Chapter 15: Finding Rika Minami
"Dying is not repaying a debt. That is not what he saved you for. Only weak men would die after someone spared their lives"
— Itachi Uchiha, Naruto Shippuden
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Roy sighed inwardly. He hadn't expected this to happen.
"Let's go. Based on what Shizuka told us about Rika's work, if I'm not mistaken, she should be at the offshore airport. We'll head there first and see if we can find her."
"But the cars are all useless now. How are we supposed to get there?" Shizuka asked worriedly.
"Shizuka's friend is part of a special forces unit. The car she left behind should have some kind of EMP protection. If that fails, we'll just have to fly."
With that, Roy swept Yuriko into a princess carry and flew towards the vehicle.
Since most of Yuriko's demonic piece power was used to construct her physical body, she couldn't even manifest her devil wings. He had no choice but to carry her.
Being carried like this, clad only in Saya's jacket, made Yuriko blush deeply.
However, now that she had a new life, such concerns seemed trivial. She would entrust everything to the person before her, the one who had granted her this rebirth.
The group returned to the car, and as Roy predicted, it was unaffected by the EMP.
Shizuka took the wheel, and they set off for the offshore airport.
"Mom, seriously, can you please put some clothes on?" Saya said, exasperated, looking at her mother.
Ever since Roy had carried her back, Yuriko had refused to get down. Was this really her mother?
Saya briefly wondered if something had gone wrong with the reincarnation ritual, and her mother had been reborn as a succubus.
"There's nothing I can do. Saya's clothes are too small, and Mommy's too tired to move," Yuriko whined, clinging to Roy with a mixture of coquettishness and stubbornness.
Roy observed his creation with satisfaction. Normally, demonic pieces offered a chance of reincarnation only immediately after death. Reincarnating someone long deceased was impossible. Moreover, normal pieces couldn't create a new body from a soul.
This was the power of his mutated piece; it could create a physical form directly from a soul. That's how Yuriko had been reborn. Roy had also discovered that during the creation process, he could manipulate the age of the new body.
Furthermore, due to being his creation, those reborn felt a strong sense of dependence towards him.
"Mom, these are Shizuka-sensei's clothes. They're big enough. Please put them on!"
Exasperated, Saya resorted to using Shizuka's clothes.
Looking at her mother, Saya felt a pang of jealousy. Yuriko was like a more mature version of herself.
Roy, sensing the rising tension, finally put Yuriko down, gesturing for her to get dressed. He couldn't maintain his composure much longer.
With no other option, Yuriko reluctantly put on Shizuka's clothes.
...
Several hours later, they finally reached the vicinity of the offshore airport.
The roads leading to the airport were completely blocked, making it impossible to drive any further.
They had to abandon the car.
Roy carried Alice as they disembarked.
Alice had recovered from her earlier trauma, proving to be a remarkably resilient little girl.
"We'll fly the rest of the way! Saya, take your mother. Let's go!"
With that, Roy unfurled his devil wings and soared into the air.
Saeko and Shizuka quickly followed.
"Saya, I'll leave it to you," Yuriko said to her daughter with a smile.
"I know, I know," Saya grumbled, pulling Yuriko up and spreading her own devil wings.
"Wow! It's so beautiful!" Alice exclaimed from Roy's arms, gazing at the shimmering ocean below.
For a moment, she seemed to forget all her worries.
Even the girls behind them were captivated by the breathtaking scenery.
Their admiration was short-lived, however. They soon arrived at the offshore airport.
The entire airport had fallen, overrun by hordes of zombies.
"Rika!!" Shizuka cried out, fearing for her friend's safety.
"Don't worry, it hasn't been long since you called. Rika should still be alive," Roy reassured her.
"Yes!" Shizuka nodded firmly.
"Let's fly to the airport's central terminal and look for her," Roy said, looking towards the center of the airport, where he sensed signs of life.
Reaching the central terminal, they saw a large group of zombies surrounding an armored vehicle.
There had to be survivors inside.
"Roy-chan!" Shizuka pleaded, looking at him with wide, worried eyes.
"Don't worry, leave it to me."
Holding Alice securely with one arm, Roy aimed his free hand at the armored vehicle.
"Magic Bullet!"
Several blasts of demonic energy shot from his hand.
*Boom! Boom! Boom!*
Explosions rocked the area, sending the tightly packed zombies flying. Only a few scattered undead remained, shuffling towards the vehicle.
"Saeko!" Roy called.
"Understood!"
Without needing further explanation, Saeko grasped his intent.
She descended swiftly, her wooden katana a blur as she efficiently dispatched the remaining zombies.
In less than a minute, the area around the armored vehicle was clear.
"Let's go down," Roy said, leading the others down to the vehicle.
"Hey, Rika, are you in there?" Shizuka called out, knocking on the door.
The armored vehicle's windows were opaque, preventing them from seeing inside.
"Cough, cough... Is that Shizuka?" a female voice responded, followed by the sound of the door opening.
"It really is you, Rika!" Shizuka beamed, reaching out for a hug.
Rika, however, stopped her.
"Cough... cough... Shizuka, I'm so glad to see you before I die. I don't know how you got here, but you need to leave, now!" Rika said, her face pale.
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