"Chapter 230: Adventure Time"

Alex sat off to the side, taking a drag from his cigarette as he gazed thoughtfully at the star-filled night sky. In the distance, he could hear Takashi's voice as he spoke with Gloria. Alex was satisfied that he had managed to find David's reincarnation—this meant Gloria could finally put her worries to rest. However, another issue loomed ahead—Takashi's training.

Alex knew perfectly well that, before his reincarnation, David had a hero complex. He would rush to save his friends, even if it meant sacrificing himself. Judging by Takashi's actions, this trait had carried over into his new life. Alex smirked, finding it an amusing twist of fate—their personalities were almost identical.

Exhaling a puff of smoke, he pushed aside unnecessary thoughts and focused on his plans. If Takashi continued his reckless habit of throwing himself into danger, he wouldn't last long. Alex decided to take his training seriously—to make sure the kid didn't die prematurely. As long as Alex had unfinished business in this world, he wouldn't allow Takashi to perish.

The thought of training brought a wide grin to his face. The best option was to turn Takashi into the perfect shinobi—agile, deadly, and cold-blooded. Already envisioning the trials that awaited his new apprentice, Alex took another drag and grinned even wider.

Meanwhile, Takashi continued his conversation with Gloria, blissfully unaware of the grueling training Alex was planning for him. Suddenly, though, a shiver ran down his spine, as if some unknown premonition warned him of the hardships to come. He quickly glanced around and locked eyes with Alex—only to see his predatory smile.

"Shit… He's up to something," flashed through Takashi's mind.

Gloria noticed his distraction and looked at him with concern.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Oh, nothing… Just the cold," he lied quickly, trying not to reveal his unease.

Gloria nodded, deciding not to dwell on it, and continued asking her son about his life. As their conversation went on, warmth filled Takashi's heart—it felt good to once again experience a mother's care, as if he had finally found a missing piece of himself.

He spoke openly about his childhood, but when he reached his teenage years, he hesitated. That period of his life was far from pleasant.

Alex, who had been silently listening until now, snorted and smirked before butting in.

"Just admit you were a complete idiot back then. What's there to be shy about? She's your mother—she'll understand."

Takashi's face twisted in irritation as laughter erupted in the background. The girls, who had also been listening in, couldn't hold back their amusement. Even Gloria let out a quiet chuckle.

Hearing his mother laugh felt strange… but nice. Takashi sighed and finally started talking about his youth—the kind of guy he was, the mistakes he made. Gloria didn't judge him; instead, she offered advice on how he should have handled those situations.

A shudder ran through Takashi. Her advice felt painfully familiar.

"Mom, I've long outgrown that phase," he reminded her. "I don't need these lessons anymore."

But of course, Gloria continued, as if she hadn't heard him.

"David, have you found yourself a girlfriend yet?" she asked out of nowhere.

"Pfff—" A barely restrained chuckle came from Alex.

Takashi felt his eye twitch.

Hearing muffled laughter from the background, Takashi's face darkened with frustration. Gloria immediately understood why he was still single—it was his melancholic nature. She merely sighed, smiled, and proceeded to give him a few tips on how to start a relationship.

Takashi, listening to her advice, could only nod silently and quietly justify himself, saying that during a zombie apocalypse, it was difficult to find a partner. However, suddenly, an idea flashed in his head. He realized he could shift the conversation to Alex to put him in an awkward position.

"Actually," Takashi began with an innocent look, "a lot of girls are always hanging around Alex. They even sleep in the same room with him."

Saying this, he looked at Alex with a victorious smile, clearly hoping to catch him off guard. However, Alex just scoffed dismissively, unimpressed by such a childish trick.

"Son, we're talking about you right now, not your 'father.' I'd be surprised if no one was interested in him and instead avoided him," Gloria calmly noted, looking at her son.

"But he... Mom, aren't you even a little jealous?" Takashi tried to maneuver.

