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."
"If you are very worried, why don't we leave tonight? We can start packing our bags after breakfast and by tonight we should be able to leave." Natsuki offered. "Will it be better?"
There was a slight pout on Shizuru's face as she turned to return Natsuki's hug. "I am just worried." All she wanted was to survive the apocalypse with Natsuki. It was a miracle that she managed to return back to the past and she wasn't going to let this opportunity go because she was going to change their fate! She was going go make sure that they will have a better future. But the Earth and all the resources they have gathered would be meaningless without Natsuki.
Natsuki patted Shizuru's back. It seemed that that nightmare yesterday really scared Shizuru. Yet Natsuki felt that something else was frightening Shizuru.
"What are you afraid of Shizuru? We will always always be together right? We have been together ever since young and now that you have the Earth, even if apocalypse arrives, we will still be safe. What are you afraid of Shizuru?"
Shizuru sighed and dropped her head on Natsuki's shoulder. "I do have the Earth. But it is my space. What if we ended up separated due to various reasons? How can I protect you?" Shizuru let out another long sigh and gave a weak smile. "Maybe I am thinking too much. Let's pack our stuff after breakfast. I will go and buy a train ticket and we will leave Tokyo tomorrow instead. This would give us a bit more time to pack our stuff and also enough time to travel around and buy cheaper resources from other area."
Natsuki smiled. At least Shizuru wasn't dwelling too much on the uncertain future. "Where are we going?" Natsuki wasn't too worried about having to leave so soon. Anyway, they would have to leave Tokyo sooner or later. It was just a matter of time. Since Shizuru was worried, they would just have to leave earlier.
Shizuru took a bite out of her toast and said, "I am thinking of Fuuka Academy in the University Town at the North of Japan."
Natsuki frown. "Fuuka Academy? That is very far from where we are now. Why Fuuka Academy?"
Fuuka Academy was the largest surviving human settlement during the apocalypse. And also because it was a University town, much protection was given to the students there, with walls and tight security. Walls were important infrastructure during apocalypse. It would provided much defense for the people inside the University Town.
"There are walls surrounding the University Town.
This would be a good defense against the Undead especially when it's hard to find places with walls. University Town would be a safer place than the city area with hardly any walls."
Natsuki nodded in agreement. "True but won't the journey be too long and far?"
"Not too far." Shizuru shook her head. "To go to University Town, we need to bypass W and S City and resources sold in these two cities are way cheaper and fresher. And these resources are the ones we need to buy and store in our Earth."
Natsuki nodded. They ate in silence for a while until Natsuki broke the silence. "Even though I know we will be leaving but I never expect us to leave so soon. I guess we will be spending our new year celebration in different area. Since we are leaving Tokyo tonight, do you think we should let Tomoe know about the pending apocalypse? I worry for her."
Tomoe's full name is Tomoe Marguerite, half Japanese and half Italian. Her family owned a multinational hotel chain. And she was the one who loaned them the thirty thousand dollar. Even the apartment they were staying in was rented from Tomoe too. Tomoe was their junior by one year in the university they were enrolled in. Tomoe joined the Student Council too and ever since they were then, the three of them were inseparable. They were a clique when they were in University.
To Natsuki surprise, Shizuru shook her head instead. "We can't tell Tomoe. Tomoe is not like us. She has a family. Once we tell her, she will definitely share the details with her family members and it could gain the attention of many people. And our secret could be exposed. You don't want me to be locked up in a science lab where they experiment on me right?"
"But Tomoe is not that kind of person. She is not the type to spread rumor and say unnecessary things."
Shizuru looked down at her meal to hide the anger in her eyes and the cynical look on her face. Shizuru knew full well the kind of person Tomoe is. What she mentioned to Natsuki was one of the reasons why she did not want to share the information with Tomoe. But not the main reason.
If Shizuru has not experienced the apocalypse, she would have agreed with Natsuki. Tomoe was their friend. But she had been through apocalypse and she had seen what Tomoe had done to them when apocalypse striked.
She will never forget what Tomoe had done to them.
When apocalypse striked, Tomoe managed to find Natsuki and Shizuru and despite their limited food and drinks available, they took Tomoe in. But in order to leave Tokyo, Tomoe stole all the food they had, leaving them with nothing, leaving them to die from hunger and thirst. Having debated between the option of dying from hunger or killed by the Undead, they decided to leave their apartment, hunting for food and offered whatever food they found to Masashi Takade. And Takada took them in on the account of Natsuki.
Shizuru had swore to herself then that if she ever meet Tomoe again, she would would repay her for the betrayal and the fear they suffered.
