Chapter 13: Daily Life in the Apocalypse

It's been 3 days since we've settled in the mansion.

"Ugh...And they live happily ever after? What kind of cheesy garbage is this?"

I closed the book I was reading and placed it on top of 3 other books. I got up from the couch and searched the bookshelves.

"Hmm, Garry Pokker.....Shoreluck Gnomes........The Tiny Prince....King of the Rings.......Why does your grandfather have the most random selection of books?"

"He likes to read anything, as long as it tells a story. Doesn't matter what year it came from. He's open to all sorts of things. I remember he had a collection of light novels too," Perci said while sweeping the floor.

"Even light novels?!"

"Yeah, there's that one light novel I borrowed from him too...I think it was called Black Eden."

I picked up a book and smiled.

"This is it……Confidence and Chauvinism by Bane Husten!"

"Another romance novel? That's the 6th one you've read so far.."

"I hate them! All of them finding the perfect guy, such a thing can't possibly happen in real life!" I gripped the book with a claw.

"But you're still reading all of them...." Perci said with a light grin.

"I can't help it. I still get hooked with these sort of storylines! It pisses me off!"

I've pretty much been reading books for 3 days straight...There isn't much to do. My bruise has been getting better...but it still hurts a lot. So I'm mostly just sitting around.

"Perhaps it's because you've had terrible experiences with love? It could be coming from a heart of bitterness," Perci said.

"I guess. That might be exactly why I read them. Deep down in my heart, I long for that sort of thing," I sighed. “But such things don’t even happen in real life!”

"Love, huh. I haven't thought of that sort of thing in a while," Perci placed his hand on his chin.

"Speaking of which, didn't you try confessing to someone before? Or was that just Wolfis spouting nonsense?" I pointed at him.

"Yes. But I'd prefer not to talk about it."

Perci said that and walked away.

"What a bummer...was it really that bad?"

Perci has mostly been doing chores around the house and practicing savate in the basement, so nothing interesting is going on. Sometimes, he would leave the house just to hunt for some supplies, so I’m left here all alone.

Who knew the apocalypse could be so boring? It's basically living in quarantine. Like the KOBID-19 era.

Welp, it's better than running from the zombies, so I won't complain.

At night time, I would always treat the wound on his shoulder using the first aid kit before going to bed. The electricity has pretty much long been gone, so we had to use candle lamps as a light source.

"Ah. That stings."

"Of course it does, it's antibiotic ointment."

"Is it really necessary to do this everyday?"

"Yeah, so that it can heal faster."

"All right, I understand."

"There you go," I said, placing the dressing.

On the fourth day……he had accidentally walked in on me while I was peeing.

"EEEEEK! Get out, idiot!"

"Ah. Sorry," Perci said nonchalantly.

My initial urge was to scold him, but I realized that it was my fault for not locking the door.

However, he was kneeling down with his head on the floor.

"I didn't mean to. I'm sorry."

This is too much for an apology…..

"No, it's me that's at fault. I'm the idiot here," I said looking away flustered.

"But I saw your v-"

"Shaaadap! I don't want to hear it!"

Aw, jeez! I covered my face and walked away.

On the fifth day…..I finished reading my 10th romance book.

"I can't believe she stuck with that guy! What a toxic relationship! So annoying!"

Perci chuckled at me, but I stared at him and he covered his mouth.

On the sixth day……I put in the effort to wake up earlier in the morning.

"Let me cook breakfast this time!"

"You don't have to. As a gentleman…"

"As a lady, I can't afford to lose to a man when it comes to cooking, got that?!"

"Um, all right."

I whipped up omelets for Perci and I then set the finished meal on the table.

Perci took a piece and ate it.

"What do you think?"

"It's impressive."

"Huhu! Of course it is! Don't underestimate me!" I placed my hands on my waist.

"You'd make a great wife someday."

Perci smiled at me.

"Jeez! Stop teasing me!" I pouted my lips.

"Eh? But isn't cooking a good quality for a wife? Any guy would be happy to have you as a partner, right?"

"You…you're quite dense….."

This is why he ticks me off….

I looked away and started eating.

"Idiot….." 

From that day onwards, I started to help Perci out with the chores in the house. Only the simple ones though….

And in my spare time, I would just read more romantic books.

"Won't you consider fantasy books too?" Perci offered a book in his hand.

"No….."

"It still has romance…."

"I'll read it!"

I think I've read up to 20 books at this point…..it's already been 10 days.

Life with Perci is…much more ordinary than I expected. It was nothing special….but it made me feel calm. Perci was pretty much sweet and kind (sometimes annoying) these past few days. I was starting to let down my guard a little. 

Jussssst a little.

How long will it be before I see his dark sides? Or could it be that he doesn't have one to begin with? I still doubt it.

On the eleventh day…..it was pouring rain in the afternoon.

A few zombies showed up in front of our house.

"Are you planning to kill them off by yourself?" I asked Perci.

"Yes. But first, there's something I have to pick up from my grandfather's room," Perci said.

I followed Perci and entered the room.

It was pretty much the master's bedroom, with a king sized bed and a painting of a man on it.

The old gentleman showed a sense of elegance and class with beautifully combed up grayish white hair, a well-groomed handlebar mustache, a neatly-trimmed beard, thin glasses and a fine black suit. He sat on a chair stoically with a majestic pose and held a fedora that looked like Perci's on his hand. 

"That's your grandpa?"

"Yep, that's him."

"You have such a cool-looking grandpa….Is that the fedora you are wearing right now?"

