Just like him, the girl in front of him was also observing him.
She was surprised because was this the owner of the diary?
His figure doesn't look like a high school boy, he looks like a soldier. And yes, he was very handsome.
They both looked at each other for a few seconds.
The girl decided to pretend to be an ordinary high school girl and say her sincere thanks.
But before she did—
"You're Ai Hayasaka, right?" Shiryu called his name.
Hayasaka froze and she widened her eyes, "Sir, how do you know who I am? By the way, thank you for helping me. I've actually been cooped up in that room since yesterday."
"If you hadn't come immediately, I probably would have continued to be trapped there until I..."
She made a pitiful expression.
Of course, it was just acting.
Shiryu knew this and looked at Hayasaka flatly before taking out his diary.
[I finally met someone who is still alive in this school! (Not yet infected with the Rage virus).]
Hayasaka: "....."
Looking at the copy of Shiryu's diary floating in front of her, she was now completely sure about the identity of the person who had helped her.
It was Shiryu!
Still, you wrote a diary in this situation?
[Guess who it is? It's no ordinary girl, she is Ai Hayasaka! If Kaguya is the main heroine, she is another heroine of the same series as her.]
[At school, she always adopts the persona of a fashionable, popular, and slightly flirtatious school girl (often called Gyaru or Gal style).]
[But at home or when she's just with her employer/young lady, she will show her original persona of being very professional and efficient as the personal maid of Kaguya Shinomiya.]
"...!" Hayasaka was dumbfounded.
Her identity and pretense were instantly exposed by Shiryu.
How was that possible?
Was it because of the so-called knowledge of the original work?
How cunning.
It meant that when she acted as an ordinary weak girl in front of him, he must have felt amused.
She was a little embarrassed though she didn't show it on her face which had now become expressionless.
[When I found her, she was locked up by an Alpha inside the women's locker room. I don't know if she was lucky or pitiful.]
[Instead of trying to kill her, the Alpha just tried to torture her by locking her up and probably waiting for her to starve to death.]
[Luckily I killed Alpha and the other zombies around the room where she was locked up. But after that, Hayasaka used her gyaru persona to thank me.]
[Do you need to do that in this situation?]
[Girl, you take your work too seriously.]
While the other heroines got the latest news from him and had various reactions.
Shiryu closed his diary and glanced back at the girl in front of him, "Oh? You took off your mask? Actually, I quite like your gyaru mode, Hayasaka."
"There's no point in pretending in front of people who know a lot about me, Shiryu-kun. But... I'm really grateful that you helped me. I will definitely repay your kindness in the future."
Hayasaka meant what she said.
She was indebted to the man in front of her.
If not for him, she would have died of starvation or had that big zombie (Alpha) barge in and kill her.
The reason she hid in the girls' locker room was also actually because she realized that she couldn't defeat an Alpha.
Some zombies were not a problem for people who had received combat training since childhood like her. But the big zombie was different, perhaps only people like Shiryu could kill it easily.
And damn it, Hayasaka didn't know why after Alpha killed her classmates, he chased after her but didn't kill her even though he could.
Maybe what Shiryu said was right.
Alpha was just playing around with her.
"I will remember your words. For now... Show me the way to the student council office."
"You should know I originally came to Shuichiin Academy just to save your young lady."
Shiryu was in no hurry to woo the girl in front of him. He also knew unlike Nene, Hayasaka was not a naive and innocent girl.
Making her indebted to him was not enough.
In other words, the same trick would be difficult to use on her.
Hearing Kaguya mentioned, Hayasaka finally remembered and did not deny that she also had a copy of Shiryu's diary. "I know, I'll show you the way."
She said that with a professional-looking demeanor, but her stomach suddenly churned.
"....." Shiryu.
Hayasaka blushed without changing her expression.
She hadn't eaten since yesterday!
How could she not be starving?
"I brought some bread from my house, you can eat it on the way."
Shiryu took out several packets of bread and even mineral water from his inventory.
From the corner of Hayasaka's eye, food and water suddenly appeared out of thin air and she hurriedly caught them.
Was this a superpower?
It was very convenient and made her a little envious.
"Thank you Shiryu-kun."
Of course, she thanked him again and without hesitation ate one of the buns in her arms.
"You're welcome, I like helping pretty girls like you."
Shiryu casually teased her. With a smile on his handsome face, many women would be mesmerized by him.
Hayasaka blinked her eyes, her mouth filled with bread. But without her realizing it, her liking for Shiryu increased by several points.
[You're skillful, host.]
In what way, System-chan?
[Wooing girls without them realizing it. ]
Haha, I did it by accident.
That's a lie, Shiryu thought.
He had it all planned out!
As a popular novelist who has created many works of various genres including romance.
He didn't want to call himself a master of emotions, but knew what the ABC trick in love was!
[ABC trick in love? What does it stand for, host?]
