devised a plan to take down Kael that night.

Kael could never have imagined that his disfigured face would not only make his life miserable but also lead to his untimely demise.

In the dining hall….

Kael and the other orphans stood in line to serve themselves various dishes. Kael filled his plate with a few food items and headed to his usual dining table.

Seeing Kael sitting alone, Sisili approached him with her own plate. "Can I sit here?"

"O-of course," stammered Kael, continuing to eat his dinner.

"Hey, Kael, mind if we join you?" Rey's voice came from behind.

Kael turned to see Rey and his followers and replied with a forced smile, "Please." He knew trouble often followed when he was surrounded by these teenagers.

"Since you have company, I'll go sit with my friends," Sisili announced, quickly moving away from the table. She didn't care for Rey and preferred not to linger.

Rey then took Sisili's vacated seat and placed a food item containing poison onto Kael's plate.

"This..." Kael looked at Rey with a questioning expression, silently asking why he had put the food item there.

"Why the look? Come on, I like these fried potatoes. You can have the boiled corn," Rey said casually, swapping the items on Kael's plate.

Kael hesitated for a moment, then nodded and resumed eating his dinner.

Rey's lips curled into a smile as he intentionally spilled soup on Kael, making it seem like an accident. "Oh, it's hot... it's hot... Kael, I'll be right back," he said, heading slowly toward the bathroom.

After thoroughly washing his hands and clothes, Rey returned to find Kael had finished eating the boiled corn. He cleared Kael's plate, dumping the food into the wet garbage bin before leaving with his followers.

Inside the dormitory...

Kael changed into his nightwear and lay down on his bed.

Suddenly, he felt a severe pain in his chest.

Rey, who hadn't slept, approached him. "Kael, are you okay? What's wrong?" he asked.

"I... I can't breathe... Call... call the warden," Kael gasped, clutching his chest tightly.

Rey chuckled darkly. "Kael, it's okay. There's no way you're going to survive. Just accept your fate and die for me," he whispered sinisterly into Kael's ear, a wicked smile on his face.

"Rey... why..." Before he could finish speaking, Kael's eyes grew dull, and his lifeless body fell back onto the bed.

But Rey's sinister smile left a lasting impression on Kael's mind.

Meanwhile, in the dark void...

"It's so cold... is this the afterlife? What did I do to him? Why does he want to kill me?" Kael pondered. 

"I lost my parents when I was just a baby. I don't even know what they look like. I thought I wouldn't be alone in the orphanage, but loneliness is all I have. Just because I'm ugly, I have to suffer every day until my death."

"If reincarnation is real, let me be reborn on a planet where I'm not ugly and alone. At least I want to live a life without regrets like I did in this one."

These thoughts echoed in the darkness.

Suddenly, a bright light burst forth, illuminating the entire void. Kael, in his soul form, felt a surge of energy enveloping him. Before he could comprehend what was happening, dizziness overcame him, and he lost consciousness.

[Host discovered... System integration into the soul initiated... System integration completed... Host rebirth process initiated... Rebirth process completed...]

One after another, system notifications echoed in the void, and after what felt like an eternity, Kael suddenly felt a sharp pain in his head. He instinctively reached out and grasped his head tightly.

Then, just as suddenly, the pain vanished into thin air, leaving his body drenched in cold sweat.

"I'm alive?" Kael murmured as sweat droplets trickled down his face.

"Or is this the afterlife?" He tentatively pinched himself.

"Ouch... Ouch... There's no way I could feel pain in the afterlife with a flesh body... I... I've reincarnated?" Kael felt shocked, taking a few moments to process his current situation.

[Host, congratulations on successfully being reborn and welcome to the apocalyptic world.]

"Who are you? Where are you?" Kael, hearing the strange mechanical voice, felt a surge of fear. He could only hear the voice but couldn't see the person speaking to him.

Grrr….

Grulll….

Kael felt an inexplicable sense of danger and turned to look in the direction the blood-curdling sound was coming from.

"Oh, it's a human, just like me. I thought there was some kind of monster or something. Brother, what happened to you? Why is your skin so greenish, and you smell really bad? I mean, you smell like a dead rat."

"Grr? Grrull?"

It's the first time someone is doing nothing in front of a zombie, so it is confused and doesn't know what to do at that moment.

"Okay... okay... It's your choice if you want to take a bath or not, but can you tell me what this place is? Where am I currently?"

"Grr? Grrull?"

