Surviving in a World Teeming with Monsters with the Useless Skill 【Everyday Items Master】! I Was Just Hunting Wild Animals with a Crowbar, So Why Is Everyone Screaming It's an S-Rank Monster? - 110

Chapter 110: Trump Zombie

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The ones who got into the car were me, Botan, Angel, and our driver Shachimaru—four people total. The distance of Ui’s teleportation magic used to cover in an instant now took more than ten minutes by car. Losing that convenience really drove home just how useful her skill was.

As for the capture plan, we had left it entirely to Angel. Maybe she was just that experienced now—she answered with a simple, “Got it,” without hesitation. That kind of confidence was reassuring.

After a while, Angel spoke.

“The things we need to watch out for are Luna’s brainwashing and Inaba-san’s teleportation magic. As long as we keep those in mind, I think we can win without much trouble.”

“Whoa…”

A blunt and bold declaration. 

Seriously, this girl is really dependable.

“And what’s the reasoning behind that?”

When I asked for details, Angel began to explain.

“First, Luna’s brainwashing. To be honest, we’re not entirely sure how it works, but judging from what we’ve heard, it probably won’t affect you if you don’t make eye contact with her and avoiding eye contact is easy, right?”

“Ahh, yeah, I mean, the way I fell for it the first time really felt like a cheap trick.”

Shachimaru chimed in, and I nodded along. Avoiding the brainwashing didn’t sound too difficult.

“Even if you do get brainwashed, dying seems to break it. I’ve got some other ideas too, but try to avoid it if possible.”

“If possible, huh…”

I thought it over. If I got brainwashed and ended up fighting these three…

“…”

It would take me two seconds to kill Angel, ten seconds for Shachimaru and thirty seconds for Botan. 

That’s really bad. …What should I do? If dying undoes it, maybe I should just off myself. We can be resurrected, after all.

Angel took a sip of her drink and continued.

“Next up is Inaba-san’s teleportation magic. The tricky part is if we gain the upper hand, and she will use it to evacuate everyone.”

“Teleportation users are pretty good at running away. Even I wouldn’t be able to catch them.” 

Botan added. Angel nodded at her comment.

“That’s why we have to take Inaba-san out first—and without giving her a chance to resist. If we can do that, we will basically win this fight.”

“Simple and effective.”

“Right? But that fashionable goblin guy seems clever, so he’ll probably try to protect Inaba-san. Just be careful about that.”

It didn’t seem all that complicated, honestly. I nodded several times, digesting the plan in my mind. Then Angel turned to Shachimaru and asked.

“Changing the subject a bit—Shachimaru-san, how much information did you gather during that earlier scan?”

“Hmm? I’ve got everything in my head about the targets we hit with the rain scan across the entire quarantine zone.”

“Wow…”

Angel wasn’t just surprised—she looked almost disturbed by Shachimaru’s casual answer.

Yeah. I get that. It’s kind of unsettling. He’s just too good.

Angel pressed further.

“Do you have information on the people who were following us?”

“You mean those government folks? Sorry, but no. That’s the weak point of rain scanning. If they stay indoors until the rain stops, they don’t get caught.”

“I see… Got it. Thanks.”

“Ah, not at all. I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help to Zakomiya Ane-san.”

When Shachimaru said this humbly, Angel responded with a complaint.

“Taku! I can’t deal with this! Shachimaru-san is older than me, but he uses polite speech with me and makes me speak casually! It’s so awkward!”

“Not much we can do. That’s his request.”

Yep. That’s the reason Angel, though younger, speaks to him informally while Shachimaru uses formal language—it’s his own preference. Why, you ask?

“Well, can’t be helped. If you’re a woman that Aniki is close with, that makes you Ane-san to me. Feel free to treat me like your errand boy.”

“So awkward!”

Angel scratched her head in frustration. It was pretty entertaining from an outside perspective. Still, the situation was serious enough. Time to stop messing around. I turned to Angel and asked.

“You think those guys… Do you think we might run into Team Ashura?”

“Of course I do. Botan already ran into them multiple times and I bet they’re diligently analyzing our DM data just like we expected.”

“Doesn’t that just mean they’re wasting time while we move ahead?”

“Exactly. Given the conditions of the quarantine zone, this is the fastest method. We only beat them thanks to Botan’s raw strength. That’s why I think they’ll try to interfere at some point.”

I thought about it and then I said. 

“If it were me, I’d strike when we let our guard down the most.”

“Meaning?”

“That should be obvious. The moment humans are most vulnerable is—”

Just as I was about to finish my thought, Shachimaru shouted.

“Everyone, hold on tight!”

“Huh? Whoaaa!?”

The car swerved sharply. Caught off guard, I turned to Shachimaru.

“Wh-What happened!? Shachimaru, what’s going on!?”

“Some jerk just jumped out in front of us—HEY, WHAT THE HELL! You tryin’ to get yourself killed!?”

