"Haa… haa…"
Yukino Yukinoshita leaned against an iron gate, gasping for breath.
In her hands, she clutched a table leg wrapped tightly in layers of tape.
"What… what is this place…?"
She was on the verge of collapse.
First, she had witnessed her classmate killing monsters.Then she had been dragged into a post-apocalyptic game.And now—not only zombies, but other humans were hunting her.
Earlier, she had selected "YES" in the game's prompt.
And then she had been brought here.
At the beginning, there had been another player with her—a man with dyed blond hair, dressed like a street thug.
Then the zombies appeared.
They fled together and hid inside a warehouse.
That was when the blond thug finally snapped.
He muttered incoherently, his eyes wild and unfocused.
And then—
He grabbed a knife and lunged at her like a madman.
He wanted to humiliate her.To satisfy his twisted desires before dying.
Yukino barely managed to react in time, using the table leg to block the knife. She escaped the warehouse by sheer desperation.
For dozens of minutes afterward, she ran without stopping.
Zombies swarmed the corridors.
Several times, she nearly got surrounded—nearly torn apart.
Her legs were numb from exhaustion.
Her arms trembled violently, sore from swinging the table leg again and again.
Her hands were raw, split, and bleeding.
She collapsed against the iron gate, barely able to stay upright.
The fact that she hadn't completely lost her sanity yet was a testament to her mental strength.
Unlike that blond thug—
Who had gone insane in less than an hour.
"That man… he's completely crazy…"
Just thinking of him made her shudder.
Zombies were everywhere.
There was nowhere left to run.
Suddenly thrown into this nightmare world, then forced to face something like this—
Her body and mind were both at their limits.
"Hey… you're here, right?"
A flirtatious, unhinged voice came from nearby.
Bang!
The iron gate next door was kicked open.
"Tsk. Not here."
"—!"
Yukino's heart nearly stopped.
It's him.
He had already found his way here.
Her trembling hands tightened around the table leg. She didn't dare make a sound.
She listened carefully.
Footsteps passed by the door.
They didn't stop.
The sound gradually faded… until it vanished completely.
"…Is he gone?"
Yukino let out a shaky breath of relief.
She felt incredibly lucky.
She no longer had the strength to resist.
If he finds me… I'll die.
Crash!
The classroom window shattered.
Yukino spun around.
The blond thug stood amid the broken glass, staring at her with a lewd grin.
"Found you."
"—!!!"
She tried to flee immediately, yanking at the door.
Snap!
His hand slammed down on the door, blocking it.
In his other hand, he held a knife.
"Don't come any closer!" Yukino screamed, swinging the table leg wildly.
But her arms were already weak.
The swing was clumsy.
Her body nearly lost balance.
The table leg struck without force.
The blond thug caught it easily.
With a rough tug, he ripped it from her hands and tossed it aside.
His gaze roamed over her shamelessly, the knife pointed forward.
"What a beauty… I never thought I'd get to enjoy a high school girl like you before I die. Hahaha!"
"You… you criminal!" Yukino shouted angrily.
Her resistance only fueled him.
"Hahaha! Well said! Too bad there are no laws left here—only zombies. Don't worry, I'll make you feel good first. Then we can die together."
As he spoke, he reached out, grabbing for her hands, which were clenched tightly against her chest.
Tears welled up in Yukino's eyes.
She bit her lip hard.
She didn't want to die.
And she absolutely didn't want to be defiled before death.
"Someone… please… save me…"
At that moment, an image flashed into her mind—
Lightning tearing through darkness.Monsters reduced to ash.And a pair of unforgettable golden eyes.
"I won't allow you to bully my club members."
A cold voice cut through the air.
"Huh? Who the hell are you? Let go of me!"
The blond thug's wrist—just as he was about to cross the final line—was seized by a powerful grip.
Yukino turned her head.
Those familiar golden eyes stared back at her, calm and unreadable.
"Kisaragi… Akira…"
"You bastard! I told you to let go!"
The blond thug swung his left fist at Akira's face.
"Careful!"
Instinctively, Yukino kicked upward with all her strength.
Crunch—!
The hit landed perfectly.
"Gyaaah!!!"
The blond thug collapsed to his knees, howling in agony.
"…."
Kisaragi Akira watched silently.
He imagined that particular injury must be unimaginably painful.
He pulled the stunned Yukino to his side.
"You… you two… bastards!"
The blond thug staggered to his feet, grabbed another table leg, and hurled it at Akira.
"Good. Scum like you should die here!"
Akira shook his head.
Taking Yukino's hand, he sidestepped effortlessly and led her out through the doorway.
"What—?!"
The blond thug froze.
His body wouldn't move.
A black substance—swamp-like, damp, cold, and sticky—clung to his limbs.
His strength drained rapidly.
His vitality was being devoured.
This was Eclipse Thunder Form.
A manifestation of the Five-Thunder Divine Art—lightning fused with corrosive, devouring force.
The black energy seeped into him like liquid shadow, eroding flesh, bone, and spirit alike.
It was heavy and murky.
Yet strangely fluid.
It crept upward like spilled mercury, penetrating every opening.
It gnawed at marrow, suffocated willpower, and devoured life itself.
Unlike ordinary lightning, this power did not merely destroy—
It consumed.
Black lightning crackled silently.
The blond thug's screams were cut short.
His body collapsed, lifeless.
...