The Faculty Room reeked of stale coffee, sweat, and the metallic tang of fear—an aroma Su Chen had smelled in a hundred collapsing worlds.
He kicked the door open with the familiarity of someone who'd done it ten thousand times.
MP5 raised. Muzzle steady. Breathing even.
"Clear."
His voice was flat, business-like, the tone of a man used to being obeyed.
The room's occupants froze.
Shizuka Marikawa—gravity-defying curves and all—was half-hidden behind a desk. Her hands trembled around a makeshift shield of textbooks. Beside her crouched Kohta Hirano, clutching a nail gun like it was divine salvation.
"D-Don't shoot!" Kohta squeaked, dropping the nail gun.
Su Chen didn't even twitch. The boy wasn't a threat; he was background noise.
He walked straight to the nurse.
A transparent system window flickered before his eyes.
[Target: Shizuka Marikawa]
[Potential: A-Rank Support]
[Talent: Medical Intuition (S-Rank)]
[Copyable Skills: First Aid (Master), Pharmacy (Expert), Driving (Reckless)… ]
Good. An S-Rank support talent was gold in any apocalypse.
"You're the nurse," Su Chen said simply. He grabbed the duffel bag at her feet and tossed it to her. "Fill it. Bandages, painkillers, antibiotics, scalpels—everything you can carry."
Shizuka blinked, her pupils dilated with shock. "E-Eh? W-Who even are you?"
"Your lifeline. Move."
He didn't shout. He didn't need to. The weight behind his words pushed her into motion.
Saya Takagi stepped forward, adjusting her glasses with surgical precision. Her brain was already crunching probabilities—survival rates, infection speed, Su Chen's gear, everything.
"You carry military hardware," she said, eyes narrowing. "You move like special forces. But your uniform isn't JSDF. What exactly are you?"
Su Chen turned to look at her.
[Target: Saya Takagi]
[Talent: High-Speed Calculation (A-Rank)]
[Attribute: Genius Intellect]
A strategist. Cold logic wrapped in a tsundere shell.
"I'm the person keeping you alive," he said. "I need someone who can think five moves ahead. So I'm recruiting you."
Saya's lips parted slightly.
He didn't give her time to object.
His attention shifted to the last one in the corner—Saeko Busujima, serene expression stained with fresh zombie blood. Her bokken dripped red, a stark contrast to her calm poise.
[Target: Saeko Busujima]
[Talent: Sword Saint (S-Rank Potential)]
[Attribute: Battle Lust (Passive)]
A blade ready to be sharpened.
"And I need a vanguard," Su Chen told her. "Your wooden stick won't last long. Follow me, and I'll put real steel in your hands."
Saeko's smile curled slowly, beautifully, like a blossoming predator. "Real steel… that does sound tempting."
Before Su Chen could speak again, the door burst open.
"Su Chen!" Takashi Komuro stumbled in, Rei Miyamoto on his heels. Both were panting, faces pale with adrenaline. "We found a minibus! We're moving out—together!"
Rei pointed a finger at Su Chen. "What is wrong with you?! We're supposed to stick as a group!"
Su Chen checked his magazine.
Full.
He said nothing for a long second. The silence stretched, taut like a wire.
Then—
"The minibus holds twelve. Twelve corpses waiting to happen. You want to outrun zombies in that? Be my guest." He turned away. "I don't do suicide vehicles."
Takashi bristled. "So what, you're just taking the girls?!"
"Yes."
He didn't justify it.
He didn't explain.
He moved.
In one fluid step, he walked past Takashi, shoulder-checking him into the wall.
Thud.
Rei gasped. Kohta winced. Even Saeko's eyes flashed.
Su Chen looked down at the fallen boy.
"Survival isn't equality," he said coldly. "It's competence. And right now, you're dead weight."
He walked out of the room.
Saeko followed without hesitation, wiping her blade clean.
Saya hesitated—but only for a heartbeat. Logic over sentiment.
"You two… try not to die," she muttered at the boys, then sprinted after Su Chen.
Shizuka grabbed her stuffed medical bag and stumbled behind them. "H-Hold on! I'm coming!"
Kohta watched them vanish down the hall.
"…Did we just get downgraded to NPCs?" he whispered.
Takashi didn't answer.
---
Rooftop – Ten Minutes Later
The wind howled across the rooftop as smoke from burning cars curled upward. Tokonosu was collapsing, one street at a time.
Saya looked around, confused. "The minibus parking lot is down there. Why did we come up?"
"No helicopter," Su Chen answered.
Saeko raised a brow. "So you did lie."
"Yes."
He didn't even blink.
Shizuka's jaw dropped. "Then why bring us here?!"
