Chuckling at the trouble awaiting Kensei, Alex returned to the captain's bridge in high spirits. The girls imdiately noticed his cheerful expression and exchanged curious glances. Before leaving, he had ntioned that he was going to "say goodbye" to their pursuers from the Evil Corporation, who had been tracking them all this ti using drones.
Alex didn't hide anything and, with a satisfied smile, shared the reason for his good mood. Moreover, he even showed them the incriminating video of Kensei. After hearing the story, the girls burst into loud laughter, eagerly anticipating the spectacle: the old pervert Kensei facing the righteous wrath of his wife.
Leaning back in the captain's chair with relief, Alex decided to "cosplay" a responsible captain for a bit. He glanced at the screen displaying the aircraft carrier's speed and quickly estimated the ti needed to reach the port in Shenzhen. If no problems arose along the way, the ship would arrive at its destination in just over a day.
Tapping his finger on the armrest, Alex pondered. The aircraft carrier was large enough to accommodate nearly three thousand people, aning they had room to maneuver in case they encountered survivors in need of help. At the sa ti, he regretted not having had the chance to upgrade the ship's engines—if he had, they could have reached their destination much faster.
"How much longer until we reach Shenzhen?" Valt asked, approaching him and placing her hands on his shoulders.
"We're cruising at 33 knots. If nothing happens, we'll be there by tomorrow evening," Alex replied thoughtfully.
"It would be faster by plane," Koko remarked, casting him a glance.
Alex turned his head and rolled his eyes. He had already explained to Koko that traveling by plane was far too risky, especially considering they could be shot down at any mont. The other girls agreed with her words but understood that, despite the speed, they would be too vulnerable in the air.
"You're right, we'd get there in six hours by plane. But don't forget, in the sky, we're easy prey," Alex said calmly.
"I'm just saying it would be faster. Why are you making a big deal out of it?" Koko pouted, looking at him in annoyance.
Alex just shook his head at her reaction. Getting up from his chair, he walked over to Koko and hugged her, gently stroking her head. He already knew—if Koko was pouting, it ant she wanted attention. This girl always loved being at the center of things. Feeling the warmth of his embrace, Koko imdiately smiled and pressed closer to him.
The others weren't fooled either—they knew perfectly well that her sulky expression was just a clever maneuver to get what she wanted. Koko, as a forr arms dealer, was an expert at playing on emotions. Alex, of course, understood this too, but he was willing to give her as much attention as she needed. However, he hadn't forgotten about the other girls—each of them deserved their ti with him.
"Handso, when are you going to start working on my new sniper rifle?" Rika's voice suddenly rang out as she clung to his back.
"I can start right now. I'll finish it by morning… unless, of course, you don't mind skipping another night of cuddling," Alex smirked.
"No, absolutely not. I can't sleep without you anymore! I'm already used to hugging you in my sleep. Rika can wait for her weapon," Shizuka imdiately declared, pouting.
"Shizuka, how could you?! I thought we were friends! We even share a husband—we're practically sisters! And you do this to …?" Rika said with mock indignation, wiping away imaginary tears.
"We may be family, but I love Alex more," Shizuka smiled sweetly.
Alex grinned widely upon hearing this, but for Rika, the situation was far less pleasant. She felt betrayed and narrowed her eyes, glaring at her friend.
"You…!" she started, but before she could finish, she lunged at Shizuka, rcilessly tickling her.
However, Shizuka had a powerful weapon that Rika simply couldn't counter. In an instant, she pulled Rika's head against her ample chest, practically drowning her in softness.
Alex and the other girls froze, eyes wide in shock, watching as Shizuka, with her usual sweet smile, attempted to smother Rika with her breasts.
"Shizuka, stop! Are you trying to kill with your… uh… 'airbags'?!" Rika squealed, desperately sticking her head out.
"You started it. Who told you to attack ? I was just defending myself," Shizuka replied proudly, puffing out her chest.
"You…!" Rika pointed an accusing finger at her.
Rika stared at Shizuka in disbelief, unable to accept that her usually kind and gentle friend would say sothing like that. Alex and the others were still in mild shock—no one had expected Shizuka to use her greatest advantage to defeat Rika. However, no one objected to this "unfair" move—everyone was too stunned by how quickly Rika had been caught in her trap.
