The streets are filled with vehicles. The traffic light turns green.

No moving vehicles.

New city atmosphere. Creepy atmosphere.

The room is dark and stuffy. The sun's rays faintly penetrated the curtains into the room where there was a man lying.

"Ahhhh,"

a rather manly voice echoed softly in the room. The sound that appeared was due to the pain the man was experiencing.

"It really hurts,"

the man expresses how he feels. However, there was no one else but himself in the room.

The man in pain was Tanaka. For three days he had endured pain in his stomach and other parts of his body.

This condition was triggered by his body being shocked by the change in condition.

In fact, these symptoms only take a few hours to heal and return to normal. However, for Tanaka who is a hikikomori with unhealthy habits, the symptoms are still there and are getting worse.

Tanaka felt hunger and nausea for three days. This is exacerbated by the food reserves in the room, namely cup noodles. Food that is not very suitable to feed someone who is sick.

Tanaka's body's metabolism was messed up. He couldn't tell the temperature, the weather, or the surroundings. The only information he could know was time. Thank you for the cellphone that always accompanies him.

Tanaka does not have a card for treatment. This is exacerbated by the condition of this one individual moneter being at minimal.

However, the main thing that prevented Tanaka from going to the clinic was clearly his body. Tanaka's body didn't support himself to be able to move much.

One thing that Tanaka didn't think of was that he didn't use his cell phone network to call an ambulance or anything. For Tanaka, he just needed to endure this pain and let his body repair itself.

Unfortunately that will not happen.

His breath weakened, his body became weaker and almost all of Tanaka's senses faded.

"Just go back to sleep!"

Tanaka thought without knowing what really happened. However, his mind was weakening and his consciousness was fading away.

............

.........

......

...

"Eh!"

Said a man who just woke up from his bed.

He felt very strange. There is a very clear feeling that appears for a moment, but in a very short time interval that feeling disappears.

"What's this?"

The feeling came back. The taste is slightly different, but has more or less the same sensation.

"Why does my body suddenly feel so great?"

asked the man. The feeling he felt drained an enormous amount of energy that made him feel great.

"A miracle?"

In his mind, the man tried to guess what it was that he could get such a rare sensation.

The man got up from his bed. As his feet hit the floor, an undefined feeling flashed across the man's senses.

Even though it seemed obvious, the man tried to ignore it. This is because the man's main goal is to check what's going on in his body through the mirror near the sink.

The man is faced with a glass that is quite wide in size. He saw a familiar face.

"My face is still the same... but, am I really this smooth?"

It was the face of Tanaka. Hikikomori who inhabit this cheap boarding room.

Tanaka was still checking other body parts. To him, everything looked the same although there were slight differences that Tanaka was not fully aware of.

The thing that caught Tanaka's attention was the significant difference in his body sensation. Tanaka clearly remembered that the last time he slept, he was still in excruciating pain.

However, when he woke up his body gave some kind of information that he was in a very fit and healthy condition.

"Am I maybe dead!"

Tanaka snapped in surprise as he tried to draw conclusions from what he considered this anomaly.

Something crossed Tanaka's mind. It was the thought of him being someone who was waiting for the god of judgment in the realm of the dead.

Tanaka went straight to the window on the other side of the room. His right hand pushed the curtain that covered it.

The surrounding scenery is still the same. There is nothing strange except the atmosphere is very quiet. To him, such an atmosphere was common even though it rarely happened.

"I don't think it's because I died,"

Tanaka concluded. However, he was still somewhat curious about the strange happenings in his body.

However, having no clue other than different feelings and sensations, Tanaka concluded that,

"Well, think of it as a god's gift,"

That's how it is.

Tanaka with this new body then took the cellphone under the blanket.

The finger of the man who owns the cellphone clicks the 'turn on' button on the side of the screen. Even though it's been clicked, the cell phone can't turn on.

"Ah, it must have leaked again,"

said Tanaka in response to what he had experienced. Tanaka's cellphone does sometimes experience battery leaks.