"Yes, he handed it over to me before he died. It is a symbol of the oath I swore to him," Perci looked at the painting and tipped his fedora.

"What was your oath?"

"To devote my life to becoming the greatest gentleman I can be," Perci put his hand on his chest.

That's so noble….Are men really capable of doing such things?

"I still have a long way to go and my grandfather wasn't able to teach me everything before he died. But, I'll have to make do with what I learned."

If I ever got the chance to meet his grandpa, would my views on the male gender be different?

Or is he just a sleazy old man on the inside?

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Perci opened a storage chest beside the bed and picked up a black umbrella.

"Hey…are you going to use that umbrella to fight again? But there's plenty of swords to use at home!"

"This umbrella is special….it was my grandfather's favorite. Now it is time for me to use it…"

"I don't get it…..you're probably going to get wet anyway!" I scratched my head.

"Don't you think fighting with an umbrella looks cool?" Perci pointed his umbrella at me.

"Pfft. I don't know. I fail to see its practicality besides not getting wet from the rain."

"I'll show you. This is probably the strongest umbrella you'll ever come across. It's specifically designed for combat and protection.”

"Oh really? Then prove it!" I said like a true skeptic.

We went by the front door and Perci handed me his fedora.

"Please hold onto it for a while."

"Sure…."

Perci left the house and I looked out the window.

"I hope he just doesn't get himself killed…"

There were 5 zombies against him.

RAAAAAAAAAH!

Perci was standing in front of them with his umbrella protecting him from the rain. 

Droplets continued to sprinkle on the surface of his umbrella as the splashing of water coming from their footsteps drew nearer to him.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

The moment his eyes opened, he pointed the umbrella towards the zombies, getting himself wet from the raindrops.

"Why did he even bother with the umbrella?" I wondered.

What happened next was something that took me a while to process.

The top part of the umbrella shot out from its handle, revealing what looked like a thin blade on his hands.

"H-huh? A hidden blade from inside the umbrella?"

Some of the zombies were knocked down, so Perci proceeded to charge right at them.

He slashed through every zombie with precision, moving gracefully with every step, like he was dancing in the rain. 

Nothing seemed to faze him.

It was like he was completely going with the flow, like water.

A trail of red mixed in with splashing puddles of water as Perci looked up in the sky. He turned towards me and put his thumb up.

He seems to be enjoying himself…..

Was he just trying to show off his grandfather's toy?

The logic of his actions was completely absurd.

But it was undeniably cool.

I stepped outside the house and basked myself in the rain.

"Hey…you're going to catch a cold," Perci called out to me.

"Oh, shut up. Same goes for you," I said. "There's nothing much to do anyway!"

Perci picked up the umbrella and put the sword back inside.

"Isn't this refreshing? I haven't gone out in the rain like this since I was a kid!" I let out a smile and opened my arms.

"If it makes you happy, then we can watch the rain as it falls…."

We stood in the rain silently and watched the raindrops for a while…..a peaceful and relaxing moment for the both of us.

"I love watching the rain. It's pretty……" I said.

"Yeah, just like you," Perci said casually while he stared at the rain.

"Eh?" I blushed. "You're teasing me again!"

"Hm? I'm just saying what I think…." Perci tilted his head in confusion.

"I can't tell if you're being straightforward or if you're just messing with me…" I pouted.

"I'm not a liar. It's not very gentleman-like to say things you don't actually mean."

"So you really think I'm pretty?"

"Of course."

"Well, um…thanks," I said. "Wait, why aren't you looking at me?"

"Uh…your shirt…I can see right through it…"

"Ah. EEEEEK!"

I covered my body and turned away.

"Sorry…"

"L-let's just head back."

On the thirteenth day….I checked my weight on the weighing scale.

"No…..It's because I haven't had much exercise lately…."

Perci noticed my embarrassed expression and walked over to me.

"What's wrong?"

"My weight increased…..Teach me savate! I need to burn some calories!"

"Um….let your bruises completely heal first…."

"Then we'll start tomorrow! My bruise is almost gone anyway!"

On the fourteenth day…I had convinced Perci to teach me some savate moves.

"Hyah!"

I kicked the punching bag with considerable force. 

"You're quite tense. Ease up a bit," Perci said.

I continued to kick multiple times.

"Your kick is too low. Try doing it a little higher."

I had been practicing the same kick over and over again for 3 hours….but I still couldn't seem to get it right.

"Your stance is breaking."

"Put some more power into it."

"Keep your hands up."

Despite making a lot of mistakes, Perci was very patient with me and kept on keeping my spirits up.

"Hmm, I think I'd like to try something."

Perci walked over to me and inspected my thighs.

"May I adjust your body?"

"Um, sure."

He lifted my thigh and held my knee. It was a little uncomfortable, but I just dealt with it.

"First, bend your knee like this…..then extend it while keeping it straight."

He then held on to my shoulder and pulled it gently.

"Your upper body is too flexed to the front. Tilt backwards and rotate a little to the side while you do it."

He continued to adjust my body until I had made the perfect position.

A man is touching me…..normally I would be afraid and disgusted if it were any other guy. But, when it comes to Perci, I seem too lenient. 

Is it because I was starting to place some trust in him?

"Try kicking again."

I kicked the punching bag with a powerful blow. It felt much better than any of my other kicks.

Perci clapped his hands.

"Very good. You did it, Ori."

I continued to kick again and again.

If it's Perci….maybe I can have hope in men again……

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