Chapter 49

The ominous premonition proved true, and the base was teeming with zombies.

I left the building and headed to the scene.

The base was surrounded by a fence about two meters high, and the main gate was closed with iron bars. The iron bars themselves were not that tall, but they were reinforced with sandbags and timber behind them, and searchlights were lined up further back. On the road in front of the main gate, several barbed wire fences were set up, serving as a defensive line.

The main gate remained sturdy and showed no signs of being breached. Perhaps the wall somewhere around the perimeter had been damaged, allowing the zombies to enter?

I circled around from a distance to observe, but there seemed to be no damage to the wall. This suggested that the pandemic likely originated from inside.

However, would the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) commit such a foolish act now? I believe they would conduct thorough checks for injuries.

There was no point in thinking about it without checking the situation inside, so I lightly jumped over the fence and entered the base. Given the circumstances, I didn't expect to find any survivors here, but I moved cautiously to avoid drawing attention, just in case.

Several mobile iron fences and sandbags were placed within the compound, indicating that defensive lines were set up inside as well. Could the SDF have been completely wiped out despite such preparations? Bloodstains and empty shell casings were scattered everywhere, evidence of intense battles.

I decided to start with the large building, which was likely the barracks. The entrance was locked, so I leaped to the second-floor window, broke the glass, and entered the building. I judged that breaking the door would not be a good idea if there were any survivors inside.

The building was indeed the barracks, with bunk beds in the rooms, and there were faint signs of life. However, after circling the building, I found no survivors, only zombies.

Next, I headed to the gymnasium, which was visible from a distance. On the way, I saw several green tents on the field.

The gymnasium was set up like a shelter, with partitions and scattered belongings. Bloodstains were visible everywhere, and there were a considerable number of zombies. Compared to the barracks, the gymnasium was in a much worse state.

Leaving the gymnasium and heading to the field, I saw tire tracks on the ground. The tracks disappeared on the asphalt, but they seemed to lead to the seaside. Continuing in that direction, I found several vehicles parked in front of the pier, forming a defensive line.

This suggested that they likely used boats to escape. While I'm curious about their destination, it seems they didn't all perish.

I felt relieved and returned to the base. I explored the other buildings on the premises as a precaution, but there were no signs of survivors.

+++++

While heading back, I thought about the situation.

I can understand why a pandemic occurred at the school that initially served as a shelter. Many people probably evacuated with injuries without knowing the characteristics of the zombies.

However, it's puzzling that a pandemic occurred at the SDF base, given that it's now clear that being bitten by a zombie leads to zombification.

During the intake of evacuees, thorough checks for injuries were conducted, as Mr. Oda did. Mr. Oda mentioned that if an evacuee had any injury, they were confined to a holding room for a day, regardless of the nature of the injury. The base had several buildings, and even with a large number of evacuees, there should have been enough rooms for such checks. Whether the rooms could be locked from the outside is unknown, but even if not, posting guards would have been a solution.

Was there a significant number of evacuees that led to some being overlooked? However, based on the accounts of the SDF officers on the rescue helicopter that came to the city hall, this seems unlikely. If they could evacuate that many people, there wouldn't have been a fuel shortage, and the police station would have been rescued quickly.

It's not impossible that the helicopter was dispatched to the city hall on a day when they ran out of fuel, but in that case, they wouldn't have sent the helicopter to a distant location. It's more natural to assume that they were conducting rescue operations with limited fuel.

Given this, the only other possibility is... No, I can't imagine why the pandemic started from inside. Was it simply due to poor checks?

In any case, it's clear that expecting rescue from the SDF is wishful thinking.

If they escaped by boat, they must have had a plan and a destination. However, it seems overly optimistic to expect them to send immediate rescue from their escape location.

Although there were fewer SDF personnel among the zombies at the base, there were still many zombies, and signs of battles were evident everywhere. They likely executed their escape plan in a hurry, without being fully prepared.

I can't share this information with Mr. Oda, but if he is hesitant to go outside, I should encourage him with confidence. I will support him to the best of my ability.

In the rain and darkness, I hurried to the police station, leaping from building to building.