Shizuru closed her eyes, hiding the hatred and disgust she had for Tomoe. She couldn't let Natsuki know about this, that their so called close friend betrayed them. This was a burden that she had to carry on. Only she should know about this betrayal.
Natsuki thought about the possibilities suggested by Shizuru and she couldn't help but agree with her. But still she felt guilty for not tell Tomoe. "Would it be very bad if we don't tell her about the apocalypse?"
Shizuru gave Natsuki a reassuring smile, trying to hide the disgust she had for Tomoe. "Don't worry. If you think about it, Tomoe's family is wealthy. Even if world ends, they should still be able to survive. Most likely Tomoe's family would have employed people to protect Tomoe from danger."
Even as she said that, Shizuru was thinking to herself, Money? It is worthless when apocalypse strike. Even gold itself is worthless. Nothing is more important than food. She would like to see how far Tomoe could go during apocalypse without their help.
"Yeah I think you are right." Natsuki nodded and agreed, thinking about the many bodyguards that Tomoe's family employed to keep her safe. Natsuki had not been through the apocalypse and so would know nothing apocalypse. Money was worth nothing. Even the government had no control over the people then. Everything was ruled by strength. Law of the jungle holds and it was a world where the strongest survived.
What Natsuki knew about apocalypse came from Shizuru and Natsuki grew up at a time where there was peace and had no experience of war and danger. She had problem imagining a world filled with horror and despair, a world with no law and order.
After breakfast, Shizuru and Natsuki packed their stuff and Shizuru teleported all the things they need into Earth. Furniture, utensil, bed, bookshelf, everything even the gas stove were teleported into Earth, leaving their apartment practically empty. In the midst of everything, Shizuru did not forget the guitar that Natsuki bought for her as a birthday present. When Shizuru teleported it in, she made sure that the guitar was placed somewhere safe. Perhaps one day when the issue of survival was less urgent, she could play the guitar for Natsuki, just as she did when they were young.
Shizuru left Natsuki in Earth to pack the items and take care of the crops and exited to buy train one train ticket to S city. The train was scheduled to leave at 12 noon today. And just before she shut down the computer, Shizuru went to the lottery website and bought a few lottery online. If she remembered correctly, these were the numbers that were going to win the lottery in the following week. Those numbers were easy to remember. There was a pattern to the numbers and it was much reports over the numbers in her previous life.
Shizuru printed the train ticket and teleported the laptop and printer into the Earth. She didn't plan to leave anything traces behind.
Just before she left the apartment, she took Natsuki's handphone from her pocket and glanced at it, an internal debate going on. She had secretly taken Natsuki's handphone this morning while they were having their breakfast and kept it in her pocket, without Natsuki realizing. And Natsuki was too busy with the packing to realize that her handphone was missing. After some debate, Shizuru switched off Natsuki's handphone and removed the SIM card, brokinb it into two. She did the same for her own. There was no need for further communication with anyone, Shizuru thought as she stepped out of the apartment without looking back.
Before she head to the train station, Shizuru took a bus to the warehouse she rented from her friend and teleported the cooking oil into the Earth. Everything was ready and it's time to set off.
Alone she headed to the train station and took the train to S city. The journey took her half a day and by the time she reached S city, it was night time. She left the station and found a secluded place, teleporting Natsuki out of the Earth.
Natsuki was 'locked' in the Earth the whole day and the moment she was teleported out and saw Shizuru, she frowned, her face darken immediately.
Shizuru blinked her eyes, smiled and moved to hug Natsuki. Natsuki put her palms against Shizuru's shoulders, pushing her away but Shizuru hold firm. She knew Natsuki was definitely upset with her for locking her in the Earth the whole day. But she needed to do that. She had to do that.
"You would have called and told Tomoe about the impending apocalypse if I don't keep you in the Earth right?" Shizuru asked.
Natsuki gave a little pout an turned away from Shizuru.
Shizuru smiled and pinched Natsuki's cheek. "I'm sorry for keeping you in the Earth the whole day. But I thought we agreed not to speak to Tomoe about the impending apocalypse?"
Natsuki's shoulder slumped and apologised. "I'm sorry about it. I didn't keep my promise. But she is our friend. Isn't it not very nice of us if we leave without saying goodbye? We don't have to reveal anything. And why did u leave earlier? You said we are only leaving tomorrow." Natsuki protested, a slight pout forming as she continued her sentence.
"You have been thinking about Tomoe too much! I don't like it. And I am your girlfriend, why do you focus so much on another girl? Your attention should be on me." Shizuru grabbed Natsuki's face and turned towards her. "I am jealous you hear me!"
