Ch.56Chapter 7. Ice Is No Less Than Fire (8)

Thankfully, Cassandra is famous.

Well, it would be stranger not to know such a unique woman.

What remains is to somehow pass the inspection. If by chance I have to undergo an examination, it can’t be anything beyond a blood test.

Eventually, the staff member returned. He passed a cell phone wrapped in double-layered security packaging through the isolation door.

“It’s connected via video call. Don’t remove the packaging.”

I could see Cassandra through the screen.

“Cassandra?”

A woman with long black hair stares into the camera with empty eyes from a pale office.

“It’s you, right, Cassandra?”

“Were you happy? You liar.”

Something seems off. I examined Cassandra more closely. Good heavens. I knew she was gloomy, but now she looks depressed on top of that, and her eyes are unfocused.

“Uh, what did you say?”

“Cassandra has been living a miserable life, while you seem to be doing well. How nice for you. Oh yes, how very nice.”

The atmosphere in the isolation room froze. The staff member immediately snapped at me.

“Didn’t you say you two knew each other?”

This isn’t good. I need to establish things clearly before moving on. I looked at the staff member.

“When people get to know each other, they argue and have differences of opinion, but isn’t it all to make things work out? If we really disliked each other, we wouldn’t even be looking at each other’s faces.”

“That makes sense.”

The broker lady strongly agreed with my words.

“That’s not about us, is it?”

The driver replied.

“No. We were talking about alcohol, our adorable little prince.”

Thinking that the man’s mother must have been something like the Queen of England, I looked back at Cassandra. She was filling some test tube with a dejected expression.

“I heard what happened. They say you’re trapped in a chicken coop. While Cassandra is caged in a bird cage. Peep peep, cluck cluck.”

“You’re in an office there.”

“Cassandra has become a slave.”

“A slave? You? I thought you were rich.”

“I lost something more important than money—my name. The master took Cassandra’s name away. If you hadn’t abandoned Cassandra that day, things wouldn’t have turned out this way. But you didn’t listen to Cassandra either.”

Now everyone is staring at me with pale eyes. At this rate, I’m going to be seen as human garbage.

“…Cassandra. I just couldn’t bear to watch you suffer. You recovered in the arms of better people than me.”

It’s not like I could take care of someone who had been grazed by a bullet in the back. There were doctors behind me too. So I’m not saying anything wrong.

“You fool, you idiot. Cassandra’s heart still hurts. But I realized something after parting with you that day. It’s not you who’s bad. It’s the world.”

Fortunately, Camilla alone maintains her composure. Seeing how she’s clenching her fists until her knuckles turn white, she must not be able to bear seeing me being slandered.

It’s quite reassuring to have at least one person on my side in this lonely world.

“Cassandra. Give me a chance to explain. I need you.”

“Sob…”

No. This wasn’t expected. Suddenly Cassandra starts shedding tears. But isn’t crying during a blood analysis test a problem? I’m not sure.

“Sob… hic… why are you saying this now… what are you trying to do now…”

“Ahem.”

I don’t know who cleared their throat. It wasn’t Camilla with her benevolent expression. It wasn’t the majestic lady who seemed to have sobered up. The driver kept pointing at the disease control official.

“Um, well. Let’s turn off the speakerphone. We need to monitor all conversations, but this seems like a private matter I’d rather not know about.”

“Let’s do that.”

That’s welcome news. I pretended not to notice and moved to the corner. Camilla flinched for a moment, wanting to come over, but thankfully she restrained herself.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

“What happened?”

“…I sold you out. I’m sorry. That viper of a woman said if I wanted to take ‘my name’ back, I had to spill everything about what happened with you. So… I had to tell our precious memories with ‘my own mouth’… sob…”

What memories could she be talking about? I tried to recall what I’d experienced with Cassandra. All I could think of was her chest. It was dreamlike, warm, comfortable, and pleasant… beautiful memories.

No. No. That’s not it. Wait, what did she just say? She sold me out?

“Oh, that’s good.”

“Sob, hic, g-good?”

Cassandra is someone who values fair exchange. If she sold me out, I can sell her out too.

“You heard about my situation, right? At this rate, I’m about to stand naked in front of your office colleague.”

Well, they need to check if I’ve been bitten by zombies, so that’s not entirely untrue. But Cassandra’s face trembles as if it’s about to crumble.

“…What are you talking about?”

“I’m saying I’m about to get a ‘physical examination’ from someone other than you. If I’ve already had one examination, I won’t need another from you, right? I’m about to stand naked in front of that woman, and I think I’ll be subjected to this and that. After that… I’ll leave this place.”

“No. You can’t go. You’re in Hampton, right? Wait. Just wait a little.”

“But I can’t postpone the examination. These people have work to do. Besides, that person is from the department next to your office, right? I can’t inconvenience them.”

“Were you bitten? You or anyone around you.”

“No. If you don’t believe me, you can come and see for yourself.”

Life returns to Cassandra’s eyes. There seems to be a slight flush under her cheeks. The person who was sobbing just a moment ago now has a smile stretching from ear to ear, like an adult who just heard about a performance bonus.

