Chapter 57 - Chapter 55: A Story of the Critical Point
I succeeded in escaping from the sight of the infected for now, but this is not the end. In the process of escaping from the infected, we have come to a place quite far from the apartment, and we have to move from here to the apartment where Naomi-san and the others are waiting.
Of course, we must not be found by the infected. If that happens, it will be a repeat of that apartment earlier. Earlier, because the distance between the apartment and the neighboring house was close, I was somehow able to move away from the infected. I don't think such luck will continue from now on, and in the first place, two troublesome pieces of baggage are sticking with me now.
If only it weren't for these guys. I glared sideways at the woman holding the baby next to me.
By myself, I probably would have been able to head toward the apartment while successfully deceiving the eyes of the infected. But the surviving woman and baby of the family that came to this town while bringing along a swarm of infected are here next to me like this. To put it clearly, their existence was a burden.
The more people there are, the slower the group's movement becomes and the larger the risk of being discovered becomes. The reason I, Naomi-san, and Yui were able to act was because everyone was a person who could fight to some extent while holding weapons.
But as far as I heard while talking as we walked, this woman apparently hasn't even fought properly. Until now, that man who was driving the car had fought for her, so she said she had been devoted to escaping. To support that, the woman did not hold even a single knife as a weapon.
Since she is holding a nursing infant, it might be unavoidable that she cannot fight. However, although it's not a catchphrase of some special effects program, in the current world, one cannot survive without fighting in the literal sense of the word. What awaits those who have abandoned fighting is only death. The ultimate game of tag where it's not even known when the end will come.
Those who must be protected are, to put it clearly, nothing but a burden. It's a cruel story, but it's more grateful if such a person is not there. Because everyone is at their limit just protecting themselves, and they can't take care of anyone else. A person who can help someone else while protecting themselves. That's only a hero.
Suddenly the baby in the woman's arms emitted a voice, and I trembled. While looking up at the mother with round eyes, the baby emits words that do not make sense. Normally it would be a heartwarming scene, and one would take a video and make it a lifelong memory. However, the current baby's mouth is the source of calamity in the literal sense of the word. Noticing the voice the baby inadvertently emits, the infected might come.
Readying the crossbow that doesn't make a gunshot, I stop on the spot and be vigilant of the surroundings. The woman holding the baby also looked around with a timid feeling, but even after waiting for about a minute, the infected did not show themselves. Breathing a sigh of relief, the woman hurriedly chases after me who starts walking in silence.
Because of this baby, we have been on the verge of dangerous situations many times since a while ago. During the battle with the infected, the baby was crying and wailing in fear of the gunshots and angry voices, but now they have finally calmed down. However, as just now, they occasionally emit a voice abruptly, and every time I felt like my heart would jump out of my mouth.
"Hey, are you listening? Where is Shuji, is he safe?"
"Shut up."
And this woman also hasn't tried to close her mouth since a while ago. As expected, she shuts up if there are infected nearby, but if there are no infected in sight, she suddenly opens her mouth. What she asks about was only about that man called Shuji who was eaten by the infected without being able to escape from the car.
"You said you would help, right? Shuji is safe, isn't he?"
"That's why I'm telling you to be quiet. Is it okay even if we're found by those guys? It's your choice to die, but if you're going to die, die alone. Unfortunately, I don't want to die yet."
When I closed in on the woman while suppressing my voice so, she finally closed her mouth.
A wife who jumps into a danger zone without even considering her own self to help her husband. It's moving; it would be ideal as a subject for a movie or novel. However, since a baby is here, her action is nothing more than a self-satisfying dangerous act. I think it's not a good idea to involve a baby who doesn't even know right from left yet and cannot even emit words. Because for a baby who cannot even walk by themselves, if the mother dies, they have no choice but to die together.
On top of that, even if told to be quiet, a baby doesn't understand words, so they don't shut up. They were a pair that I really didn't think I wanted to act together with while infected are out and about.
Suddenly I felt like something moved at the crossroad ahead, and I stopped on the spot. When I signaled to "hide" by waving my hand, the woman moved to the shadow of a utility pole in silence. I walked for a while while readying the crossbow, but there is no sign of infected showing themselves from beyond the corner.
At the moment I thought it was my imagination, in the convex mirror installed at the crossroad, I could see the figure of an infected wandering beyond the corner with their back turned. Also because they are beyond the corner, there is no sign of the infected having noticed me. My figure is also reflected in the convex mirror, but in the first place they have their back turned and the infected don't have the intelligence to look at a mirror.
