The Takagi mansion was filled with people. Both outside, with hundreds gathered, and inside, where Allen's group had been invited in.
In the end, everyone went their separate ways.
Teshima was invited by Soichiro's men to have a drink.
Takashi, Hisashi, and Morita were put to work helping unload the trucks. This was because Takashi, in his carelessness, had scratched Allen's motorcycle. It was already a blessing that Allen had only made him work as punishment.
As for Hisashi and Morita, both were close friends of Takashi, so they were also made to work. They could thank Takashi for that later.
Hirano thanked Allen for permanently giving him the Springfield M1A1 and the Ithaca 37, and he began cleaning all the blood off them with such seriousness that he looked like a surgeon operating on a heart.
Kazu and Yamada decided to walk around the Takagi mansion grounds, realizing just how big the place was. It had tall walls and metal gates. Soichiro wasted no time setting up barricades to stop hordes of zombies from getting close — and also to warn any survivors that if they came to cause trouble, they'd meet a terrible end.
Tsunoda decided to wander around until, by coincidence, he arrived at a workshop where someone was checking a vehicle. It was Matsuda, one of Soichiro's trusted men.
...
Most of the girls went inside the mansion to rest. They had crossed countless hordes of the undead, and all of them were exhausted. At the previous shelter, half of the girls hadn't been able to sleep much, and the ones who had been with Allen had to wake up in the middle of the night because of what happened with Alice.
Among those girls, Taniuchi wanted to get something to eat, and as the girl with braids and glasses searched for the kitchen, she came across a shocking scene.
"Allen-sama?! Miyamoto-san?!"
Before her eyes, Allen pushed Rei against the wall and began kissing her without any restraint, and although she resisted at first, Rei soon responded.
"What are you doing?!" the girl yelled. Weren't they afraid of being seen?! Leaving that aside, this was way beyond just a kiss.
Allen's hands took hold of Rei's waist with a confident grip, while Rei slipped her hands inside Allen's clothes, feeling his muscles.
Taniuchi swallowed hard, completely flustered. "This looks like something out of an adult movie..." she thought, then immediately felt bad for thinking that — Allen was way too handsome to be a porn actor.
"But I'm sure he'd sell better than any blockbuster movie..."
If Allen could have heard Taniuchi's thoughts, he would've pulled her over his knee and spanked her.
Slowly, the kiss deepened. The girl even thought they were about to go all the way right there, but in the end, Allen let go of Rei, who slid down the wall until she sat on the floor.
Allen then walked toward the braided girl hiding in the corner, frozen in panic.
"Oh, it's you... Taniuchi... that doesn't sound like a name."
"Y-yes, my name is Taniuchi Yui..." Yui lowered her head.
She gave off the impression of being the classic shy, bookish girl with braids. When Allen observed her — her personality, her demeanor — and realized she had almost been corrupted by Shido, it reminded him of a certain girl from a world that had ended badly. Just remembering that infamous place irritated him, but he brushed it aside.
"Well, Yui, how can I help you?"
The girl was startled and blushed deeply. In Japan, people didn't use someone's first name unless they were very close, but Allen didn't hesitate at all, which made her blush even harder. Then she remembered that Allen wasn't Japanese and became even more embarrassed for misinterpreting it.
Yui waved her hands nervously, trying to explain herself.
"I-I'm sorry! I was just looking for the kitchen! I swear I won't say a word! Actually, my eyesight's terrible! I can't even see well up close!"
Allen watched as Yui nearly had a panic attack just from talking to him and chuckled before patting her head.
"Don't worry, it's nothing worth hiding. As for the kitchen, go downstairs to the right, follow the hallway and you'll find it," he said, closing his minimap.
Still dazed by the sudden contact, Yui mentally noted Allen's directions, wondering how he knew the mansion so well. But then she remembered Allen's relationship with Saya — to the point of casually calling Saya's terrifying father 'father-in-law' without a shred of shame.
"T-thank you."
Allen nodded and left Taniuchi behind. She watched his back as he walked away and turned even redder.
