"Nn...? I'm sorry! Amamiya-kun! Are you alright?"
Feeling that the "ground" beneath her didn't feel right, Shizuka Marikawa flusteredly tried to prop herself up, but in her panic, she slipped again and pressed down heavily once more.
Another heavy squeeze.
Amamiya Rin felt like he was truly about to suffocate.
"Shizuka-sensei, please get up first."
Saeko Busujima was standing beside them before they knew it.
She leaned down slightly, helped the still dizzy school nurse stand steady, and then reached out to pull Amamiya Rin up from the floor.
"Cough, cough... I'm saved..."
Amamiya Rin gasped for air, his face still bearing red marks from being smothered.
"Sorry about that, Amamiya-kun."
Shizuka Marikawa finally stood firm, though she still wore that dazed look of someone who hadn't grasped the situation. She pressed her palms together in apology towards Amamiya Rin.
"I should be the one saying thanks for the treat."
Amamiya Rin rubbed his face, his gaze sweeping past Shizuka Marikawa's chest.
Shizuka Marikawa tilted her head in confusion, tapping a finger against her pink, cherry-like lips.
"Now is not the time for this. We need to leave."
Saeko Busujima interrupted them, her eyes scanning the outside of the [Convenience store]. The explosion had temporarily cleared the surrounding zombies, but more were gathering.
"Sensei, can you drive?"
Amamiya Rin hurriedly asked Shizuka Marikawa.
"Hmm? I can!"
Shizuka Marikawa nodded, her expression finally turning a bit serious.
"My car is parked right across the street. I came out to buy some things, but those weird people stopped me and wouldn't let me leave. Everyone has become so strange."
Shizuka Marikawa looked distressed; this airhead seemed to not have fully grasped the situation yet.
"It'll be much easier with a car!"
Amamiya Rin and Saeko Busujima exchanged a glance. They quickly collected a large amount of food and dragged the dawdling Shizuka Marikawa out of the [Convenience store].
Shizuka Marikawa looked dazed, but her driving skills were unexpectedly reliable. The car nimbly wove through the chaotic streets, bypassing vehicles abandoned on the road. Within ten minutes or so, they drove into an apartment complex.
Carrying bags big and small, the group went up to the fifth floor. Shizuka Marikawa took out her key, opened the door, and shouted energetically.
"I'm back!"
There was no response from inside other than the echo. Shizuka Marikawa walked into the entryway first, then turned back to greet the two outside the door.
"Busujima-san, Amamiya-kun, welcome to my home."
Shizuka Marikawa's tone still carried a carefree lightness, oblivious to the world's state. Amamiya Rin and Saeko Busujima, having gotten used to her mannerisms, carried the various supplies inside.
They discovered that Shizuka Marikawa's home was full of "lived-in" vibes. To put it bluntly, it was messy. Various items were strewn about; brightly colored underwear was draped over the sofa, and snack bags and empty beer cans were scattered on the coffee table and floor.
Shizuka Marikawa set down the medical kit, kicked off her shoes, and stepped onto the floor with bare feet. She patted her stained doctor's coat and turned to ask Saeko Busujima: "You're so dirty... Busujima-san, want to wash up together? My bathroom is quite big."
Saeko Busujima sniffed the scent of foul blood all over her body and nodded with a smile.
Amamiya Rin, however, dove headfirst into the sofa.
He was too tired.
(Damn this [Long Dream]!)
Amamiya Rin complained internally, his eyes glazed over as he stared motionlessly at the ceiling.
(Moving freely in the [Dream World] is just too draining. I should save energy where I can.)
Amamiya Rin sighed, his thoughts gradually becoming sluggish.
He didn't know how much time had passed before the clanging of a spatula and faint conversation woke him.
He blinked his dry eyes and slowly sat up.
"...I actually fell asleep inside a dream?"
Amamiya Rin muttered to himself, rubbing the space between his eyebrows as he looked around.
The kitchen lights were warm, silhouetting two busy figures. However, the scene caused his body to freeze instantly.
Saeko Busujima stood before the stove, focused on flipping fish fillets in a pan.
Her silky long purple hair was pinned up, revealing the elegant curve of her neck and her smooth back. She wore a light-colored apron, but the ties were loosely draped behind her waist, leaving her snow-white skin exposed to Amamiya Rin's view without obstruction.
Beneath that apron, there was nothing.
Beside her, Shizuka Marikawa was humming an off-key tune, busy stirring a soup pot.
She was wrapped only in a bath towel. The white towel barely contained her impressive upper body, and the hem just managed to cover the curve of her hips. The vast expanse of white skin and her long legs were dazzling.
The knot of the towel was tied at her side, looking like it was in danger of coming loose at any moment, yet she seemed to find nothing wrong with it.
"Oh my, Rin-kun, you're awake?"
Saeko Busujima was the first to notice Amamiya Rin waking up. She turned sideways and smiled gently at him.
"Amamiya-kun, are you hungry? Just wait a little longer, it's almost ready to eat."
Shizuka Marikawa also turned her head, her smile bright and airheaded.
"Why aren't you wearing clothes?"
Amamiya Rin felt his brain's processing speed lagging.
(Is my subconscious too sexually repressed?)
(Pui pui pui! What do you mean repressed? I'm not a eunuch; this is a normal physiological need!)
Amamiya Rin mentally punched away the self-righteous thought and looked at Saeko Busujima and Shizuka Marikawa with righteous confidence.
Saeko Busujima followed his gaze down to herself, a blush rising on her face.
"The laundromat hasn't been open these past few days. The clothes Marikawa-sensei took off haven't been washed, so we have to make do with this for now."
"Hehe! We're at home anyway, so it doesn't matter!"
Shizuka Marikawa lightly knocked her head with her fist and stuck out her tongue. She remained completely unaware that the towel was slipping down with her movements.
"Please, I beg you to continue this in the future. It improves my subjective initiative."
Amamiya Rin pressed his hands together and spoke with sincerity.
In the days of the dream that followed, Amamiya Rin relied on the rewards he received from Saeko Busujima and Shizuka Marikawa to withstand the exhaustion imposed by the dream, turning desire into motivation.
Saeko Busujima instructed him in kendo daily, repeatedly refining every move from basic stances to fierce slashes.
Although Amamiya Rin's body felt heavy, his mind became more focused, and his movements gradually became sharper. Just like a swordsman practicing under a waterfall, the difficulty was higher, but the results were significant.
Treating the zombies' bodies as targets, Amamiya Rin trained this competitive kendo into a killing art, instinctively aiming every strike at the target's vitals.
Shizuka Marikawa massaged Amamiya Rin every day. Her technique was unexpectedly skilled, far better than what Amamiya Rin remembered—perhaps one of the other five girls connected by the [Khala] had learned massage.
During his moments of sage time, Amamiya Rin continued to research the preparation of chemical weapons. Thermite, sucrose deflagration bombs, ANFO explosives... utilizing the high school knowledge he had reviewed for thirty days in the past, Amamiya Rin transformed into the city's most dangerous terrorist.
A full one hundred days of [Nightmare] quietly passed amidst the sound of breaking wind from sword edges, the moans of his female companions, and the roar of explosions.
____
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