Chapter 36: Necessary trade-offs
On the second night of the zombie apocalypse, although the city lights were still bright, the creatures lingering under the lights had changed types.
At this time, more than thirty hours had passed since the first patient with the "murderous disease" in Bedlord City, or the first zombie appeared.
If humans had kept at least half of the city safe the night before, then with the collapse of the Gobetsu River isolation zone, the entire modern city had turned into a hell on earth where monsters and monsters were rampant tonight.
On every street and alley in the entire city, there are no more vehicles, but zombies can be seen everywhere, staggering around like they are drunk. Occasionally, short screams would pierce the night sky, and they would soon be lost in the darkness that even the dim street lights could not illuminate.
On the west bank of the Obetsu River, there is a street that is neither wide nor narrow near the high-end residential area where Doraemon and the others from Fujimi Gakuin have just left. On one side of the street are tall reinforced concrete apartment buildings, while on the other side are single-family houses with courtyards.
Although at this moment, most of the windows on both sides of the street could no longer see any light, there were a few houses that still showed the light of electric lights tenaciously. These candles in the wind that symbolize human industrial civilization cannot attract sightless zombies at all. But the remaining living people came over one after another like moths in the light - unfortunately, the fate of most of them seemed to be no different from moths flying into the fire.
In the courtyard of a residential house, a middle-aged office man wearing a suit and tie, but not carrying a briefcase, was sitting with his back against the wall with a pale face, covering the wound on his abdomen with his hands, holding back. He was in severe pain and kept silent, so as not to attract the zombies with keen hearing. His wound did not have the teeth marks of a dead body, but a narrow and deep hole, which was obviously poked by a sharp weapon.
Although the middle-aged man had exerted all his strength on the hand holding the wound and exhausted all his will to fight against death, more and more blood still seeped out slowly but surely. Next, his Consciousness is becoming more and more blurred...
"...Dad...Dad...Dad... wake up...Dad..."
Next to the middle-aged man who was about to die from excessive blood loss, the young girl was crying and calling for her father over and over again.
When she was young, she didn't know what was going on in the world. She only knew that in the elementary school that suddenly turned into a slaughterhouse yesterday afternoon, thanks to her father, who was an office worker, he arrived in time and saved her from the teachers who were biting each other. He was rescued among his classmates.
However, after hiding in hiding for a day, they still failed to escape home. Their father was stabbed while calling for help and fell in a pool of blood forever.
"...Asshole! Keep your voice down!"
Through a thin door, the owner of the room, another middle-aged office man, let out an angry roar.
However, maybe it was because he kept his voice so low that the crying girl turned a deaf ear to it.
——A few minutes ago, it was this house owner who stabbed to death the middle-aged man who came to ask for help in the courtyard with a homemade spear made from a mop and an iron tip of the fence.
However, this murderer also has his helplessness - zombies have almost no vision, but are very sensitive to sounds. If the middle-aged man hadn't kept knocking on the door and begging loudly, causing a huge noise, he would have never been able to take in the father and daughter, even though an extra mouth would consume an extra portion of water and food. , but he would not be so cruel as to stab someone in the belly with a spear.
Seeing the little girl outside paying no attention to him and continuing to scream and cry, the middle-aged owner turned back in distress and looked at his wife who was biting her lip in fear and his daughter who was holding on to his wife's apron. ...The fingers he held on the homemade spear were so hard that they turned white.
Turning around and opening the curtains slightly, he saw that along with the girl's cry, the nightmare-like swaying shadow had appeared within the scope of the streetlight in front of his house... There are more zombies gathering from a distance.
"... Bang Dang! Bang Dang..."
The zombie at the front was blocked by the iron gate of his yard and couldn't get in for a while. But one, two, three... more and more zombies began to gather in front of the iron gate. Although the father and daughter bolted the iron door before entering, the problem is that the power of zombies is much greater than that of living people. Listening to the bursts of banging sounds, the middle-aged house owner seemed to see the bolts that fixed the iron door hinges. It's shaking and falling off the wall...
But the little girl's voice was getting louder and shriller, attracting more and more zombies to come closer.
This can't go on like this! Otherwise our whole family will die!
The middle-aged house owner wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and glanced at his wife and daughter again - if it weren't for them, he, who was just an ordinary office worker yesterday, would never have been able to make up his mind to kill someone, let alone kill someone. A little girl almost the same age as my own daughter!
But now, in order to protect the safety of his family, this office worker has no choice but to be determined and doesn't care about so many things!
Anyway, I have already killed an adult, and now it seems that killing a small one is not much different, right?
He touched the doorknob with his trembling left hand, took a deep breath, turned, and opened the door... Then, he raised the sharp spear and thrust it out with all his strength!
——A short scream, blood splashing everywhere, the body falling... the cry of the young girl stopped suddenly.
Little Loli Alice, death confirmed!
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At the same time, on the balcony of the Takagi family's residence on the east bank of the Obette River, Wang Qiu frowned and saw a line of dazzling red letters from the "Book of Time Travel":
"...Ciri Alice, an important team character in the original work, died prematurely, and 1,000 reward points were deducted."
——Coupled with the bonus points obtained for arriving at Gao Cheng's house early, the current total points for this plot are 12,200 points.
So, he closed the book, sighed quietly, and silently mourned for half a minute for the death of this little loli that he had never met before.
In general, Wang Qiu is not a cold-blooded iron-faced man, nor is she a bloodthirsty murderer, but she is also not a saint with boundless love. Regarding whether to follow the direction of the original work, wait until dark at Minami Lixiang's house, and then rescue the last member of the protagonist team in the original work, the little loli Alice Shirley and Wang Qiu holding the puppy "Jiku" I thought about it carefully for a long time...but finally chose to give up.