That sudden declaration of love caught Natsuki unaware as a red hue appeared on Natsuki's cheek. "I… You…" Natsuki made a frustrated sound and gave out. "Fine, I will stop talking about Tomoe now. Happy?" Even though Natsuki knew that Shizuru said that to distract her from the topic of Tomoe, but secretly she was still happy to hear Shizuru said that.
Shizuru chuckled and dropped a kiss on Natsuki's cheek. "Yes I am!"
Shizuru grew up with Natsuki and she knew Natsuki more that Natsuki knew herself. Even though Natsuki had agreed not to contact Tomoe, but being a loyal and soft hearted person she was, she would secretly contact Tomoe and remind Tomoe to make necessary preparation. But Shizuru had not intention of allowing Tomoe to lead such a nice life during apocalypse. Shizuru wanted Tomoe to suffer a fate that is worse than death itself.
They would be lucky if Natsuki told Tomoe about the impending apocalypse and Tomoe did not believe her. But what if Tomoe really took Natsuki's words to task and the whole Marguerite clan would take the necessary precaution to protect themselves against all danger and the first person they might track down to verify the truth would be Natsuki. This would not bode well for the two of them. They would not want to divert their attention away from their preparation for the apocalypse to fending off the Marguerites. They were already quite overwhelmed with the preparation.
That was why Shizuru decided to act before Natsuki and kept her in the Earth, and escaped Tokyo alone, leaving no traces behind and cut off all contact with their friends by destroying their SIM cards. Furthermore, Natsuki can remember numbers for nuts. There was not way Natsuki could remember her own number let alone Tomoe's. And for the past few years, all she could remember was Shizuru's handphone number. Anything more than five digits, she would have problem remembering.
Natsuki sighed. "If you don't want me to have any contact with Tomoe anymore, I will not do so. I promise."
Shizuru hugged Natsuki and harumph , "Even if I say no, you would still warn Tomoe. Don't tell me you have no intention of contacting Tomoe secretly?"
Natsuki straightened from Shizuru embrace and studied Shizuru. "You have changed Shizuru. You were not like this in the past. Did you have a fight with Tomoe?"
Shizuru tensed. Of course she had changed. How could she not after surviving for six months in the apocalypse.
"I am just scared Natsuki." Shizuru whispered. "I didn't have a fight with Tomoe. I am just scared of losing you." Shizuru stared at Natsuki as she said those words, fear evident in her tone.
Like a deflated balloon, all of Natsuki's anger and frustration ended upon she heard Shizuru's words. There was no one more important than Shizuru. "Alright alright. I promise you I will not tell anyone aright?"
Shizuru nodded a head and pecked Natsuki's cheek again.
Natsuki couldn't help it but rolled her eyes. "I don't know what to do with you." Natsuki said as she wrinkled her nose at Shizuru. Tomoe may be her close friend but compared to Shizuru, Shizuru was more important to anyone in the world.
Shizuru secretly gave a sigh of relief.
"S city is well known for their wide variety of fruits. We could buy a few fruit tree sapling before we move off to University Town. And the fruits here will definitely be cheaper than Tokyo. We could tour around the area for a while while buying the items we need, just like a holiday."
All these scenery would disappear when apocalypse arrived and all you will see will be the Undeads. Even if there are forest, there would be Anomalous Beast and Plant and the desert would continue to spread, swallowing the whole of human civilization.
What human have now will only be history, found in human's memory. And perhaps, these memories may even fade with time until human can no longer remember what Earth was like before the apocalypse.
It will be New Year in about half a month.
Natsuki and Shizuru decided to stay at S city for a while, at least until after the New Year. This New Year would most likely be the last one before apocalypse started. And once it started, everyone's concern would be survival. Who cares about New Year celebration when it was difficult to survive.
There were still six months before the apocalypse but Shizuru was in no hurry especially after discovering that plants propagate easily in her Earth. The fruits and vegetables in their Earth were enough for a lifetime.
The scenery in S city was beautiful despite being one of the more developed city in the country. The government here were quite concern about environmental protection and the beautiful scenery was a major tourist attraction, bring much revenue to the locals.
Both Natsuki and Shizuru rented a place at the outskirt of the city and the owner of the place was an old lady in her 60s. When she knew that it was two beautiful young lady renting her place, she was generous enough to charge a low rental fees and even occasionally cook for them.
Even though Shizuru wasn't in a hurry to fill her Earth, she did not waste her time here. Things are cheaper her, especially fruit related items such as canned fruits were one third cheaper than Tokyo and Shizuru managed to buy many of it. And to avoid unnecessary questions, they bought small quantities in many different shops and asked to deliver them to a warehouse Shizuru rented in S city. Even as they toured the hillside and found several fruit seeds, they planted them in the Earth.
