PAK!

Slam!

Now, Naia did not have a hero complex. That could easily get you killed during the apocalypse. Brawls like this were also commonplace over there. As long as no one died or became a cripple, it was fine.

Spars were even encouraged during the ’gaps’, which were days when there were no aliens to bother them.

Right now, it was mostly wanting to see what would happen next because...drama. She’d probably step in if it got too much, though. This was unilateral beating, after all. She did want to see how people of this world handled these things.

"Don’t lie to me," the leader said, slapping the other lad’s head. "I know how much your allowance is!"

"I...I had to buy my books and we had a project—"

His voice died down when the other boy grabbed the back of his head, grabbing his hair. "Look at me, look at me," the bully said, showing off disgusting yellow teeth. "Do I look like I care?"

"But—"

The man did not care for explanations. He simply raised his arm high, his muscles tightening. If he hit the right angle, there was a chance it could get lethal.

At this, Naia sighed and stepped forward, appearing behind the big bully, slapping the back of his head.

Smack!

"Who!!" the man screamed in pain, almost falling forward, and whipped his head to look behind him, arms attacking in retaliation.

He roared when it missed, but then he froze when he saw there was just a young and pretty girl behind him. Suddenly, the hit from before—even if it made him dizzy—was flirtatious rather than hostile.

He grinned lecherously, about to say a pickup line, but the girl slapped him smack on the face without saying a word.

She was disgusted. This kid must not be 20 years old, but he was definitely growing to be a pest to society.

"What are you doing?!" He bellowed, the lust that glazed his eyes immediately dissipating and replaced by anger.

"I need money."

"What?"

"I. Need. Money!" She repeated, looking impatient. She raised her hand again, ready to strike if he refused.

The young men laughed angrily, while the boy looked at her in bewilderment, waving his hand for her to go away.

He even sat up, even if he was struggling. "Go!" He mouthed. He then hugged the man’s leg as if he could keep him in place.

"Tsk!" The bully raised his hand to slap the smaller teen’s head. However, before he could do so, dainty fists appeared right in front of his face.

And the force behind it was nowhere near dainty.

Naia’s strength in the apocalypse was only average among awakeners, but even now, when she hadn’t fully awakened, she was already top-notch among ordinary people.

She kicked down all three bullies over and over until they struggled to sit up. If they dared call for help, Naia shoved some random trash in the alley into their mouths.

"I said, I need money," Naia repeated. The bullies suddenly felt a sense of deja-vu, but they were the ones making the demands instead of receiving them.

She slapped, kicked, and punched them, only letting them go after giving her all their cash.

She grabbed the leader’s hair. "I’ll be moving to this area," she said. "If I hear you bullying young ones again," she paused. "I will make you experience what you do to them, ten fold. Do you understand?!"

The three bullies nodded frantically, faces filled with tears and snot.

Interestingly, their faces seemed unharmed, but their bodies were in great pain. This way, they’d have to embarrass themselves if they wanted to show off their damage.

For bullies who valued face so much, they wouldn’t do so.

But she really didn’t give them face even after everything. Naia looked at them with dark eyes. "Get out."

The damned bullies scuttled out of the alley, not even daring to look at their victim.

Naia looked at the weak-looking kid gaping at her and felt he was a little familiar, but she walked away before he could speak. She didn’t want to have to take him to the hospital.

The young teen blinked, looking at her departing back with teary eyes. After the shock, he was filled with awe.

"...cousin?"

...

An hour later, seemingly in the middle of nowhere—

Dug, dug, dug

A tricycle traversed the rudimentary roads, looking unstable because of all the potholes the wheels carelessly went over.

The less-than-ideal road conditions made Naia feel like her brain was being shaken to mush.

The thirty minute trip to the village honestly felt longer than the almost two hours trip by bus.

Dug, dug, dug

Naia covered her face and massaged her head. Her body in the apocalypse had been used to rough roads, jumping over gorges, climbing up mountains, but this one was not.

She also had to make sure her gifts didn’t get shaken to death. Darn, should she have hidden them in her space first?

When she went to grab a ride, she was already carrying the gifts for home. After all, she needed to show she didn’t bring them out of nowhere. Now she regretted it.

Still, she did get used to it at some point, and she found herself just looking out to see the view, and it immediately became less dizzying.

She looked at the endless farmlands that were filled with crops, dotted with the occasional people or livestock.

Other than the tricycle’s noisy engine, the rest of the sights were relatively quiet, very unlike the town center.

Naia thought, with an envious heart, that these people were so fortunate to experience such tranquility.

Thinking about how all of these would be destroyed moved her heart.

Sigh.

If only she could take a few more things, expand her space a bit more, so maybe she could also expand the farmland area.

She already had a rough idea on what she could do to amass more money, after her long ’research’ session earlier on. For now, she’d like to get a few allies, so they could start preparing while she did the same.