Ming Jun looked them up and down.
"If you would be so kind as to follow me, then I will introduce to you the most amazing love stories you can ever find."
Ming Jun put a hand over Mori Aoi's shoulder and led her to another shelf.
Then he skillfully picked up two books and placed them in her arms.
Mori Aoi blinked and examined the covers.
The first one showed a high school girl surrounded by three handsome guys.
The second one was a girl with pink hair in a dress.
She stood in front of a castle with various cute animals around her and tiny chibi-sized men dangling from her clothes.
"And if you want those kinds of books, then just look at the shelf next to it."
Ming Jun leaned in to whisper in her ear.
Mori Aoi, puzzled, turned to the next shelf.
On it was boldly written one word:
Erotica & Boy Love
Mori Aoi shrieked as her face was dyed a dark shade of red.
"That... I... I got to go."
She turned to Wei Zhi as if to explain something, but her stuttering and his confused look only added to the embarrassment.
So she scurried away holding the two books—only to turn back to the shelf at a safe distance.
Her face was red, but her eyes were looking at the shelf hesitantly.
Wei Zhi watched Ming Jun lean in and then Mori Aoi blush in confusion.
He was curious about what they said, but he also understood that she wanted to come back—probably to take another manga.
So he smiled at the girl who thought she was hidden quite well and took Ming Jun away.
Mori Aoi watched them leave before walking back.
She looked curiously at that section before taking one.
Then, realizing what she had done, she ran away with a smile and a red face.
Wei Zhi, who was hiding close by, also blushed upon seeing the section she took the new book from.
"Don't teach her bad things." Wei Zhi could only glare at Ming Jun.
"Please, she practically radiated a hardcore romance fan," Ming Jun said, rolling his eyes.
"Whatever, just show me my own book," Wei Zhi waved a hand.
"Well, yours is a bit more complicated," Ming Jun said, rubbing his chin.
"Is that an excuse?" Wei Zhi raised an eyebrow.
Ming Jun snorted.
"Please, there's no one on earth that an otaku like me can't conquer.
And those who deny it are usually people who can't face reality," Ming Jun said proudly.
"Then show me the way, o great one." Wei Zhi put an arm around his shoulder.
"Are you sure you don't have any special interests?" Ming Jun asked.
"Hmm... maybe something that is unique but also very interesting," Wei Zhi shrugged.
"Okay, so you're one of those non-contemporary people," Ming Jun said, nodding his head in understanding.
"And what might that mean exactly?" Wei Zhi raised an eyebrow.
"It just means that normal stuff wouldn't interest you unless the plot has a unique taste," Ming Jun said.
"You don't have to make it sound more than it is.
I'll take mostly anything as long as there's no scary drawings or monsters similar to reality," Wei Zhi shivered at the thought.
"But we are already experiencing a zombie apocalypse.
I doubt ghosts or monsters would ever appear.
The zombies are already doing a good enough job," Ming Jun also shivered with his arms crossed.
"I'm talking about in my dreams.
Someone who gets scared as easily as I do would usually have nightmares," Wei Zhi said.
"I think anything could easily make you have nightmares," Ming Jun rolled his eyes.
"True," Wei Zhi nodded.
Then the two of them chuckled at the statement.
"Anyway, here we are.
This is the mystery/thriller section, so feel free to browse."
Ming Jun showed him the shelf and left him to his own choice.
After all, he really didn't know which anime was suitable for such a scaredy cat.
Well, aside from romance, but Mori Aoi had already staked her claim.
Ming Jun doubted she would let Wei Zhi join her.
I mean, he had seen how girls are once they start reading their favorite romance novel.
Safe to say, never interrupt a girl and her book—or she might tear you into pieces.
Ming Jun shivered at the thought, then took out his own manga.
It was the one he had planned to read before the apocalypse.
But it was always sold out everywhere else—and sold for a huge price in this store.
But thanks to the end of the world, that price had automatically become zero.
"Yi Zheng, want to try?" Ming Jun went up to the man who sat close to the entrance.
Yi Zheng glanced at the book with a man in a trench coat on it.
"It's a detective manga," Ming Jun replied honestly.
Then he shoved it into his hands and wobbled his plump body away.
Ming Jun sat on a seat and began to read.
Occasionally, he would step to the center where the snacks were kept and grab a few.
