*Rei's POV*
I can't feel anything...
This isn't good. I'm sure I was hit by that creature while protecting Saya's mother, so I should be feeling pain… but instead, I can't feel anything at all. And as far as I know, that's even worse...
Ah... I did it... I messed up...
I knew that in this world, I could die in a week, tomorrow, or even today. Still, I was confident it wouldn't be so soon...
Ah... I haven't found my parents yet... I still wanted to keep going a little longer... I still haven't managed to monopolize you... Ah, that's not good, this will leave the path wide open for that psycho Saeko or that tsundere Saya... even that slut Yuuki will have a free pass... in that case, I'd rather Shizuka-sensei or Kyoko-sensei win... that would be fun to watch...
"Rei-san!"
This is bad… I can barely hear the words.
When I opened my eyes, I saw Yuriko-san's small figure. Don't cry… it was my decision to help you, no matter the result. I can't blame my parents — my mother gave me strength and my father gave me morals, so it was inevitable I'd die this way.
This is fine...
I... I don't want to die...
Huh? I don't want to die.
Ah... that's right. I'm not that noble or strong to accept death like that...
There are still so many things I want to do!
Please, God! If you exist, help—
"Don't touch my woman!"
That voice!
My vision cleared for a moment, just enough to see the person I most wanted to see.
You came back! I knew you would!
I tried to raise my hand but couldn't. I tried to call him, but no sound came out... luckily, I didn't need to. He looked at me with an apologetic gaze, and at the same time, Shizuka-sensei arrived beside me and injected something into my body.
Feeling returned to my body — along with the pain — but I didn't care, because when my sight focused again, I saw something that made my blood boil.
Who?!
Who did that to him?!
Allen was facing the creature, but his clothes were torn and burned, and his body was covered in scorch marks. I bit my lip until it bled, remembering the explosion I had heard earlier.
WHO THE HELL HURT HIM?!
*End of POV*
...
"I need a break…" Allen exhaled after striking the chimera.
He had been fighting nonstop from one place to another. Even though his body was beyond human, he was exhausted — especially after being caught in that explosion. Thanks to having Beast Mode active, he survived, but he hadn't managed to identify the culprit. It was definitely a drone using optical camouflage.
'As if dealing with monsters like this wasn't enough, now some high-tech organization wants to screw things up!'
Of course, the rage from being attacked by surprise couldn't compare to seeing this creature almost kill Rei and Shizuka.
Allen didn't even need Beast Mode to get angry.
"RAAAAHHH!"
As expected, the chimera stood up violently and charged at him. Allen drew his new combat knife and hurled it, stabbing it straight into the chimera's eye.
"You ugly son of a bitch…"
With a glare full of contempt, Allen kicked the massive zombie in the knee, bending it the wrong way.
"GAAAAHH!"
The chimera roared — not in anger, but in pain. Seeing it kneeling, Allen summoned his metal pipe and drove it into the other eye, leaving the creature completely blind.
The monster stretched out its hands and caught Allen in its massive grip, trying to crush him.
"Allen!"
"Be careful!"
"We have to help him!"
Everyone panicked seeing Allen in danger. That thing could shatter the ground with its strength — it could crush him!
That was what everyone thought — until Allen's voice reached their ears, stopping them.
"I know that a zombie, an undead, an infected — whatever you call them—lacks consciousness."
"RAAAHHHHH!"
"They're creatures that were once people, and now they're just inhuman monsters with an endless thirst for blood, killing everything in their path."
The chimera tried to crush Allen with all its might.
"Parents, lovers, children, friends — it doesn't matter what kind of bond they had. To you, they're just food. That's why I used to pity you, and I didn't hate you."
The Defect roared even louder. Allen's bones began to crack, his body compressed by the grip, and even a drop of blood slipped from his mouth — yet he didn't show the slightest trace of pain.
"But now, I can't feel pity for you anymore!"
Allen's muscles expanded, and the zombie's palms started to split open.
"Not after you tried to take something precious from me!"
With sheer brute strength, Allen broke free. Once he did, he extended his hand, ripped the metal pipe from the zombie's eye, and struck it with all his might.
The chimera's skull cracked from the blow — but that was only the beginning. Allen hit it again, and this time, blood splattered with the sickening sound of crushed flesh.
"I won't forgive you!"
Allen's hands bled from striking the creature's skull — as hard as iron — but he didn't care. Once more, he raised his hands and slammed them down, crushing the zombie's head completely.