Because of that, Tanaka reached for his cellphone charger and let the charging function happen automatically. It's a nice world where you don't have to work hard to get a source of electrical energy.

Tanaka, who realized that he was hungry, then brewed cup noodles. It was the last cup of noodles in his storage cupboard.

After a few minutes passed, it was seen from the screen that the cellphone was seven percent charged. Tanaka, who is used to using his cellphone while it is being charged, is now trying to turn it on.

Tanaka was about to see what day it was. The last time he remembered, it was Wednesday.

After waiting a few seconds, the screen that Tanaka usually saw appeared. Mobile screen that shows the weather, time and a few other things at the start. However, Tanaka's screen background is a bit odd as it shows one of the adult artists cosplaying.

Thursday. That means one day since he felt the pain and weakness that climaxed when he was sick.

Or so he thought until he saw the date section.

"Hughppttt!"

Tanaka choked while eating his cup noodles. Just then, Tanaka noticed something in the date section.

It was the third of June. The last time Tanaka remembered, it was the seventeenth of May.

Fifteen days had passed since Tanaka had last remembered him. That is a very long time for someone who only sleeps.

"There must be a mistake,"

thought Tanaka. However, when confirmed, everything was normal except for the fact that Tanaka could sleep for fifteen days.

“Am I dreaming? But this feels too real!”

Tanaka was still too confused by this new situation.

His body suddenly felt very great and light. He had been in bed for over two weeks and woke up without any discomfort.

Tanaka smacked himself on the cheek, confirming whether he could be awake or still in dreamland.

Tanaka could feel it, the punch hurt. Or so it was expected at the beginning where the reality was just hot.

However, the important thing here was that he could feel the effects of the blow. Even though it doesn't hurt too much, the hot feeling can be proof that he's awake.

“This is so real! Haha, I can even sleep for fifteen days without eating or even drinking!"

Tanaka was once again shocked and tried to accept the current situation. He became a different person from the person he used to be when he was a hikikomori.

Even though Tanaka could accept such a strange fact, he was still someone who wanted more clarity. Internal factors that are still question marks are ignored for a while.

Tanaka's body moved from the front of the glass to the chair facing the laptop. Tanaka wanted to seek external information regarding the current outside situation.

Perhaps this was not experienced by Tanaka alone. Or maybe something great happened out there where there were selected people who got powers like in the stories Tanaka used to read.

The laptop is on, the mouse is controlled by the man eager for information. The cursor accurately clicks the browser and goes to the search field very quickly.

Tanaka's typing was no less fast. The keyword 'supernatural power' was typed there. The 'enter' key is pressed.

However, what appears on the screen is not the result of a keyword search. It is a notification that the device is not connected to the internet.

"Ha? Why is my internet connection disconnected?"

Somewhat annoyed Tanaka said. He felt that he had already paid the god of the month of May.

However, remember that today has entered the month of June.

"Could it be because I forgot to pay the monthly rent to the boarding house? But why is the wifi not active at all? Looks like I have to protest to the landowner later!"

Usually Tanaka will be kicked out of the wifi network if he doesn't pay. However, the boarding house's wifi will always be on.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

It's a different story from today. There is not a single live internet hotspot network. Even some of the neighbors are not on the list.

The only way Tanaka the hikikomori gets information from the outside world is now cut off. There is no other way to find information except by leaving the room.

Tanaka is now sleeping. There is nothing to do other than to do normal activities. Sleep, imagine something, view a collection of videos that have been downloaded or just practice using other applications.

In thought, Tanaka remembered something. It was the condition of his stomach that was still gurgling indicating that he still needed more food.

"Well, I guess it's fine to go out in the afternoon too,"

Learning from yesterday's experience, Tanaka decided not to go out during the day. He didn't want to feel that really uncomfortable body condition anymore.

Carrying his wallet and other things, Tanaka came out of his room. One thing that was missing when he searched was his daily outfit and plague doctor mask.

"For some reason, my t-shirt can change color!"