He would cross paths with Shae Harris, who had her head buried in the book and her other hand reaching to grab a snack.
Looking at the large number of snacks unnaturally held in one hand, Ming Jun wanted to complain.
Why is your eating habit so strong? How is it possible to hold that many snacks in one hand?
But then Ming Jun remembered something and smirked.
No worries, after today you will have to admit defeat.
The plan is foolproof.
Either you surrender willingly or be driven into madness that forces you to surrender.
With an evil smile, Ming Jun walked back to his seat.
A period of time passed in the store.
There was only the sound of chewing from eating snacks, the sound of breathing, and the sound that was particularly loud—the sound of pages being flipped.
It was quiet and peaceful.
That was until someone stood up from their chair with force.
Then came the sound of books being tossed around a shelf.
Only for the sound of a flurry of hurried steps to be heard coming for Ming Jun.
Shae Harris rushed over to Ming Jun and waved the two books.
"Where is it?" she accused him with so much seriousness that Ming Jun had to hold back a laugh.
"Where is what?" Ming Jun leaned back with a casual smile.
"Don't play games with me, where is it?" Shae Harris glared at him.
"I don't know what you mean until you speak clearly," Ming Jun said earnestly—like he couldn't see the way her hands clenched.
Another series of sounds were repeated—exactly like the ones made by Shae Harris.
Mori Aoi rushed over to Ming Jun holding two books.
"Where is it?" Mori Aoi said in confusion. Her hands were holding the books tight but also neatly.
"Ming Jun, where is it?" Wei Zhi also repeated the same actions as the others before coming over.
"I have no idea what you guys are speaking about," Ming Jun said with his eyes on the book in his lap.
"Just be straight with it and tell us where it is!" Shae Harris had already grabbed his shirt into a fist.
"Violence will solve nothing." Ming Jun didn't look bothered by her aggressive behavior.
"You—" Shae Harris glared at him.
"Where is the last part?" Mori Aoi asked him.
"Oh—so that's what you were talking about," Ming Jun said in surprise, like the idea would have never crossed his mind until she said it.
But that exaggerated evil smile on his face revealed the truth easily.
"We've asked you directly, so answer the question," Wei Zhi said.
"The last part...."
Their eyes were shining with light as the others waited for his words to land.
"Doesn't exist," Ming Jun completed.
"Huh??" The three of them were genuinely stunned.
"Explain yourself, fatty," Shae Harris said in shock.
"It's simple. The novel was on hiatus before the world ended," Ming Jun explained.
"What's a hiatus?" Wei Zhi asked.
"It's when the artist stops drawing the manga for a specific period of time," Ming Jun said.
"Why?" Mori Aoi asked.
"Personal reasons usually," Ming Jun replied.
"Then how long does this hiatus last?" Shae Harris asked.
"Who knows?
The artist might say a month, but they disappear for a year.
Or they might say a year, and next thing you know it's two years later.
And you have to reread the entire manga just because you forgot the plot—only to lose the enthusiasm and appeal the second time.
Thereby rendering all that patience useless.
And you sadly leave it buried as an open tab," Ming Jun said with emotion.
"Then why give it to us?" Shae Harris slammed her books on the floor.
"Oh~ I thought anime was too perverted for you," he shot back.
Shae Harris took a critical hug and glared at him with hands clenched at her chest.
It even got worse because he looked down at her chest, then at the comic which had a busty female on it.
Shae Harris was so angry that she began to tremble.
She opened her mouth to scold him—
"And didn't you also say that I should call you a chicken if you admit defeat?
So why don't you start practicing how a chicken speaks," Ming Jun fired.
Shae Harris choked on her words and looked away, whistling.
"Change your mind that easily, huh~" Ming Jun said to Wei Zhi.
As expected, he didn't refute and similarly did not look at Ming Jun.
"Lastly, I thought you didn't want to do anything so humiliating and shameful.
So how does such a shameful thing taste?" Ming Jun fired the last word at Mori Aoi.
She had her head down and didn't respond.
"That means I win," Ming Jun said with hands on his hips and a victorious smile on his face.
Shae Harris and Wei Zhi glared at Ming Jun while checking up on Mori Aoi.
After all, the girl cried very easily.
But she didn't respond and kept her head down.
"So that means there is no ending," Mori Aoi said slowly.