"I don't know, I've only heard it from somewhere."
System-chan was silent.
Her host was a... unique person.
On the way to the student council office, Shiryu and Hayasaka encountered students and teachers infected with the Rage virus.
However, they easily defeated them.
With the knife Shiryu gave her, Hayasaka even showed off her fighting skills.
Like an assassin, she skillfully slashed each zombie right in the neck without changing her expression.
Before this, she must have had some experience in killing. Or rather, it was inevitable.
As Kaguya's maid and personal bodyguard since childhood, she often had to deal with people who had evil intentions towards her employer.
In the past, there had even been people who wanted to kidnap Kaguya because she was the daughter of the Shinomiya Group. Hayasaka defeated them and if not killing them with her own hands, she would just order the other bodyguards in the Shinomiya family to drown those people into Tokyo Bay.
Shiryu whistled when he saw Hayasaka's figure killing the zombies.
Her figure was not too exaggerated like the girls in Highschool of the Dead, but it was not too small and her breasts seemed to be larger than the original work.
The training she received since childhood didn't help either, it made her body athletic and toned.
She was like a pixiv R18+ version of herself.
People who are cultured enough should understand what I mean.
"Hayasaka, you're so sexy!"
"Do you have to say it out loud!?"
A slight blush appeared on Hayasaka's white cheeks, and he couldn't help raising her voice either.
That attracted the attention of the zombies in the next hallway and several classrooms.
They had no choice but to continue the massacre in the hallway leading to the student council office.
A few moments later.
*Bang!*
The student council office door opened, Shiryu had just kicked it.
The people inside were naturally shocked and even screamed, they thought the zombies had broken in.
"Kyaaa!! Die! We're all going to die!"
Still, such a shout came from Ishigami.
For a moment, everyone glanced at him wordlessly.
"Ahem! Please forget that."
Ishigami pretended to cough and blushed.
Chika looked at him with disdain.
"Hayasaka, you finally came!"
Ignoring the comedy on the other side, Kaguya approached her personal maid, Hayasaka. Of course, she saw Shiryu but was still unsure about his identity.
Was it really him?
"Kaguya-sama, I'm sorry. It took me so long to pick you up."
Hayasaka lowered her head slightly, she was really sorry. After all, putting aside the other identities that had not been revealed, and she was not sure if Shiryu knew either.
She cared deeply for Kaguya's safety and regarded her as her sister in her heart.
"It's fine, I knew of your predicament before coming here."
"And this man..."
Kaguya wanted to know who the man was that came with Hayasaka.
Shiryu introduced himself, "I'm Sou Shiryu, although I look like this, I'm the same age as you guys."
He walked up to Kaguya and extended one of his hands to her.
Then, smiled at her. "You must be Kaguya Shinomiya, I came here especially for you."
"You are Shiryu-san? Thank you for coming to save me."
Kaguya had a good impression of Shiryu, so she did not hesitate to shake hands with him.
She did not notice Shirogane's uncomfortable expression behind her.
Only Shiryu noticed that, and he 'unintentionally' slightly squeezed Kaguya's hand.
Her hand was so small and soft, she might break it if he was not careful with his strength.
He ignored Hayasaka's flat gaze that seemed to be asking: Until when are you going to keep holding Kaguya's hand?
"Uwaaahh! Shiryu-kun, I'm so glad you came! Do you have any food? I'm so hungry!"
Chika didn't read the atmosphere and pretended to cry. She immediately became familiar with Shiryu even though it was their first time meeting.
Kaguya glared at her.
This cancer of the earth...
Had the Fujiwara family not taught her enough lessons about modesty?
However, Chika was also a pretty girl and had the biggest chest in the room. Shiryu thought she was cute before taking out more food and drinks from his inventory.
"This is all I have for now. You can all consume it."
Not just Chika, Kaguya and the others were shocked by the scene they saw.
They wondered how Shiryu did it?
Shiryu simply replied that it was one of his superpowers.
"Superpower!? Is that kind of thing also finally present in this world!?" Ishigami exclaimed and looked excited.
He thought there was a possibility that he awakened his own super ability later.
Shiryu did not bother to stop his misunderstanding.
Chika unhesitatingly devoured the melon bread and drank a bottle of water.
She was busy eating.
Kaguya sighed and gave Shiryu an apologetic smile. Until he released her hand, she did not realize he was taking advantage of her a little.
"Um... Can I ask you a question?" Shirogane could no longer resist asking.
He had also eaten the bread and water from Shiryu, and thanked him.
Shiryu nodded at him, "Sure, what do you want to ask?"
"My name is Miyuki Shirogane, what is your relationship with Shinomiya? I mean, you said you specifically came here to save her."
All the zombies in the hallway leading to the student council office were dead.
Their situation was practically relaxed, so Shirogane thought to satisfy his curiosity.
Or rather, he was jealous of how Kaguya was being so friendly to Shiryu.