On the fourth day in S city, Shizuru went online to check her account. The numbers she bought won first prize in the lottery and fifty thousand was credited into her account. Satisfied, Shizuru went online to Balibaba to buy some clothes in preparation for apocalypse weather. They would need summer and winter wear. It was going to get very cold at night and extremely hot in the day.
Because there wasn't any place for them to stay in in the Earth, Shizuru also bought a number of high end durable camping tent to use. The Earth was getting quite crowded especially with all the food and other items and so Shizuru also bought a few shelves to help store and arrange the items. All these items will be delivered to the warehouse and not to the place they are currently staying.
After all the things have been delivered to the warehouse, Shizuru made a trip to the warehouse and teleported all the items into her Earth. And it was this time that the metal shelves she bought become useful.
And once inside, Shizuru began to put all the items onto the shelves. But not through the usual way as packs of potatoes chips one after another flew into the shelves by themselves.
This Earth was part of Shizuru and she had every control of what happened inside it. To put it simply, she could be considered the God of this Earth and how the Earth evolved depends on Shizuru's mental capability. As Shizuru's ability grew, so will the Earth. The thick mist around the field will retreat, revealing land and the streams will wided to form rivers. If she will it, she could even walk on water!
Natsuki sat by the river bank and dipped her toes into the river, playing with water as Shizuru move the chips from the ground to the shelves mentally. She became bored when Shizuru declined her offer to help packed the food. Shizuru would rather just teleported them in. "You have been doing this the whole day, don't you find it boring and tedious?" She could not understand why Shizuru chose this way to organise the items.
Shizuru wiped off the sweat on her forehead. She could feel her head throbbing from overusing her mental strength. She wasn't a Wielder in her previous life and what she knew about Wielder came from Mashashi Takeda. He had explained that the stronger the mental strength of a person, the higher the likelihood of that person being a stronger Wielder. Everything lies in the brain of the person.
Shizuru wasn't sure if Natsuki and her will turn into Wielders but training mental strength would only bring them benefits and not harm. It was hard to explain to Natsuki why she was so obsessed with training to strengthen her own mental strength. Even until now, Natsuki had not fully understood or comprehend the danger of apocalypse and world end.
Shizuru stopped what she was doing and sat beside Natsuki. She had wanted to speak to Natsuki about it but hadn't found the right opportunity yet.
"Do you trust me Natsuki?" Shizuru put Natsuki's hand into hers.
Surprised at the serious tone, Natsuki raised her eyes to look at Shizuru, questions in her eyes. "Of course I do! There is no one whom I would trust more than you."
"Ne Natsuki, do you know that when apocalypse arrived, the whole world order just collapsed. There will be no law to govern the people. Murder, robbery and rape are rampant. No one to protect the weak. There is no right and wrong, no moral standards. It will be law of the jungle. The strongest survives. What is right is in the hands of the people with power. Only with power can we protect ourselves, protect the ones we love."
Confused, Natsuki asked, "How could it be? Won't the government do anything? We have the army. Won't they step in?" She always thought that apocalypse would only be a brief one before government took over and instill order in the country. But from what Shizuru described, it seemed like she was wrong.
"The government is unprepared for it. When apocalypse strikes, even the government officials and military will be infected. Many will be turned in Undead. Natsuki, trust me. We really need to have the power to protect ourselves. So what if we have the Earth, Natsuki? Would you be able to enter it by yourself? What happen if we are accidentally separated? Accident can happen."
There was silence as Natsuki digested the information. There was truth in Shizuru's words. She has been too complacent.
Even though Shizuru had been harping on the danger of apocalypse but she had never really took it seriously. Even the existence of Shizuru's Earth had not swayed her opinion much. And subconsciously, she did not believe that there would be apocalypse. And even if apocalypse striked, there was still the government to protect their citizens.
Perhaps she had been too naive.
Natsuki closed her eyes, took in a deep breath and opened her eyes, all serious as she said, "I understood. I won't be naive anymore. And I definitely will not be a baggage to you. I want to make sure I can protect you when apocalypse strike."
Shizuru smiled and bent forward to give Natsuki a gentle peck on the lips. "Thank you Natsuki." Thank you for always be by my side, never giving me up.
Natsuki returned the smile and deepened the kiss. She was fast learner. She still remembered what Shizuru did to her previously as she ran her tongue past Shizuru's lips and delved in. Natsuki buried her fingers in Shizuru's thick trusses. Someone moaned and then Natsuki felt Shizuru pushing her away.
