I Got Reincarnated as a Zombie Girl-Chapter 410 - 407 – Rolling Heads and a Destroyed City
Sylvia stood on the castle balcony, her long black hair gently stirred by the night wind. Noir’s roar still echoed from the underground chamber, serving as the perfect backdrop for the night. The black mist of Nocture swirled more fiercely, as if sensing the shift in the atmosphere across the entire region. News of the Queen of Death’s awakening had already spread like wildfire through the darkness, making the city’s residents whisper with a mixture of hope and fear.
In just two days, envoys from the various besieged enemy fortresses began arriving in Nocture. They came with pale faces, trembling bodies, and tight escort from the shadow zombie troops that moved silently beside them. The regional leaders, dark cultists, arrogant minor Nordic gods, cunning Greek nymphs, and several high-ranking human mercenary leaders arrived one by one in black carriages or through heavily guarded emergency portals.
They were all escorted directly to the main throne room of Nocture Castle.
The throne room was a vast, dark, and majestic hall. Tall obsidian pillars soared upward, the black marble floor gleamed like a mirror of darkness, and at the far end stood a towering throne made of ancient monster bones. Seated elegantly upon it was Sylvia. Her long black hair flowed perfectly, her black mantle draped in flawless folds, and the Chains of Abyss coiled gently around the armrest like a living crown. Her red eyes were cold, her beautiful face expressionless, but the pure aura of death radiating from her made the air in the room feel heavy and difficult to breathe.
The leaders entered in sequence. The moment they saw Sylvia sitting upright on the throne, they immediately dropped to their knees on the black marble floor without any command. Their knees hit the ground hard THUD THUD THUD. Their heads bowed low, cold sweat streamed down their temples, and their trembling voices filled the hall.
"Mercy... Queen of Death... we beg for mercy!" cried the first dark cult leader, his voice cracking with fear.
"We were wrong... we didn’t know... we were forced!" added the worshipper of the minor Nordic god.
The beautiful but deathly pale Greek nymph crawled forward slightly. "We were merely puppets... please... don’t kill us..."
Sylvia had not spoken a single word. She simply sat in silence, staring at them with unblinking cold red eyes. Her gaze was like a knife piercing their souls, causing every kneeling person to panic even more. The air in the room grew heavier. The Chains of Abyss on the throne rattled softly clink... clink... as if waiting for the order to devour their lives.
Finally, one of the human leaders, a high-ranking mercenary general, could no longer endure it. He pressed his forehead to the floor until it bled.
"We were ordered by the human kingdom!" he cried out in despair. "The human kingdoms from the Old Earth and the New Earth after the World Fusion! They... they have formed a temporary truce because they want to target Nocture! Even though their previous attack failed completely, they still desire this territory! Energy crystals, pure mithril, and... you yourself, Queen. Yesterday’s opportunity was the best they had seen. So, they hurriedly sent elite assassins with the help of gods who are jealous of your power!"
The room fell silent for a moment. The other leaders quickly nodded repeatedly, admitting all the accusations with trembling voices.
"It’s true... we were merely their tools..."
"They promised to protect us if we succeeded..."
"But we failed... we beg for mercy..."
Sylvia remained silent. Her cold gaze did not change in the slightest. The longer she stayed quiet, the more panicked the leaders became. Some began to shake violently, their breathing ragged, and the faint smell of urine started to spread from the weakest among them.
Finally, Sylvia gave a single slow nod.
"Good."
The word came out softly, yet it made all those kneeling sigh in relief. Their shoulders dropped, and a small spark of hope appeared on their pale faces.
But that relief did not last long.
The world around them suddenly seemed to spin. They felt something strange, as if time had slowed. Their heads felt light. Their vision blurred. Then, in terrifying silence, their heads were cleanly severed from their bodies without the sound of any blade.
SCHLIIICK... SCHLIIICK... SCHLIIICK...
