Chapter 20: Loose Tongues
I had already finished my goal for the day.
Or at least, I considered it finished.
Not because I didn't want to continue.
Because I physically couldn't.
The moment evening settled over the mansion, all the girls somehow started gravitating toward one another.
Whether they were talking, drinking, bathing, or simply hanging around downstairs, there always seemed to be someone else nearby.
Which made things difficult.
Very difficult.
It wasn't like I could walk up to one of them and start a private conversation while three other girls stood nearby watching.
Well, technically I could.
But that wasn't flirting.
That was volunteering for a public execution.
At the very least, I had managed to make some progress with Saya earlier.
Not much.
But enough.
Besides, it wasn't like I could rizz all of them simultaneously.
I was good.
Not that good.
So, with no other options, I temporarily abandoned my romantic operations and went upstairs alone.
Thankfully, I still had something productive to do.
The incident involving the little girl should happen sometime tonight.
I'd already decided that I would intervene when it did.
The only remaining question was whether I could save both her and her father without dying in the process.
Preferably while looking extremely impressive.
I was already taking the risk, so there was no reason I couldn't benefit from it.
The family survived.
Our group gained two more people.
And everyone here started seeing me as slightly more dependable.
Nobody lost.
That was practically charity.
Just with excellent publicity.
Thankfully, I had prepared.
Very prepared.
In fact, I was currently wearing an upgraded version of my ass-kicking suit.
One of the benefits of occupying a rich person's apocalypse mansion was discovering that wealthy people apparently collected the strangest things imaginable.
Guns.
Tactical vests.
Combat equipment.
Holsters.
Protective gear.
Enough equipment to outfit a small militia.
Naturally, I took full advantage of it.
The tactical vest sat comfortably over several layers of thick clothing, while additional protection covered most of my torso and arms.
If one of Them managed to grab me, biting through everything wouldn't be easy.
Unfortunately, difficult wasn't the same as impossible.
My neck and head remained exposed. Parts of my arms and legs were still vulnerable, along with anywhere the clothing became thinner around the joints.
I'd added what I could, but anything heavier would begin restricting my movement.
And during a zombie apocalypse, being slow was usually worse than being slightly underprotected.
So, in the end, I settled for good enough.
Hopefully.
Probably.
Maybe.
...
Yeah, I wasn't convincing myself either.
Then again, what I planned to do tonight couldn't exactly be called careful.
One mistake.
One unlucky grab.
One corpse hiding somewhere I couldn't see.
And my brilliant reputation-building operation would end with me joining Team Zombie.
A rather permanent career change.
Still, high rewards usually came with high risks.
The mysterious student who disappeared into the night and returned after heroically rescuing an innocent family...
That kind of achievement practically printed heroine points.
As expected of me.
Always thinking ahead.
A visionary.
A strategist.
A genius.
...
Okay, maybe not a genius.
I tightened the last strap on the vest before looking at myself in the mirror.
"...Damn."
I looked good.
Like someone who actually knew what he was doing.
Appearances can really be deceiving.
The door opened behind me.
Takashi stepped inside, only to stop after taking one look at me.
His eyes traveled from the boots to the vest, then finally settled on the pistol at my waist.
"...Why are you dressed like that?"
"Fashion."
He stared.
I met his gaze through the mirror, keeping my expression completely straight.
"Very popular this season."
"You're planning to go outside."
It wasn't even phrased as a question.
"No. Like I said, I'm just trying everything on." I tugged at one of the straps, testing how tightly it sat against my shoulder. "Seeing if it fits."
"Fits for what?"
I turned slightly in front of the mirror, inspecting the whole thing from another angle.
"To become my ass-kicking suit."
Takashi continued staring at me.
He clearly didn't believe a word of it.
His gaze lingered on the holstered pistol, carrying that same quiet uncertainty from earlier, but whatever questions he had were apparently losing the battle against exhaustion.
Eventually, his shoulders dropped with a sigh.
"Just... before you do anything surprising, tell us first."
"I always give a warning."
Takashi raised an eyebrow.
"When?"
I answered with an innocent smile.
His expression made it clear that he'd understood the answer perfectly.
Before he could press the issue, Kohta appeared behind him.
He glanced into the room—and immediately noticed the vest.
"Wait. Is that a Point Blank Dragon Fire?"
Finally.
A man of culture.
Kohta stepped closer, his attention moving over the armor with open fascination.
"That one uses Level IIIA soft armor, right? It should stop most handgun rounds, but not a rifle." He looked back toward the hallway. "Why didn't you use the other carrier? I saw one with Level III plates earlier."
