Chapter 33
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: The Happy House
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“Are you hurt anywhere?”
That was the wrong question. He should have asked if I’d been bitten.
Despite his neat appearance, Ethan’s face and clothes were horribly splattered with blood.
I met the man’s piercingly blue eyes. They were unsettlingly cold.
*This is no time for that.*
I quickly grabbed his hand. Ethan’s eyebrows shot up in question.
“Come with me. Out of the village.”
“I know this situation is fucked up, but there might still be survivors.”
I knew he’d say that. He was a man with a strong sense of duty as a police officer.
*That's why I came all this way.*
Kwwaaak—
The number of monsters was steadily increasing, and there were hardly any survivors left in sight. The monsters outnumbered the people several times over.
The growing horde of monsters had begun to overrun the village, blocking most of the roads. It looked difficult to escape to the outskirts.
If we don't leave now, we'll be trapped.
“I'm sorry.”
Thwack!
I slammed the handle of my axe into the back of Ethan's head, knocking him out.
Thud.
Then I hoisted the fallen Ethan over my shoulder and ran.
I ran and ran, dodging the monsters that lunged at me.
I left the outskirts of the village, sprinted up the hill in one breath, and by the time I was gasping for air, I had reached a large gate.
The gate was open.
*Why is the gate open?!*
Of course, there was no time to think about it deeply.
Slam—!
I stepped inside, slammed the gate shut, and dropped Ethan to the ground. Only after quickly closing the stone gate and bolting it did I let out a sigh of relief.
Kwwaaak! Krrk! Kwaak!
The cries of monsters filled the air outside the gate. I could hear the dull thuds of them repeatedly slamming their bodies against it. I peeked outside through a crack in the gate.
“Damn it, there's no way out.”
The monsters that had chased us were swarming outside the gate, their numbers steadily growing.
Thanks to the sturdy defensive wall I'd built beforehand, it seemed impossible for them to get in. But the problem was that I couldn't get out either.
Ethan and I were trapped in this house.
When Ethan wakes up, he might try to kill me for this ridiculous situation, but…
*Whatever. For now, I've just saved the world.*
To be precise, I kidnapped the man who would save the world before he could die.
Being trapped in the Happy House I built for survival is better than being trapped in that monster-infested village.
I hoisted Ethan up again and crossed the garden. First, I needed to get him into a bed.
But then I saw the wide-open front door.
*…Why is the front door open?*
Come to think of it, wasn't the main gate open too? I'd always told Susanna to make sure the gate was closed securely.
A sudden sense of foreboding washed over me, and I froze in place.
Crack—
Thump— Thump-thump!
An unidentifiable sound of impact came from inside the mansion. It sounded like something breaking. Or maybe something crashing into a wall?
I set Ethan down and gripped my axe. It was the middle of the night, and with no lights on inside, the mansion was pitch-black.
My palms grew sweaty.
*Could it be Susanna?*
No. It can't be Susanna. It has to be something else.
Muttering to myself, I slowly stepped through the front door.
Crackle— Crack.
The sound of something breaking continued. It was coming from the direction of the first-floor banquet hall.
Aside from that noise, the hallway was silent.
Cold sweat trickled down my spine. A tension so thick it was hard to breathe enveloped my entire body.
I walked slowly. I didn't have any Molotov cocktails this time, so I had to be extra cautious.
Tap, tap.
Just then, a footstep-like sound came from the banquet hall, like someone walking on coarse sand.
But the steps were too short to be human. What could it be?
It almost sounded like a swift four-legged animal running.
Tap-tap—
Tap-tap-tap-tap—
The sound grew faster and closer.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap—!
Tap.
And then, right at the entrance to the banquet hall, the sound stopped abruptly.
I stopped near the entrance and caught my breath.
*Okay, I'll count to three and rush in.*
*One—*
*Two—*
*Thr—*
Kwwaaang!
Before I could even finish counting, something lunged out from the banquet hall entrance. Damn it!
A massive maw opened towards me, lined with sharp, densely packed teeth. The teeth were stained with blood.
