Behind her, a middle-aged man in a chef’s uniform and a woman who appeared to be around the same age followed closely.
Bringing up the rear was a man in a police uniform.
With each swing of his sword, the officer cleaved the monsters clean in half, their bodies falling apart as if they were made of paper.
“Mr. Howard, there are people! Alive people!”
At Jose’s shout, Harrison glanced over and nodded, confirming the sight.
“I’ll take the lead. Watch the rear.”
Harrison’s calm command earned a quick nod from Jose, who then sprinted forward.
Jose reloaded his rifle and aimed at a nearby monster creeping closer to the survivors.
Bang!
The gunshot echoed as the creature’s head snapped back, its lifeless body crumpling to the ground.
The survivors under the wall were now just steps away from the mansion gate. Harrison’s group was closing in as well.
And that’s when Harrison saw her.
The woman leading the survivors along the wall—Cherry Sinclair.
His precious family.
Not connected by blood, but the only family he had left in this ruined world.
The entire journey here, Harrison had felt as if a hand were wrapped tightly around his heart, squeezing so hard it made breathing difficult.
But the moment he laid eyes on Cherry’s face, the weight lifted.
Relief flooded over him, so intense that Harrison felt his eyes sting with emotion.
*****
Harrison was alive.
The moment we stepped safely inside the gates of Happy House, Harrison pulled me into his arms.
“Harrison! You’re alive. I knew it.”
His strong arms wrapped tightly around my waist. He quietly rested his face against my shoulder. Overcome with relief, I hugged him back.
Just then, as the last of the group made it through, Nox and Amy shut the gates and locked them securely.
Ethan and the pink-haired young man helped reinforce the barricade.
Thud! Thud!
The sound of monsters slamming against the gate echoed, but the sturdy doors held firm.
Harrison released me and cupped my face, scanning it closely. His gentle green eyes looked me over.
“I was worried about you, Miss.”
“You’re not hurt anywhere, are you?”
I checked Harrison’s condition. Fortunately, he didn’t appear to have any serious injuries.
“I’m fine.”
“Thank you for surviving. Really, thank you.”
I mumbled incoherently, and Harrison furrowed his brow as if sensing something was wrong.
“What do you mean... Where’s Susanna? I sent her ahead.”
“...”
I couldn’t answer. Just thinking about her name made my stomach churn. I swallowed my words.
I had no idea what kind of expression I was making, but Harrison’s face hardened as he looked at me.
A moment later, his large hand gently patted my head.
“Thank you for holding on, Miss.”
I pressed my lips tightly together.
Only after confirming Harrison’s safety did I notice the others.
The chef and Emma were hugging each other, crying with relief.
Vanilla had collapsed onto the ground, catching her breath, while the pink-haired young man stood beside her.
He was closer to a young adult than a boy, but he still looked younger than me.
Who the hell is this guy?
The sudden influx of people made the house feel crowded—a strange sight after so much isolation.
A bustling house... I wasn’t used to it.
Just then, Ethan stepped forward and extended his hand to Harrison.
“I’ve been looking forward to meeting you, Mr. Howard.”
I shifted my gaze to the bag slung over Harrison’s shoulder.
Anyone could guess what was inside. Several gun barrels were sticking out of it.
I saw Ethan glance at the bag, too. Even in the apocalypse, habits were hard to break. Occupational hazard, I guess.
Before Harrison could respond, Nox clapped his hands and approached with a grin.
I had no idea why he thought applause was appropriate, but he held out his hand to Harrison.
“It’s been a while, Mr. Howard. Thank you for raising our eccentric lady here.”
“What kind of nonsense is that, Ludfisher? Greet him properly,” I snapped, staring at Nox in disbelief.
“Hey, Miss Cherry being eccentric is the reason we’re all alive right now. I’m just showing my gratitude.”
Nox’s sly smile made it impossible to argue with him. Ugh. There was no winning an argument with this guy.
Then Amy, who had been crouching and chewing on a lollipop stick, suddenly stood up and marched over.
With a smirk, she stuck out her hand to Harrison.
“Are you Sugar Star’s older brother? Hi, I’m Amy Wharton, Sugar Star’s new little sister.”
Harrison hesitantly shook Amy’s hand, clearly unsure how to react.
Meanwhile, the pink-haired guy looked around before turning to me.
“Wow, this place really is a wreck. Cherry Sinclair actually lives here?”
