Lovers Always on the Counterattack Chapter 128

Chapter 128: Eighth World (11)
Translated by Zombie Shiya of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: Sulo

Hearing the call, Bai Duan stopped. He turned to see a haggard and embarrassed woman in sportswear under the shadow of the house nearby, but was still able to see her beautiful features and graceful figure.

“Xiao Duan, is it really you?!” Seeing Bai Duan stop, the girl's eyes suddenly brightened, and she quickly walked a few steps to fully expose herself to the sun. She even raised her hand, to comb her messy hair, and tried to expose her whole face, “Do you remember me? I'm Bai Ting!”

“Sister… Xiao Ting,” Bai Duan hesitated for a moment and responded.

Bai Duan and Bai Ting were orphans of the same orphanage. Because the headmistress's surname was Bai, most children who didn't remember their own names followed the headmistress's surname.

Bai Duan was a loner who didn't like to communicate with other orphans, but Bai Ting was totally different. Bai Ting was two years older, sensible and gentle. She was very popular in the orphanage. Even Bai Duan didn't hate her. At least she was not as annoying as the other orphans.

Of course, the friendship between Bai Duan and Bai Ting was limited to this. All orphans liked to be with Bai Ting because of her good affinity. Therefore, Bai Duan didn't spend a long time with her. When Bai Ting went off to school, he was busy with dealing with his classmates and studying hard for the college entrance examination. The interaction with Bai Duan was even less.

Bai Duan was used to saying hello out of politeness, but unexpectedly, Bai Ting's mood suddenly got out of control, and she ran quickly with tears in her eyes, as if she wanted to have a long-term reunion hug.

Bai Duan frowned and took a step back without a trace of the same emotions as she had. Although he and Bai Ting knew of each other since childhood, the relationship between them was not good enough to embrace. Besides, he just got himself a lover. How could he be so close to other people in front of his lover?

At the same time, Nie LanLei couldn't sit and watch people — men and women alike — trying to cuddle with his sweetheart. Seeing Bai Duan's initiative to distance himself from the woman, he was quite satisfied, but he still moved his body and stood in front of Bai Duan with a cold face, making no secret of his dissatisfaction and hostility towards Bai Ting.

Although Bai Ting's mood was out of control, she did not lose her ability to observe words and expressions. She stopped awkwardly, looked down and wiped her tears, as she managed a smile, “I'm sorry, I was too excited…”

“It doesn't matter,” Bai Duan shook his head and didn't know how to communicate with the 'childhood friend' who had been estranged from this relationship for a long time.

Fortunately, Bai Ting wouldn't let the people hold a cold conversation. Seeing Bai Duan's cold reaction, she sighed gently, with some emotion and envy in her tone, “It seems that you have a good life after the end of the world?”

Bai Duan nodded, not refuting the fact. In fact, even when the end came, he had never suffered any grievances.

At the beginning, Bai Duan was agile and able to protect himself. At that time, he was rich in materials. When he arrived at the military base from the rental house, he had not suffered from hunger. While staying at the base, Bai Duan's life was full of food and clothing.
Even after he left the base to settle down in the western mountains, he would often receive 'gifts' from the animals, and he had abundant wild fruits, wild vegetables and small wild animals in the mountains.

After the arrival of Nie LanLei, the quality of life of Bai Duan had increased in a straight line, and the whole person has been cultivated by the other party, with a rosy complexion and a bright look — perhaps also because he was just in love and in a good mood — which made him have a brighter appearance than when he was alone before the end of the world. And it was quite different from the other struggling, pale and haggard survivors.

Bai Duan was so calm and honest that Bai Ting didn't know how to react. She just kept on talking, “I heard that the southern military region has established a base for survivors? Are you in that base now?”

“There is a base,” Bai Duan nodded, not concealing the truth, “I was there for a while before, but I was not used to it, so I left.”

Bai Duan's tone was very flat, but Bai Ting's expression was inconceivable, “You left the base? Where do you live now?”

“I haven't found my destination yet. Maybe I will go to another city,” Bai Duan lied without changing his expression, and he was not guilty at all.

After the end of the world, he had learned that “the heart of prevention is indispensable” — of course, Nie LanLei was an accident — and he was not willing to tell a 'stranger' about himself, Nie LanLei and the 'paradise' of animals.

Hearing Bai Duan's answer, Nie LanLei also turned to look at him, giving him a happy and approbation look.

Bai Ting didn't know how much she believed Bai Duan's words, but her eyes became hotter. She just witnessed Bai Duan's strength, seeing that he easily manipulated the plants to kill a large group of zombies, and she was amazed.

Bai Ting had seen many espers, but no one had ever been as strong as Bai Duan — as for Nie LanLei's spiritual power, it was intangible and immaterial. Bai Ting, who was watching in the distance, didn't know that Nie LanLei was also involved in it, so he takes it for granted that he put all the credit for killing a large number of zombies on Bai Duan alone, while Nie LanLei who was “hiding” behind Bai Duan was just a protected vase.

“Even if you leave the base, you can have a good life, you are so strong,” Bai Ting gave a wry smile, “You are totally not like me, even if I want to go to the military base, I don't have the ability…”

“I remember when I was at a military base, the military sent rescue teams to rescue survivors every once in a while?” Bai Duan didn't seem to understand what Bai Ting said.

“Even if a rescue team is sent out, it's impossible to really enter the city. After all, the roads here are mostly blocked…” Bai Ting sighed and shook her head.

Bai Duan knows.

If a military base is to rescue survivors, it must be based on what they can do. There are no roads in the urban area, so it's impossible to drive a car. If soldiers go to the city on foot, it's not only very dangerous, but also consumes a lot of food and water, and it's not necessarily able to bring the survivors out of the urban area smoothly. No matter from which point of view, it's not worth the loss. Naturally, no one is willing to do it.