"Sweetheart, I live under the same roof as the Goddess of Love. What do you think?" Gloria replied with a slight smirk.

Takashi couldn't find a response and just hung his head in defeat. He had tried to throw Alex under the bus, only to end up getting run over himself. And on top of everything, his own mother had just practically admitted that Alex was like a father figure to him. Realizing this, his face stretched even further in dismay.

"Fine... I'll definitely find myself a girlfriend in the future," he muttered with a heavy sigh.

"Don't worry, Gloria, I'll try to help him, but I won't interfere," Alex's voice sounded.

Takashi was about to snap back, but when he turned around, he met Alex's amused gaze. He just sighed irritably—accepting the fact that his 'stepdad' was nearly the same age as him was proving difficult.

"And anyway, don't even dream that I'll ever call you dad! We're the same age, and just the thought of it makes me sick!" he declared in disgust.

"Oh, is that so? Actually, I can look any age I want—this one is just the most convenient," Alex shrugged indifferently.

Takashi didn't immediately understand what he meant. But before he could ask, Alex suddenly shrank and turned into a twelve-year-old boy, proving his point.

Seeing this, Takashi stared at him in complete shock, his mouth opening so wide that a fist could fit inside.

Noticing his reaction, Alex jumped off his chair and stepped closer.

"Now call me dad," he said in a child's voice.

"This is too much..." Takashi groaned, struggling to accept reality.

Laughter erupted from the girls watching Gloria and Takashi's conversation with clear amusement. Still in his childlike form, Alex waved at Gloria. She just smiled and gently asked him not to tease her son too much—after all, he still needed time to adjust to all of this.

"I can't promise anything," Alex shrugged with a mischievous grin.

They continued chatting for a while, but soon Alex reminded them that they had to leave the city in the morning. Takashi needed a good night's sleep since he had his own responsibilities as well.

"Son, I know your character and the kind of person you are," Gloria looked at him intently. "So please, don't get yourself into trouble. I don't want you dying again and forcing Alex to search for your reincarnation."

"I know, Mom. I'll be careful," Takashi nodded, lowering his head.

"Don't worry, Gloria, I'll keep an eye on him. And I'll start training him. Whether he wants to or not, he'll have to ignite the flames of his youth!" Alex said with a grin, returning to his usual form and giving a thumbs-up.

"I trust you, Alex. And you, son, listen to your father. You wouldn't think it, but he's a very responsible person and knows what he's doing. He's saved more than one world and knows more than you can even imagine. So learn everything from him that will help you survive," Gloria reminded.

"I know, Mom, but… can I not call him 'father'? It feels… weird," Takashi muttered awkwardly.

"Do as you wish, kid. But you're still going to train," Alex replied, ruffling his hair.

Gloria wasn't actually insisting that her son call Alex his father, and Alex himself didn't particularly care to hear it from a teenager.

After saying goodbye to Gloria, Alex ended the call. Once her hologram disappeared, Takashi stood there for a while, staring at the spot where his mother's face had been. Alex patted his shoulder in support.

"This won't be your last meeting. In the future, you'll be able to see her much more often," he reminded him. "And don't forget, you have another mother in this world."

Takashi nodded, and a fire lit up in his eyes. He had made a decision—to become stronger and protect his family. In his past life, when he lived in Night City, he didn't have the strength to protect anyone, not even himself. But now… now he would do whatever it took.

Seeing his determination, Alex nodded in satisfaction.

"Alright, time for you to sleep. Tomorrow will be a long day—lots of work and hours on your feet. You'll need your strength," he reminded him.

Takashi agreed. Tomorrow, they would be leaving the city to begin their journey to Okinawa. Standing up from his chair, he glanced at Alex, unsure of how to address him now.

"Oh, right, almost forgot," Alex pulled a shotgun and a pistol from his inventory. "Here, as promised. Pulling weapons out of thin air in a crowd isn't very convenient."