Tanaka is about to head to the convenience store where he usually buys stock of instant noodles. However, before he goes there, Tanaka decides to meet the landlady to pay the monthly bill.

This is because the secret and identity of Tanaka is already known to the landlady. Tanaka was afraid that something would happen if he didn't pay on time.

"Excuse me, landlady!"

Tanaka called him at the door of the boarding house's room. After calling, Tanaka then knocked. In fact, Tanaka's habits were quite the opposite of how the world normally worked.

"Landlady!"

Tanaka was still calling, but there was no answer at all. To Tanaka, this was a strange thing.

That's right, usually the landlady would immediately open the door excitedly when she heard Tanaka's voice. It wasn't because Tanaka was handsome or anything, but because he knew that Tanaka would want to pay the monthly fee.

"Could he be asleep?"

Tanaka asked in his heart.

"I'll try one more time,"

replied Tanaka who was still the same, unspoken.

"Excuse me, landlady!"

Still the same. There was no answer even though Tanaka had knocked louder than before.

"Ah, maybe the landlady is returning home!"

That was Tanaka's final conclusion. After he thought back, maybe that was also the reason why the boarding house's wifi was turned off. Things to do to save electricity.

"Well, then it's time to go to the convenience store!"

Because he could not meet the boarding house, Tanaka decided to continue to his original destination. Purchase food stock.

Tanaka came out of the boarding house. While closing the gate, Tanaka noticed that there was some damage in the area around the boarding house. Tanaka didn't really care about that, but it was clear that when the landlady returned she would be furious.

The distance between Tanaka's boarding house to the mini market is about three kilometers. The distance is not too far if only taken by vehicle. Unfortunately, Tanaka always travels on foot.

On the way, Tanaka noticed something different. To him, it was very strange.

Many vehicles are lying without passengers on the streets. Some even get off the road and hit certain objects.

"What happened while I was in hibernation?"

Tanaka said, confused. He continued to walk on the sidewalk which sometimes could be seen there were traces of blood there.

"Could there be a riot?"

Guess Tanaka with his hypothesis from the evidence of the blood trail and the chaos around. With such a desolate condition, Tanaka thought that there might be a riot in that place and the place was temporarily closed.

"This is terrible! Is the mini market still open?"

Tanaka was worried that the shop wouldn't open due to the surrounding conditions. Hastily moving his feet to the minimarket which is approximately two kilometers away.

The surroundings were still the same as before, some were even worse.

When Tanaka arrived near the convenience store, you could say he was both surprised and confused.

The first thing that caught his attention was the shattered glass outside of the convenience store with many traces of blood around it. It really was dried blood.

"I think there was a riot when I was hibernating,"

Tanaka began to replace his long sleep designation with the term hibernation. That's right, sleeping for more than two weeks without food or drink. It felt as if he was hibernating.

"What the hell, what is the government doing to get a riot like this!"

Tanaka was surprised as he walked towards the door of the convenience store. The smell of dried blood could be smelled by Tanaka who passed by.

"What about the police, what are they doing? They don't even put up a crime scene sign or anything. Is it because they weren't paid for this? I mean what the hell is this?"

Tanaka tried to process the information. However, from his remarks he tried to place the responsibility directly on the government and its staff.

"Is there still anyone around here?"

Tanaka asked in his heart. He tried to find information related to the things that were happening around for sure.

Tanaka checked left and right. On the right, when Tanaka faced the convenience store, there was a person standing there.

From his appearance, he looked like an office worker. He was facing the direction of Tanaka who was approaching him, in other words he had his back to Tanaka at this time.

The office man's posture looks down. With a sizeable build, he was most likely in his thirties.

"Um, sorry sir, I wanted to ask a question. Actually what- hii!"

Before he could finish asking, Tanaka who was already nearby was surprised when the man suddenly turned around.

The thing that surprised Tanaka was not due to internal factors such as Tanaka's active hikikomori side. The thing that surprised the hikikomori was the sight where the office man's face was covered with blood and some kind of pus.

"So, sir, I don't know about today's medical standards, but I think you need to call the hospital for treatment!"

