Only the two little girls remained in the vehicle, faces pressed to the window as they watched the older girls reveal a glimpse of a world that felt like magic.
Alice kept cheering, clapping happily every time one of the girls brought a corpse down.
Myu stayed much quieter. She only watched Saeko, the strongest among them, as Saeko danced alone through the dead with fluid, effortless grace. Admiration and longing shone in Myu's eyes.
The rear guard was left to the girls, while Ryuji sprinted toward the stalled business van ahead.
✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦
Inside a large business van in motion.
"Kiriko, don't worry. Rei is with Saya. They'll be fine." A mature woman with long purple hair tried to soothe another woman with short brown hair.
"I… I know, but I'm still worried. You know Rei's personality…"
"We'll reach the school soon. Try to think positively."
Even as she spoke, the purple-haired woman's own worry refused to settle.
Just then, a female bodyguard in black approached with a grave expression, "Lady Takagi, there are a large number of corpses ahead. Should we change our route?"
Yuriko Takagi peered through the windshield. A mass of corpses clogged the road.
"Can we push straight through?"
It was the fastest route to Fujimi Academy, and Yuriko refused to waste time.
"Yes, but it will be very rough. Please hold on to the handles, Lady Takagi and Lady Miyamoto."
The business van surged forward and slammed into the horde.
Screech…
Not long after, the vehicle shuddered and died.
The abrupt stop threw Yuriko and Kiriko into the seat backs. Their soft chests absorbed most of the impact.
Rubbing her throbbing forehead, Yuriko asked, stunned, "What happened? Why did the car stop?"
"Lady Takagi, the vehicle appears to have been sabotaged."
"What?" Yuriko stared toward the driver's seat, shock tightening her features.
Thoughts raced. Then she remembered this morning: the moment she told her husband in name only, Souichiro Takagi, that she and Kiriko would go pick up their daughters, and the strange look that had crossed his face.
Clinging to a final shred of hope, Yuriko asked, "Who serviced the van?"
"Matt, Lady Takagi."
"I see." Yuriko sank into the leather seat, a knowing, helpless smile tugging at her lips, "So we really are the same. Neither of us ever treated the other as family."
"Was it him?" Kiriko finally understood, turning to Yuriko for confirmation. When Yuriko nodded, Kiriko let out a long sigh, "He meant to silence both of us."
Yuriko shook her head after a moment, "No. He wanted us to pick up our daughters… and never come back. If all he wanted was to stop us, it wouldn't have been this clean."
Once she had calmed down, she finally understood Souichiro's intent.
"It's just that our luck was too bad."
"Lady Takagi, there's a school bus approaching from the front."
Yuriko rose and moved toward the driver's compartment. Not far away, a medium-sized school bus had stopped.
Through the glass, she could make out only two people: a mature woman in the driver's seat and a handsome young man watching their van.
Judging by the lack of visible armed escorts, Yuriko was about to wave them away when she spotted a massive horde charging the bus from behind.
At this distance they would never hear her, so she frantically motioned at the young man, urging them to leave at once.
To the women's astonishment, the people on the bus did not flee. Instead, everyone got out.
What followed shattered everything they thought they knew about the world.
A group of young, beautiful girls met the oncoming corpses head-on, unafraid. Multicolored orbs of light bloomed in their hands and streaked into the horde. Others plunged in with weapons, cutting a path through the dead.
And that young man sprinted straight toward the business van.
In his hands, the corpses were nothing but paper. One punch sent a body flying. One kick toppled a whole cluster.
✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦
[Ding! Energy points +10, remaining energy points: 10250]
Minutes later, the horde lay eradicated. Bodies carpeted the road, and the women in the van could only stare, speechless.
The van door swung open, and Yuriko led Kiriko and the other women outside.
"Mother!!!" ×2
Yuriko had barely drawn breath to thank their savior when two delighted cries rang out.
She and Kiriko turned to see their daughters running toward them.
"Saya!"
"Rei!"
Mothers and daughters collided in tight embraces, smiles breaking through the terror of the day.
Ryuji watched from the side, unable to deny the heat that rose in him. Both mothers and daughters were strikingly curvaceous.
As they hugged, soft bodies pressed together, pulling at their clothing and revealing teasing hints at their necklines.
The two mothers, dressed for movement, wore short skirts and stockings. The sleek black fabric drew the eye all the more.
Sensing Ryuji's gaze, they separated from their daughters with a touch of awkwardness.
Rei and Saya then hurried to explain what had happened. The moment Ryuji's name came up, both girls grew bashful.
Yuriko and Kiriko noticed immediately. Understanding dawned, and their eyes turned to Ryuji with open curiosity.
If they had known their daughters had been won over in less than two days, who knew what they would have thought.
"Hello, Ryuji-kun. I'm Saya's mother. Thank you for saving my daughter."
"Thank you for saving Rei, Ryuji-kun."
Yuriko and Kiriko stepped forward and bowed deeply in unison.
