Both Takashiro Kyoko and Saito Koinegawa knew perfectly well that "unexpected trouble" did not only mean threats from outside. It also referred to the possibility that any of the people left behind might try to steal one of the vehicles and flee.
At present, the people Kyoko could truly trust were still only a handful. Aside from the original six who had come with her, Saito Koinegawa also counted. He still had two family members staying back at the camp, after all. At his age, with Soyo and Chihaya Ai as the people he cared about most, he had no reason to abandon the comfortable life he had here and run off on his own.
Sitting in the passenger seat of the jeep, Saito patted his chest and said, full of confidence, "You don't need to worry, Miss Takashiro. My gun isn't just for decoration. If anyone dares to try something, I'll shoot them dead."
"I'm counting on you. The noise we made just now wasn't small. The infected still left in this area will probably come pouring out soon enough. Don't bother trying to save ammunition. And if you run into more than a handful of infected at once, use the armored vehicle's gun."
"If you really can't handle it, call me immediately." With Kyoko personally guaranteeing support, Saito naturally felt much more at ease.
The live map could not show targets inside buildings, but fortunately the roads were covered in snow, which made infected easy enough to spot.
Kyoko saw no sign of any large infected groups lingering outside.
That put her somewhat at ease, so she left the vehicles parked openly in the wide, exposed lot.
Once they reached their destination, Kyoko cut the in-vehicle comms, took her foot off the accelerator, turned to the back compartment, and called out, "Alright, folks. Out we go. Move out."
The people in the troop carrier climbed out one after another.
Kyoko led from the front. She was dressed in heavy gear, with her sleek, high-tech skintight protective layer beneath a thick ballistic vest and the matching helmet on top.
"Our first targets are those large supermarkets. I shouldn't need to repeat the priority order for supplies, right? Come on, Takagi Gen. Say it back to me."
Takagi Gen had been quick and efficient in his work over the past few days, and Kyoko had developed a fairly good impression of him, which was why she singled him out.
The man she had called on answered smoothly, "First priority is medical supplies and everyday necessities. Then electronic devices. After that, clothing, food—"
"Good memory. Grab your weapon and stay with me. We clear the infected first, then we clean up the battlefield."
Kyoko raised the rifle in her hands and strode ahead at the head of the group. The others followed close behind her in a fan-shaped formation.
A few sharp twangs cut through the air as arrows flew.
The infected shambling slowly toward them at the supermarket entrance were struck.
The good news was that not a single arrow missed. The bad news was that the shots were almost comically awful in where they landed. It was as if the arrows had gone out of their way to avoid every vital point.
The infected were still alive. Worse, they were enraged. Once they dropped into the snow, they began dragging themselves forward on all fours toward the group.
Kyoko saw the scene and did not get angry. Beginners missed. That was all. They just had to practice more.
She calmly raised her rifle and put rounds into the infected's legs, crippling them as they writhed forward.
Then, standing there with all the composure in the world, she gave her critique.
"Aim for the head or chest before you shoot. Don't panic and loose arrows the moment you've got them vaguely lined up. Raise your accuracy. Take a look at where those arrows landed."
"Understood."
The other two archers immediately admitted fault. They did not feel wronged by the reprimand. In truth, there was no need for them to be nervous. Kyoko was right there beside them with an assault rifle. There was no way she would let the infected touch them.
"No time to waste. Today isn't training. Don't make the same mistake again. Move." Having said that, Kyoko immediately issued her next orders. "Takagi Gen, finish those things off in melee and recover the arrows. The rest of you come inside with me. Watch every possible danger point, keep formation, and have your close-combat weapons ready."
With a hard kick, Kyoko blasted the already half-destroyed rolling shutter open and led the team inside.
Takagi Gen swung the long entrenching shovel in his hands in a brutal sideways arc. The sharp, heavy blade struck an infected across the head. After several more solid blows, he finally killed the remaining infected.
His hands were numb afterward.
The hollow iron shaft transmitted every impact straight into his arms. It was sturdy, yes, but the weight and vibration were its worst flaws.
Once he had finished, he hurried after the others.
Inside, the place looked exactly as they had expected: a complete mess. Many of the shelves had been knocked over, and several infected sprawled across the floor were now trying to rise. Their slow, stiff movements looked absurd.
Kyoko was a little surprised. She had assumed there would not be many infected left here—that most would have gone south.
Instead…
They had been wintering inside the store.
Still, that was not entirely bad news. A large number of infected probably meant the place had never been fully looted by survivors. Or perhaps the ones who had tried had simply ended up joining the infected already inside.
For now, none of that mattered. The priority was eliminating every last one of these pests.
The dark interior echoed with low, skin-crawling growls.
"Hsss… Wuuuuwuwuwu—!"
"…Mm."
Someone behind Kyoko was trembling. Even after seeing scenes like this many times, it was still frightening.
"Don't panic. You're armored from head to toe. They can't do a thing to you right away. Flashlights on. I'll suppress them with gunfire. You finish them off."
Even as she spoke, the rifle in her hands was already spitting fire. She had no intention of using grenades or Molotovs indoors. The collateral damage would have been far too great. Bullets would have to do.
Most of these infected seemed to have gone without outside nutrition for a long time, and their movements were sluggish. Under Kyoko's gunfire and the team's follow-up, they were quickly and easily put down.
"These infected really aren't much," Kyoko said. "Alright. Split up and clear by section. You lot come with me to the electronics section and the pharmacy. Takagi, take the rest and search for canned food, bagged food, daily necessities, and anything else useful. If you see good tools, grab them too."
"Understood, Captain."
"Stay sharp. Don't die to something stupid. I'm calling Saito to bring the vehicle around to the entrance."
Then they split into two teams.
One side began sweeping shelves, grabbing daily necessities by the armful.
The other quickly ran into trouble.
All the high-value devices that should have been in the display cases—smartphones, tablets, laptops—were gone.
Damn it. Had someone taken all of it before the end even came?
The luxury goods counters were almost empty too. Still, there were a few decent things left.
Those rings looked nice enough. She could give them to Huaxiu and Miranda to wear for fun.
To be continued…
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 150)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter190)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter105)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter225)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 195
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 170
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/5
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 225
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 210
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/30
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 115
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 130
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 105
I Can Copy Unique Skills 100
Summoning an Evil God, but the 70
Supernatural Multiverse 90
My Harem Is Indescribable 85
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 90
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 68
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 100
Still playing traditional Honk 69
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 75
What Should I Do After Switchi - Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 60
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 55
Transmigrated as Sukuna 71
Checking In in Demon Slayer 75
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 80
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 66
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 58
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 65
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 63
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 59
Why did they assign me to Uma 55
MYGO Beauties 56
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 45
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 49
Honkai's Otherworld? Wait—Who Are You People?! 36
Emiya Shirou, Determined to Slay Every Curse and Evil Spirit 35
The Uma Musume Who Became 30
I'm Definitely Not the King of 25
After Maxing Out Every Class 25
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