I Built a Safe Zone in the Dead World Chapter 74: The Things They Couldn’t Say

Rain slowly began falling outside the ruined office building by afternoon. Dark clouds covered the city sky while cold wind echoed softly through broken windows across the upper floors. Water dripped down destroyed streets below where abandoned cars remained scattered like forgotten mories of the old world. Distant infected screams still occasionally echoed through the city, but compared to the chaos underground earlier, the atmosphere now felt strangely calm.

Too calm honestly.

And everyone knew calm monts during apocalypse never lasted long.

Inside the upper office floor, Reina stretched lazily across a couch while cleaning blood from her combat blades. "You know," she muttered casually, "if soone told one month ago that I’d be hiding from zombies inside an office building while watching romance drama unfold between survivors, I probably would’ve punched them."

Akari nearly choked on water instantly. "THERE IS NO ROMANCE!"

Yuna imdiately pointed dramatically from nearby. "DENIAL!"

Kaede quietly drank tea sohow obtained from abandoned supplies while speaking calmly. "Statistically speaking, emotional attachnt under life-threatening conditions develops rapidly."

Akari stared at her blankly. "...Why did you say that like scientific research?"

Kaede blinked slowly. "Because it is."

"YOU TOO?!"

anwhile nearby, the little girl sat beside Arata while drawing random pictures across old office papers using colored markers she found earlier. Surprisingly, Arata allowed it.

Mostly because she sohow decided he belonged to her now.

"Look," the little girl said proudly while holding up the drawing. "This is you."

Arata stared at the paper silently.

The drawing showed a black stick figure holding a sword beside several smaller stick figures.

One of them had long hair and a baseball bat.

Akari accidentally noticed it from across the room.

Then imdiately looked away before anyone saw her reaction.

Unfortunately—Yuna saw everything.

"...Interesting."

Akari looked dead inside already. "Please find another word."

"No."

The little girl suddenly pointed at another drawing proudly. "And this one is your girlfriend."

Silence.

Everyone slowly looked toward the paper.

The stick figure beside Arata clearly had long dark hair.And a baseball bat.Akari stopped breathing instantly."...I’m leaving the building."

Yuna collapsed laughing across the couch while Reina nearly fell onto the floor from laughing too hard.

Even Kaede quietly covered her mouth to hide a smile.anwhile Arata looked equally emotionally destroyed.

"...Kids are terrifying."

The little girl blinked innocently. "Did I say sothing wrong?"

Airi gently patted her head afterward while smiling softly. "No. Not really."

Akari stared at Airi in betrayal. "...Doctor why are you helping them?"

Airi quietly giggled again.And honestly—

Seeing her laugh made the atmosphere softer instantly.

Arata noticed that too.Airi always carried warmth around her.The kind people naturally trusted.The kind apocalypse destroyed first.

Which was exactly why he worried every ti she smiled too much.

Outside thunder echoed loudly afterward while rain intensified against shattered windows across the office floor. Cold wind drifted through the room softly while everyone settled into temporary rest positions again.

Arata quietly moved toward one of the upper floor windows afterward to check the streets below.

Then imdiately sensed footsteps behind him.

Akari again.

At this point it almost beca automatic.

She stopped beside him while holding two cans of coffee from old vending supplies.

Without speaking, she handed him one.

Arata blinked slightly before taking it. "...Thanks."

"Don’t make it emotional."

"...Okay."

Silence settled comfortably afterward while rain continued falling outside the ruined city.

For several monts—Neither spoke.

Which strangely didn’t feel awkward anymore.

Akari eventually leaned lightly against the broken window fra beside him. "You really don’t rest, huh?"

"Can’t sleep easily."

"Nightmares?"

The question ca quietly.

Carefully.

Arata stayed silent briefly afterward.

Then finally answered.

"...Sotis."

Akari lowered her eyes slightly.

Because honestly—

That answer hurt more than expected.

The rain outside intensified while thunder echoed softly across distant buildings.

"...You know," she muttered quietly, "before all this... I used to hate boring days."

Arata glanced toward her slightly.

"I always wanted excitent. Sothing dramatic. Sothing different from normal life." She laughed softly afterward. "Now I’d sell my soul for one boring afternoon again."

Silence followed.

Heavy but peaceful silence.

Then Arata quietly spoke.

"...What was your life like before?"

Akari blinked slightly.

Because honestly—

Nobody asked her that in a long ti.

She slowly looked toward the rain outside afterward.

