After Surviving the Apocalypse, I Built a City in Another World

A few minutes later, the children's hands were full of snacks they happily munched on. Satisfied with their loot, they finally excused themselves to leave the adults with their own space.

Bianca smiled and patted the boys' heads (Gururu's head was now semi-bald). "Come back home before midnight."

"Yes, mum!"

And the little kids scurried away, no doubt intending to explore as many games as they could before their curfew.

"Ah, kids," Eloi smiled, placing his hands on his hips. Bianca chuckled and looked at him. "How was the trip? Was it very difficult?" Experience new stories on My Virtual Library Empire

She looked at the bandages he tried to hide, but she saw them anyway.

"Took forever," he said. "Wanted to see you as soon as I can."

Bianca blushed a bit and punched his arm, making the big man laugh out loud. Then his jovial face morphed to a serious one. It made the woman's heart skip a beat. "Did you miss me?"

Bianca's eyes flickered and she looked away.

The two of them were still in the courtship phase. It had been many months since Eloi professed his feelings, and while there had been some progress, there was little indication Bianca would actually accept his feelings and formalize their relationship.

Bianca was just particularly guarded—especially since Eloi was an aborigine man.

A Terran man and an aborigine woman had higher chances of working out primarily because the man was more likely to have more enlightenment about equality, having less chance of taking women as toys.

It could even be the ideal situation and dynamic for both parties wherein the women—perhaps for the first time in their lives—would find a man who could see them.

For the men, they would have a partner made to become homemakers—women who would take on traditional roles in the house. Strong independent women were very attractive—but not every man could handle them.

Aborigine men were different. Most of them were raised with low views of women. Men like Rowan were very rare, and the vast majority of them would have difficulties accepting women working outside the house, perhaps doing even better than they were.

The aborigine men of Alterra were different, but that was mostly after months of being integrated with their own culture. Aborigine men from other territories were not the same.

A Terran woman would have to be careful in case they ended up falling for someone they'd regret. This was not to say that all aborigine men outside Alterra were bad and all Terran man inside were good, but the statistics were there and could not be ignored.

Polygamy was also a common practice here, especially if the man was strong or had a good status. Infidelity was already horrible back in Terran, one could imagine how it was in a world where it wasn't even looked down on—even encouraged.

Bianca herself was a victim of infidelity. A few years before the Migration, she caught her fiance with his female best friend. That man was the model of a good man on the outside, and she was completely blindsided by his betrayal.

What more of a man from this continent?

If Eloi had another family in Twinwave Town, it wouldn't even be a surprise. However, when she thought about it, Bianca would feel bad and her heart heavy. She would emotionally push him away, which naturally hurt Eloi a lot.

Still, even after so long, he was still following after her.

It was unfair to the man, especially after he told her he did not have any other woman, but it was difficult to trust blindly in this world when it could literally mean one's life.

However, through time, Eloi showed his grit and sincerity in his own way, considering how few opportunities he had.

He would always visit whenever they were there, and at some point, he even asked to be based there. He just had to leave a few weeks back because he needed to escort some goods, returning as soon as he could.

About a month ago, Bianca had tried testing him out by telling him what she wanted, how she wanted to keep working even after marriage, to do what she loved. His face did morph into a frown, which made her heart hurt.

However—

"What if you get pregnant?" he asked. "Woodworking is quite dangerous—"

She nearly laughed out loud at him, relieved. "That escalated quickly. I'm not sure if I will ever get pregnant in this life—you know this."

"It doesn't matter," he said. "We have Gururu and Pongo."

"Of course, I know you still want to give birth in this lifetime and I will help you." He said this with a serious face and one would question whether he meant something perverted or not.

At the time, she wanted to tease him. "What if you're not the father?" she asked, and his shoulder slumped in depression.

He was sad the whole day after that and she felt guilty, and she finally agreed to go on a date with him for the first time.

Now, many months later, Bianca just felt softer and softer with him.

Perhaps… it was time to take a leap of faith.

They went around the streets again, subtly flirting but nothing too concrete. They felt both giddy and relaxed, neither wanting the night to end.

Then, when they reached the plaza, Eloi suddenly stopped in his tracks. His eyes were dazed as he looked in a direction, but before Bianca could ask what was wrong, he suddenly turned to her.

He gently pulled her to the side and he asked her seriously. "Do I have a chance?"

"You're asking this all of a sudden?"

"Tell me," he said, tone a bit more serious this time.

Her eyes flickered, lifting her head to look him in the eye. "Ready to give up?"

"No…" he said, holding her hand and gently pulling her elsewhere.

If it was six months ago, she'd have screamed for someone to help her. After all, many of the aborigine men outside believed they were entitled to just get the women they wanted. With her repeated rejections, it wouldn't be a surprise if they pulled her in an alley to do whatever.

However, she had gotten to know Eloi in the past months and, while he did have a lot of prejudices, his mind was open and his heart was good. He genuinely seemed to admire her work, too, which she appreciated.

In the end, they ended up on the other side of the plaza. She blinked, staring at the building in front of her. "This is the Town Center?"

"Yeah," he said, pulling her to one of the platforms there.

"Where are you—"

Her voice died when… he started to make an oath.

"Bianca… when I was away this time—I almost died. At the time I thought, how sad my life is to die without even being with the love of my life.

"I swear to—as long as Bianca wants me and wishes to be with me—I will remain steadfast and loyal to her for the rest of our lives," he said.

Bianca's eyes widened as uttered the words, her hands finding her mouth as she gaped.

Her heart was beating so loudly. She didn't even notice when he went to her until he spoke again. "Can you accept my feelings now?"

Bianca's eyes pooled with tears and, after a pause, she nodded.

He already took a huge leap—how could she not go with him?