Chapter 1

When the apocalypse hit, I awakened the most useless power—Purification. All it could do was purify water and food.

My CEO boyfriend, Joseph Storm, awakened an S-tier lightning power. Before long, powerful espers gathered around him.

He saw me as dead weight. When I was burning up with fever, he snatched my last half-bottle of medicine for his newly recruited his so-called little sister, a healer.

When the zombie horde broke out, he didn't hesitate to shove me out as bait for the zombies, escaping with his "sister."

Zombies tore me into pieces, but three days later, I awakened as the Zombie Queen.

Joseph had no idea that when he shoved me into the zombie horde, he was crowning himself with a crown made from my bones.

*****

A sharp voice called out from behind me, followed by mocking laughter. "Isabelle, hurry up. You're the water purifier. The whole team's waiting for you to get dinner ready!"

I didn't turn around. I just quietly reached into the murky, stinking bucket.

The icy water rose past my wrist, and a faint warmth spread from my palm.

The water in the bucket cleared before my eyes, and the foul smell faded away.

This was my power, F-tier Purification.

It was the most pathetic, utterly useless ability I could have when the world ended.

I carried the purified water to the back of the group, quietly passing it out to each person.

Joseph, my boyfriend, was right in the middle of everyone.

He was dressed in a black combat suit, tall and imposing, with purple lightning flickering at his fingertips.

His S-tier lightning power made him the most formidable presence in the whole apocalypse.

He didn't look at me at all; all his focus was on the girl next to him.

Hannah Grace, who he'd rescued from the ruins half a month ago, had awakened a rare C-tier healing power.

Right now, her eyes were rimmed with tears as she pointed at a faint scratch on her arm.

"Joseph, it's all my fault. If I hadn't gone to pick that herb, I wouldn't have gotten hurt, and I wouldn't have dragged everyone down," Hannah said.

Joseph's brows furrowed instantly as he gently lifted her arm. "What are you talking about? You did it for the team. Not like some people, who only waste food and water."

His voice was even, but every word landed like a dull blade, twisting slowly in my chest.

I dropped my gaze, staring at my hands, dry and cracked from endless days spent purifying tainted food.

Being their water purifier was never my choice.

People were whispering all around me.

"She's just an F-tier. If it weren't for old times' sake, Joseph would've tossed her out long ago."

"Right. Eats all day, contributes nothing. She's nowhere near as useful as Hannah."

I'd long grown accustomed to those words.

By the third month of the apocalypse, my relationship with Joseph had decayed beyond recognition, just like the world itself.

I handed the last portion of water to Joseph.

He took it without a second thought and gently offered it to Hannah. "Hannah, have some water."

From start to finish, he didn't spare me a single glance.

I stood there, cold seeping into my bones, my limbs feeling icy.

As night fell, I started running a fever.

It wasn't just some ordinary cold. My temperature swung wildly, from burning hot to freezing cold, and faint zombie marks began to appear on my skin.

I'd been infected.

While out scavenging for supplies, a zombie's claw scratched the back of my hand. The wound was tiny that I figured it was no big deal.

I struggled to get up, rummaging through my backpack and only managed to find half a bottle of expired fever medicine.

This was my only hope.

I twisted open the cap, just as I was about to take the pill, the tent flap was suddenly yanked open.

Joseph burst in and snatched the bottle from my hand. "Isabelle, what the hell are you doing?"

I was burning up, my head spinning, and I reached out desperately to snatch the bottle back. "Joseph, I'm running a fever. I'm infected... Please, just give me the medicine..."

He didn't even look at me. Without a word, he turned his back and walked out.

"Hannah got scratched by a zombie too. She's in real danger right now. She needs this medicine way more than you do," Joseph said.

I stood there, stunned. An icy void seemed to tear open inside my chest, letting a frigid draft rush right through me.

"She just got scratched on her arm! She's a healer—she can purify the virus herself! But I'm just an ordinary person. Without this medicine, I'm going to die!" I screamed, pouring every ounce of strength I had into my voice.

Joseph stopped and turned back, his eyes carrying nothing but pure impatience and disgust.

He snapped, "Isabelle, are you done?

"Hannah's a C-tier healer. She's the only hope this base has! And you? You're nothing but a glorified water filter. Who do you think you are to compare yourself to her?

"If you die, I'll just pick up another water purifier. But if she dies, where the hell am I supposed to find another healer?"

Every word hit like venom-tipped daggers, driving deep into my bones.

I was trembling, staring at his merciless back as my vision kept flickering in and out.

Turns out, in his eyes, I wasn't even worth a spare part.

If the water purifier broke, he'd replace it.