Chapter 64 - The Story of Everything Being 100 Percent Off
The engine sound of the small car was almost the only sound heard in the silence-filled interior. No one spoke, and only the sound of Naomi-san occasionally flipping the pages of a road map in the passenger seat could be heard.
In the apartment where the sniper had lurked, we gained many things. Food, medicine, and many weapons and ammunition, albeit for civilian use.
What we lost was Mana-chan's life. This alone cannot be taken back no matter what. Food might remain if we rummage through some store. There's a possibility we can replenish weapons and ammunition from here on. However, Mana-chan's lost life will never return, and all that was left to us were memories of her.
Since Mana-chan died, conversation has also decreased markedly. Previously, someone would tell a joke or have a conversation bloom over trivial reminiscences. But now the words exchanged are only businesslike, and even those are the bare minimum. Having once tried to tell a joke, unable to endure the excessively heavy atmosphere, no one responded. Since I felt foolish playing the clown, I returned to a life of not opening my mouth unless necessary from then on.
Where should I go—no, I don't know what I should do. For me, who doesn't even know what I'm living for, there's no way I could know what to do from here on. I just drive the car east aimlessly, and eat when I'm hungry. At night, we take turns carrying guns and sleep while staying alert for the infected. But I myself don't know why I do such things. I'm just repeating the same actions as before, out of inertia.
Previously, there was the purpose of "to survive." However, by being asked by Naomi-san when we buried Mana-chan, I was once again reminded of the person I am, who is empty. I no longer have a home to return to or a family to welcome me back. Friends and acquaintances have all either died or turned into infected, and there is no one who longs for my survival.
Although the word "missing" is attached to them, Yui still has a family. Although the state of America is unknown, there's a possibility Naomi-san's family is alive. That's why they have the purpose of living and reuniting with their families. But I have nothing.
I thought I couldn't laugh at the infected. I've thought of the infected as beings that have lost their reason and just act according to instinct without thinking about anything. But I'm not thinking about anything either. Just as the infected attack humans according to the instinct of satisfying hunger, I am just living according to the natural desires that animals possess. There is no purpose or anything there.
"Living in order not to die." I too am just living according to that instinct without thinking about anything, just like the infected.
"Is it okay? There's a place I want to stop by for a bit."
It was just after noon when Naomi-san said that, as if breaking the atmosphere of the silent car interior. It was while I was holding the steering wheel, having driven the car since 6 in the morning and having taken turns driving several times midway.
"A place you want to stop by? Where is it? We replenished gasoline yesterday, and food is still sufficiently left."
Yui, who was sitting as if pushing her body into the gaps between the supplies in the back seat where cardboard boxes containing firearms and food were piled haphazardly, said in a listless tone. She too is greatly shocked by the loss of Mana-chan. The sadness of her, who doted on Mana-chan the most among these members and treated her like a real younger sister, is immeasurable. Even after Mana-chan was gone, she was acting properly for the group, but I feel as if she has lost her spirit somewhere.
"It seems there's a military shop in the city ahead. Various useful things might be obtainable there."
Saying so, Naomi-san placed a single page, apparently torn from a magazine, on the dashboard. While taking care not to cause an accident, I cast my gaze there, and indeed the products handled by the military shop and the address are printed. Since there were several gun-related magazines in that sniper's room, she must have torn it from one of them. The address listed on the page was certainly near here.
"But, useful things? If it were a Schwarzenegger movie, it'd be one thing, but Japanese military shops don't handle guns or ammunition at all."
"Schwarzenegger?"
"Arnold Schwarzenegger."
If it were America where guns are sold at shopping malls, there might be military shops where rocket launchers are also obtainable. However, in Japan, only gun shops sell guns. What can be obtained at a military shop would be airsoft guns at most.
"No, I don't think guns are obtainable. Look, it says 'We have actual night vision devices in stock,' right? If we have night vision devices, night watch will become much easier, and we'll be able to act at night too."
Due to the spread of infection, lifelines have stopped, and naturally, a pitch-black darkness where not a single streetlamp is lit now spreads every time it becomes night. In the absence of other artificial lights, even the light of a flashlight stands out quite a bit and can't be used much because there's a possibility of being found by the infected. On the other hand, since it's also quite difficult to act relying only on moonlight, we had been avoiding acting at night until now.
However, if we have night vision devices, that situation will also become a bit better. We might be able to spend the night without being frightened by the infected whose location we don't know in the darkness.
The infected do not have the intelligence to use flashlights, and it seems they don't have particularly good night vision either. If we have the ability to act in the darkness as if it were daytime, we can turn things to our advantage.
"Well, isn't it fine?"
Even if there are no night vision devices, there might be other useful things. Since the words "US military surplus" were also on the page, there will also be usable military goods. Above all, I wanted a purpose for acting now.
Yui didn't object either. For that reason, I turned the wheel and aimed for the city.
