POV Hisashi Igo
Hisashi watched… he just watched as Saeko Busujima killed zombies with ease… without even touching them with her new sword, which she had obtained from the Takagi estate.
If his strength had become the Infernal Chains and tougher, iron fists capable of leaving small dents in metal, Saeko-san's strength was the ability to send out aerial slashes.
At least, that's how it seemed to him, because to kill most of the zombies heading their way, it was enough for her to simply swing her sword horizontally.
The vehicle they were sitting in was somewhat similar to their Humvee, in the sense that it was capable of driving on any surface, but otherwise… it was just an eight-wheeled, completely open machine whose engine roared like a wild animal, vaguely resembling a golf cart.
They were traveling in a convoy. Their vehicle was at the very end since everyone sitting near him possessed superpowers, except for one or two of Souichiro-san's former men. In front of them was a bus, fueled by the Takagi family mechanic and packed to the brim with civilians. Surprisingly, all the civilians fit into the bus even though there were definitely more than fifty of them. Right next to the bus, two motorcycles rode on either side, each with a driver and a passenger holding a firearm. In front of the bus was a truck already filled with Takagi's men; the tarp had been removed, and several of them were shooting zombies while the rest held suspiciously familiar bats. A fuel tanker, which had provided the gas for the bus, drove ahead of that truck. The other two vehicles—a Jeep and a sedan—were at the very front of this damn long convoy. In the Jeep, second in line, rode the entire Takagi family and Isao's relatives. In the sedan leading the way were Souichiro's former men and Kota with his upgraded guns. The rest of the combat-capable people they had arrived with at the Takagi estate were scattered across the vehicles: a few in the bus, a few in the truck, and a few more in the fuel tanker.
He sighed, resting his head on his hand. Watching Saeko-san effortlessly kill zombies by swinging her sword and sending air-slices at the living dead, he tried his best not to look at her thighs or other parts, shuddering at the thought of what Isao would do to him if he let his gaze wander. Grimacing, he looked the other way and saw Takuzo sitting next to him, staring at her in shock. Meanwhile, Oegi, sitting behind him, was smiling proudly, making Hisashi wince again and shift his gaze once more. This time he saw Takashi, who sat biting his lip and looking down, and Suzaku-san, a bald, middle-aged man who was also staring at Saeko-san with a stunned expression. Driving the vehicle was another of Souichiro's former men, Baku, and next to him was his friend Maki, who held a military-model radio—one of the few special units the Takagis had for emergencies. One was in the Jeep with Saya's mother, and another was in the sedan at the front. Both men in the front were ignoring what was happening in the back, quietly talking to each other.
And damn it, they were lucky that the EMP bomb someone dropped on them didn't fry all the wiring in the cars; by some miracle, they stayed mobile… otherwise, they would have been toast.
On the whole, everyone was doing well. The civilians were safe, the fuel—which was currently one of the most valuable things—was protected, and they were easily killing the large numbers of zombies drawn to them by the sound of the engines. The crow flying in the sky was proof that Isao would know immediately if anything happened to them.
Everything was fine, except for the fact that he… he had lost Rei.
He had always known she could never truly be his. She was too strong-willed, yet very emotional, and unlike other girls, she wasn't at all stupid or defenseless. In fact, she was stronger than him, and that was exactly what attracted him; he knew she could handle things he couldn't. He also knew that his being weaker than her was the reason she would never be with him.
In the end, Rei always looked at either Takashi in a romantic sense or Isao in a platonic sense… until recently. It seemed that the awakening of her powers showed her that she preferred Isao over Takashi, and certainly over him.
And she was right. Unlike Takashi, Isao was much more responsible; he accepted his mistakes even when they were pointed out by people he didn't like. He wasn't a slightly dim-witted slacker like Takashi, and he was emotionally mature—at least much more so than Takashi.
And compared to himself? Isao won on every front. He was more attractive, stronger, more confident, smarter. He could protect you with ease even when the situation was absolute hell. If he had to kill someone for your safety… he would do it without a second thought.
Isao was just better, and it squeezed Hisashi's heart. Why was he so incredible? How did he become so much better than everyone else? Where did he even get these powers?
If he were a worse person, or if he didn't strive to be better than his yesterday-self every day, he would have envied Isao—just as he had in middle school, watching him effortlessly take on a crowd of guys and win. Но he knew that envy was a poison that destroyed you, not the object of your envy.
But that didn't make the breakup with Rei any less painful. Even knowing that Rei would never truly be his didn't dull the ache. He just felt bitter. He knew resentment was a foolish feeling, but he couldn't help his emotions.
Maybe… just maybe, if Rei hadn't awakened her powers, she would have stayed ordinary, and then she might have stayed with him.
Biting his lip until it hurt, he looked away, trying to distract himself from such stupid thoughts, and noticed Takuzo's gaze.
"Are you alright, Senpai?" Takuzo asked with concern. "You've been quite restless for the last few minutes." Tilting his head with slightly furrowed brows, Takuzo watched him.
"Y-yeah, everything's fine, I just still haven't recovered from…"
"From the fact that we have superpowers too? Yeah…" Takuzo gasped, looking at his hands, then gave a satisfied grunt and rested them on his head. "It's just something else, honestly. Incredible! I can create walls using anything!"
