Yukino Yukinoshita wasn't short by any means. When Sosuke Kitahara leaned in slightly, their eyes met at nearly the same level. Her gaze fell on his straight, marble-like nose and sharply defined features.

She instinctively tilted her chin up a little, and before she knew it, their eyes locked.

Startled, Yukino panicked for no reason. She wanted to return a grateful smile, but the sudden fluster made her instinctively look away.

Her thoughts were a complete mess. She could feel the warmth of Sosuke's breath brushing against her lips and nose, her heart thrown further into chaos. As his hands fumbled to tuck her hair back into her collar, she absentmindedly adjusted her bangs and murmured in a daze, "My back feels messy. I can't reach it. Can you help fix it for me?"

She hadn't yet realized just how unreasonable that request sounded.

But to someone like Sosuke Kitahara who had survived the end of the world this kind of personal space was the least of his concerns. When society had collapsed, etiquette was the first thing to go.

And so, when his hand slid beneath her jacket to help straighten her hair, Yukino only realized how intimate it was once she felt his warm palm brushing faintly against her back through her thin white shirt.

Her entire back tensed up.

For a brief moment, her heart skipped a beat. She felt like she was floating, her whole body flushed with heat. Fortunately, she was facing away from him. Yukino quietly focused on her breathing, trying her best to keep calm.

She absolutely could not let the boy behind her see how flustered she was. That would be far too embarrassing.

"…Done."

Sosuke withdrew his hand and even thoughtfully smoothed the creases on her shoulders. Her silky black hair now fell perfectly into place. He smiled gently. "Now you don't have to worry about the wind messing it up."

Yukino, now far more worried about whether she'd embarrassed herself, stood frozen in place. Her heart was racing.

Just then, a voice like a chorus of angels echoed down from the cabin above. Utaha Kasumigaoka had finished her shower and called for her from the second floor.

"I should get going…"

Yukino's ears were burning red. She lowered her gaze to her shoes and, feigning composure, handed Sosuke the binoculars.

Sosuke, whose skin was thicker than a fortress wall, watched her retreating figure disappear down the stairs and couldn't help but think Yukino was especially cute today.

Around the stairway corner, Yukino leaned against the wall with a face as red as an overripe apple. She gently patted her wildly beating chest, stole a glance down the stairs, then quickly looked away and covered her face in embarrassment.

"Idiot… I should've just refused right away… Now it's all awkward. I hope Sosuke doesn't get the wrong idea…"

…

In the control cabin.

Haruno Yukinoshita had seen everything just now every movement, every expression.

"She really is a dummy. Doesn't even think to go inside when the wind's this strong?"

Haruno turned toward the railing. Sosuke was still standing there.

She sighed. She was worried about her sister. Yukino probably didn't even realize how much her heart had shifted lately.

And yet, between her and Sosuke stood someone else Utaha Kasumigaoka, whose beauty was in no way inferior to theirs.

Even more worrying, Haruno had occasionally noticed a flicker of affection in Utaha's eyes whenever she looked at Sosuke.

And as much as Haruno didn't want to admit it, she too felt something subtle and unfamiliar toward Sosuke.

It wasn't love. Not yet. But after surviving life-and-death situations together, she had formed a general impression of him.

To Haruno, Sosuke Kitahara might sometimes come off as stubborn, even immature but she also recognized that he was someone trustworthy, someone reliable.

If the world could somehow return to normal… maybe she should talk to their mother about making him the Yukinoshita family's son-in-law.

But knowing his personality… would Sosuke ever agree to something like that?

Haruno groaned and pressed a hand to her forehead. "Men… there's not a single good one out there!"

She flicked her hair behind her shoulder and didn't look back at him again.

Maybe sensing her irritation, Sosuke glanced at the cabin window. Through the glass, he could only vaguely make out the silhouette of someone sitting at the controls.

By now, the coastline shelter had completely vanished from view. In its place was a stretch of seaside commercial district. Right next to it, a massive waterfront park came into view. From the yacht, it looked quiet empty cars scattered here and there but it gave off an unsettling air.

The moment he raised the binoculars and peered toward the four-story shopping center, Sosuke's scalp went numb.

Inside, countless zombies were wandering aimlessly.

Farther off, firelight flickered, black smoke billowed, and all of it screamed one thing Tokyo was no longer just a glittering metropolis.

It had become something else entirely.

Sosuke refocused his gaze on the system interface.

After exchanging points for sword techniques to pair with his breathing style, he only had about 80 points left.

"So stingy…"

He gritted his teeth.

At first, he'd thought spending 50 points would get him a full set of sword techniques.

But nope. That kind of dream only existed in gacha games. This tightfisted system gave him a single move for 50 points.

"150 points… just for three sword techniques."

He frowned, though the three moves were admittedly worth it. He didn't feel ripped off just annoyed that the system was clearly running a profitable racket.

Going by his chosen branch Moon Breathing it had sixteen forms in total. That meant he'd need 800 points to learn all of them.

In other words, he'd have to slay 800 regular zombies one by one. That was practically a small horde.

Back during his physical assessment, the system had offered him two breathing styles to choose from.

The first was Sun Breathing the original, most powerful form. It had thirteen forms, each incredibly strong, but overuse came with a drawback: stamina loss. Only by fully mastering it could one avoid that penalty.

The second was Moon Breathing a derivative of the Sun style. Once trained to a high level, it allowed the release of massive slashes of sword energy. Its techniques were fast and had wide attack ranges.

The first form of Moon Breathing was a rapid-draw iaido strike known for its insane speed.

After careful thought, Sosuke had opted for the first three forms of Moon Breathing.

Any player who mains CARRY knows higher speed and wider range means faster grinding. That meant more kills, more points, and more growth.

Even better, the Sun Breathing tree hadn't disappeared. That meant he could learn it later when he had enough points.

"Maybe I should just teach the breathing techniques to Yukino and Haruno tonight."

He muttered thoughtfully.

Originally, he'd planned to wait longer but after encountering that Screecher-type infected, he decided to move up the schedule. It'd take time for them to master the techniques, after all.

"Right… I should go check on her progress tonight."

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