Myles stepped into the ruined house with careful steady steps. Dust crunched under his boots as he moved through the broken doorway.
From the shadows the man they followed turned sharply. A rusted kitchen knife gleamed in his hand, his arm tense and ready to stab.
His sharp eyes locked onto Myles with the cold intent to kill.
Myles raised both hands slowly. "I don't want to attack you."
The man's grip tightened, his knuckles white. His gaze darted past Myles, searching for a trap. He didn't believe it.
"I have two more people outside," Myles continued, his voice calm but steady, trying to convey his honesty. "If it eases your mind… you can take my weapon."
The man frowned, suspicion etched across his face.
"Your weapon?" He stepped forward cautiously, never lowering his knife. His eyes narrowed, as if weighing whether Myles was a fool or a liar.
Myles didn't move.
The man reached for the short black blade at Myles' side. Its surface glinted faintly, traced with thin red lines like veins of burning coal.
He pulled it free, testing its weight in his hand. His suspicion only deepened.
"You'd really hand this over?"
"Yes. For now," Myles said flatly. His eyes didn't waver. "Now do you believe I don't mean you any harm?"
The man stared at him, then finally spoke. "If not to attack me… then what do you want?"
"An alliance," Myles replied without hesitation. "If we don't work together, we'll be struggling in this world. And we won't last long if we don't work together."
For a long moment, the room was heavy with silence. The man's knife remained raised. Then slowly, he lowered it.
"…Alright," he muttered. He stepped back and motioned toward the inside. "Bring your people in."
Nadine and Kade walked in and pushed the door closed behind them and locked it.
Inside the house, all four of them settled in the living room on the couch.
The man sat across from them, placing Myles's blade on the small wooden table between them. For the first time his posture loosened a little, as if trust was slowly forming.
"Where do you guys shelter?" the man asked.
"In that campus building," Myles answered. "How about you?"
"I live in the apartment not far from here." His words grew heavier, his jaw tight as he gritted his teeth. Fear, anger, or pain—it was hard to tell which. After a pause, he spoke again. "I just lost my girlfriend a few hours ago, at night. We lived together… just the two of us. I went out to scavenge immediately, hoping to take my mind off her death."
Myles gave a slow nod, his face calm but respectful. Nadine stayed quiet, her eyes lowering to the floor.
Kade, however, leaned forward, sorrow flickering across his expression. "I… understand," he said quietly. "I just lost a friend too."
The man exhaled sharply, his shoulders sinking. "Yeah… this world has turned into hell. I have no idea what is even happening right now."
Myles knew the answer. Lilian had given him that knowledge. But he wasn't sure if he could share it or if he should.
The man's question felt more like a cry of frustration than a search for truth, so Myles let it pass.
Instead, he spoke with resolve. "We should work together. You've already awakened your system, right?"
The man nodded, chuckling bitterly. "Yeah. Crazy, isn't it? Who the hell ever thought we'd see ourselves thrown into a world like this, with systems like some damn game? Heh." His laugh carried no joy. "But… I agree. Working together might at least keep us alive a little longer."
"I'm not planning on dying anytime," Myles said firmly, his gaze unyielding.
The man studied him, searching his face for even a flicker of doubt. But there was none. His serious expression drew a small.tired sigh from the man.
"…Alright," he said at last.
A silence lingered before he straightened up. "My name is Victor."
"Myles," Myles replied, then gestured to the others. "This is Nadine. And that's Kade."
Victor nodded to each of them in turn. For the first time since they entered, the tension in the room began to ease.
Victor's expression hardened as if recalling something that clawed at his memory.
He leaned forward, lowering his voice.
"There's something else you should know," he said, his tone grim. "In the apartment building next to mine… there's a man. Or at least, he used to be."
His hand tightened into a fist on his knee. "He mutated and became something terrifying. His body looks stretched like his skin cannot contain what's inside his body. His arms became so long, the muscles swollen. His spine juts out under the skin like a row of jagged blades. And his jaw…" Victor's lip curled with disgust. "It can open wider than any human mouth should. He has too many sharp teeth."
He paused, drawing in a shaky breath. "He doesn't move during the day. Just hangs around the building like he's waiting. But when night comes, he wakes up. And when he does… he's so strong and fast. I've seen him smash through doors and tear apart metal railings with his bare hands. I heard him screaming and roaring like some mix of a man and a beast. Every tim since I saw him, I've kept my lights off and stayed quiet."
Victor's eyes darkened, his voice lowering even further. "But we made a mistake… he was the one who killed my girlfriend."
—