The Lion Leading the Sheep

"Then let me make a bold guess. Could this viral crisis be connected to a certain country?"

"I heard there was apparently an incident involving an unknown virus leak in Raccoon City, America?"

Just as Kevin was about to refute him, Koichi Shido immediately raised a hand, stopping the soldier from defending himself.

"Relax, relax. It's only a guess... a guess..."

The sinister man did not pursue the topic, as though he really were considering Kevin's position.

But people were extremely fragile and suspicious in the face of crisis, and students whose worldviews had yet to take shape were even more easily swayed.

At that moment, the eyes turned toward Kevin were filled with suspicion and scrutiny.

"Then I have one final question. Did you know what consequences would result from jumping onto our bus just now?"

"If those monsters had been led onto the bus, my students might have become sacrifices so you could survive..."

Koichi Shido pushed up his glasses, narrowing his eyes. His voice became impassioned and furious, and he looked every bit the dedicated teacher.

What twisted logic! Even if this man had not jumped aboard, would there have been fewer zombies chasing us?

Rei Miyamoto, who had long held a grudge against Koichi Shido, turned cold-eyed and prepared to speak up for Kevin, only to be firmly held down by Takashi Komuro, who sensed something was wrong.

"Exactly! How selfish!"

"Making all of us take risks just for him! That's too much!"

The students who had been huddled together and whispering began quietly condemning the soldier before them, completely forgetting that he had saved everyone on the bus from danger.

This was human nature—always the most forgetful, the most fickle, the most selfish, and the cruelest!

The corner of someone's lips lifted slightly without notice.

"But this soldier did save everyone..."

The only one who spoke up for Kevin was actually Shizuka Marikawa, the blonde school nurse who had nearly gotten him killed and was currently serving as the bus driver.

But this absentminded school nurse, who normally had little authority, clearly could not restore the students' reason.

"He was saving himself! And he brought us immeasurable risks!"

Koichi Shido immediately refuted her. His inflammatory words instantly united the blindly obedient students against their common enemy.

"I'm sorry, soldier, but we do not trust you, so please leave immediately!"

"However, before that, you need to leave behind all your weapons and ammunition to ensure everyone's safety!"

"After all, we are civilians who need protection, and we have already taken such a huge risk for you..."

The surrounding students nodded unconsciously. They had even begun considering how to please Koichi Shido so they could receive firearms from him and join the privileged class.

Something seemed a little off.

Saya Takagi bit her nail and frowned in thought. The intense sense of incongruity left her unable to figure it out.

"Protecting civilians is a soldier's duty. Besides, there are so many of us, and many are just children."

"Hand over your weapons, soldier..."

Having already taken control of the situation, Koichi Shido stepped forward in the manner of a victor and extended his hand toward the young soldier Kevin.

The excited students around them seemed to regard Teacher Shido as a symbol of the weak resisting tyranny.

"No! Don't force me! Back off!"

Kevin raised his pistol with trembling hands, but seemingly to avoid escalating the conflict, he voluntarily ejected the magazine.

What a rookie! Koichi Shido's heart settled completely, his final concerns vanishing. He strode forward, intending to seize it by force.

After several not particularly intense physical clashes, Kevin suddenly sidestepped and retreated, his face filled with shock.

"I'm warning you! Put down the knife!"

A knife? Everyone froze. Only after the two separated did they notice that Koichi Shido was holding a dagger that he had clearly taken from the soldier.

What stunned them even more was that a faint scratch had appeared on the back of Kevin's hand.

Koichi Shido looked at the dagger in his palm, his movements stiffening for a moment.

But because the soldier's pistol had its magazine removed, it posed no threat to him at all. Teacher Shido, fearless before tyranny, slowly raised the dagger and examined it.

"I..."

Bang!

The dull gunshot sent a red-and-white spray bursting from Teacher Shido's skull, and his unfinished words lodged forever in his throat.

Then, beneath everyone's horrified gaze, Kevin smoothly pulled out the magazine, shoved it back into the bottom of the pistol, and viciously fired three more shots into Koichi Shido's heart, throat, and skull!

Everyone's terrified screams were completely trapped in their throats.

The pale-faced commander cautiously stepped forward and kicked away the dagger beside Koichi Shido. Only after confirming that the scum was thoroughly dead did he pick up the other "murder weapon."

"We have the right to directly execute any dangerous hostile act!"

"Brats, don't mistake my tolerance for weakness!"

"Since things have come to this, it doesn't hurt to reveal part of the classified information. My unit has already dispersed throughout Toko City to carry out an investigation. Once we recover the data, we will have a way to evacuate!"

"But you have disappointed me. I will leave immediately!"

The students had thought the soldier, suddenly consumed by violence, might carry out a bloody massacre here. Yet he displayed immense restraint and slowly put his weapons away.

Everyone's emotions felt as though they had risen from hell to heaven.

But the soldier's following words—that he had a way to safely leave Toko City—kicked them from heaven straight back into hell.

"Though you are only a group of misled children, I'm sorry, but everyone must take responsibility for their own actions."

A trace of reluctance and regret appeared on Kevin's slightly pale face.

That's right, we were only misled children! The students' eyes widened. Those with quicker minds immediately turned their blame toward the thoroughly dead Teacher Shido.

"It was him who wanted to take your weapons, soldier. It had nothing to do with us..."

"You kept giving way. Teacher Shido went too far!"

"Besides, if weapons fell into the hands of someone like him, who knew what might have happened..."

"We want to go home alive, but there's no one else we can rely on anymore. Please, soldier..."

The figure who had already pushed open the bus door and prepared to leave resolutely was tightly held back by the students crowding around him and weeping.

"Fine. From now on, if you want to live, listen to me!"

