Riku stared at the zombies who are still reaching their hands out towards him desperately as if that's going to do anything. He kept staring at them as if mocking them that they'll never break through thick walls and through the door—
There was a snapping sound coming from the door.
He looked at the source where the door of the back entrance of the classroom is slowly starting to give up.
"I think I jinxed it," Riku mumbled.
He doesn't know how many minutes have passed. He couldn't tell due as he had lost his smartphone, and it was broken anyway. Still, it must have been nearly five minutes. Because it's taking forever for the system shop to activate.
And as if on cue, a notification popped up in his periphery.
[Armory System can now be accessed!]
His eyes lit up, the notification he had been waiting for. But there's no time to celebrate inwardly as he was still on borrowed time. There are still zombies outside the classroom who are trying to enter and if the system detected them lunging towards him, the shop would close automatically.
He checked his balance. 3,610.
He kept it in mind and began adding carts to the items he planned on buying.
10x magazines for MP5 for 1,500 SP.
4x magazines for Glock 17 for 480SP.
1x modular tactical vest for 300SP.
1x battle belt for 120SP
2x grenades for 500SP.
2x suppressor for 500SP
In total, he spent 3,210 SP.
Now with the confirmation of his order, the items that he bought were transferred to his inventory. Then, he tapped them one by one, making them appear on the floor before him.
He quickly donned the modular tactical vest, strapping it tightly around his torso. The adjustable shoulder buckles clicked into place with a satisfying snap, and the mesh padding settled firmly against his uniform shirt, giving him an odd sense of security. It was light yet snug, and most importantly—lined with rows of magazine pouches and utility loops.
"Finally," he muttered as he picked up the MP5 magazines—ten of them in total.
One by one, he loaded six into the vest's pouches—three on each side across the front, accessible by either hand. Each fit perfectly. The remaining four he slid carefully into his school bag, stuffing them between the hoodie and the textbooks he had decided to keep for cushioning.
Next came the Glock magazines. The battle belt he had purchased was already laid out beside the vest. Riku wrapped it around his waist and fastened the buckle tightly. It had a secure drop-leg pouch and two side holsters, ideal for pistol mags and grenades. He slotted two Glock mags into the left-side mag pouches, and the last two into a zippered compartment in his backpack for later.
His Glock 17 went into the belt holster snugly—much better than jamming it into his waistband like earlier.
Then came the two frag grenades.
Riku hesitated a moment, glancing at the door, which groaned faintly under the weight of the undead outside. The top corner of the frame had started to warp. He didn't have much time.
He clipped one grenade to the belt's right-side MOLLE loops, near his tomahawk's sheath, and tucked the second into the inner vest pocket where it would be protected but easy to grab if needed.
Lastly, the suppressors—one for the MP5, and one for the Glock. Riku grabbed the MP5, unscrewed the factory muzzle cap, and twisted the suppressor in place until it clicked with a snug fit. He repeated the same process with the Glock 17.
He took a glance of himself in the mirror and saw a reflection of himself. Black hair, fairly handsome features, lean but with a hint of athleticism in his build, a height of 5 foot 10 inches. And lastly, he looked like a mercenary in Hollywood movies.
Now that he is geared for battle, he faced the zombies, and a plan is forming in his mind.
Instead of facing them head on, he would draw them out of this floor. He glanced down to his grenade and a smirk formed at the corner of his lips.
He turned around and looked out of the window. The schoolyard was now teeming with zombies and there were no humans in sight.
And that was perfect as he wouldn't have to trouble himself with human casualties.
He lifted up his MP5 and bashed the stock part of it against the window, causing it to shatter.
The sound it made fueled the zombies behind him, and they were now aggressively trying to breach through the classroom. But Riku was unfazed as he grabbed the grenade.
Now this is the first time of him handling a real grenade and he has seen a lot of movies on how to use it, theoretically. However, the system may have updated something as it felt to him he had done this a hundred times.
He easily pulled the pin of the M67 and threw it as far as he could at the schoolyard.
It landed in one of the pockets of zombies and—Boom! It detonated, sending the zombies who were directly near it flying with their limbs scattering mid-air. The ones who were also near it but not directly, were thrown off to the ground from the blast with fragments embedding on their bodies. Still, they survived.
[SP & Exp gained: 250, 100]
Just like in the game, they worked best against zombies who took a direct hit, but to those who were at a distance, even with them getting hit by fragments, they were still alive and well.
If that were human, they would have been killed due to bleeding and major injuries, but the zombie virus kept them going. Limbs could be torn, organs exposed, yet if the brain was intact, they kept moving.
Still, the blast did its job—beautifully.
The explosion echoed across the campus like a thunderclap. Instantly, the horde outside the window began to stir. Dozens of heads snapped toward the sound, their low groans rising to sharp howls. The ones right outside the classroom, still clawing and slamming at the door, began to hesitate.
Riku turned and looked at them. One of the zombies that had been relentlessly battering it stopped and turned its head toward the sound of the explosion reverberating from the stairwell. Another followed. Then another.
"Come on… take the bait," Riku whispered under his breath.
A second later, one of them let out a shriek and started shambling toward the window. The rest followed like starving dogs catching a fresh scent. Their moaning receded, footsteps dragging away from the door.
It worked.
Riku let out a quiet breath of relief. But just as he turned his attention back to his gear, he heard a faint groan—closer than the rest.
One zombie still remained at the door, unconvinced.
The stubborn bastard.
Riku cursed under his breath and grabbed his second grenade. No time to waste.
He moved back toward the broken window. The courtyard was still crawling with undead, though they were now gathering near the crater left by the first explosion. Some limped over the bodies of others. A few were missing arms or legs. But they were all converging in that direction.
And yet… not all of them.
The distant ones—perhaps 30 or 40 meters away—still hadn't committed. They were curious, but not convinced. A single boom wasn't enough.
Riku's fingers tightened around the second M67 grenade.
"Alright," he muttered. "Let's make it loud."
He pulled the pin, counted to two, then lobbed it with an overhead arc, aiming for the far edge of the gathering crowd.
The grenade spun in the air like a fastball and landed with a dull thud in the grass just behind a small knot of wandering zombies.
BOOM!
Another fiery shockwave erupted—closer to the rest of the horde.
[SP & XP gained: 100, 40]
This one did more than just kill. It commanded attention.
Zombies turned like dominoes—some even falling over each other to get to the source. Riku saw at least four go down permanently, their upper torsos reduced to pulp. Dozens more began shambling toward the impact zone. Even the stubborn one at his door suddenly shrieked, whipped around, and sprinted toward the nearest window like it was chasing a scent trail.
With the hallway free of zombies, he could finally resume his mission.
"Let's get out of here."