Apocalypse Chat Group: Conquering the Heroines

In the hallway, Yukino snapped back to her senses.

She glanced at Tatsuki's profile, her expression filled with complex emotions.

After hesitating for a moment, she finally mustered the courage to ask, "That person…"

"Dead," Tatsuki replied preemptively, cutting her off.

"…"

Yukino pursed her lips.

Tatsuki had killed that person for her. She couldn't let him bear the responsibility alone.

Gathering her resolve, Yukino spoke with determination, "Hayashi-kun, I'll take responsibility for the crime of murder. I won't let you go to jail because of me."

Thud!

Tatsuki gave her a flick on the forehead.

"Ow!"

Yukino yelped, covering her forehead with her right hand.

"Are you an idiot? There's no law in this world."

"Not to mention whether he was scum or not, with his mental state, he would've ended up dead at the hands of zombies sooner or later. I just put him out of his misery."

Tatsuki spoke matter-of-factly.

He was a straightforward and carefree person, not one to dwell on complicated moral dilemmas.

Since this place had no laws, and the guy was trash, killing him was no big deal.

Not wanting to waste time on the matter, he stopped walking and raised his right hand, gesturing to Yukino.

"Hey, could you let go of my hand now?"

"Huh?"

Yukino blinked in confusion.

That's when she realized.

Her hand was tightly clasped with Tatsuki's, their fingers intertwined.

And it was her hand that had been gripping his firmly!

"!!!"

She quickly let go, hiding her hands behind her back.

Tatsuki caught a glimpse of her reddened earlobes out of the corner of his eye but said nothing.

He simply continued walking forward.

Yukino bit her lip, glanced at her right hand, and felt a lingering warmth that oddly reassured her.

She quickly shook the chaotic thoughts from her mind and hurried after him.

…

After finishing an entire floor, she noticed something strange.

There wasn't a single moving zombie.

Sensing her confusion, Tatsuki explained, sounding a bit annoyed.

"To find you, I had to clear three floors of zombies. The ones here have already been taken care of."

Fortunately, his Lightning Dharma didn't rely solely on qi but also on his body's life energy.

And life energy could quickly recover with rest.

This seemed to be a special perk of the abilities granted by the Apocalypse Roulette.

Yukino followed Tatsuki as they cleared another floor of zombies together.

She thought Tatsuki was searching for the other two players.

In reality, he was farming points.

Suddenly, an idea occurred to Tatsuki, and he turned to Yukino.

"Have you ever killed a zombie?"

Yukino shook her head.

"Want to try?"

"Me?" Yukino pointed to herself in surprise.

"Exactly. I figure since this is a game, killing monsters should come with rewards."

Tatsuki's reasoning was straightforward—he wanted to see what rewards Yukino, who wasn't part of the Apocalypse Chat Group, would receive for killing a zombie.

It didn't take long.

The two of them found a zombie.

Tatsuki raised his hand, and the liquid-like Yin Lightning bound the zombie's limbs.

"…"

Despite having seen Tatsuki use this power several times on their journey, Yukino still couldn't help but be amazed and curious.

When she asked Tatsuki about it, he only referred to it as a type of lightning technique.

"Give it a try," he said, handing her a steel pipe.

"Alright."

Yukino gripped the steel pipe tightly, walking up to the zombie.

"Groooar…"

Though its limbs were restrained, the zombie's ferocious head flailed about wildly, letting out low, guttural growls.

Taking a deep breath, Yukino steeled herself, her gaze firm.

"Ha!"

She thrust the steel pipe into the zombie's mouth with all her might, then pushed it deeper using her full strength!

Squish!

The steel pipe pierced through the zombie's head.

With another strong pull, she yanked the pipe out.

The zombie's head drooped, and as Yin Lightning dissipated, its body collapsed to the ground.

The zombie was dead!

She had done it!

Yukino turned around excitedly, and Tatsuki gave her a thumbs-up with a smile.

The praise filled her with an inexplicable sense of happiness.

Clutching the steel pipe, she walked back to Tatsuki.

For a moment, she was lost in thought. When she snapped out of it, she realized that a katana had appeared in her hand out of nowhere.

Gathering her thoughts, she explained to Tatsuki, "After I killed the zombie, the Apocalypse Game notified me that I gained 1 survival point and unlocked a shop feature."

"The shop lets you exchange points for items. Currently, there are five options: food, water, katanas, pistols, and pistol ammo."

"Food and water are 1 point for 3 portions. Katanas are 1 point each. Pistols cost 5 points, and ammo is 1 point for 10 bullets."

Tatsuki rubbed his chin, quickly understanding the setup.

It was similar to a game shop mechanic.

"Hayashi-kun…"

"Just call me Tatsuki."

"…"

Hesitating for a moment, Yukino's clear eyes shifted slightly before she softly replied, "Alright. Then you can call me Yukino."

Clearing her throat, she continued, "Tatsuki-kun, haven't you gained any points for killing so many zombies?"

Tatsuki shook his head. "I'm a bit special."

In truth, he did have points, but not survival points from the Apocalypse Game. His points were from the Apocalypse Chat Group.

One zombie equaled 1 apocalypse point. Including the 500 he started with, his total was now 850 points.

Yukino didn't think much of his response.

Given the extraordinary powers Tatsuki displayed in reality, she found it plausible that he would be treated differently in the game.

Noticing that it was getting late, Yukino suggested, "Shouldn't we find a place to rest? We still have six days left and need to stay in good condition."

Tatsuki nodded, having had the same thought.

As for where to go, he already had a place in mind.

...

200 power stones = 1 extra chapter

300 power stones = 2 extra chapter