"First, we need to set up the tents. It's going to get dark soon, and we should make the most of the little daylight left," Yuta said as he looked at Usagi, waiting for her response. He needed to know if this floor was suitable to spend the night.
"This place is good. We're on a middle floor, so it won't cause us many problems," Usagi replied, nodding without much thought. She decided they would use this floor for the night.
She had thought it might be better to find a hotel with rooms, but quickly dismissed the idea before mentioning it to Yuta. If there were other people around, she believed it wouldn't be wise to go where most would naturally seek comfort.
Since night was approaching, Usagi quickly set down her heavy backpack on the floor with some effort. When she looked toward Yuta to see if he needed help, she noticed he had already started setting up his tent.
He looks like the kind of person who can handle anything… Usagi thought before beginning to set up her own tent.
At the very least, I'm sure I'll find answers soon. No matter what it takes, I'll find out what happened to Tokyo…
Usagi found it difficult to talk naturally with Yuta for one simple reason—she had stopped speaking to people long ago. Since the unfortunate event involving her father and the media, she had secluded herself at home.
There came a point in her life when she thought about dying, but in a sudden moment of clarity, she decided to leave the house.
If Yuta weren't the way he was, it would have been much harder for Usagi to interact with him.
Yuta didn't seem like a cheerful person, nor did he show uncontrolled emotions when they woke up in this desolate place.
Although she didn't want to admit it, it comforted her that Yuta was there—and that he didn't seem like an abnormal man. Even though he was quiet and mostly serious, he was considerate enough to be someone trustworthy in a place where rules and laws no longer existed.
Usagi didn't know why, but she felt that Yuta was more excited about discovering what this place was and how it came to be than about finding out what happened to the rest of the people.
Though Usagi was kind, she would rather act alone than with others. But as hours passed, she realized that Yuta didn't seem to care much about who he was with, which led her to internally accept being by his side for now.
On the other hand, Yuta had noticed that Usagi seemed completely detached from the usual implications between men and women, something he was genuinely grateful for. He couldn't stand overly feminine women, so after studying Usagi's behavior a little, he decided to offer to act alongside her.
His decision might have seemed somewhat unexpected given his usual demeanor, but considering all the factors—even though he could operate alone—Yuta didn't mind working with Usagi as long as she could keep up with him.
In this situation, she followed his lead and quickly understood what the priorities were without wasting time. Even when they encountered the man in the black suit, she didn't overreact and understood that he was only protecting their safety.
Yuta knew that if she had been an ordinary girl, she might have cried, screamed, or tried to cling to a strong shoulder using her feminine charm. But Usagi was different. Yuta had no doubt she could handle herself—she had set up her own tent silently without needing help.
That was why he didn't mind teaching her a few things. To his surprise, Yuta didn't feel any emptiness around this girl.
After some time, both finished setting up their tents without any issues. The floor was mostly clear, making it a suitable place for now.
"Looks like everything's ready. We should eat something before doing anything else," Yuta said as he took a sip of water.
"What do you want to eat? Mostly instant noodles and canned soup. I brought some food that'll expire soon, but it should be fine for now," Usagi said as she moved toward her backpack and began making suggestions.
"Well, let's eat what'll spoil the fastest. Tomorrow we'll go through another store and stock up on more food. In this situation, it's better to have a good supply of water and food than too little."
Since Yuta expected to stay in this place for a while, he had long been considering the issue of food. His mind was already alert, thinking of ways to solve that concern.
Usagi nodded at his words. Just like Yuta said, she too had considered the problem of food. Although she knew how to hunt, there was no indication that animals existed here. Even if they did, they were in Tokyo—there shouldn't be any animals in the city.
Looking around, she quickly took out what was needed to heat the food and then pulled out a jar labeled "packaged fire." This kind of fuel was quick and instant, which was why they had stocked up on several for heating meals.
After pulling out the food, Yuta helped Usagi and began setting up a survival mess kit designed to heat meals. The small metal pot didn't take much space and was mostly used for camping or survival activities.
Yuta skillfully handled the mess kit and began heating the food while Usagi took out other side items she had found at the store. Once the food was ready to serve, Yuta took the first bowl, served Usagi, and then filled his own.
"I used to do this kind of thing for my teammates during training operations that lasted for months without returning to base. During that time, we learned a bit of everything," Yuta said without looking up. Even without conversation topics, he felt at ease beside Usagi and wasn't bothered at all by the silence.
Usagi looked at Yuta, then took her bowl and said, "My father used to take me mountain climbing. I learned a lot, and everything I know now is thanks to him. I prefer climbing mountains over hanging out with a group of friends."
Yuta didn't look up but understood her perfectly. Everyone, or rather society itself, affected people in one way or another—it was inevitable. In this life, if you aren't strong and resilient against life's hardships, the waves will consume you, and you'll never be able to lift your head to breathe again.
"I can't deny that I don't really care even if everyone has disappeared, but that's just my point of view—something that only happens inside my mind," Yuta said with a faint smile, his words sincere.