Now that I looked closely, he was ridiculously good-looking. Even as a woman, I felt insecure standing next to him.
Feeling vaguely annoyed, I glanced at Harrison.
“Who’s this?”
“He’s the weapons expert I mentioned. He’s here to teach you how to use firearms.”
Harrison introduced him, and the guy stepped forward with a warm smile, holding out his hand.
“Nice to meet you, Miss Cherry. I’m Jose Cambren. I’ve heard a lot about you on the way here—our delicate Sinclair princess.”
I shook his hand reluctantly, but something about his name nagged at me.
“Cambren...? Wait a second.”
I gripped his hand tighter, pulling him closer. Jose blinked in surprise.
“Jose Cambren? Jose Cambren Galloway?”
“How do you know my family name? I ran away ages ago. Mr. Howard, did you dig into my background?”
Crap.
Harrison looked at me with confusion. After all, he’d never mentioned anything about Jose to me.
Nox, standing nearby, rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
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“Never heard of the Galloway family before.”
“I’m from the Kingdom of Briwood,” Jose explained.
Nox shot me a look of genuine surprise.
“What the hell, Miss Cherry? You memorize noble family trees from neighboring kingdoms? That’s unexpected.”
Nox’s question hung in the air, but I didn’t have time to deal with him.
Damn it. Ethan, Nox, Vanilla—and now Jose?
How the hell did all the main characters from the novel end up in Happy House?
I felt like I’d completely messed up the original storyline.
‘Still, the female lead and main male lead should still be safe in the capital... right?’
Of course, as I had decided before, survival mattered more than sticking to the plot.
But if the story veered too far off track, it might be harder to find Ezra, the supporting male lead and scientist.
After all, he hadn’t been mentioned once in the past two years.
One day, he had just shown up out of nowhere in front of Aurora.
“Um...”
While I was lost in thought, the man in the chef’s uniform approached me.
When I looked up at him, he bowed his head in greeting. Then he turned and bowed to the others one by one.
“Thank you for saving us. I’m Victor Hope.”
Next to him, Emma wiped away her tears and bowed as well, her voice trembling with gratitude.
“I’m Emma Swap. Thank you so much for saving us. I don’t know how we can ever repay you.”
Nox shrugged and pointed his thumb at me, redirecting the credit.
“You have this lady to thank for making the right call.”
Now that I thought about it, most of the people we saw beyond the wall earlier were familiar, but Victor and Emma were strangers.
Victor seemed to notice my confusion and offered an explanation.
“Emma and I were away traveling for a while. When we returned, we heard rumors that many outsiders had come to Brunel.”
Amy suddenly perked up and blurted out, “Wait, you two were traveling together?”
Victor and Emma flushed red, looking flustered.
What was this? What’s going on?
Everyone else seemed equally bewildered until Amy took it upon herself to explain.
“Victor and Emma are childhood friends. Victor’s been head over heels for her forever, and that’s why he never got married. But then Emma went and married someone else and moved to the capital. After her husband died, she came straight back to the village—and Victor’s been protecting her ever since.”
“Oh my, Amy! It’s not like that!”
Emma waved her hands frantically, clearly embarrassed. Meanwhile, Victor’s face had turned completely crimson.
More than anything, I was amazed that Amy knew so much about their history.
I stared at her, and she just shrugged nonchalantly.
“I’ve always been good with gossip.”
Amy really was something else—a quick-witted, sharp-tongued girl who was fast with her hands, knowledgeable about herbs, and apparently an expert on village rumors.
“If we’re done chatting, shouldn’t we head inside the mansion?”
Ethan, who had been quietly observing the situation, finally spoke up.
Everyone glanced at me, waiting for my approval.
“Yeah. Let’s go inside.”
Once I gave the signal, Ethan took the lead, and the others followed.
As we walked, Harrison fell in step beside me, throwing a quick glance at Ethan before speaking.
“Miss, there are so many things I need to ask you.”
“I’ve got a lot of questions too. Oh, Harrison—how’s the capital holding up?”
Ethan’s ears perked up at that, and he turned slightly, clearly interested in the answer.
Harrison shook his head slowly.
“I’m not sure. Everything fell apart while I was on the train heading there...”
Ethan’s expression darkened in disappointment.
Just then, Nox opened the mansion doors, and everyone stepped inside Happy House.