Ji-hoon gazed at the screen hovering in front of him.
Name: Klein Arkwood
Age: 17
Traits: None
Powers: None
Money: 0
No logout option. No guns. No armor. No exit.
This was not right. This was not how Gunslinger Graveyard was meant to work. He played this game a day, every day, for months. He knew all maps, all quests, all hacks. But now… it seemed like he did not play it before.
He glanced about. The town was still, too still. Ancient wooden houses along the street. Some of the buildings had shattered windows. Others appeared to have been burned. Dust hung in the air. Wind howled through gaps in the walls. The sky was orange, as at sunset, but somehow never changed.
All of it felt too real. The wind, the earth, even the scent of smoke and blood in the air. His heart was racing. He swiped at the sweat on his forehead.
"I have to find something. A weapon. Something to eat. Anything," he grumbled.
He made his way down the deserted street and swung open the doors of a decrepit saloon. They screeched. Within, it was a mess of broken chairs, shattered bottles, and dried blood on the wood floor. Flies circled a dead rat in the corner. Ji-hoon forced himself not to gag.
He crawled behind the bar, digging through shelves and drawers. Most of them were bare. Then he discovered something underneath the counter—a rusty old knife.
[Item Obtained: Rusty Knife (D)]
It wasn't good, but it was something.
Just as he heard it.
A low, wet growl.
He turned towards the saloon entrance. A zombie stood there, swaying a little. Its clothes were ripped. Its skin was gray and flaking. Its eyes were hollow.
Ji-hoon stood still.
In normal gameplay, zombies didn't spawn this early. Not in the initial town. And they were slow and easy to avoid. This one seemed faster. Nastier. More alive. and more dead.
It took a step forward.
Ji-hoon retreated, knife trembling in his hands.
"Stay back…"
The zombie snarled louder, then attacked.
Ji-hoon leaped to the side, but too slowly. The zombie caught his arm. Its hold was cold and firm. He tugged, attempting to break free, but it would not release.
He thrust forward with the knife—missed. The zombie opened its jaws, preparing to bite.
"Let go!"
He kicked it forcefully in the chest. It staggered back. He thrust again, this time into the neck. The blade entered deep. Black blood flowed. The zombie fell to the ground, thrashed once before becoming immobile.
[+10 EXP]
Ji-hoon remained there, gasping for breath. His arm ached. His hands trembled. His heart threatened to burst.
"That… was too real."
He gazed at the blood on his blade. Then the zombie. Then his hands.
In the actual game, he had slain countless zombies. Yet none of them ever felt as this one did.
For the first time ever, Ji-hoon came to understand something.
This wasn't a game any longer.
This was living and dying.
And he had absolutely no clue about how to get out alive.