When Yoan caught my eye, he flashed a faint smile.
Oh, I had a very bad feeling about this…
Did he even understand a word I said?
Seeing the smile, Derek gave a little shudder as if he’d just spotted something unpleasant on the bottom of his shoe. To his credit, though, he immediately dove back into character.
“Dad, I’m so hungry and cold. My legs ache… and I’m just so very tired.”
Playing my part, I gently stroked Derek’s hair.
Then Yoan did something entirely unexpected—he dropped to one knee, bringing himself to eye level with Derek.
I barely had time to think, What in the world has gotten into him? before Yoan pulled Derek into a hug and patted his back.
At the gentle touch, Derek’s entire body went ramrod straight.
From a distance, they might have looked like a sweet dad and son.
Up close? They were locked in an embrace, whispering a torrent of insults into each other’s ears.
“What the hell d’you think you’re doing?” Derek hissed.
“If we’re going to put on a show, it ought to be convincing.”
“Ugh, seriously, my skin is trying to crawl off my body. Why do I have to call a freak like you my dad…?”
“Trust me, the feeling is mutual. I have absolutely no desire for a son like you. I’ve always preferred daughters.”
“Who asked for your preference?”
“If you don’t like it, you’re welcome to cover your ears.”
“This whole family setup was a ridiculous idea. It’s not believable in the slightest.”
“Oh, I don’t know. It seems like a perfectly good opportunity to build some family bonds, don’t you think?”
“You’re crossing a line, psycho. Have you gone mad?”
I had no idea why these two reverted to being so childish whenever they were together. Derek was young, so I could let it slide… but Yoan?
Still, their dedicated performance seemed to be working. The guards’ conversation took a hopeful turn.
“Well, looks like he really is the dad. Look at the kid’s face. So desperate.”
“You’re right. And did you catch the way the dad clenched his jaw? When he hugged the boy? See, that’s the heavy burden of a man trying to protect his family.”
“So should we let them in?”
“Yeah, why not. The more people to order around, the better. And they’ll probably behave since they’re all trying to protect each other.”
After a bit more muttering, the men approached us again.
Baron, arms crossed, spoke with a haughty air. “You lot should count yourselves lucky. We’re the only ones who would take you in. Anyone else would have left you for dead.”
“Right. Thanks,” Yoan said flatly.
“Go to the building on the left as soon as you’re inside. They’ll check your identities and assign you a room.”
“Kay.”
“Hey. You got a problem with your tone?”
“Yeah, what he said. Your attitude is completely out of line.”
Just when it seemed they were about to open the gate, the men suddenly turned on Yoan, spoiling for a fight.
This was bad. I had never seen Yoan speak deferentially to anyone in my life. We’d be lucky if he didn’t talk back.
“Is something wrong with my tongue? See for yourself.”
Yoan stuck his tongue out. The two men’s expressions hardened, turning even uglier.
After all that work with the dad-son act, you’re gonna ruin it now?!
I decided I had to intervene before things went completely sideways. “Um, sirs! It’s just… ever since the world became like this, my husband has been through a great shock. He can’t quite… manage polite speech.”
“What? He can’t manage polite speech? What kind of nonsense is that?”
“It may be hard to believe, but it’s the truth,” I insisted firmly.
“It’s true.”
“Ah, whatever! Just let them in. They can deal with it inside,” Venito said, waving his hand dismissively.
Another guard up on the wall signaled to someone within.
Finally, the heavy gate creaked open, revealing the fortress.
“Let’s go, son.” Clearly enjoying this far too much, Yoan even took Derek’s hand.
“Ugh, right… Mom, let’s hurry inside!”
“No, Mom is going to hold Dad’s hand,” Yoan interjected.
“What? That’s not… Hey, that’s not fair, Dad! She’s my mom.”
“She’s my wife.”
Had these two been nibbling on madness-inducing mushrooms before we got here?
Shaking my head at their absurdity, I started toward the building on the left. But then, a commotion behind us made me pause.
I glanced back and saw a flood of people pouring through the open gate. There was a clear distinction between the terrified, trembling newcomers and the heavily armed residents.
Brushing dust from his clothes, one of the armed men grumbled, “Tch, all that effort for nothing. We barely found any food.”
“This is bad. Lord Luther won’t stand for this.”
“We’ve cleaned out all the food nearby. We’ll have to go out even farther now.”
“Can’t be helped. We’ll just have to use more meat shields.”
“Shh! Keep it down. Someone will hear you. We already lost five today.”
“They all know. They know some who go out don’t come back. They just draw lots and pray it’s not their turn.”
“I suppose so! Haha!”
Charming fellows, weren’t they?