From Ryuji's angle, the generous curve visible at their collars—no less impressive than Shizuka's—held his attention.
"Uh… you don't need to be so formal." Ryuji scratched his cheek, a little embarrassed, "Looking after my own is just what a man should do. There's no need to thank me."
Behind their mothers, Saya and Rei lowered their heads, cheeks warming as they remembered last night's "big battle".
The moment Yuriko saw her daughter's reaction—and the new, unmistakable confidence in her posture—understanding dawned. Saya had already become a woman.
Kiriko turned to her own daughter, who was just as flustered.
"Rei… don't tell me you, too?"
"Mm…"
Kiriko let out a helpless sigh.
Even knowing her daughter was sharing the same man with other women, she could not bring herself to be angry. Standing before her was a handsome young man who had just saved them all.
"Oh ho ho. Ryuji-kun is so dependable. No wonder my daughter likes you." Yuriko's smile held no trace of anger, only approval, "If Saya has chosen you, then I'll be entrusting her to you from now on."
She knew her daughter well. If Saya did not deny it, then she had already accepted, in her heart, that she belonged by Ryuji's side.
And Yuriko was not worried. She trusted her daughter's judgment.
Ryuji, however, could feel it clearly: the way the two mature beauties looked at him had shifted, now carrying the kind of admiration reserved for an ideal son-in-law.
"Ahem. We're heading somewhere the corpses can't get in." Ryuji glanced at both mothers, "What do you plan to do?"
Saya and Rei immediately caught his meaning and clung to their mothers' arms, acting cute.
"Mom, come with us."
"That's right. Ryuji-kun will protect us."
"All right, all right. Stop shaking me." Yuriko laughed softly, "We'll come with you."
They had come to rescue their daughters, and after finally reuniting, they had nowhere else to go. Even without the girls' pleading, they would have chosen to follow.
Just like that, the convoy grew from one vehicle to two, and the group gained six more people: the two ladies and four female bodyguards.
Yuriko's taste was impeccable. The four bodyguards might not match the main girls, but they were beauties in their own right.
The total headcount rose to twenty-eight—still seventy-two short of the target. Unfortunately, Hime did not count.
✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦
Two hours later, Ryuji's group drove along the coastal highway and spotted the abandoned prison island rising from the sea.
Another half hour on the road brought them to a private dock, the kind only the wealthy could afford. A medium-sized cruise ship, large enough to hold more than three hundred people, still sat moored there.
Ryuji led the girls up the steps and onto the ship, only to find dozens of corpses wandering the corridors.
As the group cleared the decks, Ryuji made an unexpected discovery.
There was a survivor.
He found a little loli cowering inside a storage cabinet. She wore a light-blue princess dress, her long gray hair spilling over her shoulders, blue eyes brimming with tears. Yellow drops stained the floor beneath the door.
Ryuji couldn't help wondering whether all little lolis liked hiding in cramped cabinets and wetting themselves…
"Waaah… I-I didn't mean to… don't spank me… wuuu…"
Maybe it was because he just stared without speaking, but the girl's fear and humiliation finally overflowed, and she burst into sobs.
Ryuji snapped out of it. He lifted her into his arms and soothed her gently.
When he pulled a lollipop from his Personal Space and placed it in her mouth, she calmed down at last and managed a small, shy smile.
By the time Ryuji carried her to the bow, Alice and Myu came running over.
Seeing the gray-haired loli quietly licking the candy in his arms, Alice gasped, "Wow, who's this little sister? She's so cute!"
Woof woof??
Hime trotted up to Ryuji's feet, craning her neck to stare at the newcomer.
"Her name is Tohno Murasaki. I found her in a bedroom on the third floor…"
{T/N: I based her appearance on Aiko Ninomiya. In case you're wondering, no, I don't watch these anime. I just search for something that matches the description, then pick the character that fits best.}
Ryuji averted his eyes, unable to bring himself to admit that, like Alice, this little one had also been discovered in a cabinet.
"Tohno-chan, there's a big pool over there. Want to go play together?"
Thrilled to have a sister younger than herself, Alice immediately tried to pull Tohno toward the public pool at the bow.
Tohno glanced at Ryuji. After he nodded, she slid down from his arms and let Alice lead her away.
Woof!!
Hime's tail wagged furiously as she bounded after them.
"Hm? Why aren't you going with them?" Ryuji crouched beside Myu and ran a hand through her straight black hair.
"Ryuji, I want to sign the contract too."
Myu's golden eyes shimmered as she spoke, and the words stopped him cold.
Before he could respond, soft lips brushed the corner of his mouth.
It was gone in an instant. When Ryuji blinked back to himself, Myu was already jogging after Alice and the others, leaving only her petite back in his view.
✦✦✦
T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
If you want 20 chapters ahead of this novel for just $1, as well as smut chapters ($2) or spicy images ($5) or enjoy a large catalog of good novels with excellent translations (free or starting at $1.5): MrBlackWing (you know where to search)
That's it and happy reading! (-‿◦)