Part 21: Death, Right at Your Doorstep

Well, it's a crisis, you know.

It's practically checkmated.

After escaping from "Captain," I made sure to keep the speaker on as much as possible while fleeing from the "zombies."

All of this was to lure as many "zombies" as possible. My plan worked out remarkably well.

I didn't check thoroughly, but it should have been just a few "zombies" that Ryota-kun and Asuka-chan needed to handle.

...But.

I might have gone a bit overboard.

It seems I've drawn the attention of all the "zombies" in the surrounding area.

I'm surrounded.

Now that's a problem.

Originally, the plan was to circle around the main road near the shopping district and return to the school's main gate, but now zombies had started gathering along the entire stretch of that main road.

Still, it's better than charging straight into the group that had gathered around "Captain," so I'm moving toward the shopping district, eliminating only the minimum number of zombies I encounter along the way.

First, I tossed the portable audio device and speaker I'd borrowed from Ritaro toward the swarm of "zombies."

They should be drawn to the sound, buying me a little more time.

Immediately after, I ran in the opposite direction.

"Waa, Wooooaaarrrrghhh!"

As expected, over ten "zombies" blocked my path.

I was running out of time to take them down one by one.

I darted through the group while crouched low, weaving between them. At one point, a zombie’s hand brushed my side, sending a chill down my spine, but I managed to push through.

Successfully breaking through didn’t mean much—it was just one wave among many. Dozens more were still blocking my path ahead.

Zombies in front, zombies behind.

This might be hopeless.

A brief hesitation.

With no place left to run, I reluctantly climbed onto an ordinary household wagon cart left abandoned on the road.

A horde of "zombies" gathered around it.

The wagon swayed violently, as if about to topple over at any moment.

Ah, this is it? Game over?

Trapped in checkmate, like in chess or shogi?

That was the thought that flashed through my mind—when suddenly,

"Get down!"

A voice from behind. When I turned around, there he was—the self-defense force member I knew all too well.

Hoo-hoo! So cool! I'm totally smitten!

Tatatatatata!

The sound of gunpowder exploded, and the heads of several "zombies" were blown off.

Wow, just like that—guns are amazing. Incredible.

...But despite my admiration, the swarm of "zombies" wasn't being effectively repelled.

That was to be expected—those "zombies" would keep moving as long as their heads weren't destroyed.

Firing blindly into the swarm was only slowing them down slightly, nothing more.

"Over here! Come over here! Try eating me, why don't you!"

A deep, booming voice rang out.

Something about it sent a chill down my spine.

I couldn't quite explain it, but this guy clearly had no intention of surviving.

There was no other way to interpret the reckless way he was firing his bullets.

A group of several “zombies” marched past me.

Sergeant A, a self-defense force member, discarded his rifle and began fighting back with a handgun.

One by one. Carefully aiming, he shot each “zombie” through the head.

The self-defense force member's marksmanship seemed quite impressive. But, as I had feared, he appeared determined to die—showing no sign of retreating at all, even as he faced the overwhelming horde of “zombies.”

“Run away! I’m fine!”

He shouted at the top of his lungs, severing each “zombie” before him.

But my plea went completely unheard.

The self-defense force member, his eyes fixed with an eerie stillness, was swallowed whole by the swarm of "zombies."

The last image I saw of him was his defiant smile, even as more than a few "zombies" bit into him.

"——Damn it."

Muttering under my breath, I leap from the wagon.

At least that gave me a clear path.

I can't let his actions be in vain.

I have to go.

I kept telling myself to keep running.

—And then.

The world flipped upside down in an instant.

Before I could even realize I’d tripped, a sharp pain shot through my calf.

Shivering, I looked down.

The woman “zombie” crawling out from under the wagon had sunk her teeth into my leg.