“…Really? Cassandra can… yours…”

“I’ve been saving it for you.”

Of course, being a perceptive person, I whispered so Camilla couldn’t hear. But come to think of it, I’ve never seen Camilla’s bare body, so it’s not entirely untrue. We always had at least a layer or two of underwear between us, and even on that rainy day, we were covered in soap bubbles.

But the effect is definite. Cassandra’s gaze has changed.

“…And I think I’m getting a fever.”

An irresistible temptation for a researcher.

“I’ll come right away. M-meet me in H-Hampton. Leave a message at the j-jeweler’s. It’s the jewelry store under the sign of a half-bitten cheese in Sector 7. You must remember, absolutely.”

“Then what should I tell your colleague?”

“Put them on.”

I handed the phone back. The staff member removed the cover and took the phone away. After a while, the staff member returned.

“Due to regulations, I’ll have to ask for your understanding. We’ll just do a blood test, and if the rapid test shows no issues, you’ll pass. But remember, this is only because your identity verification is solid.”

Not difficult. I rolled up my sleeve. The staff member drew blood from all four of us. The test would take about 30 minutes.

“Who is that woman?”

Camilla whispered. Even through all this, the freckle makeup on her face remained intact.

“Ah. That doctor I met in Lambert. The one who was in the driver’s seat…”

“How far did you two go in such a short time?”

“You saw it yourself. We couldn’t even get out of the village entrance.”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

Camilla seemed exasperated, but just then, the majestic lady firmly placed her hand on Camilla’s shoulder.

“…Kid. You just need to lose some weight. You have a pretty face. No need to envy that rascal.”

Camilla maintained her composure. Though she did clench her fist again until her knuckles turned white. If that lady knew how beautiful Camilla really is, she’d surely faint.

* * * * *

The blood test results came back negative for everyone. The staff member didn’t spare us the advice that “negative doesn’t mean there’s no virus in your body. Significant symptoms could still appear, so always take care of yourselves.”

Thanks to that, we could drive the car again. Moreover, all the cargo in the vehicle was intact. Of course, I think it’s less because the officials and soldiers are incorruptible and more because they don’t want to risk infection with the zombie virus.

“Still, we got out of there well. It’s impressive that you even have connections with someone from the Disease Control Agency.”

The driver praised me. The woman beside him was in a good mood too, humming an old song. Only Camilla silently stared out the window.

Should I explain everything?

No. There’s no need. That’s all part of a good-child complex. The belief that if I reveal everything to the world without hiding anything, the world will accept me as I am.

Well, that’s a characteristic of children who grew up receiving a lot of love. Children who were loved just as they were by everyone, and who instinctively learned such patterns. That’s not my story.

Above all, with this kind of thing, the more you explain, the more words pile up. People will only pick out the parts they want to hear.

So, I give them a suitably pleasant story.

“We’re in the process of getting to know each other.”

“Hmph.”

Camilla squirmed uncomfortably.

* * * * *

As we approached Hampton, the smell became incredibly intense. Fierce watchtowers, observation equipment, military gear, and soldiers with rifles. A sign had graffiti that read, “The city air will make you free.”

“Remove the magazine and remaining bullets from your guns and put them under the vehicle. It’s a rule that came about after some idiot shot a soldier during an inspection.”

We obediently followed the driver’s advice. Fortunately, the inspection itself went without any issues, thanks to the fake employment confirmations prepared by the brokers.

“What are you here for?”

“To work as a cleaner in Hampton.”

“And you?”

“The same.”

The officer nodded after comparing my face and Camilla’s several times. But instead of letting us go, he rested his elbows on the window frame.

“Have you looked into places?”

Camilla shrugged.

“Well, there don’t seem to be many positions for moving corpses out of the city, so I’m planning to volunteer for indoor cleaning duties.”

“You’ve come well-informed. Zombies have been appearing here and there in the district lately. Rats, cats, dogs, birds getting bitten and all. For building cleaning, there should be plenty of demand. Move along!”

The identity verification was complete. The car drove on the road again. We could see open-air incinerators installed throughout the wasteland. Men in fire-resistant suits were operating the machines. The conveyor belt wasn’t powered by electricity but by bicycle pedals.

On that belt lay the dead. Zombies. The shattered zombie corpses fell into the incinerator where dried wood was blazing.

“We need to save electricity and oil. So nowadays, everyone does it like that. Still, zombies coming from outside have decreased considerably compared to before. Instead, zombies inside the city have increased.”

The majestic woman looked back at us with concern. Camilla took out a wad of money from her pocket. It was a pile of currency she had kept as her share while traveling through the human non-protected zones. Although the value of money has hit rock bottom, currency is still useful in this city.

“The balance.”

“Hey. Take care of yourselves.”

The man and woman waved goodbye as they drove away.

“…Haah.”

Camilla finally sighed.

“Let’s go. This temporary pass is only valid until this afternoon, so we need to switch to new identities before it expires. Quickly.”

A headache hit me like I’d rested my head against a washing machine.

After going through various complicated procedures I’d rather not remember, and being pushed around to places I thought I’d never visit again, we arrived at the “Beehive.”