Chapter 315: Refugees from the Land of Mirrors

Stepping through the emergency exit into the mall, we were met with a vast, empty space that felt strangely oppressive—stale air, as if the air conditioning had stopped working, and an eerie lack of people.

The place we emerged into appeared to be one of the electronics stores set up within the mall, where televisions and computers stood side by side with a long row of toys.

As I walked carefully through the space, I couldn't help but suspect that there were surely multiple refugees here.

After all, the model kits and board games—items that should have been in the toy section—had completely vanished.

Now that electricity was no longer available, the appeal of non-electronic games had dramatically increased. This was likely true even in this mirrored world.

"Um... excuse me!"

Ran-chan's clear voice echoed through the empty store.

But there was no reply.

Well, given how vast it is, that wasn't surprising.

We began by slowly walking through the top floor, calling out as we went.

After checking every corner, there was still no response.

They likely noticed us—just keeping their distance, on guard.

"We're from the Central Office! The government sent us to rescue you! Anyone—please! Can you at least talk to us?!"

Ran-chan adjusted her words carefully, trying every possible approach with patient persistence.

Eventually, either one of her words had reached them—or their preparations were complete—

"Hey!"

A response came back from the second floor of the building—somewhere near the bookstore.

Following the sound, she stopped her movement on the escalator and descended, discovering that a number of people had gathered near the soft sofas set up in the Starbucks attached to the bookstore.

Along the Starbucks counter, airplane model kits meant for passing time were neatly arranged in a row.

About eighteen people had gathered there, but it seemed there were also others somewhere nearby.

Still, there's no way there are more than twice as many people hiding here, nor fewer than expected.

What they all have in common is that most of them are male.

The only girl among them is just a single child, perhaps around ten years old.

A boy roughly her age stood protectively beside her, staring at us with a confident expression.

"Rescue... is that really true?"

The men all had sunken eyes, sagging cheeks, and unkempt beards, their ages scattered between their teens and forties. They looked somewhat like the "players" of Akihabara, but what set them apart was unmistakably their utterly broken spirits.

Innocent prisoners trapped behind bars.

That was my first impression of them.

"Yes. Of course."

"But how did you even manage to move from here... or rather, how did you get here in the first place?"

I pointed sharply at the ceiling.

"We crossed the sky."

"...A helicopter?"

"No, I used my magical powers."

"Ahh, I see. So you all have special abilities too."

"Yes, that's about right."

My words seeped gently into their hearts, and a flicker of hope began to appear in their expressions.

Eventually, a man in his thirties, presumably their representative, gently took my hand, his eyes glistening with tears.

"…Thank you. I thought I’d have to spend the rest of my life here, with no way out."

His name was Hamada Kensuke, and he had once worked in sales, handling tableware.

"Do we really have enough food for a lifetime, here?"

"I don't know. It might have been strict. There's certainly plenty of food, but... I get the feeling the nutrition in the food here is low."

The way he phrased it... that meant...

"Your homeland isn't this 'Mirror Country,' is it?"

"Yeah... yeah! Of course. I've gotten used to expecting anything after the dead started rising, but I'd still like to leave this strange place as soon as possible."

"Why is everyone here, then?"

"That's... thanks to 'Hero' boy, isn't it?"

"What? 'Hero'? What are you talking about?"

"Yeah. He's the one who led us this far."

"Is he here? Who exactly?"

"Not here right now. Seems he stepped out for a moment."

I see.

Given that he's clearly not the same person as that naked pervert, it's safer to assume there's another man here—a 'player' like the one we've been hearing about.

After hearing the details more closely, this seems to be the situation.

They were originally part of a group of refugees based out of Tokyo Station in the real world.

It seems the Tokyo Station community had been running a project to consolidate supplies from throughout the city, and the group currently before us is one of the exploration teams dispatched from there.

However, while exploring the area around Nihonbashi, they unfortunately encountered a horde of "zombies" and became trapped, unable to move.

At the very last moment, it just so happened that the "Hero" boy happened to pass by.

The "Hero" guy supposedly used one item to save everyone from the approaching horde of zombies.

That is precisely it—.

"Escape switch," is it?

He said that, didn't he?

...Hmm. I see.

Probably what he used was,

The "Escape Switch (Usage Limited)" creates a door connecting to some location in the world when used. However, the destination is random.

This way, perhaps.

That's how they ended up moving to the "Mirror World." Or rather, they've already done it.

Still, their luck was fortunate—the door appeared near this Tokyo Big Mall area.

They fled into the mall within the "Mirror World," locked the automatic doors, and calmed down.

And thus, up to the present.

"……So the destination of the 'Escape Switch' is randomized, including other worlds, is it?"

Ugh, that's terrifying.

In that case, wouldn't the odds be lower that it ends up in the real world?

Maybe I should probably pick a different item...

Shivering down my spine, I still managed to grasp the situation roughly.

In short, it's clear—this world is a place devoid of living humans.

That’s probably it…?

My three companions each wore expressions of understanding, but the one who seemed most relieved was likely Shichireiran-chan.

She likely sees significant value in bringing back this exceptional information.