"You could've just made up some bullshit about technology or something to avoid explaining," Takashi grumbled, taking the weapons.

"Too lazy," Alex waved him off.

Takashi muttered something under his breath in annoyance and went off to bed.

Once he went downstairs, Alex was left alone, thinking about what to do until morning. His first thought was to take a walk around the city and check the situation—make sure nothing would interfere with their departure. But laziness won out. Instead, he simply used a mana pulse, spreading it throughout the entire city.

He acted with extreme caution to ensure no one would notice. After all, a pulse capable of covering an entire city could attract attention if used carelessly.

When the pulse returned, Alex began analyzing the data. Something caught his interest.

Some zombies were different from the rest. Besides the mutated ones, which was to be expected, he noticed something else. Inside certain zombies, there was… an additional life force.

"Parasites?" Alex immediately thought.

The first thing that came to mind was Las Plagas, but Alex immediately dismissed that idea. People infected with Plagas looked no different from ordinary humans; only their behavior resembled that of puppets.

Then what was this?

Alex started going through possible explanations but couldn't find a definitive answer. Deciding to set those thoughts aside for now, he realized that they might be facing a new problem in the near future…

Not wanting to move unnecessarily, Alex chose to watch a movie with the trio of troublemakers. As soon as he turned it on, GIR, MIMI, and Stitch immediately climbed onto him, getting comfortable.

Unnoticed by Alex, morning arrived, and the sun began rising over the horizon. He turned his head toward the sunrise, squinted slightly, and realized that soon everyone would be waking up.

Lighting a cigarette, Alex decided to give everyone time to fully wake up and have breakfast. After a while, Valmet came up to the roof. Alex was slightly surprised to see her up so early. He was curious about what had made her get up at such an hour. Valmet simply explained that she had decided to warm up before breakfast. Alex nodded but didn't insist that she save her strength just in case.

Watching Valmet stretch and train, Alex didn't notice when Namiyo joined him on the roof, holding a cup of coffee meant for him. Thanking her, he took a sip of the hot drink and continued watching Valmet's training while also thinking about workouts for the guys who wanted to become stronger.

Alex remembered that he still had some weighted gear in his inventory, which he had used to train the girls from his family as well as members of Freya's and Loki's familias.

Finishing her warm-up, Valmet, slightly sweaty, sat down next to Alex to catch her breath and relax.

Wanting to get to know her better, Alex started a casual conversation. He could have just read her dossier and learned everything he needed, but that would have been boring, so he preferred to hear it directly from Valmet herself.

Valmet didn't hide her past, especially the story of how she lost one of her eyes. Alex could only sympathize with her—during that operation, her entire squad had been wiped out, and she was the only survivor. Afterward, she had been dishonorably discharged from the army, and only then did she meet Koko and begin working for her.

Their conversation was interrupted by Koko suddenly running onto the roof and calling them downstairs.

When Alex, Valmet, and Koko went down, everyone was already gathered, waiting for him. He noticed that Takashi, standing next to Namiyo, looked exhausted, with dark circles under his eyes. Judging by his appearance, the boy hadn't slept all night. Feeling Alex's gaze, Takashi only rolled his eyes.

Shaking his head, Alex stepped forward and spoke loudly:

"As I usually say, good morning and welcome to another day in Zombieland. Today, we're finally leaving this city and heading out in search of a safe place. Our current route leads to the nearest port, located a few kilometers from here. Let me remind you of the basic rules. Each vehicle will have someone with a radio for communication. We do not stop until we reach the port. We have a group of children with us, and their safety comes first."

Everyone nodded seriously. Making sure they were listening, Alex continued:

"There should be a ferry at the port big enough to take us to Okinawa. However, a ferry isn't a car—it will move slowly, and you need to understand that. We'll likely have to stop in some coastal towns to restock essential supplies. But first, we need to secure the ferry, and from there, we'll act according to the situation. That's all. Time to pack up and move out."