Everyone was left speechless — not only those present but also the ones watching through the live broadcast. There was simply no way to describe what they had just witnessed.
"..." Allen stepped back, panting. He was covered in blood, and his pipe was bent, but he had managed to kill the zombie.
[Initiating GSB extraction process…]
After finishing off the first Defect, Allen turned toward the zombies still pouring in. He summoned Ivory and Ebony.
"We have to seal the entrance! There's a cistern path on the next street! Teshima, Takashi, Morita — go! The rest of you, defend the door! Don't let this place fall!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Allen squeezed the triggers, blasting zombies to pieces everywhere.
"What are you waiting for?! You heard him — move!" shouted Saya, running into the battlefield with her shotgun.
Teshima gripped his axe and charged forward. "Takashi, Morita — let's go!"
The three ran past Allen, trusting him to clear the way — and he did. Allen's bullets tore through every zombie in front of them.
"This is too much for the first day, boss!"
"I'll help you, aniki!"
Anemone and Hirano joined in, mowing down the zombies around the trio, giving them room to advance.
Allen smiled, though worry lingered in his eyes. He could hear the roars of the other chimera. Under normal circumstances, Saeko wouldn't have any trouble playing with a creature that slow, but she wasn't exactly someone who knew how to back off from an enemy.
'Don't push your luck, or I'll have to punish you.'
....
Saeko smiled. There were plenty of trees between her and the others, so she couldn't see the main entrance — but she could definitely hear Allen's voice.
Maybe she felt a little jealous of whoever had the honor of being saved by him, but more than that, she was happy to hear that he'd returned safely.
"He'll deal with the other zombie with ease... but I don't want to fall behind."
Saeko's eyes turned sharp, her fighting spirit ignited — she was ready to give her all against this monster.
"Here and now, I, Busujima Saeko, will prove that I am a woman worthy of Allen Walker!"
Her sword accelerated faster than ever before.
"RAAAHHHHH!"
The chimera roared, swinging its massive fists toward her, but Saeko was too fast. By the time its blows hit the ground, she was already behind it.
Soon, countless slashes appeared across the creature's body. It roared furiously and turned to strike again — but once more, Saeko had vanished.
"You're too slow!"
Saeko mimicked Allen's style from his fight against the tank zombie — risking her life, using the monster's own body to block the debris it scattered whenever it struck the ground, dodging each attack by mere inches.
She couldn't afford a single mistake.
One hit, and she could die.
Saeko understood that — and far from showing fear, her expression was ecstatic. She was fighting at the edge of death, but she had no intention of dying.
She wanted to see him again. She wanted to show him how much she had improved. She wanted to welcome him back with a victory.
At some point, Saeko felt herself enter a sort of trance — one where she could see every movement of her opponent and how to counter it... 'Ah... this feeling...'
Five minutes later, Saeko finally collapsed from exhaustion. However, instead of hitting the ground, she fell into Allen's arms.
"Welcome back," Saeko smiled softly, knowing exactly where she was.
"I'm back. But this time, my help wasn't even necessary," Allen said, glancing at the other Defect kneeling nearby — its body covered in slashes. It wasn't dead yet, but it could no longer move. "Impressive. You're incredible."
"Hehe, I'm glad~ I hope this eased your burden a little~"
Saeko's teasing words made Allen smile widely. "Thank you. It helped a lot."
"I'm glad," Saeko replied, smiling.
It might have seemed like empty praise, but Allen meant every word.
'As expected... I'm not a video game character,' Allen thought as exhaustion finally caught up with him.
Even though many things around him were structured like elements from a game, that didn't make him an avatar. He didn't have a health bar. He couldn't keep fighting with one hit point left as if he still had a hundred. If he got hurt — even non-lethally — the pain and fatigue were real.
The bandages weren't omnipotent either; they prioritized the most severe wounds and ignored the rest. So even though Allen wasn't in danger of dying, his body was battered, and the pain was constant. Still, he had to protect the girl in his arms — and everyone else. No matter how damaged he was, he wouldn't rest until they were all safe.
"I'm not omnipotent... but as long as I'm here, I won't let anyone die. Still... having you by my side helps a lot."
"Always," Saeko whispered, using the last of her strength to lift herself and kiss Allen on the cheek.
"That's quite a bold statement," Allen chuckled.
"I know~" Saeko giggled back.