Of course, he wouldn't tell her his true thoughts.
He didn't want to be a loser!
Kaguya glanced at the boy she liked and wondered if he was jealous? She was happy and worried that he had misunderstood.
"My relationship with Kaguya? Well..." Shiryu glanced at the protagonist and heroine back and forth. From their respective reactions, he had a guess as to how far the relationship between them had progressed.
The corners of his lips lifted higher.
He even deliberately called Kaguya by her first name like he did Hayasaka.
Kaguya did not mind that.
But that was the problem! Shirogane could not help but worry. Not only that, Shiryu's extremely handsome and muscular appearance like a soldier intimidated him.
He felt inferior.
"We're just friends." Shiryu said.
"Friends?" Shirogane was relieved, but also doubted what he heard.
How could a friend come all the way here and risk his life to save Kaguya?
The meaning was clear.
The relationship between the two was unusual!
Especially when Kaguya hurriedly helped Shiryu to answer, "President, it's complicated (I can't talk about Shiryu-san's diary to you even if I want to). But what Shiryu-san said is true, the two of us are just friends."
She lied just like Shiryu did.
Because how could she explain the relationship between them?
She herself was confused.
The president would understand and wouldn't misunderstand, right?
"I-I understand." Shirogane smiled wryly, like a protagonist who was in the process of accepting...
Shiryu wanted to laugh, but refrained.
Anyone in Shirogane's position would have felt uncomfortable. After all, the girl he liked seemed to have an ambiguous relationship with another man.
Gosh, how is this?
He seems to have misunderstood the protagonist.
[You obviously did it on purpose, host.]
System-chan, you think I'm the type of person who would do that?
[Yes.]
Hearing this, Shiryu didn't say anything.
He ignored his system.
After those people recharged their energy. He told them to follow him away from that place.
None of them refused.
They wanted to go home or go to a safe place. But Shiryu doused them with cold water, "I don't know about Kaguya's house, but each of yours must be swarmed by zombies right now. It would be troublesome to escort each of you."
"No way..." While running in the hallway, Ishigami was desperate.
As for Kaguya's house? With her background, there would surely be many bodyguards or perhaps policemen reinforcing security.
Even so, who knew how long they would last when the number of zombies in the city was increasing.
Hearing this, Kaguya and the others were confused.
"So Shiryu-kun, where are you taking us? Your home?" Hayasaka asked.
She knew about the security at Shiryu's house and with Shiryu's presence, she herself felt safe.
Shiryu smiled slightly, "It depends on your choice. But don't worry, it just so happens that my group and I will be going to a shelter that someone set up. Before you choose, I will take you all there."
It was not without reason that he easily agreed to Saya's request to take her home.
The sanctuary built by her father would be a good place to get rid of the protagonist and the other boys in a reasonable manner.
Oh, and it wouldn't make his image look bad in the eyes of girls.
System-chan: "....."
Her host's thoughts were quite frightening.
From the very beginning, he planned what he would do to the protagonist.
"Alright, we'll come with you to the place you're referring to. But before that, can you help me find my younger sister, Shiryu? Please!"
Shiryu stopped running and made everyone do the same. He glanced at the protagonist and put one of his hands on his shoulder. "Your sister? It's bad, I'll definitely help you find her, Shirogane."
Shirogane did not expect Shiryu to agree so easily.
He was touched and wondered if he had misunderstood?
He might be better than he thought.
What Shirogane didn't know was that Shiryu had almost forgotten about his younger sister. And when he remembered her, he felt an obligation to save her.
After all, she was a beautiful girl.
But...
That didn't seem necessary.
That was because when they exited the second-year school building.
They met up with Saeko and the other women in Shiryu's group. However, they were not alone.
There were also some new people and one of them was Shirogane's younger sister.
Shiryu was familiar with their appearance.
"Kei-chan, I'm glad you're okay!"
"Onii-chan, are you okay too? Thank goodness."
While Shirogane was happy that his younger sister was fine and was talking to her.
"Shiryu-kun, we also found some uninfected students. Can we bring them to the shelter as well?"
Saeko asked.
As she said, before coming here. She and the women leading the group each saved a few people.
Shiryu did not refuse. "Yes, but we need another vehicle? My car alone is not enough to accommodate them."
Just then, Saya walked up to him and proudly held out a key to him. "I already thought of that problem. So, I took the key to one of the buses here at school!"
She looked at Shiryu as if to say: Praise me! Praise me!
Shiryu lowered his head to look at Saya's beautiful face, and held her shoulders.
"Good job, Saya. You really seem to be a genius."
"From the beginning, I was a genius!"
Saya complained but there was a blush on her cheeks, the corners of her lips also raised.
Rei, Saeko, Yui and the other girls who knew her well shook their heads.
That tsundere girl had clearly fallen in love with Shiryu.
Protagonist Takashi had another green hat on top of his head.