One by one, the leaders’ heads rolled across the glossy black marble floor. Their eyes were still wide open, expressions of confusion and fear frozen on their faces. Their headless bodies remained kneeling for a moment before toppling forward with heavy thuds THUD... THUD... THUD.... Thick red blood spurted slowly from the severed necks, but the Chains of Abyss that emerged from the floor instantly sucked up both the blood and their souls before the blood could stain the floor too much.
Sylvia remained seated elegantly, her hand slightly raised. The Chains of Abyss that had been coiled around the throne now returned to her wrists with a satisfied rattle clank clank clank.
"Clean it up," she said coldly.
Shadow zombie soldiers emerged silently from the shadows of the room. They lifted the headless bodies and rolling heads with quick, efficient movements. Within minutes, the black marble floor was once again spotless and gleaming, as if nothing had happened.
Sylvia rose from the throne. Her black mantle fluttered gently. "Zark."
"Yes, My Queen," Zark replied, already standing beside the throne.
"Destroy all their territories. Cities, fortresses, villages, everything. Leave nothing but ruins and ash. As for the inhabitants... give them a choice. They may move to Nocture if they wish. There will be no coercion. But if they refuse, let them be. Their former cities will be completely destroyed."
She smiled faintly, a terrifying smile. "Living outside without the protection of a city will be extremely dangerous for ordinary people without power. They will soon realize that only Nocture can protect them now."
Zark bowed deeply. "The order will be carried out immediately."
That very night, Sylvia’s zombie forces moved out.
Earth zombies, water zombies, fire zombies, shadow zombies, and packs of lycanthropes spread like a flood of darkness toward the former enemy territories. Noir’s roar, now fully evolved, echoed across the night sky GRRRROOOOOOAAAAARRRRR!!! making the inhabitants of those regions tremble in fear even before the troops arrived.
In a once-prosperous human city at the foot of a mountain, residents ran in panic as the ground around the city walls began to crack. Thousands of earth zombies emerged, their bodies hard as stone and their eyes glowing red. In the river flowing through the city, the water suddenly turned black as water zombies crawled onto land. In the sky, fire zombies floated like falling stars from hell.
The terrified residents gathered in the city square. An intelligent zombie envoy stood before them, his voice hoarse but clear.
"Queen Sylvia gives you a choice. Move to Nocture and live under her protection... or stay here. There is no coercion. However, this city will be completely destroyed starting tonight."
Some strong and brave residents chose to stay, thinking they could survive in the ruins. But most especially women, children, and ordinary people without power immediately chose to move. They knew that living outside the walls without city protection meant becoming prey for wild monsters, bandits, and dark forces roaming after the World Fusion.
That night, the enemy cities and fortresses fell one after another.
Blackish-red flames licked the sky. Lycanthrope howls echoed through the forests. Black shadows swallowed everything that remained. By the next morning, only black ruins and ash were left.
Back in Nocture Castle, Sylvia sat once again on the throne, listening to Zark’s report. Thousands of new residents had begun entering the city through the main gates, their faces filled with fear but also new hope. They would be given housing, jobs, and protection on the condition that they pledged loyalty to the Queen of Death.
Sofia stood beside the throne, her golden wings folded neatly. "You... really didn’t give them an easy choice."
Sylvia smiled faintly. "There is always a choice. They chose wrong. Now Nocture will grow even stronger with these new citizens. And the human kingdoms... they will hear this news very soon."
Velthya growled in satisfaction from the other side. "I can’t wait to see their faces when they learn their puppet cities have vanished."
Alicia and Stacia stood quietly, their auras fused with Sylvia’s. Although their soul fusion had ended, the remaining bond made the power of the three of them even more harmonious. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞
Outside, Noir’s roar echoed once again across the night sky GRRRROOOOOOAAAAARRRRR!!! a victorious roar announcing to the entire world that the Queen of Death had returned, and she was no longer patient.
Sylvia sat back down on the throne with elegant poise, her fingers gently touching the armrest made of dragon bone. Outside the castle, faint black smoke from the destroyed territories could already be seen on the eastern horizon, blending with Nocture’s increasingly thick mist. Thousands of new residents walked wearily through the city gates, their faces covered in dust and fear, yet their eyes occasionally glanced toward the castle with a spark of new hope.
