Kaito drove the three-wheeled cargo truck, while the other women sat in the back compartment.
This truck was probably used for grocery shopping.
After Kaito drove on the rural dirt road for a while, his stamina gradually recovered. When he finally got the truck onto the concrete road, the ride became much smoother, no longer as bumpy as before.
Although during the bumpy ride, he could see some scenery through the rearview mirror, it wasn't very comfortable no matter what.
"Oh? Kaito, look! There's an armored vehicle over there!"
"I see it, but I think this might be the final bit of preparation arranged by the system for us."
The three-wheeled cargo truck was one example, and the armored vehicle quietly parked by the roadside was likely another.
After driving near the armored vehicle, Kaito walked over to inspect it. He noticed two bodies lying outside the vehicle. They were in a ghastly, terrifying state, their entire bodies blackened and bloodied.
"They probably got sick on the way."
That was the only explanation. As for why they weren't wearing protective suits, don't ask. It was the system's arrangement.
Without these things, how would Kaito enter the city?
Would they just be sent to die, with no means of survival provided?
This armored vehicle was spacious enough. It was less like an armored vehicle and more like a slightly larger, mid-sized bus-style RV, but armored.
However, this vehicle had been modified. The body showed signs of being struck by blunt objects and had many scratches.
The keys were in the driver's seat, and from the driver's cabin, you could see inside the armored vehicle.
"It looks like either they were fleeing, or they were delivering supplies?"
Several cases of bottled water, instant noodles, compressed biscuits with long shelf lives, and other food items.
After Kaito and the others searched, they happened to find a protective suit for each person.
Coincidentally, there were also small-sized protective suits suitable for Mikoto, Nezuko, and Momo.
Come on...
If this wasn't provided by the system, who else could it be?
They decided to put them on first. Although it would be stuffy, we still need to take care of our bodies.
Short-term exposure might be okay, but over time, their health would deteriorate, leading to various diseases and sudden death.
Would they even survive 30 days like that?
They wouldn't even know if they could survive 10 days.
After everyone slowly put on the new protective suits, Kaito also found a map. Looking at the routes drawn on it, they were probably trying to flee to the city Kaito was heading towards.
This map happened to be a map of that city.
"Kaito, I've calculated the food. It's probably enough for us to last at most 5 days."
Akina finished counting the water and food and came over to inform him, also thoughtfully handing him a bottle of water to drink.
The others were sitting quietly in the compartment, considering whether to put on the hoods.
Wearing them was hot and stuffy, especially since they hadn't even entered the city yet.
But not wearing them meant risking radiation exposure...
These protective suits were the white type used in hazardous work areas. Although they were lightweight models, they were still thick and not very convenient for movement.
At least there were no oxygen tanks, which would have been even more troublesome. For now, they only had gas masks to use temporarily, which was probably sufficient.
"Thanks, Akina."
After drinking half the bottle of water, he temporarily placed it in the storage slot next to the driver's seat. After studying the map for a while, Kaito roughly determined the route.
The first thing after entering the city was to find a suitable place to live for a while.
If they were lucky, they might even find a private underground shelter.
After all, before the war broke out, wealthy people had already prepared shelters early on, especially upon hearing about the potential use of nuclear weapons.
Not only that, but officials in various countries were also trying to prevent it, as the war was at a point where it had to be fought.
Kaito didn't know what happened in between, but the fact that people had time to build shelters probably meant things were calm for a while? Then everyone ended up flipping the table?
"Hehehe, how about it? Want me to drive?"
Misuzu walked over, leaning close to Kaito to ask.
"That would be great. You drive, I'll sit in the passenger seat to navigate and observe the surroundings."
Since Misuzu offered to drive, Kaito naturally wouldn't refuse.
Given their current relationship, there was no need to be modest.
"Okay then!"
Misuzu nodded. Due to wearing the protective suit, she moved a bit clumsily as she got into the driver's seat.
After making some adjustments, she started the vehicle. There was still 60% fuel left, enough to drive for quite a while.
"You all take a rest for now! Don't put on your hoods or gas masks yet. Wait until the radiation detector in my hand shows that radiation levels are too high before putting them on."
Sitting in the passenger seat, Kaito turned his head and said to everyone in the compartment. Then he spread out the map for Misuzu to start driving.
There were no issues along the way.
It was very quiet. So quiet it was a bit suffocating.
Especially the gloomy sky, which added a tremendous sense of oppression.
Even though it was still morning.
"Look out!"
After driving for about 30 minutes, as they got closer to the city, Kaito noticed not only scattered vehicles on the road but also a large number of corpses.
Both human and animal remains were present.
Some corpses had clearly been gnawed on by animals.
Of course, these weren't the main concern.
When Kaito's sharp eyes noticed movement in the bushes by the roadside, he told Misuzu to prepare to stop or speed up.
He quickly grabbed the only shotgun placed in the driver's cabin.
This gun belonged to the original owner of the vehicle. A shotgun, gunpowder, and steel balls were probably the best weapons he could buy.
In terms of power, it was enough to kill an animal at close range, but it was very cumbersome to operate.
It was like going back to using a flintlock.
Load the gunpowder, insert the steel balls. Kaito opened the window and aimed at the area where the movement was by the roadside.
Bang—
A cow, a full 3 meters long, at least 1.5 meters tall, with disgusting pus-filled sores all over its blood-red body, appeared. The first thing it did was ram a car nearby, forcefully pushing it several meters.
As if to show off its power, after knocking the car away, it turned around arrogantly, facing Kaito's location...
"Heh, we haven't even entered the city, and we have to fight."
"Kaito! What should we do? Stop or just rush through? But if we rush, I'm afraid we won't be able to turn in time!"
"Stop. It knocked that car away earlier, probably deliberately trying to block us."
Letting out a long breath, Kaito chose to stop.
"Everyone, stay inside for now. Let me try dealing with this mutated cow!"