Chapter 56
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: An Unexpected Survivor
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Knox's face turned deathly pale, as if he'd just received a death sentence. He shook his head violently, horrified.
“I'd rather die here than let Lancaster see me getting a piggyback ride from you, Miss Cherry.”
So it was fine before because no one saw, but not now? Is he all about appearances? He did seem to care a great deal about how he looked, so it made sense.
In any case, Knox ran his hands through his hair, looking utterly fed up with the whole situation.
“Once reinforcements arrive from the capital, I won't let the bastards who caused this mess get away with it.”
Oh dear. It seemed Knox, just like Ethan, believed reinforcements were coming. To still cling to such hope... these poor people.
I slung the bag over Knox's shoulder and then firmly placed the axe in his hand. While he stared at me in confusion, I hoisted him onto my back.
“Let's get going.”
“W-wait...!”
I had no need for Knox's opinion. He'd rather die than let Ethan see him? Was that something to say after I'd gone through all the trouble of climbing the clock tower to save him?
I slapped his uninjured thigh. *Smack!*
“Stay still. Before I really throw you off.”
Only then did Knox quiet down.
The moment we left the grocery store, I saw a virus monster running toward the clock tower.
Had Ethan finally reached the clock tower where we were supposed to meet?
I tried to dash toward the clock tower, but a virus monster was charging right at Knox and me.
*Bang!*
My eyes met Ethan's in the distance. He was looking at me and the man on my back with a rather peculiar expression. But there was no time to stand around.
“Miss Cherry? I suggest we run.”
Knox urged me on from behind. I summoned every last bit of my strength and sprinted toward Ethan. Snatching his wrist, I immediately bolted for the police station.
*Graaah!*
I could hear the monsters' roars. Then came the sound of them crashing into something, *thud, thud*, as they rushed after us.
The sound of footsteps kicking up dirt followed close behind.
Cold sweat beaded on my forehead. I could feel it trickling down my back. Thankfully, we just barely managed to open the back door of the police station, get inside, and shut it.
My legs gave out. I set Knox down on the floor and collapsed.
It seemed the monsters wouldn't go as far as breaking down buildings unless they were certain a person was right in front of them or they could hear them.
Ethan immediately moved a heavy desk to barricade the door. While he did that, I calmly scanned the inside of the police station.
“I'd rather have been bitten to death by a monster. It would have been less humiliating than this.”
Knox kept muttering, his face filled with self-loathing. I looked at him and shook my head. *Tsk, tsk.*
Ethan finally approached us and spoke.
“I'm glad everyone's safe.”
“Sir Ethan, where did you go?”
“Monsters suddenly swarmed the roof. It seems they were drawn by the gunshot.”
The gunshot had been quite loud. I nodded and let out a sigh of relief. It felt good to be inside an enclosed building.
Now all we had to do was call the capital and then escape the town through the corpse disposal site Ethan mentioned.
“So, from what I hear, Miss Cherry was the vanguard? And we police officers were just providing cover from the back?”
Knox, who was sitting with his back against the wall, asked us incredulously. Ethan looked at him without batting an eye and said,
“You don't get a say in this. Just be grateful you were saved and shut your mouth, you bastard.”
“Miss Cherry, did you hear that? What kind of nobleman is he? He's a thug.”
“He's helpful for survival.”
Knox shot me a betrayed look. I left him and Ethan to it and scanned the inside of the police station.
The station was quiet. Signs of a hasty escape were everywhere.
As I looked around, my gaze fell upon the main entrance. We had come in through the back, and thankfully, the front door was still firmly shut.
“We should make the call first.”
That was, after all, the primary reason we'd bothered to come all the way down from Happy House. A call to check on the safety of our loved ones.
Knox got up, a look of interest on his face.
“Where's the telephone?”
“It should be around here somewhere.”
Ethan muttered, looking around. So the telephone was on the first floor, at least.
*Thud—*
Just then, a dull noise came from upstairs, as if something had fallen to the floor.
Ethan quickly drew his revolver and loaded it.
*Click.*
Following his lead, I gripped my axe and slowly got to my feet. We both looked toward the staircase on the right side of the station.
The police station was a three-story building. The second floor housed the other officers' quarters, and the third floor was Ethan's.
“Could someone be here?”
Knox muttered. Ethan, his face an emotionless mask, stared up the stairs and replied.
“In situations like this, humans are scarier than monsters.”
He was right. When it came to survival, people could be more cruel and terrifying than any monster. I tensed up, just as he said, and looked up the stairs.
“Sir Ethan, try to make the call. I'll keep watch. See if anyone comes down from up there.”
This seemed more efficient than going upstairs and dragging out whoever was hiding, potentially starting a fight.
“I'm here too, Miss Cherry.”
Knox raised a hand, making his presence known.
“The injured should stay put.”
Without even glancing at Knox, I glared at the landing and swung my axe through the air.
“Miss Cherry, that's dangerous...”
Ethan trailed off as he watched me. Then, looking a bit sheepish, he ran a hand through his hair and holstered his pistol.
“I'll count on you to watch our backs, then.”
From his tone and the look in his eyes, it seemed he had come to trust me quite a bit. Or rather, my strength, to be precise.
After seeing me send a giant monster flying with an axe, it was only natural for him to believe in my monstrous strength. Of course. Yup.
Ethan started looking around for the telephone. I glanced over at him.
Knowing the current situation from the novel, I was highly skeptical about calling the capital, but I still held onto a sliver of hope.
I hoped that, like a butterfly effect, my deviation from the original story had changed the future. That even though Brunel was in ruins from the virus, the capital, at least, was safe.
“Found it.”
Ethan's voice came from behind me.
“Does it connect?”
Holding the receiver, Ethan turned the rotary dial with his finger and answered.
“It's ringing.”
Thank goodness. The telephone exchange must not have been attacked by monsters yet.
But a long time passed with no news of the call connecting. I didn't hear Ethan's voice speaking to anyone on the other end.
I looked up at the dark staircase, then turned back to Ethan.
“It's no use. I've already tried dozens of times. No one's picking up. Same with the capital.”
“Who's there!”
Hearing a voice from somewhere, I gripped my axe tightly and shouted. The sound seemed to come from the top of the stairs.
“Even if the capital were fine, the trains wouldn't be running. No one would come all the way down to this backwater town of Brunel.”
*Tap. Tap.*
The sound of dress shoes descending the stairs reached us. From the dark staircase, a pair of worn brown shoes appeared first. Then, familiar navy cotton trousers came into view.
Next, I saw a pistol holster at his waist and a police jacket, and finally, the blood-spattered, grimy face of a middle-aged man was revealed.
“Captain?”
Ethan exclaimed in surprise, putting down the receiver. I glanced at him before fixing my gaze back on the man on the stairs.
Looking again, I saw it was Captain Hans, the man I'd seen several times at the police station.
“Sir Ethan. I knew you'd still be alive.”
The captain, Hans, approached us with a haggard face, letting out a sigh. His face was slick with sweat.
Alarmed, I took a small step back and aimed my axe at him.
“Wait. Please stop.”
Both Captain Hans and Ethan stared at me, puzzled.
“Were you bitten?”
“What?”
Captain Hans stared blankly at me, not understanding my question.
A silence fell over the messy police station. In it, the footsteps and cries of the monsters roaming outside became crystal clear.
“By those monsters... have you been bitten?”
At my words, Captain Hans looked back and forth between my face and Ethan's, flustered.