In a ruined city, tall iron poles still stood, from which the hanged bodies of humanoid beings dangled.
Matthew observed this scene as the two dogs roamed the city, entering the least dilapidated buildings.
An empty city, unlike others, this one showed no trace of dead humanoids inside its buildings.
"Did the former residents escape, fight, or settle in a safer area? I don't even know if the individuals hanging from the poles were zombies, criminals, or ordinary people."
Matthew explored part of the city, and as night fell, bloodied wings sprouted from his back, and he soared above the city with a bone spear in his right hand.
On a street in an area he hadn't yet explored, he saw a Rank D+ zombie with elongated limbs devouring a beautiful white deer.
Matthew threw his spear and pierced the head of the elongated-limbed zombie, after which the D-rank zombie dog pounced on it to devour it.
Matthew and the other zombie dog devoured the deer's remains like scavenging hyenas feeding on prey hunted by another.
The next day, familiar with the area, Matthew explored the city after having flown over it.
In different parts of the city, he found iron poles with hanged bodies dangling from them.
"This world was very strange. Maybe it was some kind of intimidation directed at the residents, a ritual, or who knows what?"
Since the hanging bodies were almost mummified, it was difficult to tell if they had been zombies before they died.
After three days, without finding anything significant, Matthew headed towards a road connected to the city where he was currently located.
...
The path they were walking along was more intact than the previous ones. Although the jungle had reclaimed the sides, the paved and cobblestone road remained barely deteriorated, with only a few cracks from tree roots.
"This is strange. I don't feel any danger, but the surroundings are too suspicious," Matthew thought as he held a "bone spear" in one hand and two "monster" pills in the other.
Currently with 11 coins, he could buy his third pill in less than a week, which would make him feel safer.
As they continued onward, the zombie dogs explored the grounds beside the path.
Matthew felled a tree and sat on the trunk, leading the D-rank zombie dog further into the area beside the path. He kept a watchful eye on everything the zombie dog sensed.
The other zombie dog lay beside Matthew.
The Rank D- zombie dog arrived near a river from which some ruins of a small town could be seen on the other bank.
The zombie dog walked along the bank of the dark green river, and Matthew sensed a slight movement approaching. At that moment, Matthew ordered his zombie dog to back away.
An enormous crocodile with dark scales, nearly 10 meters long, opened its imposing jaws, attempting to seize the zombie dog, which had already retreated.
[Beast Crocodile: Rank C-]
"Some kind of beast with mana or something like that"
[Correct]
[The crocodile is a spirit beast]
[It possesses spirit energy with which it grows stronger]
"Can it turn into a zombie?"
[If it is wounded by the host who possesses the power to break the crocodile's scales]
[Pour your blood or the dogs' blood into the crocodile's wound, and it will zombify]
Matthew considered it a possibility for obtaining a means of transportation to the continent he had seen from the shore earlier.
After the D-rank zombie dog returned, the three continued along the same path.
...
More than a week later, after walking for days without stopping, just as the sun was rising, Matthew saw in the distance a large, ruined city that must have once been a major metropolis, dominated by buildings in the Gothic architectural style.
"For such a large ruined city, it's strange that I haven't seen any zombies in the last few days. I also don't sense any energy coming from that city. What's going on? System, do you sense any kind of abnormality in the environment?"
[No]
A concise response that made Matthew feel even more cautious.
At that moment, Matthew remembered the words of the zombie who had spoken to him earlier.
He also remembered the bodies hanging from the iron poles.
"Even the virus didn't end the thirst for power and the evil," Matthew summarized in his mind, summarizing the words he had heard.