Regressing Through the Apocalypse with the Third Male Lead-Chapter 26: Take off (1)

1:00 PM

Freyah returned around that time. As expected, Florence greeted her with a cold smile, watching her closely.

"There are no more survivors." Freyah shook her head. She had spent nearly two and a half hours surveying the area, eliminating every zombie she encountered along the way.

A somber mood settled over the group.

"Maybe if we had checked the area as soon as we arrived, we might have found someone?" Cherellyn said, her voice filled with regret.

Honestly, Freyah had no intention of thoroughly scanning every area they passed. If they did, it would waste valuable time. She had already done her best to help others—creating that post and the PDF file. That was the extent of what she could offer.

As cold as it sounded, she had her own priorities.

First, save everyone dear to her.

Second, reach Bohol, reunite with her family, and establish the strongest base in the apocalypse.

Third, navigate and control as many unknown variables as possible, uncover the reason behind this catastrophe, and find a way to end it.

Then why had she chosen to survey the area this time?

So that when this man named Eman wakes up, I can give him a definite answer—that there are no other survivors left besides him.

I truly want to save humanity...

But if we don’t set realistic goals, I’ll end up alone again.

I’ll be the only one left.

I don’t want that to happen.

Never. Never. Never.

"Ate Freyah?" Cherellyn’s voice pulled her back to reality.

"Ah, you’re right. How careless of me. I’ll keep your advice in mind." Freyah forced a small smile.

Cherellyn blinked, looking startled by her response.

"What’s wrong? Are you alright?" Freyah asked, concerned.

"Ah... Yes, I’m alright, Ate. I’ll get some food. Man, I’m starving again! There’s still some yogurt in the fridge." Cherellyn quickly turned away.

"Oi! That’s my yogurt! You already finished yours!" Cheral ran after his twin.

The others laughed at their antics.

Agnes, who had been sitting quietly on the side, stood up and followed the twins. Freyah’s gaze flickered to the girl’s status.

Her ability had awakened. And it suited her perfectly.

Interesting.

All of these unknown variants are interesting.

Smack.

Freyah’s thoughts were interrupted by a light chop on her forehead. She looked up, surprised, only to see Florence standing there with a smug expression.

"What’s with the scary look? You actually frightened the poor kid," he said.

"I did?" Freyah frowned. "And please don’t touch my head. I don’t like anyone touching my head, Your Highness."

"Then stop giving me surprises every time." Florence crossed his arms. "I read the manual, but do you really think I can fly this... flying machinery from your world?" His smile didn’t reach his eyes.

"You fly wyverns. I’m sure you can fly this plane too." Freyah shrugged.

"You’re really... something else."

"At least you won’t get scared and nervous when we take off," Freyah grinned.

"I’ll do one last inspection of the runway and the plane to make sure everything is good for takeoff. Once that’s done, we’ll leave."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

With that, Freyah turned and ran off the plane once more.

---

After more than 22 minutes...

"Ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon and welcome aboard Flight 6510AL bound for Bohol. This is Captain Lima speaking, and I have some information about our flight. Our estimated departure time is 2:00 PM, with an expected arrival in Bohol at 4:00 PM local time. The weather along our route is..."

"She’s enjoying this," Gwenette remarked at Freyah’s announcement.

"Please fasten your seatbelts at this time and secure all baggage underneath your seat or in the overhead compartments."

"Yes, she is," Monica giggled. "And so are those kids."

Cheral was walking down the aisle, acting like a flight attendant, checking that each passenger was properly seated and ensuring the compartments were securely closed. Meanwhile, Cherylle stood at the front, enthusiastically demonstrating the proper use of life vests and oxygen masks.

"We will be taking off shortly. Thank you for choosing Air Pacific, and enjoy your flight."

"Alright, that’s enough, you two. Take your seats and fasten your seatbelts," Monica called out.

"Aight!" Cherylle and Cheral immediately hurried to their seats, buckling up in the front row.

Meanwhile...

"Is it really necessary to say everything?" Florence asked, his fingers swiftly navigating through the controls as Freyah had instructed.

