Given a second chance to relive her life, Shizuru is more than determined to live her life and protects Natsuki in the world where there is no order and where the undead roamed. "Natsuki, if your love is all I had in this life, that would be enough till the end of time."
Shizuru woke up to the bright afternoon sun. She turned and saw a piece of paper lying on the pillow next to her. It was from Natsuki. She had left for her part time job as a mechanic in one of the motorbikes shop. She had wanted to remind Shizuru to take her medication and rest for the day. Shizuru smiled and sat up on the bed.
She turned on the television and switched it to the news channel. Not surprisingly, it was broadcasting the recent tsunami that killed hundreds who stayed near the coast line. Global warming melts the ice bergs causing sea level to rise rapidly, flooding many low lying areas and forced many to relocate inland.
Shizuru took her handphone and glanced at it. They still had about half a year before the arrival of the apocalypse. Just enough time for them to prepare. She would not allow the history to repeat itself.
The city they lived in had turned into a ghost town 4 months later after the apocalypse. Their best hope would be the largest human settlement located up north. The largest human settlement used to be a university town, hosting four renowned universities, enrolled by students from all over the country. It was a good location. Not only does it held huge amount of resources, but its structure and terrain were created for easy defence. Shizuru had set her goal there. It would be safer for the two of them to travel there.
But before that, they needed to gather their resources. And also to strengthen their body so that they had a better chance of surviving in world end.
Shizuru laid back onto her bed and stared at the ceiling as she planned for the future.
There was the problem of whether she should tell Natsuki about what happened to them in their previous lives. And if she was to tell Natsuki, what to tell her? And where to begin telling her? It would be closed to impossible to plan for apocalypse without letting Natsuki in about world end.
Furthermore they would definitely need to gather the daily necessities. But the problem was none of them had much money with them now.
Both of them grew up together in the orphanage and had no family members to rely on. They had basically paid their own ways up till now since they left the orphanage at 16 years old. Natsuki worked part time as a mechanic. While the pay was not much but the timing was flexible allowing Natsuki much free time to focus on her studies. And Shizuru herself was giving tuition to younger students. The pay was good but not enough to buy necessities to last for years.
But even if they could gather the necessary necessities, where can they keep it? Even in their previous lives, the two of them were not able to keep their stocks of food and water in the end. And in fact those very same items could be the ones that kill them! Imagined two defenceless young girl with huge stash of food and drinks. They would be liked fat cows waiting to be slaughtered. So they had to find a safe place to store the food and it must be somewhere safe from looting.
Shizuru sighed.
Where can I keep the food and necessities?
She did not have any power in her previous life and was definitely not a Wielder. It would be good if they have some ability to store food.
In the previous life, there were a few Wielders who wielded the power of space. Though not much, they could store some food and drinks in a space accessible only by the specific owner of the space. Something like the one that Doraemon has? Shizuru thought. It was a space where the Wielder could just retrieve anything they want. And these Space Wielders were highly sought after by others.
Troubled by this, Shizuru sighed again. The path to survival was filled with obstacles.
But just as she sighed, a silver light flashed across her eyes. So bright that she had to close her eyes. And once again she experienced the same familiar sharp pain. The pain that she experienced while being trapped in that vacuum. She bit her lips and tightened her jaw as she tried to endure the pain. But the intensity grew until Shizuru let out an agonising scream and rolled around the bed.
But lucky for her, the pain only lasted for a few minutes before it subsided. Shizuru panted as she gasped for air and wiped the sweats off her forehead.
What is it?
Shizuru gripped her clothes tightly, her eyes widened in fear.
She still remembered this silver beam of light! It was because of the beam of light that brought her back to the past!
Does it mean she is going to be taken back to that endless vacuum?
No way!
She was NOT going to go back!
Desperation etched deeply on Shizuru's face and her eyes reddened. She slouched her body as she collapsed onto the bed. Her eyes unfocused as she stared at the ceiling.
Just then another flash of silver light flashed passed.
But this time, the light wasn't glaring but soft and gentle. The beam of light grew brighter and brighter until it fully encompassed Shizuru.
