Burning Like The Sun

Arjun clenched his fists. The energy consumption is huge, and I still have no idea how to replenish it.

His mind raced through possibilities. Could killing zombies give me energy? That's how it worked in mangas and novels, right? Slay a monster, absorb its essence, grow stronger. But this was reality. A world that had already thrown logic out the window.

After all, zombies existed. His so-called Genesis existed. There was no point in questioning how things worked anymore.

But there was one problem—he couldn't kill zombies. If he could, he wouldn't have spent the past week hiding in his room, slowly running out of food and water. If he had even a fraction of the powers that main characters in novels had…

His thoughts drifted to the sun, burning steadily in the vast darkness of space. If only I could shine like the sun…

The moment that thought crossed his mind, something inside him clicked.

Heat erupted from within his body. Flames roared to life, engulfing him in an instant.

WHOOSH!

"AHHH! What the—?! AM I ON FIRE?!"

Panic surged through him as he stumbled backward, eyes wide with horror. His entire body was ablaze, flames licking at his skin. He flailed his arms, trying to put it out—but there was no pain.

He stared at his hands. They burned like torches, yet he felt nothing. He caught his reflection in the mirror—just for a second—before the glass warped and melted into a molten mess.

The walls, the furniture, even the floor—everything around him caught fire.

"Holy shit..."

His breathing was ragged, but a wild thought surfaced. Calm down.

He forced himself to imagine the flames vanishing.

And just like that, they disappeared.

He stood there, chest rising and falling, stunned. He could control it. He could become like the sun. A slow grin spread across his face.

He could transform into the very thing he created in this universe.

The realization sent a shiver of excitement through him. This power… it was ridiculously OP. And it was his.

But there was no time to celebrate. The fire had already spread, consuming everything around him. If he stayed any longer, the whole building might go up in flames.

He grabbed his bag, stuffing whatever food and water he had left inside. Then he paused. Wait… if I touch the bag, won't it catch fire too?

A thought struck him. Can I store it somewhere?

He imagined the bag disappearing.

And just like that—it was gone. A quick scan of his mind told him where it had gone—floating in the space where the sun was in.

That'll do for now.

The flames were spreading fast. Arjun didn't waste another second. He ignited his body again, feeling the familiar heat rush over him, and sprinted toward the door.

The building was mostly made of brick—it wouldn't burn down immediately. He still had time.

The moment he stepped into the corridor, he froze.

Two zombies were lurking just ahead.

Their lifeless eyes snapped to him. The instant they spotted the blazing figure in front of them, they let out guttural shrieks and lunged.

Arjun gritted his teeth. No more running. Either I die here, or I fight.

His heart pounded as he charged forward. One of the zombies lunged, mouth open wide, but before it could reach him, he swung his fist.

The moment his fiery hand made contact with the zombie's skull—WHOOSH!

The creature's head exploded into flames. It screeched, thrashing wildly before collapsing into ash.

The second zombie pounced, aiming for his legs. But the instant it touched him, its entire body was set ablaze.

Arjun took a step back, watching them burn. He felt his lips curl into a smirk.

"You undead pieces of shit… take this!"

He stomped on the burning corpse, but by then, both zombies were already dead.

[ Energy +2 ]

[ Energy: 2 ]

A short laugh escaped his lips. It worked.

Killing zombies gave him energy.

His eyes burned with newfound determination. If he wanted to build something greater—if he wanted to survive—he needed more.

He turned toward the stairwell. Five floors. Not too far.

The moment he descended, more zombies rushed toward him from the fourth floor. But before they could even reach him—WHOOSH!—they burst into flames, collapsing instantly.

With a grin, Arjun kept moving.

Zombies poured in from every direction, but they barely got close before being consumed by fire. He tried throwing flames at them, but it didn't work that way. His power only activated on direct contact. For now.

Soon, he reached the ground floor—the building's parking lot.

He came to a halt, his heart hammering in his chest.

Outside, the streets were filled with the undead. Dozens—no, hundreds of them. And they had all turned toward him.

The moment they saw the glowing figure standing in the darkness, they let out a collective screech and rushed toward him.

Arjun stood still, his body ablaze, as hundreds of zombies rushed toward him. He didn't move, didn't flinch—just watched as they swarmed closer, their soulless eyes locked onto him.

Then, the moment they touched him—WHOOSH!

Flames erupted across their rotting bodies. Screeches filled the air as the undead were reduced to ash within seconds. Yet, more came. For every zombie that fell, another took its place.