"That's right," Ming Jun nodded.
"And you knew that since the beginning—deliberately leading us to read such amazing stories, only to give us despair at the end," Mori Aoi uttered each sentence in an increasingly solemn tone.
"That's... right," Ming Jun, who was smug, suddenly felt a chill.
His proud tone was hesitant and a lot quieter at the end.
"So to be completely clear... you sought to torture me using the type of books I love."
Ming Jun felt the situation getting more and more dangerous.
"Then I guess it's fair for me to torture you back equally," Mori Aoi raised her head to reveal a chilling smile.
Ming Jun almost screamed in terror. Especially since her eyes were more bloodshot than usual.
She looked kinda like a ghost with long hair covering her face and red eyes seen through a slit of hair.
Mori Aoi bent down to receive a knife from the shadow cat.
Ming Jun looked at the cat in sorrow because he felt betrayed.
"Do you know what type of knife this is? It's a knife used by shefs when cutting hard fresh meat.
So its blade is really sharp," she said, running a finger across the thin edge.
Of course, a trail of blood dripped down from her now-cut finger.
Ming Jun almost shit his pants and looked to the three people at the side.
His eyes were begging for help.
Yi Zheng, Shae Harris, and Wei Zhi had on the same expression:
You deserve it!!
Ming Jun wanted to curse at them, but he felt the wind brush past his face.
He froze and turned his head slowly.
There was a kitchen knife stuck in the open manga that was beside him.
His heart was pained but he was also relieved he finished most of it before they arrived.
He turned to his front only to see Mori Aoi receiving a second knife from the shadow cat.
"I can't wait to make roasted pork for dinner," she said while looking at the knife.
"I'm sorry!" Ming Jun knelt down immediately and started to beg.
"I wonder how much force it takes to slice the neck of a pig," she murmured.
Ming Jun gulped and felt a stinging in his neck.
No, if he didn't do something soon then he really would turn into roasted pork.
"Wait, I have a solution!" Ming Jun said anxiously, eyes focused on the knife.
"How many cuts should I divide the pig into so that we eat to our fill? Sister Harris eats a lot," Mori Aoi murmured, still stroking the knife.
Shae Harris instinctively wanted to retort, but she wisely held it in.
Obviously because anyone dumb enough to intervene was basically stepping on a landmine.
But honestly—since when was she so bad-ass? That knife throw was amazing.
Shae Harris turned discreetly to Wei Zhi and nudged him.
Wei Zhi snapped out of his fascination at watching Mori Aoi.
Shae Harris wriggled her eyebrows and he blushed.
"I have something even better," Ming Jun blurted out.
Mori Aoi finally stopped murmuring ingredients. She looked at him silently.
Ming Jun felt the sweat drip down his back, but this was the only option.
That anime was the only thing that could save him now.
"Try any funny business and you know what happens."
Mori Aoi completed her threat by throwing the knife.
This time there was a tiny cut on his cheek.
It was only a single drop of blood—but only Ming Jun understood how close that knife really was.
"Of course... follow me," he scrambled from the ground and led her upstairs.
She walked behind him while using the new knife in her hand to scrape the wall.
The sound of the blade being dragged on the wall was very loud to Ming Jun.
So loud that he kept stumbling along the way.
Luckily Shae Harris was aware of the situation and did not tease him or laugh at him.
"Just sit right here," Ming Jun pointed her to a long couch.
This room was filled with three things:
A lot of long couches.
A TV in front of each couch.
And a mini fridge beside each couch.
They chose the one at the center and sat down.
Ming Jun didn't dare to sit beside Mori Aoi.
So it was Wei Zhi at her left and Shae Harris at her right.
Ming Jun sat beside Shae Harris.
Yi Zheng sat beside Wei Zhi.
Mori Aoi's gaze never left Ming Jun's figure.
Ming Jun, sweating in fear, skillfully used the remote.
This place was solely dedicated to watching anime—with almost every anime ever made installed.
All he had to do was search for the one he wanted.
Ming Jun typed the last word: April.
His gaze now became firm.
There was no one who would ever resist this anime.
At first, Mori Aoi was hyper-focused, looking for any sign of being deceived.
But then she dropped the knife and watched the series with wet eyes.
At the end of the series, she was bawling her eyes out.
Ming Jun, on the other hand, was crying tears of joy.