"Looks like we'll have to discuss tonight how to deal with this group of people."
Saeko Busujima let out a sigh.
Fear wasn't the issue. This shelter truly lived up to being the top-class refuge that Zeroy had found for them.
The facilities were fully equipped. They could practically spend their days eating and sleeping in leisure, and the supplies would last nearly ten years.
After all, the stockpile was massive, with specially engineered seeds and facilities that could quickly regenerate resources. For example, the strawberries Alice Maresato had just eaten matured in half a month regardless of season, produced in such abundance they couldn't finish them all.
Of course, they weren't really lazing around waiting to die.
Since survival wasn't a worry, they spent their days honing their apocalypse survival skills.
Naturally, this shelter also stored a vast arsenal of weapons—even a small missile launch platform.
The problem was that using such weapons would cause too much noise. The thugs below were nothing to fear, but the racket might attract hordes of zombies. If that happened, they'd be finished.
Two paths lay before them—
1. Gamble! Gamble that before these people figured out a way up, the gathered zombies would find and overrun their survivor base. And gamble that once the zombies devoured them, they would leave.
That said, if those thugs managed to find a way up first, and they were forced to use weapons, it might already be too late—the zombies might have evolved enough to threaten the shelter itself. Then when the horde swarmed, they'd die along with the thugs.
2. Strike now. While the zombies hadn't yet evolved to a dangerous level, kill those people first, then clean out the surrounding undead.
Although that meant exposing themselves early, essentially inviting death, since they couldn't know what else might be drawn to the commotion, or whether their weapons could truly wipe out every zombie.
"..."
Saeko couldn't help recalling that golden silhouette.
Would she ever see her again…?
She wasn't afraid of dying. What terrified her was dying without seeing Zeroy one last time.
After all, that was her first love.
"Wait—! That's a drone?! Damn it, they actually have one of those!"
On a monitor feed, a few of the bikers Saya Takagi had seen earlier launched a drone, sending it toward the cliffside platform.
"What do you think is up there?"
One biker piloted the drone while chatting with a companion.
"What could it be? Out here in the wilderness, probably just a bunch of trees. Still, be careful—we don't have many drones, and we need them for scouting the area."
"I know, I know."
"Man, you're lucky the boss let you play with it. You and the boss a little too close?"
"Nah, he probably just thinks that place looks decent. If there aren't too many trees, it might be a good hideout."
"Get real, how would we get up there?"
"Climb from the back of the cliff to the top, then drop a rope down."
"Uh… that's way too high. Who's going?"
"Not me. You go."
"Whoever finds it goes."
Clearly, they were interested in the platform. With nothing better to do, they immediately sent a drone to check it out.
Monitoring room—
"What do we do? Shoot it down?"
"...."
Saya Takagi bit her nail in hesitation, then gritted her teeth.
"Shoot it down! You, hide on the platform, wait for my signal, and as soon as it comes close, take it out from behind!"
"Got it."
At the same time, Saya quickly contacted Alice Maresato, still on the platform, urging her to return to the shelter.
···
Just as the drone neared the platform, Saeko hid in the grass—
A magic circle flared to life on the platform, and out stepped Zeroy and Patchouli Knowledge.
The moment they emerged, a drone flew right toward Zeroy. Just before it could hit, she casually snatched it out of the air.
"What's this? A drone?"
Thinking it was one of Saeko's, Zeroy waved at the camera.
"I'm back. Did you miss me?"
Smiling, she even waved cheerfully to whoever was on the other side of the lens.
"Wait, Zeroy! That's the enemy's drone!"
Realizing what had happened, Saeko jumped up from the grass.
"Enemy?"
Zeroy's expression hardened. The drone in her hand was crushed to pieces in an instant.
"—!"
Meanwhile, down below, the biker controlling the drone suddenly clutched his chest.
"A… a spirit! I saw a spirit!"
"Hey! What are you talking about? What spirit?!"
The others hadn't been watching the screen closely and were caught off guard.
However, two others who had been staring at the feed shouted loudly.
"A spirit! It's real!"
Their camp erupted in chaos.
The three bikers clamored about having seen a breathtakingly beautiful spirit.
In this world where order had collapsed and morals decayed, any rumor of women—especially beautiful ones—immediately drew attention.
And this time, they weren't just talking about any women, but stunning, otherworldly spirits.
The three men eagerly described what they had seen—
Two of them. One blonde, one violet-haired. Both so beautiful it was unreal, more gorgeous than any woman they had ever laid eyes on.
Their words painted the scene vividly, excitement spilling over, until they went straight to their boss, begging to send people to scale the cliff and capture the two spirits. They even volunteered to lead the charge.
At first, no one believed them. After all, the drone was destroye,d and no footage remained.
Their behavior seemed more like an excuse for wrecking the drone.
However, seeing their excitement, doubts began to give way to curiosity.
Elsewhere…
Zeroy held Alice in her arms while listening to Saya and Saeko's explanation of the current situation.
"So all this happened in just one month? Looks like it's time I started a purge." Zeroy nodded, already calculating how to cut down faster, how many to cut.
Then she smiled at them.
"But I'm glad you're safe."
"Mm…"
"Since that's the case, let's put the reunion on hold for now. I'll cleanse this world first, wipe out those zombies and pests."
The reunion could wait. Just knowing pests still rampaged unchecked, that countless innocent lives still suffered, made Zeroy restless—itching to cut them down.
...
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