“So… Can you help take me to the military survivors base?” Bai Ting looked at Bai Duan with expectation. He frowned a little. He didn't seem to like it. She quickly added, “I can defend myself, and I'm an Esper. I won't hold you back!” She raised her hand, and a halo appeared in the palm of her hand, "Although it doesn't do much damage to zombies, it also has a certain effect of expelling them — I'm sure it can be used!”

It has to be said that the light power was a relatively useful and rare power in human beings, and the healing effect was very popular, but for Bai Duan and Nie LanLei, who were basically harmless, it was quite a useless power.

Since the end of the world, Bai Duan had coldly refused many people's help, even help from those who know him, “Sorry, we are not going in the same direction as the survivors' base.”

He turned around and wanted to leave, but why would Bai Ting want to miss such an opportunity?

“Wait a minute! Xiao Duan!” She reached out to hold Bai Duan's arm, but was quickly blocked by Nie LanLei's hand. Her face was wronged and anxious, and her always gentle voice became a little sharp. “Even if you won't do it for the sake of being childhood acquaintances, you won't just let the headmistress die, will you?”

"Headmistress Bai?"" Bai Duan was stunned. “Is she here, too?”

“Yes! She's here, too! When the end came, I was visiting the orphanage. Most of the children became zombies. Some of the support workers either turned into zombies or rushed home — I protected headmistress Bai and the rest of the children to escape, but zombies became more and more powerful, and the materials around were less and less. Since I am the only one, I cannot take care of so many people. I have also asked many survivors who passed by, but they are not willing to take in our group of old people and children together, so… So we really have no way!” Bai Ting's eyes were filled with tears, despair and hope, and even some crazy look, and she would never look like she was just excited and rational again. “Headmistress Bai had nurturing grace for you, she was so good to you. Even if she isn't your mother, can you watch her die?”

It has to be said that Bai Ting really stabbed Bai Duan in the soft spot.

In this world, the only person he appreciated, the only one who he had helped but couldn't pay back, was headmistress Bai of the orphanage.

Headmistress Bai used to be a strong woman who made a lot of money but ignored her family. Her husband was not good enough, while she was busy at work, he cheated on her. When headmistress Bai found out, she divorced him and lived alone with their son.

However, life was all about unexpected events. The son of headmistress Bai, who was a smart and clever man and had been admitted to a famous university, died in a car accident one day, leaving only headmistress Bai alone, having the old send off the young. The infidelity of her husband and the death of her son hit headmistress Bai hard. When her family was broken and alone, she finally realized how wrong she was to put her career above her family.

Without her family, headmistress Bai also lost the motivation to climb to the top of her career. She took out her life savings to run an orphanage, and transferred her gentleness and maternal love, as well as her guilt for her son, to the adopted orphans. Bai Duan and Bai Ting were among the first orphans she adopted and one of her most loved children.

Even though Bai Duan was lonely and indifferent by nature, headmistress Bai was indeed an important person for him. If Headmistress Bai was in danger, he couldn't just ignore it.

After pursing his lips, Bai Duan finally looked at Bai Ting and frowned discontentedly, “Since headmistress Bai is here, why didn't you say it at first?”

“Because, because I was afraid that you would be like the other people, you might be unwilling to take in so many old people and children…” Bai Ting's eyes twinkled, and her voice was very worried. “I was going to tell you, after you promised me, I was going to tell you…”

Bai Duan stared at Bai Ting with distrust in his eyes. But Bai Ting was guilty. Where could he bear such a gaze? The tears that had stopped a little bit flowed down again, “I, I don't want to, I don't want to leave headmistress Bai and the children! But I really have no way! From the end of the world until now, I have been protecting them and finding food and drink for them. Up to now, I've almost run out of money — I've really tried, but I'm tired and I can't stand it. I want to live, too!”

Hearing Bai Ting's words, Bai Duan was stunned, and his eyes finally softened down a little, “It's not your fault. People have survival instincts. It was not easy for you to take care of them until now.”

Even Bai Duan himself, after the end of his life, only took care of his own escape, and didn't want to go back to the orphanage to see how headmistress Bai was — for one thing, the feasibility of this approach was not high, and it was very easy to spend a lot of effort to fight for an empty space; for another, because Bai Duan saw his life as more important, a fact which he couldn't refute or deceive himself of.

He thanked headmistress Bai for his upbringing, but was not willing to take the risk of his life in order to repay the kindness.

Bai Ting was no different from him.

It was too hard for a girl, even if she was an esper, to live in the end of the world alone with an old person and a group of children. When she couldn't bear this kind of pressure, it was no fault that she wanted to give up to protect herself. After all, some people, even relatives with blood ties, could also give up on each other without mercy.

Bai Duan was in no position to blame Bai Ting. He should even thank her for protecting headmistress Bai until now. Next, it was up to Bai Duan, who had enough ability to repay his parenting.

Turning to see Nie LanLei, he nodded slightly, and there was no hesitation and dissatisfaction on his face. Bai Duan finally sighed with relief and turned to Bai Ting, “You've been working hard these months. I can take you to the military base safely.”

Instead of hearing the expected accusation, Bai Ting was stunned by Bai Duan's understanding and commitment. She looked at Bai Duan's clear and gentle face, she opened her mouth, but could not say anything. Instead, the corner of her eyes were red again.

In this moment, Bai Ting only felt that her grievances and bitterness, self reproach and guilt over the past few months had disappeared, and the whole person was relaxed and relieved, while her shoujo heart… It was also pounding.

Chapter end