Daily life in Zongman

Futaba Rio walked in, grabbed her collar by the back of her neck and dragged her back: "Ishii, are you a nympho? Don't be curious about strange things!"

"Don't pull, don't pull. I just want to know, can Fujiwara stand up? Let me observe."

"You're causing a lot of trouble for others! Come out quickly!"

"Let me take a look, is everything okay?"

Looking at the two people struggling, Fujiwara Haru stood up, turned his back, wiped his body clean, put on his clothes and walked out.

"I ve done washing."

This was the first time someone broke into his bathroom, and he had no idea what to do, so he decided to leave.

The atmosphere was very silent during dinner. The three of them gathered around an iron pot and shared the food inside.

The square fruit was something Fujiwara Haru had never seen before. After taking a bite, he found that it had a soft and sticky texture, a bit like taro.

"what is this?"

"Taro."

"Square taro, how strange."

“Aren’t they all square?”

"Well... maybe."

Ishii bit into a taro. "By the way, Fujiwara has a lot of muscles. It looks very comfortable. He's about the same height as me, but looks younger. Is that above his waist an abdominal muscle? I want to touch it."

"By the way, will Fujiwara still grow taller?"

Fujiwara Haru was stunned by the sudden comment, but then decided to ignore the first half and answer the following question: "Probably. I feel like I can grow a lot taller. I also want to grow taller."

"It can still grow taller, so Fujiwara is still in the growth stage."

"Well, I'm 13 years old this year. Calculating the time, I'll be 14 in about three months."

"Hey, Fujiwara is so young. I should be in my twenties."

"Why are you so unsure of your age?"

"I've always lived alone in this base, so my age doesn't really matter."

It sounded a bit sad, and Fujiwara Haru didn't know how to respond.

The room fell silent again as the three of them quietly ate their dinner. The soft, sticky taro had little flavor, and Fujiwara Haru couldn't quite stomach it. However, Futaba had just said not to use the gourmet tablecloth for the time being, so they decided to observe cautiously.

Ishii ate quietly, too, wondering when she'd last seen anyone. After a long moment of reflection, she realized she couldn't remember. It felt as if she'd been alone for as long as she could remember. She'd always been alone, always alone, always living in despair.

In this apocalyptic world, she searches for a glimmer of hope amidst despair. After discovering this underground base, she settles there, harboring a glimmer of hope for the future. She begins experimenting with building her own airplane, hoping to escape this long-dead, layered city and reach other, more viable cities.

She wants to live. After all, survival is an instinct engraved in the DNA of life.

Ishii finished eating the taro. She was full, her expression calm, and she asked in a calm tone, "Fujiwara, what do you think of my appearance?"

After a careful observation, he answered honestly: "Very beautiful, very elegant."

"Is that so? Then it should be fine." She murmured, then spoke again: "Fujiwara, let's have a baby."

Reproduction is also an instinct of life engraved in its DNA.

The taro that Futaba was holding fell to the ground.

62. From the Sword in the Stone to Building Airplanes

"Fujiwara, let's have a baby."

The rotten taro fell to the ground with a dull plop. After that sound, the room fell into silence.

"No." Fujiwara Haru took a bite of the taro, but his didn't fall to the ground.

Futaba picked up the taro from the ground and tore off the gray-stained skin.

"Hey, so decisive, why?" Ishii didn't understand. She lived alone in the apocalyptic world and had basically no concept of propriety, righteousness, integrity and shame.

"Hmm...how should I put it?" Fujiwara Haru thought for a moment. He knew Ishii hadn't meant it, so he wasn't angry. He chose his words, "Having a child requires deep love and harmony between the two of you. If you just give birth to it carelessly, that would be terrible."

Fujiwara Haru does not want to have a child casually. Although he is still very confused about how to do it, he does not want his child to be born in a bad family environment.

At least, he wants to build a good family with the person he loves before carefully considering having children.

He didn't want to be an irresponsible father.

"Fujiwara is surprisingly serious." Ishii finished eating the taro.

Fujiwara Haru did not refute.

"We love each other deeply..." Ishii leaned back in his chair. "Ah... So, should we go on a date? I read in the past that people who love each other will go on a date and feel happy when they are together."

"Ishii, you really have no common sense." Fujiwara Haru complained and finished eating his taro.

