"One, two, three..."
"Rock!"
"Scissors!"
Two clones were playing rock-paper-scissors, and it was clear the "Rock" clone was about to win.
"Sorry, brother!" Without hesitation, the "Rock" clone raised his assault rifle and unleashed a hail of bullets into the other clone.
Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!
He emptied the entire magazine, leaving behind only a blood-soaked corpse riddled with bullet holes.
The victorious clone moved on to challenge another clone to rock-paper-scissors. As the group advanced toward the laboratory, they continued their morbid elimination tournament, occasionally pausing to shout into their walkie-talkies.
"No... I can't hold on any longer! Their firepower is too intense!"
"Aaaah!"
"Run! Get out of here!"
Even without the walkie-talkies, the sounds of gunfire grew steadily louder and clearer, proof that the enemy had breached the perimeter and the battle was rapidly closing in on the laboratory.
"Hold the line! No matter what, you have to hold!" Inside the laboratory, two soldiers roared into their walkie-talkies, their faces flushed crimson with exertion and panic.
The Doctor watched the progress bar inch forward, his hands trembling.
Suddenly, a confident voice boomed through the intercom, like a hero arriving at the last moment to rescue civilians from fire and water:
"Don't worry! I'm here!"
Immediately, the soldiers erupted in cheers:
"It's Lord Kurosaki!"
"Thank goodness! With Lord Kurosaki here, we're saved!"
Sparkle remembered seeing an Evolver carrying a katana instead of a gun when she first infiltrated the research base. That man was the so-called "Lord Kurosaki."
In truth, Kurosaki's assignment to guard this research base was proof of his formidable strength. He possessed a system called the "Daily Progress in Swordsmanship System"—a rather complex name for what was essentially a Skill System. Through relentless training, Kurosaki could enhance his swordsmanship proficiency.
For example, his most advanced Skill was Parry, allowing him to precisely block every visible attack with his weapon.
Sparkle couldn't quite understand why he'd focused on Parry of all skills, but it ultimately didn't matter. A single illusion was all it would take to bring him down.
Unless someone could cleave the heavens with a single sword strike or obliterate the world itself, anyone without mental defenses or illusion resistance—be they a Swordmaster or Sword Saint—was no different from an ordinary person in Sparkle's eyes.
In the laboratory, the Doctor felt a slight relief upon hearing Kurosaki's voice. But as any horror game veteran knows, constantly overwhelming and suppressing players can actually desensitize them to scares. A sudden ghost appearing in such a situation might not even startle them, since they've been on edge the entire time.
However, if the oppressive atmosphere were suddenly lifted—perhaps by leading the player to a pristine, empty room with the eerie background music silenced—they would naturally assume the danger had passed and lower their guard.
And then, just as they opened the next door, a jump scare would hit them head-on.
"Mmm! Delicious!"
Meanwhile, Kurosaki's voice boomed over the intercom: "Halt! Don't even think about escaping! All evil will be brought to justice!"
The Doctor stared intently at the monitor, the progress bar finally reaching ninety percent. "Almost there! Just a little further!"
Then, in the next instant, a deafening explosion ripped through the floor above, blasting a gaping hole in the laboratory ceiling. A dust-covered, bloodied head plummeted through the opening, landing with a thud right at the Doctor's feet.
Propelled by inertia, the head rolled slightly after landing, smearing blood across the Doctor's trouser leg.
"..." The Doctor stared down in utter bewilderment. The head belonged to none other than Kurosaki, the very man who had been demonstrating his might on the intercom just moments before!
Reacting instinctively, the Doctor kicked Kurosaki's head away. It arced perfectly through the air... and landed squarely in the arms of a nearby soldier.
The soldier shuddered violently, then flung the head to another soldier, who, startled, immediately tossed it to the assistant. As expected, the assistant completed the gruesome cycle by hurling it back into the Doctor's arms.
The Doctor stared in stunned silence. "What the—?!"
Before he could unleash a tirade, the gunfire outside grew closer. One of the two guards at the door rushed to the laboratory entrance, glanced outside, and without hesitation, raised his rifle, unleashing a furious barrage of bullets.
Rat-tat-tat!
His face grim, the soldier shouted, "She's broken through! We have to evacuate now, Doctor!"
"No, not yet!" The Doctor's eyes remained fixed on the computer screen. "Only five percent left! Just a little longer!"
Hearing this, the soldier adopted a look of grim determination. Gripping his weapon tightly, he charged out of the Doctor's sight, bolstering his courage with a defiant shout: "Charge!"
Finally, the download progress bar reached ninety-nine percent, then ninety-nine point nine, and then... Complete!
The Doctor swiftly unplugged the USB drive and, along with the remaining guard and his assistant, the three of them fled the laboratory. As they emerged, the Doctor's eyes widened in horror. The corridor outside was littered with soldiers' corpses. Some slumped against the walls, heads bowed, while others lay sprawled on the floor, their faces frozen in terror.
Each body was riddled with bullet holes that oozed blood, splattering the walls and even the ceiling.
Buzz...
Coincidentally, the lightbulb above them flickered ominously.
Glancing to the left, they saw the soldier who had fled earlier still firing wildly around the corner at the end of the corridor.
Just as the Doctor was about to shout for him to retreat, the soldier vanished with a sudden whoosh, as if yanked away by some unseen force. He disappeared from their sight in an instant.
Only a rapidly receding scream remained, quickly fading into the distance.
The Doctor flinched violently. Almost in unison, the three of them turned and fled in the opposite direction—to the right.