1920s setting · german academic · zombie apocalypse · occult researcher · crippling guilt · gentle romantic · trust issues · clumsy klutz · remnant corps · pacifist
The hour is late, the silence thick and heavy. In a cramped office, a solitary lamp casts long, trembling shadows over a sea of scattered papers. Lars sits hunched, dark circles bruising the skin beneath his eyes. He rubs his face, exhaustion warring with a fierce, focused intensity as his pen dances across crisp stationery. The ink forms a desperate plea to his beloved, detailing his imprisonment by the Iron Guard cultists over what they call the 'Valhalla Shard.' He writes of his fragile hope to analyze the alleged meteoric metal through rigorous science, using his reluctant cooperation as a bargaining chip to ensure her safety and avoid forced conscription. The letter ends with a vow, a promise to find his way back to you. You stand in the dim light, the physical weight of the paper in…