"A date?"
On a hill near the Goblin Village in the that time i got reincarnated as a slime world, Izawa Shizue heard a word she had never heard before.
Neither before she was summoned nor after, had she ever been invited like this… So Izawa Shizue, who was asking Chen Hai, was a little confused.
With her heart wavering and question marks popping up, she asked again to confirm the conversation she just had,
"A date, does that mean… the kind between a man and a woman?"
"Of course, Miss Shizue. Although I've had male friends before, it's impossible for me to go on dates with them."
At most, they'd go out for a meal or surf the internet together.
Without dwelling on the past, Chen Hai added,
"It's not a date in this world, but a date to Japan."
???
Izawa Shizue was stunned again.
Even with her mask on, her emotional turmoil was palpable.
"You… you just said…"
Hearing Chen Hai's words, Izawa Shizue thought there was something wrong with her ears.
She, who was summoned to this world, could revisit the world she lived in 10 years ago on a date?!
Is it real or fake?
Izawa Shizue didn't quite believe it, so she confirmed again,
"Mr. Chen Hai, are you serious?"
"Of course I'm serious, but the Japan we're going to will be somewhat different from what you imagine."
Because the 'Japan' Chen Hai referred to was the apocalypse world.
After all, among the otherworlds connected by the Dungeon, there was no ordinary island nation.
Even so, Izawa Shizue had no intention of refusing.
She responded with a somewhat excited tone,
"Of course, I accept the date. What should I do next?"
"You just need to hold my hand."
Although it wasn't necessary for teleportation… Chen Hai said so for his future plans.
Upon hearing this, Izawa Shizue didn't hesitate, extending her right hand to grasp Chen Hai's.
After holding it, Chen Hai felt that Shizue's hand was a bit warm and trembling.
Not nervousness, but anticipation?
Chen Hai thought of this and saw Izawa Shizue push her mask aside, so she could directly 'face the new world'.
With her face exposed, she took a deep breath.
"May I ask… what's next?"
"Close your eyes. It will only take one second."
"I understand…"
Without doubting Chen Hai, Izawa Shizue closed her eyes.
The next moment—
Chen Hai used his teleportation ability, and the two instantly appeared on the highest point of a building.
It was the rooftop of Fujimi High School in the apocalypse world.
Upon arriving, Izawa Shizue first felt a strong gust of wind blow against her face.
She frowned, looking ahead.
A pungent smell permeated the air, making her frown.
And in the distance, a low roar emanated—the sound of 'Living Dead' (Zombies/Corpse).
Even so, Izawa Shizue was still captivated by the 'completely changed' cityscape.
Unlike her original hometown, the city in her view was filled with towering buildings.
Some skyscrapers rose like colossal towers, piercing the clouds.
Chen Hai then walked over to Izawa Shizue's side.
"This world was originally quite normal until some time ago it was attacked by monsters; but it's only a matter of time before humanity wins, and I believe order will soon be restored."
"Monsters? What kind of monsters?"
"A virus that infects humans and makes Corpses active. These are the monsters created by this virus."
"Is that so…"
After listening, Izawa Shizue didn't know what to say.
Her gaze remained fixed ahead, staring at the 'new world' she had never seen before.
Although this city had ceased functioning due to the Corpse attack, decades of development still exceeded Izawa Shizue's imagination.
"My past was completely different."
Izawa Shizue had never imagined that one day she would see the 'future'.
Chen Hai stood beside her and asked,
"Would you like to see other places? For example, the broken Statue of Liberty and the partially melted Eiffel Tower."
"What are those?"
"Some small surprises I gave people to make them obey before; just like in the world where monsters live, there are always some annoying guys, aren't there?"
"That's true…"
Izawa Shizue, whose memories of the past were somewhat vague, strongly agreed with this point.
So she agreed, wanting to see the 'broken landmarks' Chen Hai mentioned.
However, the moment Chen Hai took her right hand, Izawa Shizue suddenly pulled away and stepped back.
"Please teleport… Please teleport back…"
She clutched her head in pain while putting her mask back on.
"Please!"
"No problem."
Chen Hai, having been asked, agreed.
Then Izawa Shizue quickly grabbed Chen Hai's left hand, and together they teleported back to the that time i got reincarnated as a slime world.
Standing once again on the same hill, Izawa Shizue immediately put distance between herself and Chen Hai.
"Please let me be alone here, give me some time…"
"I refuse."
"…?"
The sudden refusal greatly surprised Izawa Shizue.
She hadn't expected to hear such an answer… "Miss Shizue, I know the problem you're facing right now."
"Why… do you know?"
"You said before that you were searching for the path planned by destiny. But now that so-called 'destiny' has disappeared, meaning the path you were supposed to take no longer exists."
"That is…" 570
"But in my opinion, destiny is never absolute, or rather… it never existed in the first place."
Chen Hai looked at Izawa Shizue, who wanted to keep her distance from him, and walked directly towards her.
Seeing this, Shizue quickly retreated.
But Chen Hai didn't stop; instead, he sped up.
"Please don't come near me, Mr. Chen Hai… It's very dangerous now!"
"Is everything you're experiencing now also destiny? It shouldn't be, right?"
Chen Hai ignored Izawa Shizue's plea.
He continued,
"In my opinion, your predetermined destiny no longer exists. From now on, it is created by people."
"Created…"
"I will create your destiny, Izawa Shizue."
Chen Hai extended his right hand again to the girl who had spent decades in another world.
"Become my person (city member), Izawa Shizue, and then… as I just told you, I will recreate your destiny."
Upon hearing this, Izawa Shizue, who had been constantly backing away, stopped.
The next moment—
Responding to Chen Hai was the crackling sound of her mask cracking and… the scorching flames erupting from Shizue!
At this moment, the super-high-tier spirit, Ifrit, second only to a king, appeared in this world!