Gas Station Raid Incident (Or Not)

Before long, it was deep into the night.

The sea breeze from the north was, as expected, bitterly cold.

Ugh, this damn temperature swing. Still, spring was better than this. Summer would be a total nightmare.

In summer, the already rotting stench of those Walker bastards got even worse. On top of that, most survivors couldn't even wash properly, so the smell was... just thinking about it made me want to puke.

Anyway, I was sprawled across the Hummer's windshield, happily chain-smoking.

Clang— rattle—!

The sound of an empty can shattering the silence came from one of the traps I'd set nearby.

The thin trail of smoke drifting from my lips froze mid-air.

My previously hazy, half-lidded eyes sharpened into cold focus.

"Ah... knew it. Tsk."

I muttered under my breath.

That noise definitely wasn't made by some animal.

Beasts usually bolted in fear when they tripped a trap. Besides, the footsteps themselves were clearly human.

Annoying fucking raiders.

With a grunt, I pushed myself up, leaped onto the Hummer's roof, and sprang toward the gas station's support pillar.

I grabbed the pillar with a powerful grip, then exploded upward with my lower body in one fluid motion.

I landed lightly on the gas station roof.

Whoa. My parkour game was basically at Assassin Ancestor level.

I stayed silent, ears pricked, staring down at the Hummer from above.

I just had to wait. They'd probably hit the Hummer first. Then I could pick them off one by one, nice and clean.

From here on out, it was time for this guy's absolutely badass assassination sequence.

Bang— Bang—!

??

Huh?

Sudden gunshots. A bullet grazed my arm.

"Kekekekeh! What'd I tell you? There's always one bastard on the roof!"

"Fuck, you were right! But why the hell did you miss his head, you idiot?"

When I spun around, four worthless pieces of shit were standing there.

Ah... shit. Looked like they actually had half a brain. They'd sent a separate team to climb the roof.

...So much for the assassination sequence...

Yeah. From here on out, it was time for this guy's... spectacular brawl.

"Ha... I was really trying to look cool for once. Why the hell aren't you guys wearing condoms?"

My red eyes blazed like they were on fire.

"The fuck is this bastard even saying?"

The moment the guy behind me finished cackling and running his mouth—

I activated Flying Shadow Ascent Step, like I'd just multiclassed into a rogue or something.

Okay, fine. I just moved really fucking fast.

Before the raiders could even properly register that I'd circled behind them, the situation had already begun.

Shhhk.

Psheeeeee—!

The throat of the bastard who'd first aimed his pistol at me split wide open, blood spraying out like a shower hose.

"Means you're all fucked."

"C-crazy! Shoot! Shoot him!"

Completely different behavior from the bullshit coming out of their mouths.

The remaining three panicked and tried to pull their triggers.

But the second they gave me this much distance, their lives were already over.

I kicked off the collapsing first guy's ass and launched myself forward.

Using my knee, I mercilessly smashed the second bastard's face.

"Take this— the world's coolest flying knee kick."

Crack—!

With a dull sound of bones caving in, the guy's teeth scattered across the roof like loose grains.

I grabbed his ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠head and slammed it into the ground, crushing it.

"You fucking monster!"

The others desperately swung their guns around, but my hands were faster. I snapped one's wrist, grabbed him by the collar, and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠used him as a human meat shield, spinning him forward.

Bang—!

The fourth guy's panicked spray of bullets buried themselves completely into the third guy's chest. The shooter froze at the realization he'd just shot his own comrade.

I wasn't about to miss that tiny opening.

"Oh? Friendly fire, you dumbass."

I hurled the ragged meat shield aside, kicked off the ground, and charged.

The knife in my hand pierced straight under his chin and drove all the way up through his skull.

Shunk.

"Kk— kuhhhk..."

It took barely ten seconds to send all four to meet their maker.

I yanked the knife out of the raider's jaw and flicked the blood off.

My grazed forearm throbbed, but the adrenaline dulled the pain.

"There must be more of them downstairs."

After catching my breath, I glanced down from the gas station and prepared for the next round of glorious combat.

Bang bang bang—! Tatang! Tang tang tang—!

"What the fuck!! What is this!!!!"

"B-boss!!!"

"Aaaaaaaaagh!!!!"