"Because you need to hear something without distractions."
He stepped to the edge of the roof, looking over the ruined city.
"This world is Level 1. Slow zombies. Weak monsters. A tutorial."
The three stared.
He turned, expression sharpening.
"My world is Level 10. The planet has expanded a millionfold. Trees hunt people. Insects grow bigger than tanks. And everything—everything—wants you dead."
"You're insane," Saya muttered—but her voice shook.
"Probably." Su Chen extended his hand. "But I can take you there."
Shizuka frowned. "Wait, like… vacation?"
"No. Dimension travel."
Silence.
Saya opened her mouth to demolish him with science—but Su Chen cut her off.
"So were walking corpses."
He activated [Dimensional Travel].
Reality shivered.
A swirling rift of blue and black energy tore open the air like a wound.
Through it—they saw a massive warehouse.
A military truck coated in dried monster blood.
And, in the corner—
A giant green mantis corpse, legs curled, carapace shattered.
"This morning's warm-up," Su Chen said mildly. "Tier-1 beast. Barely worth the calories."
Saeko's pupils dilated. Her breathing subtly deepened. The battle-lust inside her purred.
Saya's brain short-circuited. "T-That violates every biological constraint—"
Shizuka gulped loudly. "It's… dead? You killed that?"
"Yes."
Then he offered his hand.
"You can stay here, waiting for rescue that won't come. Or follow me to a world where strength means survival."
Saeko stepped forward immediately.
"I'll be your sword."
Saya bit her lip hard. Her parents were probably dead. Takashi was unreliable. Su Chen… was terrifying, but efficient.
"If I get eaten, I will haunt you," she said, gripping his arm.
Shizuka stared at the vortex. "…Your world has beer, right?"
"A warehouse full."
"I'm in!"
[Dimensional Travel: Initiated]
[Passengers: 3/3]
"Hold on," Su Chen warned. "Gravity's heavier on the other side."
Flash.
The world vanished.
---
Earth – The Industrial Warehouse
THUD.
The three girls collapsed instantly.
"W-What the—my body—!" Saya gasped. "It feels like I weigh a hundred kilos!"
"Gravity variance," Su Chen said. "This world is 1.5x heavier. You'll adapt."
Jiang Rou, who'd been guarding the truck, nearly passed out when she saw them.
"Boss?! Who—what—WHERE did they come from?!"
"New recruits," Su Chen answered. "Saeko—combat. Saya—logistics. Shizuka—medic."
He didn't give them time to adjust.
The roof groaned.
Then burst open.
A monstrous hairy limb smashed through the skylight.
A mutated spider, the size of a car, descended on a thick cable of steel-hard webbing. Eyes glowing red. Fangs dripping venom.
[Target: Iron-Web Spider – Level 5]
Shizuka screamed.
Saya froze. "T-That violates the square-cube law—no biological system of that mass—"
Saeko tried to draw her katana, but the heavy gravity slowed her movements.
Su Chen didn't even look concerned.
"Watch."
His bones cracked, twisting, spiraling outward.
[Bone Manipulation]
His arm transformed into a bone lance.
He threw it.
A thunderous whoosh split the air.
The bone spear ripped through the spider's abdomen, pinning it like an insect specimen against the ceiling.
The spider shrieked—
—and died.
Su Chen dusted his hands off.
"That was a spider. Don't touch the web; it melts skin."
He turned to the stunned trio.
"Welcome to Earth."
Shizuka collapsed onto her butt.
Saya stared blankly at the remains. "T-That wasn't… that wasn't even a boss monster, was it?"
"No."
Saeko shivered—not from fear, but excitement.
This world…
This world was perfect.
"You're going to start training soon," Su Chen said. "But first—assignments."
He pointed at Saya.
"You're logistics. Reinforce the truck using whatever you can salvage here. Scrap metal, steel plating, wiring—anything. I want armor, I want reinforcement, and I want a blueprint by tonight."
Saya swallowed but nodded.
"Saeko."
He tossed her a vial filled with dark crimson liquid.
"What is this?" she asked.
"Diluted Tier-1 beast blood. Drink it. It'll help your body adapt to gravity and awaken your potential."
Saeko uncorked it and drank without hesitation.
Heat surged through her veins. She exhaled sharply, sweat beading on her forehead.
Shizuka stared. "Is that… safe?!"
"No."
Shizuka froze.
"But it works."
She whimpered.
Su Chen walked toward the truck.
"Work hard," he said without turning back. "And you might survive long enough to eat dinner."
Behind him, the three women exchanged glances.
Then looked at the dead spider.
Then looked at Su Chen's back.
The world had changed.
And so had they.
End of Chapter 11