Death Among the Undead by Masahiro Imamura

Author:Masahiro Imamura [Imamura, Masahiro]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-09-01T22:00:00+00:00

5

Hiruko knocked on Shigemoto’s door. He was Shindō’s neighbour. The door opened, and Shigemoto’s grim face peered back at us.

‘You need me?’

It was gloomy behind him. The lights in the room were off, and the curtains were closed. The pale light reflecting off the walls was probably the television.

‘I’m sorry to trouble you. We wanted to know what you could tell us about those horrible zombies.’

‘Why me?’ The eyes behind the glasses blinked.

‘Yesterday, you realised right away that those monsters couldn’t be stopped unless their brains were destroyed, even though none of us had ever encountered such a being. This morning you were also the first person to point out the possibility Shindō could rise as a zombie. So I’m assuming you’re knowledgeable about such beings.’

Hiruko smiled at him as she spoke. I couldn’t tell whether it was a calculated act, or her natural self, but no man alive could resist being praised by someone so attractive. Shigemotowas no exception.The moment he spoke, it was clear his initial caution had disappeared.

‘Actually, I’m not really all that knowledgeable about them. But come inside. I can only offer you cola, though.’

The air conditioner was working hard, but the room was not as cold as Shindō’s. Even so, it was chilly here with just a t-shirt on. I could hear the music from Tatsunami’s room immediately below. Shigemoto didn’t appear to be the tidy type. Even though only one night had passed, his bed sheets were rumpled and there was a half-empty bottle of cola on the nightstand and five empty ones next to his waste bin. The cola addict got a new bottle out of his refrigerator and put it on the table.

‘Feel free to pour a glass for yourself.’

A small DVD player had been connected to the television which was part of the room furniture. The film had been paused. I recognised the foreign actress on the screen. Sand and dust covered the beautiful face of the blonde with short hair. She was holding two guns in her hands.

‘Isn’t that Resident Evil?’

Shigemoto nodded. It was the live action film adaptation of the well-known zombie video game series. I couldn’t care less whether someone was watching a DVD or playing a game, but I honestly didn’t know what to say about someone who could even think of watching a zombie film under the current circumstances. Takagi, obviously feeling the same way, muttered: ‘He’s nuts….’

Shigemoto sat down on the carpet, and we formed a ring around him: Hiruko and I on the bed, and Takagi straddling the chair.

‘Do you usually watch that kind of film?’ asked Hiruko.

‘Yeah, I mostly watch what people call zombie films. Of course, although they’re all about zombies, each story has a different kind of zombie. Nowadays they even publish survival guides for when the zombies attack. I’ve read them, but there’s only so much you can do in a country where you can’t buy guns.’

He spoke very rapidly. He took out more DVDs and related books from a bag, and lined them up on the carpet.

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