Created a Reverse Harem in a Doomed World (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 9

Sighing deeply as I left Zero, who looked so pitiful, I saw the servants gathered in the spacious duke’s garden, clearly anxious.

“Um, Miss Elisabeth… if His Grace has passed away, what should we do now?”

“The magic stones powering the emergency barrier will eventually run out…”

“But even more urgent is the supply of food. Since we can’t go outside, if things continue like this, we’ll all starve to death before long—that’s the biggest problem.”

The butler, head maid, head chef from the kitchen, and others were visibly shaken, hoping I’d give them a hopeful answer. Their eyes, pleading for me to fill the duke’s empty seat, felt almost burdensome.

‘Until just recently, I was nothing more than dead weight in this ducal household—nothing more, nothing less.’

So what was this hopeful gaze? That sparkling look wasn’t aimed at a borrowed sack of barley, but at a main pillar they believed would hold up the entire house.

“If His Grace has indeed become one of those zombies, then without a doubt, the new master of Keaton Manor is now Miss Elisabeth.”

The butler spoke first. Given that the duke was effectively dead, the duchess had long since passed, and I was the only heir left in the house, this outcome was only natural.

“From now on, Miss, you must command us as the next Duke of Keaton.”

“What should we do, Your Grace!”

“Uh… um…”

I was flustered. The household staff had always taken pride in their long service at the manor, and thus never liked Elisabeth—the troublemaker and so-called villainess of the family.

‘Honestly, I expected utter chaos in the manor.’

What was this docile, puppy-like attitude?

Zero cleared his throat and answered for me.

「I used a little possession buff.」

‘You did?’

「I needed an ally to resolve this zombie crisis. So I made you look like a savior—someone who broke through the outside world where even the duke couldn’t return alive. To them, you’re nothing but a golden lifeline out of this hellish situation.」

‘What the hell, you?’

「It’s not a bad deal! Let’s use the manor as our base and fight off the zombies!」

Sure enough, when I checked my status window, several strange messages appeared.

[Helper Zero has gifted the Possessor +30 Trust and +30 Reputation!] [Elisabeth Keaton’s Trust and Reputation have each increased by 30!] [Due to increased Trust and Reputation, the loyalty of all servants working within the manor has risen.]

I quietly closed the status window and stared intently at the manor.

True to its location in the capital’s heart, Keaton Manor was a grand and beautiful building. Constructed from rare minerals blending cream and rose hues, its famed beauty had even earned it the nickname “Scent of Roses.”

A serene three-story rose-colored manor, featuring well-kept green lawns, a lovely garden, a fountain, and even a majestic angel statue.

They wanted me to turn this fancy manor into a fortress to fight zombies?

‘Easier said than done!’

The holy water I’d taken from the Pope felt unbearably heavy. It was only a temporary measure. According to Zero, holy water could merely paralyze zombies; to kill them permanently, their heads had to be destroyed.

「You said you wanted to go home. If you break our original promise, I won’t be obligated to take you back.」

That bastard. No—rat.

I had to suppress my rising anger. Crying wouldn’t solve anything. I had to resolve this damn romance-novel zombie apocalypse to get home.

Taking a deep breath, I issued my first order to the staff.

“First, the barrier seems badly damaged—replace the magic stones. After that, I’ll have something made at the workshop.”

“What is it?”

“A water gun. Or a sprayer.”

“Huh? A water gun and a sprayer? I’ve never even heard of such things…”

“That’s why you need to make them.”

“But… what on earth would you use those for?”

“To fight zombies.”

“Huh?”

To the butler, who kept repeating the same words like a parrot, I handed a heavy bucket of holy water.

“This is holy water. Keep it safe. You’ll need to load it into the water guns and sprayers and fire it.”

“Wha—? But, no—where did you even get holy water…?”

“I stole it from the temple.”

“Whaaaat!?”

My overly confident demeanor nearly made the butler’s jaw and soul drop simultaneously. I even heard someone muttering tearfully about the Keaton family’s honor plummeting to the ground.

Lifting his gaping jaw back up, I said,

“I asked the temple for help, but they refused—so I took it ‘for us.’ Don’t worry too much.”

‘It’s not a complete lie, so this excuse should be fine.’

The Pope had tried to exploit the crisis as an opportunity—surely he could handle a little false blame. My words left the butler and other staff flustered at first, but they quickly changed their attitude and began flattering me.

“The young lady of House Keaton asked for help—for the sake of others—and they refused? That’s actually for the best!”

“Exactly! Now that it’s come to this, let’s turn your infamous reputation, my lady—no, Your Grace—into a glorious one! In times like these, it’s better not to appear weak.”