Then slowly, the light in front of Shizuru's eyes fade. Like a curtain that slowly rises, a scene slowly unfolded in front of her eyes.
Shizuru's eyes unfocused as she looked at the scene in front of her. She seemed enchanted by the view.
Blue sky and green pastures.
As if enthralled, Shizuru reached out her hand to touch the scene in front of her. And immediately, she was sucked into the scene in front of her, disappearing into the thin air, as in there wasn't a person there in the first place.
And just as quickly, the silvery light dissipated into the thin air as well.
Where did Shizuru go?
She was standing in the middle of a pasture, half the size of a football field. Shizuru shook her head, pushing away the hazyness from her mind as she stared at the surrounding in shock.
Where am I?
As she wondered about her location, a flood of information flashed through her mind and her knees gave up and she collapsed onto the floor from the overwhelming information flooding into her brain. Shizuru gripped her head in pain and gave out a painful groan. It took about two to three minutes before the pain finally eased and the flood of information assimilation with her brain.
The vacuum she was trapped in previously was the universe, the universe long before the formation of the sun and planets. She was floating in the endless universe and the dark blue surrounding that she saw was the outer space.
In this world, there were many parallel universe running in different time period and in one of the universe, Shizuru died and coincidentally, when she died there was an overlap between Shizuru's original universe and this new universe. This lapse had pushed Shizuru's soul out of the old universe and into a new one where she witnessed the formation of planets. The bright fiery flame that she saw back then was the combustion that forms the planet Earth. And in the formation process, a fragment of the Earth entered her body and attached itself to her soul. Now the fragment of Earth was part of Shizuru.
This fragment of Earth that resided in Shizuru's body was an incomplete one. It was a world with incomplete evolution process with only basic living things like plants and trees. To put it simply, this green pasture can be considered a storage space for Shizuru to store items, similar to that of the Space Wielder, albeit a better one. It allowed her to enter the storage space and retrieve the items while the Space Wielders can only retrieve items from their space and were unable to enter their own space.
The air in this space was fresh, free of pollution and the only sign of lives was the great expanse of green pasture and endless forest. It looked like it could store living things but because the fragment that entered her body was an incomplete one, the living things will not evolve. Living things may continue to live and grow in this environment but there will not be any changes to them.
Simply put it, a cell could evolve into a multicellular organism and a monkey could evolve and progress into a homosapien on Earth. But in this world within Shizuru, a monkey will stay forever as one and a single cell would remain one. Things will not evolve.
Even if that was the case, Shizuru was elated. With this space, she could store all the things needed for survival and their lives would be protected! And Natsuki and her would have a higher chance of surviving in apocalypse.
And the air inside this world is fresh and clean with good amount of sunlight, any plants she planted here would thrive. Shizuru thought as her ruby-coloured eyes sparkled with excitement. And she was the owner of this incomplete world, if she improved on her mental capacity, there could be many things she could do in this world.
As the excitement and elation slowly fade, Shizuru took her time examining this Earth that belonged to her.
She was standing on green pasture about half the size of a football field. And surrounding this patch of field was the beach followed by the blue ocean. Basically it looked like a small island surrounded by the ocean. But anything beyond the 300 metre of the ocean was shrouded in thick mist. There was a patch of forest at the other end of the island and a tiny little stream flowed from the forest through the pasture and into the ocean. And the far end of the forest was shrouded in mist too. And Shizuru knew from the flood of information in her brain that it was due to the lack of mental capability. If she strengthened her capabilities, the mist would clear and she could see beyond the mist. And the available space she could have would expand as well. The development of this Earth depends on Shizuru's mental capabilities. The stronger it became, the larger the space in this Earth.
With this space, she could store the food she bought. There was nowhere safer than her own space.
And what was left for her to do was to learn how to protect herself and Natsuki. And kept Takeda away from Natsuki.
Now that she knew the next step, Shizuru needed to get out of her.
"Ara ne… but how do I get out of her."
"Leave!"
No response.
"Open sesame?"
No response again.
Shizuru gave up after repeated tries. She hoped she was not going to be trapped here. It would be too cruel for her.
Shizuru sighed and took a walk around her little Earth instead.
