Chapter 481: Operation: Zero Hour

Amane led the girls and I to the matriarch’s private chambers, where we could have a nice long chat without having to worry about anyone disturbing us. As newcomers, we received many dubious gazes from the demihumans and other survivors lodging in this place, especially the catman from earlier, but after what happened outside, no one spoke out against us, lest they face the wrath of Amane.

“Hah… finally, some peace and quiet,” Amane sighed as she eased herself into her chair, then patted the seat next to her as if motioning for me to take that place. I obliged, and she wasted no time in immediately clutching to my arm, just like old times. Instead of like a child clinging to her mother like before, however, now, she was more like a lover holding onto her husband, with a certain air of maturity to her movements and overall aura.

“Still, Amane… you’ve really changed, huh?” Feng Mian said with a warm smile. “We haven’t even been apart for that long, yet it feels like I’m looking at a completely different person.”

“Yes. The death of my mother left… quite an impact on me,” Amane said with a sigh. “It was the wake-up call I needed to snap out of my childhood. As a sign of that, I even changed my hairstyle and let it grow long.”

“Hm… I liked the short hairstyle better,” Qing Yue commented, pursing her lips. “There’s enough of us with medium or long hair around here.”

That’s true. All the girls around me have back-length or waist-length hair.

“Really?” Amane raised an eyebrow and turned to me. “Xuan Kai, do you like me with short hair or longer hair like this?”

“Longer hair,” I answered without any hesitation. “I prefer long hair over short hair.”

“Wow, that’s straight forward,” Ling Xin giggled.

“It’s not like I dislike girls with short hair,” I replied. “I’ve seen perfectly cute girls with short hair. It’s just if two girls were the exact same in everything except their hairstyles, I would like the one with long hair more.”

“Hm… I see. So changing my hairstyle up was a good decision,” Amane said with a triumphant grin, then pulled away from me and turned her expression serious. “Anyway… did you guys just come here to seek me out? I’m guessing not, right? Considering how surprised you were to see me.”

She’s become smarter too… though that’s to be expected.

“You’re right,” I said with a solemn nod. “I was half-expecting to see you here, but that’s not the point. I trust you’ve already heard about what happened in Fragment, right?”

Amane nodded. “I did. In a way—and this may be heretical of me to say, but—I suppose it was rather fortunate my mother died when she did, otherwise I may have been caught up in that incident as well.”

“Right. Well, the Midnight Syndicate’s forces are going to start attacking the cities they’ve been lying dormant in for so long. Last night…”

“Yeah… they attacked. That’s how all the survivors in this area ended up here. I figured they were in need of help, so I opened up our doors and let them in.”

I sighed. “Tonight, they’ll be attacking again—but don’t worry, none will come here. Or at least, there will be very few. You don’t need to worry about anything—that’s not what I came here to talk to you about. Rather… I want you to lend a hand in the upcoming fight to take back Fragment.”

“I see… personally, I’ll be glad to help,” Amane said. “After all this is over, I’ll pass on my role as matriarch to Phlora, and join you again anyway, Xuan Kai. But as for everyone else, I’ll need to ask if they want to. I can’t force them to do anything against their will…”

“That’s fine,” I replied. “I would rather have a few people willing to fight of their own free will rather than many people who were forced to fight. I just want all the help I can get.”

Amane nodded. “In that case, I’ll go ask them right away. Wait here, it won’t take lon-“

“Wait,” I said, catching her by the arm before she could go. She tilted her head slightly in confusion, cat ears wiggling a bit and tail curling into a question-mark like shape.

“Uh… there’s something I need to talk to you about. Something completely unrelated to this. It’s probably not the best time, but I need to get it off my chest.”

“Hm? What is it?” Amane asked curiously, tilting her head.

“That’s…” I took a deep breath, then looked her in the eyes. “… I’m sorry.”

Amane blinked.

“What for?”

“Well, uh, you know, not coming to see you and all that, even after returning to the Living Realm…”

“Oh, that,” Amane giggled softly. “Don’t worry about it. If I were you, I would’ve chosen to leave the past me behind as well. I’m not bothered by it one bit. Besides, we met again now, so it’s like fate we were meant to be together, isn’t it? You leaving me helped me change as well, you know. So for that, I thank you. No need to apologize.”

“Uh, but still… I feel kind of guilty? So if there’s anything you want me to do to make up for it, that’ll make me feel better…”

“Hm… in that case…” Amane smirked. “After we take down the Midnight Syndicate and return to Fragment, go on a date with me.”

“That’s it?” I blinked, surprised at how easy it was.

“Yep. Spend a day with me and me alone. It’s as simple as that.”

“Oh, okay… sure,” I replied, still shocked at how easy her request was to fulfill. I supposed it was only fair, considering I went on a date with all the other girls already but not her.

Still, the new Amane was far beyond all of my expectations. She really had matured a lot in the span of a mere few days, but her cuteness and voluptuous body still remained the same. Those were her defining traits, something that I didn’t want her to change or lose no matter what.

*****

Soon, Amane returned to us in her room, and let out a deep sigh. I immediately turned my attention to her and stood up.

“How was it?”

“Fifty-fifty,” she replied dejectedly. “Some are willing to fight but only for rewards, while the majority doesn’t want any part in this. Cowards.”

“Well… it’s understandable,” Feng Mian said hesitantly. “If I was in their position, I wouldn’t commit to a battle for nothing, either…”

“It’s fine,” I said. “How many are willing to fight? Exact number.”

“Roughly 40,” Amane replied. “But that’s only the survivors. The cathuman clan is under my command, so that’s another 100 soldiers to help fight.”

“I see… so 140 in total, added to the 20 from the Library… that’s 160 in total, excluding ourselves,” Qing Yue said after some quick math. “Will that be enough…?”

“It will have to be,” I muttered, then turned to the door. “There’s no time to waste. Let’s go.”

“Wait,” Amane said, suddenly catching onto my wrist. “I’ll come with.”

“You sure? Don’t you have to stay here and manage this clan?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“No, Phlora, my right-hand-woman, can take care of that. Remember what I said earlier? I’m planning on handing over the clan’s matriarch position to her anyway sooner or later, so I can journey with you all again. Sitting still in one place and playing queen… just isn’t the right lifestyle for me.”

“I see… noted. This will be good practice for her then, I presume…”

“That’s the excuse I intend on giving her, at the very least,” Amane said with a wink.

“Uh, guys? The sun has set,” Yu An Yan said, peering out the window. “We should probably get going now, if we want to make it in time.”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

The girls and I all nodded, and together, we set out of the cathuman clan’s temple to head back to the Library of Infinite Beginnings. On the way, Amane stopped by a diligent young catwoman with glasses by the name of Phlora and told her about how the clan was in her hands for the night, and quickly left before she could argue.

Instead of chasing after us, however, Phlora merely sighed as if she was used to this, and returned to the mountainous pile of paperwork on her desk. I wonder how many of those were actually meant to be done by Amane, but she had simply neglected her duties. I said she had matured a lot earlier, but she still hated hard work. Me? I’ve done too much hard work to hate it now.

In any case, Yu An Yan had been right. By the time we finally arrived back at the Library of Infinite Beginnings, the sun had long set, and night had befell the Fortress. Normally, this would mean the day truly began in this cyberpunk city, but after last night’s invasion from the Midnight Syndicate, no one roamed the streets anymore.

Tonight, they would be coming again. And we were ready.