You’re Telling Me This Is a Slice-of-Life?

What a strange person.

Sakurajima Mai had the urge to crack open this guy’s skull and see what was inside.

In a peaceful modern society, shouldn’t people just focus on school and enjoy their youth in their free time? Why would anyone spend so much effort learning all these bizarre things?

No wonder Hasaka suspected he was a veteran player. It felt as if he had known about the Reincarnation Game in advance and had prepared accordingly—a kind of cheating in its own right.

“You knew about the Reincarnation Game beforehand?”

“Of course not. I just have a lot of hobbies.” Yuuki wasn’t about to reveal his secrets. He pulled out a few sticks of dynamite, wrapped them in his jacket, and strapped them to his back.

“You don’t trust me?”

“I do. But everyone has their little secrets. Senpai, if I asked for your three sizes, would you tell me?”

[Tch. That’s completely different! And who’s your senpai?!]

Sakurajima Mai’s cheeks reddened, but she gave up on prying any further. The reason didn’t really matter—so long as Yuuki was this competent, her own survival chances would increase.

She opened her mouth, about to ask what he planned to do with the explosives—

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Muffled gunshots echoed through the night, sudden and jarring. The two of them spun around, their expressions instantly tense.

It was the sound of the Death Bell revolver—Li Dan’s group had been discovered!

It was inevitable, but now that it had happened, cold sweat still prickled their skin. The enemy would swarm like sharks catching the scent of blood.

Kill or be hunted. That brutal equation tightened their nerves, forcing their focus to sharpen.

9:30 PM.

Yuuki glanced at his watch, then out the window. A faint red haze coated the entire port, yet the blood moon itself remained obscured, as if hidden behind thick clouds.

Right on time. If this pattern held, the blood moon would fully rise around 10:00 PM, confirming the accuracy of the information Hayasaka Ai had dug up online.

So the moonrise was shifting earlier. That meant the sun would likely rise at 8:00 AM. Tonight would last exactly twelve hours.

But what would happen to these seemingly ordinary undead?

Without a reference point, Yuuki had no answer. He only knew two things:

First, the enemies hunting them during the day in Red Moon City were fundamentally different from the ghouls in the castle, despite sharing the same core directive.

Second, if he didn’t figure something out soon, he wouldn’t survive long enough to see the second night.

A helicopter patrolled overhead—moving on foot would guarantee exposure. Could they retreat back into the tunnels? No way. There wasn’t even space to hide. One grenade thrown in, and while Li Dan might make it, Yuuki would be dead for sure.

Sakurajima Mai held her breath, afraid to disturb his thoughts. The sound of rotor blades grew denser, gunfire flaring up more frequently.

“Yuuki, get over here now! The enemy’s on our tail—I can’t protect these two much longer!”

Li Dan’s urgent voice crackled through the radio, teetering on the edge of a threat. If he could ditch the burden of his two companions, he would. A veteran player had plenty of ways to escape.

But Yuuki stood frozen, staring at the explosives before him, then at the darkening red sky outside. Gritting his teeth, he made his decision.

“Brother Li, I have a way to buy us time. Bring them to these two abandoned buildings. Don’t hold back—eliminate the enemies outright.”

“But if we do that… Fine, I get it. Every extra second counts.” Li Dan caught on quickly.

The port district had been their hiding spot not just because of the low population, but also because it was on the city’s outskirts—far from any “spawn points.”

Even if mechanical enforcers were dispatched, it would take time for them to arrive. And once the red moon rose… well, who could know about what would happen thirty minutes from now?

With time pressing, Yuuki quickly relayed his plan, explaining that the underground parking garages of the two abandoned buildings were connected. He gave Li Dan further instructions before asking him to hand the radio to Hayasaka Ai.

“Hack into their systems. Disrupt their communications. Feed them false intel as I direct.”

“Got it, got it. I’ll do my best.”

“I’m counting on you.” Yuuki tossed the radio back to Sakurajima Mai and spread a blank sheet of paper over the explosives, sketching out the building’s layout with a few swift strokes.

It wasn’t as precise as a computer-generated blueprint, but after scouting the structure twice with Yuuki, Mai could recognize the general locations he marked.