Shizuru came to a stop at the stream that flows through the field. It was a clear and sparkling. And cool to the touch as she dipped her hand into the stream. Shizuru took a sip of the water and sighed.
How can she leave this space?
And Natsuki could be back soon. What if Natsuki can't find her?
Shizuru sat on the floor and leaned against a tree and stared into the clear blue sky, thinking if leaving this place to see Natsuki again.
And momentarily, the sky fade and Shizuru was staring at her room ceiling once again.
Shock, Shizuru turned to look at her surrounding.
She was back in her own room!
What happened?
Shizuru tried again, this time thinking about the place she was in earlier on. There was a click and immediately she was back in her little Earth.
Leave!
Shizuru thought and the image in front of her fade and she was back in her room again.
Shizuru frown, trying identify the trigger that allowed her to leave the Earth in the first place. She had been thinking of leaving her Earth. But what allowed her to do so in the end? Was it the water she drank from the stream?
Does it have that effect? Shizuru thought.
But regardless of the trigger, she was happy that she could enter and leave the Earth at will.
Shizuru started taking the items in the room and slowly teleport the things into the Earth and taking it out repeatedly. But after a few time, Shizuru's head started to ache and throb in pain. She nearly used up all her mental capabilities from moving items in and out of the Earth. She needed to strengthen her mental capabilities. Shizuru thought as she rested herself on the bed and closed her eyes, searching through her mind for information on it.
With her mind blank and her breathing slowed, Shizuru comb through the flood of information in her brain.
"Shizuru? Are you ok? Is it your fever again?" Natsuki's voice and Shizuru was distracted by Natsuki's presence.
Unknowingly, the time had passed rather quickly for Shizuru and it was close to 11pm at night when Natsuki returned from her part time job.
Natsuki had bought some vegetables and meat after she finished her work. And when she reached home, she was worried because all the lights were switched off and the medication she prepared for Shizuru was still on the table. She hurriedly put down the groceries and went to Shizuru's room only to see her lying on the bed, her face pale and a frown on her face.
Shizuru quickly sat up and tidied her clothes and gave Natsuki a reassuring smile. "I'm fine! See! No fever." Shizuru said as she grabbed Natsuki's hand and placed it over her forehead.
There was a paused before Natsuki finally nodded her head and agreed. "No fever. But still you need to take better care of yourself!"
Shizuru smiled and reached out to hug Natsuki. "I know. And I will!"
"Ba… Baka! What's the hug for!?" Natsuki tried to pull back but Shizuru held on tight.
Shizuru chuckled and let go of the struggling Natsuki. "Nothing! Just glad to see you!"
"Baka!"
Shizuru smiled and asked, "You bought some grocer?"
"Nothing much. Some vegetables and fish." Natsuki paused and as if abashed, Natsuki scratched her cheek. "Live fish actually."
"Live fish?" Shizuru arched her brows. "Ara, Natsuki wanted to rear fish?"
"Yiyeah… No no no! I am not!" Natsuki shook her head vehemently.
"But Natsuki bought a live fish?"
"Ah ha ha ha…" Natsuki gave an embarrassed laugh. "Well… You see…" Natsuki glanced at Shizuru who had since just down been waiting patiently for a reply from Natsuki. Knowing that she can't avoid the question, Natsuki sighed and said, "They said people who are not feeling well must eat fresh food. And so…" The tip of Natsuki's ear turned rest. "And so, I decided to buy it."
Shizuru's eyes softened as she moved towards Natsuki once again and gave her a hug. She wrapped her arms around Natsuki's neck and hanged on tightly. "Thank you so much Natsuki." Shizuru whispered.
She would have kissed Natsuki then. But now was not the time yet. Natsuki was not ready yet.
"Ba… Baka! Actually it's not just for you. I wanted to eat some fresh fish too!" Natsuki tilted her head to the side as her cheeks reddened.
Shizuru released Natsuki and reached out her hands to pinch Natsuki on her cheeks. "Little liar." Shizuru smiled and chided. She knew very well that Natsuki disliked fish and would not eat fish unless it was generously covered with mayonnaise sauce.