Shachimaru opened the window and instantly turned into a foul-mouthed tough guy. It was terrifying. I followed his gaze and saw a man standing in the road.

He looked like your average adventurer, but something was off—his eyes were vacant, and he looked dazed. His mouth moved, muttering something in a tiny voice.

“HEY! SAY SOMETHING, DAMMIT! YOU IGNORING ME, HUH!? YOU WANNA DIE, PUNK!?”

“Shachimaru, stay. Something’s not right. And also, your gangster act is scary.”

“S-Sorry, Aniki. My Osaka blood kicked in…”

“Yeah, yeah…”

The man started shambling toward our car—toward me, specifically.

“Uh, me?”

I rolled down the window to meet him, and then I understood what he was saying.

“Trump… Trumptrumptrumptrumptrumptrumptrumptrumptrumptrumptrump…”

He kept repeating “trump,” his eyes glowing pink.

“What the—? Hey!”

“TRUMP!”

The adventurer grabbed my collar violently, locking eyes with me using those glowing pink eyes. I grimaced and started resisting. I drew my kitchen knife.

【Deadly Kitchen Knife】

I plunged the blade into his elbow, gave it a quick twist, severed the arm, then grabbed and threw it back at him, stunning him. Then, with that dazed expression still on his face, I jumped from my seat and kicked him through the window with my full weight.

“Trump!”

The adventurer flew back. Botan, Angel, and Shachimaru all gasped.

“Taku!? What was that just now—”

“Shachimaru! Step on it! This is bad!”

“R-Right! Aniki!”

Shachimaru slammed the gas pedal, and the car shot forward. Then Botan asked me.

“Taku, are you okay?”

“Y-Yeah. But it’s like something really revolting is crawling up my spine…”

It wasn’t fear exactly—more like revulsion. That skin-crawling feeling, like seeing a swarm of bugs. Shivering, I rubbed my arm. Botan called my name.

“Taku!”

“W-What?”

“Let me see your face.”

I turned toward her, and she grabbed my face with a frown.

“Taku, your eyes are glowing pink.”

“What?! That must be Luna’s—”

Angel’s eyes widened. I flinched. A nasty sensation crept from my eyes to my brain. My sense of self began to blur… I immediately raised the knife toward myself.

“I’m gonna kill myself! Please handle the resurrection!”

“TAKU! Wait—”

Botan’s eyes went wide. I pointed the knife at myself, aimed for the brain. But Angel quickly said.

“WHAAAT!? You can’t even break free from that level of brainwashing on your own? What a scrub~!”

【Taunt】

“You little—HOW DARE YOU INSULT MY RESOLVE!”

“Kyaaa!”

I lunged at Angel. Botan quickly restrained me.

“Taku, calm down. That was the 『Taunt』 skill.”

I looked toward the window. The pink glow in my eyes had vanished.

“Phew… It was a gamble, but I’m glad it worked!”

Angel let out a breath of relief. I blinked. 

“Huh? What just happened?”

Angel explained.

“You were still the early stage of brainwashing, so I used the 『Taunt』 skill to override it. I figured I had a shot since 『Taunt』skill have a faster reaction effect.”

“Angel, you’re incredible.”

She could change the public’s opinion through livestreams and now she proved to us that she could cancel the enemy’s brainwashing. This girl might be unbeatable at underhanded tactics.

“But judging by how it felt, it probably only works against very early-stage brainwashing. Like, right after it happens.”

“Still… Knowing we’re safe from it now is a huge relief.”

If we could use that to snap Ui and Fashionable Goblin out of it too, things would be a lot easier—but that was probably too much to hope for. Then Shachimaru raised a question.

“…Sorry if this is dumb, but I thought only Luna-chan could do the brainwashing. Why would some random adventurer be able to brainwash Aniki—”

While he was driving and speaking, I noticed something strange outside. My expression stiffened.

“Shachimaru, can you go faster?”

“Aniki? What’s wro—whoa!”

The window on Shachimaru’s side was suddenly struck. I looked and saw adventurers gathering in droves. And all of them… Had glowing pink eyes.

“Wh-What the hell!? Get lost, you bastards!”

Shachimaru shouted back despite his panic. I turned to my side of the car. Adventurers were gathering there too. But beyond them, at the intersection up ahead, I saw a few chasing someone.

An adventurer, still in his right mind, shouting at the swarm of adventurers as he ran.

“What’s wrong with you guys!?” 

They caught up, knocked him down in seconds, and when he stood back up… His eyes glowed pink like the others, murmuring “trump, trump” as he came our way.

I shouted.

“Shachimaru! Full speed ahead! Run them down if you have to! Just get us out of here!”

“A-Aniki!?”

Shachimaru hesitated, but I yelled again.

“Luna’s brainwashing is spreading like a zombie virus! They’re all under her control!”

“Then screw it! Anyone who jumps in front of this car is getting flattened!”

Shachimaru floored the gas, mowing down a few of them as we sped away.

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