Bang bang bang— Bang—!

Chaotic gunfire erupted from below. It had that frantic feel of raiders wildly spraying bullets into the air.

What the hell? Are they shooting each other for fun?

I moved to the edge of the roof and peeked down. Then I let out a disbelieving chuckle.

The open lot in front of the gas station.

At least ten raider corpses were sprawled across the ground.

And right in the middle of that sea of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠blood stood Haze, casually slinging a matte-black pre-apocalypse rifle over her shoulder.

"Damn. I was gonna jump down looking all cool and shit by myself."

I scratched my head and hopped off the gas station roof.

Thud.

As I landed, Haze turned her cross-shaped green eyes toward me.

"What the—? Why are you here? Weren't you supposed to be sleeping like a baby with the little one?"

To my question, Haze pulled a cigarette from her pocket, lit it, and answered.

"Mister Ban. You really need to fix that habit of trying to shoulder everything alone."

"Huh?"

"You've been standing watch by yourself all day. I really don't like it."

Haze flicked her lighter and lit her cigarette.

"During our last job, you were the one who worked the hardest. And now that we've found this bunker, you're still the only one pulling guard duty? It's unfair. Go inside and rest."

Wow. What a queen. Always so sharp and direct with her words.

She must've been a little pissed. "Worked the hardest," she said.

In the end, she couldn't stand watching me run myself ragged without rest, so she left her soft bed and came up here.

"Heh. You're not just making an excuse because you want to have a late-night date with me, right? Have you finally fallen for my charm?"

I grinned slyly and stepped closer.

But Haze's cross-shaped eyes looked more serious than usual.

"Ha... You're really an idiot sometimes. I want to talk."

Haze exhaled a long plume of smoke and lightly kicked one of the corpses rolling on the ground.

"Obtaining this ridiculous high-tech bunker... I was too out of it earlier to think clearly, but the more I think about it, the weirder it gets."

"What is?"

Haze stared at me as if she could see right through to the silver pendant hidden inside my clothes.

"Even if we'd found that hatch and gone inside, we wouldn't have been able to enter without your pendant, Mister Ban. Don't you ever wonder what your true identity is?"

At Haze's serious question, I pulled out a cigarette of my own and stuck it in my mouth.

"My identity? Are you dumb? I'm the handsome problem-solver Claude Ban, obviously."

"You're the dumb one!!! That's not what I'm asking!"

My nonsense must've frustrated her, because her voice rose slightly.

"Scary... Well, even if you ask, I really don't know anything. This pendant has been hanging around my neck for as long as I can remember."

Of course it had. That guy didn't have any proper memories from when he was a kid anyway.

Haze decided this conversation was pointless.

"It might be connected to your parents, Mister Ban... Ha. Fine. I won't bring it up again."

Searching for parents in this fucked-up world? With the very real chance of getting your head ripped off by a Walker tomorrow, it was an insanely luxurious worry.

Haze let out a short sigh and walked over to me.

The sea breeze tousled her short hair.

Then she pulled something from her coat and held it out to me.

"Here."

A silver thermos.

When I opened the lid, the rich, savory aroma of pre-apocalypse coffee—something you rarely smelled in these ruins—wafted out strongly.

"You like coffee, don't you, Mister Ban? The warehouse downstairs is overflowing with it. There's even a machine, so you can drink as much as you want now."

My previously dull eyes sparkled for a moment.

Hot pre-apocalypse coffee in the middle of this hellish sea breeze with its insane temperature swings.

Hell yeah. This was pure bliss.

"Whoa! As expected of our sexy sniper. Your sense is absolutely insane."

I laughed and took the thermos.

One sip, and the hot liquid slid down my throat, melting even my frozen insides.

"But."

Haze pointed at the revolver on my hip with a slightly exasperated look.

"Why did you go out carrying that empty tin-can revolver with no bullets? Are you really that stupid man who leaves a perfectly good pre-apocalypse armory behind and fights with an unloaded gun?"

"Ah. I actually forgot. But this is my beloved item, you know? If I don't have my signature weapon, it kills the vibe."

I scratched the back of my head sheepishly.

I'd been so busy stuffing my face and drinking that I didn't want to leave, so I kept putting it off and forgot.