Everyone nodded in agreement and began taking their places in the vehicles. Some took on the responsibility of driving the bus with the children, while others occupied different transport. From early morning, a hustle began—people checked their belongings, gathered what they needed, making sure not to forget anything.

Alex took GIR, MIMI, and Stitch with him to grab a few spare parts just in case. Stepping outside with his bags, he saw women and children being seated in the bus. He himself got onto his motorcycle and waited for everyone to be ready. Glancing at his watch, he estimated that they could depart by nine in the morning.

GIR, MIMI, and Stitch took up positions near the turrets on the vehicles, while the girls chose a separate car to travel as a group. Once everyone was ready, Alex explained the movement formation: the bus with the children had to be in the center of the convoy. After checking the communication between all vehicles, he started his motorcycle engine and moved forward at a moderate pace, ensuring no one was left behind.

Leaving the city, the group drove onto a wide road where maintaining formation became easier. Passing by burned-down houses and abandoned farms, many looked at the scene of destruction with heavy hearts.

"I didn't think it would be this bad here..." Saya murmured thoughtfully, looking out the window. "I was sure that all those explosions and the noise Alex made in the last few days should have attracted even more undead to the city."

"I don't think it was the zombies," Brunhilde said quietly. "It was probably people. People are far scarier than any monsters or zombies. While monsters act on instinct, humans commit horrifying things for their own pleasure. I wonder how Adam would have reacted if he saw what his children have become..."

Alex nodded in agreement but didn't want to dwell on how Adam would have reacted upon seeing what his descendants had turned into. Would he continue to protect them, or would he be completely disillusioned?

The girls looked at Brunhilde with curiosity after hearing her mention Adam.

"Why do you keep talking about Adam? Are you religious or something?" Saya asked, eyeing her skeptically.

"Weren't you taught that you are the children of Adam and Eve?" Brunhilde shrugged. "I just said what came to mind while looking at all this nightmare outside the window. After all, it wasn't monsters who created this—it was humans."

Saya could only nod but didn't miss the chance to challenge her words by mentioning Darwin's theory of evolution. However, Brunhilde was not Rebecca and had no intention of getting into a debate.

Realizing this, Saya sighed in disappointment, but as luck would have it, she soon found a worthy opponent—Rebecca. Upon hearing about the theory of evolution, Rebecca immediately joined the discussion, and now, instead of listening to Saya's lectures, everyone watched yet another heated debate between the two girls.

Alex, hearing the entire conversation through the communicator, simply continued driving forward in silence, attentively scanning the road to notice anything suspicious in time. He wouldn't be too pleased if a special infected like a Tank or Charger suddenly ambushed their convoy.

He reminded his trio of troublemakers to stay alert and keep watch over their surroundings. However, the road ahead remained relatively calm, aside from the occasional lone zombie crossing their path and the picturesque fields stretching on either side of the road. One might even say the journey was surprisingly peaceful.

Reaching the next small town, Alex slowed down and signaled the group not to rush. Pulling out a map, he checked their route to make sure they had arrived at the right place.

"Everything checks out," he muttered under his breath before waving his hand, signaling the convoy to continue forward.

After driving a little further, Alex stopped about a kilometer from the port. From here, they could already make out what was happening. The convoy gradually slowed down, and people began getting out of their vehicles, eager to understand the situation.

Sitting on his motorcycle, Alex formed his hands into the shape of binoculars and started "scanning" the port.

When the others approached and saw what he was doing, they didn't know whether to laugh or be concerned for his mental state.

"You see anything interesting?" Shizuka asked curiously.

"Wanna take a look yourself?" Alex smirked, offering her his "binoculars."

Shizuka nodded and obediently folded her hands the same way before peering through them… only to see absolutely nothing.

Silence followed. Then, a chorus of laughter erupted.

"Well, I can't see anything!" Shizuka pouted. "Your hand-binoculars are definitely broken."

