Episode 95: Days of Rescue

A cheerful rescue operation (and level-up session), Day 2.

"Is anyone there—!"

"Hello—!"

"I'll guide you to a safe zone!"

Responding to the enthusiastic calls,

"Zo-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o!"

the zombies moaned in reply.

"Not you!"

At the same time, Rintaro's knife plunged into the zombie's head.

"H-hey! I'm here! Help me!"

And then, yet another discovery.

It seems there are still quite a few survivors around the shopping district.

With no particularly dramatic events, we successfully rescued thirteen people that day.

My level rose to 3, and Ayaka-chan's level increased by 2.

▼

Rescue operation, day three.

Today, we moved deeper into the residential area beyond the shopping district.

"Kunino Asuka...? No way...?"

For the first time, we encountered a student from our own school.

"Ara ara. Koutou-san, long time no see."

Asuka casually greets us, slicing off the heads of three or so "zombies."

"You really are Kunino...? Seriously?"

"That's right~"

Three minutes later, we successfully clear out all the "zombies" surrounding the mansion.

"This place is dangerous—how about we head to school for shelter?"

"Eh... um, are you sure it's really safe?"

"You can even take a shower at night—highly recommended~"

There was a well at the temple in the shopping district.

Now, that temple and the school are connected by a barricaded, secure path.

As a result, the once-serious water shortage has now been mostly resolved.

"U... yeah. Let's go. I'll convince my family too."

"Then, get your things ready within thirty minutes. Oh, by the way, you don't need your wallet. Even if you bring it, you'll only use the cash for burning, right?"

It's not a lie.

The trend of burning ¥10,000 bills and joking, "How's the brightness now?"—a mock display of newfound wealth—was quietly gaining popularity.

I-I understand... I'll do what you say... Please don't leave me behind...

On the way home, Asuka told me about something she had mentioned.

Actually... I’ve been getting picked on a bit by that girl.

so it is said.

Just so you know, I'm not really into revenge and stuff like that...

Then Asuka smiled brightly, her face lit up with genuine warmth.

"Revenge?...Hehe. I never even thought about it. You feel the same way, right? What happened back then... how should I put it? It feels like something from a distant dream. That's how it seems."

That day, the separate unit team—Ayaka-chan, Hibiya Norio, and Kōsuke—discovered a community of about thirty people hiding underground at the station.

Apparently, they'd been pushed to the point of deciding whether to kill infants and the elderly just to reduce their numbers, and they gladly accepted our offer.

Thanks to that, our level rose by five all at once.

Way to go.

▼

Day four of the rescue.

Nothing significant happened that day either.

It seems the number of survivors still around here is finally starting to dwindle.

We ended the evacuation announcements by midday and focused the afternoon on transporting supplies scattered across various locations.

Even before this, I’d vaguely noticed it, but downtown really is overflowing with goods.

According to estimates from the teachers, “Even if all logistics completely stopped, the supplies left in Tokyo alone could sustain life for at least ten years.”

Of course, this is just a rough estimate, as it depends on how many people actually survived.

There are even a few people these days who say they're living better than they did before the world changed.

That said, it'll still be a long time before we can return to the old way of life.

Electricity supply is still inadequate, fresh vegetables are scarce, and showers are cold.

Oh, right.

Thanks to the many refugees who are experienced in such work, they're planning to reinforce and extend the barricades.

For now, the plan is to connect the station and the school with a safe route, and use the underground space of the station as a fallback shelter in case of emergencies.

Of course, this was a very positive development.

The situation is stable, but we never know when it might suddenly go out of control.

As for levels, both I and Ayaka-chan have each increased ours by one.

▼

Day five of the emergency.

A conflict has occurred between refugees.

The more I hear about it, the more ridiculous it sounds—basically, it's just a drunk fight.

Saying the end of the world is near.

That they can't be bothered to do anything.

So they just go around attacking anyone they please.

I get the emotions behind it, sure.

But it's not good that it escalated into a brawl with beer bottles.

Incidentally, the fight was forcibly mediated by Mr. Hibiya Koosuke, who stepped in.

Because a broken beer bottle was impaled in his stomach.

Of course, I was immediately healed with Cure Spell IV...

Even I couldn't have pulled off something this reckless without relying on your magic, sensei! Ouch, ouch, ouch! It hurts! It really hurts! Be gentler, please! It hurts so much!

That is the person's own statement.

According to Kozi Tsuyoshi, the two individuals involved in the fight were dealt with through strict punishment.

There was widespread rumor that a tearful lecture was given, saying, "How can children be putting in such desperate effort like this?"

After that, no one has ever seen the two individuals involved in the fight drinking alcohol together.

By the way, on that day, about three people were successfully rescued, but their level did not improve.

▼

Cute, mukime.

I looked around everywhere, but eventually, almost no one seeking rescue appeared within the surrounding ten-kilometer radius.

Even so, we decided to continue posting notices in various places, just in case someone needed help.

At this point, the security situation had somewhat improved, allowing ordinary people to walk around outside the barricades, at least to a certain extent.

According to the barricade construction team, they plan to expand the wall while they still can.

They said they're designing it so that if one barricade is breached, like in Attack on Titan, people can retreat to another zone.

Then... um, what else happened?

Ah, right.

We raided a toy store and seized a huge number of Gunpla models.

Because of that, model building has suddenly become extremely popular among everyone.

As a result, a formerly unemployed man who knows an abnormal amount about model kits—known as "The Plamo"—has become a celebrity.

The school building soon started to smell of solvent, so a rule was quickly established: "Model kits must be built on the rooftop."

▼

And today.

This is Kyoujo, Nekome.

Today, we've decided to go on a bit of a distant outing.

We'll be using two light trucks for transportation.

The first vehicle is driven by Norio, with Kousuke in the passenger seat and me and Sayuri on the back.

The second vehicle was driven by Takami Kōzō, with Ryūtarō-kun in the passenger seat and Ritsuko-san and Asuka-san on the cargo bed.

The car that had been obstructing us along the way was taken out by Ayaka-chan with a single punch after its fuel was drained.

She said she kept it until she maxed out her [Super Strength] skill.

Honestly, Ayaka-chan is far more of a monster than any zombie ever could be.

"I really hope someone shows up today..."

Saiya murmured, swaying slightly on the cargo bed of the pickup truck.

"Yeah. According to Hakka-san, we should memorize the Healing Magic and Fatal Sword up to their maximum levels."

Moreover, it'd be wise to fully invest in Attack-related job skills as well.

Defense and Magic Resistance are important too, but those ones especially offer strong effects even if you don't focus on them intentionally.

...and so, drifting along in thought, relaxed and unhurried.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

The driver, Mr. Norio, muttered.

"...Damn! This is bad!"

The incident occurred just a moment later.