Zombie

Mike stepped back slowly.

But soon enough, he realized the white fog wasn't actually spreading, and those "human shapes" in the haze didn't seem interested in stepping out either.

A locked zone… Mike exhaled. Things were better than he'd feared.

Still, to finish the trial, he'd have to check it out.

With the help of the Poison Dart, his long-range attacks were his biggest advantage right now. Unfortunately, his defenses were weak, and his HP wasn't high, so there wasn't much room for error—he had to be incredibly cautious.

Mike gazed forward, then moved on, his figure gradually disappearing into the fog.

…

Gone were the lush greens. Dry, yellow leaves blanketed the earth, and it was as if this entire forest had suddenly withered. The only aura that remained was a silent, death-like stillness.

It was almost as though the light itself hated this place—beams of sun struggled to shine through.

One positive discovery, though: the thick white fog lingered only around the outskirts. Inside, visibility was still decent.

Mike scanned the area warily, when he suddenly heard a bestial snarl in the distance.

He crept closer, and finally saw a shape:

A black-skinned "person," arms hanging slack, stumbling around aimlessly.

A zombie!

Mike took note of his surroundings, confirmed there was only this one, and jumped into action.

He lunged forward and drove his Sword at the creature's head.

-57! (Weak point attack)

Sure enough, a zombie's weak spot is its head. Hitting it there inflicted more damage.

Mike was momentarily startled, but he pressed the advantage.

-7

At the instant his blow landed, the zombie reacted, raking its right arm across his own, leaving a row of bloody cuts.

-9!

Damn, that hurt. He'd been greedy with his hits… Realizing his mistake, Mike swung again with an upward slash, delivering a killing blow.

-58 (Weak point attack)

Its HP bar emptied out, and the zombie let out a furious bellow before collapsing.

[You have killed Zombie (Villager Bernard). You gained 22 hours of lifespan.] 

[Current Remaining Lifespan: 26 days 13 hours 29 minutes] 

[Supreme being Legacy Activation: 26%]

Finally dead—not too hard to kill.

Mike was just starting to breathe easier when he noticed, to his surprise, a gray treasure chest appearing at the zombie's feet.

An unexpected bonus!

His eyes lit up, and he moved in. But before he could reach it, the dying monster let out a shrill cry.

"Waa-ga-ga-ga!!!"

The dead leaves around it scattered in all directions. Mike's brow furrowed—he heard a maddening rustle from far away, like countless creatures stirring.

Crap, that final roar must've alerted every zombie in the area.

There was no time to pick up loot. He had to bail.

Not taking any chances, Mike immediately fled that zone.

…

A short while later, Mike was back at the forest edge. After confirming nothing was chasing him, he took a quick break.

He couldn't wrap his head around why zombies were roaming around here.

Did some kind of biohazard outbreak happen?

After a brief rest, he ventured back in.

Drawing near the site of his kill, he spotted a swarm of zombies crowding around, and he had zero interest in fighting them all. 

After some thought, he lobbed a piece of wolf meat into their midst.

Within moments, the horde went crazy, snarling and fighting over the meat.

Nice.

Mike tossed another hunk a bit farther off, then put more distance between himself and the horde before chucking yet another piece.

Before long, the entire mob was chasing after the meat in the other direction.

Seeing his chance, Mike dashed back over to the treasure chest, excitedly opened it, and watched a golden glow flicker. Inside lay a key.

Mike examined it—it was clearly a quest item.

[Key to the Secret Passage] 

[Quality: Common] 

[Attributes: None] 

[Note: A quest item that may grant entry to a special place]

…

Weird, but probably tied to the main quest somehow… As that thought crossed his mind, he felt an odd tremor underfoot.

No, the ground itself was shaking!

Mike's eyes widened, and he leapt away.

A second later, the patch of dirt where he'd been standing collapsed, and a massive black arm, as thick as his thigh, erupted from below!

The entire creature hauled itself out of the ground, revealing its huge form.

A zombie! An elite-level one!

Mike didn't hesitate—he tried to run.

But he'd already been targeted!

Shit!

Mike's stomach dropped. If it had locked on to him, this wasn't just an elite monster; it was the area boss!

No chance to flee—he'd have to fight it head-on!

Mustered resolve, Mike hurled his Poison Darts at the boss.

-2!

The boss's DEF was insane! The darts barely did anything.

Enraged, the giant zombie lifted its right arm like a stone pillar and slammed it down with terrifying force.

Boom!

The ground shook violently.

Mike narrowly dodged, cold sweat on his forehead.

He barely had time to think before seeing that "stone pillar" sweep sideways like a club.

He backstepped, dove into a roll, and escaped—just as a huge tree nearby got split clean in half by that hit.

Holy hell… no way Mike could go toe-to-toe with that power.

He was about to just run for it, but then something unexpected happened: the hulking zombie gave a furious howl but only lumbered slowly forward, raising its arm again.

Okay, so physically big, but super slow on its feet!

Even though the Eye of Truth was restricted in this zone, at least it could give Mike some basic hints.

[Hint: Use Poison Darts to attack the wound on the target's thigh to trigger a guaranteed toxin effect.]

Wasting no time, Mike sidestepped out of the boss's reach and tossed a dart at its thigh.

-1!

Then—buzz!

A sickly green glow spread over the zombie, and a little skull icon appeared above it.

-3 

-3 

-3 

…

Mike grinned. He knew exactly how to bring this big guy down.