"...Pretty normal." A small smile appeared across her face. "Too normal honestly. I skipped classes sotis. Argued with teachers. Played gas instead of studying." She paused briefly before laughing softly again. "My mother used to yell at every morning because I never woke up on ti."

Arata quietly listened beside her.

Akari’s expression softened slightly afterward.

"...I rember thinking adulthood sounded annoying." Her voice beca quieter now. "Now I’d give anything just to hear her yelling again."

The atmosphere changed instantly.

Pain quietly filled the silence between them.

Arata understood that feeling too well.

Akari slowly looked downward afterward. "I don’t even know if they’re alive."

For several seconds—

Only rain answered.

Then unexpectedly—

Arata gently placed his hand against her head.

Akari froze completely.

"...What are you doing?"

"You looked sad."

"...That’s your solution?"

"Apparently."

Akari stared at him speechlessly while his hand remained softly against her hair for several seconds longer.

Warm.

Careful.

Unexpectedly gentle.

And sohow—

That small action completely destroyed her emotional stability.

Her heartbeat beca painfully loud instantly.

Arata slowly removed his hand afterward while looking slightly uncertain himself.

"...Was that weird?"

Akari looked away imdiately. "...Very."

"...Sorry."

"But..." Her voice softened unintentionally. "...not bad."

Silence followed again.

Dangerous silence this ti.

Because both suddenly beca very aware of each other standing too close near the rain-covered window.

Then suddenly—

"OH CO ON."

Yuna’s voice exploded from behind them again.

Akari nearly died instantly.

Yuna stared at them dramatically while holding instant noodles. "YOU’RE HEADPATTING HER NOW?!"

"It wasn’t a headpat!" Akari shouted imdiately.

"That was absolutely a headpat."

"You saw NOTHING!"

"I SAW EMOTIONAL DEVELOPNT!"

Reina imdiately appeared from the hallway afterward looking excited. "What happened?!"

Yuna pointed dramatically again. "He touched her hair."

Reina gasped loudly. "NO WAY."

Kaede quietly walked into the room too before calmly observing both of them. "...Interesting progression speed."

Akari looked one step away from ntal collapse already.

anwhile Arata quietly covered his face with one hand again.

"...Why is surviving monsters easier than this?"

Airi eventually appeared nearby too after hearing the chaos. Her silver eyes moved between Arata and Akari briefly before a tiny smile appeared across her face.

Soft.

Gentle.

But slightly sad too.

Akari noticed that imdiately.

And once again—

That uncomfortable feeling returned.

Then suddenly alarms echoed faintly from lower floors.

Everyone’s expressions changed instantly.

Reina imdiately grabbed her blades. "Movent downstairs."

Kaede quietly moved toward the window afterward before narrowing her eyes toward the streets below.

"...Large infected group approaching."

Yuna loaded her rifle instantly. "How large?"

Kaede paused briefly.

"...Too large."

The atmosphere shifted imdiately.

Warmth disappeared.

Reality returned.

Everyone quickly moved toward the lower floors afterward while rain continued pouring outside the ruined city. Through shattered lobby windows, hundreds of infected slowly flooded through nearby streets toward the building.

Not wandering.

Moving together.

Like sothing guided them.

Arata’s expression darkened instantly. "...That’s not normal."

Then suddenly—

A massive roar echoed sowhere through the rain-covered city.

Everyone froze.

The infected imdiately beca more aggressive afterward.

Yuna’s face slowly lost color. "...Please tell that’s not another mutation."

Reina tightened her grip on her blades. "With our luck? Definitely another mutation."

The office building trembled slightly afterward.

Heavy footsteps echoed distantly outside.

Closer.

Closer.

The little girl quietly grabbed Akari’s sleeve fearfully. "...Are the monsters coming here?"

Akari imdiately crouched beside her afterward while forcing a small smile. "Yeah." She gently patted the child’s head. "But we’re not letting them hurt you."

The little girl slowly nodded.

anwhile Arata stared through the rain-covered lobby windows toward the distant streets.

Sothing massive moved between the buildings outside.

Too large to see clearly yet.

But definitely coming toward them.

The system flickered violently before his eyes.

[Warning: High-Level Threat Detected]

[New Mutation Type Approaching]

[Survival Probability: Low]

Arata quietly exhaled afterward.Then slowly drew his blade again.Behind him, everyone prepared for battle silently.

Rain continued falling outside while infected surrounded the office building from every direction.

And sowhere within the storm—Another monster was coming.