The unmistakable sound of a zombie tearing into a living person’s neck echoed through the room.

Lin Hao’s face contorted in horror. Ignoring the wound on his leg, he tried to get up but quickly collapsed back onto the ground.

Sasha was faster. She had already reached the door to the bedroom.

The door was ajar, and inside stood a female zombie clad in loungewear.

Long black hair hung loosely over her face as she bent over her meal, making her features unrecognizable.

The poor soul in her hands had already had his neck bitten through. Though his body still convulsed, it was clear he was beyond saving.

The room was permeated with the heavy stench of blood and decay.

Faced with such a hellish scene, most people would have been paralyzed by fear.

But Sasha’s expression remained indifferent, as though there was nothing unusual in the room.

She raised her hand, the silver arm-mounted crossbow gleaming with a cold light, ready to kill the zombie that had inexplicably appeared in Lin Hao’s home.

“No!! Stop!!!”

Lin Hao’s heart-wrenching scream came from the living room, where he still lay sprawled on the floor.

“Please… I’m begging you… that’s my wife!”

Wife?

Sasha froze for a moment. Was this zombie the same smiling woman from the photo in the living room—the one Lin Hao had called his wife?

So when he said “she’s already dead,” this was what he meant?

Could it be that he had been taking all that meat from the grocery store to feed his wife, who had turned into a zombie?

Suddenly, everything made sense.

No wonder he seemed so weak and frail, willing to starve himself and risk venturing out to find meat.

No wonder he went into a hysterical rage when others tried to take the meat from him.

If someone took his stash of meat, or if his scavenging missions continued to be ruthlessly exploited, his “wife” would likely starve and turn into a desiccated corpse.

Zombies didn’t eat snacks—they were killing machines fueled by blood and flesh.
And that fuel could come from either human flesh or other types of meat.

All the previous doubts fell into place like pieces of a puzzle.

Hearing Lin Hao’s desperate pleas, the zombie in the bedroom lifted its head.

Its blood-red eyes and grotesque, decayed face came into view.

Sensing danger, it let go of the half-eaten corpse and lunged toward Sasha with a piercing screech.

Sasha didn’t even flinch. She stood motionless, calmly watching the horrific creature charge at her.

Just as the zombie reached the doorway, it suddenly stumbled and fell face-first onto the floor.

It flailed angrily, struggling to break free of something.

A chain of metal links glinted in the dim light, secured tightly around its ankle. The other end was fastened to the heavy bedframe inside the room.

Lin Hao must have done this—to prevent his “wife” from attacking others and to protect himself.

Though he still called this zombie his “wife,” it was clear Lin Hao retained a shred of rationality.

His logical mind understood that this grotesque, rotting corpse was no longer human.

But emotionally, he simply couldn’t let go.

Ding! Mission Progress Updated: “Diagnosis: Love”
Mission: “Diagnosis: Love” (3/?) – Critical Choice Detected
Option 1: Kill Lin Hao’s “wife” immediately. End the mission.
Reward: 2 Random Attribute Points.

Option 2: Spare Lin Hao’s “wife” and listen to his request.
Original mission reward remains the same, with an additional hidden reward.

A series of prompts appeared before Sasha’s eyes. This was the first time she had encountered a choice interface.

Sasha didn’t hesitate.

If she were just an ordinary girl, Lin Hao clearly intended to help her—a good-hearted fool.

The zombie woman was chained and posed no threat. Lin Hao, too, was powerless.

She had no interest in pointless killing.

More importantly, the hidden reward was the superior choice.

With that thought, Sasha slowly lowered her hand.

The titanium-alloy crossbow vanished from her arm as she relaxed her stance.

Seeing Sasha spare the zombie, Lin Hao finally breathed a sigh of relief, collapsing onto the floor in exhaustion.

His gaze toward Sasha was filled with gratitude.

If it weren’t for Sasha, given the level of conflict earlier, Zhang and his crew would likely have killed him by now.

His supplies would have been stolen, leaving the “wife” locked in the bedroom without his care.

Without food, she would either starve into a mummified husk or be discovered and beaten to death.

Sasha walked over and helped Lin Hao into a sitting position.

His wound was still bleeding. After Sasha inquired about supplies, she fetched the first aid kit from his home.

Lin Hao expertly bandaged himself, so Sasha refrained from helping further.

The zombie woman, failing to break free of her chain, let out a few frustrated wails before returning to her unfinished meal.

The sickening sounds of chewing resumed, accompanied by the occasional squelch.

Lin Hao seemed used to it, offering a bitter smile.

He glanced at Sasha, who had pulled up a chair to sit across from him, her expression calm and unreadable.

It was hard to imagine that such a cute little girl could possess terrifying strength, along with an unyielding coldness and decisiveness.

In truth, she probably didn’t even need his help.

Then again, if he hadn’t decided to help her, hadn’t invited her into his home, wouldn’t he already be dead by now?

Sasha unexpectedly broke the silence, speaking first.

“So, what’s the story here?”

She tilted her head, feigning curiosity, her expression seemingly innocent.

But Lin Hao could no longer associate the word “innocent” with Sasha.

He clipped the excess bandage from his leg, now disinfected and secured, and began to speak slowly.

“She’s Lin Xiaolu, the girl you saw in the wedding photo in the living room.”

“We grew up together, childhood sweethearts.”

“We went to the same middle school, high school, and even agreed to apply to the same college.”

“I confessed to her in high school, and we naturally got together.”

“After graduating college, we got married.”

“We had so many plans for the future.”

“To live in a bright, airy house. To eat dinner together after work and cuddle while watching movies.”

“We even dreamed of adopting a fat cat that would curl up between us during movie nights.”

“That was it—just a simple dream.”

As he spoke, his eyes grew distant, lost in memories. His words poured out like water from a tipped-over jar, unfiltered and raw.

“But as you can see, the apocalypse happened.”

“All our dreams shattered into pieces.”

“A few days ago, when I finally managed to make it back home...”