Apocalypse Architect: A Tower Defense LitRPG

Chapter 106: A Bit of a Mess

Hazel was utterly speechless.

First, she had inexplicably become Jax’s assistant. Then, she had inexplicably accepted his mission. Now, to top it all off, she had somehow morphed into his personal chauffeur.

“Jax, do you not have a single bone of chivalry in your body? You’re really making a girl drive you around?”

Jax turned to look at her, his expression the picture of innocence. “No need to thank me. By the way… what is this ‘chivalry’ you speak of? Can you eat it?”

Jax led Hazel down the corridor to the private lounge he had secured. As the heavy security door hissed open, Elena looked up, her face pale and taut with anxiety.

However, the moment her eyes landed on the woman standing beside Jax, her expression shifted instantly. Her brow furrowed, and a flicker of defensiveness crossed her face.

“Jax,” Elena asked, her voice sharp, “who is she?”

Jax gestured casually to his companion. “This is Hazel. She’s the one who tipped me off about your situation. If it weren’t for her, you’d probably have been auctioned off to some mine owner by now.”

The hostility vanished from Elena’s face as if a switch had been flipped. She rushed forward, grabbing Hazel’s hands with genuine warmth.

“Thank you! Thank you so much, Miss Zhao!”

Hazel studied the woman before her with interest. She had heard the story from Jax—how Elena had sacrificed herself to save him in the past. Looking at the genuine relief and gratitude in Elena’s eyes, Hazel decided she rather liked her.

“It was nothing,” Hazel said, smiling. “And please, just call me Hazel.”

Elena nodded enthusiastically. “Then I’ll take the liberty of being the elder sister. You can just call me Sister Elena!”

Jax raised an eyebrow, leaning against the doorframe. “You really don’t stand on ceremony, do you? She saved your life, and you’re already pulling rank to make her call you ‘Big Sister’? Isn’t that a bit inappropriate?”

Elena spun around and glared at him. “Mind your own business! A woman’s age is a state secret. Besides, being the ‘younger sister’ implies youth, doesn’t it? It’s a compliment!”

Hazel covered her mouth to hide a giggle. “It’s fine, really. Sister Elena it is.”

She then turned to Jax, her demeanor shifting back to professional. “Chief, are we leaving immediately?”

Elena froze. She blinked, looking between the two. “Chief? Since when did you become a ‘Chief’?”

“Oh, just now,” Jax replied nonchalantly.

Hazel shrugged helplessly at Elena, confirming the absurdity of the statement.

“What else are you hiding from me?” Elena demanded, hands on her hips. “Confess!”

“Alright, settle down,” Jax cut in, his tone turning serious. “The priority right now is getting out of here. Don’t you want to see Barney? He’s waiting.”

The mention of Barney snapped Elena out of her interrogation mode. Her eyes lit up. “Barney? Yes, let’s go! Right now!”

Hazel paused, glancing at Jax. “Wait… didn’t you say there was one more person we needed to collect?”

“Right,” Jax nodded, pointing down the hall. “Just next door.”

Elena’s curiosity returned in full force. She scrutinized Jax as they walked to the neighboring room. “What have you been up to lately, Jax? You feel… different. Since when did you have this kind of boldness?”

“Ahem. I’ve always been bold,” Jax lied smoothly, straightening his collar. “You just never noticed my hidden depths.”

He certainly wasn’t going to explain that the original Jax was gone, replaced by a transmigrator from Earth. That conversation was too heavy for a hallway chat.

They arrived at Raven’s door. Jax stepped up and knocked rhythmically.

Almost immediately, a voice drifted through the door—husky, impatient, and loud enough for everyone to hear.

“Finally done? I thought I was going to die waiting for you!”

The door swung open.

Raven stood there, actively shimmying into a tight leather combat top. Her hair was a mess, and she was in the middle of zipping up her trousers. She looked up, expecting only Jax, but froze when she saw the audience.

“Whoa…” Raven blinked, looking from Jax to Elena, and then to Hazel. “That’s… a lot of people. You didn’t tell me it was going to be a party.”

She finished pulling her top down with a distinct snap and casually fluffed her hair, seemingly unbothered by her state of undress a second ago.

Jax felt the temperature in the corridor drop. He slowly turned his head to see Elena staring at him with eyes that could burn through steel.

“Cough. Don’t misunderstand,” Jax said rapidly, his hands raised in surrender. “I don’t know her well! We’re just business partners! Strictly professional!”

“You scumbag!” Elena hissed. “Just you wait!”

She stomped on his foot, shot him a look of pure venom, and marched toward the elevator.

Hazel let out a long, disappointed sigh. She looked at Jax, shook her head, and muttered, “I… I didn’t expect you to be that kind of person, Chief. I’ll be in the car.”