"Oh."
I looked down at the vest.
"I didn't know any of that. I just picked the one that didn't feel like I was carrying a small child on my chest."
I rolled my shoulders, testing my movement again.
"Besides, I only need it to make biting through me harder. If the zombies start using rifles, I think we've already lost."
Kohta nodded, still studying the fit.
"The plate carrier would protect you more, but it's a lot heavier. This one would be easier to move in."
"Exactly."
I pointed at him.
"That was definitely my reasoning."
Takashi looked between us, his tired expression gradually turning into disbelief.
"You two are enjoying this way too much."
Kohta's enthusiasm immediately became a little more restrained.
Mine didn't.
"Man, the world is ending. Let us have some hobbies."
Takashi shook his head and left.
Kohta remained a little longer, asking about the equipment before eventually following him.
Once they were gone, I sat beside the window.
From there, I could see part of the road beyond the mansion walls.
Dark houses.
Abandoned cars.
The occasional corpse wandering between them.
Some homes still had lights behind their curtains.
People hiding inside and hoping their walls were strong enough to keep the world outside.
The father and daughter should appear somewhere nearby.
Maybe the next street.
Maybe farther.
Anime geography wasn't exactly reliable.
So I waited.
Ten minutes.
Twenty.
Thirty.
Nothing.
I leaned back against the bed.
Maybe I remembered the timing incorrectly.
Maybe changing things earlier had already altered the sequence.
Maybe—
The door opened again.
Shizuka-sensei stumbled inside carrying a half-empty can of beer.
She wore nothing except a white towel wrapped around her body.
Loosely.
Dangerously loosely.
Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes unfocused, and the moment she saw me, her face brightened.
"Hiro-kun~"
Oh.
This had potential.
"Sensei."
She wandered closer and stopped in front of me.
"What are you doing~?"
"Umm... enjoying the apocalypse?"
"Mhm."
Apparently, that was a sufficient answer.
She poked my vest.
Then poked it again.
"Why are you wearing this?"
"Because... zombies have poor respect for personal boundaries?"
Her eyebrows pulled together as if she were seriously considering that.
Then, without warning, she dropped onto my lap.
Her arms wrapped around my neck.
Her body pressed against mine.
Soft.
Warm.
Dangerous.
My expression remained calm.
Externally, at least.
Internally, several systems were experiencing technical difficulties.
The towel had shifted when she sat down.
Not enough to reveal anything important.
Enough to make ignoring the situation considerably harder.
The rest of my body was also becoming increasingly uncooperative, but the vest and her position concealed most of that problem.
Thankfully.
Shizuka-sensei rested her chin on my shoulder.
"Hiro-kun is hard."
"The vest," I clarified immediately.
Then, after shifting slightly beneath her—
"Mostly the vest."
She giggled against my neck.
A choking sound came from the doorway.
Takashi stood there.
Apparently, he had returned for something.
Whatever it was, he'd clearly forgotten.
I placed one arm around Shizuka-sensei's waist to stop her from sliding.
"Can I help you?"
Takashi stared.
"No."
"Then stop watching. It's strange."
His expression twisted.
"You're calling me strange?"
"I'm the victim here."
Shizuka-sensei tightened her arms around me.
I made absolutely no effort to escape.
Takashi noticed.
Naturally.
Before he could comment, Shizuka-sensei's grip loosened.
Her body became heavier against mine.
I looked down.
"...She fell asleep."
Takashi rubbed his forehead.
"Do you need help?"
"No, I've got her."
I stood carefully, supporting her weight before lifting her properly into my arms.
Princess carry.
If I already had an audience, I might as well commit to the image.
Takashi stepped aside, though his eyes briefly returned to the pistol as I passed.
I carried Shizuka-sensei downstairs.
She shifted against me, causing the towel to loosen slightly.
I adjusted my grip very carefully.
Not because I lacked appreciation.
Quite the opposite.
I simply believed in maintaining dignity during moments of victory.
Mostly mine.
The hallway leading toward the guest room was clear.
Saeko was still somewhere near the kitchen, and I had no particular desire to explain the unconscious, towel-clad woman in my arms.
I slipped into the room, placed Shizuka-sensei on the bed, secured the towel as best I could, then covered her with a blanket.
For a moment, I stood there looking down at her.
Beautiful.
Drunk.
Completely asleep.
A dangerous combination for anyone lacking common sense.
Fortunately, I possessed some.
Not much.
But enough.
Anything that happened now wouldn't count as progress. She probably wouldn't remember it properly, and creating problems for myself over something that wouldn't even help was simply bad strategy.
