Chapter 36
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 32
Chapter Title: Hope and Preparation
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About an hour passed like that. Ethan, who had been quietly waiting for me to calm down, finally spoke.
“If there are survivors in the town, we have to save them. They might be hiding somewhere, waiting for rescue.”
I wiped away my tears and looked back at him.
Right. This was no time for crying.
“Ethan, I understand how you feel… but going into town now without any preparation is a suicide mission.”
Besides, there weren't enough weapons in the mansion. Even if we had guns, firing them without silencers would only attract more monsters due to the sound.
“I know that. But we can’t stay here forever, can we?”
Ethan was right. It was fine for me to stay here, but he had to get to Aurora.
If he got stuck here, I would have to find the scientist male lead, Ezra, myself. In the novel, it was said that he knew how to develop a cure using Ethan’s antibodies.
But let’s say I found that too troublesome and decided to let Ethan go. What if he got infected on his way to Aurora?
As I was lost in thought, not answering, Ethan let out a sigh laden with worry. At last, he confessed his true feelings.
“Alright, Miss Cherry. To be perfectly honest, I want to call the capital.”
“Sir Ethan, I completely understand.”
“There’s a telephone at the police station. I won’t be at ease until I can confirm whether the capital is in the same situation, and whether my sister is safe.”
“Ah…”
Just as Ethan said, I wanted to call Harrison, too. I wanted to know if he was safe. If his side of the world had truly fallen into ruin, just like in the original story.
It might be futile, but right now, that was what Ethan and I desperately needed.
Hope.
Perhaps only after calling the capital and facing reality could we prepare for what came next.
I thought for a moment, then nodded.
“Alright. I have someone I need to find, too.”
I couldn’t protect Susanna; I couldn’t bear to lose Harrison as well.
We decided to check on the monsters that had gathered around Happy House, assess the situation, and then make a plan to head into town.
First, I lowered the ladder from the ceiling on the second floor of Happy House and climbed onto the roof. I could see the watchtower and the catapult that the wall repairman had built.
‘I hope he’s safe, too.’
The repairs had just finished yesterday. What a twist of fate.
With a somewhat heavy heart, I scanned the mansion’s surroundings. Monsters were still swarming the walls of Happy House.
I could see a few of them flailing around in the traps I’d set, but fundamentally, there were just too many.
“How does it look?”
Ethan followed me up to the watchtower. He scanned the area and sighed.
“It seems it will be difficult to move right now. We’ll have to wait until their attention wanes.”
“I was thinking the same thing.”
At my response, Ethan rubbed his face with a pained expression. He seemed distraught that he couldn’t go rescue Aurora immediately.
And it was the same for me, unable to get any news of Harrison.
“But this watchtower and catapult…”
Ethan, who had been observing the surroundings for a while, began. I immediately understood the question that followed.
“They’re placed so perfectly, it’s as if you prepared for this very situation.”
“…Of course not.”
Until now, I had dismissed the option of surviving with Ethan at Happy House. To think a situation like this would actually happen.
Ethan stared at my face. It felt as if his gaze was peeling back my every secret. But surprisingly, he stopped his interrogation and muttered to himself.
“I just don’t understand why the world has become like this. Where did those monsters come from, and why did people turn into them…?”
“I’d like to know that, too.”
Even in the original story, the secret of the virus monsters was never revealed.
‘This damned, discontinued novel.’
What was clear was that this nightmare all started with the experiments of Marquis Casey and the alchemists. But what were they experimenting for? I had no idea what kind of experiment they conducted to bring about the end of the world.
We couldn’t easily shake off our state of panic. We just stood by the railing, blankly watching the swarming monsters.
I had been preparing for this day, but from the day I first resolved to do so until this very moment, had it even been ten days?
It was too short a time to mentally prepare for the apocalypse. Now, actually seeing the pandemonium in the village and the crazed monsters surrounding the mansion, my confidence dwindled. My confidence to survive.
*Growl—*
Just then, a signal of hunger sounded from both my and Ethan’s stomachs. Even Ethan seemed embarrassed by the growling sound, his face turning red.
That’s when I came to my senses. We couldn’t just keep standing here like this.
“Shall we eat first?”
Come to think of it, I also had to clean up the ruined kitchen. The daily necessities and emergency food must still be scattered all over the place.