“Activate your innate trait. Plant explosives here, here, and here. Route the detonator cables to the second building. Wait for my signal before setting them off.”

“Hold on—I’ve never done demolition before! And where’s the time to set everything up?!” Beads of sweat formed on her forehead. She was just a student and an actress—where would she have learned something this specialized?

“The holes are already drilled, and the materials are in place. Even the detonation cables were set up by the construction workers. You just need to follow my instructions: insert the explosives, plant the detonators, and connect the wires.”

Yuuki had wanted to do it himself, but some things were beyond his capability. Supernatural abilities had long since surpassed the limits of mere knowledge.

“And as for the second problem—think about how your trait works.”

Listening to the approaching rotor blades, Mai hesitated, then realized.

Her ability would let her set the explosives right under the enemy’s noses. The building was pitch dark, and the boreholes in the walls weren’t made by them. Anyone who wasn’t paying close attention wouldn’t even notice her actions.

“Li Dan and I will draw their attention. Just focus on your task. And remember—you must be in the designated spot when you detonate.”

Yuuki made a quick estimate—there was enough explosive here to level both buildings. Even if they wanted to blow up the entire area, they’d only need an additional fifty kilograms of TNT.

But he had no choice. Only Sakurajima Mai could do this. As long as her trait was active, she could waltz in front of the enemy with a bundle of explosives and dance in a bunny girl outfit without anyone noticing.

“Oh, and if you have time, toss the workers’ mattresses into the elevator shaft.”

With that, Yuuki pointed toward the empty shaft, grabbed his blade, and rushed upstairs—so quickly he didn’t even have time to explain.

Mai barely had time to raise her hand.

“Wait—”

Before she could finish, he was gone. Pressing her lips together, she didn’t bother saying “I can’t do it”—it was meaningless. She had to do it.

She just wanted to ask how he was planning to escape this time?

Taking a deep breath, Mai pushed all thoughts aside. Just follow the orders and execute them flawlessly.

The gunfire grew closer. She bit down on the blueprint, swiftly unwrapping the explosives, shrugging off her jacket, and stuffing block after block of TNT inside before sprinting out.

She was only on the second floor. The professional construction team had already drilled boreholes into the support columns and laid the detonation cables—all she had to do was follow Yuuki’s diagram and do the manual labor.

Just as she inserted a few blocks, placed the detonators, and connected the wires—

Barking erupted.

She barely had time to react before several large black police dogs charged in, stopping just a meter away, tilting their heads in confusion—as if wondering why they had run in here in the first place.

Then, blinding tactical flashlights cut through the darkness. SWAT officers, rifles in hand, appeared at the stairwell. They swept their thermal scopes across the floor and exchanged hand signals.

“Clear.”

“Target spotted upstairs.”

“Cover each other’s advance. Two men stay here to secure the floor. Squads two and three, intercept the other suspects.”

“GO, GO, GO!”

Boots thundered away. Mai stood frozen. At that moment, even her heartbeat had stopped.

They were armed with fully automatic rifles—one wrong move, and she’d be shredded. This was far worse than the subway incident.

But they couldn’t see her.

So this… is the power of the supernatural?

Glancing at the two armed guards, she exhaled.

Then, with newfound confidence, she picked up another explosive and continued her work—right under their noses.

Nineteen minutes left. No matter what, she had to finish!

…

It has started.

Yuuki could already hear the heavy footfalls of a SWAT team flooding into the building. The sharp bang bang of gunfire echoed nonstop—Li Dan was slaughtering them. Every shot was a headshot. And that chaos artifact he wielded had no ammo limit, with penetration power so absurd that anyone who crossed paths with him was instantly taken down.

An extreme threat—at least a full tier above Thomas.

Yuuki had long noticed the disparity between the two veteran players. If Li Dan had a weakness, it was the simplicity of his attacks. Against heavily armored, high-endurance enemies, Thomas’s chainsaw sword was more effective. But who would dare assume Li Dan had no other cards up his sleeve?

“The stronger he is, the better. He’ll draw more enemies to himself, giving Hayasaka Ai and the others a chance to sneak into the parking garage through the underground tunnels.”