First of all, for Doraemon's debt repayment plan, he must seize the time to reach a cooperation agreement with the Takagi family, use the manpower and connections of the "Concerned for the Country" to collect property, and realize the "Bed Master City Sanguang Plan" - Overtime Debt Collection The company only gave a grace period of seven days. If a considerable part of the money cannot be repaid before the deadline, Doraemon is really in danger of being sent to a scrap robot dismantling factory!
Secondly, when all the high school students are looking forward to rushing to the other side of the Obetsu River to join their families, it is impossible for him to force everyone to stay in Minami Rika's mansion for one night without any reason - unless Use violent coercion or verbal coaxing, but the consequences are really unimaginable.
Third, Wang Qiu is also not sure whether the little Loli Alice and her father will still run near Nan Lixiang's villa after the plot has been significantly changed... What if it turns out to be the case in the end? Wouldn't it be a huge loss if it was all in vain?
The most important thing is that Wang Qiu discovered based on the two days of practice that in the plot space of "School Apocalypse", it is really easy for them to increase their scores. There is no shortage of the father and daughter of Shirley and Alice. This points reward. On the contrary, the task of raising money to pay off Doraemon's debts is not an ordinary difficulty. After all the hard work, I have only managed to collect 200 million yen. Compared with the total debt of 21.8 billion, it is not even a drop in the bucket.
Therefore, the most urgent task now is to make money, not to earn points, so some side plots that waste time and energy may as well be abandoned.
As for the helpless little loli Alice... I can only say I'm sorry. Anyway, we have never met each other from beginning to end, and we have no obligation to save you. On the same night, countless cute and unlucky children were killed by zombies!
What's more, he has done enough good deeds this night... Wang Qiu put away the "Book of Time Travel", turned around and looked at the lounge inside the door, and immediately saw several high school students from Fujimi Academy, hugging each other. Looking at their parents and relatives, they were so excited that they cried, laughed, burst into tears, and burst into tears.
——After successfully arriving at the Takagi family's residence and obtaining the consent of Mr. Takagi Soichiro, the remaining five Fujimi Academy high school students who live locally also used Doraemon's [Fetching Tote] to carry their belongings. The parents were dragged over and the family was reunited...
In this apocalypse of death and destruction, the most joyful thing for everyone is probably this.
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...What's wrong with me?
...where is this again?
From the dark and bumpy small carriage, he was suddenly taken to a brightly lit spacious room. Miyamoto, who was curled up and dozing in the back seat of the police car, was on the alert (the rank of the Japanese police, his actual position is deputy director), Suddenly I woke up involuntarily.
But he was still blinded by the too bright lights, and his messy mind was in a mess.
—— Two consecutive days of sleepless "riot control" operations, watching familiar citizens and colleagues turn into man-eating monsters one by one, and the frustration of not being able to hold on to the police station in the end... all of this drained his energy. His body and physical strength were completely exhausted, and even his thoughts seemed to be stuck.
"...Dad!"
Before his thoughts could start to work, in the next moment, a lively and weak body rushed into Miyamoto Masaru's arms.
The warm body temperature and familiar breath rushed to his face all of a sudden, making Director Miyamoto stunned.
...Oh my God! Could this be...a dream?
Oh——even if it’s just a dream...
"...Daddy, daddy, daddy..."
First she shouted, and then the girl's voice turned into a cry.
"..." Miyamoto was looking at the girl in his arms with disbelief, as if even his soul had been captured by the miracle of this moment.
Yes, this is indeed his only biological daughter, Rei Miyamoto!
At that moment, his heart, which had been hanging for dozens of hours, finally settled. And the body that was originally as strong as King Kong seemed to have all its strength taken away, and almost collapsed on the spot.
——If someone hadn't pulled him in time, he might have fallen to the ground with his daughter in his arms.
"...Thank you...! Kiriko! Are you okay too?! This is so great!!" Looking at his wife Miyamoto Kiriko's slightly haggard but still energetic face, another wave of indescribable greatness Joy suddenly surged into Miyamoto Masaru's heart like a tsunami.
At this moment, Miyamoto felt as if he had become the happiest man in the world!
As a result, this usually unsmiling police officer finally could no longer restrain himself. He burst into tears all of a sudden. He no longer cared about dignity and dignity. He only knew how to open his hands and hug his wife and daughter tightly, as if again Holding the whole world that belongs to him.
Um? What the hell is going on with all this...what the heck! Let me be happy first and then talk about it!
A short distance away, Komuro Takashi hugged his elementary school teacher mother and burst into tears with excitement. There are also Jing Haoyong and the remaining two local girls, who are also holding their respective families, pouring out the uncontrollable excitement in their hearts with tears and cries...
——Because they have found their home again.
The so-called "home" is to be with your family... Otherwise, no matter how gorgeous a house is, it is just a house.
After a short period of loss, everyone will truly feel the preciousness of home and family...
On the other side, Wang Qiu opened the "Book of Time Travel" again with great interest, watching the lines of golden characters appear on the page one after another:
"...Let Miyamoto Rei and his father meet up in advance and get 1,000 reward points."
"...Let Miyamoto Rei and her mother meet up in advance and get 1,000 reward points."
"...Let Komuro Takashi and his mother meet up in advance and get 1,000 reward points."
……
——In the plot space of "School Apocalypse", it is really easy for a time traveler to increase his score, isn't it?
However, outside this happy place of family reunion, the whining and howling of hordes of zombies and the dying cries of escapees could be heard. ——The defense line of the Gobetsu River has collapsed, and thousands of zombies have crossed the bridge and poured into the eastern urban area... At this point, the entire Bedlord City has completely fallen!