Sup! New chapter!
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Yuriko Takagi
Tokonosu International Airport
A few hours earlier
Yuriko didn't show that she recognized one of the men working for Ichiro Shido.
Being Souichiro's right hand had its pros and cons, and one of those pros was having access to an immense amount of sensitive information that ordinary police officers and civilians couldn't dream of.
One such piece of data concerned the individuals closest to Ichiro himself and his family. The man in the military uniform walking toward them with an unhurried pace was one of those people—perhaps even one of the most devoted sycophants of his wealth.
Shihido Koruku was a man of average height with a bald head that shone under the sun. He had oversized sunglasses perched on his temple, which he wasn't even wearing properly.
"Oh, hello Souichiro and Yuriko Takagi-san, how are you? I hope you didn't have any problems on the way here, although I am curious why you decided to make the trip." The man's expression was mocking, which, frankly, irritated her.
She briefly mused on what would happen if she just blew up this pathetic creature, a man as corrupt as his master. But she calmed herself and pushed the thought aside; she was certain no one wanted any unnecessary trouble right now.
First, she needed to find out everything there was to know: how many soldiers were here, how many had come with this man, and only then would she decide what to do with them.
While she pondered her options, Souichiro stepped forward and began talking to him, finally giving her the space to think in peace.
But one thing she knew for sure: she wasn't planning on leaving any of Ichiro Shido's men alive. The danger they posed might not be huge, but it was still present, and she didn't intend to disappoint her Master by bringing a nest of snakes into their base, ready to sink their venomous fangs into them the moment they arrived.
While Souichiro spoke to Koruku, she noticed a woman in a military uniform emerge from the airport, walking briskly toward them... or rather, judging by her gaze, toward Shizuka, who was standing nearby. Behind the woman trailed a man in an almost identical uniform.
She was likely Shizuka's friend, judging by the blonde's eyes, which had lit up with joy in an instant.
After a few minutes, the dark-skinned woman with purple hair tied in a ponytail reached them and instantly hugged Shizuka with a joyful cry, while the man with her finally caught up.
"Shizuka! You're okay!" The woman hugged Shizuka tightly and continued to murmur words of joy for quite some time.
"Oh, oh! Rika, easy, you're hugging too hard!" Despite Shizuka's complaint, it was obvious she was just as happy that the friend she had left safety to find was alive and well.
"Hm, and you must be... Yuriko Takagi?" The woman, Rika, looked at her with a smile and gratefully extended her hand. "My name is Rika Minami, but you can call me Rika. Thank you so much for bringing Shizuka to me. She's my closest friend, and... ha, I just don't know what would have happened to me if something had suddenly happened to her."
"Yes, and you're welcome. I was just following orders given to me by my superior." She accepted the handshake, while Rika looked at her with confusion.
"Superior? I thought your husband was, well, in charge?" Rika asked, which made Yuriko smirk slightly.
"No, no. Our superior is Isao Tsumugi. I imagine your friend managed to tell you about him before all the electronics died due to the EMP bomb." Yuriko let out a quiet, frustrated sigh, revealing how disappointed she was about the state of communications. "Honestly, the lack of communication right now is one of the most significant problems we've faced since the EMP hit Japan."
"I'll agree with you on the EMP bomb, but... Isao Tsumugi? Isn't that the guy Shizuka told me was capable of creating metal out of thin air?" Rika turned to Shizuka with the question. Shizuka nodded and replied.
"Yes, that's him! But unfortunately, he couldn't escort us here himself. If you saw him, you'd understand how cool he is!" She said this with a gentle smile, not noticing how Rika had tensed up slightly.
Yuriko understood why she was so guarded. Rika likely assumed Isao-kun had captured them by force and made them work for him. Honestly, that wasn't far from the truth, though the reality was slightly more nuanced.
"That is..." Rika looked at Yuriko with a question in her eyes. "Did he force you all to submit to him by force?"
"What?! No, of course not! Why would you even assume that, Rika?!" Shizuka looked indignantly at her friend, who raised her hands in apology as if defending herself. Yuriko decided to dispel Rika's doubts and anxieties.