There was an obvious pout on Natsuki's face. Obviously she was upset when Shizuru decided to put a stop to it. Shizuru chuckled. She wanted to do more, buried herself in Natsuki. But this was not the time for it yet. Soon but not yet. "Unless Natsuki want to continue in the wide open space, I suggest we have a proper tentage first before doing anything more."
The desire slowly clear and Natsuki was embarrassed. Much as she wanted to carry on further, but this was not the place. She did not want their first time to be in a rush and in wide open space with no bed. And she was not that adventurous. Yet...
"I will er… go and tidied up the place. And then go do some exercises." Natsuki untangled herself from Shizuru and quickly moved to distant herself.
As she was a few feet away, Shizuru called out, "Ne, Natsuki, I really like it. The kiss! You should kiss me more often." Shizuru teased but only to see the red face Natsuki running off.
Shizuru licked her lips, savoring the taste. She needed to rearrange her priorities now. Build a living quarter with proper bed should be the top priority now. Shizuru looked through the mess of items on the grass field and took out a lightweight and portable yurt she bought previously and started to set it up. She had bought a few camping tents and this yurt was one of her favourite. It covered about 106 square feet and big enough to put a queen size bed in it. Shizuru hymed a song beneath her breath as she set it up.
And the two of them spent the next few days in the Earth, either unpacking the items they pack, tending to the plants or exercising. Overall Shizuru felt quite satisfied with herself. She could feel her mental strength growing stronger day by day as she challenged her maximum mental capability each day by arranging the items in Earth. And on Natsuki side, she has been focused on her training, brushing up on her Muay Thai and exercising, either doing weights or jogging around the field.
Shizuru looked around the Earth and was also quite proud to see how much her Earth has changed within such a short time. The mist had retreated revealing a greater expense of field and there were rivers flowing through the field. The plants they planted were growing so well, providing them with abundance of food, some of which she turned it into preserves food, flour and jams. And there were five yurts set up in the middle of the field, one acting as the bedroom, one as a gym, three others for storage of food, clothes and other items. The place had indeed transformed!
The routine continued until the New Years Eve.
While it was constantly spring in Shizuru's Earth, there was a snow storm not long ago in S city, covering the place in blanket of snow and most of the roads were blocked with snow. And all over the city, workers were busy trying to clear the road of fallen snow.
Perhaps because it was near New Year, there were very few people on the street. And the extremely cold weather made it more enticing to stay at home and huddle in their home, not willing to venture out.
Shizuru and Natsuki were the rare few who decided brave the cold to buy ingredients for their dumpling for dinner. They have enough vegetables and fruits in the Earth and so they had not been out to the supermarket for a few days. They bought some meat for their dumpling. But as they were making payment at the counter, a thought struck Natsuki. She wondered if they should have bought ducks and chickens and put them into the Earth. Then they would have constant supply of meat. Natsuki raised this possibility to Shizuru. But Shizuru shook her head, "May be not. Imagine cleaning up after the chickens and ducks, polluting the water with their shit?"
Natsuki shuddered at the thoughts of showering in the river after the duck polluted the river with their poops.
The two of them make their way home and occasionally Natsuki would turned back, looking at the pairs of footsteps behind them. She was glad that they were still together. Natsuki thought as she huddled closed to Shizuru.
But just before they arrived home, they heard a siren from a distance and then saw an ambulance and a police car parked at a distance from their rented house. As they paused to check out the commotion, they saw two paramedic carrying someone into the ambulance. But unlike the usual uniform wore by the paramedics, they were in thick white suit with a Field M50 gas mask over their face. And it seemed that the person on the stretcher was bound by ropes, tying him up and preventing him from moving.
Many passerby was gathering at the pavement and whispering to each other and occasionally letting out gaspes. And Shizuru and Natsuki could hear screams and roars coming from where the passerby gathered.
That sound was so familiar to Shizuru. She had lived with it for six months in her previous life.
With a sense of foreboding, Shizuru walked closer to ascertain if what she thinks was true. As they approached the spot, they could clearly see four man on the floor. Even though most of their views were block, they could still see something from their angle if they tiptoe. There was a man seated on the floor bleeding profusely from the arm. And then there was a policeman struggling with another man who was currently burying his head in an unconscious man's neck. They could hear the wet sloshing sound as the man opened his mouth to get a mouthful of the flesh. The smell of blood filled the air.
There were many people surrounding the four men but none dared to intervene. They saw what happened to man who tried to stop the madman. Most likely they would end up biten like the man seated nearby with his hand pressing over the wound.