Tanaka said to the man who was clearly visible in front of him now.

In detail, he is indeed an office worker. However, he is not an office worker in normal condition.

The left side of the office man's body turned out to be badly injured and torn. His right hand also looks like it's rotting from the front.

“Hraauuu… Hrauu…”

The man replied vaguely. Tanaka was confused about what the man meant.

At a glance, Tanaka thought that the man was a zombie. However, since the office man didn't attack, Tanaka had a different opinion.

"Did he give some kind of code?"

Due to his slurred speech, Tanaka thought that the office man was giving him some strange code.

The office man turned around again after that with his back to Tanaka as before. Tanaka tried to guess what the man meant.

The surroundings look chaotic. Blood-like liquid that was everywhere. Street theme is like an apocalypse world.

"Could there be a horror parade in this town today?"

A crazy idea crossed Tanaka's mind.

Parade horror, meaning that the whole city will be made as chaotic as possible and made as if there was chaos in the city. It was once held in a small town in a certain country which was financed by a large company for the promotion of their films and games.

That explains the reason why the city feels deserted and looks like chaos everywhere.

Most likely people are going to the city center to celebrate the parade by costume according to the horror theme. In his case, it's possible that people are currently cosplaying as zombies.

"Then why doesn't this man get together with the others?"

Tanaka was astonished by this oddity. However, a few things crossed his mind.

Tanaka tapped the man on the shoulder with the excuse that he wanted to give the man a thumbs up. Yup, for Tanaka it's a way of complimenting him that he's cool for being a loner instead of joining in on the crowd.

"Hugraaaa!"

When the man turned around, he suddenly rushed past Tanaka while snarling something. He became like a real zombie the moment Tanaka saw the flesh fall from his mouth.

"Oi calm down bro, I'm just patting you on the shoulder okay… I didn't mean to hurt you!"

Tanaka said that while following the direction the man was moving in. Seen a little far away, or rather in front of the mini market, there is a high school girl standing there.

The high school girl had long black hair tied up. The clothes worn are typical high school uniforms. He was carrying a lot of cup noodles in his arms.

The girl's make-up looks really messed up. His expression looks very surprised by something.

Suddenly the high school girl ran towards the back of the mini market. It turned out that the office man ran after the high school girl.

Tanaka followed the man a little late.

Tanaka tried to guess what really happened. However, it actually made Tanaka do things that would make him regret.

"Hey, wait a minute!"

Said a confused Tanaka to the two people who ran into the alley next to the minimarket.

Tanaka couldn't keep up with their speed. This is because Tanaka's body control is still not perfect due to the incident when he was hibernating.

“Wait a minute sir, if you really want to cosplay zombies shouldn't you scare me too! What the hell is just picking a high school girl to be the target. I'm not that envious or anything but isn't that a bit picky even for me who's a hikikomori!”

Tanaka said quite loudly. Tanaka thought that the man had been assigned to be a guard in some kind of parade game. However, it turns out that the target is only a high school girl.

It was a misunderstanding.

"KYAAAAAAAAA-Aghhh!"

There was a very loud scream coming from the back side of the convenience store. Tanaka who was currently in the alley could hear it clearly.

"Something's not right here!"

thought Tanaka. However, the screaming sound just now didn't sound like a normal scream. The voice that Tanaka heard felt very real and serious.

As soon as Tanaka reached the back area of the convenience store, he saw a group of people huddled in a semi-circle on the side of the wall.

"Wait, why are there so many people?"

The curious Tanaka tried to approach the crowd. He was actually quite hesitant because he still didn't fully understand what was happening.

"What are they doing?"

Tanaka tried to get close to something that was the center of the mob.

"Hraa... Grau!"

"Ouch, sorry sir what are you doing there?"

"Aghh- help me"

Tanaka heard a female voice from behind the crowd. The clear low voice sounded very sad.

Tanaka quickly realized that the situation was more serious than he had just thought.

Tanaka tries to get into the crowd to check on the girl's condition. Tanaka, who is just a hikikomori, tries to break through the human flesh fortress who is cosplaying like a zombie.

