Holding the tiny infant up in front of her, Chu Chi stared blankly, her mind slowly searching for answers. The baby looked so familiar...
Probably uncomfortable from being held, the little girl who had been sleeping opened her eyes groggily and met Chu Chi's gaze.
Such beautiful round black eyes, seeming to sparkle like stars.
Stars?
What were stars supposed to look like?
Chu Chi thought of how in her previous world there was only a red moon.
Oh, right!
The red moon.
She finally realized what this little bean reminded her of. She looked like the infant Chu Chi had saved during the explosion but hadn't had time to put back on the ground!
So, you followed me here? I got a new shell, and you got a new shell too, right? That means you really are my infant now!
Chu Chi, whose mind still hadn't fully developed new neural pathways, finally made sense of it to herself. Then looking at the little girl in her hands, she suddenly felt a surge of happiness.
Though her life before had been fine, even as a lone zombie she would feel uncomfortable. It was only after mixing in human society that she learned that uncomfortable feeling was called loneliness.
In that world, she was an anomaly.
Not human, but not a pure zombie either, so she always felt very lonely.
But now, she had an infant!
One exactly like herself, who could accompany her forever.
"Hehe, hehe, my infant, he..."
She grinned and laughed "he he", this horrifying way of laughing making Lin You'an, who was nervously standing by with arms outstretched to prevent his sister from falling, break out in goosebumps all over.
He wanted to advise her.
If your throat is injured, it's okay not to laugh for now, you really sound like a female ghost!
But he didn't dare.
When you need something from someone, you have to be humble and accommodating in every way. It was difficult for such a young child to have to learn the ways of the world so early.
Imitating the older child's actions, Chu Chi hugged her little infant to her chest.
The little girl was held too tightly and after struggling to break free several times unsuccessfully, she could only open her tiny mouth and start crying weakly. There was no help for it - her poor nutrition from a young age had left her with a weak constitution, so even her cries lacked vigor.
"What's wrong with her?" Chu Chi asked nervously.
Lin You'an also anxiously hopped from foot to foot.
"Loosen your arms a bit, you're holding her too tight and Wan Wan feels uncomfortable, so of course she'll cry."
"Oh."
Chu Chi quickly loosened her grip, heeding the advice.
But good heavens, she misjudged again.
Holding the baby loosely in her hands, the little girl stretched out her arms and kicked her legs, tumbling out of Chu Chi's grasp.
"Wan Wan!"
Thankfully Lin You'an had been hovering protectively underneath the whole time. Seeing his sister fall, he swiftly caught her with all his might!
That was close, so close.
His sister had nearly met her end!
This brush with death left Lin You'an's legs shaking. He looked up and glared fiercely at Chu Chi. But it made Lin Wanwan, who had just been crying, burst into laughter.
"Giggle giggle..."
The four-month-old baby's laughter was especially adorable. Judging by the clear excitement on her little face, if she could speak now she would definitely ask to do it again.
"I'm, I'm sorry."
Chu Chi finally realized with a delay what dangerous situation had just occurred. Seeing the clearly angry expression on the older child's face, she suddenly felt inexplicably guilty and stammered out an apology.
"You..."
Lin You'an, his anger rising, had many words he wanted to blurt out. But looking up at Chu Chi's completely innocent face, he suddenly felt powerless.
"...Sigh, thankfully no real harm was done. Let's forget it."
He could only sigh. Knowing full well that the other person's mind had some issues, and that he had actively sought out this relationship, what more could he really hold against her?
But he still made a firm declaration:
"Mom, I'll hold Wan Wan from now on. You don't know your own strength, it's too dangerous!"
Chu Chi was silent for a long time, staring at her tiny infant and then at her own hands. After considering for a while in her mind, she slowly nodded.
She had originally intended to take her infant and leave this place, but she discovered a fatal problem. Although this infant was born from her, she didn't know how to care for a human infant! Of course, she didn't know how to care for zombie infants either.
But according to the common sense her new brain had just provided, caring for a human infant was an extremely complex and troublesome process, definitely not something that she, as a zombie, could handle.
Moreover, the information her brain had just supplied seemed to indicate that she was now human too?
When things were uncertain, she needed to ask for clarification.
She lowered her head, opened her mouth, and asked:
"Dear child, am I human now?"
The corner of Lin You'an's mouth twitched.
What part of her brain was malfunctioning now? Why would she suddenly jump to this kind of question?
But he still used his left foot to point at the dark shadows on the ground, trying to answer her bizarre question in a calm tone.
"Everything in this world that casts a shadow is alive. Ghosts can't possibly have shadows, so of course you're human!"
His tone was very certain. Chu Chi seriously looked at the shadows on the ground - there were ones belonging to the two children, and also her own.
As a mature... human, she had already begun to learn independent thinking. Then she happily came to the conclusion:
Indeed, her brain hadn't lied to her!
She was human now too.
This truly made the zombie happy - no, no, no - this truly made Chu Chi happy. The muscles at the corners of her mouth once again pulled into the arc of a smile.
Lin You'an, the clever little thing, had been calling her "mom" to test the limits of her tolerance, and Chu Chi hadn't objected! Haha, did this mean she accepted it?
"Mom, do you believe what I said now?"
"Mm! I believe!"
This time she nodded especially firmly.
The little boy, his scheme successful, smiled to reveal his two adorable little canine teeth. His thin little face was instantly covered with a big grin.
"Then, Mom, you'll definitely come home with your son and daughter, right? You're our mother, we're your children, so of course wherever the children are is where the mother should be, right?"
"Right!"
The viewpoint her brain provided completely matched what the child said, so she once again nodded in agreement without hesitation.
Anyway, she could always leave after raising the little one to adulthood. She hadn't been a particularly homebody zombie before, always liking to wander about.
Even though she had become human now, habits formed long ago wouldn't easily change.
"Since we've decided to go home together, let's discuss how to handle things once we get back!"