The gory scene was too much for the two of them as Natsuki tugged at Shizuru's sleeves asking for her to leave. But at that moment, the madman who was chewing on the unconscious man's neck earlier on look up. His face was smeared with blood and his eyes were craze. There were blister all over his face and some of the blister burst during the struggle and were oozing thick green pus. And the moment he lifted his head, there was a weird smell in the air.
And the next moment, the man pouched on one of the passerby nearest to him. Everyone let out a scream and the crowd dispersed immediately.
Shizuru sucked in a breath as she stumbled backwards. Her legs nearly gave up on her. She tightened her grip on Natsuki's hand.
Natsuki returned her grip and turned to face her. Shizuru's face was all pale and her eyes were diluted. Concerned, Natsuki ask, "What happen?" Shizuru's grip was getting too tight to the point of painful.
There was a complex look on Shizuru's face as she saw the paramedics subdued the madman with eased.
Shizuru turned and pulled Natsuki in the other direction. "What we saw just now is the Undead." Shizuru said as she tugged at her coat. Even though she was wearing the winter wear but still she felt cold, bone chilling cold.
So the Undeads are already in existence now? But shouldn't the Undeads turn up half a year later? What about the paramedics? Why do they look so suspicious? Could it be that the government already knew about the Undead much earlier on but had suppressed the news? Looking at how easily it was for the paramedic to subdue the Undead, it seemed that they had ample of experiences.
Shizuru shivered and Natsuki could feel it. Concerned, Natsuki pulled Shizuru into a corner. "Are you ok? You are trembling."
But Shizuru only shook her head as she bit down hard onto her lips. "Home now." Shizuru forced the words out.
Natsuki quickly pulled Shizuru and hurried down the street to their rented house. The moment they reached home, Shizuru threw the bags on floor and immediately turned to hug Natsuki. She needed her now.
Natsuki returned the hug. Shizuru was making her very worried. "What is it Shizuru?" Natsuki patted Shizuru. "Tell me darling."
But Shizuru only tightened her grip and shook her head.
Could her rebirth change the course of history and brought the apocalypse forward? Could her rebirth have a ripple effects on the events? Such as the University Town?
No! She couldn't tell Natsuki about it.
It's ok. Everything will be fine. Shizuru comforted herself. Furthermore they have the Earth. They will not die from hunger. And they also have the Earth Crystal they consume everyday to strengthen and purify their body. So hopefully when apocalypse started, it could trigger their ability. Only with power can they survived in this world. Shizuru tried to comfort herself.
Natsuki sighed. "Shizuru you are making me worried." Ever since the day Shizuru had the Earth, Shizuru had become different. And it was making her worried.
Shizuru gave out a long sigh. "The Earth told me that apocalypse should start about half a year later. But the Undeads have appeared, before the prediction. I am worried if something has happened to change the event." It wasn't the complete truth but it was the nearest to the truth that Shizuru can tell Natsuki. She would just relate everything to the Earth.
Hearing the answer, Natsuki gave Shizuru a reassuring smiled. "This may not be surprising. The apocalypse may start in stages and the fullblow apocalypse might only start half a year later. Regardless, apocalypse will happen and our lives will still continue. All we can do now is to strengthen ourselves so that we can be more prepared for it right?"
Shizuru nodded her head but worries was still evident on her face. There was still a frantic look on her face.
Natsuki sighed.
What happened today really shock and frightened Shizuru. Had it not been Natsuki stopping her, reminding that today was New Year Eve, Shizuru would have rushed into her Earth and continued her training.
"What are you afraid of Shizuru?" Natsuki asked Shizuru this question many times. Looking at the situation now, Shizuru had the Earth and sufficient food to last them a lifetime and Natsuki wasn't sure what was making Shizuru so panicky. They had no families except each other and they had just cemented their relationship. So what was frightening Shizuru?
Natsuki's question had Shizuru pausing for a moment. What am I scared of? I am scared that I would not be able to protect you, that I would lose you again and I would die. If I die, who will protect you?
Shizuru gave a bitter laugh. "I am afraid I won't be able to protect you." I am scared that everything will change, destroying all my effort to protect you. I can't afford to lose you again Natsuki. I can't!
Natsuki touched Shizuru's face and gently placed her lips on hers and whispered to Shizuru, "Don't be afraid Shizuru. I will always be by your side. I will always be."
Shizuru opened her mouth and returned Natsuki's kiss.
There was no passion in it. It was a kiss of comfort.
The kiss had a calming effect and Shizuru broke the kiss and laid her head on Natsuki's shoulder. She had calm down.
