Chapter 65

"Welcome back, Azami-san!"

As soon as I took off my riot gear and finished checking for injuries, and returned from the garage to the living area, Kaede rushed over and said this.

"Are you hurt? Are you okay?"

Kaede bombarded me with questions as I stumbled, trying to catch her.

"A-ah... Rather, get off, everyone's watching."

"Hmm, if no one's watching, it's fine, right?"

"No, that's not what I mean..."

While I was at a loss for how to respond to Yuki, who was teasing me for being welcomed by Kaede, I gently pulled Kaede away. The other refugees were also happy to hear that I and the others had returned safely, so being hugged by a child, even in front of everyone, was a bit embarrassing.

Kaede pouted for a moment but quickly smiled, saying, "I'm glad you're not hurt."

We moved to the room, and Kaede and Yuki followed.

"I'm relieved that you're back safely, senpai. And... that we can be together like this now."

"I'm sorry for worrying you."

"It's okay. I don't know what happened, but I'm glad you made up."

Yuki patted Kaede's head as she sat down next to her. Kaede blushed and let it happen, her face breaking into a smile.

"Hey, Kaede, why are you so red?"

"Eh!? N-no, I'm not!"

Kaede's cheeks turned even redder at Yuki's words. She was probably remembering what happened yesterday, fidgeting and looking down.

Seeing her like that, I felt a bit embarrassed myself and turned my gaze to the wall.

Sensing the slightly awkward atmosphere, Yuki cautiously spoke up.

"Y-You don't mean... senpai..."

"It's not like that, don't say any more..."

I responded with a sigh, not needing to say more, as Yuki's eyes met mine. I wasn't sure what Yuki was thinking, but it was probably something "unsavory."

It wouldn't be good to say such things to Kaede now. Yuki must have just said it out loud, and upon hearing my response, she covered her mouth, looking embarrassed.

However, Kaede was looking back and forth between Yuki and me, tilting her head in confusion. She seemed fine, but then she suddenly blushed and pushed Yuki, saying:

"Yuki-san! That's not it! We just had something to talk about, and we didn't do anything... inappropriate..."

I appreciated her explanation, but I wished she wouldn't lower her voice and sound so unsure.

"Um, since then, I was a bit intimidated by Azami-san and was scared. I avoided you, and I'm sorry."

For some reason, Kaede was explaining this to Yuki, even though I didn't understand why. She had said something similar yesterday.

"But I'm not completely over what happened that day. However, it's okay now, and I don't need to be so nervous."

"Hmm? If that's the case, it's fine... I'm sorry, Kaede."

"No, it's okay. Yuki-san, don't worry about it."

"Ugh... Kaede-chan!"

"Kyaa!"

As they talked, Yuki hugged Kaede. Despite only being a few days since I last saw them, their interaction felt nostalgic, and I smiled wryly.

+++++

Late at night.

I put on my rider suit and went to the department store, which had been the hideout of the half-gang we had recently attacked.

I was there to continue the work I started after wiping them out.

This department store was well-located, as it had been their base. It had a direct entrance from the multi-level parking garage, and the parking area could be blocked with wagons to prevent zombies from entering, just as they had done.

When going out, you could enter the wagons from the inside, move them, and drive out through the gap, making it quite safe. The keys to the wagons were left in the cars.

They had also gathered a lot of supplies, which were still abundant. The food section on the lower floors, especially the basement, was untouched.

With the water tank empty and no new refugees arriving, staying at the police station made less sense. This place could potentially become a new base, if we could overlook the numerous bloodstains. Even if not, it would be a valuable resource for gathering supplies.

With that in mind, I decided to clean up the area a bit for future exploration.

The other day, I had cleared out the newly created zombies, kicked the zombies on the first floor aside, and set up barricades at all the entrances, as well as the stairs and escalators leading to the basement.

I patrolled the first floor, clearing out the zombies, and once I confirmed there were no more, I went down to the basement to eliminate the zombies there. The bodies were a hindrance, so I planned to move them outside later, but for now, I stabbed them in the head and threw them toward the stairs.

After moving the bodies and clearing the basement, the next task was to organize the parking garage.

This involved parking the cars that were scattered outside. I picked up and moved the cars that had fuel, choosing those with the keys left in them, either because they had followed disaster protocols or simply left them as they were.

I had some gasoline in the portable cans in my item box, but it would be safer to store it in the cars.

The fuel situation at the police station was also tight, and since we couldn't use gas stations, we had to refuel from nearby cars, which was more dangerous than gathering food.

Initially, I hadn't thought we would need so much gasoline, so not collecting it was a mistake. I couldn't fill the multi-level parking garage, but parking a few cars would help a lot.

The rest... I could use the item box to move drinks and other items from the damaged stores to the warehouse in the back.

While it might seem naive, if the others found it strange, there was nothing I could do about it.

They probably wouldn't think it was my doing, and if it helped them, it would be worth it.

I worked until the last minute of my planned time, and while it wasn't perfect, I managed to finish the tasks.