"No, Rika-san. Fortunately, Isao-kun isn't that kind of man. We all work under him because, despite his youth, he has proven his competence and talent for leadership. Even before he arrived at the Takagi estate, he was already managing a fairly large group of people and leading them all forward." She said this in a soothing tone, trying to lower the woman's suspicion of Isao, as she needed to extract some information from her.
All the while they talked, the man who had come with Rika stood to the side, watching them with interest and listening to their conversation.
After Yuriko's words, Rika let go of some of her anxiety and looked at her with a glimmer of trust. She also noticed Yuriko glancing dubiously at the man speaking with Souichiro. Rika was clearly not happy with his presence either, as she immediately waved her hand toward Yuriko.
"Come, I'll escort us to a quieter place." Rika walked past her, then stopped next to her friend. "By the way, this is my friend, Tajima." The man smiled and waved, and Rika led the way, followed by Shizuka and Tajima.
Yuriko watched her for a moment, then sighed and followed. She glanced around, curious to see what an airport looked like during a zombie apocalypse. The number of people present seemed limited, which was strange since she had hoped to see thousands.
"Rika-san? May I ask a question?" Rika looked at her with interest, pausing her conversation with Shizuka. "How many military-trained personnel are here, and how many civilians?"
"Haa..." Rika sighed. "Let me count and remember... Well, my SAT squad is here—about fifteen of us, including myself. There are also over twenty regular police officers, and then..." She scrunched up her face as if she'd bitten into a lemon. "A squad of ten people sent by Ichiro Shido. God knows who they're looking for. They were in the city yesterday and didn't seem to find the person they came for, and now they're trying to convince my commander to go with them to Tokyo."
Tokyo, where Ichiro Shido is likely running everything... A despicable man who does whatever he pleases, easily dodging justice thanks to his money and connections.
"Yeah. Honestly, my commander wanted to stay here in this city since he had no desire to fall under the thumb of that fat piece of shit. But he doesn't even know if there are any surviving police in the city, since our connection was severed today. Those who spoke to us yesterday might very well be dead by now."
"That... honestly, it's quite a complex situation." Yuriko sighed quietly.
"But if you're here, I think he'll be glad. Before all this shit started, he was a huge fan of your company." Rika looked at her with a smile. "Honestly, if he knew Souichiro Takagi himself was coming here, he'd be ready to roll out the red carpet. But he's busy talking to people and trying to calm them down. Speaking of which..." She looked up again, thoughtful. "We have over a thousand civilians, and twenty percent of them—if not more—are foreigners."
"Hm... and what is their state?"
"Oh, they're all in shock. Honestly, among those foreigners, there are Americans and Russians. The atmosphere is extremely tense. The Americans are blaming the Russians for what happened, the Russians are blaming the Americans, and our own citizens... meh, they're blaming the governments of both nations for sparking pointless conflicts and dragging everyone nearby into them. I wouldn't say the people in the airport are in a calm mood at all." She let her hands drop tiredly, though she perked up slightly when Shizuka squeezed her arm.
"Yes, the situation is very complex indeed."
"It's not just complex, it's heated. My commander has been trying to calm everyone down for hours. Honestly, he's on the verge of forgetting how to speak, having to constantly switch between Russian, English, and Japanese. Heh... it's a good thing he took a half-hour break." Rika's friend, Tajima, spoke up, chuckling slightly as he recalled what he'd clearly witnessed himself.
Yuriko nodded and pondered what needed to be done. She sighed and spoke to Rika.
"Rika-san, can you escort me to your commander?"
Honestly, she was going to be blunt. She had no desire to dance around the issue, inventing subtle and elegant plans to get the group commander to listen to her. The fact that he supported her husband running for Prime Minister before the apocalypse was just something that would help her secure his favor and his forces.
She would simply show him power, tell him something that would grab his attention, and then persuade him to get rid of Shido's squad. There shouldn't be any major problems.