Since it was called a military shop, I had imagined it would be a store like a fortress, but the one at the address was an extremely ordinary multi-tenant building, so it was a letdown. If the name of that shop weren't among the signs hung on the wall of the building, I might have overlooked it.
The building's shutter was open, but it wasn't certain that infected weren't lurking inside. As usual, I threw an empty can in front of the entrance and waited for a while. After confirming that nothing jumped out from inside even after 5 minutes, we decided to enter the building.
Since it would be unbearable to be attacked by someone again, we parked the car in an inconspicuous place. So that we could take the car out at any time in an emergency, we didn't lock the doors and left the engine key in. Furthermore, Yui remained in the car as a lookout.
With the automatic rifle taken from the sniper in hand, I approached the building, which had nothing unusual about it. The sniper's blood was stained on the wooden stock, but I couldn't complain. I was reluctant to use the weapon that killed Mana-chan, but it was a fact that among the firearms we currently possessed, this automatic rifle was the most powerful.
Taking precautions, we proceeded while staying alert even when crossing the road. While one person proceeded, the other waited, taking a stance to provide immediate cover if something happened. Fortunately, bullets didn't come flying this time.
"I'll lead. Please provide backup."
With her rifle slung over her shoulder and holding a sawed-off—a shotgun with its total length shortened—in one hand instead, Naomi-san stepped into the building with a flashlight in her other hand. The inside of the building where electricity cannot be used is pitch black even though it's daytime. The entrance of the building with its shutter left up looks as if a giant monster is opening its mouth wide.
As far as seen from the entrance, the stairs leading to the upper floors seemed quite narrow. The barrel of the automatic rifle would likely get stuck. I also slung the rifle from my shoulder and instead pulled out an over-under shotgun with its barrel and stock cut off from a handmade canvas holder hanging from my waist.
With rifles and shotguns, the barrels are long and hard to use indoors, and with pistols, the power is low. It might be fine against humans, but to defeat the infected whose pain sensation is paralyzed with a pistol, a fatal wound must be given in one blow, and for that reason, Naomi-san had modified the shotgun on hand.
By cutting the barrel and stock with a saw, the total length became as short as a large pistol, and the weight also decreased considerably. Although the range became shorter due to the barrel being cut down, it seems the power at close range increases by that much. Of course, since I haven't fired a single shot since modifying it, I don't know if that's true.
Holding a sawed-off in one hand and a flashlight in the other similarly, I followed Naomi-san and stepped into the building. Immediately a musty smell hit my nose, but there was no smell of rot or blood.
Only footsteps echo in the dark building. We go up the stairs, which have only enough width for two people to somehow pass each other, but no corpses are found. The users of this building were fortunately able to escape before the slaughter began. Even so, perhaps because they were in a hurry, documents are scattered on the floor, and a high heel that came off is rolling around.
The top floor, the 4th floor, was the target military shop. As soon as I went up the stairs, a mannequin wearing camouflage clothes welcomed us. For a moment I mistook it for an infected and almost pointed my gun at it, and seeing that, Naomi-san laughed.
Inside the shop, various military-related items seemed to be lined up in a cramped manner. It was impossible to grasp the entire shop with only the light of the flashlights, so I had no choice but to light an LED bulb lantern taken out from my backpack. Sixty percent of the shop is filled with racks of camouflage clothes and combat uniforms, and the remaining space is piled with ammunition boxes or items whose use is not well understood. Having placed the lantern on the top of a shelf where military-related magazines were lined up, I began exploring the shop.
The night vision devices were found easily. At the very back of the shop, night vision devices and optical equipment are displayed in a locked glass case. Optical sights for military use were also stored in the same case. They look very similar to the ones I saw on the magazine page.
"By any chance, are the night vision devices these?"
"Yes, yes, those, those. Now, we have to find the key to the case. We can't carelessly smash it, after all."
The price tags placed beside the night vision devices all had six-digit numbers lined up. Among them were some nearly 1 million yen, and naturally, the case was locked and an alarm device was also attached. Since they are battery-powered, they operate even during a power outage, so as Naomi-san said, if we smash it, a loud alarm sound will likely ring out.
When I went around to the office, the key to the glass case was also found immediately. On a hook on the wall, several keys are bundled on a ring. When I tried a few, the glass case opened without the alarm operating.
"Whoa, isn't this the latest one. They're mostly for military and police use, and they're almost never on the civilian market."
"Is that so?"
Well, since they cost 400,000 or 500,000 yen, they're something ordinary people can't reach either way. I picked up one among those lined up in the glass case. It was a monocular night vision device about the size of a hand, and normally it's something used by attaching it to a helmet. Naomi-san said it secures visibility by amplifying weak light.
