Bones being crushed, rotten flesh, and bits of entrails—after chewing, it all became a disgusting, putrid bolus that went down Matthew's throat.
In just over an hour, only a stain of gelatinous, putrid liquid remained on the floor.
[Host's bones are now stronger]
[Strengthened skeletal system]
[Zombie: Rank E]
"No, Rank E-, but Rank E. I should thank this dwarf for his noble attitude."
He stared at the disgusting stain for a few seconds and then picked up the spear again. It seemed lighter now, but still heavy.
He left the armory and explored the rest of the city.
He entered a house where there was a chained zombie dog. He devoured the Rank F+ zombie dog and gained a slight improvement in his sense of smell.
He used that same house as a refuge. However, as night fell, the violent flapping of wings could be heard outside, directly above the house where he was.
He went down to the basement and took refuge there all night, listening as the dilapidated windows outside were completely destroyed.
"It seems it's trying to hunt me, just like the zombie cat hunted the rat."
Although he knew he had no chance of defeating the creature outside, he remained vigilant. Now that he had crossed the line, he wasn't about to surrender without a fight.
After a few hours of chaos, the sun rose again, and the outside world was silent.
He cautiously opened the basement door, holding the metal bar in his hands and carrying the jet-black spear on his back.
When he finally stepped outside, he saw that the house was in ruins; even walls had been knocked down, and there were deep claw marks on some of the collapsed walls.
He went outside, scanning the sky and the tops of the buildings to avoid being ambushed. Although the flying creature appeared nocturnal, he couldn't be certain, and he knew that doing so would expose him to danger, so he preferred to assume the threat persisted.
Without further hesitation, Matthew looked at an old map whose paint had faded, headed down an asphalt road, and left the city where he had appeared.
The road was in ruins, cracked everywhere, overgrown with weeds, and exposed tree roots.
As he moved away from the city, he saw a few zombies scattered in the surrounding area, now reclaimed by the forces of nature.
As he walked, the minutes passed, then the hours. The landscape was uneven, some parts dominated by vegetation where hardly any trace of civilization remained.
Matthew planned to approach a small town marked on the map, a town located near a river.
He continued searching for survivors, or zombies he could devour to improve his rank. When night fell, he leaned against a rock near a leafy tree by the side of the road and looked around. At that moment, he preferred to avoid movement and focus on his surroundings, especially since he didn't know if that flying creature had decided to continue hunting him.
...
Since he didn't tire, he waited awake all night, motionless, silent, listening only to the wind that came and went and the sounds made by the few zombies that occasionally appeared.
When the sun rose, Matthew resumed his walk toward his chosen destination.
As he walked, he gripped the metal bar he carried tightly when he saw a shadow cast on the ground. Looking up, he saw two birds fly past in the sky.
Not all beings are zombies. First it was the rat, and now these birds.
For some reason he attributed to his zombie nature, he felt a desire to devour those birds. Looking around, he saw that some zombies were also watching the birds that had flown by. "Wow, is that a strong instinct brought on by the zombie transformation? I think as long as I keep my wits about me, I can control it. Or so I hope." With that thought, step by step, he continued walking toward his destination. He believed he could arrive in two days at his current pace, continuing to search for zombies to devour.
The hours passed and night would soon fall. Although not much had changed, he felt the number of zombies he saw had increased slightly. Observing his surroundings, he finally decided to lie down among a clump of weeds to hide from any potential danger, and so he spent another night, vigilant but without moving an inch.
"I'll keep devouring any F+ rank zombies I see. But it's strange not having seen any survivors. There must have been humans and other powerful humanoid beings in this world. I must remember that, lest I be attacked by some zombie hunters or become a mere laboratory experiment."
The sun rose again. He stood up, and a bluish beetle walked beside him.
Without even thinking, he picked up the live beetle, which twitched its legs until Matthew's teeth crushed it before swallowing it.
"Damn, I couldn't help myself."
Matthew wiped the corner of his mouth and continued walking toward his destination.