In this state, I can defeat them without being noticed if I shoot the crossbow immediately after coming out of the corner. To the apartment, I have to proceed straight through the crossroad in front, but it will be troublesome if I'm noticed by the infected beyond the corner at that time. It's better to eliminate threats in advance.
The crying of the baby was heard just at that time. When I look back, I could see the figure of the baby crying and wailing and the woman flusteredly soothing them.
When I return my gaze forward, in the convex mirror, the figure of the infected looking around as if they noticed something is reflected. The infected who was just wandering aimlessly until now has apparently noticed our presence.
"This is bad..."
The infected reflected in the convex mirror started running toward here. Releasing my hand from the crossbow and instead drawing the axe from the holder, immediately after, a single infected jumped out vigorously into the crossroad in front.
Toward that head, I swing the axe down vigorously. The hard blade of the axe smashed the skull, and brain matter and brain fluid sprayed out. I swing the axe down once more onto the head of the infected who fell with a hole in their head, confirming they are completely dead.
The baby was still crying. I, who put away the axe and took the crossbow in hand, roared, "Shut that child up quickly!"
"I know! Oh geez, why won't you stop crying..."
While the baby is crying like this, other infected might come. As expected, immediately an infected showed themselves from a distant corner. The infected roared loudly upon recognizing our figures, and then started running toward here.
Our location might have been completely exposed long ago by the baby's crying and the infected's roar, but even so, it's not good to continue letting loud sounds echo any more than this. If we are cried at every time we move, it's like moving around while ringing a security buzzer. If we continue to be attacked by infected everywhere we go, neither physical strength nor bullets will last.
While I was loading a bolt into the crossbow, a third infected showed themselves from the corner. I had no choice but to switch to the shotgun and fire. A gunshot roared in the surroundings, but it can't be helped. If I had been particular about loading a bolt to try to bring them down quietly, I would have been approached and attacked.
Next, two more, then three infected showed themselves. Fortunately, rather than attacking in a group, they come toward here one by one, so it's easy to deal with. Those guys have no intelligence to cooperate and can only do things like attacking humans according to their own desires.
When I brought down those infected using the shotgun and handgun, silence returned to the surroundings again. Though, except for the baby's crying. The baby, who seemed surprised by the gunshot, is again crying and wailing with vigor as if they had caught fire.
As long as the baby doesn't stop crying, we'll be attacked by infected wherever we go. For now, it seems I brought down the infected who were nearby, but infected will surely rush here from far away immediately upon hearing the gunshots and crying. We have to move from here before that, but for that, we first have to shut the baby up.
But I had completely lost the spirit to help the woman and her baby. If I act together with a woman with a baby who cannot fight and attracts infected, my life won't be enough no matter how many I have in the future. Above all, I have no obligation or duty to help them.
I understand that it's unavoidable for a baby to cry. In fact, even I, my mother said I was crying all the time when I was a baby.
Also, I know that a woman holding a nursing infant cannot fight. However, I was already fed up with acting together with them any more than this. I have helped them this far only out of my goodwill, but that goodwill doesn't well up infinitely. I have probably made enough effort.
"Enough already. I'm going back to the apartment, so you guys go wherever you want. Don't follow me anymore."
"Wait...! What will happen to Shuji, why haven't you told me about Shuji since a while ago!?"
"That person died."
When I said so, the woman opened her mouth blankly and stared at my face.
"What... you said you would help Shuji!"
"Unfortunately, I choose the way of escaping and surviving rather than dying for someone. I made an effort until the end."
Though I had him become the bait for me to escape. I, who somehow swallowed those words that were about to come out of my throat, turn my back to the woman and start walking. The baby still shows no sign of stopping crying.
However, the woman apparently is trying to follow me. To the woman's voice of "Wait a bit!" that echoed in the residential area to me who ignored the footsteps heard from behind and quickened my pace.
"Don't follow me!"
"Don't say that, what are we supposed to do!? Shuji died, who am I supposed to have protect me?"
"Then shut that child up, or don't chase after me."
"What's that! Are you telling me to kill this child!? If I could make them stop crying so easily, I would have done it long ago!"
At the woman's shrill voice, my stress had reached its peak. When I said "Then leave them behind" without even looking at her face, an even more hysterical woman's voice came back.