Rika pondered for a moment, then nodded as if she'd made a decision. She glanced back at the man she had disliked ever since he arrived yesterday—the man who was carelessly chatting with Souichiro, unaware that the probability of his death today was incredibly high.
Tsurugi Ururu
Ugh... He was so fucking tired... he was just so, so exhausted... Why on earth did the Mistress decide he had to come here and wait for her arrival?!
He wasn't stupid enough to drive to a damn airport during a zombie apocalypse! He should be out of the city, heading to a safer place, somewhere far away—maybe even on some smaller island!
But why, out of everyone, did the Mistress send him?! Yes, he was the commander of a whole SAT unit, but there were other people under her command with even more people under them...
It's not that he minded following her orders; in fact, he was probably one of the volunteers who was happy to take this assignment when he heard who he had to fetch. But still, he regretted it! Of course he regretted it! He didn't know he'd have to resolve petty, meaningless quarrels between people while constantly wondering what the hell he was supposed to do with his mission and where he should be looking for the person he was sent for.
"Haa..." He sighed quietly and leaned back in his comfortable chair, propping his feet up on the desk.
Right now, the main problem was that the person he was sent for wasn't anywhere in this fucking airport. He didn't understand why the Mistress thought he'd be here.
The second problem was finding a safe place to dump all these people and return to his Mistress, because he was sick of talking to all these people!
It's too difficult!
And besides, he needed to find that guy! The manga wasn't finished, and he wanted to read it so badly!
The doorknob jiggled. He instantly pulled his feet off the desk and pretended to be deep in thought about something important. He sat up straight, clasping his hands in front of him and resting his head on them.
Those who entered the room were: Rika Minami, their sniper; Tajima something-or-other—he couldn't remember the guy's last name—her partner; some incredibly beautiful blonde; and behind her... Yuriko Takagi? Hm, if she was here, Souichiro Takagi must be nearby, too... fuck, he's talking to Shihido right now, isn't he?
"Oh, welcome." He stood up and spread his arms. Damn, he wasn't even ready to meet them! He didn't even know they were here! Rika, that willful woman, could have at least warned him before escorting them here! "Rika, Tajima," He nodded to them, then walked around the desk toward Yuriko Takagi and the blonde woman. "Mistress Takagi, and..." He extended his hand to shake hers, and she returned the grip.
"Shizuka Marikawa." She waved her hand with a calm smile, making him smile back at her.
"Then, Marikawa-san." He nodded to her, then gestured for them both to take a seat, while Rika and Tajima remained standing. "Sit, please. It would be rude for guests to stand at the desk." He then sat back in his own chair, looking with interest at Yuriko Takagi, who sat down in the chair in front of him. "So, what miracle brings you here? I don't imagine you'd be happy to leave your safer mansion—don't take that as an insult."
"No offense taken." She nodded calmly and looked him straight in the eyes. "In fact, my primary mission, given to me by my Master, was to deliver Rika—Shizuka's friend—to our base safe and sound, after which we intended to sail away. But a secondary mission was to try and rescue any civilians we found here."
Hm, Master? Is she talking about her husband, or someone else? I don't quite get who could be giving orders to the wife of a Prime Ministerial candidate. He looked at her with confusion, saw her sigh, and became even more intrigued.
"Yes, you're right. Recently, my husband began serving a young man, and that man is Isao Tsumugi, who is the one who sent me here."
Wait, what? No, that's impossible! How lucky is this guy?! HA-HA-HA! This makes everything so much easier!
"Beg your pardon?" Yuriko called out to him, looking at him with confusion. "I didn't catch your name?"
"Forgive me, Yuriko-san, I'm still a bit worked up that you've arrived and forgot to introduce myself. I am Tsurugi Ururu, you can call me whatever you like!" He smiled, trying not to show his inner emotions.
Yes, he'd definitely get along with her! No, not just get along—he's ready to follow all her orders for now, as long as she finally takes him to Isao Tsumugi, the person his Mistress sent him for!
Goddamn, finally! He'd be able to get Sakino Meito's autograph!
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