Jinoo stood frozen, paralyzed by a whirlwind of worry and fear. His heart raced as he watched the horned mole rampaging through the street, its monstrous form wreaking havoc. Panic clawed at his throat, rendering him unable to move. What if the creature attacks Chan-seung? What if he gets hurt? The questions spiraled endlessly in his mind, each one more frantic than the last.
The ground shook violently with every step the creature took, and its guttural growls echoed ominously in the air. Jinoo's breath came in shallow gasps, his thoughts racing. I need to do something! I can't just let him—
Suddenly, the ground erupted beneath him as the horned mole swung its massive head in his direction, its monstrous eyes locking onto him with predatory intent. A surge of adrenaline coursed through Jinoo's body, and instinct kicked in—he turned to run, but his legs felt like lead.
Just as the creature lunged forward, jaws snapping dangerously close, a strong hand yanked him backward, pulling him into a narrow gap between two buildings. Jinoo stumbled, nearly losing his balance, but he was quickly steadied by Go Chan-seung's grip.
"Are you okay?" Chan-seung asked, his voice a mix of concern and urgency as he glanced back at the chaos outside. His face was still partially obscured by the bandages, but the intensity in his eyes was unmistakable.
Jinoo nodded, breathless and shaking. "I… I thought you were going to get hurt!" he managed to reply, his voice barely above a whisper. The adrenaline was still coursing through his veins, leaving him both exhilarated and terrified.
Chan-seung's expression softened for a moment, revealing a flicker of something deeper than the usual animosity. "We can't stay here," he said, his voice firm. "That thing will find us if we don't move."
Jinoo swallowed hard, nodding again. "Right. What do we do?" He could feel the weight of the situation pressing down on him, the reality of their predicament crashing in like an unforgiving wave.
"Follow my lead," Chan-seung instructed, taking a deep breath. "If we stick together, we might have a fighting chance." He glanced back at the gap, listening intently for any signs of the horned mole.
With a shared understanding, they prepared to move as one. Chan-seung led the way, slipping out of the narrow space and into the alleyway. Jinoo followed closely, heart racing as they navigated between the buildings, staying low and quiet. He felt a surge of gratitude for Chan-seung's sudden change of heart. Despite their rocky relationship, here they were, united against a common threat.
As they rounded a corner, the horned mole's roars echoed in the distance, reminding them of the danger still lurking nearby. Jinoo's mind raced through the knowledge he had gained from the game. What would Mephisto do? he thought, trying to channel the strategies he had learned during countless quests.
"We should try getting inside that hotel, I'm sure we'll be safe there." Chan-seung said as he glanced at Jinoo.
[Congratulations!] The screen popped up as Jinoo and Chan-seung got separated after they got warped in a court.
There were lots of people there, some were crying, covered in blood, unresponsive, shocked, injured. Most of the people were still in horror.
Black electric like bolts flickered in the court's stage. There appeared the creatures in the game, creatures that give players tasks and rewards or punishment, these creatures were called Devies. The Devi in the court was a short lavender haired guy with dark eyeballs and purple pupils.
"Good morning beings of Earth, I am Lihye, a Devi. I am the Devi tasked by the high beings to guide people in Dongdaemun District." The Lavender haired Devi introduced himself. "Just like in the System window that I sent to each of you earlier the survivors will be given a random gift." he added. With the snap of his finger the screen that he called System window appeared in front of everyone.
[Gift sent!.. Would you like to open your gift?] [Yes, No.]
Jinoo clicked yes as the system window started loading. This never happened in the game but, Is this even called a game? Yeah right, this is no longer a game but a battle of survival. Jinoo thought.
The system window loaded. [New gift unlocked : craft blade, allows the user to craft weapons made of objects he touches, when activated, the user will have 10% movement speed boost.
This could come in handy, especially when stage 3 comes. I'll be able to make obsidian blades. This gift never appeared in the game though. Jinoo thought as he picked up a piece of paper.
"Activate craft blade." Jinoo said faintly as the piece of paper in his hands become a blade. It looked intimidating but it was actually floppy.
"Next week, task 2 of stage 1 will start, try finding the subplots for rewards." The Devi, Lihye said before disappearing just the way he appeared.
Everyone were warped to their homes.
Jinoo woke up, he fell asleep after they got warped to. Chan-seung's room? Jinoo sprung up, searched for Chan-seung inside the apartment until he saw him in dipping himself in the bathtub. Chan-seung's left shoulder was covered in bruises that it turned reddish purple. "Go Chan-seung!" Jinoo yelled in shock.
"Aish! You're too loud!" Chan-seung yelled, trying to act cool.
Jinoo gnawed on his nails, his anxiety rising. Uncle Chan-jung will be very disappointed in me, he thought, the guilt gnawing at him. I was supposed to be watching out for him. But then another thought, stronger and more urgent, replaced the guilt. Wait, no. I hope Uncle is okay.
Just as Jinoo was about to call Go Chan-jung, "Jinoo… hyung," Chan-seung said, the words hesitant but sincere. The use of the honorific, a stark contrast to his usual gruff demeanor, caught Jinoo off guard. He looked at Chan-seung, who was now standing awkwardly by the bathroom door, his eyes avoiding Jinoo's gaze. "I need... A little help in bandaging my bruises." the words finally came out of his mouth.
Jinoo took the roll of bandages in Chan-seung's hands. As he gently wrapped Chan-seung with bandages, his grunts and twitches were obvious as Jinoo tried his best to be gentle. "Just how did you get this?" Jinoo asked.
"The fucking mole rammed on the building I was passing through then a concrete wall landed there." Chan-seung said.
"Talk to uncle Chan-jung, I'll go rest for a while you rest as well, after you two are done talking okay." Jinoo said as he walked back to his room.
"Okay, hyung. Goodnight" Chan-seung said as he leaned his ear to the phone.