Freyah smirked. She had been right to entrust him as her co-pilot. His memory was exceptional—he had memorized the entire manual after reading it just a few days ago. Not only that, but for someone flying a plane for the first time, he was incredibly calm.

When Freyah had her first flight, she had been a nervous wreck.

That was why he was perfect for this job.

Perks of being one of the male lead huh.

"It’s necessary," Freyah said as she began pulling the plane’s controls. "The one who taught me to fly always emphasized that unless there’s an emergency, no safety measure should ever be skipped—because every single one was written and built at the cost of thousands of lives."

"He’s a good instructor," Florence said, focusing on the controls.

"Yes, he is. He taught me a lot—things that helped me survive the apocalypse."

"Where is he now?"

"He’s in a different region. But I have no worries about him—Master is strong, after all."

A slight turbulence shook the plane as it left the ground.

The takeoff is a success. Freyah smiled.

"I’m really flying this thing," Florence laughed, a mix of excitement and disbelief in his voice.

"Is that nervousness I hear in your laughter, Your Highness?"

"I’m just amazed, Milady. And maybe a little hurt—you’re too cruel, making someone from another world do this."

"Is that so?" Freyah chuckled. "But it seems you’ve adjusted quickly. You’re doing well."

"Not to brag, Milady, but I do learn things rather fast."

"Of course, that’s part of your cheat."

"What hurtful words, Milady. You know I also work hard for the things I set my mind to. Learning quickly isn’t enough without effort."

"I know. That’s why I admire that trait of yours. You’re handsome, strong, a genius, and a hard worker. If our world were normal and not in complete chaos, you’d achieve great success. I’m honestly jealous."

"Now that’s just flattery."

"No... It’s the truth. We can’t lie to each other, after all."

A moment of silence settled between them.

"Ehem. You really are something, Milady," Florence murmured.

In his words, Freyah let out a laugh. "Is that your way of saying I’m strange or interesting? You know, in all the books I’ve read, whenever the male lead calls a woman ’interesting,’ he ends up falling for her."

"You read too many books, Milady."

"Hey, that’s the first thing you said when you met her, and now you’re in love. How about that?" Freyah grinned, mischief dancing in her eyes.

"Lady Kathleen Grace, was it? How interesting." She mimicked the exact words from the book.

"Stop it. That’s really unfair, Milady." Florence frowned and looked away, embarrassed. He was grateful for the strange device called a headset—it covered his ears, which tended to redden when he was flustered. Unfortunately, it didn’t hide his neck.

Freyah glanced at him and smirked. He was flushed red.

"How did you even remember those exact lines?"

"Well, after reading them multiple times, I suppose I developed a good memory."

"Just don’t bring it up. It wasn’t really fun, Milady." Florence sighed.

"Alright, alright. I’ll stop." Freyah chuckled.

"Indeed, I do find you interesting, Milady... and everything about this world. But rest assured, my heart belongs only to Kathleen. I will see her again."

"I know." Freyah nodded. "I’m glad to hear your resolve is as strong as ever. I hope it stays that way, so you can survive and return to your world."

Florence opened his mouth, then closed it. He struggled to find the right words.

"Of course, Milady. That won’t change. But without you, I might not have survived from the beginning. You must survive, so I can continue to survive."

"I think you’ll be fine even without me." Freyah smiled, her expression unreadable. It was neither agreement nor disagreement—just a vague response.

Florence knew.

Freyah, with her knowledge of the book, knew almost everything about him. But he, beyond the little hints she gave him from time to time, knew so little about the future she came from. Whenever she didn’t want to answer something, she always remained vague—not quite lying, but never telling the full truth either.

"You will survive, right, Milady?" Florence finally asked, pressing for a real answer.

"The future is not set in stone," she replied, once again, with frustrating ambiguity.

Florence sighed. "Of course you’ll survive, Milady. You’re strong, after all."

Freyah simply chuckled at his response, neither confirming nor denying it.

But unease crept into Florence’s heart.

Because more than anything, he wanted Lady Lima and everyone she cared for to survive. He wanted all her plans to succeed. From the start this ambiguity didn’t bother him, but now...

I should have been more detailed when creating that contract.

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