Or so he had thought.

"Wow, you old men, how dare you commit indecent acts in public in the afternoon like this!"

Tanaka snapped boldly at the men she drew.

"You guys should be damn ashamed, aren't you afraid if any of these eyewitnesses will report to the police… Look at me you guys- Oi why are you still continuing!"

The man who had just been pulled by Tanaka returned to the mob without paying any heed to Tanaka's words. Tanaka then tried to really mediate between them.

"Do you think a hikikomori would be afraid whe-n re-po-rt-ing,"

Tanaka stuttered at the last word. It happened when Tanaka reached the inside of the mob.

It wasn't rape as Tanaka thought.

That's much worse.

"Damn it... Let him go, damn it!"

Tanaka's body moved on its own, throwing the people who had been clustered together. A power that Tanaka still hadn't realized was triggered when he saw the pathetic sight of the girl who was seriously injured from being bitten by the crowd.

Tanaka manages to mediate the girl with the mob. Tanaka immediately checked his condition.

Unfortunately he was late.

The girl's life has been lost. There was no heartbeat, breath or reaction from Tanaka's check.

“You bastards what the hell with that oi!”

Tanaka gets emotional. He hit one of the biggest looking people.

Tanaka beat up the big man while saying one word for each punch.

“You… are... so… ugly… you… fucking… office worker, damn it!”

Yes, the person Tanaka beat up was in office attire with a suit. Most likely he was an important person.

However, even so Tanaka had beaten the man very badly. All of his teeth fell out and for some reason his face was quite protruding into a kind of crook.

'My life is over!'

That's what Tanaka thought as he realized what he was doing.

However, no matter what happened, Tanaka felt that what he had done just now wasn't wrong.

“You know, I wouldn't actually be doing this if you guys stopped her. But, look at you guys. What have you done to that high school girl over there!”

Tanaka pointed at the dead high school girl.

Or so it happened a moment ago. What Tanaka was pointing at now was not a corpse of a high school girl but a high school student who was already standing with blood dripping from his wounds.

Tanaka was confused. However, he thought of something else odd.

"Oh, you're fine. Hahaha… so from the start it was just an act huh?”

Said Tanaka to be sure. However, Tanaka felt that he had done something very bad.

Yup, he just beat up one of the guys he now thinks is an actor.

"You should have said that from the start. Oh, right I'm sorry sir I hit you so hard. I beg you very much, I'm sorry!"

Tanaka looked down at the office man he had beaten earlier.

“Grauuu gra~”

“Hurrraaa~ huraa~”

“Kwraa, raa~”

“Hraauuu-hrau~”

There was no human answer from among them. Even the man who had a broken face from Tanaka's punch stood casually as if nothing had happened just now.

"Is it just me that's weird or is this world really weird already?"

Tanaka asked, astonished at what had actually happened. Tanaka had actually thought about the hypothesis that they were zombies.

However, there was something strange if he thought of it that way.

Why was he not targeted by them?

"Is it normal nowadays to bite a girl in public like before?"

Tanaka still wants to refute the hypothesis that this incident is a story like the one in the online zombie story that he read.

However, in retrospect, Tanaka clearly saw that the high school girl's jugular vein had been pulled out. Even if it was an extraordinary technology, it would still be very difficult to create such an engineering.

No cameras around. This means that there is no shooting scene there.

Upon further recall, what Tanaka smelled was indeed the smell of dried blood. The memory was synchronized with Tanaka's incident in the past where he saw an accident and helped evacuate victims.

Zombie guy and normal high school girl. When left for a while, the girl looks like she was eaten by them and suddenly joins in acting like a zombie.

The blood that came out of their bodies turned out to be genuine. There are even some that appear to have their internal organs come out.

They say things that are not clear.

"And more importantly, the boarding house's wifi is turned off!"

Tanaka snapped.

Tanaka finally draws the conclusion that a zombie apocalypse is happening. Leaving aside the question of why he wasn't targeted by a single zombie.