"Oh... looks like you are also new to this place, just like me. I can understand that you don't know anything about this place by looking at your deadpan look on your face. Hmm, it's okay. By the way, did you hear a mechanical voice a few minutes back?"

"Grr? Grrull?"

"Ah? Looks like you're mute. Okay then, brother, I won't disturb you anymore. I will find everything myself. Bye, we will meet again." Kael raised his hand to say goodbye and slowly walked forward in a tattered dress.

The zombie also raised its hand with a blank look on its face and crudely waved it in the air. But it suddenly came back to its senses and ran towards Kael.

"Oh, brother, do you also want to come with me?" asked Kael, with a surprised look on his face.

"Grrrr…."

The zombie lunged at him with a bloodthirsty look on its face.

"Oh, fuck, what's wrong with you, brother? Why are you angry?" Kael thought, "Shit, even though he is mute, I think he can hear what I said."

"Green brother, I'm very sorry. I didn't mean to say you smell like a dead rat. You actually smell nice, just like Rose, Lily, Jasmine," said Kael with an awkward smile on his face while dodging the attacks from the zombie.

"Grrr…."

"Fuck, why are you trying to bite me now? Do you know there is no medicine for a human bite? The hell if you don't stop trying to bite me, I'm going to break all your teeth," shouted Kael angrily.

"Grrr…."

"Fuck you." Kael moved his hand to take the huge rock and smashed it at the zombie's face.

Crack...

The lower jaw separated from the zombie's face and fell to the ground.

"What the fuck? I didn't do it. I don't know what happened here," he ran away from there without turning back.

The zombie, dizzy from Kael’s attack, slowly came back to its senses, but Kael was nowhere to be found. The zombie became dull and started roaming around the place lifelessly.

"What the fuck is wrong with that green brother? I know my attack will be painful, but not even in my dream did I think that my attack would break the lower jaw part from his face. What can I do if he goes and files a police complaint? How can I escape from the police chasing?" Kael murmured while holding his head with an annoyed look on his face.

[Host…]

Kael, who was distracted and lost in thought, snapped back to reality when he heard the irritable mechanical voice.

"You again? Who are you? Why can I only hear you and can't see you?" asked Kael, with a questioning gaze on his face.

The system didn't answer his questions and continued in its mechanical voice.

[Host, since the first thing you did after you were reborn in this apocalyptic world was fighting with a zombie… you meet the unique requirement for the mission. Kill five zombies to unlock the Undead Leader title. With the Undead Leader title, you can control two zombies that are killed by you. If you want to control more level 1 zombies, you have to upgrade the level of your title.]

"Host? Zombies? Undead Leader title? Stop talking nonsense already and answer my questions," asked Kael, with a frustrated look on his face.

[You can identify me as a system, and I don't have any physical body. I'm a part of your soul.]

"System? Why do I have to listen to you?"

[If you listen to me, I can help you become the strongest being in this world. If you don't listen, then you won't grow strong, and you will die in the hands of the zombies.]

"You keep telling me the word 'zombie.' Are zombies real?"

[Yes.]

"Wait, the brother that I met a few minutes back is also a zombie?"

[Yes.]

"What?" A cold sweat formed on his forehead.

"As you said, they are zombies. How can I kill them? I'm just an ordinary human being."

[Host, it doesn't matter how you kill them. As long as they died because of you, it is considered that you killed them, and the mission will be completed.]

Kael was in deep thought. He suddenly caught sight of a kid running in a certain direction.

"I just saw a kid running in that direction," Kael murmured and hurriedly moved in the direction the kid ran.

"Where is he? If there are any survivors, maybe I can ask them to lend me a few weapons that I can use to kill the zombies," Kael moved forward while looking around cautiously.

"This metallic smell, is it blood?" Kael sniffed the smell a few times and moved in the direction the strong metallic smell was coming from.

There were child zombies greedily eating an adult human being.

"System, if I kill these child zombies, is it considered passing the mission?" asked Kael, with a stern gaze on his face.

[Yes, but the requirement of child zombies you have to kill will be raised to 10. So if you kill the 10 of these child zombies, you will pass the mission.]

"So what if the kill count is raised to 10? They are still kids, how strong can they be?" After hesitating for a moment, he reached out his hand to take the sturdy tree branch and moved towards the child zombies.

All the child zombies sensed his presence when he came close enough to them. They all turned to look at him in unison, with blood all over their hands and mouths, dripping down onto the ground.