Shadow Monarch: Heroines Could Hear My Thoughts?!

Chapter 02- Sucks To Be The Sidekick!

"Where did you go, Mika?" I asked my cute little dragon.

"Waaa!!"

"You know you can't find food just by roaming around, right?"

"Waaa!!"

"Sigh, ok, ok, let's go get a snack." I rolled my eyes at her and put her on my shoulder.

Happily, Mika rubbed her face on my cheek while making low screeches to show her affection for me. Even though we have been like this for only a few months, we grew fond of each other and she was now basically my only family.

What? You want to know how I can speak with her? Well, somehow, I can understand what she wanted to say. It was as if our emotions were linked and I can sense what she wanted to say purely from her emotions.

I don't know how that works but I couldn't bother to search for an explanation. We liked each other and that's the most important thing.

As we walked through the shelters, we looked at people going around their normal… Well, 'almost' normal days silently. It has been a year since the apocalypse started so people were still not accustomed to this change.

They tried to adapt but most of them lost their friends, families, and even some parts of their bodies because of zombies and other monsters that roam the world.

All I could see on their faces was sadness, despair, and hopelessness. The general mood of the place was just uncomfortable.

"Waaa!!" Mika's eyes looked quite sad as she spoke to me.

"I know, Mika. But, we can't do anything. This cruel world destroyed people and robbed them of what they loved. Let's only hope that they can find happiness."

"Waaa!!"

After a few minutes, we reached a small house in a corner of the shelter. Compared to Marcus's house, mine was basically more like a tent rather than a house.

The difference was that one had 4 people living in it while I lived alone. Yes, Marcus lived with his three girls there. No one somehow asked why. It was as if this was the normal course of things.

Anyway, I entered the old house and sat down on the couch, creating a screeching sound. The place had basically two rooms, a kitchen, and a bathroom. That's it.

"Waa!!" Mika tapped my face with her nose and said.

"Go get something from the fridge to eat. I'm not that hungry." I said as I made myself even more comfortable on the couch.

"Waa!!" The little dragon nodded happily and flew to the fridge.

I could hear her rummaging through it to find her favorite snack. She liked eating chicken bones so I kept them for her in the fridge.

*Crunch* *Crunch*

The sound of bones cracking echoed in the house.

"Don't leave bits and pieces of bones scattered around, ok? Yesterday, I had to clean behind your mess."

Hearing me, Mika flew back to my side and rested her body on my lap. Her purring sounded like that of a cat as she buried herself deeper and deeper in my embrace.

I hugged her back and closed my eyes to rest a little bit. That day was hectic and I wanted to rest a little bit.

"Never leave me, Mika. Ok?" I asked with a whisper.

"Waa!!"

"Hehehe!" I chuckled at her enthusiastic response.

But, that question was genuinely something I really wanted. She was all I had left in this life and the mere thought of losing this small dragon horrified me to no end. She was the one that made me get over my grief for my family and even took their places for me.

"I love you, Mika," I said as I felt myself getting drowsy and my brain shutting off.

"Waa!!" She replied and licked my face with her small tongue. Her innocent and clear eyes were the last thing I saw before completely falling into a deep sleep.

An unknown amount of time passed, I didn't know how much I slept but it was a long time for sure. I never felt myself sleep this deeply in my entire life.

When my eyes finally started opening, I heard a sound beside my ear.

"Waaa!!! Waaa!!!"

Is Mika calling for me? What time is it? I'm still feeling drowsy.

"Ugh…" I groaned with a sore throat and tried to wake up completely.

"Waaa!!"

Finally, with the last shout, I fully woke up and my eyes went wide. I never heard Mika calling for me with such urgency before.

I looked at her with a confused look.

But, before I could say anything, the door to my house knocked loudly. I stood up and walked to the door before opening it. There, much to my shock was Elise. Her beautiful face made my heart stop beating for a second before I regained my composure the next second.

"Eli-" Before I could finish my sentence she said urgently.

"A monster stampede is coming toward us from the north. We counted their numbers in the 50." She said with a cold tone.

"What?! Wait, the north… Don't tell me." I realized something horrifying.

"I couldn't find Marcus and the others." She sadly proved my suspicions.

"That idiot! I told him not to do that! Which type of monsters are they?" I asked as we hurried out of the house.

"Mostly C-Rank orcs and some D-Rank goblins." She said.

"This is really bad! Damn it! How is the evacuation process?" I tried to keep my calm in this dire situation and tried to find the best solution.

"We were able to evacuate most of the elderly, women, and children. The rest are now getting ready for the fight. All the squads are now near the barrier." She explained.

Even under such immense pressure, she kept her composure and her rational thinking. That's something I really admired about Elise.

"Are we even going to be able to beat 50 at the same time?"

I knew my strength really well and I must say that I will never be able to face such a swarm of monsters head-on. I can somehow deal with 2 or 3 C-Rank monsters alone but more than that and I'm basically dead meat.

That's me speaking when I can proudly say that I'm one of the strongest people in the shelter. The others can't even face 1 C-Rank monster.

"We have no choice but to fight back till those people come back." Her face turned even grimmer when she mentioned those 'people'.

I can see the anger on her face when was speaking. A fit of rightful anger considering the danger we were facing.

Because of his selfishness and stupidity, we had to face a huge threat. I can't describe how angry I was but I had to keep that for later and focus on what's more important now… surviving!

We soon reached the barrier, it was as the name suggested, a huge wall that surrounded the shelter made out of a transparent substance. It didn't look like something that existed in this world that was because it is.

This barrier was actually an artifact we found in one of the dungeons we raided a few months ago by a fit of luck. Then, it became the first layer of defense for this shelter.