Alex pondered where he had seen sothing like this before. Rembering an incident, he smirked—Hestia had once defeated Loki the sa way, after which the Goddess of Lies and Deception sulked for a long ti.
Rika, clearly dissatisfied with her loss, tried to argue with Shizuka, but she just calmly repeated the sa thing, frustrating Rika even more. And to make matters worse, Koko kept fanning the flas with her teasing remarks. Eventually, the argunt between Rika and Shizuka took a backseat—Rika had now turned her attention to Koko.
Even though the girls were arguing loudly, Alex didn't interfere—he enjoyed this family-like atmosphere. After all, even the closest families had their disputes, and that was perfectly normal. They weren't robots programd for perfect harmony but living, breathing people.
But before he realized what was happening, he was dragged into the argunt. Koko hid behind him, dodging Rika's attempts to grab her. They circled around him, resembling two cats ready to pounce on each other.
"Alright, that's enough," Alex said, lifting both of them by the scruff of their necks like kittens.
Rika still shot irritated glances at Koko, while Koko kept making faces, taunting her rival. Alex just sighed—he could already tell that when the truth about his origins was revealed and he brought all the girls to Orario, his ho would beco even noisier.
He briefly wondered—would Koko want to restart her arms dealer career in a fantasy world? Or would she unexpectedly turn into a homaker? However, he quickly dismissed that thought—Koko and "housewife" were incompatible. She had too much ambition to just sit still. If not for the zombie apocalypse caused by the Evil Corporation, she would have likely already conquered the world's airspace by now.
"Why are you looking at like that? Falling in love again?" Koko placed her hands on her cheeks, feigning shyness. "I an, I know I'm super gorgeous, but when you look at with those rainbow-colored eyes, I start to feel embarrassed."
"Who would even want you, Hekmatyar?" Rika crossed her arms. "Aren't you sick of spouting nonsense? Since when did you turn into a shy schoolgirl?"
"Don't be jealous, Minami," Koko replied with a carefree smile, shrugging. "Just because you act like a tomboy and a pervert doesn't an everyone else has to be the sa."
"You're asking for a fight," Rika growled, gritting her teeth.
"Alright, girls, enough," Alex interrupted with a smile. "Even Saya and Rebecca don't argue as much as you two."
He released both of them, but the tension between them didn't go anywhere—they continued to glare at each other. Alex glanced at Valt, hinting that it was ti to step in. She imdiately got the ssage—she had cald Koko down more than once before.
Alex had hoped that after the nights they had spent together, Koko and Rika would stop bickering. But that dream was as impossible as expecting Hestia and Loki to stop arguing over every little thing.
He shifted his gaze to the other girls—and found that they had already made themselves comfortable with popcorn, clearly enjoying the chaos. Alex just rolled his eyes and settled into his chair.
But before he could relax, Rei ended up in his lap, snuggling against him with a satisfied expression. Alex wrapped an arm around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder.
At the sa ti, his mind was occupied with sothing else—thinking about what kind of protection he could give the girls. Rebecca and Brunhilde had rings that could protect them from anything, even the destruction of an entire galaxy. But he needed to co up with sothing just as reliable for the others.
He knew they wouldn't believe in the rings' power unless he demonstrated their abilities. But he wanted to reveal his true nature only after reaching Alaska or after the final victory over the main villain.
So he planned to create protective rings for them and, to make them seem convincing, embed energy shields in them—so the girls could see the effect and trust in their reliability. Additionally, he needed to upgrade their weapons so that each of them could defend themselves.
For now, Saeko, Rei, and Valt were already using his personally designed weapons. But the other girls also needed more powerful armants—just in case they faced a truly serious threat in the future.
Alex rembered that he had so energy shields stored in his inventory—an ideal temporary solution for protecting the girls. If they asked where he got them, he would just lie and say he had recently created them.
He was so deep in thought about his plans that he didn't even notice Namiyo and Kiriko bringing food for everyone. Not wanting to beco a victim of being fed by hand again, he quickly grabbed his portion and started eating.
The girls had already started a TV series, and the more Alex watched the screen, the more he thought that it might be worth visiting that universe. After all, Chuck, pretending to be a god, was actually an avatar of Nyan-Nyan, who had taken over an entire tree and was now amusing himself by playing with the storyline and adjusting it to his liking.
