Chapter 174: How to Create a God (3)

It had been almost two hours since I started playing games with the girl.

Unfortunately, time didn’t narrow the gap between our skills.

I lost every game that followed, and I had to answer all her questions.

Her questions were mostly simple and meaningless.

How I felt right now, what I thought of my group members.

And what food I wanted to eat.

“Hey.”

“I’m listening.”

Of course, losing the games didn’t mean I gained nothing.

We became quite friendly as we played several games.

We used to have trouble talking, but now we could have a decent conversation.

There was nothing like a game to break the ice.

After a round of competition, most of the barriers between us crumbled.

“Don’t you get bored being alone?”

“Well. I never thought about that.”

Now we could even have this kind of conversation.

I had many losses in between, but I could convince myself that I didn’t do my best.

And the girl’s safety was more important than the outcome of the games.

The reason I came here was to get her out of here somehow.

So I casually suggested something to the girl sitting across from me.

I didn’t think she would accept it right away, but it was the best question I could think of to figure out what she wanted.

“Why don’t you come with me to the company… I mean, the camp? If you do some dishes or laundry, they’ll feed you.”

I didn’t think the girl would be helpful for pioneering or exploring work.

Even if she joined the group, I would have to take care of her for a while.

At least I wouldn’t make her do anything too hard.

As I was waiting for her answer and cleaning up the pieces, the girl who was looking at me opened her mouth.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Do you have a reason to avoid groups?”

“I’m fine with facing one person like this, but I don’t like places with too many people.”

“Why?”

“Because the more people there are, the more eyes there are.”

That made sense.

Yeah, the more people there are, the more eyes there are.

Was it a matter of shyness?

Or a matter of social anxiety?

I couldn’t tell which one was the cause.

“Is that so? I can’t force someone who doesn’t want to join, so I’ll give up on that idea.”

She clearly expressed her refusal.

I couldn’t pressure her any more about joining the group.

When I gave up on persuading her, she tilted her head and asked me in surprise.

“You’re giving up so easily.”

“I came here to make another offer if that didn’t work.”

I had considered the possibility that she wouldn’t join the group.

But even if she didn’t join the group, I wanted her to get out of this place.

So I brought up the next thing to her.

Plan B.

It was a suggestion to get out of this dangerous place that could collapse at any moment.

“How about moving to a different place? It looked pretty risky from the outside.”

“Risky?”

“Yeah, risky. It wouldn’t be surprising if it collapsed anytime.”

It might not collapse today.

Or tomorrow, or the day after.

The building might still stand and hold its ground.

But the fact that it could collapse at any time was what mattered.

By the time I was sure that the building would fall, it would be too late.

“Really? Then where do you think I should go?”

Did she sense my feelings?

She put down the piece in her hand and asked me after hearing my words.

Thud.

The piece she inserted into the chessboard made a dull sound around us.

“Are you asking me to recommend a place?”

“If you know any. Preferably somewhere where I don’t have to meet people.”

She had an unexpected attitude when I suggested a place to stay.

She was cold to me until just a moment ago.

It was not an easy thing to do, to ask someone like that for a recommendation.

She was still a strange one.

Her words, actions, and thoughts were all different.

She seemed far from the normal trust relationship of people.

“If you have nowhere else to go…”

I thought hard about a place where she could stay.

A place to stay.

I would have recommended the company, but that was not an option for her.

Then where should I suggest?

As I was pondering in front of the girl, the image of my old studio apartment flashed in my mind.

‘I have a studio apartment.’

I didn’t go there often because I stayed at the company, but I cleaned it once in a while.

It was my secret base, so to speak.

There wasn’t much inside, though.

I had moved most of my food and necessities to the company, so the only things left were bulky items.

But it was still a place where I could find some peace of mind when I visited.

I decided to recommend my studio apartment to the girl in front of me.

“I have a place I used to live in, why don’t you go there?”

“You don’t live there anymore?”