"Does Allen-san have a relationship with both Takagi-san and Miyamoto-san?! But he clearly said he didn't care if anyone saw him doing that... that includes Takagi-san?!"
Taniuchi collapsed to the floor, completely overwhelmed. This situation was way too much for her.
...
Allen decided to take a long shower. He entered one of the mansion's large bathrooms and began undressing — or at least, that was the plan — until he sensed a presence. Even in this world, where he didn't possess many abilities beyond those of a normal human, his natural instincts, forged through countless dangerous situations, reacted instantly, and he grabbed a soft hand reaching toward him from behind.
To his surprise, it was Yuuki Miku standing there.
"Is it a custom among Japanese women to harass a pure young man like me?"
Yuuki blushed. She had planned to cover Allen's eyes and make him guess who she was, but since he caught her, she was left speechless — a bit nervous, a bit dazed. However, she remembered Kyoko's words and gathered her courage.
"Allen-sama, boss, leader"
Yuuki smiled coquettishly. She hadn't done this before, but she was good at acting, so she managed to look sexy. "I just wanted to show my gratitude for helping me... by washing your back"
Yuuki made her decision and threw away her dignity — maybe this way, she could get closer to Allen. Even if they hadn't interacted before, Allen must've heard all the rumors about her. She didn't know what his opinion was, but she decided to use it to her advantage.
'Even if it's a pathetic way to get close to him... It's my best chance.'
This was the apocalypse. Rules, morals, laws — all of it had become obsolete. What was right or wrong now depended entirely on each individual.
Yuuki had fallen in love with Allen. How could she not? It was the worst possible situation — no escape, no help — and in that moment, when there was no one else to lend her a hand, he had been there. Not once, but twice.
It was inevitable, and that's without mentioning that Allen was completely her type.
So Yuuki decided to use the only valuable thing she had — something that, despite what others said about her, no one could deny: her beauty. Of course, Yuuki knew she couldn't compete with Saya, Rei, or Saeko, not even Shizuka or Kyoko, because of her reputation.
'I don't care if I have to be his lover or his slave, if that's the only way to stay by his side,' she thought, putting on her best act.
"..." Allen looked at Yuuki in silence. The girl had the style of a gyaru — a popular female archetype in Japan. However, Allen found it strange. Why was this girl forcing herself to act like a slut?
Just as Yuuki started trembling, looking like she was about to cry, Allen smiled.
"All right."
Yuuki's eyes lit up, and she smiled beautifully, with relief.
Allen wanted to tell her she'd broken character, but seeing her so happy, he didn't have the heart to do it.
"So..." Allen said, grabbing his shirt, "are you going to help me?"
"...!" Yuuki froze for a moment, as if she didn't understand. But it was true — she was supposed to help. Yuuki swallowed hard, brought her hands up to Allen's shirt, and began unbuttoning it slowly.
Once she saw Allen's bare torso, she felt so embarrassed that she wanted to scream. 'Ah! What am I doing?! I didn't think I'd go this far! What am I supposed to do now?! Wait— we're actually going to do it, right?! He's so strong, so handsome, those eyes, that smile, hehe!❤️~'
Allen wanted to say something to the girl who was drooling while staring at him, but he just shook his head, picked her up in his arms, and carried her inside.
"W-wait! My heart's not ready yet!"
Once inside, Allen set the girl down and sat on a small stool, something common in Japanese bathrooms. Yuuki looked at Allen and realized he had a towel on, but she didn't remember him taking off his pants.
"Huh?!" Yuuki looked down at herself and realized she was also only wearing a towel.
Allen chuckled. "Something wrong?"
Yuuki swallowed her confusion and approached Allen shyly. She filled a wooden bowl with hot water, grabbed a sponge, and stood behind him.
"Allen-san, may I?"
"Yuuki, if you're here, it means you already have permission, doesn't it?"
Yuuki blushed before kneeling down. She wet the sponge and poured liquid soap — which had appeared out of nowhere beside her — onto it. This time, she was sure something strange was going on!
"Yuuki."