"Heh, self-proclaid director, that Chuck," Alex smirked, shaking his head.
"I never would've thought that woman's avatar would imitate your father. Pretty ironic," Geirölul remarked with amusent.
"You're right, sister. If Alex's father didn't follow his own rule of not interfering in his creations, these so-called evil gods wouldn't even think of doing such things," Skalmöld calmly added.
"Exactly," the other Valkyries agreed.
"Well, Chuck thinks he's the smartest guy in the room. But that won't last. I think it'll be fun to ruin his little ga of playing the great writer," Alex grinned.
He decided that he would deal with that universe after finishing things with Nyan-Nyan's avatar in this one. However, the more Alex thought about everything ahead, the more he realized that he needed a break. He needed to spend so ti at ho, be with the goddesses, and, of course, with his sweet elf, Ryu. Even though ti passed more slowly for them than for him, it didn't change the fact that he had been giving them too little attention.
He already had a few universes in mind where he could plan the perfect family vacation and have plenty of fun. However, looking at his long list of plans, Alex realized that carrying them out would take far too much ti. He even briefly wondered how the girls would react upon learning that Sam and Dean were real people. Though, most likely, they'd just ask him to get their autographs.
As the day gradually ca to an end, the girls were already asleep. Alex was about to get up and do so work—at least pretend to be crafting so trinkets for them. But the mont he tried to move, the girls tightened their embrace around him. Every ti he attempted to slip away, they would frown in their sleep and cling to him even harder.
Understanding that he had no choice, Alex decided to stay put and wait for their grip to loosen. ntally calculating, he realized that by morning, at the speed the aircraft carrier was moving, they would be passing by Taiwan, and by evening, they'd reach the port of Shenzhen. However, he had a strong feeling that they wouldn't be able to head straight for Alaska after Shenzhen. He could almost sense it in his bones—sothing would delay them again.
Alex grimaced at the thought, knowing that it was bound to happen. Sothing always ca up, slowing their progress. Sighing, he tried once more to escape their embrace, but it was futile. Realizing there was no other way, he decided to just try and sleep, even though he didn't feel tired at all. Closing his eyes, he attempted to clear his mind and push all his worries aside for later.
Even the ones concerning the massive zombie horde likely roaming sowhere in China, ready to consu everything in its path...
The next morning, just as Alex had predicted, the aircraft carrier was passing by Taiwan.
At that mont, he and the others stood on the main deck, observing the island's coastline. Even from this distance, Taiwan's dire state was evident. Driven by curiosity, those who wanted a closer look grabbed binoculars, but what they saw was no different from the other cities they had passed. Ruined buildings, charred car wrecks, and signs of battle against the undead were everywhere.
Alex watched with an emotionless expression, but inside, he felt an unsettling sense of unease. Everything he had seen in this world so far disgusted him.
Not wanting to further ruin his mood, he left the deck and returned to the bridge. Thoughts of the countless children and people who had perished at the hands of zombies and mutants—along with those who had abandoned their humanity to unleash their inner demons—were too heavy to dwell on.
To distract himself, Alex decided to work on his projects while they approached Shenzhen. He knew they were already halfway through their journey, but a significant stretch still remained ahead.
Fully imrsing himself in his work, he began upgrading the old energy shields he had pulled from his inventory. While they were still reliable, they were outdated, and Alex wanted to refine them to be more comfortable for the girls to wear. He hadn't modernized them since his ti in Night City.
Ti flew by unnoticed. Evening had already arrived, and the food the girls had brought him for lunch remained untouched, long since gone cold. Finishing the last energy shield, Alex stretched, satisfied as he looked over his work.
Now the girls would be protected, at least for the ti being, until he could create rings for them. However, he wasn't planning on making them just yet—too many questions would arise about where he suddenly got the materials and how he managed to craft them so quickly.
"You haven't eaten anything all day?" Kiriko's voice suddenly rang out.
Alex looked up and saw her stepping into his workshop. Her gaze imdiately landed on the untouched plate of food. She frowned, like a wife catching her husband trying to throw away the dinner she had lovingly prepared. Alex gave her a guilty smile but quickly tried to hide the candy wrappers scattered across the table to avoid further questioning.
Kiriko narrowed her eyes even more upon noticing his attempt.
