Back to Tsubasa, after hearing everyone, he pondered for a moment, and finally agreed.
"If you are willing to follow my commands, then it's fine."
To be fair, taking these people in still had its benefits. For one, they could carry the weapons that he couldn't take with him. If it were just him and Yukino, they certainly couldn't carry much ammunition and weaponry.
In this dangerous zombie apocalypse, guns and bullets were always the best helpers, bar none.
For another, these people could serve as cannon fodders to attract zombies. If they encountered an emergency situation where they were surrounded by zombies, Tsubasa would absolutely abandon anyone who slowed him down without hesitation to ensure his own survival.
Don't blame him for being cold-hearted and ruthless; even though he was a Transmigrant with a cheat, he was still in his early stage, no different from a normal human. He was already stretched thin just by trying to keep himself and Yukino, who he'd recognized, alive.
Upon hearing Tsubasa's answer, everyone showed expressions of surprise and delight.
"Really? That's amazing!"
"As expected of Shiraha-sama, he's so cool!"
"Hey, hey, Shiraha-kun, do you have a girlfriend right now?"
In this dangerous zombie apocalypse, gaining the protection of a strong individual was a huge stroke of luck. For these people, it was the greatest fortune in their misfortune.
The young men in the group exchanged glances and collectively breathed a sigh of relief. At the very least, their safety was temporarily guaranteed.
Meanwhile, some of the more outgoing young women had already started moving closer to Tsubasa. The look in their eyes when they gazed at him was filled with admiration and full of meaning.
As for the conditions Tsubasa had previously set, no one found them harsh anymore.
Could what a strong person demanded even be called conditions?
The law of the jungle was the fundamental truth of the world!
If one couldn't abide by it, they could only blame themselves for being too weak.
CLACK, CLACK...
The sound of leather shoes gently tapping the ground approached from a distance. Under the surprised gaze of the crowd, Utaha walked over proactively.
She was beautiful and graceful, standing out significantly among the crowd of young women. But for some reason, a hint of embarrassment faintly appeared on the face of this beautiful black-haired young woman.
"Shiraha-kun, could you step outside with me for a moment?"
Utaha's words immediately caused an uproar.
"Eh, what?!"
"That Kasumigaoka... is actually trying to hook up with Shiraha-kun?"
The voluptuous and gorgeous Kasumigaoka Utaha was undoubtedly a very noticeable presence among the student body. More than one young man had noticed her. Yet now, this aloof beauty, who usually paid no mind to any man, actually took the initiative to invite Tsubasa for private time.
For a moment, jealousy surfaced in the eyes of many young men.
Meanwhile, the expressions of some young women became visibly unpleasant.
In their views, if Utaha lowered herself to compete with them for Tsubasa, they, as ordinary women, might truly not be her match...
There was no helping it. Utaha's physical qualities were simply too top-tier.
Looking at the beautiful young woman before him, Tsubasa's expression remained very calm. He hadn't forgotten that when he first arrived here, Utaha had unreasonably accused him of perving on her.
"If you have something to say, just say it here," said Tsubasa bluntly.
"This..." Utaha's face instantly flushed red, and the knuckles of the hands gripping her skirt turned white.
Being rejected in public, and having her embarrassing incident revealed in front of so many people, the sheer embarrassment almost made her unable to lift her head. But she took a deep breath, clenched her teeth, and stood her ground, her voice carrying a trace of imperceptible tremor: "I understand."
As soon as she spoke, the classroom instantly became so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Both the men and the women immediately perked up their ears. Even Yukino, who was resting nearby, turned her head and cast a curious gaze.
Now, everyone's eyes were fixed squarely on the pair.
Utaha looked up at Tsubasa, her usually haughty ruby-like eyes now filled with regret and even a hint of panic: "Shiraha-kun, before... I misunderstood you. I shouldn't have accused you of perving at me... It was a complete misunderstanding."
These words caused the crowd to immediately whisper to each other.
"A misunderstanding? What misunderstanding?"
"So, Shiraha-kun was actually slandered."
Amidst the chatter, Utaha bowed her head even lower, her earlobes red, yet her voice became clearer: "I only realize now that you weren't perving at me at all then." After saying this, she suddenly raised her head, her eyes slightly red, but she stared intently at Tsubasa, adopting an extremely subservient posture: "Shiraha-kun, I'm sorry! I was wrong before. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions without clarifying, and I definitely shouldn't have slandered you!"
"WHAT?!" The young men were dumbfounded.
