13 The Bus and a Surprise - Rika's Apartment II
I made a D*i*s*c*o*r*d server! Before writing any messages please read the rules, there are only FOUR. I'll leave a link here, in a comment on this chapter and in the synopsys.
D*i*s*c*o*r*d Link: https://discord.gg/6a3PqqGUtC
Sorry for the following status screen abuse.
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The next morning, before anyone woke up, Ryo was already working on the Humvee. He was glad he found all the tools he needed in Rika's garage. Screwdrivers, tweezers, saws, screws and even hammers, a grinder and a drill. The most important part was the blowtorch, though. Since with it, he could heat the metal and change its shape to fit the bus better.
He spent from 5 AM to 8 AM dismantling as much from the Humvee as he could in the three hours. When he finally stopped, his body covered in grease from the internals, he decided that he had to check his Status, since he hadn't done so since they left the school.
[Name: Hashimoto Ryo
Level: 1
Strength: 18
Agility: 19
Intelligence: 15
Dexterity: 17
Charisma: 20
Skills: <Essence Reading> <Immesurable Talent> <Cooking (Beginner)> <CQC (Experienced)> <Driving (Expert)> <Kenjutsu (Beginner)> <Mechanic (Expert)>]
He was surprised when he realized that a new Skill had appeared all of a sudden. When thinking about why it hadn't appeared until that point, he reached the conclusion that it was because he hadn't used his knowledge as a mechanic before. He also felt slightly flabbergasted at how broken Immesurable Talent was, since <CQC> had gone up a rank just by roughing one guy up. Feeling happy to see his growth, he went to wake up the girls. As soon as he was upstairs, he knocked on the door to the room where they slept. After the tenth knock, he finally got an answer.
"We're coming down!"
After that, he went back downstairs and woke Kouta and Yamada up.
"Yamada, go to the bus and bring a pack of powdered mil and an energy bar for everyone"
Yamada, instead of complaining, readily left the building. He knew how weak and useless he was for anything else, so he did his best to help others in what he could. Meanwhile, Ryo brought Kouta to his workplace.
"It isn't a weapon but you can follow instructions, right?" Ryo asked Kouta who stared in amazement at the dismantled vehicle. When he snapped out of it, he looked at Ryo with amazement and almost screamed. "When did you get this much work done and for what?!"
Ryo just smirked and explained that he had gotten up earlier and began working on it. He also said that it was to reinforce the bus, since they were too many to use the Humvee anyway.
"This is a HMMWV M1025" Ryo explained as he began taking out a few screws from the vehicle's door. "It is tripple copper coated so it can resist even an EMP blast and the electrics would still working. It also has a water fording kit so it can be up to sixty inches into the water and still working"
Kouta was surprised by the knowledge Ryo had about vehicles. He already knew that himself, since it was a military vehicle, but even having heard that Ryo was a mechanic before didn't have anything to do with knowing such a piece of automobile engineering... and how to take it apart without breaking anything useful. Kouta couldn't do that, so he was amazed.
"Hashimoto-kun... could it be that you are a vehicles nerd?" he asked in bewilderment. After all, he didn't expect THE Hashimoto Ryo to nerd out on anything. "Totally! I love anything with a motor. Bikes are my favourite but I'd rather drive the bus. It is safer and, provided that you treat it well, more durable. Also, just call me Ryo already, Kouta"
After that Kouta became excited, seeing how even Ryo had a side like that to himself and how friendly he was to him. He felt happy to see an example of an alpha male treating him like an equal. As such, he didn't have any issues following Ryo's instructions as they kept dismantling the Humvee. Sometime along the way, they became a sort of spectacle, because the girls went downstairs to watch them work.
Even though they mostly watched Ryo, Niki was intently watching as Kouta worked with him, following each word of his to a T, executing every command perfectly. Kouta Hirano was, in many ways, the perfect soldier. Ryo was sure that, had there existed a supersoldier serum, Kouta would've been a perfect candidate. Unluckily there wasn't and there probably wouldn't be.
"*phew*... I think that is enough for now... let's eat lunch and keep at it once that's settled in" said Ryo was he swept put the sweat of his forehead, only to be given a wet towel by Hiratsuka. He looked at her gratefully, earning a blush from the young teacher.
Saeko, who had been assigned to cook together with Chie since they were two most experienced at it, said they had already prepared a protein heavy meal for everyone. Not even thinking about it not being a luxurious meal, Ryo gulped down his food with gusto, much to the two girls pleasure. Everyone followed his example. They were in a zombie apocalypse and the fact that they could eat a full meal was already a luxury. One they had to thank Ryo for.
'Now that we are all together... isn't this a good chance to look into their Status?' Ryo thought as they were eating. As such, he focused on the people he thought would have worth reading stats.
First was Hiratsuka.
