I’m In A World Infested By Zombies… But I Have Special Perks As A Formerly Isekai’d Person!

Chapter 14: Kirigaoka Agricultural High School

Once Hayato finished arranging the supplies he brought, Oomori sat in an empty chair and gestured for Hayato to take a seat as well.

Hayato complied and sat down, and Oomori solemnly began to speak.

“To learn how to obtain gasoline, you should discuss it with Kobayashi-sensei when you leave.”

“Understood.”

Oomori cast a glance towards Kobayashi, who was in the staff room, and Kobayashi raised his right hand.

Hayato responded, and Oomori nodded.

“Now, I’d like to tell you about the current situation at the school, which we are dealing with, and share it with Kumakura-kun, who has become involved in business with us.”

“Yes.”

In the staff room, there were several teachers, including Kobayashi.

However, since this wasn’t a secret conversation, Oomori started speaking without concern.

“First, the basics. Before the zombie outbreak, Kirigaoka Agricultural High School had about 450 students, with roughly 70% of them living in the dormitories. The reason for the large number of dormitory students is that taking care of the cattle and crops requires them to live on campus, as commuting from home would be difficult.”

Hayato had mentioned during his previous visit that he had graduated from Kirigaoka High. Since Kirigaoka High was a general education school, Oomori could infer that Hayato wasn’t familiar with agricultural schools, so he started explaining the basics.

In fact, Hayato didn’t know much about dorm life or why students would live in dormitories. However, after hearing this, he began to form a vague picture of the current situation at Kirigaoka Agricultural High School.

— The reason for having many students might be because they originally lived here, and the dorms were part of the setup.

If the students had evacuated from their homes to the school after the outbreak, it would be unnatural not to see their families. But if they had been living in the dorms all along, it wouldn’t be strange for only students to be present.

Even with the zombie outbreak, houses wouldn’t be immediately destroyed, and services like electricity, gas, and water wouldn’t necessarily stop. If the houses were intact and there was enough food, people would try to maintain their situation.

In fact, civilization hadn’t collapsed until two years after the zombie outbreak.

While observing Hayato as he pondered this, Oomori continued.

“After the outbreak, the supply of fuel gradually stopped, and distribution became difficult. We couldn’t receive any support from the government in terms of water or food, so we were forced to become self-sufficient. However, the evacuees also went to the shelters designated by the government, so we managed to make it work.”

“I see.”

“We can be self-sufficient in food here. But what do you think the students’ families would do in this situation?”

“If you can’t provide an environment where food is available, they would probably take their children back.”

Oomori spoke in a manner resembling that of a teacher, and Hayato responded like a student.

Hayato’s answer seemed to meet Oomori’s expectations, as he nodded.

“Many of the parents of students attending an agricultural high school are involved in primary industries. Some students who returned to their homes were, of course, in that situation.”

“Yes, if someone attends an agricultural high school, their family is likely involved in agriculture. A classmate from middle school, for example, had a rice field at home.”

If a student’s family was involved in agriculture, they would already have access to more food than they could obtain at the agricultural school.

Humans can’t live on rice alone, but they could exchange rice for vegetables grown in fields, for instance.

Additionally, the family would likely want the labor force that their child would provide by attending the agricultural school.

It was uncertain how long they could maintain that setup in a world where zombies were increasing, but there must have been a time when students chose to return to their homes.

“Even teachers had family members to return to. Now, we have about 200 teachers and students living here.”

The current situation at Kirigaoka Agricultural High School seemed to be a continuation of this.

Oomori took a breath and quietly continued.

“Kirigaoka Agricultural High School has a policy of not accepting evacuees.”

Oomori’s words were filled with firm resolve.

Hayato raised an eyebrow in surprise but silently nodded, encouraging Oomori to continue.

“The food we produce here matches the consumption needs of the 200 teachers and students living here. If we accept more people, the balance would be disrupted, and we would all starve.”

Oomori and the other teachers were experts at teaching agriculture. They could surely calculate food production and consumption down to the finest detail.

Cutting back on food would harm health, and even if someone got sick, there would be no way to treat them.

It was also possible that crops would fail due to bad weather.

If those maintaining the group had already taken all of this into account and said, “This is the limit,” Hayato understood that it was likely the truth.

“And if food runs low, we’d have to go outside to procure more. We can’t have teachers sending students to do something so dangerous.”

It’s common sense that teachers cannot send students to risk their lives, based on law and ethics.