"Create walls from anything?" Suzaku, the man sitting next to Takashi, leaned forward, ceasing his stunned staring at Saeko-san to focus on Takuzo. "Can you make them anywhere?" Everyone listened in—the two in the front, Takashi, Oegi, and even Saeko-san, who cast a glance their way and turned her head to hear better.
"Hmm…" Takuzo pondered, propping up his head, then punched his open palm. "Yes, I can."
"That power…"
"Is damn useful!" The man at the wheel, Baku, interrupted with a lively voice.
"Yeah, with that, we can easily barricade all the open paths from the street into the Mall, and then do something else useful. For example, on the island, we can just surround the settlement with walls for extra security." Takashi nodded, causing everyone else to nod as well.
"I only have one question…" The man sitting next to Takashi spoke in a low, conspiratorial voice. "Who exactly is this Isao of yours? First, he has a hell of a cool aura, and his body language is quite pleasant most of the time. Second, where did he get all these powers?" Without giving Takashi a chance to say a word, the man asked his third question. "Third, was he the one who gave you your powers?"
"Well, let me answer the first question." Takashi spoke up, making everyone lean in. Baku and Maki pressed their backs against their seats, trying to hear. "Isao Tsumugi is a third-year high school student. In almost two months, he'll be nineteen…"
"How old?!" Suzaku looked shocked, mouth agape. "You're telling me that… that big guy is eighteen?! Why, he's taller than Souichiro-sama, not to mention the width of his shoulders, his overall weight, and everything else!"
"Um… yeah, but wasn't that obvious?" At Takuzo's question, everyone looked at Suzaku, making him smile awkwardly and scratch his bald head.
"W-well… still… I can't believe I was humiliated by someone half my age…" He muttered the last part quietly, but everyone heard it and collectively, without words, decided not to pursue the topic.
"Alright, let me answer the second question," Oegi spoke up, drawing everyone's attention, as no one—not even Takashi—knew exactly what kind of power Isao had. "I noticed that… Isao-sama becomes stronger, more experienced, or generally better by achieving something… I don't know exactly how his power works in detail… but after every time he saves people, he gets stronger." Oegi tilted his head up slightly while the others processed his words.
"Wait, what did you say?!" Maki looked back; unlike his friend, his hair was cut very short, almost a crew cut. "You're saying this guy gets stronger the more people he saves, or the better his actions are?"
"Yes." Oegi said it without flinching, showing complete confidence. "I remember him saying on the bus when we were going to the hospital to save more people that he could control metal and that he had a familiar. But after he saved the people in the hospital and they were near the bus?" His gaze turned deep inward, and his body trembled slightly as if in ecstasy. "H-he was able to throw Ice Lightnings! Incredibly powerful, and that… that defies several laws of nature at once! For example, the Joule-Lenz Law! Electrical energy is converted into heat in a conductor! Or… or even the Law of Conservation of Energy! Lightning is a discharge that releases a huge amount of thermal energy, and to freeze something, you have to remove all the heat! That's just impossible! Now you can understand how incredible Isao-sama is! And I believe that the more people recognize him, the more power he will receive. And since he is a good person, he will try to save as many people as possible…" Oegi bit his lip, and it was clear he wanted to say more about Isao but held back. Sighing, he wiped his face with his hands. The expressions of most people watching him had turned slightly awkward in the last few seconds of his speech. "Forgive me. These last few days… you know what's been happening. I'm quite exhausted by all of this, and now all these different superpowers." His face returned to its previous blank expression, and the look of pure joy and adoration vanished as if blown away by the wind.
The speed of the transition was… staggering.
"Heh-heh…" Suzaku-san laughed nervously, stroking his bald head. "I think I can understand you, kid. After all, who the hell is ready for the world to change beyond recognition in just a few days?"
"I agree with that. In just one day, the world turned into hell, and we are the people trapped in it…" Takuzo spoke with his head down, but then lifted it back up. "But we are alive. And as long as we are alive, we should all fight to survive and overcome this trial." His optimistic mood was… pleasant.
For the last few days, Hisashi could only think about the bad stuff and couldn't focus on anything good, but Takuzo reminded him of one thing.
The thing Souichiro-san had said a while ago.
Fight.
As long as they are alive, they should all fight for their lives, for their happiness, for their future, and for their everything! And they shouldn't pity themselves while doing it; everything else must take a backseat now.
Including his moping.
Rei is an incredible girl, but… he couldn't suffer over her forever. Fixating on one person never leads to anything good.
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, then opened them, trying to look at the world with new eyes and sensations. Yes, he wouldn't mope.
Because Hisashi Igo no longer wants to be a cowardly boy. He has to stop being one.
"So, what about the powers then?" Suzaku-san asked casually, but with equal interest, making Hisashi and the others look his way.
"That…" Takashi sighed. "Yes, it was Isao who awakened our powers, and to be honest, we don't know what determines which powers people get." He leaned back, looking at the sky. "It's completely random, but we know one thing for sure: you can get one Trait and one Ability."
Honestly, Hisashi thought it was foolish to reveal all this to these people. After all, they hadn't joined the group in the best of ways. But… Takashi hadn't shared the most vital information, and it would be easy to figure out the pattern from Takuzo's words or anyone else's anyway. None of them were going to keep it a secret that they had one Trait and one Ability, and eventually, they would have found out.
But even so, it would take time to trust these people. At the same time, they had to stay on guard, because the chance that Souichiro Takagi was playing the long game was not zero.
They had to be as alert as possible.