Commander Babar's order echoed through the facility, and one by one, every squad leader moved out.
Outside lay an abyss.
A place where death could strike at any moment, where every step carried risk. Yet hope never truly disappeared. Humanity had survived ages of extinction and rebirth because of one simple truth—it adapted. From the Stone Age to the modern world, humans endured by learning, evolving, and refusing to surrender. Survival was never simple, never fair, but as long as a path existed, humanity pushed forward.
Ziro exhaled sharply.
"Ugh… I'm confused. My head's a mess. The tension's just getting worse."
He stared at the sealed door in front of him.
"This damn thing won't even open. At least if I could go talk to my friends…"
He clenched his fists.
"I just hope everything's going well outside. I hope the people who survived the transition made it out of that hell."
A mechanical tone broke the silence.
[Authority Overturn Detected. Access Granted.]
"…Huh?"
The door slid open with a low hiss.
Ziro blinked. "What the—?"
"Hey, buddy! Wassup?"
Ziro froze. "Jamal?"
Jamal stood there grinning like an idiot.
"What are you doing here at this time.. begging?" Ziro snapped.
"Hell no," Jamal laughed. "I'm the one who saved you, you mf. I unlocked the door."
Ziro frowned. "Did Shintaro give you the key or something?"
"Nah," Jamal waved him off. "Didn't even see Shintaro. I was messing around with the Gale Mobile they gave us. Dude, it's insane. You won't believe how advanced these phones are. Makes me wanna see what other devices they've got."
Ziro rubbed his temple. "Can you get to the point?"
"Oh, right." Jamal scratched his head. "Someone locked me in from the outside. Zero manners. Didn't even check if anyone was inside."
"So I struggled for thirty minutes and unlocked my own door. Yours?" He puffed out his chest. "Fifteen minutes. Ain't I cool?"
Ziro stared at him.
How did this buffoon unlock it? How the hell…?
"But this place uses high-tech security," Ziro said slowly. "How did you do it?"
Jamal hesitated, then shrugged. "Well… not to brag, but I used to be a pretty famous grey-hat hacker. Hacked a bunch of intelligence networks from different countries."
Ziro's brain stopped working.
"…Huh?"
"WHAT?! Since when? How? Why didn't you tell me?!"
Jamal tilted his head. "You never asked."
Ziro studied him with narrowed eyes.
"I thought you were my best friend," Ziro muttered. "If I knew this earlier, I could've found out who my ex cheated with."
Jamal nodded seriously. "That's exactly why I didn't tell you, brother."
Ziro paused. "Was that an insult?"
Jamal nodded again.
"…Never mind." Ziro sighed. "What do we do now? I think Shintaro locked everyone in. And I don't think it's safe outside anymore."
Jamal's expression darkened. "Yeah. Something definitely happened."
"Well?"
"I can guess what," Jamal said. "But first—let's move."
"Where?"
"To unlock Riya's door."
15 minutes later....
"Make it quick," Ziro warned. "Didn't you say five minutes?"
Jamal cursed under his breath. "Shut the hell up. The code's changing every minute now."
A calm voice spoke behind them.
"Should I tell you?"
Jamal scoffed without turning. "Oh? You? The guy who sleeps all day? Gonna tell me how to do my job?" "sorry,my lord ! your dumb brain won't work here."
Ziro tapped his shoulder. "Tap. Tap."
"Stop disturbing—"
Tap. Tap.
"I said stop!"
Jamal spun around.
A massive figure loomed behind him.
"Oh—sorry!" Jamal blurted out. "Didn't expect someone this… amusing to be wandering around."
The man smiled faintly.
"Iron Defense Leader, Roman."
Both of them stiffened.
Jamal saluted instinctively. "S-Salute, sir!"
Roman chuckled. "At ease, kid. What are you doing here?"
"S-Sir! Just testing whether the door was working properly!"
"And?" Roman asked. "Did it work?"
Jamal folded his arms and closed his eyes like a philosopher.
"Well, sir, it was easy at first. But now it's extremely hard. Which means—it's working perfectly."
Roman laughed loudly.
"Oho! Unlocking two Blue-Tech doors? Impressive. If Shishir hears this, he'll cry knowing someone breached his system."
Ziro stepped forward. "Sir… we should probably return to our rooms."
Roman waved him off. "Nah. This is entertaining. Since you're already out, just follow me."
Ziro hesitated. "Sir… can we bring our friend Riya?"
Roman considered it, then nodded. "If you want."
"Yes, sir!" Jamal said eagerly. "Just give me five minutes—this time I'll open it."
Click.
The door slid open instantly.
Roman raised a key. "Why struggle when you already have this?"
"…Yes, sir," Jamal muttered, clearly crushed.
Riya stepped out, blinking. "Huh? What are you two doing outside?"
ziro,"well..you see.."
Riya ,"Let's go. I was bored anyway."
Ziro nodded. "Okay."
Roman turned and began walking.
"Alright, kids. Follow me."
He glanced back over his shoulder, a grin on his face.
"I'll show you a whole new world—one you've never seen before."
At the same time—
"Move, move, move!"
Hunter Squad Leader Lilith charged forward, her voice cutting through the chaos.
"We have to reach the marked location quickly!"
The Ranger Squad's voice crackled through the comms.
"Leader, two heavy-class monsters detected directly ahead. Should we take a detour?"
Lilith clicked her tongue. "This fucking monster again… tch."
She didn't slow down.
With a single step forward, Lilith swung her sword.
The blade howled through the air.
The monster didn't even have time to scream—its massive body shattered into ashes, scattered by the wind as if it had never existed.
Lilith wiped the blade clean.
"Anything else up ahead?"
A brief pause.
"Uh… no, ma'am."
Another voice followed quickly.
"At this pace, you'll reach Chattogram Sea Port in fifteen minutes."
Lilith's grip tightened.
"…How many will survive?"
Silence.
"Answer me," she snapped. "Don't think—just tell me, you buffalo."
"…Yes, ma'am." The ranger swallowed. "At least half… will be dead."
"…Sorry."
Lilith stopped.
Her jaw clenched, veins standing out on her neck.
"Ughhhhh… damn it!"
She raised her sword and pointed forward.
"Squad, follow the designated route."
Then she stepped ahead of everyone else.
"I'm going on ahead."
The wind howled as Lilith disappeared into the ruined path—alone, faster than the rest, carrying the weight of lives she couldn't save.
...
[ TO BE CONTINUED]