That aloof Kasumigaoka Utaha actually apologized to Tsubasa Shiraha in public? And spilled all her own embarrassing details?
Tsubasa's expression remained calm as he said, "So? Are you saying all this now because you want me to praise you for 'having the courage to admit your mistake'?"
These words were like a basin of cold water, making Utaha stiffen instantly. She knew Tsubasa wasn't that easy to fool. The previous slander was like a thorn stuck between them, and it couldn't be smoothed over with just a simple verbal apology.
Utaha clenched her fists, her nails nearly digging into her palms, and after taking a deep breath, she actually stepped half a pace forward and bowed slightly. This action, coming from the proud Utaha, was practically synonymous with humiliation.
"I know one apology isn't enough." Her voice trembled slightly, yet there was unusual firmness in it, "I am willing to take responsibility for the previous slander—from now on, I will obey all your words..."
Tsubasa stared at her for a few seconds, and then suddenly chuckled. He said, "Do you realize what you have said? Are you really willing to obey all my words?"
His gaze lingered on her curvy figure and alluring legs covered in black stockings.
"You!?" Utaha's face was completely flushed. A flash of panic and mortification crossed her eyes.
As a young and accomplished female writer, she was not only beautiful but also academically top of her class. Plus, she had already published her light novel 'Love Metronome' under the pen name 'Kasumi Utako' with total sales exceeding 500,000 copies!
Unlike in the original plot of Saekano: How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend where her work had problems, this Kasumigaoka Utaha succeeded without any problems, which didn't give Tomoya Aki the opportunity to get closer to her.
In fact, her impression of Tomoya Aki was that of a crazy fan, which made her uncomfortable. After the bad experience at her first signing session where she first met him, if possible, she didn't want to meet him at all.
Anyway... Brain, figure, looks, status... things ordinary people struggled desperately to achieve, Utaha had obtained them all with ease. This inevitably fostered arrogance in the young woman's heart. But now, the situation between the two of them had reversed; the tables had turned.
It was Utaha who needed to rely on Tsubasa and beg for his forgiveness.
"Listen up. I haven't forgiven you. You will have to make amends eventually."
After saying that, Tsubasa didn't bother saying anything more, waving his hand to tell Utaha to step back.
They were not safe yet, and he didn't have the leisure to put this woman in her place.
But being busy didn't mean he would be magnanimous.
Since she wanted his protection, she would definitely have to pay the corresponding price. When the time came, he would settle all the old and new debts together.
Call him narrow-minded or petty, but he simply didn't care. He was very good at holding grudges.
He was someone who lived by the motto "a tooth for a tooth, a nail for a nail."
If someone did him good, he'd repay the favor as best he can. And if someone did him harm, he'd surely seek revenge, sooner or later.
Simply apologizing verbally wasn't enough!
For him, just a verbal apology had no substance.
She had to make amends before he could forgive her and take her under his protection.
Furthermore, he admitted that he had impure intentions towards her.
But this couldn't be helped!
Utaha was one of his favorite female anime characters in his original world, and as an Otaku, he had a sense of possessiveness towards his favorite female anime character who had become real. His feelings for Utaha were like this just as his feelings for Yukino. But Utaha had wronged him, unlike Yukino who had been performing well so far.
If only in this life there wasn't something like this Death Game, he might have tried to approach Utaha in a normal way. He might even have been content with a simple, acquaintance-like relationship.
But who would have thought there would be the Death Game?
With this Death Game, gaining supernatural powers and becoming stronger would be nothing more than a fantasy!
Of course, as long as he could survive!
And if he could become so powerful that no one could restrain him in the real world, he could do anything he wanted!
This was what caused the fantasies—the ambitions—he'd kept buried deep within his mind to sprout and grow wild!
The ambitions of most men are nothing more than status, power, wealth, and women. He was no different. Having transmigrated into a slice-of-life anime crossover world, as an Otaku, wasn't it natural that he would want to make his favorite female characters, who had become real, into his women?
And Utaha had dug her own grave by wronging him, giving him an opportunity to make her into his woman as soon as possible!
He couldn't waste this opportunity!
✱✱✱
Translator's Corner:
This chapter has 1686 Words. As you can see, there are elements of face-slapping followed by regret in this chapter, which are overused in fanfics and webnovels written by Chinese authors. Plus, the male lead begins to let himself go, starting with Kasumigaoka Utaha. I hope you don't have aesthetic fatigue from reading too many similar elements in other fanfics written by Chinese authors. Thanks for reading!