There, we found tens of men getting ready. They wore weird armor that looked like they came out of a medieval novel and wielded their swords and spears.

Some had guns and even RPGs but they were a few compared to the huge majority of people using sharp weapons.

The reason for that is that these weapons weren't normal swords and spears.

I glanced at the group and then at Elise before saying.

"We must not let them get close to the barrier. I know that we lack the manpower to face this number of monsters but we have to stop them at all costs!! Your families and loved ones need you now more than ever!"

"Yes!!"

Everyone cheered after me with clear determination. Don't get me wrong, I was not a leader by nature and I don't even like speaking to many people. But, when I recall the number of innocent people that will die in case we fail, my introverted self just vanishes.

After that, I pulled two daggers out and aimed them at the horizon. There, I could see the silhouettes of tens of creatures running toward us.

Elise was standing beside me with a calm look on her face.

"I have a plan," I said.

Her eyes looked at me briefly before looking ahead again.

"I'm the fastest out of all of us. I can go around and attack them from behind. With enough luck, we can split them into two or more groups."

She went silent for a few seconds before replying.

"You will die."

"Very likely. But, if I die protecting the innocent then I can meet my family with a proud smile on my face. Besides, if I don't do that, everyone will perish. One soul for the sake of hundreds." I said with a small smile on my face.

As edgy as that might sound, I didn't fear death at all. I genuinely didn't feel any repulse toward the idea of losing my life. I had already seen my own father, mother, and sister die at my hands. I felt their bodies grow cold and their eyes lose their light.

My only possible regret is to leave Mika alone in this world. That girl would be lonely without me and I don't want that to happen. That's the main reason why I was still standing here.

"Waaa!!" Mika seemed to have sensed my thoughts and she rubbed her face on my cheek gently.

"Don't worry, I won't die. Not before I see you grow up to become a mighty dragon that could soar the skies." I said as I patted her head.

"I know I can rely on you, Elise. Take care of the matter." I said before vanishing from where I was standing.

Elise was way stronger than me so she was the best person to rely on. I knew that she will be able to fend off those orcs and goblins.

I moved across the wide plains toward the monsters. I was running at the speed of a bike quite easily.

I should be able to gain a palpable amount of exp because of this. I thought to myself as I changed my course and started running diagonally.

My two daggers were shining under the sun and the mana channeled through my body supplying me with energy to keep my high speed.

Soon, I was close enough to see the orcs clearly. I must say that they were as ugly as they were depicted in fiction.

I could smell their nasty odor from a few hundred meters away.

After surrounding the stampede, I made sure that I was close enough to as big of a group as I could. Then…

"OIIII!!! Ass faces! I'm a delicious human! Come here if you want to take a bite!!" I shouted.

Fuck! Now that I think about it! I sound sus as hell!! I'm not gay, ok?

But, be it as it may, my provocations seemed to work as 20 monsters looked back at me and growled loudly in anger.

They didn't get what I said but my existence alone was more than enough to make them go on a rampage.

"This is kinda scary, not gonna lie. Are you ready, Mika?" I asked.

"Waaa!!" My companion replied excitedly.

Instantly, I was the target of these creatures. Their huge sizes and my small frame made me look even more insignificant.

"Come on, guys. Hurry up! I'm literally the freshest meal you could have." I said with a small smile.

After making sure they started running after me, I started running too. I wanted to get them as far as possible from the shelter.

"WRAAAAAAAA!!!!"

I kept running while keeping the orcs close to me just to make sure that they don't ignore me and go back.

When we were far enough from the shelter, I halted and pulled out my daggers. They were my main weapons since I was relying on agility as my main power.

"Now, we are finally alone."

After that, I pointed one of my daggers at them and continued.

"Let's end this."

"WRAAAAAAAA!!!"

Without hesitation, they charged at me with their huge frames carrying in their arms what seemed to be wooden clubs.

*Swish*

I instantly moved toward the first orc, and with my speed, I could take it by surprise.

"WRAAAAA!!!"

When I was close to it, what welcomed me was the huge wooden club coming towards me. I swiftly dodged it with a sidestep and I jumped on top of it. After that, I lunged at the orc's upper body. My dagger moved along with my body and dug deep into its chest.

My arm shook violently when I pierced its sturdy flesh as if I was hitting a rock. But, I ignored the pain and used the other dagger and tried to stab its throat. That should be lethal enough to kill quickly.

But, if it was that easy then I will question whether they were really C-Rank monsters or not. A simple combo like that can't kill a creature of that size.

*Ziiii*

The orc's left hand grabbed my leg and threw me in the air. The monster's speed was really impressive in comparison to its huge body.

While in the air, I was about to become a ball in a baseball game. The orc simply swung it with both hands.

"Mika! Now!" I shouted.

"Waaaaa!!!" Mika screeched and attacked at my sign.

Her wings flapped quickly as she created a strong airwave and sent it flying toward the orc. It wasn't strong enough to kill the orc but it was more than enough for it to lose its momentum and give me crucial 5 seconds to regain my balance and counter back.

Using my flexible body, I turned mid-air and landed on the orc's arm. Then, without hesitation, I slashed at the monster's face.

"WRAAAAAAAAA!!!" A loud scream of agony echoed around as the orc fell down while holding its eyes.

Blood gushed out of its face like a waterfall as it quickly stained the ground.

That should kill it slowly. I thought to myself.

However, there was no time to celebrate my hard-earned win as in the orc's place, three more came rushing.

"Fuck… Can you please come at me one at a time. A queue will be much appreciated." I joked light-heartedly to ease my worries.

Then, with a determined look, I clenched my fists as I shouted at the top of my lungs.

"Haaaaaaaa!!!"

Then, I charged toward them fearlessly, ready to die in battle.

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