The First Loss
The following day, Ryo woke up to a back massage from Shizuka. The nurse said she would help him relax, because she didn't like to see him tense. Ryo appreciated Shizuka a lot. Leaving Miku and Saeko aside, she was probably the one with the blindest faith in him. She had been there silently supporting him and making small advances every now and then.
Then again, every single one of his girls had a pecularity he liked about them. Saeko's serious yet exotic behaviour. Kitsu's harsh love, that always stood there to support him. Miku's obedience and devotion that translated to absolute, almost insane, love. Yuriko's teasing and seductive nature. Saya's intelligence, that always came up with solutions to his problems. And Rei, whom he could act like a normal teen with, which was always refreshing.
Even the two girls that weren't dating him, at least yet, had something that made the stand out to him. Rika, who was almost like a drinking buddy that tried to tease him all the time. And Shouko, who liked to cook different meals for them and would always talk to him and ask how he was. He didn't think about Kururu in such a way, and he probably would never do.
'They are all such good girls' Ryo thought as he smiled contentedly. He then departed back to the Estate. After all, he didn't want to waste too much time on getting back.
In spite of not having found what they had gone to get in the city, Ryo felt accomplished. After all, they had found two people who could, more likely than not, secure a good amount of food for them. The only problem he could think of was something rather simple.
'Where the fuck can we raise animals and work the land?' he thought as he drove the bus away.
*
Around mid-day, the gang had arrived back at the Estate. They were received warmly by a sight they had never before expected to see Kouta Hirano, the fatty, had lost a ton of weight over a week. Ryo had seen him getting taller since his training had begun, but this time the change was really noticeable. The reason why it happened? Kouta had changed his clothes from the baggy ones to something more fitting to his new weight and height.
He clearly wasn't fit, but now he looked like someone with just a little bit of fat. Pretty much an average teenager. It surprised Ryo, but then again, what could he expect. The guy trained harder than everyone in the settlement, even himself.
"Yo, Tadashi-san, Kiriko-san" Ryo said as he entered the Estate with with the girls. The Miyamotos greeted him and the girls introduced Kururu, Yugo and Aki to the couple. She was as stoic as the previous day, but at least she seemed to talk more with people.
Once they were inside the mansion, Shouko got to cooking , Rika made maintenance on their firearms, RH originals included, Shizuka sat by Ryo's side and made him lay on her breasts as a pillow, Yuriko and Saya went to ask the Yamada duo how logistics were, Hiratsuka smoked a cig while dozing off, Saeko polished the Murata-Tou, Rei was asking question to Rika about the guns and Miku had gone to show the place to the newcomers.
Their time was spent leisurely, resting after the events that had taken place before.
*
"So, what are we doing next, Ryo?" Hiratsuka asked as she got closer to Ryo, who was currently looking at the stuff on his garage and thinking about possible things he could do. "Don't really know... we have to go back for that generator though..."
"Hashimoto-san! Hashimoto-san!" they heard a voice yell while approaching them, desperately calling for Ryo.
"What happened?!" Ryo asked, a sense of urgency coming over him when he saw the fear in the man's face. It was one of the trainees they had been training. "It's the gate... we're overrun!"
Ryo immediately dashed towards the gate, wondering how so many zombies gathered there without him noticing. After all, they would've seen them, right? Reaching the wall, he jumped onto the platform Tadashi was standing in. The only way he could decribe the scene in front of his eyes was, ironically, apocalyptic.
The biggest horde Ryo had seen since Taiei Mall, probably numbering in the thousand zombies. The thing was that, it was impossible for that horde to be there. He focused his eyes as best as he could and used <Pressence Sensing>, but he found no humans besides those in the settlement.
But he did find a small presence, right below the zombies. That was when he focused his eyes to the utmost, getting close to the sight of an eagle. There, right below all the zombies and inside a tunnel where the zombies were contantly pouring out of, he caught sight of something that worried him to no end. It was a pair of shiny, green eyes. They looked sickly, almost radioactive. The worst part? They were staring right back at him.
For the first time since evolving, Ryo felt like he was staring at his equal.
"Kiriko-san, call everyone who knows how to wield a gun!" Ryo ordered as he jumped down from the platform. "Tadashi-san, gather everyone who can't fight"
Ryo ran as fast as he could towards the mansion. Once inside, he grabbed the RH-15 and two handguns, strapping one holster on each leg.
