The meeting moved on to the next items on the agenda.
Brent did not even need to glance down at the report in her hands. She had just finished reading it, and the contents were still fresh in her mind.
The remaining topics were clear enough: proactive development strategy for the camp, a new weapons allocation plan, and a new supply distribution framework.
Looking at all that, Brent could not help feeling that Xiangzi's planning horizon was perhaps a little too long.
Still, that was hardly a bad thing.
To be able to follow a leader like this—what incredible luck.
"We…"
Xiangzi was still asking for everyone's opinions, while Brent's thoughts drifted off somewhere far away.
What was she even supposed to call Takashiro Xiangzi now?
Her young mistress had already become Xiangzi's person…
While Brent's thoughts wandered farther and farther off course, the meeting quietly approached its end.
The remaining issues were resolved with surprising speed.
Why so fast?
Because from that point on, the meeting had basically turned into Xiangzi's personal presentation.
It wasn't that Xiangzi refused to let others speak or insisted on ruling by herself.
It was simply that her plans were already so thorough that, in everyone else's eyes, there was almost nothing left to revise.
Everything was perfectly reasonable.
No one had any particular objections.
And so, during the rest of the meeting, nobody offered more than a few minor additions here and there.
In the end, the decisions reached were as follows:
Exploration of nearby major settlements, especially Inawashiro Town, and scouting dangerous areas: to be led by Takashiro Xiangzi.
Organizing and reclaiming the houses at the foot of the mountain in preparation for absorbing more survivors: to be handled by Ye Ling.
Restoring agricultural production and putting existing farmland back into use. A proper push for self-sufficiency—food from the outside world was not going to spawn out of thin air. They had to start producing on their own. This would be managed by Yurizono Huaxiu.
Strengthening camp defenses and maintaining order. It was time to establish a regular patrol system. Brent and Saito Koinekawa would rotate responsibility.
Strategic stockpiling and dynamic management of supplies. External scavenging priorities and warehouse distribution would be adjusted according to current reserves and the urgency level of each category of goods. This would be overseen by Takashiro Xiangzi and Miranda.
Camp radio station. Once Xiangzi's camp had grown into a force that could no longer be ignored, it would likely absorb even more survivors. There was no hurry just yet. This project would be handled by Ye Ling.
Then came the weapons issue.
First and foremost, that armored vehicle they had acquired needed ammunition.
They lacked enough infantry weapons. They lacked heavy firepower.
So Xiangzi drafted an entire upgrade and redistribution plan for camp armaments.
At a minimum, every core member had to be fully equipped. They needed a surplus of automatic firearms. They needed anti-materiel weapons. Anti-armor weapons. And some kind of true trump card for a major emergency.
Neither the infected nor the Holy Disciples could be treated lightly.
Xiangzi had always tried to favor avoidance over direct confrontation—
But sooner or later, they would be found.
So they could not afford to fall behind in weaponry.
And finally, there was the labor point system.
After discussion, they concluded that the version currently in use did not need to be changed for now.
They would keep implementing it as it was. The camp was still small. A small boat was easier to turn.
Daily food and necessary living supplies would continue to be distributed as basic support.
Anything beyond that, however, would have to be purchased with labor points.
Points could be earned by handing over supplies, completing posted tasks, finishing assigned work, and so on.
…
"Good. That concludes this meeting. Everyone's worked hard. Go get some rest. I'll sort these notes out and hand the finalized copies to you tomorrow morning. Good night."
Takashiro Xiangzi began gathering up the final pages she had marked and revised. Several lines had been crossed out, with small notes added in the margins all over the sheets.
Even after talking for so long nearly by herself, Xiangzi still showed no sign of fatigue. Her voice remained steady and full of energy.
"Good night, Miss Takashiro."
"Good night, Xiangzi."
One by one, the people in the room got up and filed out.
It was bitterly cold outside, so no one asked Xiangzi to come out and see them off.
Xiangzi herself was glad enough for the excuse. She only rose as far as the doorway, then came back inside.
Now the room held only Takashiro Xiangzi, Yurizono Huaxiu, and Ye Ling.
Oh—
And Miranda, who had just circled back in from the door again.
As a newly accepted member of Xiangzi's "household," she naturally had every right to stay the night here.
As for why she had turned back—
At present, besides the old two-household core from the days in Nihonmatsu, no one else knew about the relationship.
Well, except Ye Ling.
Ye Ling lived in Xiangzi's main building, after all. The previous night, Xiangzi and Huaxiu had gone out one after another, and afterward something had clearly happened. Ye Ling might not have known the details, but she had certainly pieced together the rough outline.
