Dimensional Codex System: I'm really not a cultist!
Chapter 364 - 363: The Cursed Children

Chapter 364: Chapter 363: The Cursed Children

"We should be safe here,"

After carrying the girl away from the crowd, Fang Zheng made several turns and finally found a deserted area, where he set the girl down.

"How about it? Can you walk on your own?"

"Ah... Yes, I can..."

Feeling Fang Zheng’s movements, the girl was slightly surprised; she reluctantly left his embrace and stood back on the ground, then lowered her head toward Fang Zheng.

"Thank you for saving me..."

"No need to be polite, it was nothing."

Responding to the girl’s thanks, Fang Zheng waved his hand dismissively.

"But what the hell were those bastards doing, bullying a girl? Is it their hobby? They’re really a bunch of lunatics..."

"Um..."

Hearing Fang Zheng’s murmured exclamation, the girl hesitated for a moment before looking up at him and asking softly.

"Excuse me... Aren’t you afraid of me?"

"Me? Afraid of you?"

Caught off guard by the girl’s question, Fang Zheng was thoroughly puzzled.

"Why would I be afraid of you?"

"Because, because I am a ’Cursed Child’..."

As she spoke, the girl stretched out her hand as if to cover something, pressing down on the cat ears atop her head.

"Everyone says that ’Cursed Children’ are scary, and they hate our existence..."

Looking at the girl who was bowing her head, Fang Zheng smiled slightly and reached out to pat her small head.

"I don’t find anything scary about it. A child as cute as you being hated, I can only say those people are the ones with a problem in their heads."

"Eh?"

Upon hearing Fang Zheng’s reply, the girl lifted her head in surprise, her pale purple eyes shining with pure light.

"I... am cute?"

"Of course, how could anyone hate a child as cute as you? Not to mention, cat ears are a Cute Attribute."

As he spoke, Fang Zheng reached out to gently pinch the girl’s cat ears... Mmm, they were soft to the touch, very comfortable indeed.

"Mmm..."

Feeling Fang Zheng’s caress, the girl trembled slightly and looked at Fang Zheng with a discontented expression.

"Big brother... it’s ticklish..."

"Sorry, sorry."

Seeing the girl’s blushing face, Fang Zheng quickly let go of those adorable cat ears.

"Right, did you come here for something?"

"This... um..."

Facing Fang Zheng’s inquiry, the girl looked uneasy.

"I, I wanted to see if I could find some food. Everyone has not had anything to eat for several days..."

"Everyone?"

"Yes... those like me, ’Cursed Children’..."

"..."

Observing the girl’s expression, Fang Zheng fell silent for a moment.

"Do you need food?"

"Yes, and... winter is coming soon. If we don’t get some warm clothes, life will be very hard for everyone."

"If that’s the case, let me help you," Fang Zheng said.

"Huh?"

Upon hearing Fang Zheng’s response, the girl looked up in surprise.

"Is that really okay?"

"Of course."

Seeing the girl’s astonished expression, Fang Zheng smiled slightly.

"Meeting is fate. I don’t really understand why the people in this city treat you as a monster, but...regardless, bullying a group of children does not align with my values. But first..."

At this point, Fang Zheng took a careful look at the girl before him. She was only wearing a thin, tattered dress, probably scavenged from a trash heap or somewhere else, and she didn’t even have shoes. The world was deep into autumn now, and the howling cold wind made the girl’s petite body shiver uncontrollably.

"Let’s get you changed into some new clothes first. You’re familiar with this place. Are there any clothing stores nearby?"

"No, that won’t work..."

But when Fang Zheng asked, the girl stepped back in surprise and shook her head while pressing down on her cat ears.

"I can’t enter those stores; otherwise, people will drive me out..."

Is it because of those cat ears?

Witnessing the girl’s reaction, Fang Zheng sighed silently, then reached into his space and rummaged around. I remember there should be...well, this will have to do.

"Wear this hat," he said.

As he spoke, Fang Zheng pulled a black hat, resembling one a witch would wear, from his Spatial Bag and placed it on the girl’s head. He had bought it casually while shopping for clothes with Tilia, but since he didn’t like the style, it ended up stored away here. Now, it seemed to suit the girl quite well.

"Huh?"

The girl’s eyes widened in astonishment when she felt the hat on her head, and Fang Zheng watched her with a smile.

"This way, you don’t have to worry about being recognized."

"...Thank you..."

Grasping the edge of the hat, the girl bowed her head and murmured her thanks, her cheeks tinted with a blush. For her, this was the first time anyone had treated her so kindly. The eyes of those she had encountered before were always filled with disgust and hatred, and she had grown accustomed to it. She even came to believe that perhaps she should never have been born into this world. Her mother abandoned her, and others looked upon her with hateful stares.

But this...for the first time...someone treated her with such tenderness.

"Before we continue, let’s introduce ourselves," Fang Zheng suggested, squatting down to look at the girl before him.

"My name is Fang Zheng. You can call me whatever you like... So, what’s your name?"

"...Fumie Busei."

No matter how much time passed in the lengthy years that followed, Fumie Busei would never forget the figure who appeared by her side that day and rescued her from the endless darkness of this world.

The shopping street.

The commotion caused by Fang Zheng didn’t seem to have aroused much trouble, and everything around appeared as usual, no different from any other day. Fang Zheng leaned against a nearby wall, watching the people passing by the shop, while flipping through a magazine titled "Intestinal War." Through this magazine, Fang Zheng finally gained some understanding of the current situation in this world.

Eight years ago, a parasitic virus known as "Intestinal Creature" emerged, possessing massive mutated bodies and strength, along with a nearly unkillable regeneration ability. Mankind fought these creatures and ultimately lost. Humans lost eighty percent of their territory and were now huddled in confined urban areas, struggling to survive. They erected giant monuments made of Hua Stone around the periphery of the cities. This Hua Stone could repel these Intestinal Creatures and, when fashioned into weapons, could effectively harm these creatures and weaken their regeneration ability.

Those who were attacked and bitten by an Intestinal Creature would have fluids injected into their bodies, resulting in genetic mutations that would turn them into one of the creatures. To Fang Zheng, this virus didn’t seem much different from the one in Resident Evil, except that in Resident Evil, those bitten would turn into zombies, whereas here, they turned into monsters.

But what mattered most to Fang Zheng were the "Cursed Children."

Typically, the Intestinal Virus doesn’t cause mutations in the human body unless it enters the bloodstream. However, the virus, when ingested orally, can infect babies at a certain rate. These babies are born with red eyes, and some, due to various mutations, exhibit physical changes similar to the Intestinal Creatures.

Unlike those who were bitten by Intestinal Creatures and immediately became monsters, these Cursed Children are able to suppress the virus to some extent. However, as they grow older, the rate at which the virus corrodes the Cursed Children increases. Once the infection rate surpasses fifty percent, they transform into Intestinal Monsters.

Furthermore, due to the instability of the Y chromosome, all the Cursed Children who survived the virus infection turned out to be girls.

So this is why people fear them?

"Whoosh."

Just then, the curtain in front of Fang Zheng was pulled aside, and Fumie Busei stepped out, her cheeks slightly flushed.

"I’ve chosen my clothes. Big brother, do they look nice?"

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