The unyielding spirit

"Kusoo... What should I do?!" A few tables and chairs were scattered randomly in front of the door, and a young man with spiked hair could be seen tugging at his hair in frustration over the current situation. He kept pacing before a girl with bangs curled on the floor. The noisy sounds from the door made them unaware of the commotion on the top floor of the extracurricular building.

"Enough, Riku... We're still going to die." The long-haired girl spoke up. Her eyes were dull, just like before. It was clear she had given up, with no trace of life left flowing through her veins. Her words caused the young man with an upside-down triangle tattoo on both cheeks to stop pacing immediately.

"Nao-chan, you can't say that." Riku approached the girl, speaking gently, as if he didn't want her to fall too deep into despair.

Nao lifted her face when she heard Riku call her name with the -chan suffix. She stared at him momentarily, then looked back down at the floor.

"We can't give up, Nao... no matter what, we can't." Again, Riku's soft words passed through Nao's ears, but she still didn't lift her gaze from the dusty, worn-out floor.

"But... we-" "Say that you won't give up, Nao." Riku interrupted the words about to come from Nao's mouth.

"Riku... I-"

"Say it now, Nao. Say that you'll never give up." Riku insisted, trying to convince her and revive the spirit that had curled up deep inside her heart. Riku wouldn't give up on saving Nao from the growing despair swallowing her more and more.

"But I... can't. I can't, Riku." Nao tightened her grip on her chest, making her uniform wrinkle.

"You can, Nao... you can..." Riku gently lifted Nao's chin to face him, forcing her amethyst eyes to meet his. He tried to convey his determination through his gaze.

"You know, Nao? I've never given up until now because I always remember someone's words."

"S...someone?"

"Yes... someone. Someone foolish and careless. Someone who never got good grades at school. Someone who didn't understand the rules and was very noisy." Nao started to listen closely to Riku's story. Her anxiety began to lessen gradually, replaced by the calm Riku was sharing through his gaze.

"Even though he was stupid, he had something... Something that no one else had."

"Something... that no one else has?" Nao asked softly.

"Yes, Nao... something. Something that no one else has. And that something is... an unyielding spirit."

"An... unyielding spirit?" Nao asked again, sounding awkward. Still, Riku gave her his best smile.

"I learned from him, Nao-chan. I learned not to give up on anything. You know? That person is my good friend, who told me to get you out of the classroom."

"Your friend... told you... to save me?"

"Yes... Nao-chan. That person is... Ryuji Nakamura, the idiot and also my friend." Riku smiled gently, finishing his story. However, Nao's expression froze after hearing Riku's words, more precisely, after hearing Riku mention the name of the yellow-haired guy who had briefly disappeared from her thoughts when this bloody incident started.

What shocked her even more was that... the guy who dyed his hair blonde was the one who told Riku to save her. Nao stood frozen now. Her mind was clouded with various questions about that guy. Is he safe? Is he okay? If he's okay, where is he now? And many more questions ran through her mind.

Nao's face fell again as she looked down at the floor. Seeing this, Riku gently stroked the cheek of the girl he liked.

"That's why, Nao. I want you to have the same unyielding spirit that Ryuji has."

"A-I..." Riku waited for the words that would come from Nao's mouth. He waited patiently. Without realizing it, Nao's eyes had tightly closed.

"A-I... I will not give up... I will keep fighting!" She said quietly, her voice weak but firm. Riku smiled at Nao again. Yes, he had succeeded in making Nao rise from her despair. He immediately hugged the girl and gently stroked her long hair. Nao was startled by what the young man in front of her did, but she allowed it so Riku couldn't see the clear tear that slid down her pale cheek. Even though Riku embraced her affectionately, Nao did not return the hug. And unbeknownst to Riku, a soft smile appeared on Nao's beautiful face.

'I will never give up again, Ryuji...-kun.'

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.

