"Have you calmed down?"
Inaba Tsukiyo and Kurumi arrived at an empty classroom. After Kurumi finally managed to calm down, Inaba Tsukiyo asked.
Indeed, no girl could remain calm after seeing such a grotesque scene. Although Kurumi had a strong capacity for endurance, she was still a girl, and that couldn't be changed.
"Yes, thank you, Tsukiyo-chan. I'm much better. But, Tsukiyo-chan, why did you come looking for me?"
Kurumi forced a smile, stood up from the ground, and cautiously watched the zombies walking outside the corridor.
Recalling Inaba Tsukiyo's timely appearance, Kurumi asked with some surprise.
She knew that Inaba Tsukiyo never spoke to anyone in class, and they had no prior relationship, so why would she come for her?
"Why? Because I heard it."
"Huh? Heard it? Heard what?"
"I heard the strange reactions happening to the students on the playground, like your heart pounding extremely fast due to fear."
Inaba Tsukiyo pointed to her chest. The reason she was able to find Kurumi so quickly just now was because of her rapidly beating heart.
To be honest, the speed at which humans in this world transformed into zombies was simply too fast.
Although she didn't know if it depended on the severity of the wound, those students generally completed their transformation in about ten seconds.
After becoming zombies, their hearts became very weak, and some zombies couldn't even feel a heartbeat.
"Sounds… Could it be that Tsukiyo-chan, you can't see anything?"
At this point, Kurumi realized that Inaba Tsukiyo hadn't opened her eyes from earlier until now.
Not just now, even when she was in school before, Inaba Tsukiyo never opened her eyes.
Although there were rumors that she was blind, what blind person could act like a normal person without being able to see?
"Yes, I can't see anything. But my hearing is excellent, so don't worry."
With that, Inaba Tsukiyo opened her eyes, revealing her crimson, lifeless pupils.
"You look… like a rabbit, Tsukiyo-chan."
White twin-tails and crimson pupils, it gave off a rabbit-like feeling.
Kurumi couldn't help but reach out to touch, but then she remembered how rude that would be and pulled her hand back.
After their rest, Inaba Tsukiyo and Kurumi continued to move.
Although outside was almost entirely zombies, staying in this classroom wasn't a solution. They needed to find other survivors.
With Inaba Tsukiyo in front, Kurumi cautiously followed, holding a piece of a chair she had disassembled as a weapon.
The stairwell was covered in crimson blood, and even various organs could be seen there.
No matter how one looked at it, one could imagine the tragic scene of humans being attacked and torn apart there not long ago.
From the moment they started going upstairs, Kurumi's face was very pale. It seemed she still couldn't quite handle the horrific sight before her.
Although she had dealt with a few zombies under Inaba Tsukiyo's guidance, her mental state was struggling to accept it.
Inaba Tsukiyo had killed people before, so she wasn't particularly bothered by killing zombies, but Kurumi was different.
The moment the stick in her hand shattered a zombie's skull and blood splattered onto her face, Kurumi's mind almost collapsed.
This had just happened, and in her subconscious, such an act was essentially murder.
Even if her classmates had turned into zombies, before they became zombies, these were all her schoolmates.
Even if they had all turned into zombies, before they became zombies, they were all her classmates. They had even talked together that morning, so why had it suddenly become like this?
Inaba Tsukiyo understood Kurumi's situation.
For a normal person to face such things, especially a girl, and still maintain this mindset, was already incredibly strong.
Inaba Tsukiyo was silent for a moment, holding her sword in one hand and Kurumi's hand in the other as they continued forward.
At this point, Kurumi could barely even fight, let alone perform normal activities perfectly.
Holding Inaba Tsukiyo's hand, Kurumi gradually calmed down. She looked up at Inaba Tsukiyo's back, a little curious as to why Inaba Tsukiyo could face these things so calmly.
After arriving on the third floor of the school building, Inaba Tsukiyo discovered that to get to the Rooftop from here, she had to use the stairs on the other side.
She didn't know what was going on, but this was the high school teachers' area, and also the cleanest classrooms.
Even if zombies appeared here, they would have come up from the second floor.
"I heard voices on the Rooftop. It seems there might be other survivors up there. Let's go, Kurumi."
"Ah, mm, mm!"
Nodding, Inaba Tsukiyo led Kurumi down the corridor.
Although there were zombies in the corridor, their numbers were few, just a few, and they were very easy to deal with.
While fighting some zombies, Inaba Tsukiyo realized that these zombies actually needed to have their heads chopped off to die; other methods simply couldn't incapacitate them.
"This is... does this mean the brain controls the body? Or the brainstem? I feel like I've seen this kind of setting before."
Inaba Tsukiyo vaguely felt like she had encountered this setting somewhere, but she couldn't remember where.
