CH 20

Chapter 20 – Fangless

(Kousuke’s PoV)

“Incredible… It’s really working!” Isao exclaimed.

Almost all refugees were at the school’s rooftop right now. We were watching the rescue operation that senpai came up with.

“It’s really… Amazing.” I said.

She’s truly amazing… She may be powerful and skillful, but that was not the really amazing thing we were witnessing right now… It was her courage. The courage to remain calm while facing such a gigantic zombie horde.

Of course, Rintarou and Asuka were also amazing to go out in that rescue mission though. It’s honestly still hard for me to comprehend that this incredible Rintarou is also the same energetic weirdo that everyone in class avoided… I wish I could be as reliable as he is.

Sure, I did want to help my family out as soon as I heard that they were in a crisis, but when Mr. Sasaki said those hateful words that were a telling me to give up on a roundabout manner… I was actually a bit relieved. I was afraid of going. I didn’t want to die, I wanted to live… Even if it meant abandoning my family.

… I’m really a coward.

Though at the same time, that might very well be the normal behavior actually. Risking one own life for someone else’s, even if it’s my own family… It’s not normal to be able to do that.

I’m remembering this past week of training with senpai. It was so hard to keep up with everyone else, and that was not just because of my sprained ankle, it was just… Tough. Even thinking about the sensation of killing a zombie already terrifies me, it sends a horrible shiver down my spine.

I’m just… Fangless. I simply can’t do the kind of thing that senpai does. To be able to just jump into those dangerous situations like she does is absolutely abnormal… And yet, I was saved by that very abnormality. I admire that abnormality of hers.

Suddenly, my hands were gently embraced by some small lovely hands… Rika was here, she held me and whispered, “Thank you for staying.”

Only now I realized how much I was trembling… If it wasn’t for the fact that everyone was around us, I’d probably start crying on her chest now.

Holding myself back from giving in to this urge, I just nodded at her words, and tried to smile a bit. It really was a relief that Rika was here with me.

“It’s working, everyone! They just got off the truck and are running here! Go meet them, Kousuke!” Isao suddenly shouted.

I silently thanked this childhood friend of mine for warning me about it when I wasn’t paying attention to the very cause of my current anxiety, then started running downstairs to the gate.

Once I got there, I saw Mr. Sasaki and a few other adults who were waiting for the good news, “Teacher! They’re coming! Unlock the gate!” I told him.

“Okay!” Mr. Sasaki was clearly relieved to hear that everything was going according to plan.

Before long, I could see the faces of my friends, Asuka and Rintarou, coming… And right behind them, the faces of my family.

There were also a few zombies behind them, but they were slow, so they weren’t really a threat. By the time they reached the school’s gates, my family would already be inside, and we’d have already locked everything up again.

“Dad!” I shouted as he got close enough to probably hear me. My voice was shaking right now, but that was fine, I didn’t care for that.

“Kousuke! It’s really you!” Dad shouted back.

Those people that I have been worrying so much for during this past week… They were so close now. Only a few more seconds and we’d be together again.

I started crying even before they got here… They’re really safe.

Mr. Sasaki finished opening the gate.

Rintarou, Asuka, dad, mom, sis… They were all here. Nobody was injured.

I sent a prayer to the heavens, thanking whoever was there for protecting them… This truly was a miracle. There weren’t many people who had the luck of having their whole family together in those troubling times.

Everyone rushed inside. Mr. Sasaki started closing the gate… And dad gave me the tightest hug he ever game in his whole life. “Are you hurt? Are you okay?” Dad asked me.

You know… That should be my line, dad.

I didn’t say that out loud though, I just enjoyed his hug for a while, and let the relief wash over me.

“I’m sorry to interrupt your reunion, but I need to ask something.” Mr. Sasaki suddenly said, “You were together with a person that seemed to be of the self-defense forces, right? Where is he?”

The joy of our reunion was cut off, and dad suddenly got into a gloomy mood, “Mr. Kobayakawa… Separated from us. He said he was going to help out the girl with the red jersey.” Dad explained.

That was senpai. The man from the self-defense forces gave up his chance of reaching a safe place to rescue senpai…

I wiped out my tears. It’s not over yet. The joyful reunion will only happen once senpai comes back to us.