Chapter 44

I wonder if I was able to understand and accept Oda's suffering.

No matter how many words I spoke to him, they were probably just empty and meaningless, and I wonder if Oda was truly saved by them.

A few days have passed since Kaede and I evacuated here.

Kaede seems to be getting along well with Yuki, and her relationship with the other evacuees also appears to be good.

Yuki was the youngest at the company, but she has a high level of communication skills, and through this incident, I've also come to know her caring side.

I'm glad I left Kaede in Yuki's care.

Kaede is the youngest in this shelter, and I thought she would have a lot of anxiety, so I initially planned to have her stay in the same room as me.

However, later on, I thought it would be more convenient to be alone in my room.

This is because, in case of an emergency, I can go outside in the middle of the night when everyone else is asleep.

This room is on the third floor, but entering and exiting through the window is not a problem.

When I do this, I have to be especially careful to avoid the eyes of the city hall guards.

But if Kaede is in the same room, that would be impossible.

Yuki's room is right next to the range of my presence detection, so if I'm not on guard duty or going out, I can respond in case of an emergency.

I was relieved when Yuki suggested staying in the same room with Kaede.

...At first, she seemed to have some strange imagination about it.

Kaede and Yuki don't need to come to my room to have their girl talk, but they often come here when they have nothing to do.

Yuki's physical contact with me has become less frequent since we first arrived, but I feel that Kaede's has increased a little.

She has really grown attached to me.

Before investigating this shelter, I intended to leave Kaede here and go somewhere else.

Living here seems safe, and there shouldn't be any problems.

However, Yuki was also here, and more importantly, I wanted to help Oda as much as I could within my means.

I think I understand Oda's struggles to some extent.

He always acts cheerful, but what is he feeling inside?

I want to help him as much as I can.

Even a little, to make up for the irresponsible words I threw at him, a man who has no right to forgive sins.

Today is the day for food procurement, and I'm secretly glad that I can participate.

If I act together with them, it's unlikely that the police, including Oda, will get hurt, as long as I don't distance myself too much from them.

The fact that I can make their brave actions safer, even if only a little, helps to alleviate my guilt, even if only slightly.

Following the same procedures as last time, we leave the police station.

The route may have some changes, but the destination is the same supermarket.

Stopping at convenience stores and other small shops along the way is where my presence detection comes in handy.

Of course, I can't say that, so I take the lead and "encounter" the zombies in places where they can't be seen, to reduce their danger as much as possible.

For them, one mistake could mean game over.

I can't help but be cautious.

"Yanagi, I've been thinking, you're amazing."

The skinhead muscleman sitting next to me on the left whispers to me.

"I'm glad to have someone like you helping us. To be honest, we can never have enough manpower."

The bearded tough guy on my right adds.

"It's nothing. You guys, including Oda, are much more amazing."

No, I'm not amazing at all.

I just have the power I brought back from another world.

Without it, what would have happened?

I might have just trembled and been unable to do anything, just like right after I was transported to that other world.

I think they are much more amazing, suppressing their fear of zombies and still going out to fight.

Especially because they are not just doing it for themselves, but for the safety of the evacuees, who are complete strangers, they deserve respect.

The three of us chat intermittently on the shaking truck bed as we run over zombies.

Of course, we don't neglect our vigilance.

We arrive at the supermarket, having made several stops at small shops along the way, just like last time.

The front shutter is still closed, as expected, and there seems to be no problem.

However, when we go around to the back, there is a change.

The number of zombies seems to be fewer than last time, if not less, but one of the loading dock shutters is open.

"...There are still few of them. We'll drive the car inside without closing the shutter, scout the surroundings from the truck bed, and if it looks good, we'll close the shutter. Got it?"

Given the situation, it would normally be quite a dilemma, but Oda's judgment is quick.

There is no sense of panic in his voice over the radio, only a sense of reliability.

The structure of this supermarket is good.

Since the entire store is covered by shutters and walls, no new enemies will appear as long as the zombies inside are cleared.

Most importantly, there are a lot of supplies, and they can be safely loaded directly into the car parked at the loading dock.

It would be difficult to find another large store that meets the same conditions now.

Therefore, taking some risks now is not a bad choice.

Following Oda's instructions, if the situation looks bad, we can quickly return, so there shouldn't be much danger.

Everyone moves into action without any objections to the instructions.

First, Oda's car, on which I am riding, enters the loading dock.

According to my presence detection, there are nine zombies inside the loading dock, but I can handle them from the truck bed.

"There are five nearby."

I quickly report the number of zombies closest to us after looking around, although I don't really need to.

"There are two in the aisle, and two at the back of the loading dock."

I swing the axe down on the heads of the zombies clustering around the car and report again.

"That makes four nearby."

While taking a combat stance, the two men on the truck bed are surprised by my sharp eyes, but Oda immediately gives instructions to the car behind us upon receiving the report.

The shutter closes with a bang.

...I hope the people behind are safe.

It was a brief wait, but it was fortunate that the zombies didn't gather and pull them down to the ground during the shutter operation.

The small number of zombies outside was also a blessing.

"Three are coming in from outside, be careful not to be grabbed."

The loading dock becomes dark when the shutter closes, but the headlights of our car, which entered in reverse, and the car that entered from the front, illuminate the area.

I subtly shine a light on the zombies in the blind spots where the light doesn't reach, supporting the people on the truck bed.

New zombies appear from the back and aisles, but we eventually take them down without any danger, and the loading dock becomes quiet except for the sound of zombies pounding on the shutter outside.