Chapter 182

[Third Person's PoV] 

As Minoru carried Akane, she occasionally glanced back at Zelda, observing the twitching of her cat ears and the sway of her tail.

"I'm sorry, but are those real?" Akane asked, unable to contain her curiosity.

Zelda looked at her for a few seconds before nodding. She then glanced at Minoru, puzzled by Akane's surprise.

*"In this world, humans are the only race that exists,"* Minoru informed her through their link, causing Zelda to nod in understanding.

"She mutated when the first wave of mana entered our world," Minoru said, effortlessly creating the lie.

"Is that even possible?" Akane murmured.

"There are monsters roaming around that were once considered mere fairy tales, and you're having trouble believing a girl has acquired cat ears and a tail?" Minoru asked, amused.

Akane's cheeks flushed slightly with embarrassment. "I suppose you have a point; it's not that unbelievable."

Akane noticed something in the distance. "Over there, that's our stronghold. We'll be safe and worry-free."

She pointed to a large, long pharmaceutical building surrounded by concrete walls. On those walls, men held swords, axes, and heavy guns.

As Zelda and Minoru approached, red laser dots trained on them. They heard a loud shout, "Stay where you are and state your business!"

Zelda reached for her sai and looked at Minoru for orders. Minoru shook his head as Akane, wincing, got down from his arms. Using Minoru for support, she called out, "Don't shoot! It's me, Akane Nishino! I'm bringing in survivors!"

"Lower your weapons!" one of the guards ordered, causing the red dots to disappear. The large gate at the front opened, allowing them entry.

With Minoru's help, Akane limped inside, where she was quickly taken away for urgent care. Before they could whisk her away, she ordered, "Get them a room with everyone else who just arrived."

As Minoru and Zelda continued, they were stopped. "I'm sorry, but you'll both need to leave your weapons behind. We don't know your intentions, so I hope you're willing to cooperate."

Minoru looked at the man in confusion. "Weapons? What weapons?"

"Clearly, I'm referring to the chained daggers—" The man's expression shifted to confusion when he saw that the daggers were no longer there.

Minoru turned to Zelda, puzzled. "Was I carrying any weapons?"

Zelda smiled and shook her head. "I have no idea what weapon he's referring to."

"Look, frisk me if you want," Minoru said, lifting his arms in surrender.

The man narrowed his eyes and patted Minoru down but found nothing. He then looked confused and turned to Zelda. "I'm sure I saw you reaching for your weapons earlier."

Before he could approach her, Minoru squeezed the man's shoulder tightly, causing him to grunt in pain. The man looked at Minoru with hostility but froze at the sight of Minoru's smile, which was anything but friendly. "Get a woman to do it."

"What—ugh! Alright, alright," the man grunted, wincing from the pain.

Once they were frisked and allowed entry, Zelda jumped onto Minoru's back with a smug expression. "Were you perhaps annoyed that another man was about to touch me?" she teased with a smirk.

Minoru scoffed. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Zelda giggled and purred as she rubbed her face against his. They were then led to a room where they would stay temporarily.

Once alone, Zelda jumped off Minoru and looked at him with narrowed eyes. "Do you know that woman? You were awfully friendly with her."

"I do, in fact. She was a classmate, if you will, in my last life," Minoru explained.

"Oh…" Zelda muttered.

"Now, let's explore this place," Minoru said, opening the door and peeking around before exiting with Zelda clinging to his back once more.

As they explored, they found everything relatively normal for an apocalyptic stronghold. There were rooms with clothing, canned food, toiletries, and medical supplies, as well as a room filled with various weapons.

When Minoru peeked into one of the rooms, he saw Akane being treated by a blonde woman in a long wool dress and a doctor's coat.

Minoru gave the door a few taps to draw attention before entering. "Sorry for the intrusion."

The blonde doctor looked confused. "Who are you, and what are you doing here?"

"Yuuka-sensei, don't worry about them. They're the ones who saved my life," Akane said as she was bandaged, including her chest area, while buttoning her shirt and putting on her white blazer.

"I see… then I must thank you for saving her life," Yuuka said, patting Akane on the head. 

"Think nothing of it. I'm just helping a fellow survivor in this crazy world," Minoru said, flashing a charming smile that made him appear more friendly.

Akane smiled. "I don't think I ever had the chance to properly thank you or introduce myself."

"My name is Akane Nishino, and I'm a knight. Thank you both for saving my life," she said, bowing politely.

"You can call me Minoru, and this is Zelda. We've decided to forego our family names. We're both traveling fighters searching for our next big challenge."

"Eh?" Yuuka asked, puzzled by their explanation.

"I see. No wonder you were so skilled at taking down those monsters. You must really enjoy fighting," Akane said, nodding in understanding.

Minoru nodded. "I suppose the term is 'battle junkies.'"

"I'm sorry, but are your ears real? Did you suffer a mutation when you came into contact with mana? How well do they function? Are they just for decoration? And most importantly, may I touch them?" Yuuka asked, shifting her focus entirely to Zelda and bombarding her with questions about her ears.

As Yuuka reached out, Zelda smacked her hand away and hissed loudly, glaring menacingly.

"Ouch," Yuuka muttered, holding her hand.

"Yeah, I wouldn't do that if I were you. Her ears are sensitive and she doesn't like them being touched," Minoru said, shaking his head.

"Please be more mindful, Yuuka-sensei," Akane said with a sigh and a shake of her head.

Yuuka looked at Zelda apologetically. "Sorry, I shouldn't have done that without asking first."

Zelda scoffed and moved closer to Minoru, prompting Akane to apologize as well. "Sorry about that. Yuuka-sensei gets excited when dealing with unusual features in awakeners. When someone awakens their power, they usually experience a minor change, like how my eyes went from black to red. And yours are now clearly purple, which is an unusual but beautiful color"

"That's why I was so surprised to see your friend. There hasn't been a case of such a significant change like hers. It's almost unbelievable," Akane briefly explained. 

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