“Hey! Wait!” Jax called out, stunned. “Define ‘that kind of person’! At least listen to the explanation!”

Neither woman looked back.

Jax turned to Raven, who was now casually grabbing a jacket from the bed, a smirk playing on her lips.

“Where are they going?” Raven asked innocently. “Aren’t they with you?”

Jax rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on. “Can you not speak so ambiguously? ‘Finally done’? ‘Can’t wait’? Thanks to your phrasing, they think I’m running a harem!”

Raven burst into laughter, covering her mouth as her shoulders shook. “Haha! That’s hilarious! I didn’t say anything wrong, did I?”

“You didn’t finish your sentences! That’s what you did wrong!” Jax groaned. “You’re explaining this to them later. I am not taking the blame for this black pot.”

He sighed. He had expected a tearful reunion with Elena, maybe some gratitude, perhaps even a hug. Instead, he was now a registered sex offender in her eyes.

“Hurry up,” Jax snapped, checking his watch. “Stop dawdling. If we get trapped here by the lockdown, it’s on you.”

“Coming, coming!” Raven grinned, grabbing her gear and jogging after him.

They reached the elevator. Jax took the opportunity to get down to business.

“What are your plans after this?” he asked Raven.

Raven hesitated, her playful demeanor fading slightly. “I wasn’t going to say anything, but since you saved me… I’ll tell you.”

“I’m listening.”

“Have you heard of ‘The Lost Cities’?”

Jax frowned. “Is that a specific city name?”

“No,” Raven shook her head. “It’s a collective term. They are the metropolises that fell during the initial Insect Swarm outbreak. But they didn’t just disappear. They were occupied. They are hives now.”

Jax nodded slowly. “I haven’t heard the term, but it makes sense. I assume they are death traps.”

“Correct. Extremely dangerous,” Raven said. “There are three known Lost Cities in the vicinity of Redrock Bastion—one to the west, one to the east. But there is another one to the far south. It sits directly opposite The Sprawl, furthest from the safety of Mount Sepulcher.”

“And?” Jax pressed. “Are you saying you want to go into a Lost City? Do you have a death wish?”

“Not the city itself,” Raven clarified. “I want to go past it. My goal has always been to leave this region and reach the southernmost tip of The Shifting Sands. I want to see if the rumors are true—that there are oases and blue skies there.”

Jax looked at her as if she had grown a second head. “Did you hit your head? The Insect Swarm crisis was global. Eighty percent of the planet’s landmass was desertified. There are no blue skies left.”

Raven shook her head firmly. She tapped her temple. “Eighty percent is sand, yes. But that leaves twenty percent. There are still oases. And now that I have Awakened a mental ability, I need to go there.”

“What does your Awakening have to do with geography?”

“Everything,” Raven whispered, her eyes intense. “The environment here is dead. It stifles mental growth. Places with active ecosystems—Oases—amplify mental Awakening capabilities. Here, opportunities are too few. I’ve hit a ceiling.”

Jax was genuinely shocked. In his mind, and the minds of everyone he knew, the world was a dead husk. The idea that twenty percent of the world was still green… it changed everything. He had assumed the ‘remaining twenty percent’ was just land waiting to die.

“But with the Insect Swarm attacking,” Jax noted, “how do you plan to cross the wasteland?”

“It was just a dream before,” Raven admitted. “My ability is too weak right now. I need help. I need your help. If you protect me, I will share all the intelligence I have on these locations.”

Jax narrowed his eyes. “If this is such a huge secret, how do you know it?”

Raven gestured vaguely toward the exit, indicating their pursuers. “Why do you think the Awakeners Guild sent a kill squad after me?”

Jax stared at her. “Don’t tell me you lied about the Wither Serum?”

“No, that was true. But they are hunting me for two reasons,” Raven explained grimly. “First, because I used the prohibited Wither Serum. Second, because I stumbled upon this secret. The existence of the Oases is information strictly controlled by the Awakeners Guild and the inner circle of Redrock Bastion. They don’t want the commoners to know there’s anywhere else to go.”

“Aren’t you afraid I’ll sell you out?”

“Unless you’re an idiot,” Raven said bluntly. “This secret is worth more than a bounty. Promise me you won’t tell anyone.”

Jax weighed the information. Knowledge of a safe haven—a real ecosystem—was invaluable.

“Fine,” Jax sighed. “I won’t talk. You’re coming with me. I’ll provide you with a safe place to stay, but in exchange, you follow my orders. No going rogue. Understand?”

Raven grinned, the mischievous spark returning to her eyes. “Deal! I’m all yours, Chief.”