"The preparations are finished. After lunch, we'll depart for the Eastern Union."
The Utaha before him was ultimately not the same girl as the one in his memories.
What the future would bring—no one could say, no one could be certain.
"Mm, but there's one question. I don't know if Yusuke-san can give me your honest answer. Are you really taking such a huge risk flying back to the Eastern Union solely because you feel attached to your homeland?"
After all, in Utaha's view, piloting a passenger jet back to the Eastern Union carried enormous risk.
"Not entirely. There's another reason… You also just went through yesterday's massive earthquake. Next time, Japan might face a volcanic eruption, a tsunami, a typhoon, a tornado—any kind of natural disaster. Especially typhoons. They affect Japan every year."
If he remembered correctly, the strength of that typhoon in October in the original world… it was simply terrifying.
"Earthquakes are just chance events. Encountering one major earthquake in a lifetime is already considered unlucky."
"But encountering even one can determine the course of a life. I don't dare gamble on my luck, betting that I'll never encounter another in the future. Rather than staying here and handing my fate over to the heavens, I'd prefer to take the risk now and fly back home, selectively avoiding certain disasters."
"Very cautious."
Utaha wanted to say that Haizaki had something like a persecution complex—directed at natural disasters.
"Better safe than sorry. Right now, there are only the two of us left in the world. Even a minor cold, if not treated carefully, could become an irreversible tragedy."
She felt Haizaki was making a mountain out of a molehill, but in the long run, there really was reason to worry.
A human lifespan of a hundred years, in disaster-prone Japan—encountering one or two major disasters was entirely possible. Not to mention, she herself had just experienced one.
"Let's go. After lunch, we'll prepare to fly to the Eastern Union. By the way, what do you want to eat?"
Haizaki asked casually as he walked ahead.
"I can order?"
Haizaki froze for a moment. "Sure. Consider it a gift for our first meeting."
"A cheap gift," she teased him with a smile.
"Then do you want it or not?"
"Yes. Why wouldn't I? I want curry rice…"
"That's a bit complicated…"
Hey, woman, don't give me that I-can't-do-it look!
"Curry rice is really too complicated. Pick something simpler. If you really want it, once we reach the Eastern Union, I'll let you eat curry rice until you're sick of it."
"You can't get sick of curry rice," Utaha retorted. The easing and warming of their conversation stirred an impulse within her.
With the atmosphere as it was now, she felt she could say it.
"Sorry… about last night. I apologize."
"Do you mean keeping me awake with all the noise, or misunderstanding that I was going to assault you?"
Being called out so bluntly by Haizaki made Utaha seethe internally. Was that really something that needed to be said out loud?
This guy didn't understand women at all. He definitely didn't have a girlfriend—and probably never would.
"Both. But a man and a woman alone in a room—did you really not have even the slightest thoughts about me?"
Utaha deliberately straightened her posture, accentuating her chest. Unable to feel at ease, she tried to gain a sense of security through conversation.
The girl's graceful curves entered Haizaki's field of view. That pair really was… quite large.
Noticing his gaze, Utaha's lips curved into a smile.
As expected, men were all the same. Haizaki simply had stronger control and better outward restraint.
He was still a man, still had normal male reactions.
"I'm a normal man…"
Here it comes—the excuse men always used. I'm a normal man, followed by something like being interested in women, feeling desire and impulse is normal biology; if there's anyone to blame, it's because you're too beautiful, your figure's too good, your skin's too fair.
Blaming everything on her.
That was men's usual trick. She knew it all too well.
"Isn't it normal to have thoughts?"
Good.
Exactly as she had predicted.
At this moment, suppressed triumph filled her heart.
That calm, indifferent attitude of his—one that made it impossible for her to confirm his true thoughts—really left her uneasy.
"But I also said just now that I have self-awareness. Your worries are meaningless."
What?
Unbelievable.
Completely against all expectations.
"Can I trust you?" she asked in a low voice.
"Yes. We still have to live properly—live until the day humanity returns."
Utaha sensed that Haizaki wanted her to hold onto hope for humanity's return and live on with resolve.
This man was inexplicably… gentle in his own way.
"Kasumigaoka-san, I already said it before. I acknowledge your charm. I definitely have thoughts about you."
Utaha blinked, surprised by Haizaki's directness.
"Really?"
"Really. If I had no thoughts at all about a beautiful, fair-skinned, well-figured girl like you, that would either be a lie—or it would mean something's wrong with me physically or mentally."
The key point was that pair really was quite large. Compared to Yukino's, it was like heaven and earth—but to be honest, Haizaki didn't actually care about size.
Mm. He didn't care.
"Mm."
Hearing him say that, she gradually felt at ease.
"Anyway, I'll say it again—time will prove everything. Also, what do you want for lunch? Ordinary dishes are no problem."
"Anything's fine. I'm not picky."
Haizaki nodded.
He recalled his previous life—
After the "Cataclysm Apocalypse" broke out, when Utaha went all out, it was truly earth-shattering, even driving the collapse beasts into fury.
Even now, just thinking about it made Haizaki uneasy.
Meanwhile, Utaha was thinking about what she could do in their future life—
Cleaning the living space,
Preparing meals,
Washing dishes after eating, and other things within her ability.
But… why did all of this feel like the work of a housewife?
Thinking this, she couldn't help glancing at Haizaki beside her.
It seemed she was about to start living together with him.
…