Accidentally Formed a Reverse Harem in the Apocalypse Chapter 9 - Stay calm, stay calm

Chapter 9 Stay calm, stay calm

 

Leaving the sorrowful Zero behind, I let out a deep sigh and saw the servants gathered in the wide ducal garden, all looking uneasy.

“L-Lady Elizabeth… if the Duke has really passed away, what are we supposed to do now?”

“The magic stones that power the emergency barrier will run out eventually too…”

“That’s true, but the more urgent problem is the supply of food. Since we can’t go outside, at this rate everyone might starve to death before long. That’s the biggest issue.”

The butler, the head maid, the kitchen’s head chef—all of them were visibly shaken, hoping I’d give them a hopeful answer. Their eyes, full of expectation that I would somehow replace the Duke’s absence, felt overwhelming.

‘Not long ago, I was nothing more than a burden to this ducal house, no more and no less.’

So what were these expectant gazes supposed to mean? Those sparkling eyes looking at me not as a useless bag of barley but as the main beam holding up the whole household—what on earth?

“If the Duke has truly become a zombie, then without a doubt, the rightful head of House Keaton is now Lady Elizabeth.”

The butler spoke first. Considering the Duke was essentially presumed dead, the Duchess had passed away long ago, and I was the only heir left in the estate, it was the natural conclusion.

“From now on, milady must give us orders as the next Duke of Keaton.”

“What should we do, my lady!”

“Uh….”

I was flustered. The employees of the duchy usually had such strong pride from working here for so long that they never liked Elizabeth, the troublemaker and villainess of the house.

‘Honestly, I thought chaos would break out the moment I appeared.’

But what was this obedient puppy-like attitude?

Zero coughed awkwardly and answered for me.

「I used a bit of my ‘possessor buff.’」

‘You did?’

「To solve this zombie crisis, you need allies. So I made you look like a savior who managed to survive the outside world—the same place the Duke never returned from. To them, you probably look like a golden lifeline that’ll pull them out of this hellish situation.」

‘What the heck did you just say?’

「It’s not a bad deal, you know. Let’s use the duchy as our base and go defeat the zombies!」

Sure enough, when I checked the status window, several strange messages appeared.

[Helper Zero has gifted the possessor with Trust and Fame!]

[Elizabeth Keaton’s Trust and Fame have each increased by 30!]

[The increase in Trust and Fame raises the loyalty of the employees working inside the duchy.]

I quietly closed the status window and looked toward the duchy.

House Keaton, sitting right at the center of the capital, was a grand and beautiful mansion. Built of rare minerals blending cream and rose hues, its beauty was so famous that it earned the nickname “Scent of Roses.”

A tranquil, rose-colored three-story manor with a well-kept green lawn, a lovely garden, a fountain, and even a proud angel statue.

Use this sparkling fairytale-like mansion as a fortress to fight zombies?

‘Easier said than done!’

The holy water I stole from the pope felt heavier than ever. It was only a temporary fix. According to Zero, holy water could only paralyze zombies, and to kill them completely, one had to destroy their heads.

「You said you wanted to go home. If you don’t keep your promise, I have no obligation to send you back.」

This little bastard. No—this rat.

I had to press down the rising anger. Crying wouldn’t solve anything. I had to end this cursed romance-fantasy zombie disaster if I wanted to go home.

Taking a deep breath, I gave my first order to the staff.

“First, replace the magic stones—looks like the barrier is pretty damaged. After that, I need the workshop to make something.”

“What would that be?”

“A water gun. Or a sprayer.”

“Pardon? A water gun and a sprayer? I’ve never heard of such things…”

“That’s why they need to make them.”

“And… what exactly will those be used for?”

“To fight the zombies.”

“P-Pardon?”

To the butler—who kept repeating the same thing like a parrot—I held out the heavy container of holy water.

“This is holy water. Keep it safe. We’ll load it into the water guns and sprayers and shoot it.”

“Wh-what? H-holy water—where did you…?”

“I stole it from the temple.”

“Whaaaat?”

My overly confident tone nearly made the butler’s jaw and soul leave his body at the same time. I even heard someone whimper that the duchy’s honor had fallen to the ground.

I gently lifted the butler’s dropped jaw back into place and said,

“I asked the temple for help, but they refused. So I brought it for ‘our sake.’ So don’t worry too much.”

‘It’s not completely a lie, so this excuse should be fine…’

Since the pope had tried to take advantage of the crisis, I figured pinning this on him was fair enough. Hearing my explanation, the butler and the rest of the staff panicked for a moment, then quickly flipped their attitudes and started flattering me, saying I’d done well.

“Refusing the request of the young lady of House Keaton—the daughter of the Duke—and that too when she was asking for help for the people? It’s better this way, honestly!”

“That’s right. Since things ended up like this anyway, my lady—no, my lord—let’s turn your infamous reputation into a noble one! In times like these, it’s better not to be underestimated.”

