I Got Reincarnated as a Zombie Girl-Chapter 163 – Fangs and Shadows Negotiation

The long corridor of the castle was still wrapped in silence as the door to the main meeting chamber slowly opened. A tall woman with deep red hair, golden eyes like an eagle’s, and a pair of beast-like ears atop her head stepped inside. She wore a thick fur cloak that trailed across the floor, and slung across her back was a massive axe that shimmered faintly with the aura of earth and blood magic.

Behind her, two beastkin guards in gray cloaks closed the doors and took position.

Sylvia watched them from her throne. She wore no crown just her black gown and gloves but the presence radiating from her was enough to make the guards tense unconsciously.

The woman approached with firm steps, stopping two meters from Sylvia, and gave a shallow bow.

"I am Ragna, daughter of the Stone Fang clan from the northern mountains. I come representing the Beastkin Confederation to engage in dialogue... or deliver a warning."

Her tone was calm, but heavy with pressure.

Sylvia replied with a faint smile. "A warning? I haven’t done anything offensive to your people."

"Not yet," Ragna admitted. "But you’re drawing too much attention. The Church, the humans... even the sky and earth have begun to speak of you. And the gods? They’re whispering more than usual."

Sylvia leaned back into her seat. "So what do the beastkin want? Neutrality? Alliance? Or are you just here to see how far I’ll rise before I shake this world?"

Ragna didn’t answer immediately. She observed Sylvia carefully, as if trying to measure the depth of darkness within the undead queen.

"I was tasked with ensuring you do not become a threat to our lands. But after seeing this place... and hearing reports from our spies, I find myself wondering: why aren’t we the ones offering an alliance instead?"

Sylvia raised an eyebrow. "That’s quite a shift in attitude."

"You command undead forces. But none of our reports indicate you attack recklessly, as the rumors claim."

The room grew quieter, though the tension never truly faded. Outside the window, the morning mist began to lift. The shadows of the castle pillars danced across the stone floor.

Sylvia glanced at Celes, who stood at the side of the room, silently observing. Then her gaze returned to Ragna.

"What do you offer on behalf of the beastkin?"

Ragna lifted her chin slightly. "Mobile cross-territory troops. Information from our spy networks. Access to northern mountain routes for trade and retreat... if war breaks out. But in return..."

Sylvia nodded slowly. "Of course. There’s always a ’but’."

"We want one thing: a guarantee that your forces will not invade our lands. And... should the war expand, we want a seat at the final negotiation table."

Sylvia stared, her red eyes unblinking. "You want a guarantee for honor... and political future."

"Exactly," Ragna said. "We can fight, Sylvia. But we also want to survive. And in a changing world, survival means choosing a side."

Silence.

Finally, Sylvia extended her hand. "I’ll give you that seat. But know this: I am not human. I do not forgive betrayal."

Ragna stepped forward and shook her hand. "We beastkin don’t offer hollow words. Our promises... are kept with blood."

Their hands parted, and in that room, a new alliance began to take shape behind the shadow of an approaching war.

A few hours later, Sylvia sat in her private room, not far from the magic chamber. Celes arrived with the latest reports.

"Human forces are expected to move from the southeast. Estimated strength: five main divisions, two of which consist of holy knights."

"And?" Sylvia asked while reading a map.

"Our elite undead unit hasn’t returned from deployment in the east. But Varnak is on his way, bringing them back."

"Good." Sylvia stood and looked out the window.

"Will you wait for them to strike first?" Celes asked.

"Of course not," Sylvia replied calmly. "We’ll greet them... but not here. I want them to feel comfortable first. Let them believe they’re in control."

"And then?" Celes pressed.

"We tear that control from them at the last moment," Sylvia said with a small smile. "Like ripping the heart from a laughing chest."

That night, in the castle courtyard, Aurelia arrived carrying a magic scroll containing a secret message from the north. Sylvia narrowed her eyes.

"From whom?" she asked.

Aurelia bowed slightly. "A member of my team. She says... there’s something strange with the northern sky. The stars are shifting, as if... forming a pattern."

Sylvia took the scroll, opened it, and read the lines. Ancient magic formed a pattern recognized by only a few beings: a dimensional summoning code.

"The North is beginning to speak," Sylvia said quietly. "And if the stars are moving... then the other gods won’t be far behind."

Aurelia exited the room after giving a respectful bow, her footsteps quick yet silent, leaving behind a thickening silence beyond the heavy wooden door. frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓

Once the door closed, Sylvia let out a long sigh. With no regard for grace, she tossed the ancient magic scroll onto the nearest table uncaring of its crucial content. Then, with a swift motion, she flung herself onto the large sofa in the corner of the room, her face diving into a pile of soft pillows like a teenager who had just finished a brutal exam.

"Uuuuuugh... why is everything getting more complicated!" she groaned, her voice muffled by the cushions.

She buried herself deeper, rolling over onto her stomach and hugging a large pillow as if it were the only safe place in the world. Her dark gown sprawled messily around her, covering nearly half the sofa.

"I just want one day no gods, no war, no dimensional magic... and no secret messages from the sky!" she continued, her tone laced with the frustration of a child denied a snack.

Celes, who had been standing silently not far from the table, simply stared at the unusual sight an undead queen, dungeon conqueror, the chosen of the Goddess of Life and Death, now acting like an overworked teenage girl overwhelmed by too many thoughts.

She slowly shook her head. "You really are unpredictable."

Sylvia turned her head sideways, cheek still pressed against the pillow. "I’m tired, Celes. The world just keeps spinning, every faction pulling in different directions, and I... I can’t even see Sofia."

Her voice softened. The honesty in her complaint made the room feel even quieter than before.

"Sofia..." Sylvia murmured. "She must be busy in Nocture right now, managing the city, strengthening the borders, answering political pressure from the human military headquarters. And me? I’m stuck in a foreign world full of magic fog, insane gods, and... crumbling castle pillars."

Celes remained silent, offering no reply. But her gaze hardened slightly. There was something in the way Sylvia said Sofia’s name soft, sincere, full of certainty. She’d heard that name spoken many times, and each time, it made her feel like... an outsider. Even though she was the one who had stayed beside Sylvia all this time, managing everything, acting as her shield, her ever-present shadow.

Jealousy wasn’t something Celes usually felt. But now, she felt it. Quietly. Sharply. Deep.

"Why her..." Celes whispered, so softly it was almost inaudible.

Sylvia didn’t hear it. She hugged the pillow again, rolled to her right, and stared up at the dark ceiling, with its old carvings that had never quite been repaired. "Sometimes I wonder... what exactly am I chasing in all this? Power? Peace? Or just... someone I can trust to stay with me when everything else collapses."

And whether it was the comfort of the sofa or the weight of exhaustion finally catching up, Sylvia’s eyes slowly began to close. Her breathing steadied, and the outside world began to fade from her senses. But before she completely drifted off, she whispered.

"...Sofia, I want to go home..."

Celes watched her in silence. Then, without a word, she turned and left the room before her own heart could crumble under words that were never meant for her.

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