Ch.181Chapter 20. Patriot (33)

Maya’s face immediately brightened as she nestled into my arms. As I stroked the back of her head and gently patted her back, she swayed slightly with pleasure.

“Ah, Ali was worried about you.”

No, Ali. Don’t look at me like that. I saved you. I pulled you out from an irreversible ending.

“Hey. I’m fine, so just take care of yourself. What nonsense are you talking about? What are you doing, not leaving?”

Ali disappeared, shooting me a tearful, resentful glance. I smiled and stroked Maya’s head, signaling her to go on ahead.

“She was a good girl, but she’s saying strange things. Don’t worry about it.”

Maya clung to me dangerously close. Just then, I heard the faint sound of helicopter propellers. They’re here. Finally here.

“Maya, can you close your eyes?”

“Why?”

“Fine, don’t then.”

“Oh, alright. I’ll do it. How unromantic.”

Maya closed her eyes and slightly pursed her lips. Meanwhile, I quickly glanced behind me. The RV helicopter was flying around but didn’t seem to have found my position. I raised my arm and waved my hand. Sensing Maya getting impatient, I quickly spoke up.

“Don’t open your eyes. I think Ali likes you.”

“Haa, what does that have to do with anything?”

Maya grabbed my face and pulled me in for a kiss. Desperate to keep her from seeing the RV helicopter, I embraced her tightly and buried her face against my chest. Like a dog that loves its owner, she kept pushing against my solar plexus.

“What does that have to do with anything? I want you, Hoot. If someone likes me, do I have to like them back? I’m not a woman with such low self-esteem.”

Something peeked from the doorway. It was Ali. That guy doesn’t even seem to care about hiding himself anymore. No, Ali. Don’t look. Don’t listen. Why are you hiding by the door!

“You may have countless women around you, but if you fall for me, you won’t be able to escape. Look at me. Even if you brought 130 women like those, they wouldn’t compare to me. You could find out right now if you want…”

I placed my index finger on Maya’s lips to signal her to be quiet. But my aim was a bit off, and it ended up looking like I was pushing my finger between her lips. After a moment of confusion, Maya seemed to understand and began sucking on my finger, rolling it around with her tongue.

“Mmm. Mmmm. Mmmmm…”

Ali clenched his fist and disappeared. The helicopter propeller sound suddenly stopped. Fortunately, Maya still had her eyes closed with her lips pursed. Leaving her to suck on my finger, I checked behind me. I could see the RV helicopter perched on the railing of the building across from us. They must have spotted me properly, so I waved my other hand. A gesture to let them know I was here and they could relax.

* * * * *

City Hall.

Crack.

The armrest of the chair Camilla was sitting on shattered. Leticia was continuously photographing the monitor screen. She tossed the photos into the center of the numerous pictures in the “Evidence Items” folder. Cassandra was softly laughing in the corner of the room, but there was something eerie gleaming in her eyes.

“Hehehe, putting his finger between another woman’s lips… and then waving at us… Hmm. Hmm. He’s taunting us, isn’t he? That’s not what the concentrated pheromone vial was for… Hehehe. He…”

“…We need to change our ‘support plan’ a bit. Any objections?”

Camilla proposed in a sharp voice. Both Leticia and Cassandra agreed.

* * * * *

A few days later. We finally arrived at our destination.

It was May Bridge Institute of Technology. A well-known technical college in Elza, particularly promising in the fields of mechanics and metallurgy. But that was when it functioned as a college, and I couldn’t understand what was so special about this place now.

“Aren’t you going to talk?”

“Aaaah, I’ll talk…”

In the end, I had to bring Catherine to the back seat of an abandoned car for an “interrogation.” Thanks to putting in a bit more effort than usual, Catherine readily spilled the information.

“Like other universities, this place had many students who were particularly rebellious and, haah! hostile to the Elza government. So, aahn…! So, the National Gendarmerie sent in secret police disguised as students or faculty members…”

“And then?”

It was a bit difficult to listen to her confession while not stopping my hand movements. It would have been easier if I had a recorder. Catherine, who had been tight-lipped, finally opened up under indiscriminate stimulation.

May Bridge University, she said, housed the headquarters of the united student council federation. Their mobilization was more active and sometimes even radical.

It made sense that anyone would be like that in a situation where students’ heads were cracked open by gendarmerie batons almost daily, male students were forcibly drafted into the military, and female students were routinely harassed.

What was even more unfortunate was that the students placed at the university were fellow students themselves. It was never with good intentions, but rather filled with malice.

The military “students” had to endure harsh treatment for not sufficiently oppressing their fellow students. Restricted leave was the mild part; they faced violence-filled abuse, ostracism and bullying, and even extended military service periods.

Eventually, the military students split into two groups. One group that beat their former comrades more thoroughly than anyone else to escape their own suffering. The other group that secretly provided support and leaked intelligence despite this.

Of course, the National Gendarmerie valued the latter group. Through this process, they could easily find out who the real power players among the “real” students were. Of course, neither the informants nor the recipients knew this, even in their dreams.