"I'd be more surprised if they actually worked," Rika chuckled, grabbing Shizuka's cheek. "If hands really worked as binoculars, we wouldn't need real ones."

Alex laughed and then asked Rebecca to scout the situation in the port. He already knew what was happening, but it was better for her to examine the area and explain it to the others herself.

Climbing onto his shoulders, Rebecca pulled a rifle scope from her pocket and began surveying the port, narrating everything she saw so everyone could get the full picture.

From her report, it was clear that a group of people had taken over the port, and judging by their behavior, they were far from friendly. Alex asked about the size of the ferry and whether it could accommodate their vehicles.

Rebecca shifted her focus to the ferry, estimating its dimensions.

"I think there's enough room to load the vehicles and supplies. But the real question is, how do we take it? And what do we do about those losers squatting in the port?" she said, hopping down from Alex's shoulders.

"Well, we're waiting for your orders, kid. You're the leader, after all," Lehm added, lighting a cigarette.

Alex nodded and unfolded a map of the port area. He asked Rebecca to mark the enemy positions and the ferry's location. Once the markers were set, he lit a cigarette and stared at the map thoughtfully. The others remained silent, waiting for him to come up with a plan.

"What if we distract them with an explosion and sneak onto the ferry while they're busy dealing with zombies?" R suggested.

"Not a bad idea, but there's a risk that there might be people already on the ferry," Alex replied, considering the option. "So here's the plan: GIR, MIMI, and Stitch will sneak into the port for reconnaissance and plant explosives. Rebecca and Rika will cover them. The rest will split into groups. Once the explosion goes off, the enemies will be distracted, and we can hijack the ferry."

"And what will you be doing, kid?" Lehm asked, flicking the ash from his cigarette.

Alex smirked and gave a thumbs-up.

"I'll infiltrate the ferry and clear it in case anyone's there."

"And how exactly do you plan on doing that? Gonna run across the water like a real ninja?" Lutz smirked.

"You're absolutely right—I am a ninja," Alex replied with a completely serious expression, forming a hand seal.

Immediately, GIR, MIMI, and Stitch mimicked him, also forming seals and chanting, "Nin-nin."

The guys burst into laughter, while the girls exchanged glances. But none of them actually doubted that Alex was fully capable of pulling off something like that.

Meanwhile, G.I.R., MIMI, and Stitch pulled black ninja suits out of their tiny bags and began putting them on. Now, the trio of troublemakers had fully transformed into mini-ninjas.

"How is it even possible to fit these costumes into such small bags?" Koko asked, amazed, as she examined their gear.

"It's a special material," Alex explained smugly. "Do you think I don't pamper my little ones? Heh, I do! As for the functions of these suits, that's still a secret."

"You're such a miser," Koko pouted, playfully kicking Alex in the leg.

"Heh. Alright, my little geniuses, time to head out on the mission. You know what to do. And please, no premature explosions."

"Yeah... probably," G.I.R., MIMI, and Stitch nodded uncertainly.

"Well then, indoor ninjas, march!" Alex waved his hand, sending them off.

G.I.R., MIMI, and Stitch took off with gleeful laughter, acting like real ninjas. Alex sighed tiredly, fully aware that those three were bound to cause some trouble. Everything he said earlier had probably gone in one ear and out the other.

"Do you think they listened to you?" Saeko asked, standing nearby.

"Not at all. Trusting them is asking for trouble," Alex replied with a weary tone.

"Are they really that disobedient?" Valmet asked, raising an eyebrow slightly.

"On their own, they're perfectly fine. But when they get together, an entire city could burn down just for their amusement. They're like three domestic gremlins — give them an excuse, and everything around will be in flames," Alex said, realizing that maybe sending them out wasn't the best idea.

"Oh, stop it. My little ones will handle the task," Rebecca waved him off, then nudged Alex. "Now go on, get our future ferry!"