"Go downstairs and try out some of the pre-apocalypse firearms. They're pretty fun."

Haze said, lightly tapping the matte rifle slung over her shoulder.

"What do you think? Doesn't seem like your taste."

"You read me correctly. Zero recoil and auto-aim make it comfortable... but the firepower per shot is too weak. It doesn't look like it could penetrate large mutants or heavily armed raiders in one hit."

As expected from a gun enthusiast.

"So you're not going to use it?"

"I'll try it out for now... but after using it just now, I still think my old gun is better. However..."

A faint smile spread across Haze's lips.

"It would be perfect for Yui or Eve. Since there's no recoil at all, even those two idiots should be able to handle it. I'll start drilling them in marksmanship from tomorrow."

"Those two with guns... yeah, it really doesn't suit them. Back when I was dealing with Vanessa, I almost laughed watching them trying to raise their pistols."

I slurped down the rest of the coffee and chuckled.

That aside, Haze's insight was always sharp and accurate.

If those idiots—who had exceptional abilities in everything except combat—could at least protect themselves, our survival odds would skyrocket.

The surroundings grew quiet again. A lukewarm silence flowed between us, accompanied by the sound of waves.

"I'm really glad I left Aegis."

Haze was the first to speak.

She walked past the scattered raider corpses and stared at the dark horizon over the sea.

"If I'd stayed in that suffocating organization... I would've spent my whole life just following orders and died without ever experiencing this kind of freedom."

Haze slowly turned her head to look at me.

There was warmth in her eyes.

"I think it's fortunate to be with you."

Haze slightly bowed at the waist and gave me a polite nod.

Captain.

When she first called me that, it felt so cringey.

Even now... it's still cringey.

But somehow, it feels good.

"Ah, seriously. Why is everyone trying to set the mood today? It's gross! Weird! My heart's melting!"

I spouted nonsense on purpose, but the tips of my ears were slightly red.

"I understand. Now please go inside and get some real sleep."

Haze smiled faintly and gently pushed my back.

"What about the watch? You gonna do it alone?"

"Look at the mess. I need to clean up the area anyway. I'll stand guard for the rest of the time, so go downstairs and enjoy the bed."

She really was the coolest big sister until the very end.

I shrugged without arguing further.

"Alright. Then I'll leave it to you. Contact me immediately if anything happens."

"Ah, and one more thing."

Hm? What now?

"Don't touch Yui. I'll really flip out on you."

"Ah... Yes ma'am. I wasn't planning on touching her or even thinking about it, though..."

No matter what I said, Haze just stared at me with that terrifying expression.

"No, never mind. Big sis. I won't lay a single finger on her."

After Haze's extremely terrifying warning, I opened the hatch and descended back into the underground bunker.

Wiiiiing—

After riding the elevator down to the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠first-floor lobby, I finally took a proper look around.

Earlier I'd been so hungry that I could only focus on eating, but now that I was paying attention, the facility's quality was seriously insane.

I walked down the main corridor, opening each tightly sealed door one by one.

"Whoa... this is fucking amazing."

Plush king-size beds, luxurious furniture, ridiculously huge bathrooms. Every time a door opened, I couldn't help but gasp in admiration.

Just a week ago I'd been lying on the dirty floor of an old shelter going "Wow, this is nice~~" but life really is unpredictable.

"Guess I'll sleep here tonight."

I picked a random room labeled "Private Quarters."

When I pressed the open button, the sensor responded and the door slid open smoothly.

But the air inside the room felt strangely warm.

White steam was drifting lightly through the living room from the bathroom. And there was a pleasant scent of body wash that pleasantly tickled my nose.

"Huh?"

My gaze stopped in the middle of the living room. A small figure was vigorously towel-drying her wet hair, having apparently just finished showering.

It was Yui, completely naked, humming a little tune to herself.

"......"

"......"

At the sound of the door opening, Yui turned her head.

In the middle of the living room, the stark-naked Yui and I, standing crookedly by the doorway, locked eyes in mid-air.

About three seconds of silence.

Yui's face began turning bright red at an alarming speed.

"W-what the hell!!!!!!!!!!!"

Yui's piercing scream echoed loudly through the quiet bunker hallway.