"What is common sense?"

"Hmm..." Fujiwara Haru thought for a moment. This question really stumped him. How should he answer it? He didn't know. His previous complaint was just a subconscious reaction.

Futaba spoke up: "The definition of common sense is: the daily consensus that exists in society about the same thing."

Ishii looked at the two of them and sighed, "I see, Fujiwara, you have someone you like."

Fujiwara Haru's first reaction was yes, so he said "hmm." Then he realized that something was wrong.

"I should say that I do have someone I like, but not the kind you're talking about, Ishii."

He thought that he definitely liked Sister Shen Dong, but it was probably not the kind of love that Ishii was talking about at this moment, but a deeper and more trusting kind of love between family members.

He also liked Nishimiya Shoko, but it was probably not the kind of love that Ishii was talking about at the moment. It was a more pure kind of love that came with a sense of protection, the kind of love that one would have as a best friend.

Finally, there is Rio Futaba. He also has some feelings for Futaba, but it is not the kind of love that Ishii is talking about at this moment. Instead, he likes her as a good partner who goes on adventures together. He trusts her abilities and likes her character.

This was the first time that Fujiwara Haru thought about the differences in liking someone. He realized that liking someone can include many situations, each of which is different.

After dinner, he tidied up the room again. Not feeling sleepy, Fujiwara Haru jogged around the base, exercising and burning off his excess energy.

This base is huge. It used to be an air force base, and its interior is filled with abandoned aircraft wreckage, like a steel tomb. Next to the wreckage of the base, there is a lot of infrastructure left, including various warehouses and equipment for building aircraft, which are all very complete.

I jogged back to where I'd just come down. Next to the elevator, there was a half-finished airplane. Ishii was busy working on it. She was wearing work gloves and holding tools, apparently adjusting the aircraft's internal structure.

She glanced back at the sound of running, then continued with her work.

I ran under the plane and looked at this huge creation with some curiosity: "Is this the plane you built, Ishii?"

"Yeah, I made it."

"By the way, why did Ishii want to build an airplane?" The topic of dinner just now was so unusual that Fujiwara Haru even forgot about the airplane he saw when he first came in.

Ishii paused his busy movements, seemingly thinking and reminiscing. After a pause, he replied, "A long time ago, when I was very young, I came here to look for food."

“I stumbled upon a production facility nearby that had plenty of taro, enough for me to eat and still have plenty left.”

"At that time, I could occasionally run into one or two people, but they weren't friendly to each other, and robberies were common. I was alone, and I didn't dare tell anyone, nor did I dare to take Taro too far, so I found a secluded place nearby and lived there."

"I was very lucky. I found this air force base again. It's very hidden and few people come to this open space."

“So I’ve been living here ever since.”

"The beginning was very boring. There was no one to chat with, and nothing changed. I would just eat and sleep, wake up and stare blankly, eat when I was hungry, and then sleep again."

"I didn't know why I was alive. I was in a daze. Until I was wandering around this base and found the remaining aircraft blueprints in the warehouse."

"Those drawings record in great detail all of mankind's aircraft designs from the very beginning to the present day."

“That’s when I thought, let’s build an airplane.”

"This base seems to be responsible for preserving technology, and it has a very complete collection of books on flying. So I went from sleeping after eating to studying, exploring, and building after eating. I would sleep again when I was tired, and study again when I woke up."

"Until now."

"My goal has changed from building a plane to building one and using it to take me out of this city. If I continue to stay here, I will die with this city."

"This is already my dream... I want to fly a plane and go outside this city to see what's going on. Maybe other places will be a little different."

Ishii continued her work, carefully building her own plane.

"That's amazing, Ishii." Standing below the plane, looking at this creation, Fujiwara Haru sighed. Ishii was self-taught and built it himself, and his extraordinary learning and hands-on ability were much better than his.

Hearing the compliment, Ishii's tone remained calm: "It's not bad. This base has blueprints and information, and it's fully equipped. I just found the necessary materials and put them together."

"That's pretty cool too, building airplanes. I don't know when I'll be that good. I can only make some physical models and simple props."

Ishii paused for a moment, then turned and looked over: "Want to learn?"

"Is that okay? It won't be a weird request, right?"

"No, my proposal to have a child was rejected, and I won't dwell on it anymore."

