“What do you focus on when soldering?”
“The hands are the most important.”
While recalling the light bulb and speaker module I made at the academy I attended as a child.
I looked down at Sarah who was holding the soldering equipment.
“Always wear protective gear. And if it’s hard to see—”
“You can use the magnifier here, and don’t bring your eyes too close.”
“That’s right.”
“That’s right?”
“…That’s right.”
As I carefully soldered the disassembled radio parts, the toxic fumes rose.
I took a step back and silently watched her.
-Hiss…
Is it because she likes me?
Or is she just enthusiastic about learning something?
After demonstrating, Sarah was practicing a few times and managing to solder rather neatly.
It’s like in games, when you assign any settlement worker to a task and the progress still rises.
“What do we do after connecting these?”
“So…this becomes the transmitter now.”
It looked fine at a glance.
In reality, you’d want to test each component by touching them with something like a metal rod and check if the electricity flows properly—but here, there’s no such procedure.
It simply depends on skill level: how long it takes for you to make something.
If you made guns and bullets, will there be misfires or not?
“So, how can you be sure the people we’re trading with are trustworthy?”
“They’re not exactly good people. They’re a group that calculates profits and losses thoroughly.”
“Hmm.”
“They’ll fetch or trade anything as long as they’re properly compensated for the item’s value and their lives. They’re expensive, but they’re a reliable group of mercenaries.”
‘Spearhead.’
This organization, composed of former soldiers, abandoned maintaining the discipline of the remaining government after the nuke went off.
They turned into mercenaries for survival. But to ensure their own survival, they began a unique service model.
Unlike traditional mercenaries who do anything for money, they specialize in transporting people, goods, and information from one place to another.
Of course, starting this service could lead to various outcomes: from complete annihilation, depending on the event, to becoming dependent on a large faction, or even growing from a small elite group into a large military powerhouse.
Regardless, dealing with them usually resulted in transactions, rather than hostility.
“Did you encounter them when you were with your old group?”
“That’s right.”
“What did you trade back then?”
“The community leader wanted to gift a diamond ring to his girlfriend.”
“…In this situation, and he’s still thinking about a diamond ring?”
“He was someone who always went for extravagant gestures.”
Calling up an old character of mine—Hamsmill, who made ridiculous demands from the edge of cliffs.
Sorry.
But here, you’re still the capable one who can gift even gold rings to your girlfriend.
“Why? Are you interested in diamonds?”
“Hmm…how do you think?”
Sarah placed the soldering iron on the stand, turned off the power, and lifted her goggles. With a subtle expression, she rested her chin on her hand and looked at me.
“Would designer items suit me? Huh?”
While flexing the muscles revealed by her tank top, Sarah smiled at me playfully.
But does that talk even suit you—after saying it.
Why are you dropping hints?
“It did cost quite a bit to find that diamond ring. Nukes dropped, gold shops were all ransacked…”
“No, so do you think it suits me?”
“Are you asking me to get it for you?”
“I asked if it suited me, so why are you suddenly saying something irrelevant?”
“…You’re asking me to get it, right?”
“…Am I even talking to a human?”
Women are complicated.
Complicated.
“Oh, forget it. You ruined the mood. Let’s continue building the radio.”
“No, we still have plenty of vaccines, so if you—”
“What use is a ring that can’t even be eaten, dumbass.”
“Ow!”
Eventually, she smacked my head.
My eyes watered a little.
“I’d rather you find seeds needed for the vegetable patch.”
“Seeds are more expensive than rings though.”
“So. I’m not someone who’d pine for such gifts even when the world’s gone to hell, right?”
“There are luxury seekers even in this fallen world.”
“…Am I supposed to be one of those types? Dummy, dummy! Ugh!”
“Ouch!”
Contracts marriages would definitely be easier. This game of guessing someone’s inner thoughts is hopeless.
Someone who’s never dated in their life certainly can’t be expected to nurture two flowers in their hands properly just because they’ve been suddenly handed them.
“Anyway, if we just assemble this and install it, does our job here end?”
“You have to wait for their arrival, secure the place they’re coming to, and at least set up a safe spot where they can rest for a day…”
“…Isn’t it a bit too much right now? This wound needs to heal.”
Every time she touched my shoulder, my eyes blinked open. But it wasn’t severe enough to stop movement as before.
Though, if being hurt and recovering often can slightly increase immunity and recovery ability, then it might help to get injured more often.
“When Curtis and I went on reconnaissance, there were almost no monsters nearby, and the cannibals’ attempt to eat the ground bats suggested—there might be worth trying.”
“What connection does an attempt to eat ground bats have with trying something?”
“It’s basic group hunting for ground bats. Only one was caught by the cannibal pack, so…”
”Only one?”
