The streets were eerily quiet, broken only by the faint whisper of the wind and the distant cries of the undead. Morning light filtered through the dusty air, casting long shadows over the ruined city. Amid the cracked pavement and abandoned buildings, one sight stood out—a truck. Unlike the rusted, dented vehicles scattered across the streets, this one looked untouched. Its surface was smooth, gleaming faintly under the sun, with an electronic sign glowing above a service window. It resembled a food truck more than a cargo hauler—too new, too clean, and far too out of place in a world drowning in ruin.
From across the street, a teenage girl blinked and rubbed her eyes a few times, wondering if she was hallucinating. She had chosen a two-storey convenience store as her temporary hideout. She picked this place because she thought there would be at least some food here—even expired food would have been fine. But sadly, there wasn't. She couldn't leave right away either, because the weather had been bad for the past few days, and she was also feeling weak from starvation.
Just when she finally accepted that she might die of hunger, she suddenly saw a very conspicuous and unusual truck across the street. At first she thought she was hallucinating, but then she saw survivors approaching the truck. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but she was certain they were begging for food. However, it seemed they were refused, because the survivors started kicking and throwing rocks at the vehicle. When they realized the people inside wouldn't respond no matter what they did, they left one by one, not wanting to attract the 'monsters.'
Some of them also entered the convenience store she was hiding in, and she quickly learned why they were so angry.
"That woman is one hell of a selfish bitch!"
The teenage girl hid deeper in the corner when she sensed them near her hiding spot. Thankfully, someone else asked the question she wanted to ask.
"Why? What happened?"
The man's face twisted in anger as he spoke. "There was a woman inside that truck," he began, voice tight with frustration. "We saw the sign—'Available: Water and Bread'—so of course we thought it was relief supplies, maybe from the government or some group trying to help. We've been starving for days. When we saw that truck, we thought… finally, finally our prayers had been answered."
He let out a harsh laugh, more bitter than amused. "So we went up there—kids, women, all of us—thinking she'd give us something. But instead, she told us the food wasn't free. She was selling it. Selling it! And for zombie cores, no less! Like everyone's just walking around with those in their pockets!"
His expression darkened as he went on. "We pleaded with her. Told her there were children starving, that we hadn't eaten in days. But she just stood there, cold as ice, and said she wasn't running a charity. No matter what we said, she just ordered us to leave."
The man's fists clenched, his voice rising. "We were desperate, damn it! We even threatened to smash up her truck if she didn't hand something over. But that truck—it's built like a fortress! We kicked it, pounded on it, even tried the windows, but it didn't get a single scratch. In the end, we had to back off before the noise brought a horde down on us. That woman's nothing but heartless!"
The teenage girl trembled slightly at the man's roar, but her thoughts were already drifting back to the truck across the street. There was food inside, but not for free. The price was zombie cores. She gripped her bag tightly.
During her journey in search of a permanent shelter, she had been forced to kill zombies. Sometimes she even hunted ones stuck in debris just to get the zombie cores inside their heads.
Today, aside from supplies, zombie cores were the most important thing. They could help you survive this cruel world. They could be used as money to buy whatever you needed—and they could also awaken hidden powers.
Three months ago, multiple meteorites had suddenly crashed across every part of the world. At first, everyone dismissed the meteor showers as unusual but still natural. But three days later, an unknown virus spread across the globe.
At first, people didn't connect the virus to the meteorites. Then a vlogger—an apocalypse fanatic who loved graphic novels—posted a theory. One of the comics he read described the same thing: meteorites falling, a strange virus appearing, and people turning into zombies.
He was ridiculed, cursed at, even threatened for spreading nonsense. But the very next day, the sick began transforming into flesh-eating monsters.
The world fell into chaos. More and more people turned into zombies. Panic spread through every city. Order collapsed, and the government, despite all its efforts, failed to control the outbreak.
And just when everyone thought humanity was doomed, a week after the outbreak, humans with strange abilities appeared. In novels and dramas, such powers were called superpowers. That was when people realized this virus was not only a disaster, but also a blessing for humanity.
A month later, humanity was still standing. People kept fighting against the endless tide of zombies, and, in a way, life had returned to a kind of 'normal.' Not the old normal, but one where everyone had already adjusted to a world overrun by the dead—a world where survival meant constant battles and living on the edge became routine.
But on this day, something unusual appeared—a truck too pristine, too out of place in a world drowned in ruin.
A teenage girl that looked about fifteen timidly and hesitantly approached the very conspicuous truck. It was sleek, a stark contrast to the apocalyptic desolation around it. Bright letters glowed on an LED screen above the window. She first observed her surroundings to make sure that there were no zombies in sight. After making sure the street was clear, she ran toward the truck. Her eyes widened when she saw what was written on the sign.
'Available: Water and Bread for 3 level-one zombie cores! LIMITED ITEMS: 20'
She blinked in disbelief after realizing she had read it right. Her lips trembled as she read the sign again. Was this real? She thought her hunger had driven her mad.