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The raven-haired young man could be heard breathing raggedly. Sweat was dripping down his handsome face, and the bat he carried was now covered in congealed blood. Not far from the young man, a blonde-haired guy appeared no different in condition. By now, the sun had set entirely, hiding its beautiful light, soon replaced by the moon's light.

The third floor of Koryo High School had turned into a bloodied floor with many corpses scattered everywhere. It would be a terrifying sight for a child under 7.

"So... what should we do now?" Ryuji started asking as his heartbeat returned to normal.

"For now... we can exchange information about these living corpses." The girl with glasses answered Ryuji's question.

"Information..?"

"Yes, information. We know that destroying their... brains is one way to stop them. Besides that, what do you know?"

After explaining, Mina asked the group for their input. The ones being asked just scratched their cheeks, making the other group members tired of Ryuji's foolishness.

"I think they're attracted to noise. Earlier, when we made noise on this floor, they immediately came and trapped us in the teacher's room." Emi, shocked by Ryuji's foolishness, finally spoke up, sharing her opinion about the creatures.

"Noise, huh? I think there's some truth to that..." Aya-sensei commented while stepping on the student's corpse she had just killed.

"Someone will turn into one of them if bitten, even if it's just a small bite." Takeshi now also joined the conversation. What Takeshi said was true. The six of them could turn into those creatures if bitten by one. Even a tiny bite made you walk like a starving corpse.

"That's right... I saw the students here who turned into savage, flesh-eating creatures, and it all started with a bite. It spread quickly throughout Koryo High School." Aya added.

Not long ago, everything had been calm, with everyone going through their usual teaching process, and the students of Koryo High School were still regular humans. But unexpectedly, a minor incident in the schoolyard had caused everything to turn into a terrifying situation.

"Right now, I still don't know the time interval for those bitten to change," Takeshi added again.

"And also, we haven't been able to contact anyone since earlier. Aside from no signal, we can't even reach the intended number." With his arms crossed and chin resting on his hand in a thinking pose, Ryuji stated an oddity that rarely happened in Tokyo.

Before this bloody incident, it had been difficult for them to use the phone network through their cell phones, whether to call someone or just send a text message. Such an occurrence was very strange to Ryuji, as it was rare for a big, advanced city like Tokyo, with all its complete facilities, to experience communication errors.

"Hmm... I've also been having trouble getting a signal since earlier." Daiki said, shaking a phone in the air.

"Alright, is there anything else besides that?" Mina asked again while adjusting her glasses.

"Um... actually, there's one more thing." Ryuji raised his right hand to interrupt.

"Yes... Nakamura-kun?" Mina responded to Ryuji with a slight smile on her face.

"Um... actually... they like handsome young men like Takeshi-"

Emi's fist immediately landed on Ryuji's head, causing him to grimace in pain while holding his head.

"Enough, Ryuji, stop talking about nonsense!" The others stared in disbelief, including Takeshi, who was next to Ryuji.

'Foolish...' Takeshi mumbled to himself.

"But, Emi... what I said is true. Since earlier, the ones attacking Takeshi have always..."

Once again, Emi's hard punch landed on Ryuji's head. Two lumps immediately appeared on Ryuji's head. Mina could only rub her forehead, watching Ryuji's foolishness.

"Yare... yare. We should leave this school as soon as possible. Isn't that our plan from earlier, Kobayashi-san?" Now, it was Aya-sensei's turn to speak. She reminded everyone of their plan from earlier at the kendo dojo.

"Umm... I think leaving this school is a good idea." Emi agreed with Aya-sensei's group plan. Getting out of this scary place seemed like a good move for now.

"The question is... how are we all going to get out of here?" Takeshi asked coolly, folding his arms and wearing his usual stoic expression.

"We will leave here... using the school bus."