The fire consumed them one by one, but they didn't stop. They never stopped.

Within minutes, the entire parking lot was ablaze. Hundreds of burning corpses crumbled to the ground, their blackened remains still smoldering.

But the destruction didn't go unnoticed.

The sheer noise—the crackling flames, the dying screams—echoed through the ruined city. And the horde heard it.

A low, eerie groan rippled through the air.

Then came the stampede.

Thousands of zombies, packed together like a writhing sea of death, poured in from every direction. Their twisted limbs dragged across the asphalt, their movements quick and unrelenting.

Arjun's chest tightened. This… might be too much.

He didn't wait to find out.

Turning on his feet, he ran.

Straight toward the road. Straight into the incoming horde.

The two forces collided in an instant.

The moment the zombies touched him—WHOOSH!—they ignited. Flames roared higher, consuming everything in his path. He kept running, weaving through the mass of undead, leaving a burning trail behind him.

The fire on his body flared brighter. It reacted to the chaos, surging with intensity, as if feeding off the tension in the air.

A few hours later, Arjun sat on the cold floor of a small shopping center, his chest rising and falling as he struggled to catch his breath. His entire body felt heavy, his legs aching from the relentless running.

That was too much…

Even after burning through tens of thousands of zombies, he barely made it out before another horde arrived, drawn by the chaos. He might have been untouchable, but exhaustion was a different enemy altogether.

If I had collapsed out there… The thought sent a chill down his spine. I'd be dead.

His gaze drifted around the dimly lit store. The place was eerily silent. The zombies that had once roamed here had rushed outside, only to be consumed by his flames. That meant, for now at least, the building was safe.

With shaking hands, Arjun reached for his status screen.

[ Energy: 20,450 ]

His breath hitched. 20,000 zombies… I killed 20,000 of them.

The number felt surreal, but there was no time to dwell on it. He wasn't planning to pull off something like that again anytime soon.

Standing up, he forced himself to focus. The shopping center was small—just two floors, a local neighborhood mall. If he wanted to stay here, even for a short while, he needed to secure it before nightfall.

He moved carefully, checking every store, making sure no zombies were left lurking in dark corners. Grocery store, bookstore, food court, pharmacy, clothing shop… He took note of each one. Some were useful, others not so much, but he wasn't going to leave anything behind.

Satisfied that the place was clear, he got to work.

First, he raided the grocery store, stuffing every bit of food, bottled water, ropes, and lights into his space storage—anything that might be useful in the days ahead. Then, the pharmacy. Medicine was priceless in an apocalypse. He didn't waste a second, sweeping the shelves clean.

One by one, he emptied every shop.

It didn't matter if the items were important or not—he took everything.

Once he was done, he opened his space storage to take a look. The objects floated randomly in the void, drifting apart like debris in zero gravity. Using his powers, he gathered them into a single place, preventing them from scattering.

Normally, in a vacuum, things would eventually stick together due to van der Waals forces—a weak attraction between surfaces. But Arjun had taken precautions.

He had created a thin energy field around the stored items, shielding them from the sub-zero temperatures of the space. Without it, everything inside would have frozen solid, turning brittle like glass.

The shield was holding, but…

He frowned, sensing the energy it was consuming. It wasn't much, but over time, it would add up. Unlike his flames, which burned brightly, this barrier was weak—just barely enough to do its job.

I'll need to improve it later.

For now, though, he had a safe place to rest. And after everything that had happened, he needed it.

Arjun locked the door behind him and dragged a heavy wooden cupboard in front of it, blocking the entrance. Just in case. If something tried to break in, at least he'd hear it coming.

The manager's office was surprisingly spacious, much bigger than he had expected. A large desk sat in the middle of the room, papers and files still scattered across its surface, untouched since the world had gone to hell. A leather chair stood behind it, slightly tilted as if its owner had left in a hurry, never to return.

A deep sigh escaped his lips as he looked around. This will do.

He pulled out a mattress he had found earlier from one of the shops and laid it on the floor. It wasn't much, but it was better than sleeping on cold tiles. He grabbed a few blankets, tossing them over himself as he sank onto the makeshift bed.

His entire body ached—his legs felt like lead, his arms numb from exhaustion. Even keeping his eyes open was a struggle.

I don't think I've ever been this tired…

His breathing slowed as he stared up at the ceiling, his mind clouded with fatigue.

Right now, all he needed was sleep.

With that final thought, Arjun let his tired body sink deeper into the mattress, his eyes fluttering shut.