"Ahem," Saya's voice came from behind, her brow furrowed. "I see you two are doing just fine if you still have the energy to flirt in that condition..."
Yuriko laughed softly at her daughter's reaction — Saya was clearly using every bit of willpower she had not to explode right there. It was honestly impressive. Of course, she wasn't the only one reacting: Rei wore a fake smile, Yukki crossed her arms, Kyoko adjusted her glasses to hide her eyes, and Shizuka was pouting.
"It seems my daughter's competition is fiercer than I thought," Yuriko chuckled, though she wasn't really surprised — not after seeing what Allen was capable of. 'I'm a little jealous… Saya fell for such an exceptional young man, capable of going to such lengths just to protect his friends... Allen Walker... so that's the kind of man you are~'
Anemone raised an eyebrow after noticing Yuriko's expression toward Allen, and her eyes widened slightly. Realizing she had been caught, Yuriko coughed and quickly turned away, her cheeks turning red.
'What am I thinking?!'
With the entrance sealed, the outbreak contained, and all zombies eliminated, Allen's group finally got to rest.
As expected, they stayed another day at the mansion. It was obvious — no one was in any condition to leave. At that point, if Soichiro had tried to object, Yuriko probably would've shot him in the crotch. Luckily, it didn't come to that.
Allen looked like a zombie himself from sheer exhaustion. The fatigue from using Beast Mode for so long was something not even energy bars could fix. He took a bath, put on pajamas, and went straight to bed.
'System, if anything happens, wake me up — even if you have to blow out my eardrums.'
[Don't worry. I'll handle the watch.]
Deserter soldiers, mutant zombies, chimeras, a mysterious organization with advanced technology — there were too many dangers to truly sleep peacefully. But Allen couldn't help it. He crashed like a rock.
In the middle of the night, Allen felt someone crawl into his bed, sliding under the sheets and clinging to him.
Judging by the softness and the sweet scent of the intruder, it had to be a woman — so he didn't mind.
A little later, he felt it happen again. He even thought he heard two girls arguing — but he didn't care and kept sleeping.
A couple of hours later, Allen felt more intruders sneaking into his bed. He was about to wake up, but a woman gently caressed his cheek and began humming a lullaby.
Allen relaxed again and drifted back to sleep...
....
By sunrise, the light streaming through the window irritated his eyes. Though still drowsy, he opened them.
"I can't move..." Allen muttered, staring at the ceiling without surprise. He'd experienced being trapped in bed plenty of times before — but back when he could lift a planet with one finger, not even an elephant on top of him would've mattered. In this mortal body, though, it was a different story.
Allen sighed. To be honest, he didn't really mind. Even without looking, he could already imagine what had happened last night.
To his right was Saeko, sleeping while clutching his arm. She was wearing a black, revealing, yet elegant nightgown — but what surprised him most was that she had her thumb in her mouth, drooling slightly. Something no one would ever expect from her.
"..." Allen smiled softly. The girl was adorable — he didn't want to wake her.
He turned to his left. There was Rei, wearing a pink top and white underwear, also holding onto his arm. She was smiling and giggling faintly in her sleep, looking completely at peace.
Allen thought she was cute too, and decided not to wake her either.
"Then..." Allen looked down toward the blanket, but before lifting it, he noticed something odd — his pillow felt... warm, soft, and pleasant.
He looked up and froze — Saya was there, somehow having replaced his pillow, and his head was resting on her stomach. She wore modest pajamas, being the most conservative of the three, but because of Allen's position, her top had slightly opened, and he could feel her skin against his face.
"Su~" Saya snored softly, her characteristic fang showing.
At this point, Allen had no idea how things had turned out like this. These girls weren't his harem — each of them had plans to win him over for themselves, which made this situation nearly impossible.
Even with three girls beside him, the mystery remained — who was on top of him? It could be Kyoko, Yuuki, Shizuka… or, less likely, someone like Toshimi, Yui, Kawamoto, or Misuzu. If it was something more innocent — maybe Alice.
'It can't be Asami or Anemone... right?'
Allen carefully freed his arm from Saeko's grip, causing her to frown as if someone had stolen her favorite candy — so he leaned down and gave her a kiss, which immediately softened her expression.
Once the mission was accomplished, Allen lifted the blanket — only to freeze completely at the sight of the woman using him as a pillow.
"What?"
Of all the women, this was the most unexpected one!
===