“Not again…” Pik muttered.
From the shadows ahead, a moving corpse dragged itself forward—one eye barely hanging in its socket.
“Ahhh! A zombie!” Pik screamed.
Everyone froze in shock, gasping for breath.
“Everyone, take cover!” Shin shouted.
They all rushed behind Uncle Dan, using him as a shield. Uncle Dan calmly turned his head toward them and waved a hand.
“Relax, kids. This will be easy.”
He reached into his chest pocket and pulled out a paper talisman.
“Take this!”
He threw it dramatically.
Slap.
The talisman smacked the zombie’s face… then slowly fluttered to the ground.
Everyone’s eyes followed it as it fell.
Silence.
Uncle Dan cleared his throat.
“Ah… that was unexpected.”
Stolen story; please report.
The zombie suddenly let out a powerful roar, the shockwave almost blowing them off their feet.
“We’re all going to die! Hehehe!” Sef cried, his face twisted in terror.
“Nooo! I haven’t even bought my flavored roasted duck!” Bek wailed in regret.
“Uncle, what should we do?” Lin asked, desperately hoping for an answer.
Uncle Dan hesitated.
“I really didn’t want to use this… but this is the last resort.”
With a serious expression, he pulled out another talisman and threw it straight at the monster.
Slap.
It hit the zombie’s face again.
And suddenly—
Uncle Dan vanished.
“Eh? Where’s Uncle Dan?” Shin asked, confused.
“Look! That old boomer is running away!” Pik yelled, fear and agony on his face.
“No way! That scam left us behind!” Lin shouted, stunned.
“Everyone, run!” Lin screamed.
They all bolted.
“Hey! Wait for me!” Shin cried as he followed.
While running, Lin shouted angrily,
“Old boomer! You scam! I thought you were going to let us die!”
“You act cool, but you’re a fake priest!” Pik added.
“Yeah! You’re ugly!” Sef yelled.
“You coward!” Set shouted.
As they hurled insults, they turned back—and froze.
More zombies were chasing them.
“AHHH!” they screamed together.
“What can I do when my spell fails, except run?” Uncle Dan shouted back.
Suddenly, his foot got caught in the roots of an old tree.
“Wah!”
He fell flat on the ground, shaking his head as the kids’ feet rushed past him.
Bek ran by and laughed.
“Serves you right! Hehehe!”
Before Bek could get far, Uncle Dan grabbed his ankle with surprising strength.
“Hehehe… You should help a pitiful old man when he needs it,” Uncle Dan said calmly.
“Hey! Unhand me! Ahhh!” Bek struggled.
Bek grabbed Pik.
“Help me! Uncle Dan won’t let go!”
“What are you doing?!” Pik shouted.
Soon, everyone was tangled together, struggling to break free.
“Hey, guys! Over here!” Lin whispered urgently.
“Let’s hide in this house!”
“Quick! They’re coming!” Shin added.
They finally untangled themselves and rushed into an old, half-ruined house, slamming the door behind them.
Lin whispered,
“Everyone, be quiet… or they’ll find us.”
They all listened and held their breath as the loud stomping outside slowly faded away.
