"Bang, bang, bang…"
On April 23rd, gunshots rang out at the temporary training ground.After ten consecutive shots, the range finally fell silent, followed by Haizaki's applause.
"Clap, clap, clap…"
Haizaki's face carried a smile as he clapped his hands.
"Yukinoshita-san, congratulations, you passed. You have talent in shooting…"
In less than seven days of handling firearms, with fewer than 150 practice shots, Yukino had hit eight targets out of ten at varying distances. This was an impressive achievement.
"Thank you…"
Her small head tilted slightly upward, her face showing a faint smile. As someone who often ranked first academically, she should have been used to praise. But at this moment, she felt the strongest joy she had ever known. The joy of being recognized.
Though her expression remained cool, the corners of her lips lifted, unable to hide her happiness. Haizaki, familiar with Yukino, could fully sense her emotions.
"I can probably trust you to guard my back now…"
It was a sign of trust, an acknowledgment of her strength.
In that instant, Yukino's lips curved upward, her smile blooming like a flower. "Leave it to me! I'll protect you."
This was probably the first time he had seen Yukino smile so brightly. Though compared to ordinary people it was faint, for a girl unaccustomed to expressing joy or showing much change in expression, this was proof of her genuine happiness.
That smile was etched into Haizaki's mind, an eternal image. He truly wanted to capture it in a photo. But such moments were rare. To see her smile like that again would be nearly impossible.
"What are you thinking?"
Yukino noticed Haizaki's dazed look, his eyes unfocused, and asked.
"Uh… sorry."
He couldn't bring himself to say, your smile is charming. That would only cause unnecessary awkwardness.
So Haizaki quickly changed the subject.
"Tomorrow, we'll face crystallization mutants…"
"You found them?"
"Mm. Yesterday I used a drone to scout Chiba University and discovered a number of crystallization mutants occupying the Countermeasures Division."
The Chiba Epidemic Countermeasures Division was set up at Chiba University. As a major institution, the university had complete facilities, enough to handle epidemic response.
"The source is at Chiba University?"
"Not certain, but the possibility is high. And the division likely still has the crystallization virus vaccine. We must investigate."
Vaccine. But even with a vaccine, humanity still perished. There were only two possibilities: the vaccine was fake, released by the government to stabilize society, or it was incomplete, unable to eliminate the virus effectively.
Either way, he had to confirm.
"What do you need me to do?"
Thinking of facing mutants directly, Yukino felt hesitation. But knowing it was inevitable, she clenched her teeth and resolved herself. Sooner or later, she had to face it—better to start early and adapt.
"Generally, nothing."
Though her shooting had improved greatly, enough to ease his burden, for an operation at Chiba University to find the vaccine and related data, she was still not suited.
Haizaki believed this mission should be his alone.
Yukino opened her mouth, wanting to speak, but she knew Haizaki's decision was carefully considered. If she insisted on going, she might only add to his burden.
Her greatest weakness was psychological endurance and adaptability. After the mutant attack two nights ago, even the sight of corpses and blood under dim light had made her severely uncomfortable. Facing crystallization mutants directly and pulling the trigger to kill them would be far worse.
"Don't overthink. One day you'll be stronger than me. You are… Yukinoshita Yukino."
"When did the name 'Yukinoshita Yukino' gain some special meaning? The 'her' you knew—was she stronger than me?"
Faced with his reassurance, Yukino countered with a question.
"I simply believe you'll grow stronger, able to adapt to this world."
"Thank you for your trust."
Yukino knew Haizaki hadn't given her a real answer. It was based on his familiarity with her personality and habits. He still confused her with "her."
But she couldn't say anything. Even if she insisted they weren't the same person, what would it matter? It would only make her seem unreasonable. She wasn't that kind of person.
…
April 25th, 11 a.m. The sun blazed overhead. Haizaki and Yukino arrived at the gates of Chiba University.
Entering the campus, they immediately heard hellish roars from all directions. The howls and cries of crystallization mutants.
At night, this was their paradise. But in daylight, they hid inside buildings, avoiding even the slightest sunlight. Because of this, Haizaki could avoid facing overwhelming numbers.
"Keep the walkie-talkie on. Unless I call, Yukinoshita-san, you must not enter."
Haizaki was fully armed—helmet, goggles, gas mask, stab-resistant vest, tactical gloves, combat boots—completely protected.
"I understand. I'll wait outside for your signal."
Yukino wore light police gear. With her limited stamina, equipping herself like Haizaki would only slow her down.
"Even if mutants won't come out, be careful. There may be wild beasts nearby."
Haizaki reminded her again.
Yukino responded with a faint smile to his concern.
"I will. Please come back quickly. I'm still waiting for your rabbit meat."
Yesterday, they had found a wild rabbit. Haizaki had shot it instantly, leaving Yukino no chance to stop him. She had felt a little sad—rabbits were so cute. But once dead, there was no choice. As long as Haizaki returned safely, she didn't mind skinning and gutting it herself. Though she had no experience.