Ignoring the noise she was making, Inaba Tsukiyo led Kurumi to the stairs leading to the Rooftop.
There, at least three zombies were gathered on the Rooftop platform.
"It seems these guys noticed someone on the Rooftop, which is why they gathered here, Tsukiyo-chan. I see bloodstains on the door."
Kurumi whispered a reminder, and Inaba Tsukiyo nodded, released Kurumi's hand, and walked up the stairs.
These zombies weren't banging on the Rooftop door right now; if they continued to bang, the noise would be enough to attract other zombies.
Fortunately, when the outbreak first started, the playground below was too chaotic, so the sound of banging on the Rooftop door didn't attract other zombies.
"Hmm? Kurumi?"
Just as Inaba Tsukiyo was about to act, she suddenly noticed Kurumi walking beside her and asked, puzzled.
"I want to fight too! I'm not the kind of girl who just gets protected."
Kurumi's face gradually recovered, and she gripped the iron rod tightly, her expression resolute as she spoke.
"...Is that so? Then the two on the right are yours; the others are mine."
Nodding, Kurumi's performance made her very satisfied. Although she was a girl, she had the potential to become a Valkyrie.
After assigning tasks, Inaba Tsukiyo and Kurumi lowered their footsteps and slowly approached the zombies gathered on the platform at the Rooftop entrance.
[Smash! Smash!]
After smashing one of their heads with a single blow, she twisted her hand and struck the head of another.
Although she hadn't learned any combat skills before, from Inaba Tsukiyo's approach of only hitting the zombies' heads, it was clear that their weakness was in their heads.
"Hoo... hoo... hoo... I, I'm done. Tsukiyo-chan."
Kurumi, having finished, was panting heavily. Even though she had only dealt with two zombies, she felt as if she had run several kilometers.
She turned to check on Inaba Tsukiyo, only to find that Inaba Tsukiyo had already dealt with the zombies on the other side without her knowing and was now looking at her with a smile.
Inaba Tsukiyo had finished her fight long ago. After she was done, she chose not to intervene, but rather watched Kurumi deal with the zombies.
Although her movements were very decisive, in front of a professional like her, there were still many shortcomings.
"Hmm, very good, Kurumi. But when you strike, don't use too much force in your arm muscles, or you might get a cramp."
She reached out and lightly tapped Kurumi's right bicep. It was just a gentle tap, yet it made Kurumi gasp.
"Don't worry, a little rest will be enough. This time it's fine, but this kind of thing can't happen again, okay?"
"I... I understand, Tsukiyo-chan."
Nodding, although she didn't know how Inaba Tsukiyo knew about the strain in her bicep, she could finally calm down now.
[Thump! Thump!]
After dealing with the zombies, Inaba Tsukiyo knocked on the iron door, but no sound came from within.
"Tsukiyo-chan, is there really anyone inside?"
"Yes, trust me. My ears would never be mistaken."
She had already heard familiar voices coming from the Rooftop; two of the voices were ones she had heard in the classroom when she woke up.
Although knocking on the door didn't get a response, it was possible that the people inside thought it was zombies knocking and so ignored it.
"Please open the door! We are humans! And third-year students! Please open the door!"
Seeing no movement, Kurumi couldn't help but shout at the iron door.
While Kurumi was shouting, Inaba Tsukiyo observed the movements below, preventing zombies from hearing the commotion and climbing up.
Soon, there was movement inside; it sounded like they were moving barricades.
Thinking about it, Inaba Tsukiyo vaguely remembered that in some zombie movies, to prevent zombies from entering a building, some people would indeed block doors with heavy objects to prevent them from rushing in.
It's worth noting that zombie muscles have no protective mechanism; zombies, unafraid of muscle strain, would exert as much force as they possessed. Without barricades, the Rooftop would likely have fallen long ago.
After about ten seconds, the iron door was opened, and Inaba Tsukiyo and Kurumi walked inside.
Now, this was the only place that could be considered relatively safe.
"Classmate Ebisuzawa! Classmate Inaba! Are you two alright?"
As soon as the door opened, a pink-haired girl looked nervously at Kurumi and Inaba Tsukiyo.
The two simply nodded. After helping to put the barricade back in place, Kurumi completely relaxed, leaning against the wall and sitting on the ground.
"Sister Megumi... the school, everyone, they've all become like that..."
[Boom!!!]
Suddenly, a huge rumbling sound came, and Inaba Tsukiyo frowned uncomfortably, turning to face the direction of the sound.
Everyone was drawn by the sound, turning around to see explosions occurring across the city.
"...It seems that not only the school, but other parts of this city are experiencing the same situation."
These sounds were probably caused by widespread panic.
Inaba Tsukiyo turned to look at the few people besides herself; including her, there were only five people left.
"Is it hell difficulty right from the start? This is... troublesome."