“At least, only one body was discovered, and the dining room mostly contained human remains.”
Finding the bunker entrance is another matter, but we could cautiously deduce that the biggest threat is gone—for now.
Considering there was a chance the guard could still be present, we were lucky.
“Still, making this one thing doesn’t end it all, right?”
“As long as we fortify the path leading to it with barricades and lighting, it’ll be enough.”
“…Ugh, thinking about it makes it sound like there’s so much to do.”
“I’m simply praying we don’t encounter too many forks on the road. Alright, let’s end the chit-chat. Next, we build the receiver.”
Her goggles dropped again, and the solder, wires, and soldering iron were picked up.
But, the most important question:
How is Spearhead holding up in this scenario?
Surely, they haven’t perished, right?
*
As soon as my arm injury healed, I requested a reconnaissance of the entrance.
Mr. James and Ms. Sarah searched through various routes and found that the area where the radiation level rose was about six minutes away.
After returning in an unknown shielding suit and gas masks, they stated that the location was approximately eight minutes away.
Actually, I should have guessed its presence from our first encounter upon entering from outside.
Now—
“Huff.”
The hatch, which serves as both the entrance and the exit.
I was pushing it open.
-Creak.
After opening, I saw an iron-barred gate.
And a white-cemented floor.
I inserted a makeshift key into the door, and it opened without breaking.
Thus, for the first time, I stepped foot on the ground.
-Tick, tik tik. Tick.
The Geiger counter on my chest emitted a weak warning sound.
Since I suspected this while in the sewer, we must be somewhere in a large city.
The buildings visible in the distance haven’t been scorched, indicating that the epicenter of the explosion must be pretty far from here.
Of course, I’ve heard the blast radius of a nuclear bomb detonated in areas surrounded by tall buildings doesn’t spread too wide.
-Clunk.
Carrying a shotgun, I cautiously peeked out of the concrete structure surrounding the hatch.
It had a suitable flat roof for antenna installation.
Of course, the higher it is, the easier it will be to find members of ‘Spearhead’—but for now, this will do.
It’s not like we can establish a firm forward position on the surface.
“Huff.”
Staying out long isn’t ideal.
I immediately put down my bag and pulled out the prepared antenna.
Like assembling tent poles, its length extended as I stretched it continuously. Then Mr. James, who provided me with a military sword, helped dig a groove in the ground and we anchored the antenna.
Nails were driven into the ground to fix it, and cords tied to the antenna were attached tightly.
“…”
It wasn’t excessively tall but wasn’t particularly low either.
If I proceed this way, once the game enters its later stages, the probability of exposure to other surface factions will increase. However, this is still the early game.
And by the late game, I’ll already have a proper surface base, so who cares?
After a final check to confirm the antenna was secure, I left the bag in some bushes and immediately returned through the hatch.
“Here, here.”
“Ms. Dieterich, prepare to decontaminate.”
The detoxification equipment set up right at the entrance.
…Of course, it’s essentially just a shower.
While water cascaded down, I extended my arms, washing the shielding suit thoroughly.
“Alright, now remove the gas mask filter and drop it into that container.”
Following Mr. James’s instructions relayed from beyond the plastic sheeting, I detached the filter.
The remaining water on the shielding suit was wiped off carefully with useless clothing, which I then discarded.
Only then was I finally allowed back into the bunker.
“Radiation levels… Yes, no abnormalities noted. There’s no need to shave your hair…”
After running the Geiger counter across my entire body, Miss Angela nodded.
“Good job. I was quite worried when you first mentioned leaving.”
“The epicenter must be far away. No high-intensity EMP explosions seem to have gone off in this region.”
“Unfortunate, but fortunate.”
What’s with her continuously touching her hair?
Certainly, if radiation levels become excessively high or if she has to stay out for prolonged periods, she’ll need to shave it all off.
“Ahem.”
Mr. James approached after making a false cough.
At the same moment, Miss Angela smiled awkwardly before giving way.
Apparently, between all the installations, space is still tight here.
“Was the antenna installed properly?”
“I was just installing it with father over there.”
Curtis was wearing one side of the headset, carefully tuning the dial while Sarah sat beside him.
The Newman family stood behind them, watching a signal lamp with an orange light flowing out.
“…Even though we’ve set it to the frequency you specified, I’m not sure if this will work.”
“That’s because I made it, grandpa.”
“That’s the reason I’m worried, young one. The person who should have made it didn’t …”
Before he could finish, Curtis immediately grabbed the headset with his ear and picked up a pen.
Then he began scribbling dots and lines on the paper in front of him.
[···───···]
“…Damn.”
His expression wasn’t good.