I rolled across the floor, barely dodging it.
Ugh, I think I sprained my ankle.
Thwack.
The creature landed gracefully on the floor. Unlike the bizarre and creepy monsters I'd seen so far, this one had the form of a wolf.
The problem was that a wolf-type monster would be fast, and I had just sprained my ankle.
I only had monstrous strength; I wasn't skilled in fighting or combat.
*So let's not waste any time.*
With that resolve, I slowly picked up the axe I had dropped. The creature charged at me. I swung the axe with all my might.
Whack—!
Yelp!
Fortunately, it took a direct hit to the torso and was sent flying into a wall. I quickly ran over, raised my axe, and brought it down on the creature's head.
Splat—
Green liquid erupted like a fountain. The creature's legs, which had been twitching, went limp. Once I confirmed it was completely dead, the strength left my hands.
Clang—
As the axe blade hit the marble floor, I collapsed to the ground.
My body trembled. The thought of having to fight these things for two years was terrifying.
I had braced myself for it, but now that it was real, I couldn't keep my wits about me.
If I didn't have this strength, I would have died instantly. If I didn't have this strength. If that were the case. By now…
I muttered absently and turned my head.
“Susanna, I have to find Susanna.”
I limped onward.
But Susanna was nowhere to be found—not in the banquet hall, not in any of the first-floor rooms, and not anywhere on the second floor.
Back on the first floor, I stared blankly at the open front door.
*Did she… go outside?*
Calm down. You have to stay calm, Cherry.
I calmly scanned my surroundings again. At the end of the hall, I noticed the kitchen door was ajar.
The kitchen door was broken. Groceries were scattered messily on the floor, spilling out into the hallway.
*No way.*
I limped toward the kitchen. And there, I witnessed a devastating sight.
*This can't be. My food supply…*
That damn monster had wrecked the food pantry. Sacks of flour were spilled all over the floor.
The canned goods I had painstakingly collected were a mess, as were the root vegetables like sweet potatoes and potatoes.
The latter had to be eaten soon anyway, but at a time when every grain of rice mattered, losing food was a significant blow.
*…No, there's still a lot left.*
It's enough for Ethan, Susanna, and me to survive for at least half a year. Refrigeration wasn't well-developed in this world, so there were limits to food storage anyway.
*That's why I was planning to grow crops. It's fine. It's fine.*
Until the crops grow, I can just go into town or forage in the mountains for any food we lack.
*As long as I can deal with the monsters outside that gate.*
The one silver lining was that the water tank was intact. I had secured water, which was even more important than food.
As I was thinking that, I suddenly worried about whether Knox was alive.
When I went to rescue Ethan from the village, Knox was nowhere to be seen. Maybe he's hiding somewhere safe.
In fact, it wasn't just Knox; I was worried about the other people I'd gotten to know.
Come to think of it, I haven't seen Vanilla in the village recently. I hope she's alive.
*No. Let's not think about other things.*
First, I need to find Susanna.
The monster's teeth were definitely stained with blood earlier.
But inside the mansion, there were only signs of the creature damaging objects and furniture, no human bloodstains.
I decided to move the monster's body outside first, then move Ethan.
Drag— Drag—
I grabbed the monster's legs and dragged it to the front door.
*Heavier than I thought.*
Even with my super strength, I was just stronger than most people; I still had my limits.
Stretched out, it was as tall as me and had a massive build.
I dumped the dead monster's corpse in a corner of the garden, far from the vegetable patch. It would probably be best to burn the body in the morning. It would attract too much attention at night.
Phew. I stood for a moment in the dark garden and wiped the sweat from my brow.
*I'm exhausted.*
So much has happened today. But I had to pull myself together. Ethan was still out there.
I forced myself to focus and turned around, but something strange about the wolf's corpse caught my eye.
Something was attached to the back of the wolf's head.
Tied tightly around a clump of fur was a hair tie. A woman's hair tie.
For a moment, my mind went completely blank.
Had Susanna been wearing a hair tie?