If I listen intently, the roars of the infected were starting to be heard again. Now they are only heard faintly, but soon those guys will grasp our position and come straight here. If I don't shut the baby up before then, we'll end up being attacked by a large number of infected, unlike earlier.
"There's no way I can do such a thing! If I'm going to leave this child behind, I'll die together. I'm not such a cruel person as you."
The woman shouting hysterically, the baby crying and wailing. The fear of the infected who don't know where they will appear from. The impatience that I have to join up with Naomi-san and the others, and the anxiety of whether they are safe. All of those were starting to erode my spirit.
I can understand the woman's feelings. There would be no parent who could follow along if told to sacrifice their own child to survive.
However, if something isn't done about the baby here, the infected will chase us. Even if I tell the woman to leave, she will probably follow me forcibly. And with the baby's crying, a large number of infected will gather, and it will be a repeat of that man who died in the car.
But I was already at my limit. In my head, I felt like I heard a snapping sound of something breaking.
"——————Then, die."
Was it the thread of patience that snapped, or the thread of reason? By the time I noticed, such words had come out of my mouth. I'm fed up already, why do I have to put my life in danger for such a woman. Such anger and dissatisfaction exploded, and I drew the handgun from the holster according to impulse.
And while turning around, I pulled the trigger twice toward the legs of the woman who had been following me. The first shot hit the right thigh, and the second shot pierced the left ankle. The woman, after looking at my face with a face as if she didn't know what had happened, collapsed backward onto the ground along with a scream.
"Igh... Aaaaaaaaagh! It hurts, it hurts!"
Was the reason she didn't fall prone to protect the baby she held? Anyway, with this, the woman can no longer follow me. The two 9mm bullets that pierced both legs smashed bones and tore away muscles. If she goes to a proper hospital right now and undergoes surgery, she might recover to the point of being able to walk several months later. However, for the time being, walking alone will be impossible.
"Wh, y..."
Whether she thought she would be killed, the woman who muttered so in the intervals of her scream and gasping breath was still clutching the baby to her chest. I stared down intently at the woman's eyes which were filled with anger and fear. The baby, perhaps knowing that something not good is about to happen, is crying and wailing with an even louder voice than before.
"If you want to die that much, die as you please. Don't involve me."
"W-Wait. Don't kill me——————"
"I won't kill you, I won't. I shot your legs because you were trying to follow me, that's all."
After saying so, I move my eyes to the baby the woman still held.
As expected, I cannot hurt a baby. However, I also don't have the confidence to live while protecting a baby from now on. Our protection target is already full with just Mana-chan for the three of us, and we couldn't increase the escort targets any more than this. I am not a hero who has the power to protect everyone.
Besides, it might be a fortunate thing for the baby in front of me to be able to leave this world while they still don't know the ways of the world. They can die without knowing such a cruel world; there would be nothing more wonderful than that.
"I'm sorry, I don't want to die yet."
The roars of the infected that were echoing like howls since a while ago are already heard from quite close. In a few more minutes, the infected drawn by the baby's crying will find the woman and baby fallen on the ground. If I don't let gunshots echo any more than this, I might be able to avoid being chased.
"No, I don't want to die! Someone help, someone!"
Whether she doesn't notice because of pain and fear that calling for help itself is an act that invites infected. To the woman who shouts as if she has gone mad, I head toward the apartment.
This is fine. From the start, we had no connection with that family. If we hadn't happened to be in this town, this family would have died while being eaten by infected without even being able to escape from the car that caused the accident. They were three people who were supposed to die anyway; we just postponed that by a mere few dozen minutes.
When I looked back just once, the woman was clutching the baby under her arm and trying to follow after me by crawling on the ground using only one hand. It's a terrifying tenacity, but with both legs shot and holding a baby, it's not possible to move properly. While drawing a trail of bright red blood on the ground using her own body as a brush, the woman is trying to follow me, but the distance with her only kept opening more and more.
Even though I told her not to follow me, to think she would chase me. I thought about whether I should deliver the finishing blow, but I stopped. The woman and the baby have the role of drawing the attention of the infected by making a big fuss here. If the woman who cannot move from this spot raises screams and the baby cries, the number of infected that would head toward the apartment will also decrease by that much. In order for us to escape from this town safely, I had to have the two of them shout more.
I decided not to see the woman's eyes that sought salvation. I turned my back to the two and started running to leave this place that would soon turn into a slaughterhouse.