Chapter 73
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 63
Chapter Title: A Plan Takes Shape
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That was something Knox had said as well, but I was so surprised I had to ask Amy again just to be sure.
“Yes. I told you, I’m an herbalist.”
Right. She did mention that earlier.
But the whole pickpocketing incident must have made such an impact that I’d forgotten.
In any case, I looked at Amy with new eyes. I now had two experts on the Elpinus herb—Knox and Amy.
As long as the Elpinus herb grew quickly, the problem would be solved. They said it was tricky to cultivate, but with two experts, what was there to worry about?
After a long moment of deliberation, I nodded.
“I’ll go get the crossbow.”
I went straight into the mansion to find it.
I was coming down from the second-floor armory with the crossbow when I ran into Knox.
“It was awfully noisy out there. Is something wrong?”
Knox asked, rubbing the back of his neck as he walked into the center of the first-floor lobby. I studied his complexion.
“Is your leg okay?”
“Thanks to you. I appreciate it, Sinclair.”
He flashed a faint smile and gave me a wink. Seeing him act so slick, he really did seem to be fine.
“Then could you give me a hand?”
In an emergency like this, every bit of help was crucial.
Knox nodded, looking a little dazed. I led him out to the vegetable patch.
We had to hurry up and take care of the monster, treat Amy, plant new Elpinus seeds, and tend to the other crops.
So much to do, so much.
* * *
In a second-floor room of an inn in Brunel village, the townspeople were huddled together, cautiously peering out the window.
“Do you think Amy’s alright? That poor kid…”
“Kid? She’s better off than we are.”
Victor, the inn’s restaurant chef, answered Emma, the owner of the clothing store. One by one, the other villagers, who had been watching cautiously, began to chime in.
“Instead of just standing around, shouldn’t we really go to that abandoned house on the hill?”
“We shouldn’t just talk about it, we should leave right now.”
“That’s right. Let’s take over the abandoned house.”
Victor looked out the window at the edge of the roof of the abandoned house visible on the hill.
Perhaps it would be a little safer if they went there, just as the villagers said.
But unlike them, Victor had no intention of seizing the house. He would, however, consider asking the young lady of the house to take them in.
‘I’ll have to beg the young lady of the abandoned house if I must.’
Getting to the house was the first priority. Persuading the villagers and the young lady would come after.
At the very least, it would be better than this inn room, located in the heart of this perilous village.
Victor took out the knife roll hanging from his apron.
Amy had taken one of his knives, but he still had three more.
The villagers watched with a hint of tension as Victor drew his knives.
“Everyone, grab a weapon.”
At Victor’s words, the villagers, their resolve now firm, began to arm themselves. Victor handed one of his own knives to Emma.
Emma and Victor had been childhood friends. For over forty years. For all those long years, Victor had loved Emma from afar.
When they were of marrying age, Emma had been the one to propose, asking if they should live together. But at the time, Victor lacked the confidence to start a family. His dream was to become a renowned chef in the capital, but in reality, no restaurant would hire him, and he had no money.
Eventually, tired of waiting, Emma married a post office worker from the next town who had courageously confessed his feelings to her.
But Emma’s husband passed away just five years into their marriage. He had taken his own life after his gambling debts grew to an unmanageable amount. Naturally, the debt fell to Emma.
All the villagers shunned her. Debt collectors would frequently show up at her house or her clothing store, causing a scene.
Victor, who had left to study cooking in the capital, heard the news and rushed back to Brunel. He had even turned down a scouting offer from a famous restaurant in the capital.
He had been working as the chef in the inn’s restaurant ever since, protecting Emma from the debt collectors who came to harass her.
“We’ll be able to survive, right?”
Emma, still as lovely and elegant as ever, as if time had stood still for her, took the knife from Victor with a worried expression.
Victor nodded.
“We can.”
Mustering the courage he couldn’t find twenty years ago, Victor held Emma’s hand tightly and spoke.
*This time, I will protect you.*
With that vow, he opened the door to the inn room.
* * *
Harrison, Jose, and Vanilla hid in the ticket booth of the Kintne train station.
“How can you be so sure that Cherry Sinclair is alive?”
Jose asked, unwrapping a piece of candy he’d pulled from his pocket. Vanilla, who had been sitting casually with her back against the inside of the ticket booth, looked up.
“If she was at Happy House, she definitely would have survived.”
“Happy… what? What kind of name is that?”
Jose asked back, a look of bewilderment on his face. Vanilla shrugged and replied.