"You'll eat it?"
Haizaki had planned to prepare it yesterday, but seeing her reluctance, he had postponed it.
"As long as you come back."
"I feel like you just set up a flag."
Haizaki waved his hand and walked toward the main building, leaving Yukino with his back.
Flag. Was it the kind of flag that appeared in novels?
In that instant, she was stunned, her face feeling slightly hot.
…
The moment Haizaki stepped into the Chiba University Faculty of Pharmacy building, the crystallization mutants wandering inside suddenly awoke.
Perhaps out of hatred for humans, or perhaps driven by instinct etched into their genes, the mutants snarled and lunged at Haizaki.
But Haizaki was prepared. He stepped back two paces, raised his gun, and fired in bursts.
"Bang, bang, bang…"
Using the advantage of sunlight outside the building—mutants at the entrance dared not step out—Haizaki began clearing the first floor.
The mutants occupying the entrance were eliminated. But others remained deeper inside, refusing to approach the doorway. Clearly, they retained some judgment.
This made eliminating them more troublesome and risky.
Three minutes later, the first floor was clear.
"It feels like I just committed a massacre."
Without looking closely at the corpses, his actions resembled shooting innocent people.
"May you find a new life after death."
They had not chosen to become monsters. If given the choice, who would want to?
Was it an unexpected crisis? Or the deliberate act of some force hostile to humanity? Haizaki didn't know.
But he vowed: if this catastrophe was man-made, he would drag those responsible out and make them pay tenfold, a hundredfold. The sins humanity suffered today would be repaid with their pain tomorrow.
"Bang…"
Reaching the second floor, a mutant suddenly leapt from the corner. Haizaki's pupils shrank. He swung his left fist, striking hard, then immediately fired a shot.
At the end of the corridor, several more mutants charged toward him.
"Bang, bang, bang…"
Headshots were the most efficient kills.
"No, not here either…"
Not knowing the exact location of the research center within the Faculty of Pharmacy, Haizaki had to search room by room.
"Clatter, clatter…"
A locked door caught his attention.
"Thud, thud…"
He kicked twice. The door opened slightly, but obstacles behind it blocked the way.
Pushing harder, he forced it open just enough to squeeze through. If he hadn't heard no mutant sounds inside, he wouldn't have dared enter.
Behind the door was a barricade of desks and chairs, meant to block mutants from entering. And inside…
He saw three emaciated crystallized statues, sitting against the wall, wearing tattered lab coats.
Lifelike crystallized figures, their final expressions preserved perfectly. Fear, anger, despair…
Haizaki could imagine the hopelessness of these researchers, who hadn't evacuated in time and hadn't been killed by mutants, waiting for rescue that never came. In the end, they met only black despair.
"Rest in peace."
Haizaki noticed a single desk in the corner, neatly stacked with paper documents.
He quickly approached and flipped through them. They were observation records of crystallization virus patients.
…
June 25.
In Chiba's sixth batch of 125 infected, 25 showed varying degrees of crystallization.
August 4.
In the sixth batch, three had crystallization covering more than two-thirds of their bodies. Their reason remained, but emotions were unstable—judged as normal fear reactions to impending death.
October 25.
Experimental crystallization virus vaccine trials began on volunteers. A total of 325 patients with over one-third crystallization received injections.
November 6.
Injected patients showed crystallized parts beginning to recover and shed. Virus activity greatly reduced.
November 18.
Seven volunteers died. 125 fully recovered. 197 were still recovering.
…
Reading further, Haizaki found no more notable records.
But if the vaccine had succeeded, why had humanity still become crystallized statues? Why were mutants roaming outside?
He searched the desk for more documents. Finally, he found the reason.
After the trials ended, as the virus spread worldwide, governments sought to calm citizens and stabilize society. With vaccines showing preliminary success, they mass-produced them and began nationwide inoculations. They hoped vaccines would defeat the virus.
At first, results were promising. Crystallization cases were suppressed. Eradicating the virus seemed near.
But in early December, problems appeared among the vaccinated. The first batch became violent, irrational, aggressive. This had never occurred during trials.
Biologists worldwide investigated. They found the virus inside vaccinated individuals had mutated again for unknown reasons. The virus had not been eliminated. Instead, influenced by unknown factors, it combined with the vaccine and mutated further.
After that… no more records.
Haizaki guessed the three researchers hadn't had time to record before crystallizing. The first vaccinated became crystallization mutants.
Was humanity in this world finished? Haizaki felt unreal.
"Below zero degrees Celsius, the virus's activity drops to its lowest…"
This was information from the documents. In December, much of Japan's temperature was below zero.
"We need to head north."
Even if the virus outbreak was stronger than ever, people in the north might still have a chance. Two years later, perhaps no one remained—but Haizaki believed they could have lasted longer.
Confirming that the virus's activity was lowest in cold, governments would surely have moved their core research and command centers to the far north for safety.
…