"Huh... I thought I smelled a human. But you're not human, are you? Are you a ghoul too? No, no... you're not a ghoul. Uhuhu... interesting."
Ghoul?
That name sounds familiar. Isn't that a term used in some stories? I think they're demons or something. Creatures that eat human flesh.
Oh, crap! May God have mercy on this zombie soul.
—Splash!
A wet, disgusting sound echoes in the night.
An elongated object explodes from his back. The object resembles pulsating flesh. It opens further, and I see that they are all joined by a crimson mass that unfolds like butterfly wings.
But it pulses and is quite disgusting.
"Ugh... gross..."
I think I'm going to throw up the meat I ate earlier.
The ghoul drops from the pole. Or rather, he uses those strange wings to launch himself in my direction.
He's fast!
In the blink of an eye, he arrives in front of my house.
"Interesting. I don't know what you are exactly, but..."
He licks his lips as his red eyes scan me from head to toe.
"...you smell delicious."
My legs tense as Mr. Ghoul approaches the broken window.
I take a step back.
Surprisingly, I don't feel afraid despite seeing a monster in front of me. Maybe it's because I'm a monster too, or maybe my zombie brain doesn't process fear properly.
What I mean is, the reason I step back is not because I'm afraid, but because that pulsating wing is too disgusting.
"I wonder..."
He takes another step and jumps through the window that had no glass.
"...what you'll taste like."
"Hey, hey, hey! I'm not food, you know!"
I protest as I take another step back.
The ghoul raises an eyebrow.
"You speak?"
"Of course I speak! What did you expect? That I would growl like an animal?"
Well, I am capable of growling, but that's not the point here.
"Hmm."
The ghoul's tongue comes out and slowly runs over his lips.
"You talk. You walk. And yet you are dead. Fascinating. Absolutely fascinating!"
How does he know I'm dead?
Ah, it must be his sense of smell. Ghouls seem to have keen senses.
The thing behind him moves.
And a second later, the ghoul disappears from my sight.
"Huh?"
He appears right in front of me!
Too fast!
I don't have time to react.
His hand grabs my face tightly. His fingers dig into my cheeks and...
—Swosh! Crash!
He throws me against the wall of the house.
The impact echoes throughout the house as my body buries itself deep into the wall.
Plaster cracks and pieces of cement fall. Dust enters my nose and fills my lungs. Oh, right, my lungs don't work, but I still use them out of habit.
"Gh... agh..."
I make that sound. It doesn't hurt, but it's uncomfortable. Like when you sit in a weird position and your body feels all twisted.
I crawl out of the hole and stand up while shaking the dust off my clothes.
Mr. Ghoul tilts his head.
"Interesting. You didn't break."
I spit out cement dust.
"I have a good body."
My body is more resilient than normal humans. My bones are denser and my muscles don't tear easily, so I'm hard to break.
The ghoul man flashes a perverted smile.
"Oh, you sure do. I want to eat you even more now."
"I'm not gay."
I look at him with disgust.
Why do all monsters have to sound like perverts?
I hope I don't turn out like that.
At that moment, the veins on his back light up red and purple.
What the hell?! Don't tell me that thing shoots laser beams?!
The air vibrates and the crowd tenses up.
It's clear that it's going to attack.
"Shit! I have to play on the slide tomorrow...!"
—Shink! Fwoosh! Shink! Fwoosh!
Red spikes shoot out rapidly from the wing. They are sharp and about ten centimeters long each.
Like flying knives!
At the speed the projectiles are moving, they could easily pierce a car.
"UWAAAAAAAAH!"
I panic.
It's going to leave me looking like Swiss cheese!
I start running quickly in circles around the room. Left! Right! Jump! Duck!
—Thunk!
But some projectiles pierce my torso.
One pierces my leg.
—Stab! Stab!
Two more in my right arm.
But because it doesn't hurt, I don't slow down.
I keep running like a headless chicken!
"I don't want to die!"
Well, I'm already dead, but I don't want to be dead anymore!
After a few minutes, Mr. Ghoul's attack stops.
There are several holes in the walls of my house, in the ceiling, and in the floor.
Everything is destroyed.
"Hey! Idiot! You destroyed my house!"
I yell angrily at the ghoul.
"This is my shitty hole! You can't come and destroy it whenever you feel like it!"
The ghoul looks at me with amusement.
But then I feel something strange as my stomach churns.
—Grumble!
I'm hungry. Especially when I look at the ghoul.
That thought disgusts and scares me.
W-What am I thinking? Do I... want to eat him?
But I realize that it's not normal hunger.
It's hunger for something strong.
My body seems to recognize the ghoul as a source of energy, and my body wants that energy.
—Grumble! Grumble!
My stomach growls louder.
"Oho."
Mr. Ghoul smiles.
"So you have an appetite too. How cute."
He looks at my wounds with interest.
"Not bad. You dodged most of my projectiles. But look at those holes."
"You're a talking, walking dead kid, but you don't have super regeneration like us ghouls. Pathetic."
The holes in my torso and leg show no signs of healing.
In fact, it's been like this since I was born. I have to be careful not to hurt myself because even a simple scratch takes weeks to close.
Holes that pierce my body will probably take years to heal.
My expression darkens.
Seeing myself like this, I think I can't show myself to Rei.
She would be scared and call me a monster like everyone else.
It looks like I'll lose my new friend the day after I made her.
It's sad.
But I stop thinking about that.
I have to find a way to face Mr. Ghoul and get out alive.
—Grumble! Grumble! Grumble!
My stomach growls even louder, as if it were screaming. "Eat it! Eat it! Eat it!"
The wings on the ghoul's back twist again, and he opens his mouth to speak with an expression of ecstasy.
"Well, that was fun. But it's time to end this."
Then I let my zombie instinct take over.
My fingers stiffen, my muscles tense, and my jaw locks.
There was only one thought in my mind, and that thought is hunger.
"Graaaah!"
I lunge at the ghoul with my hands outstretched toward his neck!
"Oh! That was fast!"
The ghoul looks surprised.
Good!
But just before I reach it...
—Whosssh!
His wings move and hit me in the side.
—Bang!
I fly across the room and crash into the old mattress.
The broken wooden leg of the bed pierces my thigh. I think for a moment, pull it out of my thigh, and throw it under the bed.
When I lift my head, I see that Mr. Ghoul is already on top of me.
"Interesting! Very interesting!"
His eyes shine with excitement.
"The more I see you, the more I want to eat you!"
"Well, you can't!"
I kick him in the chest with all my strength.
—Crack
I hear the sound of bones breaking as the ghoul takes a few steps back.
"Oho! You've got strength!"
There are disgusting sounds of bones rubbing against each other. I guess that's what Mr. Ghoul called super regeneration. He healed his broken bones in a matter of seconds.
I envy that ability.
I get up quickly and feel that my zombie instincts are now in full control.
I'm not thinking clearly.
I just want... I want...
"I want to eat YOU first!"
Those disgusting words come out of my mouth.
"Hahaha! Perfect! Then may the best monster win!"