Yuuki’s mind was crystal clear. Two battlefields—inside the building and out.

He had lured a portion of the enemies into Building A, while Li Dan pulled the bulk of the pursuers toward the east side of the village. Once they had drawn enough aggro, Hayasaka Ai would hack into their communications, ensuring only a small fraction of enemies were sent to check the underground parking lot, leaving them a sliver of hope.

But playing the secondary damage dealer was no easy job either.

Footsteps thudded above. No need to guess—they were rappelling down from helicopters, sweeping the floors in reverse order.

Fully armed, fearless in the face of death.

[If this were the first night, I wouldn’t stand a chance.]

Yuuki halted, gripping his sword in his left hand, lowering himself into a crouch.

Body Reinforcement—Full Power.

A surge of mana crackled like arcs of electricity, flooding through his body. This was the defining trait of Mastery-level Reinforcement Magic—no longer limited to objects, but extending to his own flesh. Glowing marks spread across his skin like veins, like tattoos—no, like Magic Circuits.

For an instant, an unprecedented sensation coursed through him, as if he had transcended the limits of flesh. A power so intoxicating, he couldn’t wait to push it to its limits.

Bang—!

The moment the footsteps above halted, Yuuki launched forward. His feet felt like they were fitted with springs, propelling him several meters in an instant.

Speed.

Rounding a corner, he caught sight of several black-clad figures blocking the stairwell—riot shields in front, eerily similar to his impression of Rainbow Six.

Everything slowed.

Behind the shield, a handgun emerged, followed by the glow of targeting lasers sweeping toward him. Yuuki didn’t think—he leaped sideways.

Ding ding ding!

Bullets struck the brick wall where he had been.

Reflexes.

Kicking off the wall like a lizard, he rebounded mid-air, bypassing the rotating riot shield before it could fully adjust—landing right in the middle of the formation.

For a split second, everything froze.

Their gun barrels were still aimed at the wall. They barely had time to lower their heads before spotting the crouched figure between them—a man leaning forward, sword in hand.

“Scatter!”

One tried to aim. Another tried to retreat. Someone turned—but the narrow stairwell worked against them, blocking each other’s line of fire.

Some tried to aim, some tried to retreat, and some turned around—only to block each other’s line of fire in the cramped stairwell. Or perhaps they simply couldn’t comprehend it—how could any human clear a dozen steps in just two bounds?

But there was no time for thought.

With a crisp shing, a brilliant arc of silver light slashed through the dimly lit corridor.

Shrrk—!

The reinforced blade, already enhanced by his magic, sliced through the ballistic plate like paper, nearly cleaving its wielder in half. Yuuki kicked the body away, yanked his blade free, and arched backward—just as an assault rifle blazed past his face, muzzle flashing.

Tat-tat-tat-tat!

Friendly fire erupted. Screams followed. The SWAT team had no concept of crossfire. Three of them were torn apart by their own bullets, rolling lifelessly on the floor.

[Thanks.]

Yuuki capitalized on their lack of coordination. One officer, his hands severed, reeled back in agony—only to be smashed aside by the riot shield wielder stepping up.

A handgun came up.

Before the trigger could be pulled, Yuuki surged forward, tilting the barrel away and driving his sword cleanly into the man’s throat.

“Hhrkk…!”

The riot shield wielder let out a wheezing gasp. With a deft twist, Yuuki severed his spinal cord, letting him crumple like a sack of potatoes.

[There’s still strength left.]

He grabbed the back of the fallen man’s ballistic vest, gritted his teeth, and flung the two-hundred-pound armored corpse forward—crashing directly into the last enemy still raising his gun.

Before they could disentangle, Yuuki stepped down on the stairway, soaring like a galloping steed. With his knee, he slammed both of them against the wall.

Thud!

Cracks spread across the wall tiles, and then, with a horizontal slash, the blade cleaved through two heads, embedding itself deep into the wall.

Gunfire echoed from the distance, and footsteps resounded from both upstairs and down. Yuuki remained expressionless as he pulled his blade free, flicking it with a sharp motion that traced a long, crimson line across the five corpses.

In conclusion—

Within seven steps, the sword is faster!