A youth story of a passerby at the end of the world

The subtle combination of mental stress and a smoker's habit influences cigarette prices.

He took the key from Aunt Sawamura and then handed her the Aston Martin key for safekeeping.

"This is also my teacher's car. It's my fault for damaging it like this. Please keep it safe."

"Ok."

So you really don't have a driver's license...

Sayuri Sawamura began to admire this child who dared to drive, even though he was still a minor, he could drive around outside recklessly.

The bloodstains on the Aston Martin deterred most people from approaching it, as if they could smell a nauseating stench of blood. However, this Jeep may very well suffer the same fate.

"sorry to bother you."

"I am the one who is very grateful, whether it's for Eriri or for the food."

Looking at Kasumigaoka Utaha, Sawamura Eriri, Kato Megumi, and Aki Tomoya standing beside him, Uesugi Genshin said that this was a true farewell.

"Take care, everyone." Uesugi Genshin's smile seemed to suggest that the world was still at peace, but everyone knew that was not the case.

"You too, blooming brightly."

"Hmph, it's okay to come back if things don't work out." Sawamura Eriri, who had never pretended to be a young lady in front of Uesugi Genshin, was as straightforward as ever.

"Yes, take care, Uesugi-kun." Kato Megumi's farewell was as gentle as the willow branches in spring.

“You…” For Kasumigaoka Utaha, this farewell was particularly sad. She didn’t have time to react before, but after some time, her emotions became clearer.

"Remember to come pick me up." She clutched Uesugi Genshin's shirt with both hands, and as she said this, her nose suddenly felt a little sore.

Otherwise, she would follow him no matter what. The person she was closest to in the room was the one in front of her; the others were just ordinary classmates. It was an instinctive feeling of closeness.

Since she couldn't go home, she didn't want to disturb the Sawamura family here forever.

"I'll be waiting for you here. Remember to come pick me up." There might be something else in those words.

“Cheng-kun.” She grasped Uesugi Genshin’s hand.

The flicker in her eyes silenced Uesugi Genshin.

"I understand, Shiyu." Not knowing what else to say, he could only offer this words of comfort. He wouldn't make promises lightly, and this wasn't exactly a formal commitment.

Uesugi Genshin smoothed Kasumigaoka Utaha's hair, his face wearing a doting mask.

Chapter Twenty-Two: An Interlude on the Road

"Ughhh!!!" Uesugi Genshin was very annoyed, his head was a little itchy, and he was venting his frustration.

On the passenger seat was the owner's manual, which he had casually flipped through and tossed aside. It listed the vehicle's model: a Jeep named Wrangler.

What bothered him was that on the way back, he was extremely cautious, watching the road conditions closely and keeping his eyes fixed on the road ahead. He also unconsciously sat up straight, which increased his stress.

That's the one! It's clearly a very durable car, but it's even more vulnerable to crashes!

This complex feeling left him both amused and exasperated.

Two cars had collided and were on fire ahead, with hordes of zombies wandering around them. He deftly slipped through the gaps, but a zombie in his blind spot ahead looked back in disbelief.

He was gently knocked down by Uesugi Genshin, who was braking, and then run over by him as he stepped on the gas.

He was probably still alive, so he didn't care about anything else and stepped on the gas to finally get through the roadblock.

Uesugi Genshin glanced down at his phone again. In a section of road that was truly impassable, with the dense, layered horde of corpses blocking the narrow path, should he really choose to ram through it?

He hesitated, reversed his car and took other routes, winding and turning until he was unsure where he was.

However, the gradually widening road and the tall buildings on both sides indicated that he had inadvertently arrived in the commercial district.

The roads are indeed wide and easy to travel on, but after all, it's the capital city, and there are people everywhere.

It was already past 5 o'clock, and only one day had passed, yet the streets were filled with the smoke of battle... well, let's not call it smoke. Cars were on fire, streetlights were distorted, corpses lay on the ground, and the streets were deserted.