But Natsuki just pouted and looked sideway.
Just then an idea struck Shizuru's mind. Fish? There was a stream in her Earth. She could rear the fish in the stream and grow vegetables too! As long as she had the mental capabilities, she could allow living things to thrive in her world. And when apocalypse arrived, they would have endless supply of food. So all they needed now was clothes and some basic necessities.
As she thought about this, Shizuru glanced Natsuki. Debating how she should approach the topic of apocalypse and the Earth that resided within her with Natsuki. Yet she didn't want to lie to Natsuki. Once you tell a lie, you need multiple lies to cover it. But the problem was, the idea of apocalypse and world end was too unimaginable.
Natsuki saw the glance Shizuru gave her and frowned. She knew that look. Shizuru was keeping something from her. "Is there something you want to tell me?"
Shizuru stared at her hands, debating furiously whether she should tell Natsuki the truth. The internal struggle went on for a while before Shizuru finally looked up at Natsuki and took a huge breath and said, "Ne Natsuki, have you heard of apocalypse and world end?"
Surprise by this question, Natsuki asked, "Of course I have heard about it. Isn't that just a rumour?" There was a slight frown on Natsuki's face. "Did you have a nightmare about it? Is it because of the fever?"
Shizuru hesitated before speaking again. "Nothing to do with the fever. It's… It's true Natsuki." Shizuru reached out to grab Natsuki's hand, hoping and praying that Natsuki would open up her heart and mind to listen to what she was going to say. "Apocalypse and world end. Half a year later, the world will end. The Undead and Anomalous Beast will appear. Plants too will evolve. Temperatures around the world will change and all these will happen one after another."
Natsuki studied Shizuru's face. It looked like Shizuru was all serious about what said just now. "You are not joking right? Are you sure you did not dream about it? How is that even possible?"
Shizuru shook her head firmly. "I am not joking Natsuki. I am serious about it. What I have just said is the truth." Shizuru tightened her grip on Natsuki's hand. "Believe me Natsuki."
Seeing the firm expression on Shizuru's face, Natsuki paused for a while before asking. "But how would you even know that there will be an apocalypse and world end? There is hardly any indication of it."
That put Shizuru in a difficult position. What can she tell Natsuki? It was already hard for Natsuki to accept the idea of apocalypse and world end, let alone the idea of her returning from the future.
An idea struck Shizuru and she grabbed Natsuki's arm and brought her into the Earth.
Natsuki steadied herself as she tried to recover her equilibrium. It was a weird feeling. It was disconcerting to see and feel her surroundings changing while her feet was on the ground all the time. Suddenly the environment changed from a bedroom to an open field.
"Would you believe me Natsuki if I show you this?" Shizuru stared at Natsuki, gauging her reaction. "This space told me what is going to happen in the future."
"Where is this place?" Shock, Natsuki took a three hundred and sixty degree turn as she took in this foreign surrounding she was suddenly thrust into. Disbelief evident in her voice.
"A space that belongs to me. A space that exist in a slightly different universe."
Natsuki took in a deep breath and rushed over and grabbed Shizuru on the shoulders. "You can tell me this. But please do not go around telling anyone. Just keep in within the two us only. They will lock you up and treat you like a lab mouse!"
Shizuru chuckled and patted Natsuki's hand. "Of course I know that Natsuki. Don't worry."
"Gosh… I need a minute to digest all these information." Natsuki touched her forehead with her hand, overwhelmed by the situation. "I need to sit down first." Natsuki sat down on where she was and looked a bit daze. Then she looked up at Shizuru, shock still evident in her eyes. "Can you tell me what happened right from the very start?"
Thank goodness Natsuki is able to accept her explanation.
Shizuru gave an inward sigh of relief and sat down next to Natsuki and gave her a summary of what was going to happen next.
The two of them sat side by side on the green pasture under the clear blue sky and the occasional wind blowing across the pasture, had their long tresses flowing in the wind. Shizuru had her fingers intertwining with Natsuki's as she narrated what she knew from her previous life.
It was a long conversation.
At the end of the conversation, Natsuki asked a pertinent question. "What can we do if apocalypse and world end are coming?"