“…Are you just saying whatever comes to mind right now?”

“Of course not!”

Though their words said otherwise, their trembling pupils betrayed their anxiety clearly.

‘They must be nervous.’

The patriarch who once upheld the ducal house had died suddenly and violently, leaving only young Elisabeth—the girl who’d obsessively chased after the crown prince like a madwoman.

‘In this situation, the staff might even stab me in the back and flee.’

With a zombie apocalypse underway, social rank hardly mattered. They were leaning on me now only because they needed somewhere to turn—but who knew when they might change their minds?

I placed my hand firmly on the shoulder of the butler, who was struggling to carry the silver bucket filled with holy water.

“Butler.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

“If anyone in this manor is caught causing trouble, I’ll throw them straight to the zombies. Make sure everyone knows.”

“Huh? Ah… understood.”

Hearing my words, the butler turned pale and started hiccuping. Fine. My reputation was already ruined—what did it matter if it got worse?

“You understand me, right?”

“Yes, of course!”

“Good. Carry on.”

I sent the exhausted soldiers back to their quarters, glanced briefly at the mage reporting this unprecedented crisis to the Mage Tower through a crystal orb, then headed toward the duke’s study.

I needed to sketch at least a rough design before requesting the manor’s workshop to build water guns and sprayers.

“Busy, so busy!”

“Excuse me, my lady.”

“Busy—talk later, butler.”

“I’m not the butler.”

“Huh?”

Turning around at the tug on my sleeve, I found Michael standing there with an ambiguous expression—either angry or exhausted.

“You ran off with the holy water and already forgot about me chasing after you?”

Hmm, I’m busy—can’t we talk later? …Probably not.

“Oh my, I didn’t see you there.”

“I know everything you’ve done, my lady.”

Tch. Yeah, I know. You brat.

A so-called secondary male lead carrying the title of “greatest holy knight” with golden hair and blue eyes—basically a walking ball of presence. Did I not know that?

‘But so what if you know?’

It had been well over a hundred days since I’d left home. A modern person accustomed to all sorts of modern conveniences, I was now worn down by uncomfortable dresses, stuffy formalities, and the unwanted role of villainess.

In short, I’d truly reached the point where I cared about nothing anymore.

“My lady must immediately return that holy water to the temple…”

“But I don’t want to. That holy water is mine now.”

“…My lady!”

My utterly confident, hesitation-free attitude made Michael’s blue eyes flash. Though his aura was threatening, I didn’t flinch.

‘So what?’

Anyway, the Pope had promised me I could take as much holy water as I could personally scoop into a bucket.

He probably hadn’t expected me to drain the spring dry—but thinking of the Pope’s shady dealings, I felt no guilt.

“This is my rightful property, taken with His Holiness’s permission. Sir Michael, by what evidence or logic do you demand I return holy water that now belongs to me?”

“Isn’t it an unfair result obtained through your deceitful schemes? Normally, one could never take so much holy water it runs dry.”

“Or perhaps it’s a blessing from Ardel Himself, who took pity on me because the Pope has truly fallen into corruption.”

My honeyed rebuttal flowed effortlessly. Michael glared at me with a slight frown, then asked a single question.

“…How did you do it?”

“Do what?”

“My lady… didn’t you perform a miracle only saints can wield?”

I remembered Zero had arbitrarily set my class trait to “Saintess.” And how, the moment holy water touched my hands, a pure, sacred blue light had poured forth.

“It was a dog’s dream.”

“Excuse me?”

“You were so exhausted you fell asleep standing up, Sir Michael—that’s why you dreamed it. Understood?”

It was a flimsy argument. Naturally, Michael objected.

“A dog’s dream? I was perfectly fine then—alert enough to catch you as you tried to run off with that bucket of holy water.”

“But do you really believe it makes sense? Can you honestly claim that Elisabeth Keaton—the most notoriously villainous woman in the empire—would be chosen for a saint’s miracle?”

“That’s…”

‘As expected—he’s speechless.’

Because I’d played the original Elisabeth Keaton’s role so perfectly, Michael and the other secondary male leads always ground their teeth whenever they saw me.

‘Elisabeth’ truly had an impossibly packed schedule. She was always busy chasing after the crown prince—her unrequited ex-fiancé—or scheming to crush her rival, the female lead.

She also constantly devised plans to trample the butterfly-like secondary male leads drawn to the female lead’s charm, leaving her with never enough hours in a day.

On top of all that, she meticulously maintained her stunning beauty—truly the epitome of a model villainess.

‘No wonder it’s hard to accept someone like Elisabeth Keaton as a saint.’