Alex shook his head, but he turned around and rushed toward the water. Reaching the shore, he pondered: should he run on water like a true ninja, or just dive in and swim? Weighing the pros and cons, he came to the obvious conclusion — he didn't want to get wet, so he'd have to use his abilities.

Gathering speed, Alex ran on water, carefully observing the port. A couple of seconds later, he spotted two men guarding the area and immediately signaled Rika and Rebecca. Two silent shots — and the guards fell. Alex continued, reaching the ferry, nimbly jumping aboard, and hiding behind a wall.

Using his mana pulse, he determined the number of people on the ship and their locations. Drawing a knife from his inventory, he silently began eliminating opponents one by one. Another body was tossed overboard, and Alex checked the remaining enemies. The last group was in the control cabin.

Deciding to have a little fun, he passed through the wall, drawing the attention of the people inside. The men turned pale, their legs giving way when they saw a man literally emerge from the wall. With a wide grin, Alex released some mana — black spears appeared from the shadows and instantly pierced the bodies of the enemies.

"Finished. How's it going on your end?" he asked, dragging the bodies to the side of the ship.

"We're ready," Brunhilda answered.

"Great, then…"

But before he could finish, a deafening explosion echoed through the port.

Alex instinctively looked to the side. His eye twitched when he saw that half of the port had simply been reduced to rubble.

"…Damn it," he muttered.

Apparently, G.I.R., MIMI, and Stitch had gone too far again. Deciding not to comment on what had happened, he quickly gave the command to accelerate — that explosion was definitely going to attract a lot of unwanted attention.

Alex jumped off the ferry and sprinted toward the group to cover their retreat. A motorcycle zoomed past him at breakneck speed, with Rebecca and Rika riding it. As they flew by, Rebecca tossed him a katana.

Grabbing the weapon, Alex drew his pistols and began shooting zombies, covering the convoy of vehicles. At that moment, G.I.R., MIMI, and Stitch sped by him, clearly enjoying the chaos.

"Looking good, we've finished loading!" Rebecca's voice came through the communicator. "G.I.R. took control of the ferry, we're ready to sail."

"Sail on, I'll catch up," Alex replied, not stopping his gunfire.

"Got it, just don't take too long."

Alex turned off the communication and looked ahead. A few zombie tanks were charging toward him at full speed.

"Well, in that case…"

He took a sharp breath and spread his palm, directing it toward the zombie horde.

"Eight Trigrams... Mountain Destroyer!"

A powerful palm strike unleashed a shockwave, scattering the zombie horde in all directions.

The powerful shockwave hit the zombie horde with a booming echo, throwing them all over the place. Their bodies, too fragile against such destructive force, were torn apart into pieces, leaving nothing but bloody scraps. Alex repeated the move a couple more times, thinning out the ranks of the undead before turning and rushing toward the ferry, which was already slowly pulling away.

Looking back, he smirked, surveying the scale of the destruction, then picked up speed and charged forward. At the last moment, he pushed off the ground and, flying several meters, landed gracefully on the ferry's railing, maintaining his balance. When he was met with surprised stares, he simply grinned and gave a thumbs-up.

"That was impressive, for sure," R nodded, still not quite believing what he'd just seen. "If I can do the same after your training, then it'll definitely be worth it."

Alex smirked.

"Heh, after my training, you'll be able to run on water too. But that's still a long way off. For now, everyone can take a break. I'll check on the situation in the control cabin, see how things are, and then we'll decide what to do next."

With that, he headed toward the control cabin. However, as soon as he crossed the threshold, his face twitched slightly — it seemed the girls had already decided to turn the cabin into their personal room. Mattresses, belongings, even some food — everything was comfortably arranged right among the instruments and control panels.

Alex simply shrugged, deciding not to delve into the details. He walked over to G.I.R., who was confidently steering the ferry while MIMI and Stitch checked the equipment. Deciding not to disturb them, Alex sat off to the side, opened a window, and lit a cigarette, watching as the girls continued to make themselves comfortable.

To be continued…

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