"Apocalypse and world end will start in about six months time. So we will have some time to prepare ourselves before that." Shizuru laid out the plans she had initially. "We can grow some food here. And given this unique environment here, we may have a short gestation period for the plants. We can go and buy some seed and tree seedlings, chickens and ducks too. So all we need to do is to prepare the spices and clothes."
"We can do that. But we don't have sufficient money." Natsuki pointed out.
Money was an issue.
Even though they had six months until apocalypse but it had not started yet. So money was an important mode of transaction. Without money, they can't afford to pay for anything and do anything. So the most important thing they needed to do now was to obtain money.
But both Shizuru and Natsuki were orphans and they had been supporting themselves since they left the orphanage when they were sixteen years old. They went to university using the general scholarship given by the university. But the daily expenses were supplemented by their part time jobs. Even the house they were living now was rented from their friend. They had some savings but not enough for all the things they need to buy.
"Oh crap! This is difficult!" Natsuki groaned and collapsed onto the soft grass behind her.
Shizuru followed suit and laid down next to Natsuki. She turned her head and stared at Natsuki and smiled. "We still have half a year. It should be enough for us to raise sufficient money to buy the necessities. We can start off by buying some seeds to grow vegetables and once the vegetables ripen, we can harvest them for our meals and through that we can also save some money. Then we can slowly buy our spices, clothes, necessities such as shampoo and even medication."
"That's a good idea!" Natsuki turned and returned Shizuru's smile. Her eyes sparkling with excitement and renewed hope. "We should go to orchards tomorrow to get some seedlings. And maybe to farms to buy some chickens and ducks. There is water here, so we can rear some prawns and fish!" The more she thought about it, the more excited she became.
If they succeed, then they would not have to worry about their food and they could save money through it! Even if there was no apocalypse and world end arrived, they would not have to worry about their future living expenses anymore.
Natsuki had not completely buy in the idea of apocalypse and world end yet. Even though she had seen this alternate Earth. But she believed Shizuru. So she was willing to prepare herself.
Shizuru wasn't aware what Natsuki was thinking about. But she knew Natsuki was happy just by looking at her face. Shizuru stared at Natsuki, a feeling of peace came over her. And at that moment, their eyes met and held. Emerald met ruby. As if enthralled, Shizuru moved her head forward towards Natsuki. Closer and closer until the two of them were a breath apart. Shizuru's eyes darkened as she moved to kiss Natsuki but at the last moment Shizuru's eyes cleared and changed her direction to drop a kiss on the corner of Natsuki's lip, avoiding a full frontal kiss.
Shizuru moved back slightly, her eyes searching Natsuki's for answers. There was shock there. At least no repulsion.
Good!
"What… what…You… I...You!?" Shock, Natsuki stammered and pulled back, putting some distance between Shizuru and her. Her face were blushing a bright red. "Ki… Kis… Kisses!"
Shizuru gave a grin and joked. "Ara… Natsuki wants another one? I can do that, if that's what you really want."
Natsuki shook her head vigorously. Shizuru would always teased her. But using a kiss to tease her? Never.
"Natsuki doesn't like my kiss?" Shizuru looked down and faked forlorn.
"Yiyeah! No no no!" An immediate reply. "That is not true."
As if cheered up by Natsuki's reply, Shizuru looked up with happy smile on her face and said, "If that is the case, I will do that more often! I have read books that show that frequent physical contact improves relationships."
"..." Was Natsuki's only response. What else could she say?
They knew each other when they were six and seven years old. Natsuki was six when she was sent to the orphanage when her mother died in a car accident. Her father was nowhere to be found. And Shizuru, who was one year older, came to the orphanage about half a year later when both her parents died and her relatives refused to take care of her. They only had each other when growing up but they had never kissed before. They were closed since young as they grew up alongside each other. Along the way, they will hug each other and hold each other hands, the normal human contact. But kiss? Never. They were friends right? Natsuki thought. Or were they more than friends?
