Chapter 3 – "Sleepwalking" Yamamoto Hinata, fighting zombies to level up!
Takayama Akira's luck wasn't too bad.
The University of Tokyo had two female dorm buildings.
This one was like a hotel-style apartment, with triple rooms and private bathrooms.
The other building was a cramped six-person room. The environment there was much worse, and the number of zombies was probably higher.
Akira casually found a bed and lay down.
He opened the system panel.
After killing a zombie, the progress bar below the level had increased slightly.
About one-fifth, more or less.
In other words, if he killed four more zombies, he'd level up to [Awakened Level One].
Thinking about that flash of black light… it must've been the so-called viral cells.
"Kind of gross," he muttered.
"But if the virus can be absorbed like that, then there's no need to worry about being infected."
That was what Akira thought to himself.
The most important thing now was to conserve energy.
Wait until things calmed down a bit tomorrow, then head out to hunt zombies and level up.
After all, that was his biggest source of confidence in recent days.
…
The sun was setting, and night was falling.
Yamamoto Hinata lay in bed, tossing and turning.
From time to time, screams echoed from outside—another student had just been killed.
With a girl's physical ability, she stood no chance against zombies.
By tomorrow, it was likely that only a few people in the whole building would still be alive.
Hinata shivered, glanced at Akira not far away, hesitated for a moment, and tiptoed out of bed.
She quietly lay down beside Akira.
Her frightened heart finally began to calm.
"Hmm."
"Akira-senpai smells really nice..."
Drowsiness set in.
Yamamoto Hinata yawned and drifted into a deep sleep.
...
Early morning.
Akira woke up from the heat.
Something soft and fragrant was pressing against him, like a little heater.
Turning his head to look, he was suddenly stunned.
He saw Yamamoto Hinata sleeping soundly beside him.
She was completely sprawled out, her long snow-white legs draped over him, and her shirt slightly lifted, revealing a slim waist and a beautiful navel.
Her sleeping posture was bold and unrestrained.
Akira's lower abdomen felt hot and dry.
At eighteen or nineteen, his body was full of youthful vigor.
Such a sight, combined with the "morning buff," made him feel like he might explode.
"Hmm?"
Hinata let out a soft nasal sound.
Her eyelashes fluttered slightly as she opened her sleepy eyes.
Their gazes met.
With a silly smile, Hinata said:
"Good morning, Akira-senpai."
"..."
The corner of Akira's mouth twitched.
"Yamamoto-san, why are you here? Sleepwalking?"
"Ah!"
Hinata woke up fully, her cheeks flushing red.
At first, she only wanted to lie next to Akira for a little while and sneak back to her bed in the middle of the night.
Unexpectedly, she had fallen asleep until morning!
Feeling his warm masculine breath, her little heart started pounding uncontrollably.
Although she'd never dated before, she had read plenty of romance novels and had some theoretical knowledge.
The atmosphere was perfect... if she didn't do something shameful now, she might never get the chance again!
So... should she go for it?
While her thoughts spiraled out of control, Akira had already gotten out of bed.
It wasn't that he didn't feel anything.
But at a time like this, he couldn't afford to waste energy on things like that.
And if they made too much noise, it might attract zombies.
Hinata let out a soft sigh of relief.
But at the same time, she felt a twinge of disappointment.
"Yamamoto-san..."
"Akira-senpai, you can call me Hinata."
"Hinata, do you have anything to eat? I'm starving."
"Ah, I'll look around!"
Hinata began rummaging through the dorm's cupboards and boxes.
In the end, only a chocolate bar was found.
"Akira-senpai, you can have this. I don't have much of an appetite, so I'm not really hungry."
Hinata handed the chocolate bar to Akira.
Just as she finished speaking, her stomach growled.
She hadn't eaten in over ten hours since yesterday, and was so hungry it felt like her chest was stuck to her back.
Seeing her embarrassed expression, Akira shook his head.
What a silly girl.
In the coming days, food would become an extremely valuable resource.
He tore open the wrapper and broke the bar in half.
He ate one half himself and stuffed the other half into Hinata's mouth without saying a word.
"I'll head out to look for more food soon. You stay here and don't move."
"Try not to make any noise, don't open the door for anyone, and wait for me to come back."
Akira instructed.
"Okay!"
Hinata puffed out her cheeks and nodded obediently.
Akira took a hammer from the toolbox, fastened it to his waist, and moved the cabinet blocking the door.
He pressed his ear against the door and listened. There was no movement outside.
He opened the door and stepped out.
Hinata followed Akira's instructions, locked the door, and wedged a stool against the handle.
"Akira-senpai... please come back safe."
She clasped her hands together and prayed in silence.
...
In the hallway.
Three zombies were aimlessly wandering.
Suddenly, a human with a hammer appeared, walking straight toward them.
The zombies' eyes suddenly lit up.
A human, coming to them on his own?
Takeout delivery!
"Raaagh!"
The zombies drooled and charged forward.
Akira calmly backed up, letting the zombies rush past him.
He timed it just right and struck the last zombie in the back of the head with his hammer.
Brains splattered!
A wave of black light surged into his body, and his strength increased.
Boom!
Bang! Bang!
One swing—split and crush.
Two more strikes—he smashed the heads of the other two zombies.
Although Akira couldn't be infected, he still had to be careful. If the injuries were too severe, he'd still suffer.
After eliminating the three zombies, his progress bar had reached four-fifths.
Only one step away from leveling up.
But Akira wasn't in a hurry.
He found a large backpack and began scavenging room by room for supplies.
Beef jerky, candies, protein bars, all kinds of nut cookies...
The one thing female dorms never lacked—snacks.
Once just high-calorie junk food, now they had become precious treasures.
There were also flashlights, scissors, power banks, Bluetooth speakers...
Anything remotely useful—into the backpack it went.
...