"You... ate nothing but candy all day?!" Her voice was as cold as a blade.
Alex forced a strained chuckle, realizing he was about to get another one of her "disciplinary lectures." It wasn't on purpose—he had just been so engrossed in his work that he forgot about everything else. Kiriko sighed, apparently deciding to let it slide this ti.
"We're already approaching the shores of Shenzhen. Little GIR says we'll be in port in thirty minutes."
Alex nodded, quickly gathering all the energy shields he had prepared for the girls. To avoid suspicion, he had made two extra—one for Rebecca and one for Brunhilde.
Kiriko noticed him picking sothing up but chose not to ask right away.
When Alex approached her, he gently pulled her by the waist and brushed his lips against hers.
Kiriko rolled her eyes but returned the kiss. Then, with a sly smile, she pinched his side as payback for ignoring the lunch she had worked so hard to prepare.
Alex chuckled softly and left the workshop with her.
The mont they stepped out, Saya imdiately noticed the objects in Alex's hands.
"What's that?"
"This is for you, my lovely ladies," he replied with a smile. "I had to put in so effort, but now each of you has your own energy shield. It'll protect you in case of danger."
With those words, he placed the shields on the table.
Intrigued, the girls imdiately stepped closer, inspecting what he had prepared for them.
Throwing a quick glance at Rebecca and Brunhilde, Alex gave them a slight nod, signaling them to take one as well to avoid unnecessary questions. They caught on instantly and discreetly took their shields.
"You even painted them for us!" Rika said in surprise, admiring hers. "How sweet of you... Where have you been all my life? If I had known such an amazing guy existed, I would've traveled to the ends of the earth to find you!"
Alex simply smirked.
"Even if I told you, you wouldn't believe . And I only repainted them so you wouldn't fight over the colors."
The girls laughed, and Alex watched them with a warm smile. Even though chaos reigned in this world, he had still found his family here.
The girls smiled and each chose the shield ant for her. As a token of gratitude, Alex's face was once again covered in traces of their lipstick. Smiling widely, he gave a brief instruction on how to use the energy shields. When everyone had secured them, Alex checked the systems, and after confirming everything was working reliably, he nodded. Finishing the check, he went down to the deck with the girls, where the rest had already gathered.
"Here's our leader, who's been missing all day," R smirked, noticing Alex.
"What can I say, not everyone's cut out to be lazy like you," Alex replied with a cheerful smile.
R's face imdiately twisted, as if struck by lightning. The other guys standing nearby couldn't hold back their laughter.
"He got you again, R. Aren't you tired of stepping on the sa rake?" teased Toji, barely keeping his laughter in check.
Alex, smirking, shifted his gaze to the approaching shores of Shenzhen, and his expression imdiately changed. Unlike Okinawa and other destroyed cities, the situation here was much worse. Shenzhen looked like a real hellhole.
Alex asked for a drone to conduct reconnaissance and assess the situation from above. As soon as the device was in his hands, he activated it and sent it toward the city. Soon, the live feed appeared on his tablet, and one detail imdiately caught his attention.
The others gathered around, peering at the tablet to see what was happening.
"Why are the Evil Corporation soldiers fighting the mutants? Aren't they supposed to be on the sa side?" Mao asked in surprise.
"And why do so of them look more like demons?" R added, pointing to a creature with horns and burning eyes. "Are we fighting not zombies, but damn demons now?"
"If you hadn't said anything, I wouldn't have noticed…" Koko frowned. "Damn, they really have horns. If it weren't for the zombies, I'd think the Bastard Corporation opened a gate to hell."
"Better not jinx it…" Saya replied dryly. "What if they really did?"
Alex didn't answer, but what he saw confird his suspicions—a third force had intervened. All the zombies previously controlled by the Evil Corporation had completely broken free of their influence. Now mutants, modified beings, and even these demonic creatures were under the control of the Markers. This could only an one thing: the Markers had started to form… or, even worse, had already been fully activated in so parts of the world.
The mories of satellite images, where ominous black clouds hung over the infected areas, flashed in his mind.
"I don't think we should get involved. Let them fight among themselves—it works in our favor. This is our chance to safely pull Casper's group and the people from the dojo out. Plus, it'll be an opportunity to test my new toys," Alex said, handing the tablet to the girls.