Teachers have a responsibility to care for and ensure the safety of students under their supervision. This is considered ethical, and they undergo training before and after obtaining their teaching licenses.

If someone chooses to become a teacher, they likely had ideals and beliefs about it.

It would be natural for teachers who were trained in education to hesitate before sending students into a world overrun by zombies.

“We can’t ask teachers to go either. If things are so dire that we are certain to starve, we might hesitate, but if food production can avoid that situation, we’ll choose that option.”

“That seems like a reasonable approach.”

Therefore, if they chose not to accept evacuees, it seemed like a very reasonable decision, and Hayato was convinced.

Seeing that Hayato understood, Oomori’s tone returned to a calm state.

“Making exceptions would lead to endless demands. We won’t even accept family members of teachers or students.”

“You’re not accepting the students’ parents either?”

“That’s right. If parents come, we’ll give them the food we have, and they can take their children. If they want to leave the student behind, that would be no different from the current situation, so we’ll accept them.”

The reason for giving the food to the parents was likely that the students were producing it, and taking away a student would reduce their food supply.

Food was precious, but Hayato didn’t find it strange that the parents would receive food when coming to pick up their child.

“…If parents come with zombies, we won’t open the gate. We want them to come safely when picking up their children.”

Perhaps there had been instances in the past where parents arrived at the school while being chased by zombies.

If parents arrived while being chased by zombies and demanded, “Let us have our child now,” both the teacher handing over the student and the student being handed over would be in a difficult situation.

If the gate were opened and zombies got inside, the whole school would be in chaos.

“Now, let me explain the situation here at Kirigaoka Agricultural High School. I’ll tell you what we’re producing. In other words, I’ll explain what we could exchange when you bring supplies like the ones you’ve brought for us.”

“I see. So that’s what this is about.”

Hayato fully understood Oomori’s explanation up until this point.

It seemed Oomori wanted to convey to Hayato, who had brought supplies like bandages, saboteurs, electronic measuring instruments, and salt, that “While we can’t accept evacuees, we are still open to trading goods besides the battery exchange.”

“Kirigaoka Agricultural High School has a vast farm where we produce seasonal crops. For example, in the rice fields, we grow rice, and in the vegetable garden, we grow various vegetables. In the orchard, we harvest apples and mandarins, and in the mushroom farm, we also grow shiitake mushrooms.”

“That’s impressive, especially in this situation.”

In a world overrun by zombies, eating a variety of vegetables and fruits was an enormous luxury.

Hayato also had food from another world, but it couldn’t compare to what the agricultural school produced.

And the agricultural school was able to produce much more than just that.

“Kirigaoka also raises cattle, which provides milk. We turn it into cheese and butter.”

“Are you still able to raise cattle?”

“We have feed crops on the premises. Additionally, cow dung can be used as fertilizer. This is our area of expertise.”

“I’m impressed.”

Hayato had originally come to the agricultural school seeking knowledge about battery exchange, but now, in this world overrun by zombies, it seemed there might be more important things to learn from an agricultural school.

He started to realize this only now.

“The sports ground was used for exercise, but after the zombies appeared, we moved soil from the surrounding area and turned it into farmland. This increased our production.”

“…I see, it’s possible if it’s from the rice field right next to the school.”

Since they had actually done it, it seemed they had succeeded.

While prioritizing safety, they were still managing to do what was necessary, and Hayato began to reassess his view of Kirigaoka Agricultural High School.

“The premises are supplied with water from a river, which is sufficient for agricultural production. We also have well water, so there’s no problem with drinking water.”

“Drawing from a natural river is quite powerful.”

“Also, we have solar power generation, so we’re securing some electricity. The electric pump is used to bring up well water, and we can do greenhouse cultivation and refrigerated storage as well.”

“You’ve managed to maintain civilization.”

“At a minimum, yes. But in reality, we’re running low on consumables.”

“I see.”

Hayato considered the supplies he had recovered from the drugstore and understood.

Without things like tissues or toilet paper, people would be in trouble.

Hair growth and regrowth treatments could be sacrificed, but sanitary products were certainly necessary.

If Hayato brought consumables, it seemed likely that they would be happy to trade them for vegetables and fruits.

“The materials for reinforcing the fence around the premises were obtained by trading our produce. We’re still trading with some groups.”

“I understand.”

Hayato thought that exchanging things like plant seeds for what he could gather might be a viable option.

That’s how he thought about it.