Perhaps she placed too much expectation on herself. She was lucky to be reborn once again before apocalypse arrived. That was good enough. Shizuru tried to tell herself. But somehow along the way, she became greedy, asking for more. She was afraid that she wasn't able to change their future and had tried her best to change it, greedy for a better future. She had indeed become very greedy.
She had been given much. Shizuru had to acknowledge that. Didn't she know about the apocalypse in advance? Wasn't she able to accumulate all the necessary food to last a lifetime? Wasn't they able to have a safe place to go to during danger? What else did she want?
I am really a greedy person ne. How could I expect everything to be the same when I too have changed.
Natsuki circled Shizuru's waist and saw the frown on Shizuru's face slowly eased. Natsuki smiled and gave a sigh of relief. Looks like Shizuru is fine now.
She could sense that Shizuru wasn't her usual self for a while but she chose to wait for a right time to bring it up. Initially, she chose to wait, thinking that she would wait for Shizuru to tell her herself. But the wait dragged on until today. Apparently something had frightened her enough for her to voice it up.
Thank goodness. It seemed Shizuru had reconciled with whatever was frightening her.
Seeing that Shizuru was much calmer now, Natsuki turned to unpack the things they bought and prepared for dinner.
The two of them stood side by side in the kitchen and started preparing dumpling for dinner. And for that moment, kitchen was filled with jokes and laughter.
After dinner, the two of them entered the Earth and started their usual exercise routine, but not before absorbing the Earth Crystal.
It was until 10.30pm when the two of them exited the Earth, their hair wet from showering inside. They changed into their pajamas, preparing for sleep. But just then, there was a frantic knock on their door.
The two of them glanced at each other, wondering who would come knocking at such time. The house they rented had a small garden, surrounded by fences with locks. And their house was one of the more secluded one, further away from the remaining houses. Though it was on the edge of the busy city, there was a major shopping mall near them.
While they have been here close to a week, only the owner of this house had came by to visit them. Otherwise, there wasn't anyone they knew who would come knocking at this time. And they were sure it wasn't the owner of the house because today was New Year Eve and she wasn't going to go knocking on people's door at night.
They opened the wooden door and peeped out. There was still the metal gate separating them from the intruders.
There were about seven or eight people standing outside the gate and the oldest looked to be in his forties while the youngest seemed to be twenty one or two. They were carrying huge backpack and they looked liked professional backpackers.
Seeing that someone had opened the door, a young lady in her twenties waved at them and spoke on behalf of the group, "We are a group of tourists here for a holiday. But we lost our way. So we are wondering if we could stay in your house for the night? We promise that we will move off the next morning."
Shizuru and Natsuki glanced at each other, suspicions clear in their eyes. This group of people didn't look like they were tourists. People normally travel with people of the same age group but the gap between the oldest and youngest seemed a bit too wide. And there were no family resemblance among them. They didn't seem like they were travelling.
Furthermore, someone in that group was injured.
The smell of blood was strong, permeating the air. And mixed with the blood of smell was something pungent.
Their five senses have sharpen with their training in the Earth and absorbing Earth Crystals daily and they could clearly smell traces of blood mixed with smell of rotting flesh.
Even though this group of people had treated the wound and bandaged it, they could still smell the blood and of course the pungent smell of rotting meat from the dead, similar to the smell of Undead they detected earlier.
Seeing that Shizuru and Natsuki were hesitating, the young lady spoke out, trying to reassure them. "We are not bad guys. We are really not. I am Shiho and we just want to have a shelter above our head for the night especially when one of our friend is injured. We don't have a car and are unable to travel to a clinic. So please be reassure that we are not bad guys."
Shizuru wasn't the nosy type but the scent of blood was too strange. It really smelled like rotting flesh, of the Undead they saw this afternoon. This made her suspicious. Her initial plan was to ask them to leave but because of the weird scent, she hesitated.
She wasn't sure if anyone in their group was bitten by the Undead. If they were bitten, should she let them in or asked them to leave?
"What do you think?" Natsuki asked. "Should we let them in?"
Shizuru thought about it and shared with Natsuki what she thought about the situation. "Someone in that group must have been bitten by the Undead. I don't want them to come in. But if we let them leave, the one who was bitten will later turn into Undead, harming others.."
Natsuki thought about what Shizuru said and agreed with her. "I think we could ask them to leave and then call the police. We will just tell the police that a human is attacking and eating human. Base on the earlier incident today, they should here quite quickly."
"Alright then. I will delay them while you call the police."
With that said, Shizuru took a coat out and wore them over the pajamas and walked out of the door.
"I'm sorry. There are only my friend and I in the house. So we are unable to house you all." Shizuru appeared apologetic as she explained herself. "We are just worried about our safety. We hope you understand."
