Chapter 12: First Blood
The nearest zombie lunged.
I swung.
The metal pole connected with a sickening crack and sent the corpse crashing into one of the infirmary beds.
Unfortunately, knocking a zombie down and killing a zombie were two very different things.
The thing immediately started moving again.
"...Right."
I really hated zombies.
Glass covered the floor.
The shattered window continued spilling corpses into the nurse's office.
I counted almost instinctively.
One.
Two.
...
Eight.
Eight zombies.
Eight extremely bite-happy problems standing between us and getting out of this room alive.
"Goddamn."
That was more than I remembered.
Not by much.
But enough.
Beside me, the student tightened his grip around the improvised metal rod I'd given him earlier.
His entire body was shaking.
Good.
At least he was still standing.
The zombies advanced.
Slow.
Relentless.
Hungry.
The nearest corpse stumbled toward me with both arms outstretched.
I stepped forward.
Not backward.
Forward.
One lesson Officer Sakamoto had repeatedly hammered into my skull was simple:
Never give something dangerous the initiative if you can help it.
The pole crashed into the zombie's knee.
The joint folded sideways.
The corpse collapsed instantly.
Before it could rise again, I drove the screwdriver through its eye socket.
The body immediately stopped moving.
One down.
Seven to go.
A panicked yell erupted beside me.
I glanced over.
The student had managed to land a solid hit on a zombie's shoulder.
The zombie barely reacted.
"Head! GO FOR THE DAMN HEAD!" I shouted, frustration filling my voice.
"Oh!"
Thankfully, his next swing connected with the side of its skull.
The corpse staggered.
Not dead.
But definitely less enthusiastic.
Good enough.
The remaining zombies continued closing in.
Three immediately converged on me.
Apparently, I had become the most popular person in the room.
"Of course."
The first one reached me.
Its jaws snapped shut around my forearm.
For one horrifying second, my heart nearly stopped.
Then I felt...
Nothing.
The zombie continued chewing.
Its teeth ground uselessly against layers of paper and cardboard.
I stared at it.
The zombie stared back.
"...Best investment I've made all day."
The textbook armor held.
Using my trapped arm as leverage, I drove the screwdriver into its temple.
The corpse collapsed instantly.
Two down.
The other two arrived almost simultaneously.
One crashed into my shoulder.
The other grabbed my uniform.
I hit the floor hard.
The impact knocked the air from my lungs.
For a brief moment, all I could see were rotting teeth.
Way too many rotting teeth.
A jaw snapped inches from my face.
I shoved my armored forearm into its mouth.
The textbooks took another bite.
Meanwhile, the second zombie tried climbing on top of me.
This was bad.
Very bad.
Fortunately, I still had one free hand.
The screwdriver plunged upward.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
The zombie finally stopped moving.
The other followed shortly afterward.
I rolled away and scrambled back to my feet.
Blood covered my uniform.
Most of it wasn't mine.
Hopefully.
A confused yelp suddenly echoed from the opposite side of the room.
I turned.
One of the remaining zombies had somehow slipped past us.
And unfortunately, it had discovered Marikawa-sensei.
The nurse stood frozen behind the beds.
The zombie continued stumbling toward her.
Slowly.
Irritatingly slowly.
Yet somehow still fast enough.
"Sensei!"
She squeaked.
Which, unsurprisingly, made the zombie even more interested.
Great.
Apparently, screaming really was an aggro mechanic.
I immediately sprinted forward.
The corpse reached over the bed.
Its fingers brushed the sleeve of her uniform.
Then the metal pole slammed into its head.
The zombie crashed sideways.
Before it could recover, I stomped on its neck and buried the screwdriver through its skull.
Five down.
A loud crash echoed behind me.
Then a scream.
A very human scream.
I immediately turned.
Maybe the student had overcommitted.
Or maybe it was because I'd abandoned the position I was supposed to be guarding.
Either way, he had been overwhelmed.
His weapon had missed, allowing a zombie to slip inside his reach.
Its teeth sank into his shoulder.
A scream of agony tore through the room.
"No!"
The student kicked the corpse away.
But it was already too late.
The bite mark was there.
Clear as day.
For a brief moment, everything seemed to slow down.
The student stared at the wound.
Then at me.
Then back at the wound.
"...No."
Nobody said anything.
What was there to say?
The answer was written across his face.
The remaining zombies continued moving.
Life didn't care about personal tragedies.
I tightened my grip around the pole.
Then got back to work.
The next minute was messy.
Brutal.
Exhausting.
A swing.
A stab.
A shove.
Another stab.
One zombie got back up after I thought it was dead.
Another nearly bit my leg.
The student continued fighting too.
Probably because accepting reality was harder than swinging a metal rod.
Eventually, the last corpse hit the floor.
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Uncomfortable silence.
The student dropped his weapon.
His eyes remained fixed on the bite mark.
"...It's over."
Nobody answered.
Because nobody needed to.
Then the nurse's office door burst open.
BANG!
A girl rushed inside.
Long purple hair.
Wooden sword.
Sharp blue eyes.
For a moment, she froze.
Her gaze swept across the room.
The broken window.
The blood.
The bodies.
The dead zombies.
Then finally—
Me.
Our eyes met briefly.
Then she shifted her attention toward the student.
Toward the bite mark.
Toward the screwdriver still stained with blood.
Understanding flashed across her face almost immediately.
Of course it did.
This was Saeko Busujima.
One of the few genuinely competent people in this entire apocalypse.
"Marikawa-sensei."
The nurse immediately perked up.
"Busujima-san!"
Good.
At least they knew each other.
One less thing to explain.
Saeko quickly guided the nurse away from the shattered window before turning her attention back to the room.
More specifically—
The student.
The guy looked up.
His face had gone pale.
"I..."
His voice cracked.
"I don't want to become one of those things."
Silence.
Then his eyes turned toward me.
Not Saeko.
Me.
Maybe because I'd already shown that I was willing to do what needed to be done.
Or maybe because he knew everyone else would hesitate.
Probably both.
Either way, the meaning was clear.
I slowly walked over.
The screwdriver felt unusually heavy.
Funny.
Killing zombies was easy.
This wasn't.
The student laughed weakly.
A broken sound.
"Man..."
His gaze drifted toward the bite mark.
"What a bad day."
"...Yeah."
That was about all I could offer.
For several seconds, neither of us spoke.
Then he nodded.
A small motion.
Barely noticeable.
But enough.
I understood.
"...I'm sorry."
The student closed his eyes.
The screwdriver came down.
The room fell silent.
When it was over, I slowly stood.
Nobody spoke.
Not even Saeko.
After a moment, she simply looked toward the door.
"We should go."
I glanced toward the shattered window.
More zombies were already gathering outside.
"...Yeah."
Honestly?
That sounded like a pretty good idea.
End of Chapter 12
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