章節 69: The Gears of Fate
After searching for three days without finding any clues, Nick finally decided to leave.
Not long after his departure, a group of mysterious individuals appeared, beginning a thorough, grid-like search.
.....
The next afternoon~
[Japan]
With the zombie crisis on Kyushu Island now under control, and the zombies, unable to feed for an extended period, starting to go into standby mode, life in Japan returned to its usual state, except for the continued lockdown of Kyushu Island.
In a dilapidated house on the outskirts of Tokyo...
Yamashita Toya, after finishing a long day of work, dragged his exhausted body back home.
"Ding dong..."
He rang the doorbell twice, but no one answered.
So, he took out his key and opened the door himself.
Upon entering the house, he realized that his mother wasn't home, a realization that immediately gave him a bad feeling.
"Thud, thud, thud..."
His hurried footsteps echoed across the floor as Yamashita Toya ran to his room, rummaging through his closet frantically.
When he saw the empty box, he collapsed onto the floor in despair.
"It's gone... It's all gone..."
At that moment, the sound of the front door opening came from downstairs, followed by his mother's voice.
"Toya? Are you home?"
Hearing her voice, Yamashita Toya hurriedly ran downstairs, finding a middle-aged woman.
She was dressed in a stylish dress, with her makeup and appearance meticulously groomed. However, her crow's feet couldn't be hidden.
This was Yamashita Toya's mother, Yamashita Yoko.
"Mother, where's my money? Did you take it?"
Yamashita Yoko, seeing her son's agitated state, immediately looked flustered.
"Well, I... I..."
Seeing this, Yamashita Toya grabbed her arm and, with rising anger, demanded, "Where's the money? You didn't donate it to that so-called Unification Church again, did you? Tell me!"
"Let go, you're hurting me."
Yamashita Yoko pulled her arm away, her face showing dissatisfaction as she responded, "Yes, I donated it to the Unification Church. Don't worry. Next year, the church will recommend me to Anbei Rinzan."
"You know, that's the church supported by Anbei Rinzan, who's the hottest candidate for the Prime Minister this year. Once I get promoted and make money, I'll pay you back and make you part of the next generation of officials."
Yamashita Toya, already immune to his mother's empty promises, replied, "Let's go. We're getting that money back right now!"
This wasn't the first time he'd heard this talk from his mother.
Back when their family was still doing well, middle-class even, his father had passed away, and that was when his mother got deeply involved with the Unification Church. After that, the family had started heading toward ruin.
His mother had sold all their assets and donated the proceeds to the church. Then she started working, just to donate more money.
As if that wasn't enough, she'd also taken all the money that he and his sister earned from working and donated that as well.
Because of this, his sister had left the family and rarely kept in touch.
As for him, here he was, in his thirties and still without a girlfriend.
He had finally saved up a little money, only for his mother to take it all for the church again. How could he possibly be okay with that?
When Toya tried to pull her along, his mother clung tightly to the doorframe, refusing to move.
"No! There's no way to get the donation back! Besides, I'm about to become an official. If I go ask for it now, everything will fall apart!"
"Mother, when will you finally wake up? They're scamming you!"
"They're not scamming me! I even saw Anbei Rinzan come to the church. How could they be lying? You just don't want to see me succeed. You're deliberately trying to embarrass me. Give up!"
"How can you say that to your son?"
Taking advantage of her son's shock and anger, Yoko freed herself from his grasp and ran to the other side of the room.
"You know you're my son, yet you still don't want me to succeed? I can't believe I gave birth to you!"
After leaving him with an angry retort, she stormed out of the house.
Watching his mother's retreating figure, Yamashita Toya slumped to the floor, utterly defeated.
"Why is this happening...
Am I destined to live like this for the rest of my life...?"
Once, he had longed for love like any ordinary person, dreaming of a family, a partner, children. But all of that had been destroyed by his mother.
No, it wasn't his mother. It was the Unification Church.
They had deceived her. If the Unification Church disappeared, his mother would surely come back.
"Excuse me, is this the home of Yamashita Toya?"
At that moment, a pleasant voice sounded in front of him.
Looking up, he saw a beautiful woman in black stockings standing before him.
She wore a black business suit, her tight clothing accentuating her ample curves and small waist.
Her stern face now showed a gentle smile.
She was stunning.
"I... I'm Yamashita Toya..."
After saying this, his face flushed bright red.
This was the first time in his life that such a beautiful woman had spoken to him up close.
"Hello, I'm Shirada naiko, your new neighbor. I look forward to getting to know you."
With a warm smile, Shirada naiko extended her hand.
For the first time in a long while, Yamashita Toya felt a hint of warmth in his world.
....
In Egypt, near the ruins of the SHIELD division in Cairo.
In the past few days, a group of mysterious individuals had appeared.
They had purchased the surrounding land and built a temporary structure. Every day, a group of people wearing headscarves and veils could be seen entering and leaving.
The locals were curious, but with guards posted around the perimeter, no one dared to get too close.
One hundred meters away...
Sam, along with Logan and Victor, observed the area through binoculars.
"That's the third group to enter today."
The usually silent Logan and Victor said nothing, but Sam was used to their quiet nature.
He continued, "It's always a group of about a dozen people, and they leave in the same number. No signs of any rituals, but the whole situation seems too mysterious. What are they up to?"
After observing for a while, Sam put down the binoculars and sat in a chair to rest.
This surveillance mission was essentially a vacation for him, courtesy of Nick.
As long as nothing chaotic happened here, SHIELD wasn't planning to interfere.
After all, with the heated election in Japan, the original zombie virus still unaccounted for, the Hulk surfacing in the U.S., and Tony seemingly facing problems of his own, Nick had too much on his plate to focus on something that seemed trivial.
After resting for a while, Sam noticed the sun was now high in the sky, and the heat was oppressive.
He picked up his chair, ready to head back inside.
But just then, he noticed a flash of golden light from the direction of the surveillance site.
Rubbing his eyes and looking again, he saw nothing.
"Am I just tired? Whatever, I'll reward myself with some beer tonight."
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