And now, watching the three of them together, she understood even more.
Could there really be anyone who watched three people openly getting affectionate and still failed to figure out what their relationship was?
Of course, Ye Ling had no intention of directly asking Xiangzi what exactly had happened last night—not unless Xiangzi chose to tell her herself.
She wasn't that stupid.
If Xiangzi had decided not to say it, then there had to be a reason.
In truth, Xiangzi herself wanted to give Miranda a clear place, a proper acknowledgement.
Nothing was more troublesome than a relationship left vague and undefined.
Huaxiu felt the same.
But Miranda disagreed.
She insisted that nothing be made public.
Not for any complicated reason, either. She was simply worried that it might affect Xiangzi's image.
To that, Xiangzi could only shrug inwardly.
At least as far as Takashiro Xiangzi herself was concerned, she did not care in the slightest. She had never particularly cared before, and she certainly didn't now.
A public image was something for other people to look at.
Did it really matter what she looked like in their eyes?
There were a thousand Hamlets in the eyes of a thousand people.
Even if everyone in the camp suddenly decided they couldn't stand her, they would still need the shelter she provided. They would still need the warm rooms and the safe meals her leadership made possible.
Once your personal combat capability exceeded that of everyone around you put together, there was simply no reason to care about that sort of muttering.
Would anyone seriously care what the ants in their house thought of them?
Still, Xiangzi could not out-argue Miranda on this point, so in the end she relented.
They would wait until some more suitable time to make it known.
"You should all go wash up and get some sleep," Xiangzi said.
She had Huaxiu tucked against one side of her, while Miranda lounged against the other. Neither of them showed the slightest intention of getting up.
Who was she supposed to be addressing, then?
Not exactly difficult to guess.
Ye Ling was not an idiot. She understood perfectly well that the three of them wanted privacy.
"Then I'll head back to my room first. Good night, Xiangzi-jie… and Huaxiu, Miranda, you should get to sleep early too. Haha…"
"Good night, Fox."
"Good night, Miss Ye."
Ye Ling fled so fast it was like she had greased her shoes.
In the blink of an eye, the door had shut behind her.
"That fox sure runs fast," Xiangzi remarked casually.
But she had no time to care about Ye Ling anymore.
Because the hands of the two women beside her were growing more and more restless.
"Enough. Keep this up and I'll…"
"Oh? Says the person who got bullied by the two of us all night last night," Miranda said lazily, draping herself across Xiangzi's lap and hooking a finger into the hem of her skirt.
Xiangzi did not look angry, but she still muttered under her breath, "Miranda… you really are something."
Meanwhile, Huaxiu sat quietly, a faint blush on her face, not joining in the teasing.
She was nestled comfortably against Xiangzi's shoulder, basking in the warmth of her lover's body. In this strange winter, with Xiangzi taking care of her, it truly felt wonderful.
"Huaxiu, those weapons and equipment you talked about earlier—how exactly are you planning to get them? You're not seriously thinking of raiding a Self-Defense Force base, are you?"
"Don't worry about that. It's not nearly that troublesome. You know what I can do, silly girl. Haven't you noticed by now that my gear always seems to be inexhaustible?"
"Honestly, how am I the silly one? And Xiangzi-jie's equipment keeps appearing out of nowhere… is it some kind of mysterious power?"
At that, Xiangzi decided there was no real reason to keep dancing around it any longer.
Since she was already willing to tell Huaxiu and Miranda, there was no need to keep pretending every new item had come from some vague hidden stash.
She would simply package the system as her "superpower."
That way she could openly produce things when necessary.
"I'll just tell you straight," Xiangzi said. "I have a superpower. It works kind of like alchemy—equivalent exchange. I can exchange for things according to their value. Haven't you noticed? All those electronics we've been collecting—those are what our ammunition's been coming from."
"So that's how it is. That's amazing," said Huaxiu, staring at her in astonishment.
As a modern girl, she had grown up on endless science fiction. She would have said she was impossible to shock.
But when science fiction stepped into reality, it was still enough to make her gasp.
Miranda, by contrast, reacted much more cautiously.
"Then don't ever tell anyone else," she said at once.
People's hearts were impossible to measure. It was all very well that Xiangzi was telling them willingly—but if someone malicious learned the truth, that could become catastrophic.
"Relax. If I'm willing to tell Huaxiu and Miranda, then it means I've already thought through the consequences. Before I had enough firepower to protect myself, I was very careful."
"Well, that's good," Huaxiu said. "Then… Xiangzi-jie, kiss me."
"I want one too," Miranda added at once.
"All right, all right. Now off to bed, both of you. I still need to add wood to the fire before I sleep."