It's after get off work hours now, so it's normal for no one to be loitering during the day. But if you sense anything unusual now, you'll know to hide and not go out.

The heavy atmosphere affected my vision, as if a gray filter had been added. It really is a depressing city.

They drove onto a smooth road again, which relieved Uesugi Genshin. He picked up the water bottle on his side and drank, moistening his slightly dry lips.

The cool water slid into my slightly warm body, and I could clearly feel the flow of the water.

When it flows into the stomach, it activates the stomach's peristalsis, and then the stomach starts saying, "I'm so hungry."

"Gugugugugu..."

Okay, let's eat.

As Uesugi Genshin looked at the bento box placed in front of the car, his saliva and stomach acid began to rise.

There's still over an hour until dark, enough time to get back to Chiba.

Let's find a parking lot first.

-----------------

"Hey, Uzuki, is it really okay for us to just hide here like this?"

As she spoke, she bent over and shifted the position of her protruding buttocks, but her arm accidentally bumped into the girl next to her.

"Don't speak, Lanzi, what if the monsters outside discover us?"

The blonde girl who was being pushed aside complained in a low voice. The light from her phone shone on her face in the darkness, and the interplay of light and shadow made her face look more defined. It was a pity it wasn't a test of courage.

"I want to go home." Ying was a year younger than the others and the shortest. She was usually a bit childish, but she spoke first about the resentment in everyone's hearts.

Seeing her tearful face, the short-haired girl next to her reached out and hugged her, comforting her, "It's okay."

“Yazo…” The two hugged each other. Ying was so small that it made them look like a mother and daughter.

"What are you doing, Kaori?" Uzuki asked, turning around when she saw the blonde girl fiddling with her phone with her head down.

"Send an email." He Xiang's face was a little grim. She couldn't get through on the phone, and the police line was busy, so she could only put her phone on silent and send emails one by one to inquire.

It would be good if someone responded, but unfortunately she doesn't have many friends, as evidenced by the fact that she didn't receive any emails on her phone.

Everyone was crammed into the back of the van. It was called a "van," but the price was quite attractive. The proper name should be MPV (Multi-purpose Vehicle).

Of the seven people who came, only five remain, all crammed into the back. The two driver's seats in the front are empty, but the car itself is large enough that it's not crowded.

This deliberate sense of crowding comes from the close proximity of the crowd, and the psychological illusion of feeling cold makes them huddle together in the middle.

They are an idol group, and they are performing at an underground venue in Ikebukuro today.

They specifically asked for leave from school for this, which is quite common for high school students to debut, but unexpected things happened from beginning to end.

First, two members of the team, Aihua and Moli, suddenly collapsed on stage. Then, a disturbance broke out in the crowd below the stage, as if some rioters were attacking people.

Security personnel stepped forward to handle the situation, entered the crowd, but were swallowed up by the sea of ​​people and never reappeared.

The concert was then forced to stop. When they thought their idol careers were over and hid backstage, the backstage area was in chaos, and no one cared about them.

Finally, someone arranged things for Aika and Jasmine, but then the manager ran into trouble. He had been feeling drowsy since noon and was dozing off on the sofa.

However, they remembered that their car was parked in the underground parking lot right next to it.

The chaotic situation frightened Uzuki, so she suggested helping her manager back to the car first.

On the way to the parking lot, hearing some noises from the manager who was being supported, Uzuki and Yae temporarily leaned the manager against a pillar.

Then they were scattered by the crowd surging out of the venue. Everyone had a look of terror on their faces. They were panicking and running for their lives. One person kicked the agent down, and the agent hit his head and bled a little.

What happened next completely terrified them: the manager, who had been lying on the ground, suddenly grabbed a passerby and started biting him.

The two women were locked in a struggle, neither able to gain the upper hand. They retreated a few steps and hid in the gap between the two cars.

Then a person covered in blood appeared in their field of vision, pounced on him, and the person who was bitten screamed.

