Building a Safe Zone with My Harem In The Post-Apocalyptic World

Chapter 182: Peaceful Winter Night

"Speak of the devil?" Elaine raised an eyebrow as she walked over. "Were you thinking about me?"

Without waiting for permission, she sat directly on his lap as though it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Yeah, I was talking with Piggy earlier, and it made me realize the two of you have almost the same personality."

Elaine had been reaching into the crate beside them for a beer, but she immediately stopped and looked at him as if he had personally insulted her.

"We do not."

"Really?"

"Yes. She’s a scaredy cat. She talks like she has the upper hand all the time, but half the rude things she says are complete nonsense. It’s all mind games."

She finally grabbed a bottle, but before that Gidoen slapped her hand and glared at her.

"You are a doctor and you are pregnant, be reasonable."

Elaine frowned, "Ah, right. I forget about it sometimes, it’s like a habit when I see a crate of delicious beer in the open like this. My bad."

She moved her hand to embrace him instead as if wanting to warm herself.

"Well, both of you are rude," Gideon pointed out. "You even sound similar. Same tone, same way of talking. I figured maybe you came from the same area or something and grew up together."

He kept his voice casual. In reality, he was trying to steer the conversation toward her past without making it obvious.

The two women fought almost every day as if they were following a schedule. Worse, Piggy and Elaine fought like grown men with grudges. Several times they had ended up with bruises over arguments that should never have escalated that far.

"You’re sharper than you look," Elaine admitted. "We did grow up together, actually. At one point she even lived with my mom when we were still in that cursed town."

For a moment, her voice became quieter. "The strange thing is that my mom could love her like a daughter, but somehow she could never do the same for me."

Gideon found himself at a loss for words. There really was not a good response to something like that.

"Yeah, I guess both of us had pretty crappy parents." he eventually said with a shrug.

Elaine laughed softly. Then she leaned her head against his chest.

Moments like this always reminded him how different she was in private. Around other people she rarely showed affection openly. When they were alone, however, she became surprisingly clingy.

"Just admit Piggy told you something about our past, you’re still curious about that woman, aren’t you?"

Gideon let out a sigh. "You got me."

"I knew it."

"But it’s not just curiosity. It’s because of you and the baby too. I still don’t think you should go to Edelweiss Town."

"I won’t. Didn’t you hear? The people Jade sent already came back."

The words immediately caught his attention.

"Really? Where’s Jade now? What happened?"

"The men talked to the governor, and he said everything is fine. The leader of the Eagle Union claimed they had to relocate farther away because their relationship with those damned governments is getting worse and they’re apparently on the verge of war. That’s why they moved," Elaine explained.

"That explanation makes sense, but it’s complete bullshit. Why would they cut all communication with the Freebound then?" Gideon narrowed his eyes.

"Right? I don’t believe it either." Elaine adjusted herself slightly against his chest before continuing. "But more importantly, I’m not going to Edelweiss Town, at least not until I’m three months pregnant."

Gideon sighed. Whenever Elaine spoke in that tone, the discussion was already over. She had made her decision, and changing her mind was almost impossible. The only way to guarantee her safety now was to find another solution entirely.

"Jade also said she won’t push the matter any further for now. She’s handing the investigation over to the Mercenary Guild instead. Apparently, she’s already paying for information and putting up commissions."

"She is invited to the Mercenary Guild’s annual banquet, isn’t she? Honestly, that’s probably the perfect place to gather information and make connections." " Gideon finally put down the empty beer bottle.

"Ah, right. That party. I’ll be your plus one, right? I heard they serve actual food there." Elaine’s eyes brightened slightly.

She remained comfortably on his lap, still clinging to him without any intention of moving. However, before Gideon could answer, a sharp crack echoed across the night sky.

Both of them immediately turned toward the source. At first, all they saw was darkness stretching beyond the barrier. Then another flash appeared.

Something white was flying through the sky.

The creature slammed into the barrier repeatedly before a burst of electricity erupted across its body. The white figure instantly turned black from the electrical discharge and dropped from the sky.

Whatever it was, it had feathers. Another followed, more flashes lit up the darkness.

"I need to go to the tower," Gideon said as he stood up. "Want to come with me?"

"Sure. I don’t have anything better to do anyway."

The two quickly left the rooftop and headed toward the Guard Tower.

As they moved through the territory, more flashes illuminated the sky above them. Flying aberrants kept crashing into the barrier, only to be struck by powerful electric shocks.

Every discharge produced a distinctive crackling sound, while the flashes themselves briefly illuminated the darkness like stars appearing and disappearing across the night sky.

"What the hell? That’s a lot of them."

Gideon and Elaine jumped into his truck to get there faster.

"It might be an insect type aberrant," Elaine said while watching the sky through the window. "Those things usually move in groups. I’ve heard some of them have mutated enough to survive this kind of weather."

Just imagining a massive swarm gathering outside the territory made Gideon shiver.

He hated insects. If those things turned out to be giant bugs with wings, he was going to have a very bad night.