Sometimes, Natsuki wondered about it too. Friends? Not really. They were closer than just friends. They shared the same bed. It was a habit they had since they were young. The orphanage they were in were overcrowded and all of them had squeezed into a single bed and Shizuru and her had shared the same bed ever since then.
But family members? Siblings? Yet not so true. At least for Natsuki's part. No sibling's heart would race from just talking to her older sister or blushed when the older sister touched her. Or got hot and bothered from a kiss near the lips from the older sister.
What kind of relationship did they have? Friends? Family? Or something more? Natsuki wondered as she looked pensively at Shizuru.
Could she ask for something more? Would Shizuru be repulsed by such idea and leave? Maybe Shizuru kissed her because Shizuru see her like her younger sister? Perhaps she shouldn't have asked for more...
Seeing the confusion on Natsuki's face, Shizuru reached out her hand and gently pressed down on Natsuki's brows, trying to smooth the ridges. "Stop frowning. You are going to age faster that way. And don't think too much about it. Things will work out somehow in the end." Shizuru smiled.
The pensive looked faded and Natsuki smiled. "Yup! You are right. One step at a time!"
Shizuru sat up, pulling Natsuki up, teleporting them out of Earth. With this space, there will be hope, a hope for a better future. They were luckier than many others. They will live through the difficult time!
With this firm belief that apocalypse and world end were coming, Natsuki and Shizuru saw no point in continuing university. Anyway, the Undead and Anomalous Beast were not going to check for degrees before attacking. And with this in mind, the two of them submitted their application to withdraw from university the next day and started the tedious and complex process of preparing for their survival. They had only half a year and they would require lots of stuff and they do not want to waste their time in university. The university had accepted their applications and did not even ask for their reasons for withdrawal. And it was during this time that they were glad that they had no family members. Otherwise it would be hard to justify their reasons for quitting university.
The two of them had decided to buy items, such as medication, in small proportion as early as possible so as not to bring any attention to themselves. It would caught the attention of the public if they noticed the two of them buying huge amount of medication. They did not want unnecessary attention.
The two of them stepped out of the school and visited the bank to check the amount of savings they had. They withdrew a small proportion of it and went to the nearby orchards and farms to buy their supplies.
But it was winter now and only a few orchards and farms were in operation and there were even fewer customers. Shizuru wanted to buy some fruits saplings and fishes to grow in Earth. But it wasn't the season to grow fruits and fishes here and they could only buy seeds instead. They went to various shops to compare the prices and bought the cheapest one. They were not so worried about the quality because the air was fresh and the air was clean. So there shouldn't be a problem growing tasty fruits. And it will definitely be better than the ones sold outside.
The two of them bought some seeds for cabbage, carrots, tomatoes and cucumbers etc. No much but enough for at least two people once they grow and bear fruits. Shizuru was not planning to be a saviour for the world and stores food for others.
And with the seeds ready, they bought some farming equipments. As someone who grew up in the city, these objects looked foreign to them and not to say using the equipments for farming. But the Ouji-san who sold them the equipment was kind enough to show them how it was used. Well as least they could use it without hitting themselves on the legs at least.
They did not have much money with them today and after buying all the seeds and equipment, they only had a few dollars left in their pockets. And they had to think of how to make the best used of the remaining few thousands in their bank account. And it was going to be difficult for them when they only had half a year left until the apocalypse.
It was noon time by the time they gathered all the materials and with the few dollars they had, they bought some plain breads for lunch. As they ate, Natsuki commented, "I think the stuff here are slightly on the high end and we won't not last long if we keep on buying things here. If we go to the wholesalers, we could get things like food at a cheaper rate. If we want fishes, then we should go somewhere near the coastline."
Shizuru nodded in agreement as she nibbled on the bread. "The stuff in the city and near the city will definitely be more expensive. But if we want to travel to places, we don't have enough funds. And if we include our transportation fees, the final price of the goods will roughly be the same at the prices in the cities. And we are back to our problem once again. The lack of funds."
Natsuki sighed. "You are right. We don't have much money with us now."
Just as when they were worrying over money, Shizuru's handphone rang. She picked up the phone and glanced at the screen and immediately, her pupils dilated before glowing a bright red.