"Hmm..." Fujiwara Haru thought and shook his head regretfully: "Thank you, but Futaba and I also need to leave this layered city as soon as possible. We can't waste too much time on these things."

"Oh, what a shame! I thought I could get free labor." Ishii sighed and continued working. "To be honest, I wanted you to help me before, but apart from providing some hot water and food, I don't have much to offer. I can't ask for it."

Ishii looked at the plane and said, "I don't know when I can finish building it..."

Fujiwara Haru looked at Ishii, lowered his head and counted his menstrual period on his fingers. After confirming it, he said, "I need to rest recently. I will go back and discuss it with Futaba. If she agrees, I will help you build it. Once it is completed as soon as possible, you can fly away from this layered city to fulfill your dream, and we will also leave by car."

Ishii was a little surprised: "Is it really possible?"

"I need to go back and discuss it first. Don't have definite expectations." Fujiwara Haru didn't want to make a decision without his teammates' knowledge.

"Thank you very much."

After the chat, Fujiwara Haru walked back and thought that Ishii was actually quite nice, just a person who lacked common sense. However, in this apocalyptic world, with humanity about to perish, her lack of common sense seemed normal.

Forget it, don’t think too much about it. I’ll go back and discuss temporary accommodation with Futaba first.

Based on my understanding of Futaba, I felt she would be sarcastic and then agree. No, it was also possible that she would agree directly.

Speaking of which, Futaba has been less sharp-tongued lately. She seems to have become much gentler and doesn't like sharp-tongued people as much as when we first met. Recently, no matter what you say, she seems to be very easy to talk to. Although she would agree to anything you ask before, it's different now.

Before, I was hypocritical in words but honest in actions. That is, after I asked for help or asked a question, I would be scolded harshly, and then I would be given help and answers.

Recently she has become a gentle girl. When asked to do something or asked a question, she will directly agree and answer the question.

Became very easy to get along with.

Which state is the real Futaba?

Both.

Fujiwara Haru was sure it was both.

Futaba wasn't unhappy, nor was she tolerating anything. I could sense that she had been in a good mood recently, occasionally humming along in the car while listening to music. She would also share some coffee with me when she drank it, and everything was fine.

Both the sharp-tongued and gentle states are good and great. No matter what the state is, Futaba will help and answer questions.

I like them all. When can I see the sharp-tongued Futaba again?

It should be soon. Calculating the time, Futaba's menstrual period should be coming soon.

63. The little witch under control

Fujiwara Haru and Futaba were staying tonight in the room to the left of the bathroom, leaving only one bedroom cleared. Fujiwara Haru had originally planned to find another, but when she first met Ishii, Futaba had said they needed to be cautious, so they only cleared one bedroom. This way, they could sleep together at night, so they could be on the lookout for any emergencies.

Judging from the time they've been getting along with each other, the people of Ishii are indeed nice people. They shouldn't attack them at night. They can go and clean up another bedroom tomorrow.

When I walked into the bedroom, I found Futaba sitting on the bed reading a book. The only single bed in the bedroom was empty, and there were mattresses and quilts for two people on the floor.

"Futaba, you sleep on the bed."

Futaba looked at the book without looking up: "No, we are teammates, I don't want to be treated too preferentially. Fujiwara-kun, you sleeping on the floor and I sleeping on the bed, this is not good."

Fujiwara Haru actually doesn't mind this, but it's still nice to see Futaba do this. After all, she's doing it out of a desire to "take care of her teammates," and it's nice to feel cared for.

"By the way, Futaba, I want to discuss something."

"What's the matter? Fujiwara-kun rarely uses the word 'discuss'." Futaba raised her head and looked over.

"Let's stay here for a few more days."

"Anything to do?"

"There are two purposes." Fujiwara Haru held up a finger. "First, Futaba's period is coming soon, right? I think you could rest for a few days and not travel so much. That should make your period feel better, right?"

"Secondly, I want to help Ishii build a plane so that she can get away from this layered city as soon as possible. This period of help will last until your menstrual period ends, Futaba, and it will not delay her leaving the layered city." Fujiwara Haru stretched out two fingers.

Futaba was silent for a while and lowered her head: "Fujiwara-kun is really... Well, although I heard that you like to help others in school, I now find that you are really enthusiastic."