Terrible investment.
"Another time, Sensei."
Preferably while conscious.
I quietly closed the door behind me and headed back toward the stairs.
That was when I saw Rei.
She stood near the bottom of the staircase, one hand resting against the railing and an open can hanging loosely from the other.
Her face was flushed.
She stared at me suspiciously for several seconds, eyes narrowing as though she were trying to identify an intruder.
Then recognition finally arrived.
"Oh... Hiro~"
Her entire expression brightened.
"There you are."
I slowed.
"You were looking for me?"
"Mhm."
She stepped toward me, then stopped to recover her balance.
"You see... I wanted to thank you for earlier~"
Her words had a playful, sing-song quality to them.
She raised one finger as if making an important announcement, only to nearly poke me in the face.
I leaned back slightly.
"Careful."
Rei giggled.
"For the store," she continued. "That man was... um..."
Her smile faded briefly.
Then she shook her head, as if deciding she didn't want to think about him anymore.
"You helped me."
"It wasn't a big deal."
"It was to me."
The answer came immediately.
Simple.
Sincere.
For once, I couldn't think of anything clever to say.
So I scratched my cheek and looked away.
"Well... you're welcome."
Rei stared at me for a moment.
Then she squinted.
Her head tilted slowly to one side.
"Why are there three of you?"
I glanced over both shoulders.
"Three?"
"Mhm."
She pointed vaguely toward the empty space beside my head.
"One... two..."
Her finger moved toward my face.
"Three."
"That's concerning."
Rei moved closer, studying the three imaginary versions of me with drunken concentration.
Then she placed her palm against my cheek.
"This one."
"Good choice."
She smiled proudly.
Then her knees bent slightly.
I caught her by the elbow before she could collapse.
"Okay. Maybe we should get you somewhere safer."
"I'm fine."
"Of course."
"I'm serious."
She tried to take another step and immediately leaned against me.
"Completely fine," I added.
Rei laughed softly, but it didn't last.
Her gaze drifted toward one of the dark windows.
The smile slowly faded.
"Everything changed so fast."
Her voice sounded different now.
Quieter.
Tired.
"This morning, I was worried about school. About tests. About stupid things."
She stared at the floor.
"And now Hisashi is dead."
I said nothing.
There wasn't anything useful to say.
"My parents..."
Her fingers tightened around my sleeve.
"I still can't reach them."
Her breathing hitched.
"They don't even know where I am."
The beer slipped from her hand and rolled across the floor.
Rei sank down before I could stop her, sitting against the wall with both hands covering her face.
"I don't know if they're alive."
Her shoulders began shaking.
The playful drunkenness disappeared completely.
What remained was everything she'd been holding back since morning.
I crouched in front of her.
"Rei..."
"I should've gone looking for them."
"You would've died."
"You don't know that."
"No."
I exhaled.
"But running through the city alone wouldn't have helped them either."
She lowered her hands.
Tears ran freely down her face.
"What if they're waiting for me?"
I didn't have an answer.
So I didn't lie.
"We'll look for them when we can."
"When?"
"I don't know."
Her expression crumpled.
That had probably been the wrong answer.
Then again, there wasn't a right one.
Rei leaned forward suddenly.
I caught her against my chest.
For a moment, she went completely still.
Like she hadn't expected me to hold her.
Then her fingers gripped the front of my vest and she began crying harder.
Loudly.
Messily.
I wrapped one arm around her and awkwardly patted her back with the other.
"Yeah... just let it out."
She buried her face against my chest.
I remained there on the floor with her for several minutes.
Eventually, her crying weakened.
Then stopped.
"Rei?"
No answer.
I looked down.
She had fallen asleep.
Of course.
Apparently, I had become some kind of drunken-woman transport service.
With a sigh, I lifted her into my arms and carried her toward the guest room.
Second one tonight.
At this rate, I should start charging.
I placed Rei beside Shizuka-sensei and pulled part of the blanket over her.
Then I stepped back.
Two unconscious women.
One of them held together by a towel and luck.
The other sleeping peacefully after crying against my chest.
And me standing alone beside the bed.
This situation was beginning to test the structural integrity of my self-control.
My thoughts started wandering somewhere extremely dangerous.
Then a calm voice came from the doorway.
"Did Rei pass out as well?"
My entire body froze.
Saeko stood there, looking between Rei and Shizuka-sensei.
No suspicion.
No accusation.
Just a simple question.
I slowly turned toward her.
"...Alcohol remains undefeated."
End of Chapter 20