After kissing them both, Xiangzi finally managed to coax them away.
Once the room was empty except for her, she could at last breathe.
There was no more trash to clean up.
All that was left was to feed the fire before bed.
Wrapped up in a blanket and curled into the sofa, Xiangzi let herself relax completely.
"This really does make you feel at peace," she murmured.
As she thought back over the days behind them, she could not help the quiet sigh.
She had realized that her entire team had been reacting to outside threats almost constantly.
The corpse tide had forced them out here.
The mercenary squad. The beast attack. The raider incident…
In the end, they had dealt with everything with zero fatalities on their side.
But that constant feeling of being pushed, of only ever responding instead of shaping events, was deeply unpleasant.
Takashiro Xiangzi had decided that she wanted to create a truly secure little world for herself and the people around her.
And her greatest reliance in doing so was the system.
Assault rifles. Submachine guns. Sniper rifles. Machine guns. Anti-materiel weapons. Armored vehicles. Main battle tanks…
None of it was enough.
She needed something stronger.
The system shop did not contain only items that human civilization had already made.
There were also weapons from near-future science fiction settings.
She could not afford those things right now.
But she still had blind boxes left to open.
There was no point hoarding them forever. Might as well open the remaining ones.
And besides, she still had the reward from her last mission.
[Great Fortune: A single response from the Scales of Fate. Events will develop in a favorable direction.]
That afternoon, after clearing out the infected plant, she had gone ahead and opened all the boxes.
And sure enough, she had drawn something very, very good.
A futuristic weapon.
[M2014 Electromagnetic Gauss Rifle: An anti-materiel electromagnetic rail rifle developed by Crynet Armories in the Crysis series. Uses electromagnetic acceleration technology to fire ultra-high-speed projectiles with extremely high single-shot damage and penetration power.Features dual electromagnetic rails, fires 10mm solid armor-piercing rounds, muzzle velocity up to Mach 8, magazine capacity 4 rounds (supports bolt hold-open on empty), reserve ammunition up to 16 rounds.The kinetic energy is sufficient to penetrate infantry fighting vehicles and even main battle tank armor, and is exceptionally lethal against Ceph extraterrestrial lifeforms. Apart from select heavy targets, it is effectively a one-shot kill.Weapon body x1, spare rounds x50.]
And that wasn't all.
She had also gotten another treasure.
[Multifunctional Lightweight Combat Suit: Appears outwardly like a skintight suit, but can alter its external appearance according to user preference. Protective rating roughly equivalent to NIJ Level III armor, capable of stopping 7.62×51mm NATO rifle rounds.]
Now that really was a double stroke of luck.
The pressure she had been under these past few days had never let up.
She was always the one forced to respond.
Internal affairs. External threats.
Any one of those on its own would already have been troublesome.
Yet Xiangzi had to carry all of them at once.
Even though the previous night had been lovely, today had still been packed with new problems.
But now, with these weapons in hand, the pounding in her chest finally began to ease.
Takashiro Xiangzi ran her hands over the new equipment, then tucked it away in her personal storage space.
That sense of reassurance felt wonderful.
Gradually, Xiangzi grew drowsy.
In such a comfortable environment, she ended up falling asleep on the sofa without even realizing it.
Fortunately, when she woke later, the room was still warm.
Because Huaxiu and Miranda, noticing that Xiangzi had not returned to the bedroom, had gone looking for her.
And when they found her there, wrapped in a blanket and asleep on the sofa, they had hurried over, gathered her up, and carried her back to bed.
They had also piled more wood into the hearth, where the flames now danced brightly.
Tonight, too, was a warm night.
In the cozy bedroom, three beautiful girls with utterly different faces and temperaments slept huddled together.
The night ended in warmth.
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 150)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter190)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter105)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter225)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 195
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 170
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/5
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 225
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 210
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/30
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 115
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 130
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 105
I Can Copy Unique Skills 100
Summoning an Evil God, but the 70
Supernatural Multiverse 90
My Harem Is Indescribable 85
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 90
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 68
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 100
Still playing traditional Honk 69
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 75
What Should I Do After Switchi - Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 60
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 55
Transmigrated as Sukuna 71
Checking In in Demon Slayer 75
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 80
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 66
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 58
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 65
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 63
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 59
Why did they assign me to Uma 55
MYGO Beauties 56
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 45
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 49
Honkai's Otherworld? Wait—Who Are You People?! 36
Emiya Shirou, Determined to Slay Every Curse and Evil Spirit 35
The Uma Musume Who Became 30
I'm Definitely Not the King of 25
After Maxing Out Every Class 25
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