"Girls! We have a huge emergency!" Ryo yelled, calling them all over. He immediately went and grabbed Shouko from her room and pulled her to the rest. He wanted to question why Miku and Kururu arrived together and why Kururu was looking at him weirdly, but decided to ignore it. "There a horde of at least a thousand zombies out there and they keep coming out of a tunnel! And I think there is something more, like a mutated zombie"
"A mutated zombie?!" Rika asked, distressed at the thought. Ryo looked at her with a deadpan stare. "If we could evolve, why couldn't the zombies, Rika?"
The thought scared them, but they had no time to think. They had to think of how they would deal with the situation. Ryo's brain was working faster than it ever had. As soon as they reached the main gate, they saw the group of survivors with Kouta in the lead, all waiting for an order. The first thing that Ryo said was simple and to the point.
"I can't protect all of you from the horde"
Some sighed, other's smiled bitterly and other's just sobbed. They understood that people were bound to die.
"But I can try to get you all out of here alive" Ryo said as he looked at Kouta with a bit of sadness in his eyes. "Kouta, I need you to lead them. You know I have other people to take care of"
Kouta had furrowed brows, teary eyes and lips pressed tightly together. He understood that some of the people he had come to appreciate would never see the light of day again after this, but he had to man up. He was saddened by the fact that he would have to leave his friends and teachers, but he accepted reality for what it was. Some day, so longas they survived, they would meet again.
"Yes, sir!" the ex-fatty answered with a military salute. Behind him, the other trainees followed his example. Ryo smiled wryly, before passing a vial to Kouta. "Drink this when you are somewhere safe"
Kouta wanted to ask what it was, but he already had an idea. After all, Ryo and the girls had become so increadibly strong that he could tell the liquid had something to do.
"Take care of everyone" Ryo said before turning to the other trainees. "I won't tell you to die for someone else, but try to keep them safe"
"Hashimoto-san, what will you and the others do!" someone asked in the crowd of people that had gathered. Ryo's entire demeanor changed, his steps became heavier and the air he exhaled became colder. "We will open a path"
*
"AAAAH!" someone screamed as he was caught by the zombies. One of the trainees had decided to stay behind and distract the zombies by shooting at them, making as much noise as possible. He was the first one to die.
Soon after him, Ryo could feel how some people either strayed or stayed behind. The screams were also a good indicator. They sounded desperate, scared, but at the same time relieved. Happy that their sacrifice allowed the rest of the group to survive a bit longer. But it didn't matter how many zombies they killed, more kept walking out of the tunnel.
The real problem came when he saw Yugo and Aki stray from the group. He couldn't allow those two to die, since they were necessary to have a source of fresh food in the future.
"Saeko, protect those three!" Ryo yelled while pointing towards Shouko, Saya and Kururu. They all had weapons, but were barely using them, since shooting was pretty much a sure death in such a situation. "Miku, over here"
As soon as Miku arrived, Ryo didn't give her much of a choice in what he was about to do. Grabbing her by the waist, he lifted her in the air and, putting one hand as support for her feet, threw her towards the Dairy Science couple. It was like the stone put of the Highland games. The girl showed a surprising acrobatic capability when she landed perfectly on a zombies head.
"Sorry Miku! It was the only solution I could come up with!" Ryo apologized as he dodged an undead and killed ten undead in the same movement. Not very far from him was Zeke, who had been staying as a guard dog in the settlement, also going through the undead with his claws.
Ryo had forbidden the dog from using his mouth to attack anyone, since he didn't want an accidental infected.
"Zeke, go with Miku and guide them to the bus!" Ryo ordered the mutated dog, who barked in acknowledgement before rushing towards his Master's female.
As all of this happened, Ryo looked around him. The Estate was no longer safe, at least fifteen people he could feel had died, and they were now overrun with zombies. Even if they could kill two hundred each, he wasn't sure if it would be enough.
"As soon as Miku gets here with those two, we run for the bus!" Ryo ordered as he got closer to the one who caused all of this disaster. He was approaching the place where the combies came out from.
In Ryo's mind, it already was a loss. Their first time loosing ever since they left the school. And he needed to kill the one responsible to at least feel okay with himself.