"When you give up, that's when the game is over"

  — Mitsuyoshi Anzai, Sm Dunk

  ---

  As they made their way, numerous zombies swarmed towards them.

  Roy, wielding his bokken, casually swung his arm.

  *Thump! Thump! Thump!*

  The three girls watched as fshes of the wooden sword sliced through the air, separating the zombies' heads from their bodies.

  There wasn't a sich, as smooth as cutting through tofu.

  This was with Roy iionally slowing his sword strikes; otherwise, they wouldn't even have been able to see how the zombies died.

  'So skilled!'

  Saeko Busujima watched from behind, her eyes sparkling with admiration.

  With Roy leading the way, they hardly had to do a thing. His [Heightened Senses] detected every zombie within their viity, swiftly eliminating them before they could pose a threat.

  They felt pletely safe, proceeding quickly towards the school parking lot.

  They soon reached the parking lot and located Shizuka Marikawa's car. Just as they were about to get in, a group of people, following the path they had cleared, ran towards them and blocked the car.

  At the head of the group was the most repulsive character in the inal story, Koichi Shidōu.

  "Marikawa-sensei, please take us with you!" Shidōu pleaded, a false smile pstered on his face.

  "But my car 't hold so many people," Shizuka said, her expression troubled.

  "I'm sorry, Shidōu-sensei, but please find another vehicle," Saeko firmly refused his request.

  The man didn't strike her as trustworthy, and their car only had room for four.

  However, Shidōu didn't retreat, his fake smile unwavering. "I uand that, but the keys to the school bus are in the first-floor office. If we get those keys, taking everyoh us won't be a problem. And with *this* student's abilities, retrieving them should be a simple task, right?"

  He looked at Roy, having witnessed him effortlessly cutting down the surrounding zombies from his vantage point upstairs. He khis was his ce to escape and had promptly gathered a group of students to follow.

  After sacrifig a few students' lives along the way, they had finally caught up.

  So, he was trying to use *him*?

  Roy stared coldly at Shidōu, his eyes gcial. "I'll say this once. Five seds. Get out of my sight, or die."

  His disgust for Shidōu was immense. If not for his reluce to have Saeko and the others think of him as a casual killer, he would have already erased this scum from existence.

  Shidōu flinched under Roy's icy gaze. But survival instincts spurred him on.

  "Student, you're not from this school, are you? I'm a teacher, and as a student, you should listen to your teachers. Furthermore..."

  Shidōu tinued his desperate plea.

  "...3...2...1..."

  As Roy reached "1"...

  *Swish!*

  No one saw him move.

  But in the instant, Shidōu's head flew off his shoulders, blood gushing from his neck.

  "Aaah!!"

  The students Shidōu had brought shrieked in terror. Their screams attracted the attention of the surrounding zombies, drawing them closer.

  *Idiots*, Roy cursed inwardly.

  "I suggest you find the bus keys and drive the bus out of here. Otherwise..."

  He g the approag horde, the implication clear.

  Of course, he was just putting on a show. He didn't care about their fate.

  The students, terrified by the encroag zombies, scattered in a panic.

  "Marikawa-sehe keys, please," Roy turo Shizuka.

  "Huh? Oh!"

  Shizuka blihen fumbled for the keys in her bag.

  Roy snatched the keys and got into the driver's seat.

  "Get in!"

  He started the engine.

  Saeko, Saya, and Shizuka quickly climbed into the car.

  "But... but Roy-kun, do you even have a driver's lise?" Shizuka asked, her usual ditzy demeanor returning as she sat in the passenger seat.

  Roy chuckled. "Of course not. But I don't need one..."

  Before he could finish, the car lurched forward.

  "Eek!"

  The sudden acceleration threw Shizuka back against the seat, her ample bosom boung.

  Roy's eyes flickered downwards for a moment, nearly causing him to crash into a flowerbed.

  "Roy-kun, pay attention to the road!" Saya called out from the backseat, annoyed by his momentary distra.

  "Ahem..."

  Roy cleared his throat, turning back to focus on driving.

  The streets were teeming with zombies, drawn by the roar of the engine.

  To protect the car from damage, Roy enveloped it in a yer of demonic power.

  He plowed through the horde, quickly esg the school grounds aering the city.

  However, the sight that greeted them was grim.

  The ey was eerily silent, smoke rising from various locations. It was clear that the ey had fallen.

  Roy turned on the car radio.

  A female voice began a news report.

  "Reports indicate that the number of victims in Saitama Prefecture has exceeded 10,000..."

  "And President of the Uates has abahe capital, evacuating by helicopter to an aircraft carrier..."

  "Aaah! No...!"

  A scream cut off the broadcast, followed by the sounds of tearing flesh and gnashih.

  The grim reality of the situation weighed heavily on Saeko, Shizuka, and Saya.

  Roy switched to aation.

  Static...

  Only static greeted them. He tried several other stations, but the results were the same.

  A heavy silence desded upon the car.

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