My Childhood Friend Turned Yandere in the Apocalypse

Chapter 231: Ch 231: Mother’s Presence

"Wow! What a beautiful place. It’s a pity that I need to tear it all down in order to find Rin."

Shelly looked around the room she had landed in...

Well, to call it a room would be an understatement. It would be better to say that she was in an enclosure with lush green grass and beautiful trees surrounding her. The trees even had flowers matching the color of her hair.

Somehow, it gave her the feeling that this place had been made with her in mind.

And that left a bitter taste in her mouth.

"This wall looks fragile. Hmm, oh no! It broke down so easily."

Shelly applied a little force, and the wall came crumbling down. She entered the next room through the hole she had made, and she immediately froze.

There was no dark hallway in front of her, nor was there a horde of monsters waiting for her.

Instead, it was a familiar room that made her let out a strained chuckle.

"What kind of place is this? Is it pulling these places out of my memories? This is a rather faithful recreation of my childhood bedroom."

Shelly felt her guard lowering as she went inside the room. Her hand moved over the table and the clock before touching the familiar ribbon that Rin had given her as a gift. It was something she had lost long ago, so how could it be back?

Her hand reached out to touch the ribbon, and she brought it up to her head to tie it in her hair. It still fluttered the same way she recalled it.

"This place...is it really from my memory? What am I supposed to do now?"

Shelly questioned as she sat down on her bed.

The easiest way to get out of this place would be to destroy the wall and then walk out. But Shelly felt conflicted about doing that. This place held everything she had lost—from gifts Rin had given her to their secret photos.

She wanted to keep it all in her inventory so that she could always keep these things safe.

But when she attempted to do that, she was met with a warning message.

[Warning: Please do not attempt to put task props in your inventory. It is not a permitted action.]

Shelly had no choice but to give up, but that did not mean she was not bitter about it.

She lay down on the bed for a few minutes before forcing herself back to her feet. She needed to get going if she was going to find Rin.

As wonderful as this room was, it paled in comparison to Rin, and that was her goal for now.

"Let’s see what kind of nostalgic place I see next—"

Shelly tried to open the door, but it wouldn’t budge. The handle wouldn’t turn, no matter how hard she pushed it.

The intention behind this incident was clear—the system was asking her to destroy this place with her own hands in order to move forward.

"What kind of hell is this?"

Shelly questioned as she tried to think of her options. But she could not think of anything else other than destroying the door and this room.

She had a decision to make now...

Not that it was hard for her to make one.

After all, no matter how good this room was or how much she wanted to stay here, it all paled in comparison to Rin’s presence. And Shelly needed to find Rin.

Her powers exploded, and the room blew apart, revealing the next hallway. Shelly stepped into that dark space and headed toward her next destination.

The demon king’s castle was likely huge, and finding Rin should have been an impossible task, but Shelly could almost feel his presence. It was inviting her to head toward him, and she followed her instincts.

She had not walked very far when she suddenly felt another presence looking her way. It felt familiar to her, but it still took Shelly some time to figure out why.

’This feeling...! It feels like Mother is observing my actions. But surely she won’t be here? She has no reason to associate with any of this...unless...’

Shelly knew her mother’s actions right before the apocalypse had been sketchy. She had moved as though she knew what was going to happen. She had even given Shelly a warning as well.

But even if her mother was involved in the apocalypse, that did not matter to Shelly. They were more than strangers but less than family at this point.

Still, this was a good opportunity to get some answers. And who knew? Maybe Rin would even praise her for being helpful.

"How long are you going to watch me from the shadows? If you have something to say to me, then come out and say it. Stop trying to spy on me in secret."

If it were Rin, he might have used some diplomacy to make the other side feel more comfortable showing themselves. But Shelly was neither patient nor compassionate.

Her bluntness was her biggest strength.

The other side seemed to agree as well, because they sighed and the wall separated to reveal her mother’s figure emerging from a newly formed hole.

"Oh my! I finally get to see my daughter after so long. You cannot imagine how happy I am...now that was unnecessary."

Shelly threw a dagger her mother’s way, but it changed direction on its own and flew past her.

It was a frustrating sight to see, but not an unexpected one. Her mother was not someone who would expose herself like this if she were not confident that she would survive.

"My dear Shelly. The product of my husband’s and my love. Ah, how I’ve missed you. That’s why I decided to visit you. Aren’t you happy to see me?"

Her mother asked in a cheerful voice as she walked toward Shelly.

Each step she took forward forced Shelly to take one back. It was hard for her to feel comfortable around her mother.

But her mother did not seem to care about her comfort.

"Stay where you are and do not move toward me. Just say what you have to say so that we can go our separate ways."

Shelly warned in a threatening voice, and her mother pouted at her words.

"That’s mean of you, Shelly. Can’t you be a little more gentle with your poor mother? I came all the way here to meet you...but I don’t see Rin anywhere. Is he not here with you?"