“I’m staying with other people at the company. It’s better than being alone.”

I had some personal space at the company, and I could deal with any problems quickly.

And the food storage and distribution were all done by the company.

I ate at the company, so I had no reason to go home.

Unless I wanted a quiet place, I rarely went to my studio apartment.

Maybe she liked my plan more than I thought.

She nodded and accepted my suggestion.

“That might be less risky.”

“Nobody else will go there except me. I cleared the area around it, so there’s no chance of any undead getting into the studio apartment.”

“Then I’ll follow your opinion this time.”

Swoosh.

She pushed away the table with the chessboard and got up from her seat.

I got up too, following her.

Thud.

She threw the book she was holding on the floor and gestured to me.

“Lead the way. I’ll follow you.”

“Are you sure you’re okay with following a stranger?”

“I don’t care. It won’t be a big problem even if something happens.”

Was she cautious or weird?

I felt like I would never understand her personality no matter how much time passed.

***

“This is the place I told you about.”

Creak.

I opened the locked door and revealed the dark interior.

I looked at the studio apartment I hadn’t visited for a long time and felt nostalgic.

It was the place I lived in when I got my first job and commuted to work.

I didn’t come here often because I stayed at the company, but it was still a place I visited once in a while.

“I left it empty for a long time, but I cleaned it occasionally, so there shouldn’t be much dust.”

“It’s smaller than I thought.”

The girl who followed me into the studio apartment looked around the lifeless space and commented.

She wasn’t wrong.

It was a space suitable for living alone, as it was a studio apartment.

It was much smaller than the house I lived in with my family.

“Well… It’s not that big.”

The girl walked past me and started to examine the things around her.

The TV that was silent with the power off.

The light that didn’t turn on because of the blackout.

The sink that didn’t have water because of the water cut.

The things that stopped working after the apocalypse were piled up here like a mountain.

She looked around the quiet room for a while and then smiled and said to me.

“It’s a peaceful place.”

“It used to be noisy with kids playing outside, but lately it’s been pretty quiet.”

“…”

“It’s not a bad place, even if it’s small. Most of the people who lived here liked it.”

It was a decent place for the price.

And it was also a place where I had many memories.

Inviting friends over and drinking together.

Dragging my exhausted body home and waking up with a headache the next day.

Cheering for sports games together in the small room.

Sometimes, lying on the bed and immersing myself in my smartphone.

I spent those times here.

“Do you like it too?”

As I recalled those short memories and looked at the empty space, she asked me that question.

Did I like this place in the past?

I think I did.

I was a happy person back then.

“It was a place I liked. Maybe I still like it now.”

“Is it precious to you?”

“I don’t know. Was it precious to me?”

Snort.

A hollow laugh escaped from my mouth as I looked around the room.

As I arrived here and remembered the past, I felt strangely unsettled.

“I hated going to work back then… But now I miss waking up here and going to work.”

They were moments that I thought I would never miss.

But now, even the moments that I thought were hard were left as happy memories.

Getting up from my seat, taking a shower, going to work, and coming home exhausted at night.

I realized how precious my daily life was, the one I thought would never change.

I only appreciated it after I lost it.

What a foolish thing to say.

“You’re deep in thought.”

The girl who was watching me said.

Her dark eyes were clear even in the darkness.

They were not human eyes.

I nodded at her, without denying it.

I felt like the walls in my heart were crumbling as I faced her.

“It helps me sometimes.”

“I see… It does seem helpful to some extent.”

“Yeah? Do I look like I’m getting help?”

“I won’t die in vain for a while.”

Was she talking about herself?

Or was she talking about me?

I didn’t know which one it was.

But I felt like I could understand her message a little bit.

I looked at the direction where the company was and opened my mouth.

“I wish we could all make it to the end.”

Beyond the endless hardship.

I hoped for a happy ending where we were all together.

I prayed for everyone’s happiness in my heart.