"The food is ready."
Haru said in a calm tone as all eyes turned towards him from the seats where everyone was resting after the recent battle. He had prepared several simple, quick dishes—like omelets, fried chicken, and others—using what was available in the place.
The refrigerator was filled with various types of light, quick-to-prepare foods, along with a large quantity of onigiri.
And as soon as they heard Haru's words, the boys quickly rushed to help him carry the dishes. They had previously cleared the tables of the teachers' belongings, turning them into a real dining table now laden with food.
It was completely obvious just how hungry they were.
"Delicious!"
Takashi exclaimed without hesitation after putting the first bite into his mouth; the karaage piece was crispy on the outside, soft and juicy on the inside, as if prepared in a professional restaurant and not inside a school besieged by zombies.
Neither Kohta nor Kazu said anything, but their mouths full of food spoke more than any words; their expressions alone were enough.
"Amazing… I didn't expect boys to be able to cook like this."
Rei said with mild amazement, her eyes shining with clear admiration towards Haru.
She herself wasn't good at cooking, yet she was now tasting something that even surpassed her mother's cooking.
As for Shizuka, she showed no particular reaction; she continued eating her food with perfect calm.
She was a close friend of Aoi, Haru and Sora's mother, and often visited their home for dinner… so it wasn't surprising she was accustomed to Haru's cooking level for years.
Haru himself wasn't interested in conversation; he was stuffing his mouth with food as if racing against time.
Since the chaos began, he had done nothing but fight, think, or worry… he hadn't gotten a single minute of rest, which was why he seemed extremely hungry.
And it seemed his transformation into a Ghoul had made his appetite much larger, as he ate quantities far beyond the norm without showing any sign of fullness on his face.
And as they ate under the dim light of the lamps…
The atmosphere in the staff room became warm, quiet, and filled with a light sense of reassurance.
As if they were a real family sharing dinner on a normal day… not survivors in the midst of an apocalypse.
The scent of hot food spread through the third floor, warm and strong enough to fill the empty corridors.
This scent didn't spark any interest among the few remaining zombies—their senses no longer functioned properly—but it was a different story with humans.
Guuuu~
In a semi-abandoned classroom, a faint sound echoed… a gentle rumble coming from a stomach protesting in silence.
The room was almost completely empty; no students, no books, no sounds… just one person sitting alone on an old seat near the window.
They stared down at the chaos spread across the schoolyard with steady eyes and a calmness unlike that of the reassured… rather the calm of someone exhausted.
Yet the paleness of their face revealed the truth clearly:
They weren't accustomed to those terrifying scenes below, even if they tried to appear composed.
Their slightly widened eyes, the trembling fist over their knee… all were silent indicators that they were resisting fear with all the energy they had left.
But what they felt most at this moment—right before the fear—was hunger.
A tall and beautiful slim-figured girl with mid-back length dark hair, wearing a white headband, and scarlet red eyes.
The girl was beautiful to a degree that caught the eye from the first moment, one of the top ten girls in the academy in terms of appearance and attractiveness.
Kasumigaoka Utaha.
Her name was known throughout the school, not only because of her serene beauty, but due to her famous nickname: "The Sleeping Beauty."
She spent most of her classes either asleep or on the verge of sleep…
And yet, despite her apparent laziness, she always ranked at the top in exams, as if her mind worked at full efficiency even when she was half-unconscious, detached from reality.
"What a… delicious smell."
Utaha murmured softly as she lifted her head from the book she was using as a temporary pillow. The warm scent was slowly seeping through the cracks in the window, like invisible fingers inviting her to stand.
With quiet but hesitant steps, she walked towards the glass door separating the balcony from the classroom. She wasn't foolish like some students who rushed outside at the first moment of chaos… She had seen with her own eyes from her seat everything that happened at the main gate, and seen how most of the "brave" ones who tried to escape ended up.
Being a novelist, she always had some theoretical knowledge about what to do in such scenarios…
"Stay in a high place, block the entrances, and wait."
That's exactly what she did.
She chose the balcony because it was different from the first and second-year classrooms; third-year classrooms had balconies with doors that could be tightly closed.
And when the chaos began, Utaha closed the door behind herself, pulled up a chair, and sat in silence thinking calmly—or rather, pretending to be calm—trying to formulate a logical survival plan.
But now…
That scent…
It was warm, heavy, hot, provocatively delicious.
The scent of freshly cooked food.
And she, unfortunately, had stayed up until dawn finishing her new manuscript, so she hadn't eaten breakfast, skipped lunch because she slept through the third, fourth, and fifth periods…
And now?
Her stomach was on the verge of declaring rebellion.
Guuuu~
A soft grumbling sound rose from her stomach. Utaha slowly closed her eyes, trying to ignore the embarrassment… But hunger was stronger than all her pride.
"…I can't ignore this."
She whispered, placing a hand on her stomach and looking towards the locked door.
The beautiful scent was mercilessly assaulting her senses, pushing her step by step towards its source.
She was so hungry… and perhaps for the first time today, Utaha felt that leaving her hideout wasn't a completely stupid choice.
The motivation wasn't just the scent of food tempting her wretched stomach…
There was another reason, deeper and more realistic.
The mere fact that someone was able to cook calmly at this time, amidst the chaos that had swallowed the school, meant one thing:
That person was strong… strong enough to survive the hell that had consumed the entire school.
And from her place on the balcony, Utaha could easily deduce that anyone who could remain this calm couldn't be just an ordinary, panicked student.
But perhaps… someone she could rely on.
And she couldn't deny the obvious truth:
She was alone… without a weapon, without fitness, without experience… and frankly, without any intention of fighting a battle.
Surviving alone was impossible.
So she wasn't just searching for food, but for safety… an ally… protection.
Someone who might be able to pull her out of this nightmare and guide her through the chaos.
And as much as she loved her cold, haughty persona in front of others, she was now being honest with herself:
If she didn't find someone to rely on now… she wouldn't survive.
And that's why, in addition to the deadly hunger, the scent of food finally pushed her to make her decision—
To leave her hiding place… and follow that scent carrying a glimmer of hope.
...
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