This was one of the reasons he had no friends, or why people tended to stay away from him even before he could get to know them. His words were often not socially accepted in close social circles.
But Usagi didn't care about that. She had worked hard since she was young to fit into every friend group but ended up being hurt by everyone. If her father hadn't shown her the world of climbing, she might have fallen into a bottomless pit of bitterness, depression, and self-hatred.
As she ate her meal, Yuta lifted his gaze and said, "I don't usually hide what I think, so I really hope you're honest. If at any point you feel you can't stay near me, say it sincerely, and we'll go our separate ways."
Hearing this, Usagi smiled and replied, "What matters most to me is finding out what happened. Right now, I can't think about anything else."
When Yuta heard this, he smiled to himself. Some of the words she said were truly sincere, but things like friendship or mutual hate were topics he never expected to hear from anyone else.
In general situations, Yuta could always tell when someone couldn't stand being around him—when they felt uncomfortable, hated, despised, or detested him in their thoughts. Before that even happened, Yuta would never give anyone the chance to walk away; by then, they wouldn't even see his shadow.
Right now, he was just being somewhat honest—studying what Usagi said and trying to understand what she thought of him through a few sincere words, something no one else could hear in this place.
What would you do if your friends, parents, and everyone you knew disappeared—and a person you just met told you they didn't care that all of them were gone?
A normal reaction in that situation would be an emotional outburst, which would tell Yuta a lot about the sensitive issues society suffered from. But Usagi was truly different. She didn't care at all about his words and instead focused her thoughts on the greater issue at hand.
Yuta stood up, took a black hooded sweatshirt, and put it on. Then he took the gun the man in the black suit had left behind and holstered it at his waist while carrying the rifle in his hand.
In this situation, it wasn't practical to carry too many weapons. Lugging around both a shotgun and a rifle was inconvenient not just because of the weight, but also because of mobility. With the rifle's telescopic sight, they could observe what was happening below the buildings without straining their eyes.
After Yuta cleaned the mess kit with a bit of water, he looked at Usagi and said, "We should make use of the little light we have left to observe the city from above. Bring the shotgun so you can get used to handling it. Later, I'll teach you the basic rules on how to use it."
Usagi turned her gaze to the shotgun she had left in its case. She hesitated for a moment before taking it and following Yuta toward the rooftop. She didn't really think it was convenient to carry both weapons, but what stood out to her was that Yuta hadn't kept all the weapons for himself—it showed he cared that she was armed, too.
This proved that Yuta truly intended to cooperate with her, which slightly increased the trust Usagi had in him.
Yuta, on his end, was thinking about the meal they had just eaten. It didn't taste great, but at least it filled his stomach. He wasn't picky about food, and for now, it was fine. Now, back to the important matter—if there was no electricity in this place, finding the location of the "game" would be a real challenge.
Still, he thought that if a place suddenly had light, someone had to be behind it. That would support his illogical theory that this world was being controlled by people—administrators who had brought them here.
Even so, part of Yuta told himself he might be overthinking. What kind of power would such an organization need to recreate an entire city exactly as it was before? Not only were there abandoned cars on the streets, devoid of all human activity, but also uneaten food left in restaurants, credit cards still inserted in payment terminals.
How powerful could the people who brought them here possibly be, if that were truly the case?
Yuta decided to keep his mind as open as possible and hold on to all illogical reasoning, no matter how absurd it seemed—after all, nothing logical could explain this strange situation.
Before he realized it, he had reached the rooftop door. Fortunately, it was unlocked, so Usagi and he were able to go through without much trouble.
"From up here, we'll get a better view of Tokyo. We need to climb that small ledge," Usagi said as she quickened her pace toward the edge of the building.
Yuta didn't think twice. He set the rifle down beside him, leaned forward slightly, and signaled for Usagi to climb up. When she saw his gesture, she nodded and placed her right foot on the ledge to climb more steadily.
"Look at the roads. Focus on the streets and see if there are any people. If we're right, there should be others out there—either searching for food, answers, or information like us."
Yuta reminded Usagi to pay attention to those details and look for clues. But after several minutes, she didn't find anything useful, which made her frown.
It was daytime, so under normal circumstances, people would be active. But this wasn't a normal situation, and following the illogical pattern, most people should be inside buildings.
What were they doing if not outside? Resting, sleeping, eating, or waiting… waiting for what?
"The games…" Yuta murmured as understanding slowly dawned on him.
"The games?" Usagi turned to him, seeing that he seemed to have figured something out.
"Yes. If there's no one outside even though it's daytime, they must all be waiting for something—and the only thing that comes to mind are the games."
Yuta extended his hand and helped Usagi down from the ledge as he sank into deep thought. If he was right, the only thing left to do was wait for nightfall. Meanwhile, he would explain to Usagi how they would act if his theory turned out to be correct.
"Usagi, listen carefully—this is the plan…"