Kevin wore a cold, rigid expression, but the content of his words filled the students with joy. They hurriedly swore their agreement.

They had endured a series of upheavals—escaping the school, watching friends die, and more—followed by Koichi Shido's incitement and the commander's bloody retaliation.

These Junior High School Students' nerves had long since snapped. They had even lost the ability to think for themselves or distinguish right from wrong.

Following the collective will and staying alive were their only hopes!

And it was this United Nations senior agent before them—principled, decent, compassionate, and immensely powerful—who had handed them this lifeline.

However, the few who remained clear-headed had sparks of doubt flickering in their eyes.

For example, how had a well-trained agent allowed his dagger to be taken away?

And there had still been a bullet in that loaded pistol. There was no way this man had not known.

So, had he really removed the magazine to ease the conflict?

PS: Who set up whom?

I bet you're lying in the arms of the Bulgarian Demon King, gazing affectionately at Billy, while Muji prepares breakfast for you.

Haha, it's the end of the month. Please spare some recommendation votes and monthly tickets before they expire. Thank you, everyone.

The Lion Leading the Sheep

"Since you insist on asking me to stay, I must take responsibility for your safety. Please support one another and leave this hellhole together."

"However, given your previous extreme behavior, I will train and restrain you according to semi-military standards."

"Of course, under the BSAA Special Operations Unit recruitment agreement, once you consent, you will be granted temporary military status..."

"Most importantly, you will be eligible to board an aircraft and evacuate..."

Unlike Koichi Shido's emotionally manipulative incitement, Kevin preferred to use perfectly legitimate reasons to get these fools to willingly walk into the trap.

The students, who were nearly on the verge of mental collapse, nodded hurriedly.

When a crisis arrived, most people could not remain rational under the weight of fear.

Therefore, the weak longed to be led by dependable strong people. Humanity's collective strength over thousands of years often stemmed from this.

A group of lions led by a sheep was often no match for a group of sheep led by a lion.

With hundreds of thousands of zombies around them, anyone still trying to engage in infighting and fight for power and profit was a clever idiot!

That fool Koichi Shido thought he could manipulate people at will, but aside from stirring emotions and deceiving others, he was good for nothing.

Once a more reliable leader entered the group, he was bound to be replaced.

Thus, even though Teacher Shido had been dead for nearly ten minutes, the students who had been so enraged earlier did not spare him another glance.

"Takashi... should we..."

Toda Hirano, who had never had much of an opinion of his own, saw more and more students gathering around the United Nations agent and could not help feeling tempted.

But the mutual support they had given each other throughout their escape made him instinctively ask the leader of their small group for his opinion.

"Idiot, of course we follow him!"

"This guy may be dangerous, but he's still better than the zombies outside!"

Saya Takagi slapped the otaku Hirano on the head. She might not have been fond of the United Nations agent who had come to rescue them under the banner of righteousness, but that did not stop her from making the most rational choice.

Besides, he had casually found an excuse to kill even that sinister Koichi Shido. That was enough to show how decisive and ruthless he was.

If the few of them dared to stand out and become destabilizing factors within the group, whether they could leave alive was another matter entirely!

Of course, what gave Saya Takagi a little peace of mind was that although this man was scheming, he did not seem completely without principles. Otherwise, why would he have needed to go through so much trouble to kill Koichi Shido?

"That's right! If we follow him, maybe we can contact the military and the government. The safety of our evacuation will increase greatly too!"

Rei Miyamoto, the Gunnery Club Captain, quickly agreed. There was even a hint of goodwill toward the United Nations agent in her eyes.

She had long held a grudge against the now thoroughly dead Teacher Shido.

Rei Miyamoto's father, a police officer, had once investigated the source of certain illegal income received by Koichi Shido's father.

As a result, that scum Koichi Shido had not only targeted her at every turn, but also caused her to repeat a year.

Kevin's three shots had indirectly let Rei Miyamoto vent the resentment she had carried for so long.

A trace of gloom passed through Takashi Komuro's eyes as he saw Rei Miyamoto's reaction.

But rational thought made him turn his final questioning gaze toward Saeko Busujima, the Kendo Club Captain he had met during their escape.

"I have no objections. This is the best choice for now..."

The purple-haired Kendo Club Captain had spoken little from beginning to end. Her calm, cool beauty carried a trace of Yamato Nadeshiko-like poise and elegance.

Faced with Takashi Komuro's question, Saeko Busujima nodded reservedly, indicating that she had no objections.

However, Saya Takagi noticed that Saeko was lightly pressing her left hand against the white oak wooden sword resting before her knees, while the fingers of her right hand repeatedly tightened and loosened around its hilt.

Moreover, beneath the slight veil of her purple hair, her eyes seemed to glimmer with a light called "excitement."

After only five minutes of discussion, the group on the school bus had completely established Kevin's absolute authority.

Once the situation was under control, several bold male students began throwing Koichi Shido's body off the bus and inspecting the damage under the commander's orders.

Takashi Komuro, who loved off-road motorcycles, and the otaku Toda Hirano surprisingly knew something about vehicle repairs. Before long, the two removed two stones wedged beneath the chassis and confirmed that the engine could start.

Under the commander's protection and supervision, none of the students dared wander around or touch the amethyst-like humanoid sculptures surrounding them.

It seemed as if all their bad luck had already been used up. This repair went exceptionally smoothly, and the students, who had grown somewhat less afraid of the outside world, boarded the bus one after another.

At that moment, Shizuka Marikawa, the female driver, fully displayed her absentminded nature by resting the heavy excess flesh of her chest on the steering wheel to ease the burden.

Her eyes stared blankly ahead, utterly vacant, while some suspicious fluid seemed to hang from the corner of her mouth.