It had only been the second day since she went back to the past and for the past few days, she was preoccupied with the euphoria of being reborn once again and preparing for the onset of apocalypse that she nearly forgot about someone. And this call had reminded her of an important person.
When apocalypse arrived, Shizuru and Natsuki had offered this person their help, up until the Mashashi Takeda's group arrived. But just when they were distracted, she took all their food and sought help with another group of Wielders, leaving them with no food. Takeda's group had wanted to leave them behind because two girls without food were useless baggage. But because of Tekeda's insistence, the two of them were allowed to tag along. Well to some extent, Takada had saved their lives. If not for him, they would have died earlier on.
Shizuru smiled a dangerous smile as she picked up her phone. Natsuki shivered when she saw the smile. Shizuru was angry for some reasons. "Ne Shizuru, are you ok? Did something happen? Tomoe is calling." Natsuki gestured to the phone.
"Yiyeah. I am good. Better I would say." Shizuru replied as she swiped to answer the call.
"Onee-sama! Shizuru Onee-sama!"
"Gokigenyou Tomoe."
"Thank god! I finally got through! Onee-sama, I went to your Council Room earlier on and your they told me you quitted school! Why? What happened? Why did you decide to quit school suddenly and …." A series of questions followed.
Shizuru waited patiently for Tomoe to finish her sentence before replying, "Nothing much really. It's just that Natsuki and I feel that school is taking too much of our time. And the fees is very high. So we decided to delay our graduation until later when we have sufficient funds."
"Insufficient funds!? Onee-sama, you should have told me earlier on! I could help you with it. And of course Natsuki-sama too." Tomoe offered and the conversation continued for a while before Shizuru hung up and obtained a loan of twenty thousand from Tomoe.
"Did something happen Shizuru?" Natsuki asked. She had felt that Shizuru was not her usual self earlier on when she was talking to Tomoe. Shizuru sounded distant and detached as she talked to Tomoe. Normally Shizuru seemed more genuine and happy to converse with Tomoe. But it was different today.
Shizuru shook her head. What happened in her previous life was in the past. She was not going to bring it up to Natsuki. She would be the only one to know about the pain of trying to survive in the apocalypse.
Just as the two of them finished the bread, Shizuru received a message from the bank informing her that a sum of money amounting to $30,000 had been transferred into her account, $10,000 more than what was requested. And right after that Shizuru received another message from Tomoe asking if she had received the money. Shizuru switched off her phone. There was no need for additional conversation with Tomoe. Shizuru kept her phone and together the two of them went back to their rental apartment.
Once back at home, Shizuru entered into her Earth and planted the various seed. Now all she had to do was to wait for harvest time.
Shizuru exited the Earth and saw Natsuki sitting in front of the computer, furiously typing something on Reddit. Shizuru knew what Natsuki was doing but did not stop her, even though Shizuru felt that such action was futile. No one was going to believe what was going to happen. Who would really thought that apocalypse was coming soon? But if alerting others of impending apocalypse could bring some comfort to Natsuki, so be it. But such kindness would not last in after apocalypse. Her kindness will be taken for granted and people will take advantage of her and slowly any feeling of kindness will slowly erode away. Shizuru sighed.
Suddenly, a silver light flashed across her mind. Something happened in her Earth! Shizuru thought as she teleported into Earth.
The Earth had changed! Shizuru laughed, her laughter liked chimes in the wind, as she turned around to take it the surrounding changes.
The streams parted into three smaller streams flowing into different part of the field, parting the field into 3 parts, making it easier for them to access water and plant their crops.
Farmers were using machines nowadays rather than pitchfork, grubbing axe and dibble for farming. They would need to go online and do some research on manual farming. Shizuru took out a pitchfork and plowed the land and planted a few more seeds in addition to what she planted earlier on. And at the end of it, Shizuru was all sore and aching but it was a good feeling. She was getting some exercise from this.
Shizuru kept the tools in a box near the forest. They would need a shed, Shizuru thought and they would need to build one. Shizuru then went to the stream and cleaned up after that. She stretched her back and then paused suddenly.
There was silence. And Shizuru thought of an important problem…
A/N
Happy New Year