"Y-yes?!" Yuuki, realizing she'd broken character, quickly corrected herself and put on a seductive look as she leaned against Allen's back. "I mean... what do you need, master?~"
Yuuki whispered into Allen's ear, but it backfired — her own heart took the blow. She immediately pulled away and tried to calm down, hiding her embarrassment as she began washing Allen's back. She didn't notice that Allen was watching all her reactions and panic through the mirror.
"Do you like traveling with us?" Allen asked, trying to hold back his laughter.
"Hm?" Yuuki stopped her hands. She didn't quite understand the question. Like traveling with them? Well, yes — but this was about survival, not some field trip. "Of course I do. Besides, it let me see a different side of some people I hadn't seen before."
Seeing that the girl didn't get what he meant, Allen chuckled quietly.
"That's not what I meant, Yuuki." Allen turned around, catching her off guard. Yuuki lost her balance, but before she could fall, Allen caught her — causing her towel to slip loose. She didn't even notice; all her attention was on Allen's face. His gaze was sharp, almost hypnotic, and her heart pounded a thousand times per second.
"I..." Yuuki tried to speak, but no words came out.
"It all started with the apocalypse, but somehow Shizuka, Kyoko, Saeko, Rei, Saya, Alice, and of course, the brave Zeke — all of them like traveling with me."
"I know that, but what do you mean?" Yuuki tried her hardest not to freak out — not to scream or run away like a shy virgin. She was one, but she had to act like she wasn't.
"Coming with me means you have to understand certain things... and I'm testing whether you're ready," Allen said mysteriously, bringing his nose close to Yuuki's neck.
Feeling his warmth, Yuuki let out a small moan as her mind went blank and her legs weakened — luckily, Allen was holding her.
"You smell ready... or maybe that's just your natural scent!"
Yuuki snapped back to reality at that comment, but before she could say anything, Allen set her down and got into the bathtub.
"You can think about it," Allen said, leaning back. "Don't worry, the rest of the group never stays far from me anyway... although," he added, looking mysteriously at Yuuki, "I hope you don't mind — apparently, traveling with me makes you part of my harem."
Yuuki turned so red that steam seemed to rise from her head, making Allen burst into laughter.
"Hold it right there!" Saya shouted as she barged in. Seeing Yuuki blushing and half-naked, and Allen relaxed in the bath, she exploded. "You damn womanizer!"
It took Allen five full minutes to explain to Saya that nothing had happened the way she imagined.
...
"Oh, just like you said, there are a lot of survivors..." said a man who was watching the Takagi mansion from afar.
The man wore camouflage clothing and had a semi-automatic rifle strapped to his back — a soldier.
He grinned unpleasantly as he observed the various women gathered in that place.
"This is good... very good," he said before turning to look at a man in a wrinkled suit, standing with a cane. "Shido-sensei, I'm truly pleased with this information."
Shido's eyes lit up. He didn't care if this man was a deserter who'd gone insane during the apocalypse — he only cared about one thing.
"So then!"
The man snorted. "Call Forest and have him fix this man's leg."
Shizuka had given Shido basic first aid, but he needed real medical treatment — something she hadn't provided. That was why this man had come to these people.
Minutes later, another soldier entered with a man wearing a lab coat.
"This is him..." the other soldier said, pointing to Shido like he was an object.
"Understood..." the doctor replied lifelessly before turning away.
"Hehe, glad you've finally become obedient, doctor," laughed the soldier who'd brought him. "If you'd behaved like this from the start, we wouldn't have had to do what we did to your wife. I hope you'll think of your daughter next time~"
The soldier licked his lips, making the doctor clench his teeth — but still, he obeyed. That satisfied the man. He had always been undisciplined; when the world ended and the chain of command broke, he deserted the U.S. military with a group of soldiers after slitting his captain's throat.
Seeing the doctor's expression, the man laughed. "Screw the government. Screw Redfield. Let them recover their scientists themselves. Me? I'd rather have fun!"
"That place... that mansion will be my palace~" the man laughed maniacally.
====
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