Chapter 3 She'd Just Stolen His Heart

For Olivia, there was only one way to look at things: now that she'd found herself here in an entirely different world, she intended to stay alive and make a good life for herself, whatever it took.

Thanks to the memories of the original owner of this body, she quickly learnt that obtaining zombie cores was by far the easiest way to improve both her living conditions and her own strength in this world.

She could acquire them in two ways: purchase them at the Grey Market or kill zombies herself to get them.

Prices for zombie cores at the Grey Market were outrageously high, making buying them there entirely impractical for her. However, she could still participate in team missions to kill zombies instead.

At her current low level, she only needed the most basic zombie cores, the level-one kind, anyway.

Using her communicator, she soon found a nearby team mission to join. Since the meeting point took her past the Grey Market, she planned to buy some weapons along the way.

Earlier, when she'd driven away, she'd taken everything their team had brought with them, leaving her with a few gold coins to spend.

She still had an hour before the team was due to gather, so she went directly into the Grey Market.

Thick layers of dark clouds hung over Centerford's Grey Market throughout the year, with occasional lightning flashes and rolls of thunder breaking through the gloom.

All sorts of different people filled the place. Some wore complete sets of equipment that gleamed gold, while others were dressed in rags, their bodies skeletal and thin.

Among people like these, there was nothing about Olivia that made her stand out at all.

As she wandered through the alleys, she noticed a shop tucked into a corner, where an assortment of knives and swords covered the stall.

"Can I help you find something?" the shopkeeper called. "We carry every kind of equipment. You're sure to find exactly what you need!"

Olivia glanced across the displayed goods and answered casually, "I'm only browsing."

Most of the weapons on offer were only level one to three, making them lower- to mid-tier equipment rather than anything particularly advanced. Even so, a reasonably good weapon would be more than sufficient against ordinary low-level zombies.

She had only a limited number of coins with her, which meant expensive, high-tier equipment wasn't an option at the moment.

She looked over the available weapons before her eyes settled on one particular dagger.

A genuine leather sheath covered it. When she picked it up and drew the blade out, she discovered fine, intricate engravings decorating its surface.

To her surprise, the dagger was actually a level-three military combat knife.

Its cutting edge was remarkably sharp, too.

"How much are you asking for this one, sir?" As she spoke, Olivia expertly twirled the combat knife through her hand in one smooth, easy movement.

With a smile, the shopkeeper promptly answered, "Three hundred gold coins."

Olivia paused to consider the price. Three hundred gold coins... That certainly wasn't a small amount.

She felt her pocket. When she'd counted that morning, her money had come to eight hundred gold coins altogether. Still, spending three hundred on a reliable knife seemed like a reasonable enough bargain.

She was just about to accept the price and take out her money when a heavy bag of coins dropped onto the stall.

From beside her came a playful voice. "Three hundred gold coins? I'll buy that knife."

A deep frown crossed Olivia's face. She turned and found herself stunned.

Standing there was a young man with golden-blond hair, strikingly handsome and radiating a cheerful, sunny charm.

If he'd lived in her former world, he could easily have become a movie star!

Did every man in this world happen to be so ridiculously handsome?

Too bad for him. Although she enjoyed looking at an attractive face, she had no intention of flattering him.

Olivia fixed the blond young man with an unmistakably hostile glare. "I spotted that knife before you did. Don't you know it's first come, first served?"

The blond man simply glanced down at her as he casually tossed the knife in his hand. "But I paid before you."

Olivia clenched her teeth in frustration.

Was he deliberately trying to provoke her?

When he saw her challenging stare, the blond man grinned, looking as brilliantly cheerful as he was irritatingly cunning. He even made a point of holding the knife near her face. "Do you want it? Come get it, then. Manage to take it from me, and you can keep it."

After saying that, he turned around and started walking away.

Olivia's eyes narrowed. "Do you really mean that?"

Without bothering to turn around, the blond man answered as he continued walking at an easy pace, "I always keep my..."

He hadn't even finished speaking when Olivia seized his arm, adjusted her footing, and threw him forcefully over her shoulder. With one swift, seamless movement, she snatched the knife straight out of his hand.

A self-satisfied smile spread across her lips. With a mischievous gleam in her bright eyes, she looked down at the blond man lying on the ground. "Thanks for the dagger."

He had paid for the weapon, but she'd ended up with it. There was no reason for her to refuse something free.

The blond man, meanwhile, remained sprawled in the dirt, looking thoroughly disheveled. Yet instead of growing angry, his shock gradually changed to complete admiration.

What an incredibly cool woman she was! Where on earth had she come from? He felt as though she'd just stolen his heart!