Thane didn't look convinced. Aldric was acting strange—too strange—and it worried him. But before he could press further, screams erupted from the street, sharp and panicked, a grim reminder that the nightmare outside wasn't finished.
Thane forced himself to his feet, knuckles white around the blood-slick knife. His gaze swept the shadows, taut with unease. "We can't stay here. It's not safe," he muttered, voice tight, like he was swallowing down panic.
Eira clung to Aldric's arm, her small fingers trembling against his sleeve. "Are… are there more of those things?" she whispered, barely managing the words.
Thane cursed under his breath, dragging a hand through his sweat-matted hair. "Yeah. Plenty. And if I'm being honest—" his jaw tightened, "—I don't know if we're gonna make it."
Aldric pulled Eira close, brushing a strand of hair from her pale face. Her shoulders shook against him. He forced a smile—fragile, but steady. "Hey. Look at me. We'll be okay. I promise. But staying here…" His eyes darted to the mouth of the alley. "That's suicide."
They slipped back onto the street—and into chaos. Houses burned, flames eating through wooden frames while smoke bled into the night sky. Cars lay overturned like broken toys, some blocking the road. People scattered in every direction—some clutching pipes and knives, others screaming as they ran, desperate to escape.
A few, like Thane, already moved differently. They had grasped something about the system, standing their ground with grim resolve, weapons clutched like lifelines.
Aldric's group pushed forward, weaving through the terror. Overhead, dozens of glowing system boxes hovered across the sky, burning words into their vision.
[ Wave 1 Progress: 7% Cleared ] [ 93% Remain ] [ Clear the monsters or die by their hands ]
Aldric's throat tightened. His eyes locked on the words. His chest tightened as the meaning sank in. Seven percent—gone, remaining ninety-three left.
His mouth went dry. That meant they would have to kill them all—every last one—if they wanted to clear the remaining ninety-three percent. Otherwise, this nightmare would never end.
"We need to find shelter—somewhere safe. We can't outrun this, they're everywhere!" Thane's voice cracked as he stumbled beside them, his knife still clutched tight.
Eira's eyes darted frantically, the chaos around her a blur. Her chest hammered so hard it hurt, every breath sharp and shallow. She noticed a shadow shifted at the edge of the street—then something emerged into view.
It dragged itself forward on crooked limbs, bones jutting through strips of half-rotten flesh. Its jaw dangled loose at an impossible angle, one eye shriveled while the other bulged wet and wide. Its every movement shuddered, like the body was at war with itself.
It looked like it had once been a man—or what was left of one. Twisted and half-decayed, just like the thing they'd fought earlier, the one that had once been a dog.
A scream tore from Eira's throat. She couldn't bear the sight—what she was seeing was too hideous, too terrifying to look at.
"Holy shit…" Thane muttered under his breath, staring at the thing. "So it's not just those freakish dogs anymore—now there are twisted human ones too."
Eira's scream drew the creature's attention. Its glowing eyes locked onto them, and it let out a guttural growl that twisted Aldric's stomach into knots.
The monster lunged, moving too fast for them to outrun. Thane stepped forward, knife raised, his stance unshaken.
"I got this," he said, his voice steadier than his grip.
Aldric pulled Eira back as the monster leapt, claws outstretched. Thane swung hard, steel flashing. The blade sliced clean through its hand. A spray of black ichor hissed in the air, but the beast didn't falter.
It slammed into Thane, driving him to the ground with a thud.
"Thane!" Aldric shouted, his chest tightening as he watched his friend struggle beneath the beast's weight.
The monster snarled, snapping its jaws just inches from Thane's throat. He strained with every ounce of strength, trembling arms locked against the creature's weight, but it was far too strong.
Aldric's heart hammered in his chest. Panic clawed at him as he darted his eyes around, desperate for anything—something—to help his friend. Then, suddenly, the scavenger system box flickered alive before his eyes.
[Scavenger Search: Active]
The glowing arrow pointed again toward an overturned car near a pile of trash. Aldric bolted without hesitation. He skidded to the wreck and dropped to his knees, tearing through the debris—glass, crumpled paper, broken bottles—until his fingers closed around cold metal. With a sharp tug, he freed a short tire iron rod from the mess.
Thane screamed in desperation, still straining to keep the monster's jaws from clamping down on his throat.
Aldric spun back, the iron rod clenched tight in his hands. He didn't think. He didn't hesitate. He charged. With a furious swing, the rod cracked against the creature's skull, knocking it off Thane and slamming it into the ground.
The thing twitched, struggling to rise, but Aldric gave it no chance. With a raw, furious cry, he brought the rod down again. And again. Each blow landed with sickening force until the monster's skull finally caved in, bursting apart. Black, steaming blood splattered across his clothes, hot and reeking like burnt decay.
The monster's body jerked once more, then went limp.
Aldric stood over it, chest heaving, the iron rod trembling in his grip. His ears rang. His whole body shook. He stared down at what he had done, at the twitching remains—and realized he had killed it.
[Monster defeated] [Exp +8] [Loot: Cracked skull]
The glowing system box appeared before Aldric, the same way it had for Thane after he killed his first monster.
