Reborn in the Apocalypse: The Heartless Fiancée Begs for Survival at the Gate

Heavy gray, leaden clouds hung over the desolate plains outside San Antonio. The ruins of Recliffe Fortress, bathed in the glow of the setting sun, resembled a colossal tombstone.

"Evelyn, stop me!"

Evan Reed's face was covered in blood, his fingernails digging into the cracks in the stone bricks, the blood seeping from between his fingers leaving several gruesome red streaks on the cold stone wall. Beneath his feet, tens of thousands of roaring, foul-smelling zombies surged forth.

The woman standing on the edge of the fortress was Evelyn, his fiancée whom he had sworn to protect for life. Her golden curls remained elegant amidst the smoke of battle, but the tenderness in her emerald eyes was gone, replaced by a chilling greed and ruthlessness.

“Evan, don’t blame me.” Evelyn half-squatted down, gently prying open Evan’s fingers that were tightly gripping the stone bricks, and casually took the heavy supply pack from his back—their last three days’ worth of fresh water and antibiotics. “Only when you die will your family’s underground fortress rightfully belong to me and Chris.”

"You...and Chris?" Evan's pupils contracted sharply. Chris was his best brother, his ideal second male lead.

“Farewell, my dear.” Evelyn pushed him away abruptly.

The sensation of falling washed over him instantly. The instant he hit the ground, Evan felt his shoulder being torn apart by rotting teeth; the excruciating pain, accompanied by the chilling invasion of the virus, dragged his consciousness completely into darkness.

...

When I opened my eyes again, there were no zombie roars, only the crackling of wood in the fireplace.

That was a secret sanctuary deep within his family's territory. Old Gu, the fort's keeper—a taciturn veteran who had fought alongside his grandfather—was skillfully stitching up the mangled wound on his shoulder.

"Young Master, bear with it." Old Gu's voice was hoarse, like sandpaper scraping. He poured strong whiskey on the wound, and Evan convulsed in pain.

The days that followed were the darkest and most profound crash course of Evan's life. Old Gu, coughing, imparted all his life's survival skills to Evan. He taught him how to repair electrical circuits and reinforce steel plates in this cannibalistic world, and more importantly, he revealed a bloody truth:

“Evan, remember, in this disaster, zombies are just hungry beasts, but the human heart... is the most poisonous plague.”

Old Gu ultimately couldn't survive that winter. After a violent coughing fit late one night, the loyal gatekeeper held Evan's hand tightly and closed his eyes forever.

"Old Gu! No!" Evan was devastated. The immense heartache made his vision blur, and he finally fainted completely in front of Old Gu's grave.

...

"Honey, wake up and have some fruit."

A sickeningly sweet voice rang in my ears.

Evan jolted awake, his back soaked with sweat. He instinctively reached for his dagger for self-defense, only to find his hand resting on an expensive leather sofa.

Sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating the bright living room. This wasn't a dark, underground fortress, but his upscale apartment in Seattle.

Evelyn, dressed in a pristine white lace nightgown, sat beside him, gracefully peeling a rosy apple. The silver blade gleamed in the sunlight, stinging Evan's eyes.

He was reborn. Back to two months before the zombie virus outbreak.

A complex mix of hatred, shock, and relief swept over him like a tsunami. He stared intently at Evelyn's neck, knowing he could reach out and snap the viper's throat.

But he held back. Even though reason told him that this woman was untrustworthy, a lingering illusion deep inside him still lingered—what if, what if the betrayal in that life hadn't happened yet?

“Evelyn,” Evan took a deep breath, feigning exhaustion as he rubbed his temples, “I just had a terrible dream. Listen, don’t tell anyone what I’m about to say. I’ve received word that an incurable virus is coming, the end of the world is coming. We need to gather a huge amount of supplies, right there in my family’s secret warehouse…”

"The end of the world? Darling, are you under too much pressure?" Evelyn chuckled, covering her mouth, but a glint of shrewdness flashed in her eyes.

“I’m serious. There are enough supplies there for us to squander for a lifetime.” Evan observed her every expression.

A moment later, Evelyn excused herself to go to the bathroom. Evan sneered and activated the hidden surveillance app on his phone—the miniature camera he had secretly placed in the vase in the living room while she was peeling an apple.

On the screen, Evelyn eagerly dialed the number.

"Chris! You won't believe what that idiot just told me! He's going to stockpile a huge amount of supplies in the suburbs... Yes, once the disaster breaks out, we'll find a way to get our hands on that place. Then, who will need that workaholic blockhead?"

In the surveillance footage, Evelyn laughed hysterically, her vicious words piercing Evan's last illusions like steel needles.

"Human hearts are more terrifying than zombies..." Evan repeated Old Gu's words in a low voice, the last trace of warmth in his eyes instantly extinguished, replaced by a chilling abyss.

He put away his phone and looked at Evelyn, who had come out of the bathroom with a gentle expression on her face again.

“Darling, the supply depot is in the old mill warehouse in the northern suburbs. I’ve already designed the defense system. I’ll show you the blueprints later.” Evan smiled slightly, a smile that Evelyn saw as doting, but in reality, it was an invitation to a death feast.

He wanted to lead her slowly into hell in her ecstatic belief that she was in control.