16th Episode: Collection of Car Supplies

Morning light streamed through the window. Hayato and Yui sat facing each other at the dining table.

On the table lay Rye Bread, Cheese, Dried Meat, and Dried Fruit—products from another world.

"This bread—is it from that other world?"

"Yes, but I suspect it’s the same kind."

Given that Earth humans had been transferred repeatedly, it was not surprising that Earth plants had been brought over.

Rye Bread was made by grinding rye into flour, mixing in water and salt, fermenting the dough, then baking it in a wood-fired oven.

The exterior was hard. The interior was moist and rich in flavor.

It had been a staple food in medieval Europe.

"What about the Cheese?"

"That’s goat cheese."

"Goats were here?"

"Yeah, they were."

The method was likely the same: curdle the milk, remove the whey, then add salt and allow fermentation.

After several months of aging, the result was a rich, full-flavored cheese.

"Is meat the same?"

Hayato remained silent on that matter.

Meat was salted, then air-dried and smoked. Slightly hard, but in a world overrun by zombies, such a texture was not luxury.

" Fruit is apples or plums."

"Meat?"

"Apples. Who brought them in, I wonder."

Hayato looked away from Yui’s narrowed eyes and turned his thoughts to the fruit.

Dried Fruit was made by slicing fruit and drying it in the sun.

No sugar or preservatives were used, so the natural sweetness and flavor remain. It may take more effort than commercial products in Japan, and would be a luxury even without Zombies.

The drink was green tea dissolved with powdered drink purchased from the pharmacy.

Compared to the food in Mist Farm, which was richer?

As Hayato thought this, Yui carefully sliced the cheese and handed it to him.

Hayato reached for bread and told her.

"Yui, I plan to go to an auto parts store today."

"Auto parts store?"

Yui asked, her mouth full of cheese.

Hayato had already mentioned his plan to recover batteries, but this was the first time he had named the destination.

Battery sources included car dealerships and repair shops.

Why the auto parts store, Hayato answered after taking a sip of green tea.

Car batteries come in various types. They might not be available at new car dealerships or repair shops. But an auto parts store should have a full selection. Possibly even spares.

"Is that right?"

Yui, who did not possess a driver's license, seemed uncertain.

"Still, they should have tools too."

An auto parts store would likely stock ratchets and wrenches for removing batteries.

These items cannot be eaten. They do not yield gasoline. Theft is unlikely.

Hayato explained. Yui paused mid-motion, her hand holding cheese near her mouth.

"Isn't it dangerous?"

"It should be fine. You're the one I'm worried about."

Hayato could easily defeat zombies.

Yui, on the other hand, faced extreme danger even from a single zombie.

Still, Yui stared into Hayato’s eyes and said.

“Be careful.”

“Yeah, I’m going.”

Hayato brought the remaining bread to his mouth, then stood.

He quietly exited the front door and mounted the bicycle.

Kagurazaka City was the town Hayato was born and raised in.

He had never visited a car parts store, but he knew the location.

Arriving at the storefront facing the main road, he found the shutter half-broken, signs of forced entry evident.

— Everywhere’s been looted.

After stowing the bicycle in the spatial storage, Hayato slipped inside the car parts store.

The interior was dim. Dust floating in the air shimmered in the slanted sunlight.

Hayato pulled out an oil lamp with a flame from the spatial storage. His movements were practiced, as if holding a flashlight.

The warm light of the lamp illuminated the store, and the shelves rose one after another into faint glow.

Shadows stretched from the shelves to the ceiling, trembling slightly.

"Time to search for a battery."

Hayato began walking with ease, as if surveying a shop in a peaceful era.

The shutter was broken, yet half the merchandise remained.

He passed through aisles stacked with tires and wheels, and walked past shelves lined with car navigation systems and audio equipment.

Suddenly, a sound of something falling echoed between the shelves.

— A rat?

No space large enough for a human.

He accepted this possibility and continued his search.

High-value goods would be handled carefully. If he found the battery section, batteries for luxury vehicles would be placed prominently.

After some time, he found the battery section in the corner of the store.

Luxury vehicle batteries were stored in sealed boxes, neatly arranged. The location in the corner of the store seemed to work well—little dust had settled, and the condition appeared sound.

"Good, found it."

Hayato smiled with satisfaction.

Next on the list was the tool required for installation.

The auto supply store had ample inventory. Under the store's lamp light, Hayato found a steady stream of tools—ratchet sets, wrenches, jacks, tire wheel sets.

Having located the needed items, Hayato realized the need to organize the spatial storage.

The spatial storage had a capacity equivalent to ten rooms of eight tatami mats each, or ten 20-foot containers. Nine of them held military supplies sufficient for one thousand people for one month.

Supplies remained at roughly ten days’ worth—reduced to one-third of original volume.

If nine units were reduced to one-third, three units would be empty.

One was for the pharmacy's collected items, one was specified for Yui, leaving one remaining.

Batteries and tools might fit in the gaps, but adding gasoline would exceed storage capacity.

"Stuffing it tightly would free up space, but I'd prefer to leave about one unit's worth unoccupied."

Hayato visualized the supplies stored in the spatial repository.

Bread, cheese, dried meat, dried fruit, salt, water, one hundred spears, three hundred bows, three hundred bow holders, three hundred quivers, four thousand arrows, three hundred forty oil lamps, vegetable oil, two hundred sixty sets of four-person tents, one thousand forty blankets, personal items.

The exact numbers might vary slightly, but roughly that was the amount.

"Tents or blankets?"

Hayato recalled the imperial unit he had belonged to in the other world.

The battlefield was harsh. Replacements occurred as expected. These were the items used by comrades who had fought together. Camping was not combat. It was a pause for food and rest.

There were those who complained about no alcohol. Idiots who gambled. Others too.

But they would not be used again.

Hayato took a deep breath. He moved to the far end of the shop and began laying out a four-person tent and blankets.

He placed the used ones—ten hundred sets. The new, spare forty sets remained untouched.

—New ones are too valuable.

The blankets were made from an extremely rare material, similar to cashmere on Earth.

Extremely soft. High quality texture. Excellent insulation. Fluffy.

One blanket cost ten thousand yen. A thousand would cost one hundred million.

Meanwhile, a tire wheel set, even if both summer and winter versions were obtained, would cost around four hundred thousand yen. Three sets might be acceptable.

Battery also, having many spares, should not be a bad thing.

— Perhaps now more valuable than car supplies, so considered as payment.

As for the matter of the discarded empty wooden crate and seven hundred oil lamps substituted for the vehicle, it was decided not to dwell on it.

Hayato filled a section of the store with goods used as payment, then moved to the next space, placing down one after another the remaining tents and blankets that could not be sold.

Thus the car supply store had become a high-end blanket shop.