And also just like before, that same system box—visible only to him—appeared above the corpse of the monster he had just slain.
[Wave monster defeated] [Monster Class: Average Feral One] [Monster Strength Level: 3]
From the body, wisps of black light rose into the air, pulsing faintly as though calling to him. One of the fragments drifted forward and sank into his skin. The sensation was sharper than the first time—like cold fire rushing through his veins. His grip on the iron rod tightened instinctively, strength surging in his arms.
[Monster Fragment absorbed] [Power Level +3] [Strength +5]
Aldric staggered back, gasping. Now he understood. Each fragment he absorbed from any falling monster increased his power and strength. That was why he had been able to kill this monster—because of the fragment he had taken in earlier giving him stamina and energy. Without it, he would never have stood a chance.
Thane pushed himself off the ground, smearing the blood from his face with the back of his hand. He didn't seem to notice anything strange about Aldric this time—his mind was fixed only on surviving. The street was a living chaos, filled with screams and the sounds of people being torn apart.
Aldric grabbed Eira's hand. "We need to go—now. If we stay here, we won't last."
They stumbled into a small shoe store. The front window was already cracked from the chaos outside, shards of glass glittering faintly in the glow of burning buildings. Thane shoved a shelf against the door, forcing it shut, while Aldric swept his eyes over the aisles. The shop was dim, shadows stretching long and deep, the faint light from outside barely enough to outline rows of shoes.
Eira sank to the floor, her face ghostly pale. Her arms shook as if the fear had seeped into her very bones, her wide eyes staring blankly ahead in shock.
Aldric crouched down beside her, gently placing a hand on her trembling arm. His voice softened, though it carried an urgency beneath it. "It's okay, Eira. We're safe now. At least for the moment."
Hearing that, she clung to him tighter, while Thane slid down beside the blocked door, chest heaving. "Safe for now," he muttered, "but stay alert."
Aldric only nodded, silent. His eyes dropped to his hands—they were still trembling. The memory of the monster's skull caving in under his blow kept replaying over and over, every crack echoing in his head. It had been brutal… too brutal. For a moment, he'd almost felt like he was losing himself.
His stomach twisted, bile rising in his throat. He swallowed hard. The thing had looked half-human when he killed it. That thought pressed on his chest like a weight he couldn't shake off.
Then, the system box flashed before his eyes:
[Scavenger: Level Up 1 → 3] [Stats increasing…] [Requirement: Absorb fragments from fallen monsters every 72 hours to continue leveling. Failure to comply will result in immediate action by the Scavenger System.]
Aldric's breath caught. He swallowed again, his throat dry. So his class wasn't as weak as it had sounded at first… but what did "immediate action" mean if he failed to absorb the fragments?
Beside the blocked door, Thane wiped his sweaty, bloodied face, his expression turning grim. "Listen," he said, voice low but steady, "whatever this… life game is, it's not ending tonight. That thing in the sky—it gave us classes and power levels, and it's the reason these monsters are here.
We don't know what's coming next, or what it even is. But one thing's certain: our world has somehow been transformed into a game. And if there's a game, there has to be a creator. If we don't figure this out… our world is doomed."
Hearing him, Aldric nodded slowly. "Yeah… you're right."
Thane exhaled, then gave a tired smirk. "I gotta say, I didn't know you had it in you. The way you taught that monster a lesson… that was insane. Thanks for saving me back there. I really thought I was dead."
Aldric managed a faint smile. "I couldn't just watch my best friend get torn apart. I did what any friend would do." His gaze dropped, his smile fading. He wanted to tell Thane about the system—the way it let him level up—but the words stuck in his throat. He wasn't sure yet if it was a blessing or a curse. Until he understood it better, it was safer to keep quiet.
Silence settled over the store. From outside came the distant roars and shrieks of monsters ripping people apart. Eira, exhausted, eventually drifted into a restless sleep, her head resting against Aldric's shoulder.
Aldric's eyes lingered on the flickering system box still hovering before him. Scavenger. The class could level up, but compared to Thane's Warrior, his own power looked pitifully weak. His teeth clenched. He had to get stronger. Strong enough to protect Eira from all of this.
Ever since their parents died, she had been the only family he had left. He would stop at nothing to keep her safe. No matter the cost.
He glanced once more at the glowing text in front of him. Absorb fragments to level up. So that was the path forward. He just had to keep absorbing them… keep growing… until he was strong enough.
The silence in the store didn't last long.
A sudden crash shattered it—the back door slammed open with a violent bang.
Aldric's heart lurched. He shot to his feet, gripping the iron rod so tightly his knuckles whitened. Thane rose too, knife raised, both of them bracing for whatever was coming.
Heavy footsteps pounded against the floor, each one slow and deliberate, shaking the quiet around them. Then came a low, guttural growl that echoed through the aisles, chilling them to the bone.
From the shadows, something massive crawled into view—taller than the shoe racks, its limbs long and twisted. Its eyes glowed with the same unnatural light as the other creatures they had encountered, but this one was far bigger.
The beast's enormous claws scraped across the tiles as it advanced, each screeching drag making it clear—it knew exactly where they were.