Chapter 38: The Moral Weapon

Everyone immediately turned around. The fire door thudded under the relentless pounding of the zombies outside. Several shriveled fingers clawed desperately through the gaps in the door. Mr. Toji's face turned stern as he scolded Kouta harshly, "Why are you screaming like that? Isn't the door blocked? Where's your composure as an adult?" Kouta's face went pale and flushed, but he didn't dare argue. After all, not everyone truly grasped the severity of this disaster. According to the news and official broadcasts, this outbreak was only temporary and would soon be brought under control. Order would eventually return. The manager was still the manager, and both Yuuma Iida and Kouta were still the lowest-level corporate drones. Otherwise, Yuuma wouldn't have risked his life earlier for a slim chance at promotion. "Kouta, go check if the plank blocking the door is secure." The pounding on the fire door made Mr. Toji's heart race. He couldn't shake the growing sense of unease. But Kouta kept shaking his head, nearly crying, "Manager, I... I can't do it. My legs turn to jelly the moment I see those monsters." "Useless!" Mr. Toji glared at him in frustration, then turned to Yuuma Iida. "Yuuma, you go. That's an order " "No need to check. If the zombies don't leave the door, it won't matter how sturdy the plank is. It won't hold for long." Sosuke Kitahara stepped into a nearby break room, opened the window, and glanced down. Turning back, he asked, "Do you have a rope? And something that makes a loud noise preferably something really loud." Mr. Toji's brows furrowed, visibly displeased by being interrupted by a teenager who didn't even bother to speak politely. Everyone else always spoke to him with respectful deference, yet this sixteen or seventeen-year-old brat showed him none. Still, as someone who'd held a management position for over a decade, Mr. Toji knew how to assess the situation. With zombies howling right outside the door, he wisely refrained from showing his anger and decided to see what Sosuke had planned. "Go to the storage room and find him a rope. Also, grab the alarm clock from Secretary Ito's desk," he instructed his two subordinates. "Yes, Manager!" The two quickly nodded and split up to search. Within minutes, they returned with a rope over six meters long and a cute, pink alarm clock. "Sosuke, what's your plan?" Kasumigaoka Utaha asked as she handed him the items, her expression filled with concern. Sosuke leaned against the window sill, caught her worried gaze, and chuckled. "You didn't really think I was going to climb down and use myself as live bait, did you? I'm not that selfless. Besides, we're so high up if this rope snaps halfway, I'd burn through all my lives in an instant." "Then what are you " "The window below is open, and the curtain's fluttering outside. If I'm not wrong, the floor beneath us is probably a large room." Sosuke tied the alarm clock securely to the rope, making sure the knot wouldn't slip, then set the alarm. "Utaha, keep an eye on the door. Let me know immediately if the zombies start to leave." "Okay!" Utaha gently nodded, already guessing Sosuke's plan. She didn't know if it would work, but anything was better than sitting around waiting to die. Sosuke lowered the rope, positioning the alarm clock level with the window below. Within a minute, the crisp ringing echoed upward, its sound bouncing up the stairwell clear proof that the window below was indeed open. About five minutes later, Utaha came running back, unable to contain her excitement. "Sosuke, it worked! I heard thuds and stumbling sounds in the stairwell the zombies are following the sound down." Sosuke wiped the sweat from his brow. The nerve-racking tension finally loosened a little. Though he had appeared to handle multiple dangerous situations with ease, only Sosuke knew how drained he was. If the zombies had broken in earlier, he wouldn't have been able to withstand another intense battle. He lowered the rope another floor, stretching the six-meter rope to its limit. When he finally saw a filthy zombie hand reaching out from the window below, trying to grab the alarm clock, he let go, allowing the still-ringing alarm clock to fall straight down. There was no need to worry after that. Dropping from over twenty stories, the noisy alarm clock would soon be shattered. Sosuke approached the fire door. A stubborn zombie was still wedging its face into the door gap, its blood-smeared teeth gnashing as it tried to squeeze through. What greeted it was the flash of a sharp blade. Hmm. That kid's weapon looks pretty decent. Mr. Toji's eyes gleamed as he quickly calculated. With the police nowhere in sight and all communications down, their only weapons were a few titanium golf clubs not nearly enough. If he could get his hands on that blade... Mr. Toji's heart pounded. He glanced at his group and swiftly assessed their combined strength. The boy had a weapon but was alone. Mr. Toji, on the other hand, had six men. Two of them Kouta and Yuuma Iida were his direct subordinates and would obey him unconditionally. The other two, while not his direct reports, also worked in the same company under him. They likely wouldn't side with strangers over their superior. Even if they didn't help, they wouldn't interfere. The last two one a hotel staff member, the other a college student visiting Tokyo were probably unconnected to anyone here. With superior numbers and a bit of manipulation, he was confident the boy would eventually have no choice but to hand over his weapon. The more he thought about it, the more excited he became. But as a long-time manager, he was adept at masking his emotions. Wearing a benevolent smile, Mr. Toji approached with a kind, almost fatherly tone. "Thank you, all of you. It must have taken a lot of effort and courage to make it up here." Sosuke didn't respond. He slowly sat down on the floor, too exhausted to bother with pleasantries. Closing his eyes, he focused on his breathing technique to recover as quickly as possible. Utaha stepped in, casually replying, "Oh, we're fine. It was a close call, but no big deal." Mr. Toji's smile faltered at their cold response. His gaze swept over the three women before focusing on the resting Sosuke Kitahara. "Well then, you've all seen those zombies firsthand. I don't need to explain what happens if you get bitten. Since you've joined us here, for everyone's safety and for everyone's peace of mind I hope you'll allow us to inspect you for bite marks." "You want to inspect our bodies?" Haruno Yukinoshita, who had remained silent until now, suddenly flashed a seductive smile. Her sister Yukino knew immediately this was Haruno's dangerous smile. She was truly angry now. "No, no, you misunderstand." Mr. Toji hurriedly waved his hands, stamping his foot in frustration. "I should have explained better. We only need to check the boy. The inspection for you three ladies can be done by the women on our side. Is that acceptable?" It was a reasonable request. They weren't the only ones on this floor, and they didn't expect the others to have bad intentions. Still, by habit, all three girls turned to Sosuke Kitahara, waiting for his decision. Sosuke slowly opened his eyes and calmly said, "I wasn't bitten. The blood on me is from the zombies." "That's not for you to decide." Mr. Toji smiled and shook his head. "Put yourself in our shoes. If you saw someone covered in blood, wouldn't you be worried too?" The other survivors flinched, fear making them hypersensitive. "Yeah, it's just a quick check. It's not like we're going to do anything to you." "Come on, kid. Don't be difficult. Think about everyone else here." "If you won't let us check, you can't stay here. Or tie yourself up, so you don't turn into a zombie and hurt us." It was as if they'd rehearsed it. One after another, they spoke up, their faces filled with varying degrees of suspicion. "You hear that? That's what everyone wants," Mr. Toji said, his tone now laced with threat. "I'll let the issue with the barricade slide. You're not a child anymore. You should learn to think about others. After all, upsetting everyone here won't do you any favors." He extended his hand. "Hand me your blade. I'll keep it safe for you. If you're clean, I'll give it back later." ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Oh, you like the story? Wow, who knew. Go ahead, drop a review and throw some power stones maybe I'll be motivated to keep going. The story's already ahead on Patron. Go there if you want to catch up faster! [email protected]/_theon Change @ to "a"