Chapter 354: The Final Destination

The girl's actions at that moment left an indelible impression on Shiba Keisuke—so strong that they could not be forgotten.

Setting fires.

Creating water.

Turning on electricity.

He had seen people called "players" wield such "magical powers" many times before.

But—far beyond that, the girl's battle was truly extraordinary.

Of course, her movements weren't flashy or dazzling in any way.

What she repeatedly did was the most basic method of dealing with zombies.

"Destroy the brain." That was all.

Let's simply explain the events in order.

First, she leapt up with a crouched stance, like she was about to eat the ground, and single-handedly plunged into the center of the zombie horde charging toward her.

"Aa…" Some of her companions cried out in distress. No surprise—what they saw looked like a complete suicide mission, a self-sacrificial charge. In fact, Shiba had thought the same. That was precisely why he had taken a wide detour around the horde of zombies, aiming for the place said to hold the mysterious "door."

He realized moments later that the situation was slightly different.

Indeed, the girl charged forward with self-sacrifice.

Yet, she wasn't without any chance of victory.

That became clear the moment blood gushed upward from the tops of several "zombies," spurting like a fountain.

The nameless girl was skillfully manipulating those bloated "zombies" like cats, swiftly striking twice in quick succession, each time delivering a critical blow to the brain.

Someone among the refugees—probably a young person—muttered softly, "It's like a video game character."

Although Shiba wasn't particularly fond of such pastimes, he somehow understood what they meant.

Her movements... they somehow seemed to ignore gravity altogether.

One moment she'd leap sharply to the right, and the next she'd appear on the left—like she was teleporting repeatedly.

It looked as though she was shifting her position in a swirling pattern, completely outmaneuvering the "zombies."

I couldn't help but whistle in awe.

How far would a human need to train to accomplish something like that with just one leg?

She appeared to be about 160 centimeters tall, maybe around 50 kilograms in weight.

Sleepy eyes.

Limbs almost devoid of muscle.

Messy hair.

Overall, she seemed like a humanities student who preferred a lazy lifestyle.

She'd definitely be useless at a sports day.

Yet, she was now fighting like a demon.

Engaging in a hair's breadth struggle with those monstrous beings emitting a violent, rotten stench.

Her entire body smeared with blood and mud...

Shibata Keisuke—no, every refugee present there silently thought in the depths of their hearts:

Who among us could possibly go so far for the sake of others?

They were undoubtedly not "good adults" in her eyes, nor in those of her companions.

They showed selfishness, fractured their unity, brought about their own downfall, and passed the blame onto others.

Yet that girl is now—why can she risk her life like this?

What is truly astonishing is not just her strength.

What she is demonstrating now is willpower.

It was a noble sense of duty—she couldn't afford to shirk her responsibilities.

Shibata noticed then that his companions were hesitating, nearly stopping,

"Hey... don't just stand there dazed! Move! Go! Go!"

He urged them forward with sharp encouragement.

Of course, Shibata shared their pain deeply, feeling it as his own.

As an adult, no— as a man... wasn't he simply obligated to help her?

But that was nothing more than pointless sentimentality at this moment.

Think about why she was carefully eliminating the "zombies," threading them one by one like a needle through thread.

"Run... just a little more...!"

Of course, the danger wasn't only coming from ahead.

The "hero" guarding the rear—Dogbite—couldn't possibly be caught by the main "zombie" and its group.

Still, judging by the look of it, "Hero-kun" was moving quite skillfully.

Wearing the armor known as "Speed-Focused," which he'd worn once before, he was successfully diverting the attention of the "Zombie" legion away from our direction.

Though he couldn't eliminate enemies like the nameless girl could, he had at least managed to delay them.

"There it is! I see it!"

One of our companions shouted.

Looking up slightly, we saw a dark-colored electronic billboard.

After frantically scanning with our eyes, searching for the target—there it was.

A mysterious hole, gaping in the center of the scramble crossing.

"The Gate to Another World."

The enemy team was far behind.

The ball was in our hands.

All that remained was to score.

That was the feeling.

The fastest among our companions leaped into the hole.

Following closely, several others entered as well.

The children, and Friend Kōichi, the companion of the "Hero."

"Are you alright over there...?"

Shibata asked cautiously, and from inside came,

"Nothing's particularly wrong... wait, uwaah!"

A scream echoed.

A chill ran down his spine.

Could there be another "zombie" on the other side...?

Just as he thought that, something strange burst out, pushing past the refugees.

A strange figure wearing the mask of Nakkī Cat, a beloved character known to everyone in the world.

Unsure whether friend or foe, the figure ignored Shiba, who had been waiting outside the door,

"Ugh. She's such a pain to deal with, isn't she...?"

and muttered words laced with irritation.