They quickly hid inside the car, watching the bloody scene unfold in front of it.

One by one, the fleeing crowd was tackled to the ground. They tried to break free, but were held tightly. Kicking and pushing were futile.

Blood splattered all around as flesh tore open, on the ground and in the car.

What they saw was the red of flesh and blood, the yellow of fat, and the white of bones.

The chaotic dance of colors made them realize that something must be wrong with the world.

In the end, most of them chased after the prey, while the rest continued to share the food, enjoying their feast.

Until they suddenly stopped moving, the person who had been devoured rose up in a contorted posture, becoming one of them, though no longer recognizable.

One of them was pacing wildly in front of the car, his face a bloody mess, with blood still dripping from his face onto the ground. They lay down in the car, not daring to utter a sound.

Fortunately, it only lingered there for a while before moving on to other places.

The front half of Maoyue crawled into the front seat of the car and peered around. It turned out that they hadn't gone far; they could be seen throughout the entire parking lot.

Unable to get out in this situation, I have no choice but to continue hiding in the car, where I have been for almost two hours.

"I...I need to go to the toilet," Ying said, her legs, clad in black stockings, rubbing together.

"Hey!" Uoyue suppressed her voice.

She gripped the front seat, turned around in surprise, and her expression seemed to say: At this time?

"Be patient, be patient," Lanzi tried to soothe him with her hands.

"I've been holding back for a while now, but I can't hold back anymore."

When a person is nervous, the adrenal glands secrete hormones that cause the bladder muscles to contract, increasing the pressure inside the bladder and creating the urge to urinate.

"Then let's use the bottle." Yae reliably took out an empty plastic bottle from the side.

Ying placed her hands between her knees and gave a weak "hmm".

Then...then she squeezed into the last row of seats. The sound of water was exceptionally clear in the silent car, as if you could hear a pin drop.

After relieving herself, she didn't go back to the front. Instead, she sat in the back seat with her head down, curled up like a hamster.

Normally, the team members take good care of her because of her childishness, but now! Her behavior, which is extremely embarrassing, almost made her cry.

I'm about to cry, it's so embarrassing!

"Did you hear anything?" Ying almost thought he was talking about her.

"Varied......"

Before they could finish speaking, they saw a car drive into the underground parking lot.

The parking lot has a vertical aisle shaped like the Chinese character "川" (river). The exit is on the far right, while they are on the far left, near the corner, which is also the side closest to the entrance/exit.

After the car entered, it turned left, and then moved forward a little after the corner, stopping just a short distance in front of their car.

Ikebukuro is a prime location with limited space, and the parking lot isn't very big. Plus, there aren't many cars left there, so they could clearly see someone get out of the car.

“That person…” murmured Uzuki, who was the first to see him.

The five people squeezed between the two front seats, and even Ying, who was at the very back, squeezed to the front.

"It's dangerous," Yae said worriedly.

"Idiot." Kaori pouted and lowered her gaze.

The car came to a smooth stop, the door opened, and the people inside jumped out. After the door closed, they saw that the person was holding a baseball bat.

"???"

His gloomy hairstyle made him look less like a good person.

As a result, Uzuki, Yae, Waka, Ranko, and Hotaru witnessed a shocking scene.

He was holding a baseball bat when the monster lunged at him from the left, where the car was blocking his view, and with a loud "bang," it was knocked to the ground. It was less like a home run and more like a swordsman swinging his sword.

Another one was swung to the left and knocked down, followed by a series of orderly "bang bang bang" sounds that echoed through the underground parking lot.

The continuous "slashes" were like those of a samurai; his hand was very steady, and each strike was perfectly timed, both in terms of position and force.

They then saw a group of zombies following them down from outside at the exit, and he saw them too.

With his keen eyesight and keen hearing, there was a reason why Uesugi Genshin chose this corner.

The engine noise of a slowly moving car is not enough to completely alert the zombies at the innermost part, but from the corner, one can observe zombies from both directions.