A Middle-aged Man Who Returned From Another World Becomes Unrivaled In The Apocalyptic World – Vol 1 – Chapter 22

Chapter 22

 

“Oh, Azami-san, you can walk by yourself!”

“Don’t move too much, it’s not safe.”

When I returned to the boy’s changing room, I lifted Kaede in a so-called princess hug. Kaede’s face turned red and she protested, perhaps because of her fever or embarrassment, but I didn’t care, I carried her into the staff room and lowered her onto the bed.

“Azami-san, this is….?”

After I left the changing room, I went to the restroom as planned, and made some space in the staff room by pulling the office table and chairs in and out, and brought the bed for sale into the staff room. I thought if she slept in a slightly better environment, her body would be more rested.

“Now you have a good rest. I mean, at least I could have brought in a mattress or a futon.”

“….That’s right…..I couldn’t think of that.”

However, after being chased by zombies and then having her mother turned into a zombie, she did not have the presence of mind to worry about the comfort of her bed. I’m sure Kaede’s father was the same way, he must have been even more frustrated than Kaede had seen him. And even more so now that his father was gone.

“No, I’m sorry. Anyway, you need to rest and get better.”

“….Yes. But can I talk to you for a minute until you fall asleep?”

Kaede nodded honestly and looked up at me standing beside her. All right, I said as I placed the office chair that had been pulled up against the wall by the bed and sat down on it.

“I didn’t know whether to ask or not, but I didn’t tell you in the end….”

“What is it?”

It must have been before bedtime. As before, Kaede’s mouth puckered up and did not speak, but this time she opened her mouth as if she had made up her mind.

Kaede’s eyes were trembling. I don’t know what she was thinking when she asked that question.

Did she just genuinely care about the safety of my parents? Or was it just that her own parents had died and she wanted to do something to comfort each other if they were in the same situation? Or maybe she just wanted to share her feelings with me. Maybe even Kaede herself doesn’t understand.

“Unfortunately, they passed away a long time ago. It was a car accident, and it was probably better than dying in this world. I haven’t had a family since then.”

No siblings either, I added.

“I see….I’m sorry I asked you such a weird question.”

I’m sure Kaede doesn’t know why she asked that question, and she apologized with mixed emotions on her face.

“I don’t mind. I told you, feel free to ask me anything.”

I really meant it, and that’s why I tried to say it in a calm tone of voice so that Kaede wouldn’t feel guilty unnecessarily.

“….You are very kind, Azami-san.”

Kaede stared into my eyes. The way she was looking at me made my heart thump loudly in my chest.

Am I being kind?

My heart was beating wildly as he said something I had never thought of.

In the other world, I always doubted even my own kind, I left them to die, and I killed not a few of them with my own hands. And to top it all off, I had abandoned the few friends I had met in the world that I could trust and returned to Japan, so there was no way I could be kind.

After a few moments of silence in the room, I regained my composure and slowly opened my mouth.

“That’s a misunderstanding.”

To be honest, I was beginning to think that the fact that I was in this situation so soon after my return was a punishment for my cruelty. If that’s the case, I want such punishment to be directed at me alone and not involve others.

I couldn’t look directly into Kaede’s eyes, so I looked away.

“That’s enough, now get some sleep.”

I said bluntly and stood up from my chair.

Kaede almost reached for me for a moment, but quickly stopped her movement and opened her mouth instead.

“….I understand……Azami-san is kind, you’ re not going anywhere, right?”

“….is not kind.”

I responded to Kaede’s words, who still seemed anxious to be alone, and I moved to the sofa to lie down. 

When Kaede saw this, she seemed to have a small smile on her face.

 

 

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