“…Are you just saying anything that comes to your mind right now?”

“Of course not!”

Even as they said that, their pupils were visibly trembling.

‘Of course they’re anxious.’

The head of the family who had long supported the ducal house had suddenly died a violent death, and the only one left was the young lady Elizabeth, who used to follow the crown prince around like she’d lost her mind.

‘In a situation like this, the servants might stab me in the back and run away.’

With a zombie apocalypse underway, who cares about social class? They were relying on me because they had no one else to turn to, but who knew when they might change their tune.

I placed my hand on the shoulder of the butler, who was struggling as he carefully carried the silver jug filled with holy water.

“Butler.”

“Yes, my lord.”

“If anyone in this mansion tries to pull anything stupid and I catch them, I’ll throw them to the zombies on the spot. Make sure everyone knows that.”

“Pardon? Ah… yes, understood.”

Hearing my words, the butler turned pale and began hiccupping. Good. My reputation was already ruined—could it really get any worse at this point?

“You understand me, right?”

“Y-yes, of course.”

“Good. Keep up the work.”

I sent the exhausted soldiers back to their quarters and glanced at the mage reporting this unprecedented disaster to the Magic Tower through a crystal orb. Then I headed toward the Duke’s office.

To request the creation of water guns and sprayers from the workshop in the ducal estate, I needed to draw at least a rough blueprint.

“So busy, so busy!”

“Um, my lady.”

“I’m busy, let’s talk later, butler.”

“I am not the butler.”

“Huh?”

Feeling someone tug on my collar, I turned around and found Michael standing there, looking either angry or worn out—his expression was hard to read.

“You ran off with the holy water, yet you quite easily forgot that I was chasing after you.”

Hmm, I’m busy—can’t we talk later? …Probably not, right?

“Oh my, I didn’t realize you were there.”

“I know you were aware of everything, my lady.”

Tch. Yeah, I know, you brat.

If a so-called sub male lead comes with the title of the greatest holy knight, complete with blond hair and blue eyes, he’s practically a walking presence magnet—how could I not notice him?

‘But even if I noticed, so what?’

It had been well over a hundred days since I left home. A modern person spoiled by all sorts of conveniences, forced into uncomfortable dresses, stiff etiquette, and the unwanted role of a villainess—I was exhausted to the bone.

In other words, I had reached the point where I really didn’t care about anything anymore.

“You must return that holy water to the temple immediately—”

“Nope. That holy water is mine now.”

“…My lady!”

At my firm reply without an ounce of hesitation, Michael’s blue eyes flashed. He looked threatening, but I didn’t budge.

‘What’s he gonna do about it?’

Either way, the pope had promised me. He said I could take as much holy water as I personally scooped into the jug.

Sure, he probably didn’t expect me to draw so much that the bottom of the well practically showed—but thinking about that shady pope, I didn’t even feel sorry.

“This is my rightful property, taken with His Holiness the Pope’s permission. On what grounds and logic is Sir Michael demanding that I return something that belongs to me?”

“Isn’t it an unfair outcome gained through deceitful tricks? Normally, it should be impossible to take enough holy water to drain the well.”

“Or perhaps, because the pope has truly fallen into corruption, the god Ardel took pity on me and granted me His blessing.”

Words spilled from my mouth like smooth honey as I countered him. Michael narrowed his eyes at me, then asked a single question.

“…How did you do it?”

“Do what?”

“My lady, you… performed a miracle that only a saint can wield, did you not?”

I remembered how Zero had arbitrarily opened the ‘Saintess’ job trait for me. And how, the moment holy water touched my hand, a pure blue glow—something that could only be called divine—had poured out.

“It was a dog dream.”

“…Excuse me?”

“You were exhausted, Sir Michael. You ended up dreaming nonsense while standing there. Understand?”

It was an absurd excuse. Naturally, Michael argued back.

“A dream? I was perfectly fine. I was agile enough to catch you when you tried to run off with the jug of holy water.”

“But do you think it makes sense? Could you truly claim that I—Elizabeth Keaton, known throughout the capital as the most infamous villainess—was chosen as a saint?”

“That’s…”

‘As expected, he’s speechless.’

Because I had perfectly acted out the role of the original Elizabeth Keaton, Michael and the other sub male leads all ground their teeth whenever they saw me.

‘Elizabeth’ had an incredibly busy schedule. She chased after her former fiancé, the crown prince she loved unrequitedly, schemed constantly to suppress the heroine, her romantic rival—

And she never stopped plotting ways to crush the butterfly-like sub male leads who were drawn to the heroine’s charm.

She barely had enough time in a 24-hour day.

On top of that, she even managed to maintain her beauty with meticulous care. Truly the textbook example of a villainess.

‘No one would ever believe that Elizabeth Keaton could be a saint.’