But if it doesn't work, it's just a useless item. Leaving Naomi-san, who was confirming if it operated, I went around the shop alone and put things that seemed useful into a basket one after another. Besides outdoor goods such as first aid kits, folding knives, and flashlights, there were several packs of military rations. However, according to Naomi-san, since they are surplus, it's unknown if they can be eaten safely. Since they were sealed and apparently in good storage condition, I decided to take them.
I also put gloves, trousers, jackets, and so on into the basket. If it were movement on foot, I would have to reduce luggage as much as possible, but if it's a car, it's fine. The newly obtained wagon has a wider interior space than the previous car, and although it's a cruel story, there was even more room in the space because Mana-chan was gone.
"Alright, it seems to operate properly."
Turning around at that voice, there was Naomi-san, who had attached the night vision device to a headband and looked like an alien or something. Through the night vision device protruding like an insect's eye, she is looking around the shop.
"Isn't your head heavy?"
"It's heavy. Well, it's within the acceptable range, though."
Saying so, she removed the night vision device along with the headband and handed it to me. When I closed one eye and timidly peered through the eyepiece, the field of vision was instantly dyed entirely in green. The lantern placed near the ceiling was shining white, and Naomi-san's figure, which could only be seen as a silhouette with the naked eye, was clearly understood.
However, the field of vision is narrow. When I tried wearing the headband, my head suddenly became heavy. It's good that it looks bright, but if I keep peering through the night vision device, I can't even aim the rifle.
"In such cases, you attach an infrared laser sight, though."
I saw a thin, single streak of white light extending into the void like a lightsaber from the laser sight Naomi-san held. When I remove the night vision device, the laser is not visible. Apparently, this night vision device can also visualize infrared light.
But the narrow field of vision is still fatal. In a place with many obstacles like this, it's unknown where the infected are lurking. If I were attacked from outside the field of vision of the night vision device, which looks round, I would die without knowing what was happening.
"Well, I don't want to use it much in narrow places. Let's use the night vision device for things like lookouts outside, and act using lights too inside buildings."
Naomi-san piles night vision devices and scopes that seem usable into the basket one after another. Since several were left in the glass case, I was curious and asked, and she said the remaining ones are items that don't seem very useful.
I picked up a long night vision device that also looked like a telescope, stored in a metal case. Cyrillic characters were printed on the surface of the case, and inside was a booklet like an instruction manual also written in Russian.
"That one is an old model. Apparently, when the Soviet Union collapsed, corrupt soldiers sold off equipment and weapons, so I think it's from that time."
"Certainly, it's quite heavy."
"Besides, that night vision device is the type that attaches directly to a gun, but it can't be attached to our gun's mount bases. We can't keep holding it in our hands forever, so it's better to leave it behind."
And I can't read Russian, Naomi-san added at the end. However, when I said it might be useful for something, she answered I should do as I like. I, who was about to leave the shop carrying the basket that had become heavy again, was called to a stop by Naomi-san from behind.
"Wait a bit. I found something good."
What she held out was a gun magazine. Along with a pop saying 'Rare! Actual M14 magazines in stock. 8 left,' the same magazines are placed on the table in the center of the shop. M14 was, if I recall, the military model of the automatic rifle I have.
"The one attached now is a 5-round magazine, but this one holds 20 rounds. It'll save the trouble of changing magazines every time, right?"
Saying so, Naomi-san took out rifle rounds from her pocket and began loading them into the new 20-round magazine. The sound of the spring compressing and the sound of metal rubbing echo. When she had loaded about five rounds, Naomi-san handed over the magazine, saying "Try attaching it."
I removed the 5-round magazine attached until now, ejected the round in the chamber, and attached the 20-round magazine, which was about the size of a smartphone but a bit larger. When I pulled the bolt handle, the first round was chambered with a clatter. There's no rattling, and there seems to be no problem with feeding either.
"Even so, to think an M14 magazine is 15,000 yen each. In my town, military surplus could be bought for 30 dollars each."
"That means even if we think of one dollar as 100 yen, it's five times the price?"
"Yes. If they're traded at this price, I should have brought several from America. Then I could have made a huge profit."
There were several actual gun parts in the shop that seemed to be US military surplus. Among them were also empty magazines like the one just found, but only the eight that were on the table were found to match my rifle. Firearms with a caliber of 6mm or less are regulated by the Sword and Firearms Law, but the caliber of US military and JSDF rifles is 5.56mm. No matter how many empty magazines we collect, since they aren't handled at gun shops, it's useless to have them. If we could obtain JSDF or US military guns, it would be a different story.
I'll take everything usable, such as other gun parts. Among the products handled at the military shop were parts to upgrade my automatic rifle, apparently imported from America. It seems it becomes possible to shorten the total length of the gun and mount flashlights and laser sights, and Naomi-san will apparently try if she can assemble it later.
I wasn't expecting much, but this time we were able to obtain various useful things. However, I knew that good luck does not last forever.
I look forward to your opinions and impressions.