Eventually, the National Gendarmerie received word that an armed struggle was about to take place centered around the university, and they carried out construction work under the pretext of “renovating” the old university laboratory building. From the outside, it looked like a perfectly normal laboratory, but the underground shelter, converted from a bomb shelter, was equipped with facilities, ammunition, and supplies sufficient for at least a company of troops.

If a situation arose, the National Gendarmerie secret police, disguised as students, faculty, or local delivery personnel, would secure the underground facility, arm themselves, and quickly eliminate the “leadership” – that was the plan.

Then the zombie outbreak happened. The mass mobilization fizzled out, and the secret supply base was forgotten. But could this really be the only one?

“How many more of these ‘small supply depots’ are there?”

“Hoo. Ha. Hooo, do you want to know? Hehe…”

We’re both still topless, but now she’s eyeing my pants too. A place I’ve absolutely refused to expose since that day.

“I want to know. I’ll reward you if you tell me.”

“Why, why do you want to know? Can’t you just give me the reward?”

“…Then, just your hand. Not too deep. Just to the lower abdomen.”

I loosened my belt to make it easier for her. Her white, delicate hand, though slightly calloused, slipped in. Pure amazement appeared on her face.

“Wow. The muscles…”

“I told you not to go down.”

“If I just reach a little further, I could get something delicious. Could you resist that, Hoot?”

I gently wrapped my hand around her wrist. A signal not to go further down, but also implying that I might give her what she wanted depending on the circumstances.

“How many more of these secret bases are there?”

“…Can I be honest? You won’t get angry, right?”

“Depends on your answer.”

“I don’t know.”

Catherine shook her head. Naturally disappointed, I lifted her wrist slightly. Sure enough, she pressed her fingers firmly against my lower abdomen. It’s fortunate she kept her nails short; otherwise, she might have pierced through.

“But! But! I know who sponsored all of this. And I know who knows everything. It’s the Order!”

“…The Order?”

Catherine’s eyes glistened. Her intelligence had long since disappeared, consumed by thirst for pleasure. What remained was just empty void and endless hunger. If her eyes were a bit more cloudy, she would look no different from a zombie.

“I won’t say the Order is behind all of this. That’s not true. But the Order has contributed to all of this to some extent, and they’re the ones making the best use of it! The reason the Order has been growing since the zombie outbreak is because they’ve been acquiring these… arsenals!”

“How could the Order do this?”

“Because people from the Order had a tight grip on the personnel authority of the counterintelligence department that monitors domestic trends! Thanks to their control over personnel, they were able to place many collaborators. The higher-ups know more locations than I do. This is all I know. Really!”

It became clear that the Order was behind the military. Wasn’t Catherine herself from the 284 National Gendarmerie?

But Catherine was in no position to say more. I could see her trembling and her lips drying up. In the end, I had to give her a “reward.”

“Cough. Cough. I’m sorry.”

After a considerable amount of time, she coughed loudly. Worried she might have caught a cold in this hot weather, I handed her some clothes. Catherine, who had been half-naked, pulled up her pants with satisfaction.

“Are you catching a cold?”

“Well, colds are going around. It’s been a little less than a month? Elian’s scouts already caught it once. I caught it a bit later.”

“Must have been the flu.”

“Yes. They said they caught it when they stopped at the gas station in the south. Oh my, what’s wrong?”

It was a casual remark, but the word “gas station” strangely caught my attention. Could it be…? Did Elian and his subordinates get infected first at the gas station where we spread the virus, and then Catherine got infected afterward?

If so, is the excessive reaction from Elian and Catherine now because… they were already infected with my Chro virus?

I thought it only worked on zombies to some extent, but could it have this much influence on already infected humans?

But there are too many unexplained parts. For one thing, Camilla, Leticia, and Cassandra are very different from these people. I mean, except for Cassandra who “needed treatment because she was infected,” the others certainly weren’t this extreme.

“What’s wrong?”

“Just thinking we should be careful when getting gas at stations. Never know where you might catch a cold.”

Catherine pinched my chest lightly and laughed at my lackluster joke.

“Don’t worry. It was probably a gas station in the outskirts outside the city? Our Order members are there too, patrolling regularly and providing support if needed. That’s how they catch various infections. Now, then…”

Catherine, seemingly reluctant to end, caressed my half-naked body. I pretended not to notice and checked the rear window of the car. Noticing my gaze, the RV helicopter swayed slightly from side to side. A signal that they weren’t ready yet.

“Can’t Elian wait a little longer?”

It took Catherine a moment to understand my meaning. Her breathing became noticeably rougher.

“This time, I’ll be on top.”

“…Alright.”

Only after quite some time passed was I able to free myself from Catherine. My thighs felt weak. Catherine seemed to have a cramp. Thanks to escaping the car that felt like a sauna, the hot wind outside felt cooler than air conditioning.

“I, I think I’ll never forget today.”

Catherine smiled brightly.

“Me neither.”

I replied while checking if the RV helicopter was still there.

“If we come back safely from this mission, Hoot. I’d like to introduce you to the others… Ah, no. No, that would be troublesome…”

“What are you talking about?”

“…Nothing. Shall we go?”