Chapter 78

"Momoe, just a moment..."

How long had they been like that?

Looking at the watch on his wrist, it was already past noon.

In that moment, Takero called out to Momoe in a small voice.

"Excuse me, can we talk over there for a moment?"

"...Do as you like."

Takero said this to me, and the two of them moved towards the kitchen.

They stood in the back, glancing over at us, and whispered to each other with their faces close together.

Well... if the volume was that low, I could still hear everything clearly if I focused.

The content of their conversation seemed to be about whether or not to trust me.

Momoe seemed to be opposing it for some reason, but Takero said he wanted to trust me.

The deciding factor, apparently, was that I had handed over the pistol.

That is indeed an act equivalent to entrusting one's life to someone for a normal person, but to me, a pistol is no different from a toy.

It seemed that the conversation had come to a conclusion, albeit with Momoe's dissatisfaction. When the two returned, Takero spoke up.

"Sorry, Yanagi-san. We have a request for you."

"...What is it?"

"...Can you help us?"

"Help, huh."

Even now, being here is part of that help, but they are probably talking about what comes next.

And that is something I had been thinking about ever since I helped them.

If I'm going to help them, how far am I going to go?

At the very least, I was planning to help them get out of here.

I intended to scatter the zombies around and see them off safely.

I don't know how they've managed to survive until now.

But whether it's due to a lack of caution or just bad luck, the fact that they were in a situation like the one just now makes me doubt they can survive on their own.

They will likely end up in the same situation again and this time, they might lose their lives easily.

"So, do you want me to take you to some kind of shelter?"

If that's the case, the best option would be to take them to a community or shelter like I did with Kaede.

In that case, I would have to start by finding one.

The only place I know is where the Oda group is.

It's not feasible to take them there now, and it's on the opposite side of a densely populated area, which is quite far.

In normal times, it might be manageable, but in this world overrun by zombies, avoiding that area and taking a detour would be quite challenging.

"Sorry, but we have a safe place in mind. It shouldn't be a bad deal for you, Yanagi-san."

Did my reluctance show in my attitude?

Takero apologized once and then continued.

+++++

The safe place Takero mentioned turned out to be Momoe's maternal grandparents' house.

Apparently, her parents had been in contact with them from a shelter for a while after the pandemic started, when cell phones still worked.

It's quite a distance from here, but it's in a remote, desolate town far from the city.

The town has a small population, and thanks to that, they managed to contain the outbreak to some extent in the early stages.

Furthermore, Momoe's grandfather runs a town dojo, which is located on the outskirts and up a significant number of steps.

The townspeople had gathered there for shelter.

"How about it? Would you come with us to that place, Yanagi-san?"

Takero speaks as if he has no doubt that the place is still safe.

This confidence seems to stem from the aforementioned grandfather.

Takero and Momoe had lived in that town until middle school.

They were childhood friends, and Takero had attended the dojo to learn kendo.

According to Takero, Momoe's grandfather was an exceptional martial artist, and no one had ever managed to score a point against him.

Both Takero and Momoe seem to believe that such a strong grandfather couldn't have been defeated.

I can understand why they would think that.

The town has a small population, and the shelter is at a high elevation.

There is a possibility that it could be relatively safe from zombies.

However, it has been about two months since the pandemic started.

Given that even the Self-Defense Forces' base was destroyed, it's uncertain whether that place is still safe...

"Alright... let me think about it."

If that place is indeed still safe, despite the distance, taking these two there wouldn't be a bad choice.

This is because even if there is a community nearby, it's unclear whether it is safe in various aspects.

The people at Oda's place, including the refugees, were generally kind-hearted, but even they initially had hostile reactions.

The fact that I was able to quickly get along with them and learn about their situation was only because Yuki happened to be there.

If I had to investigate a new place from scratch, it would be quite troublesome, even with my hostility detection skill.

"I have one question. Were you two planning to go there by yourselves?"

"...Yes."

I see.

If I'm going to take them there, I'll need to use a car, but it would be better to confirm their safety first.

However, if it turns out that they are all gone, I might change my mind and not take them there.

Would they accept that? Would they end up traveling to a place that is already destroyed?

"Alright... I understand. But there's a condition."

"...What is it?"

"Listen to what I say without question."

After some thought, I said this, and the hostility from the two of them increased slightly.

"That depends on the extent of it."

"Alright, that's fine. Then, let's start with the first one."

I could tell that Momoe shifted slightly.

"I'll go get a car, so you two stay here and rest. Don't go outside under any circumstances."

"...Huh?"

In that case, the most important thing is to get them there, regardless of the safety of the destination.

With that, I ignored Takero's protests, opened the shutter, and went outside.