The real problem was that people knew this was happening and were putting up with it. It’s human nature to seek safety in numbers, I suppose. This Luther fellow was simply exploiting that.
It was a simple, transparently vile formula.
Still, there have to be limits…
While some people were fighting desperately to save lives, these bastards were using them as disposable bait.
My blood began to boil.
“Ah, M-Mom?”
I’d clenched my fists without realizing it. Derek’s voice snapped me back to the present.
“Sorry,” I said.
“It’s okay. You just startled me a little.” Derek gave me a faint smile.
“Standing around here like this will only make us look more suspicious,” Yoan said. “There’s nothing we can do right now, so let’s act natural.”
Which was a bit rich coming from him, since he was the most unnatural-looking of us all. He couldn’t have looked less like an ex-soldier if he’d shown up in a silk cravat.
And just as I’d expected, someone noticed.
Inside the building, a chubby man helping process new arrivals pushed his glasses up his nose and eyed Yoan with suspicion.
“A former soldier? Are you sure?”
I’d scribbled ‘soldier’ in the box for Yoan’s occupation, but the man clearly didn’t buy it. It wasn’t as if I could write ‘Lord of Alberta,’ now could I?
“You spend your whole life being lied to or something?” Yoan shot back.
“Hmph. And what can this one do?” The man pointed a fat finger at me.
If you must know, I specialize in feats of strength. And I also happen to have mysteriously powerful blood!
But I couldn’t very well say that, either.
As I hesitated, the man gave me a slow, disgusting look up and down.
“Well. Most women handle things like cooking and laundry, but I suppose everyone has different tastes. There might be a… demand for you.”
Was he actually smacking his lips? You’d have to be a complete idiot not to understand what he was implying.
Tap, tap. Yoan’s fingers drummed on the tabletop. The man’s gaze shifted to him.
“Why are you looking at her like that?” Yoan asked.
“What did you say?”
“Are you deaf as well as rude?”
“Hah, you little—?”
“You shot a filthy look at my mom.”
Oh, for goodness’ sake, Derek, not you too…
As I started to panic, Yoan gave the man a chillingly serene smile. The official must have sensed the dangerous shift in the atmosphere, because his mouth snapped shut.
We were going to get caught. This entire group was made up of troublemakers.
“Actually, I can cook,” I blurted out, once again trying to de-escalate things.
“Oh… is that so? You should have said so sooner.”
The man averted his eyes awkwardly, opened a drawer, and pulled out three slips of paper.
“Sign here.”
Despite the little skirmish, we had made it in. We followed a map to our assigned quarters.
The place was a one-and-a-half-room flat: a combined living room and kitchen with one small bedroom. The size was one thing, but the room assignment was the real problem. No matter how we divided it, there were only two spaces.
“Shouldn’t he get the room to himself? He always does,” Derek pointed out.
He had a point. I couldn’t imagine Yoan and Derek sharing a room, and there was no way I was sharing one with Yoan.
“What are you talking about? The husband and wife share a room, and the grown child sleeps alone.”
“What kind of bull—?”
“I don’t sleep,” I said pointedly.
“You’re not even a real married couple!” Derek continued.
“We have to be thorough. What if we’re careless and get caught out?” Yoan countered.
“Be reasonable. This place doesn’t even have a window. Is someone going to check on us in the middle of the night?”
“And I’m telling you guys, since I don’t sleep, it doesn’t matter to me who I share a room with,” I emphasized my point again.
“You never know what might happen. Derek, stop being stubborn.”
“You stop spouting nonsense.”
These idiots… were they not listening to a word I said?
My temper was simmering, and I was about to say something—when a rough knock pounded on the door.
“Hey! You in there? Stop dawdling and get out here, now!”
We all fell silent. I opened the door to find a man built like a mountain looming over us, radiating menace. He scanned the three of us and let out a derisive, wheezing laugh.
“Well, look what we have here. A bunch of scrawny things.”
Compared to him, I suppose anyone would look scrawny, but Yoan was by no means small.
Derek and I, on the other hand… well, we were on the scrawny side.
“Kid, you go help with odd jobs at the outer wall repair site. The woman’s on meal duty. And you…”
The man looked Yoan over again, seeming to consider him for a moment. “You’re decently built, I guess. Starting tonight, you’re on night watch. You’ll come out when the sun goes down. The other two, follow me.”
I was worried Yoan might protest the one-sided orders. But surprisingly, he just gave us a breezy smile and a cheerful wave.
“Have a good day, honey.”
“Aren’t you forgetting your son?” I pointed out.
“Oh… right. You have a good day too.”
“Damn ass,” Derek muttered, just loud enough for me to hear.