Ryuji, Emi, and Daiki were shocked to hear Mina's idea. Why not? The school bus was the school's private transport. Although it wasn't as big as a city or public bus, it was considered significant enough to hold all of them. Since it was large and enclosed, it would be safer from the undead creatures than walking or using a private car. But this idea never crossed their minds.

"Ahh... that's a good idea, Kobayashi-san. If I'm not mistaken, the key is in the teacher's room." Aya-sensei interjected.

Mina, who had devised the brilliant idea, smiled victoriously at Takeshi, who responded with a slight snicker. The competitive aura between them was apparent. Competing for the title of the most brilliant student in Koryo High School was prestigious for both.

"Alright then, no time to waste. Let's get out of here!" Ryuji said firmly, clapping his hands.

They headed to the teacher's room to find the school bus key. The lights were deliberately kept off because they thought the light would attract the creatures to them. Using their phone screens as a light source, they searched for the small object to help them escape this deathtrap of a school. After a long and challenging search, they still couldn't find the key.

"It seems impossible to find such a small thing like an eraser in this darkness," Daiki muttered, not addressing anyone. Ryuji, after hearing that, lazily responded to Daiki's complaint.

"Enough, Daiki, stop complaining and keep searching."

"Aya-sensei, are you sure the key is in this room?" Mina asked the only teacher in their group.

"Umm... yes, I remember the principal placing it around here," Aya answered while searching the school's storage shelves.

Emi, looking tired, wiped the sweat from her broad forehead. She shared Daiki's thought that searching for a bus key, which was no longer than an adult's hand span, seemed almost impossible in this dark room. If the search continued, it would only be in vain for Emi. However, she didn't voice her thoughts to the others because she knew it would only bring down their spirits. Making them despair was not something Emi wanted.

The remaining people in Koryo High School searched, accompanied by the full moon's glow. The room was bathed in the moonlight's beautiful glow. Although it couldn't light the room's corners, the full moon's light still illuminated their bodies, making it easier for them to see each other.

"Come on... please..." Mina muttered quietly but still audible to the others.

Mina was rummaging through a small cabinet under the desk. She held a light blue phone in her right hand to assist in her search. Her left hand busily searched through every nook and cranny inside. Without realizing it, Ryuji, who was not far from her, walked over to Mina. The bespectacled girl was slightly surprised when Ryuji squatted down next to her.

"Kobayashi-san, let me help..." Ryuji said softly as he took Mina's phone.

"F-Fine..." She said quietly.

Mina seemed awkward when Ryuji was so close to her. As if knowing what Ryuji was about to do, she let go of her grip on the blue phone, allowing Ryuji to take over the lighting task. Ryuji also directed the phone's screen towards the inside of the desk, brightening the area to make it easier for Mina to search for the key. In truth, Ryuji did this only as an excuse because he was too lazy to search. It was such a tedious task for him. Seeing that Mina wasn't too far from him, he immediately began his approach. It was not an approach to get closer to Mina but rather to cover up his reason for not participating in the search for the key, which might take forever. For a brain like Ryuji's, it seemed like a brilliant idea. Could this be considered sneaky? That's up to your interpretation.

"Can you stop calling me by my last name and start using my first name?" Mina whispered to Ryuji, a slight blush on her sweet face. Her voice was barely audible, almost like a whisper to herself. Unfortunately, her voice was too soft for Ryuji to hear, even though he was right next to her.

"Um? Did you say something, Kobayashi-san?" Ryuji asked with his usual clueless expression.

Mina tried to keep her voice from being heard by the others and did her best to suppress her embarrassment when saying that to Ryuji, but that dense yellow-haired kid didn't listen to her. It frustrated Mina. Did she have to repeat herself and hold back her nervousness again?

"Idiot..." She muttered quietly.

"Eh.. uhhh..." Ryuji exhaled softly because he didn't understand what Mina had said. She had spoken so quietly, almost like she was mumbling to herself, then called him 'idiot' when he asked.

'Really strange,' Ryuji thought to himself.

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