[Name: Hiratsuka Shizuka
Level: 1
Strength: 12
Agility: 12
Intelligence: 16
Dexterity: 14
Charisma: 15
Skills: <CQC (Expert)> <Cooking (Beginner)> <Teaching (Expert)> <Driving (Expert)>]
Not much to his surprise, she had two skills on (Expert) level. He was sure that <CQC> would be extremely useful, but he thought that, with <Teaching>, she would be able to train him until he reached her level!
After her, followed Kouta.
[Name: Hirano Kouta
Level: 1
Strength: 11
Agility: 12
Intelligence: 15
Dexterity: 17
Charisma: 6
Skills: <Gunsmith (Expert)> <Marksmanship (Expert)> <Map Reading (Experienced)>]
Once again, Ryo didn't feel extremely surprised, since Kouta was actually only good with weapons and any military related thing.
The following person on his list was the bubbly nurse, Marikawa Shizuka.
[Name: Marikawa Shizuka
Level: 1
Strength: 10
Agility: 9
Intelligence: 15
Dexterity: 18
Charisma: 18
Skills: <Medicine (Expert)> <Chemistry (Expert)> <Driving (Experienced)>]
Ryo did feel susprised when he realized the bubbly nurse that acted like a clutz had fifteen point in Intelligence and eighteen in dexterity, but then again, she was a certified nurse and had to have the knowledge required for it.
The most shocking person was Yuuki Miku, his most loyal follower.
[Name: Yuuki Miku
Level: 1
Strength: 12
Agility: 14
Intelligence: 15
Dexterity: 14
Charisma: 18
Skills: <Devotion> <Loyalty> <Acting (Experienced)>]
Ryo felt extremely confused when he saw Yuki's Status. She had two Skills that weren't graded which meant they were either at the max value or... unique to her, similar to his <Essence Reading> or <Immeasurable Talent>, but more human in nature. Focusing on them, he was flabbergasted.
[Devotion: Once the user choses a person to dedicate their everything to, they can't ever think of anyone else. That person becomes something close to a deity to them. Yuuki Miku sees Hashimoto Ryo as her savior and, as such, became devoted to him. This Skill is used based on the user's real desires and doesn't affect her behaviour at all.]
And if that wasn't enough, <Loyalty> was just as stupid.
[Loyalty: The user can't betray the person Devotion has been set on even if it risks their life. They would follow any order the person gives without doubting and wouldn't be able to betray them in any way. The user would rather die than be abandoned by the person they are loyal to. Yuuki Miku is loyal to Hashimoto Ryo. This Skill is used based on the user's real desires and doesn't affect her behaviour at all.]
Ryo's jaw hung open while the chopsticks he was using to eat fell from his hands. Everyone looked at him, wondering what had happened, but he quickly recovered.
"Sorry everyone, just dozed off in thought" he excused himself as he went back to eating. But his mind was a wreckage and hewas internally screaming. 'What the fuck is this?!'
If the Skills' description was accurate -and Ryo didn't doubt <Essence Reading>, then he basically had a slave. The most surprising thing is that Miku was willing to be his slave and became basically his devotee! If he could reach godhood by gathering believers then her devotion alone could make him rise to the likes of Zeus!
'Well goddamn am I a lucky man' Ryo thought as he looked at Miku. He could more or less understand why she became like that, but at the same time couldn't. He would have to talk with Miku about it but... later. Now he had to check the last person whose stats he cared about.
[Name: Miyamoto Rei
Level: 1
Strength: 15
Agility: 12
Intelligence: 12
Dexterity: 14
Charisma: 10
Skills: <Spearmanship (Experienced)> <Athletism (Experienced)>]
Rei had the most regular stats he had seen, even though they were really high for a teenager. All he could think about was the fact that this was an anime world, allowing them to be stronger than they should've been.
*
An hour after eating, Ryo and Kouta went back to finish dismantling the Humvee. This time, Yamada followed after them, even if he was to only help with carrying stuff, he wanted to help them. Ryo appreciated it and made sure Yamada knew that he realized how much he wanted to pull his own weight. He promised the kid, as they took out one of the Humvee's doors, that he would try to find things Yamada could do.
It had taken them an entire day, but with the constant work of the three, the Humvee was completely dismantled in a day. Ryo kept the wires, tubes and other miscellaneous parts separately from the rest, thinking that they would be useful later on. As a mechanic, he would feel insulted if there was even one screw missing, so everything was organized before they finally stopped for the day.
*phew* 'Ok... dinner... sleeping... and tomorrow we work on the bus'
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I don't know if my neighbors from the house behind are stupid or retarded. They hired someone to clean their yard and that was how the first fire started. My father and I had a small argument with the idiots that were burning weeds (not that weed, dumbasses), and in the end we put the fire out. Now, a couple of hours later, someone began ANOTHER fire. Once again we had a small argument, this time with the wife of whichever idiot lives there. Then I had an argument with my father, since my mom and I have been telling him for ages to call the owner to get the tree removed... In the end I told him to call the guy and say whatever has to be said to get it done, or I would. And my dad knows that if I call it will be way worse than if he does.
Ranting done, now I feel a good weight off my chest!