I headed down to the first-floor kitchen with Ethan. He, too, looked taken aback by the state of it.
“Was this the work of that monster from before?”
“Yes. This is our life-saving emergency food…”
As I murmured, Ethan’s gaze fell on me. He didn’t ask me any questions like before.
But I could tell he was asking the same question from earlier with his eyes.
“They’re placed so perfectly, it’s as if you prepared for this very situation.”
If he were to ask me again, I planned to tell him that I sometimes have prophetic dreams, and that this was one of them.
But surprisingly, Ethan didn’t ask. Instead, he started cleaning the kitchen.
Even if Ethan lived a commoner’s life as a policeman, that was only in a professional capacity. Fundamentally, he was the heir to the Dukedom of Lancaster.
I never imagined someone like him would take the initiative to clean without me even asking.
Ethan picked up a broom and looked at me.
“When I lived in the police dorms, I did my own cleaning. You don’t have to look at me like that.”
My question must have been written all over my face. With a slightly sheepish expression, I nodded and went to get a rag.
I had to wipe up the flour that was dusting the floor and shelves.
“It’s more surprising that you’re so comfortable with this sort of thing, not me.”
I didn’t answer.
“Though, if we’re talking about what’s truly surprising, it’s this mansion.”
After Ethan’s words, a heavy silence fell between us. To be honest, neither of us was in our right mind.
Sweeping and wiping the floor, clearing away the trash. We spent a couple of hours cleaning the kitchen in silence.
It wasn't perfectly organized or spotless, but for what Ethan and I had managed, I thought it was excellent.
Then, I decided to make a simple stew. I had never cooked once since being reincarnated as Cherry.
Of course, I didn’t know how to cook it the way they did here; to be precise, I planned to make a Korean-style stew.
As I stood before the counter, Ethan looked at me with another surprised expression.
“You can cook?”
“Yes. We need to fill our stomachs if we’re going to venture outside the mansion.”
I took out a cutting board and a knife and placed them on the counter. Then I washed potatoes, mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, carrots, and broccoli in water, prepped them simply, and put them on the board.
These things wouldn’t last long without a refrigerator anyway. Better to eat them quickly.
As I gripped the knife and got into position, Ethan reached out a hand with a worried look.
“Perhaps I should do the chopping…”
*Tap-tap-tap. Taptaptaptap.*
Ethan backed away from me. I was dicing the vegetables with far too much skill.
I took out a frying pan and placed it on the stove. Then I put the firewood Ethan had made into the hearth and lit it.
After checking that the pan was hot, I added olive oil, butter, and the vegetables, and began to sauté them.
When the vegetables were partially cooked, I added water and tomatoes, a bay leaf, minced garlic, and cheese, and brought it to a boil.
The stew bubbled, and the tomatoes released a deep, rich color.
I could see the large chunks of potato and vegetables cooking into a mouth-watering state.
Finally, I added the broccoli, seasoned it with salt, and turned off the heat.
I took out two bowls, ladled out a portion for Ethan and myself, and placed them on the counter.
“I can’t believe it even seeing it with my own two eyes.”
Ethan muttered blankly as he looked at the finished stew. We didn’t move to the dining table, simply eating while standing at the counter.
That’s how anxious we were.
All we wanted was to fill our stomachs and go into town to confirm whether our loved ones were alive or dead.
“I must admit that I’ve been viewing you with a very narrow perspective, Miss Cherry.”
Ethan seemed sincere as he said it. I looked at him while eating my stew.
“I heard from Mr. Ludpersher that you only act so formal with me.”
At my words, Ethan’s hand, which had been lifting stew to his mouth, paused.
He set down his spoon and faced me. Then he tilted his head slightly and, with a cold, expressionless face, said to me,
“Why? You want me to treat you like I do everyone else?”
“…No.”
“There’s no need for formalities now, is there?”
“Keep them up anyway.”
Ethan shrugged and gave a faint smile. Then he went back to eating his stew in silence.
“I never thought I’d have such a fine meal in a situation like this.”
Ethan said, gazing quietly at his clean-swept bowl.
“And it was truly delicious. I never would have expected it. Thank you.”
“I know. It’s strange, isn’t it? How we can still eat in a situation like this.”
After my words, silence fell once more.
We placed our empty bowls in the sink, did a quick wash, and left the kitchen.
Now, it was truly time to make a plan.