"You want to bomb the city?" Rebecca's eyes sparkled with excitent. "I'm all for it! LET BLOW IT UP! PLEASE, PLEASE!"
She grabbed Alex by the shoulders and started shaking him, looking at him with tearful, yet enthusiastic eyes.
"...Damn," Alex sighed, realizing resistance was useless.
He handed control over to Rebecca, only hoping she wouldn't blow the whole city to bits.
"Are you serious?" Valt asked skeptically, looking at him as if he were crazy. "Even I think giving Rebecca control of the weapon is a bad idea."
"Don't chicken out, one-eyed," Rebecca grinned, rubbing her hands with excitent. "Now—TI TO BLOW IT UP!"
"Wait. It's not ti yet," Alex stopped her. "First, I'll contact Casper so they'll be ready."
Rebecca puffed up but thankfully held herself back. The others exchanged glances, anticipating what would happen next.
When Rebecca pouted, he pinched her cheek, signaling her to wait a little. Alex pulled out his phone and dialed Casper's number to let him know they had arrived. However, instead of Casper's voice, he once again heard Chikita.
"Why are you calling? Are you already nearby?" she asked as soon as she answered.
"Sothing like that. We're in port, so I'm warning you to prepare," Alex explained.
Chikita was surprised by their speed. However, what really shocked her was Alex's ntion of the upcoming bombing. He had warned her to make sure everyone was ready. Then he spread his mana over the entire city, checking to ensure there were no civilians in the strike zone. Once he was sure that there were no regular people in the areas with the highest concentration of zombies, mutants, and demons, except for the Evil Corporation soldiers, he nodded to Rebecca, giving her the green light.
Alex was glad he hadn't given her access to the Big Gun—this gremlin would've definitely used it.
The rumble of the rotating cannons imdiately grabbed attention. When the targeting system was set, Rebecca grinned predatorily and pressed the launch button. The first salvo tore through the city, engulfing enemy clusters in fire and debris. A giant column of smoke rose from the explosion.
"Damn, how the hell did you manage to put together such a weapon in one day?!" Lutz exclaid, stunned by the power of the cannons.
Alex smirked.
"Heh, magic."
At the sa ti, Chikita relayed Alex's words to the others in the bunker. When they heard that help had arrived, the people felt relief—they would finally be leaving this cursed place. Every day, they had watched zombies and mutants wander the grounds through the caras, and now they had a chance to escape.
Chikita and a few others gathered around the monitors to see what Alex had arrived in. After adjusting the caras, they saw a massive aircraft carrier in the distance.
"Damn... Did they steal an aircraft carrier?!" Casper stared at the screen in shock. "I thought he was joking when he said he'd borrow it from the military base..."
"Alex said he's starting the bombing, so get ready," Chikita reminded him.
"He's going to do WHAT?!" Casper turned to her in horror.
But before Chikita could respond, the first salvo fired, and a powerful explosion rocked the city a second later. Casper froze, mouth agape, staring at the monitors.
"Who the hell is this guy my sister's seeing...?" he muttered.
The weapons mounted on the aircraft carrier also raised Chikita's suspicions.
"Whoa... Never seen weapons like that before. There's no way ships like that have this kind of armant... Where did it co from?" she remarked, intrigued.
"Yeah, I didn't even notice. I was too focused on who this Alex is, the guy Koko's now dating," Casper said thoughtfully, rubbing his chin.
"Do you think Koko will tell you anything? Should I remind you how all your conversations with her end?" Chikita smirked, raising an eyebrow.
"Don't remind ... But this Alex has really piqued my interest," Casper admitted, then looked at Chikita. "You've talked to him the most lately. You wouldn't even give the phone when he called. What's your opinion of him?"
"It's hard to say. I haven't seen him, so I can't really tell you anything special," she shrugged.
Casper shook his head. One thing was clear—ti to prepare to leave. This bunker had grown tireso for everyone, and staying here any longer made no sense.
Turning off the caras, Casper, Chikita, and the others headed toward the people who were also preparing to leave the shelter. Chikita glanced furtively toward the exit. She couldn't wait to finally et the guy she'd talked to so much on the phone... And who, damn it, had stolen an aircraft carrier for their rescue.
To be continued...
3 Chapters on my Patreon: /GreedHunter
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