The words burned in his vision like fire.
[New Quest Available: Defeat an Enemy.][Reward: +30 EXP, Item Drop Chance.]
Imura swallowed hard, his throat suddenly dry. His room was silent, the air stale with the faint smell of instant noodles and sweat. But now it felt… heavier.
An enemy.
His gaze darted around the dim apartment. Nothing. Just the same cracked walls, the dusty TV, the flickering streetlight bleeding through the curtains.
But he felt it. The pressure. The way the air shifted, like the whole world was holding its breath.
A sound came from outside. A wet, dragging shuffle.
Imura froze. His pulse hammered in his ears. Slowly, he stepped toward the window, peeking through the curtain.
And his blood turned to ice.
A figure staggered across the parking lot below. Its skin was gray and peeling, its limbs jerky like a puppet with tangled strings. Its jaw hung open, drool dripping onto the asphalt.
A zombie.
He blinked, shaking his head violently."No. No way. This isn't real."
But the system responded coldly.
[Enemy Identified: Lesser Undead (Lv.1)][Danger Level: Low]
Imura stumbled back, clutching his chest. His heart was racing, sweat rolling down his temple."A… a fucking zombie? Are you kidding me? This is supposed to be a game cheat, not a horror movie!"
But then he saw it — the quest window, glowing faintly.
[Defeat an Enemy.]
His breathing steadied. If this was real, then so was the reward. And if zombies were crawling around his neighborhood, then hiding wouldn't save him.
He clenched his fists. "…Fine. If it's fight or die, then I'll fight."
He opened his system window.
[Clone Ability: Activate?]
"Yes," he muttered.
Light swirled beside him, and the clone materialized again. It stood in silence, waiting.
Imura pointed to the door. "Follow me."
The stairwell reeked of mildew and cigarettes. Each creak of the steps echoed too loud, like a countdown. Imura's stomach twisted with every step, but he kept moving. His clone trailed behind him, silent, steady.
When he pushed the front door open, the night air hit him like ice. The zombie was closer now, limping toward the building. Its cloudy eyes rolled lazily in its head, but the moment its gaze caught Imura's movement, it snapped upright with a wet snarl.
Imura's breath hitched. "Shit…"
The zombie shrieked and charged, faster than it looked capable of.
"Go!" Imura yelled.
The clone leapt forward, intercepting it. The two collided, stumbling back. The zombie clawed wildly, raking at the clone's arm. Flesh tore open, black ichor spraying. The clone didn't flinch—it didn't even bleed like a human, just shadows leaking from the wound.
Imura's legs wanted to run, but he forced them to move forward.No. I can't let it do all the work. If I want to level up… I have to fight too.
He grabbed a loose pipe lying near the dumpster and swung with all his strength. The metal connected with the zombie's head with a sickening crack.
The creature reeled but didn't fall. Its milky eyes locked onto him, rage boiling.
It lunged.
"Shitshitshit—!" Imura swung again, desperately, the pipe whistling through the air. The clone grabbed the zombie from behind, holding it down, and Imura smashed the pipe into its skull over and over until bone splintered, until his arms shook and his lungs burned.
Finally, with one last swing, the skull caved in. The zombie collapsed in a heap, twitching once before going still.
Silence.
Imura staggered back, panting, the pipe slipping from his trembling hands. His chest heaved as he stared at the corpse. The smell hit him then — rancid, rotten, like death soaked into the air. He gagged, nearly retching.
But then—
Ding!
[Quest Complete!][+30 EXP][Item Drop: Rusted Dagger (Common)]
A faint glow shimmered above the corpse, coalescing into a small blade. Imura's eyes widened.
"…Loot. Actual loot."
His hands shook as he reached down and picked it up. The dagger was old, chipped, but real. Heavy in his grip.
[Rusted Dagger – ATK +2]
He laughed, breathless and half-mad. "Holy shit… this is real. This is actually happening."
The system chimed again.
[EXP: 77/100]
One more fight and he'd level up. The thought sent a thrill down his spine.
For the first time in years, he felt alive.
The clone's timer hit zero, and it dissolved into light. Imura stared at the fading figure. His chest was still tight, his nerves raw, but his lips curved into a shaky grin.
"If that's what a low-level enemy looks like…" He looked at the dagger in his hand, the system panel glowing before him. "Then I'll need to get a lot stronger."
His reflection in a puddle stared back — wide eyes, messy hair, a grin that bordered on madness.
And for once, he didn't hate the man looking back.