“Happy House. That’s the name Cherry Sinclair gave the abandoned house.”
Jose let out a hollow laugh, wondering why on earth she would name it Happy House. It was a name so utterly unsuited for a ruined world.
“That’s just like her.”
Harrison, who had been listening quietly to their conversation, spoke up. Jose and Vanilla turned to look at him.
“I think it’s a fitting name. Doesn’t it seem like that house is a beacon of hope in this world?”
Jose and Vanilla were speechless at Harrison’s words.
*Screeeech!*
The cries of monsters echoed from beyond the ticket booth, and the air instantly grew tense.
Their goal was to reach Cherry’s Happy House.
Jose had to admit Harrison had a point. From what he and Vanilla had heard, Happy House was practically a fortress.
So, for them, currently on the move in this horrifying hellscape, Cherry’s Happy House was indeed a beacon of hope. The hope that they might be safe once they arrived.
“We’ll be in Brunel soon. Everyone, just hang on a little longer.”
Jose said as he opened the magazine of his repeating rifle, loaded it with bullets, and chambered a round. Vanilla also checked the magazine of her hunting rifle and nodded.
“By the way, what kind of gun is that?”
Usually, any rifle or shotgun used for hunting was called a hunting rifle, but the one Vanilla was holding looked similar to theirs, yet slightly different in design.
At Jose’s question, Vanilla replied with an indifferent expression.
“It’s a Winchester repeating rifle.”
“Huh? That’s the same gun we have.”
“Mine’s been modified.”
“That’s illegal.”
“Owning a firearm is already illegal.”
Fair enough. Jose nodded in agreement with Vanilla’s point.
Harrison, after roughly assessing the monsters’ movements beyond the ticket booth, nodded.
“Let’s move out.”
* * *
“You look like you’re in bad shape. Hey, little lady. Did a monster bite you?”
Knox asked accusatorily, his wary eyes scanning Amy. It was an understandable question, given that she was covered in scratches and her clothes were soaked in blood.
“I wasn’t bitten.”
Amy said, fumbling in her tattered jacket pocket to pull out a lollipop, which she then stuck in her mouth. Seeing this, Knox suddenly held out his hand.
“Then how about giving me one of those, little lady? I’ll treat your wounds.”
“Drop the ‘little lady’ bit, and we’ll talk.”
Amy shot back at Knox with the defiant attitude of a rebellious teenager. Knox smiled gently and said.
“What’s your name?”
“Amy. Amy Wharton.”
“Alright, Lady Wharton, I need a lollipop too.”
Knox begged Amy for a lollipop as if his life depended on it.
He’d grabbed several packs of cigarettes from the general store, only to declare he was quitting again. I shook my head, watching Knox suffer through his withdrawal symptoms.
Amy, pleased with being called “Lady,” tossed Knox two lollipops. Knox unwrapped one, popped it in his mouth, and let out a sigh of contentment.
Watching him, I couldn’t help but wonder if those lollipops contained some kind of drug I didn’t know about.
Anyway, our plan to clear away the Elpinus herb spilled in front of the house was as follows: Knox and Amy would open the gate, I would fire a crossbow bolt with the Elpinus herb tied to it into the horde of monsters, and Ethan would take care of any stragglers with his rifle.
For this reason, Ethan had no choice but to remove the handcuffs from Amy’s wrists. Amy let Ethan handle her wrists while staring intently at Knox.
Knox, who had been rubbing the back of his neck with a tired expression, looked back at Amy, puzzled.
“Why are you staring at me like that, my lady?”
He asked with a faint smile, and Amy’s eyes sparkled.
“Now, he’s a gentleman. Unlike some old guy I know.”
“The weird one is the guy who’s acting all polite and calling a kid ‘my lady’.”
Ethan retorted irritably at Amy’s comment, then unlocked the cuffs and put them in his jacket pocket. For a moment, Amy reminded me of my pre-apocalypse self. Ethan really was consistent. Knox, caught in the crossfire, simply raised his hands and shrugged.
Amy seemed to be observing Knox and Ethan, her gaze shifting between them, before she trotted over to me.
“Hey, pretty lady, so which one is it?”
“Hm? What is?”
I replied, tying the Elpinus herb to the arrowhead. Amy grinned. It was a mischievous smile, full of the playfulness of a teenage girl.
“Your boyfriend.”
“*Cough*.”
At Amy’s question, Ethan let out a startled cough, and Knox stumbled, his injured leg giving way. What’s with them?