The faint glow of the system message faded from my sight, leaving behind only the echo of its words.
『Choice of the Survivor.』
Save or abandon.
The hallway stretched ahead—dim lights flickering, walls smeared with soot and blood. The oppressive silence between us was heavy enough to choke on.
Marcus finally broke it. "Ethan, what's our next move?"
"First, we find somewhere secure. Then we figure out what this system wants from us."
I wiped the blood from my hands onto my pants, the metallic scent clinging to my fingers. The wound on my shoulder throbbed, but the adrenaline kept me moving.
Claire followed close behind, still trembling, her breath uneven. She had stopped crying, but the way she flinched at every noise told me she was holding on by threads.
We reached a steel service door labeled Emergency Shelter – Level B2. A keypad blinked beside it.
Marcus squinted. "You think this one still works?"
I pressed a few buttons, but the screen gave no response.
"Power's down here too," I muttered.
"Maybe we could—"
He didn't finish. The sound of dragging feet interrupted him.
Claire's voice cracked. "They're coming again."
The noise was coming from the other end of the hallway, echoing closer—multiple footsteps this time. Not just one creature.
"Move!" I grabbed Marcus by the arm, pushing him toward the corner.
We ducked behind a row of overturned filing cabinets. Claire crouched beside us, covering her mouth.
From the shadows ahead, they appeared.
Three of them. The same half-rotted, sinewy creatures as before, their skin hanging loose and eyes glowing faintly blue in the dark. Their heads twitched in sharp, jerky movements as they sniffed the air.
Marcus whispered, "Do they… hunt by smell?"
"Not sure," I said softly. "But stay still."
The creatures prowled forward, claws scraping the floor. One of them stopped and tilted its head toward our direction.
Claire stiffened beside me.
The creature's nostrils flared. A low hiss escaped its throat.
Then it turned away.
Slowly, painfully slowly, the trio began to move past our hiding spot.
For a second, I thought we were safe.
Then the smallest one stopped and sniffed again.
It turned back.
Our eyes met.
"Run!"
The hall erupted into chaos.
I shoved Claire ahead, sprinting down the corridor. Marcus followed close behind, panting, the extinguisher rattling in his grip.
The monsters shrieked and charged after us.
We reached the corner—a T-junction splitting left and right.
"Which way?!" Marcus shouted.
"Left!"
We turned, nearly slipping on the blood-streaked floor. Up ahead, I spotted another emergency door—half open.
"Through there!"
Claire stumbled but kept moving. Marcus grabbed her hand and practically dragged her through.
I was the last one in. The door slammed shut behind me just as the first monster hit it with a heavy thud.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The hinges groaned under the blows.
"Block it!" Marcus and I shoved a metal shelf against the door, bracing it with anything we could find—chairs, boxes, broken furniture.
The pounding continued for a few seconds… then stopped.
The silence returned.
We waited.
Marcus slumped against the wall. "You think they're gone?"
"Don't count on it."
The room was small, lined with metal cabinets and scattered paperwork. In one corner sat a maintenance terminal faintly glowing—the only working light in the room.
Claire pointed toward it. "It's… still on."
I moved closer. The screen displayed faint green text.
> MANUAL BACKUP SYSTEM ACTIVE.
POWER LEVEL: 17%.
ACCESS: ADMIN CLEARANCE REQUIRED.
Marcus groaned. "Of course. Admin only. Always the same."
I scanned the terminal. "If this connects to the building's internal systems, we might be able to restore partial power."
"How?"
I flexed my left hand—the same hand that had touched the system window earlier. The faintest glow still pulsed there, almost imperceptible.
I hesitated, then pressed it to the terminal.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then—
Ding.
[Player 'Ethan Cross' has interfaced with the System.] [Connection recognized. Restoring auxiliary power.]
The lights flickered, then steadied. The faint hum of machinery filled the air.
Marcus's jaw dropped. "What the hell did you just do?"
"I don't know," I admitted. "But it worked."
Claire stared at me, her expression caught between awe and fear. "Ethan… are you even human?"
Before I could answer, the next system message appeared.
[New Function Unlocked: Status Window]
[Would you like to view your current stats? Y / N]
Without hesitation, I whispered, "Yes."
The faint blue light expanded before me, lines of text forming in midair.
— Name: Ethan Cross
Class: Undefined
Level: 1
Strength: 6 (+1)
Agility: 5
Endurance: 6
Perception: 5
Mana: 0
Coins: 20
Traits: None
Authority: Locked
—
Marcus leaned over my shoulder, eyes wide. "Is that… you?"
"Apparently."
He chuckled weakly. "Guess that means this really is a game."
Before I could respond, a faint chime echoed again.
[System Notification: A new player has died.] [Remaining individuals: 347/401]
Claire gasped. "That many already…?"
I stared at the number. Over fifty people, gone in less than an hour.
The tower's first lesson was cruelly clear: mercy meant nothing here.
"Rest while you can," I said quietly. "This is only the beginning."
Marcus looked at me grimly. "You think there's more coming?"
"There's always more."
Somewhere in the distance, the monsters began to howl again.
The tutorial had only just begun.