Chapter 18

We walked on the road. There were human signs from here and there, and we ignored them. We were not saviors. I don't know if there were any saviors. In a situation like our current world, taking in some of these useless girls is already the limit of what anyone can do. Maybe someone can try to save everyone. Perhaps they will be successful, but I can guess most who tries to be savior will fail. Life is not a fairy tale where everything goes along the plan. Where everything correctly falls into place after some time.

We walked on the road. Today I was walking with the girls. I am curious about what they talk about the whole day. They talk a lot, to be honest. After listening to them for a while, I am bored out of my existence. From the things that happened months ago where everything was alright to the things they are seeing right now, everything was up for discussion, and the girls were cheerful to talk about all this shit the whole day.

Regis walked to the side of Aria; he took the duty of protecting her and, at the same time, commenting on the things she was talking about and making her laugh. The boy was trying hard. I don't think he should try so much. The world is not in the same place where it was months ago. To be honest, not only these girls, as we have seen in the morning, everyone, regardless of gender, feels much inferior compared to the demeanor they used to have. The guy who looked like he was the boss of many people, I can guarantee that he used to live proudly. But now? For his life, he would kneel in front of others for his family.

Strength is important in these times. Strength is the key to doing what you want to do. I looked at Dana, Aria, and Linda; although they were annoying, I didn't want anything to happen to them.

"Watch it!" I bumped into Lucy and hit my head on her sword while she was the one to ask me to watch! I slightly frowned. Before anything, 'Why was she standing still?'

Well, I found my answer soon enough. A sharp smell hit my nose with the wind. The area in front of me was like a swamp. What the hell? I quickly dropped my bag and grabbed the map. No, the small town we are going to is supposed to be this way, and there shouldn't be any swamp of this size. The map was correct, and we followed the correct route, which meant this area transformed after the world fell into chaos. I looked at the swamp to completely change terrain like this! What in the world happened here.

Suddenly the feeling of fear came back to me. As if I was suppressed to the ground.

"There's a strong demon here somewhere!" I said. I came to Lucy's side; others stood behind us while Regis was already armed with a pistol. Linda had a skillet in her hand. This shows that she is our cook, but at the same time, the girl wants to fight. Fool!

"Not 'a' demon; there's a lot of them. And they are not sleeping like the other ones." Lucy said.

If there are a lot of them, then there would be a group fight. I don't have a weapon, and Lucy is not a fighter meant to fight groups of enemies. She is a heavy hitter, and her attacks take time to brew.

I looked around but was disappointed to find nothing that could be used as a weapon. I felt helpless. What I thought about Regis, I also thought about myself. I used to be a fat boy, ignored by everyone. This made me never like anyone, and I kind of feel myself being in the same position as Regis. The boy is a smooth talker, but I don't think he has met another girl of his age before. I looked at Lucy; she was strong. In this dire time, strength draws in people. Dana and Aria followed me, which is the same reason I was attracted to Lucy. But seeing Regis, strength makes a difference. If I were to be stronger than Lucy, things would have been different from the start. Or maybe I am overthinking as I do not understand this part of life.

Whatever! Times changed. Even a girl who was supposed to have a weaker body than boys are stronger than me. I looked at a signpost a few tens of meters into the swamp. The road disappeared inside the green water with overgrowth. I cannot see where the swamp even ends.

"Regis, stay here, and bring out a rifle." I looked at the boy as he nodded. "Linda, stay lookout for anything from the back; inform Regis if anything suspicious." The girl didn't want to feel small, so I gave her a task that she could put her mind into.

I looked at Lucy, "I am going to test the waters. See how they react; help me if I am in trouble." I took a deep breath and activated < Touch of Gaia >.

"Convert my fat into energy." After mentally giving this command, as my body was getting hotter, I dashed into the shallow waters in the direction of the signpost. It can last a while if I can grab that, and I would not be empty-handed.

After touching the waters the first time, I felt as if the whole swamp was alive. Frog-like creatures were visible under the water. Too large to be any of the species that used to live on the planet. Or at least I haven't heard of any three feet long frogs. At least not in this country. The eyes of these creatures were bigger than their mouth. I kept running, but these things looked like they were waiting for me to either run far into the swamp or wait for other creatures to attack.

I was halfway to the signpost when I saw activities on my left; a massive jaw seemed to open and tried to bite off my left arm. It was lightning quick, but a bullet that smashed it sideways was even faster and deadlier. The boy knows how to shoot. I smiled a little. I know Dana must be biting her lips right now. She worries too much about me.

Before grabbing the signpost and hurling it upwards, I could see the frog-like creatures with massive eyes jumping toward me. I swiped the signpost three hundred and sixty degrees. To my surprise, there was still a chunk of concrete attached to the signpost, and it hit all the frog-like creatures like a hammer and threw them away. No wonder the signpost felt heavy.

I dropped it in the one and half feet deep water as my pants got loose. If I ignore it, I might have to show the girls the color of my underwear.

"Regis, cover, please!" I tightened the belt as fast as possible, but more of the alligator-like creatures swam toward me. It seemed like the water was deeper, further away from the road. The pavement is barely visible in some places. The signs from here and there and the barricade in the turns made it easier to guess where the road was under the water.

Regis had already fired four times as I finished tightening my belt, and Lucy was in the air. She was jumping that high with a sword of that size! Damn girl!