The lady looked rather perturbed by Shizuru's reply but quickly hid her expression when Shizuru approached. Ignoring the look on the lady's face, Shizuru continued, "You mentioned one of your friends is injured. I have some medication here. I can pass it to you if you want." Shizuru offered.
"Thank you. That would be great." This time another young lady with a auburn hair replied.
Shizuru nodded her head and left to pick up a first aid box.
"I have called the police. They said they are coming over soon." Natsuki said as Shizuru returned from the cold.
Shizuru searched through the Earth and took out the first aid box. "Natsuki, can you help boil some hot water for them?"
Natsuki nodded and left for the kitchen.
Shizuru went out and passed the box to them while Natsuki offered them the hot drinks through the fence.
Shizuru eyes darkened the moment she caught sight of the wound on the older man. He was the oldest in the group. There was a wound on his arm and looked like a scratched wound. And the wound seemed to have fested and yellow pus were oozing out from it, giving off a pungent rotting smell.
She had seen this kind of wound many times during the apocalypse. It was a scratch mark from an Undead.
Shizuru took a quick glance at the group of people. The hands holding the cups were trembling and there was fear in their eyes.
Pretending to be concerned, Shizuru asked, "What happened to him?"
"We were trekking in the forest when a tree branch caught him in the arm. And now the wound is festering." The lady offered an explanation.
"There is hydrogen peroxide in the first aid kit. You can use it to disinfect the wound. But it looks bad. Maybe you should send him to the hospital as soon as possible." Shizuru offered. Though Shizuru doubt there was anything the doctor can do for him now.
There was only one way road that bypass their house to the city and Natsuki had provided a detailed description of the people to the police. So hopefully when the police drive through here, they would spot this group of people. Furthermore, it was likely that there would be few people out in the cold during New Year Eve. So it would be quite easy to spot them.
Shizuru made small talk with the group and offered them some of the leftover dumplings from dinner and sent them on their way.
"This should delay them enough for the police to meet them along the way." Shizuru muttered to herself.
She had been a selfish person in the end. If they sought shelter at other people's house, most likely the older man would turn into Undead in the middle of the night and killed everyone in the house or turned the rest into Undead too.
Natsuki held Shizuru's hand and comforted her, "We have done all we can Shizuru. Don't overthink the situation. What could be done, we have done it. Don't blame yourself."
Shizuru nodded.
"I wonder where they got bitten. Is it near our area? That would make it two cases of Undead within a day. That's strange."
"I am not sure too." Shizuru was puzzled by it too especially given the frequency of attack in such a sparsely populated area. This wasn't the case in her previous life and it made her wonder if the government was withholding any information. Or perhaps, her rebirth had butterfly effects on the events?
"Regardless, the apocalypse will arrive and we have to be prepared."
"Yes. And regardless, we will always be together." Shizuru smiled at each other and walks side by side into the bedroom. "Ne Natsuki, shall we leave for University Town in three days time? I am worried that things might change and we need to quicken our preparation." She was worried that the apocalypse that she knew would happen earlier in this life.
Natsuki nodded her head.
A new year had arrived and both Shizuru and Natsuki had packed their bags and stored everything into the Earth, ready to travel to the University Town.
The owner of the house was reluctant to see them leave especially since she liked the two young ladies. She even had thoughts of introducing one of them to her son. But unfortunately, there won't be any chance now. "Why don't you stay her for a few more weeks?" Obaa-sama suggested. "I could lower the rent further."
"Our families are hoping that we could join them back home." Shizuru smiled apologetically and then turned to the young man next to the Obaa-sama and said, "I heard that there was a few cases of assault recently and it could get quite dangerous at night. If possible, avoid opening the door to anyone at night. Stock up on food and essential items too. They will come in handy in the future." Shizuru offered. Obaa-sama was a kind person and this was all they could do for them. She wasn't able to say more without raising questions.
Natsuki grabbed Shizuru's hand. She knew what Shizuru was thinking.
It was quite crowded at the train station, mostly filled with people travelling back to the city they were working in. Shizuru and Natsuki each bought a one way ticket to the University Town, abandoning their initial plan to visit Y city to buy charcoal and other fire starters.
University Town should be quite empty for now especially when the new school term has not started yet. Most of the university students would most likely be still at home for the Holiday and no one would be travelling back to school in the midst of their holiday. Shizuru thought as they found many empty seats in the train. The two settled themselves comfortably as they began their journey to the University Town.
A/N:
Thank you so much for all the comments! :)
Hahaha… I have people asking me if I am dead. I will have to assure you that I am not.