"This world really isn't the kind of place you grow to like..."
Ryuji sighed helplessly, clearly feeling the strain in his muscles after another round of intense training.
He was exploiting a bizarre loophole in this world's physics: he could push his body to extreme limits, exerting tremendous force without feeling fatigue or pain. It was a hyper-efficient way to train. After all, most people give up on exercising because of the exhaustion and discomfort. But in this world, those obstacles simply didn't exist.
Still, the sight of endless hordes of zombies outside was enough to make him want to complain.
"Any regular person thrown into this place would be dead in minutes. So why the hell was I sent here?"
He truly didn't get it. A clueless civilian would stand zero chance in this nightmare. Even someone like Rin Tohsaka, who wasn't exactly weak, wouldn't survive an all-out zombie siege.
If he hadn't taken shelter in a gas station on day one, odds are, no one here would still be breathing.
"So this is what you meant by a zombie horde?"
Woken by the commotion, Rin emerged from her room, followed closely by Mai. Together, they looked out at the desolate landscape beyond their steel fortress.
At the moment, their makeshift stronghold hadn't yet been surrounded by the undead, so stepping out was still relatively safe.
"Yeah... though this time, something seems different," Rias answered in Ryuji's place, her voice catching his attention.
Ryuji narrowed his eyes and looked out toward the horizon—then noticed it. Several zombies looked... off. Some were grotesquely swollen, others glowing ominously green, as if they'd been drenched in radiation or some kind of bioweapon.
"...Don't tell me those things explode."
He frowned at the zombies whose bloated bellies glowed with eerie green light.
They'd reinforced their base with steel barriers, preventing a direct assault. But that also meant their firing angles were severely limited. If those things were explosive...
Ryuji glanced at the ten-centimeter-thick steel wall.
"Should be fine... as long as they don't develop armor-piercing rounds. Or, God forbid, a mini nuke."
"These things scream radiation exposure. Rias, can you sense nuclear radiation?"
"Of course," Rias nodded. "Demons helped humanity make nukes in the first place. We can see radiation clearly."
Ryuji was quiet for a moment before responding.
"In that case, maybe we should test the explosion radius? I don't care much about contamination, but you guys might want to be cautious."
He crossed his arms and watched the incoming mutants.
"Don't worry," Rias replied. "I've set up a defensive magic array and inscribed protective runes on the house. Unless it's a full-on nuke, we'll be fine. As for the explosions, I'll just test them."
With a flash of light, she conjured a doppelgänger—a perfect replica of herself—and placed it atop a distant cliff. Immediately, the nearby zombies surged toward it. The decoy began firing magical projectiles, aiming directly at the bloated zombies.
Seconds later, two explosions rang out—one near the decoy and one from a shot zombie.
Over the sound of groaning undead, Rias calmly called back her conclusion:
"Hit their bellies, and they explode. Hit their heads, and they don't. They might also self-detonate if approached too closely. If you're at range, they'll vomit a radioactive, highly corrosive substance instead. Don't touch it. But our base is safe—especially with the runes I've carved. Before the upgrades, it might've corroded steel over time, but now? Not a problem."
The horde was beginning to grow restless, drawn by the chain reaction of explosions.
And thus, the zombie siege began—early.
Luckily, their fortress wasn't the focal point—yet. The explosion site had drawn the bulk of the undead. But it was clear this wouldn't end until the blood moon passed.
This was exactly why Ryuji had never attempted to grind levels during daylight hours of a blood moon. It was suicidal.
"So it's manageable, huh? You're really something, Rias."
Stretching, Ryuji turned back toward their metal shelter, tossing a reminder over his shoulder.
"Oh, right—go use the bathroom now. You won't get another chance once this place is surrounded."
It was a well-meant warning. From the looks of it, the blood moon had officially begun. Soon, the entire fortress would be boxed in. No one would be able to step outside—not even for the bathroom.
"U-understood," Rin stammered automatically.
But once Ryuji and Rias had returned inside, Rin and Mai shared an awkward look.
Neither of them really had to go. Yet the warning was valid: in just a short while, there'd be no safe exit.
Still...
"Who can pee with zombies screaming at the door?!"
Rin looked out at the charging swarm and felt her nerves unraveling.
Ryuji, of course, had no idea. And even if he did, he'd probably laugh mercilessly—because he could. He could probably piss straight into a zombie horde and not even flinch.
After all, he'd seen enough chaos that it barely fazed him anymore. Even if he left the steel shelter now, he could face down an avalanche of undead and walk away—worst case, he'd just run.
And things went exactly as he expected.
Soon, the entire canyon was filled with writhing zombies. Those that weren't caught in the initial blast began detecting the presence of survivors and made their way toward the base.
They began clawing and biting at the outer steel walls.
But Rias had activated a sound-isolating barrier, muting even the most violent scratching and snarls. Everyone inside the base slept peacefully.
When morning came, Ryuji got up, started prepping rice, and began cooking with ingredients he'd brought from the Food Wars world.
While he wasn't quite a master chef yet, he'd picked up a few dishes—enough to create mouth-watering aromas that soon woke the three women from their rooms.
Rias, as graceful as ever, entered first. Rin and Mai followed, though they looked exhausted—having stayed up half the night watching the zombies, then panicking again once the horde reached the walls. Their rest had been fitful at best.
"Smells amazing... These ingredients are no joke," Rias remarked in surprise.
Indeed, the rich aroma far exceeded her expectations—especially after so many days of bland survival food.
But even the pampered devil noble noticed something else:
Ryuji's actual cooking... wasn't great. When the ingredients were average, it didn't show. But with higher-quality items, the lack of technique was glaring.
"I didn't make it for you guys anyway," Ryuji said, waving them off. "You'd better stick with those."
He pointed toward a pile of typical 7 Days to Die survival fare—soups made from canned goods and questionable roasted meats bought from traders. The ingredients from the Food Wars world, after all, came with risks.
Rias let out a short laugh in disbelief. Rin and Mai exchanged another look—not because Ryuji was being stingy, but because they were surprised that Ryuji and Rias weren't… closer.
"Whatever," Ryuji said. "Just try it and see for yourselves."
He served a portion of his dish to all three women.
They took a bite, somewhat distractedly.
And then—
"Mm—!"
"Ah—!"
"Haa…"
What they felt… was joy.
Joy in every possible sense of the word.
~~~~~~~
Bonus chapter every 200 PS.