Tentatively, she placed a hand on the truck's surface. It was cool and solid, not a mirage. Her gaze shifted to the counter, where a woman sat inside, her hair, almost white yet touched with a glint of silver, tied back neatly, her pale blue eyes focused on something in front of her.
The woman—Eira—looked up. "Are you here to buy?" she asked, her tone flat and indifferent.
The girl flinched, startled by the voice. "I-I... uh..." she stammered, her cheeks flushing.
Eira's expression softened slightly. "Don't be afraid. I'm just here to sell some stuffs," she said, gesturing to the sign. "If you have the zombie cores, you can buy water and bread."
The girl swallowed hard, her eyes darting to the small pouch she clutched against her chest. She had three level-one zombie cores—her only possessions of value. She'd scavenged them from a corpse, too afraid to kill a zombie herself.
Her stomach growled loudly, betraying her desperation. Embarrassed, she glanced up at Eira, who gave a faint, understanding nod.
The girl hesitated, clutching the pouch tighter. What if this was a trap? What if the truck was some elaborate scheme to lure survivors? But her hunger outweighed her fear.
With trembling hands, she placed the three zombie cores on the counter. "T-Then I'll buy one… please," she whispered.
Eira inspected the cores, then reached down to get the water and bread from the boxes beside her. A small compartment beneath the counter slid open, revealing a neatly packaged loaf of bread and a bottle of water.
The girl's eyes widened in disbelief. It was real!
She grabbed the items, her hands trembling, and clutched the bread like a starving animal protecting its meal. The bread was about the size of an average adult's fist, but for her, it was already too much. Tears welled in her eyes as she took the tiniest bite. "T-thank you," she managed softly.
Eira leaned back in her chair, watching her with an unreadable expression. "No need to thank me. I'm just giving you what you paid for."
The girl wiped her tears and carefully unwrapped the bread. "You're right but nowadays people choose to save their foods and clean water because this was scarce now," she said, her voice tinged with bitterness.
Eira hummed, a faint nod following. "I see."
Eira watched as the girl broke the bread into tiny pieces, nibbling slowly before stopping altogether. She placed the rest back into the plastic, clutching it tightly. Eira's gaze shifted toward the convenience store, where a few survivors she had seen earlier lingered. She noticed, too, how their eyes occasionally strayed toward the little girl.
Eira was silent for a moment, then decided to give the child advice. "If I were you, I'd eat the whole bread. Otherwise…" Her words trailed off when she noticed the girl's gaze flicking toward the convenience store—the same direction as her own.
She's sharp, Eira commented silently.
Although the teenage girl noticed the danger, hesitation still lingered in her eyes. Eira watched her clutch the bread to her chest like it was a priceless treasure, and she probably knew why the child hesitated.
"I'm staying here until six in the morning," Eira told the girl at last. Let's just give the little one a privilege. After all, she's my first customer, she reasoned to herself.
「 Host, you're just a softie. 」
'…Shut up.'
When the teenage girl heard what Eira said, her face lit up. "Really, sister?! Are you staying here until tomorrow?!!"
Eira was taken aback for a moment by the little girl's reaction. "...Yeah," she answered slowly. Then, after a pause, she asked, "Hey, kid, what's your name?"
The teenage girl was stunned, clearly not expecting the beautiful sister to ask her name. "My name is Paisley Keller, you can just call me Paige," she introduced, her voice soft.
Eira gave a slight nod. "Then, Paige, can you help me sell this remaining bread and water? I'll give you a reward. What do you want—food or zombie cores?" she asked while browsing through the system mall. I say browsing, but there are actually only five items unlocked: plain bread, water, and three types of bento boxes—seafood, meat, and vegetables.
"Ah?" Paige froze, clutching the bread tighter to her chest. Her eyes widened in disbelief as if she had misheard. "M-me? You… you want me to help you?"
"Yeah, if you help me sell all of this, I will give you a reward."
"O-Okay! I'll help you! I want food!" Paige exclaimed, her whole face lighting up with unrestrained glee. She clutched the bread to her chest and beamed, her smile brighter than anything Eira had seen in this ruined world.
Eira was stunned for a bit, then nodded. She watched as Paige finished the whole bread and drank the water. After eating, the girl bowed and said goodbye, saying she was going to look for people.
Eira thought Paige was going to the convenience store because there were people there, but after making sure there were no zombies around, Paige ran to the side of the store and pulled out a bicycle. Eira watched how swift and fast she rode it, pedaling away without hesitation. Eira's brow raised when she realized that Paige seemed to already have a place in mind where she could find people.
「 Host, you... 」
"It's not cheating," said Eira calmly. "I asked my customer to recommend my store to others, so that's not cheating."
The system was speechless but it couldn't refute because what its host said was right, and besides, it was also good for it if its host could finish the quota. The system chose to go back to the system space and ignore its host until she finished her quota.
Eira leaned back in her chair, eyes half-lidded, waiting patiently for Paige to return with her next customers.