World's Away

The group soon learns from Takashi and Rei that the government had essentially splintered into many smaller factions led by their respective leaders. These factions owned military installations and everything that involved that, meaning they had access to an arsenal of guns, vehicles, and other useful things.

A few of these groups were actually fighting with Takashi's group to try and reclaim the city, since Takashi's territory was almost directly in the center and had long been cleared of zombies, it was now the perfect place to set up for future operations.

The high buildings, tough structures, and relatively good condition streets made it essentially an urban fortress. Anyone invading the area would have to fight against 'Urban Guerrilla Warfare', something Takashi's group had gotten quite good at apparently.

There were makeshift bridges, ladders, and stairs that led from one rooftop to the next, allowing Takashi's group to always have the high ground advantage. They'd also barricaded the first floor of most buildings, making it difficult to reach the rooftop unless you knew the secret entrances and paths.

There was also the ability to hide and ambush to take into account... When you're surrounded by buildings and windows, you'd have no idea where suppressed gunshots were coming from, especially if there was no muzzle flash.

To make things even more difficult for invaders, Takashi's group had actually trapped zombies randomly in the first floors of buildings while collapsing the stairs leading upwards. This meant that any unprepared force attempting to reach the rooftops much just run straight into a horde... These preparations were the main reason why Takashi's group had thrived and lasted this long despite their rather minimal supplies.

For the information, Michael shared some fresh meat and vegetables with the duo, having Tiffania cook it up with all the spices that you couldn't get in the apocalypse. Saya then eagerly recalled her adventures to them, taking great satisfaction in Rei's jealous and angry reactions.

She showed them some spells, some artifacts, some books, and even some photos she'd taken with Tiffania, causing the survivors to gape at the alternate world that was denied to them. This wasn't really a factor anymore since the Daedric Princes were forced from Tamriel, Michael could take them with him if he wanted... But he was pretty against it anyway...

Michael also introduced Megumin and Tiffania to them properly this time. And both were surprised to learn that Megumin was summoned from a different world entirely. The explosion girl told them a couple stories of her home world, and barely managed to keep her chuunibyu side from showing, though, from her outfit it was kind of self-explanatory.

They both seemed to like Tiffania, comparing her to the kind, big-boobed, air-headed nurse Marikawa, who apparently served as a doctor over in the Takagi estate with her girlfriend Rika Minami.

During the time he and the others spent there, it was obvious that Rei wasn't happy with her situation... Sure, she loved Takashi, but love only went so far when you lacked toilet paper... While they did have access to electricity, it wasn't enough that they could waste it on nonessential things, especially when some members of their group were denied that luxury entirely.

Michael felt kinda awkward the way Rei kept eying him up, Takashi's uncomfortable shuffling made it apparent he felt it too. Whether or not she saw him romantically, or just a free ticket out of the hellhole she found herself in, he wasn't interested.

"Has anyone told you that you're ageing nicely?" Rei asks Michael, causing the atmosphere to still...

"So, what happened to Busujima?" Takashi asks, attempting to change the subject.

"Her? Well, she's like something from a Shounen Anime... As soon as she learned this language she left and joined a mercenary group called the Companions... Then she left them to wander the desert in search of 'Ancient Martial Arts'... Then she ACTUALLY finds them! Comes back, cuts a dragon's arm off, and is now trying to bang Michael here!" Saya quickly explains events.

"I see.... Why isn't she here then? Did she not want to visit?" he asks, sounding sad at the lost opportunity.

Michael shrugs, "Probably, there isn't much left in this world for her. No family, no enemies..."

"No enemies? Zombies still exist you know, plus the other survivors that're actually worse most of the time!" Rei states, quietly stewing in indignant anger.

Michael shakes his head, "No enemies, meaning, no one worth her attention... I don't think you understand just how strong she's gotten. She CUT the wing off of a dragon. A creature bigger than a tank, can fly, can use incredibly powerful magic, and has scales stronger than most metals you can think of... She did this with a sword, no magic involved."

"But, it hasn't been that long... How has she gotten that strong?" Takashi asks as his own improvement in comparison made him feel like jumping off of the roof.

"Plot armour." Saya mutters, knowing that she couldn't fight Saeko at her current level... She was a researcher, not a fighter, even with magic involved.

"Well, it's partly because the world is bathed in magic, passively enhancing the physiques of everyone in it. She also fought in large-scale warfare against some angry elves that think themselves superior to everyone else." Michael shakes his head, "Anyway, unless there's something else, I think we should head to the Takagi Estate, I'm kind of interested in what Kohta's gotten up to."

"I'll see if my parents are alright... Papa is stupid enough to think standing on the frontlines is a good idea, even when people are shooting at you..." Saya says.

"A-are you sure? D-don't you want to stick around and relax for a bit? You said that this was your vacation right?" Takashi stumbles over his words.

"Yeah, it's better here than that concentration camp they call a 'base'." Rei adds, locking eyes with Michael.

Michael stands, "We're good. Plus, this place can hardly be called 'Vacation worthy', if Saya didn't have family here I don't think we would've come back at all.