Chapter 67

"Everyone, I want to hear your honest opinions."

In the conference room, with many police officers gathered, Oda spoke up.

It had been a few days since the first food gathering at the department store, which had been the hideout of the half-gang. To me, it was a matter of course, but ultimately, there was no reaction to the note Oda left, no signs that anyone had touched it, and the conclusion was reached that the possibility of anyone being in that building was extremely low.

Furthermore, the search of the building was almost complete, and it was concluded that the department store was quite safe.

Based on this, Oda's proposal was to leave this police station and move to the other place.

Of course, it was possible to stay here while using that place as a food gathering spot, but it would be very inefficient to transport everything here every time. Oda judged that the department store had so much supplies that it was worth it, and to be honest, I had been transporting a lot of it myself, which was somewhat unnatural.

There were mainly three concerns.

The risk of moving evacuees, the existence of an inactive hostile group, and the fact that there were spent cartridges and bullet marks inside the department store.

Regarding the first point, it was said that while large transport vehicles couldn't be used as they wouldn't fit in the parking lot, using the patrol cars on duty wouldn't be too difficult.

As for the second point, there were many unknowns, and it was unclear how to even discuss it. From the interrogations, Oda and the others seemed to have grasped that the original source was a known half-gang group, but that information alone was not enough to take action.

Finally, the third point.

It was clear that there had been a battle, but no one was there anymore. In fact, it seemed to be the aftermath of a human conflict, but Oda and the others concluded that it might have been just the use of firearms against zombies.

"I think it's fine. With that much stuff, we can hole up for a while and still get by."

"I agree. We'll need to clean up a bit and maybe set up some rooms properly."

The bearded man and the skinhead both showed their agreement with Oda's proposal.

Regarding the hostile forces, the danger was the same whether here or there. There was no water in the water tanks, and there was no hope of rescue from the Self-Defense Forces.

Furthermore, someone who didn't know about that place, such as the half-gang group, might occupy it first. If that happened, the situation would be the worst.

Based on these opinions, the police officers were also in favor of moving the base.

"Then let's talk to the evacuees later. Let's finalize the details a bit more."

Oda looked around at everyone and said this.

+++++

The biggest concern for Oda and the others is the existence of the hostile group, but I have already wiped them out. The biggest concern for me, who knows this fact, is the presence of the dark-skinned man with the nose ring who is still in the holding cell. Recently, I have been going to the holding cell and, when the guard is not close, I have been re-applying "intimidation" to him.

Thanks to this, he hasn't said anything about the hideout or me yet. However, when the residue of this "intimidation" skill fades, he might start talking.

If he only talks about me, it's still manageable; I can just play dumb. But if he also reveals the location of the hideout, it could become very troublesome.

If we move to that department store, Oda and the others should be safer than they are now. But if they find out that the building was their hideout, how will they react and what will they think?

They probably wouldn't choose that place as a base. Moreover, if they consider what he says about me, there's a good chance they might start harboring unnecessary suspicions.

I also considered moving supplies to other stores, but there were no such good locations nearby.

Of course, if it's just for food gathering, we could find a place with all the shutters closed, like the previous supermarket, and eliminate all the zombies inside to make it the same. But if we want to make it a new safe base, it's a different story.

A shuttered supermarket would be finished if a car crashed into it. But with the department store, even if that happens, we can survive a zombie attack by living on the second floor and above.

Furthermore, the multi-level parking lot attached to the building allows us to enter the store safely by car, unlike the current police station, which might attract unnecessary zombies. We can also set up defensive lines to deal with intruders, as the half-gang did.

Even if the building catches fire, we can evacuate to the parking lot and plan our escape.

Considering all these factors, that place is probably the best within our current range of action.

But what to do with the dark-skinned man with the nose ring.

To be honest, I wanted to kill him. He attacked Kaede and should have died then. He is unnecessary for this community, a complete burden, a waste of food.

What do Oda and the others intend to do with him? I hope they will leave him here when they move the base.