Moments earlier...
’How dare this brat defy me?’ Uncle Tim’s grip tightened around nothing, his jaw clenched. ’I’ll kill him.’ Murderous intent burned in his eyes. ’The world’s already ended anyway.’
That single thought was enough to let his fury override all restraint.
He stormed into his house, went straight to the storage room, and hauled out a massive hammer—nearly half his height, its head a solid slab of rock. He swung it left and right, testing its weight.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
"Good," he grinned. "That brat is finished."
The rough stone head scraped the doorway as he carried it outside.
As he passed the living room mirror, his own reflection caught his eye—a middle-aged man with a cleanly shaven, uneven head. His blood boiled at the sight.
’He humiliated me in front of everyone. He didn’t even respect me as an elder.’
He bit his lip, eyes flushing crimson, then stormed out. Dragging the hammer along the ground, he slipped through his gate in silence.
William, meanwhile, was still giving Gray time to recover, allowing him to steady himself after his first real kill.
Tim crept closer, careful not to make a sound. Tiny sparks jumped from the road whenever the stone head struck exposed concrete.
’He’s strong. I need to catch him off guard.’
When he closed in, he lifted the hammer just clear of the ground and advanced on light steps from behind.
"Watch out!" an old woman screamed from her window.
’Damn that old hag!’ Tim cursed.
He broke into a sprint, raising the hammer to crush William’s skull.
William spun around just as the hammer was about to connect. He sidestepped, letting it crash uselessly into the dirt.
He followed with a kick straight to Tim’s face. Boom! Tim stumbled backward. The hammer slipped from his grip, striking the ground. Loose gravel jumped from the impact and rattled across.
William picked up his second katana and sheathed it.
"Uncle Tim?" he called, turning toward him with narrowed eyes. "Uncle, why are you trying to kill me?"
This hadn’t been a reckless swing. William had sensed genuine killing intent—the blow had been aimed directly at his skull. If it had landed, death would have been almost certain.
"Why?" Tim grinned widely, gesturing toward his bare scalp. "You’re insufferable. You shaved me in front of everyone. Do you know how humiliating that was?"
"But you shoved an old woman away. Wasn’t that unfair too?" William spread his hands.
"No." Tim shook his head. "That old woman was dying anyway. I merely sped things along."
He turned toward her. She trembled behind the fence, peering through the gaps. Her fingers clung so tightly to the fence that her knuckles turned white.
"Isn’t that right?"
"No..." William opened his mouth to speak, but paused.
Whoosh!
An arrow tore through Tim’s throat, spraying blood across the street.
Tim’s eyes widened with disbelief as he stared at the crimson arrowhead protruding from his neck. He tried to speak, but only choking gurgles escaped. His hands clutched at the wound, becoming drenched in blood.
He dropped to his knees, tears welling in his eyes as he looked at William, as though begging to be saved.
William froze.
The man collapsed and died within seconds.
The crowd staggered backward. Several people began vomiting where they stood. One man backed into a parked car without realizing it until the metal stopped him. The zombie kills had already shaken them, but witnessing a real human death shattered whatever composure they had left.
William turned toward the source of the arrow.
A purple-haired high school girl stood there with a bow in her hand and a quiver strapped across her back. The silver bow was nearly as tall as she was, pale and elegantly carved, clearly designed for real power.
’Alissa.’
William’s breath caught.
The young woman who had died from a spider’s spike, in his previous life, now stood before him alive.
His fists clenched.
’This time, I’ll make sure you survive.’
Alissa strode forward and hissed, "What were you doing, talking to him, idiot? You should’ve killed him the moment he attacked." Her voice snapped William back to the present.
He grabbed her shoulder and pulled her into a sudden hug. ’She’s alive.’
His vision blurred for a moment before he quickly wiped his eyes.
Alissa froze for a heartbeat before shoving him away and smirked. "What? Did you miss me?" Her teasing made him pause. He glanced at Tim’s corpse, his voice hardening. "Why did you kill him? I was trying to talk sense into him."
"Oh." Alissa’s mouth formed a small circle before she nodded slowly. "You were trying to talk sense into him." She flicked his forehead sharply.
"Ow!" William rubbed the spot. "What was that for?"
"For being an idiot," she said flatly. "He was trying to kill you, and you wanted to reform him?"
"It might have been a momentary impulse," William argued.
"And how would you know that?" Alissa shot back.
William fell silent. He genuinely didn’t know whether Tim’s attack had been a one-time lapse or the act of a man accustomed to violence.
"It doesn’t matter now. I already killed him." Alissa sighed. "Just don’t go easy on people like that again."
"Not everyone’s inherently evil," William insisted. "People act on emotion and impulse. Sometimes, they do things they later regret."
"Sure, sure. Hero." Alissa sneered, clearly unimpressed. She folded her arms, waiting for him to argue back.
Gray felt his palms tremble slightly as he quietly moved Alissa to the top of his mental list of dangerous people—even above William. He instinctively took half a step away from her.
Despite William’s raw skill, people seemed to relax around him almost instinctively. But one motion from Alissa caused the entire crowd to stiffen in fear.
Several people muttered under their breath:
"Don’t provoke her."
"Always avoid her."
Alissa slung her bow across her back.
William raised his voice toward the crowd. "Let’s move, everyone. Time’s running out."
[ Main Quest 1—Survival
Objective: Reach the portal within one hour
Quest Time: 47:41
Reward: Unlock Leveling and Store ]
He frowned. "Everyone, come out quickly. We’re running out of time."
At his words, everyone swiftly left their homes. The zombies had already been dealt with, and they weren’t afraid of William at all.
"Do you really need to drag all of them along?" Alissa muttered, eyeing the crowd as their heads lowered. "None of them even tried helping you back there."
"It’s fine," William said with a grin, tapping his chest. "I’m strong enough."
Alissa sighed and rubbed her temple.
William addressed the group. "First, grab weapons—anything you can defend yourselves with. Second, bring water. We’ll be running a lot." He glanced at their casual clothing. "Third, cover yourselves completely. That’s all." People disappeared into their homes almost at a run.
A muscular middle-aged man stepped forward.
"Uncle John, is something wrong?" William asked.
John replied, "I’ve got rations left over from my army days. Should I bring them?"
"We don’t have time to sit and eat properly." William shook his head. "Move. We need to be quick."
The remaining crowd hurried into their homes. Moments later, they emerged carrying hammers, kitchen knives, and whatever else they could find. They dressed in layered clothing covering every inch of skin except their faces.
William, Alissa, and Gray wore thick, full-sleeved shirts beneath sweaters, gloves on their hands, and heavy boots. They even covered their necks with scarves.
Gray borrowed clothing from someone of a similar size. William and Alissa had their own.
’Three minutes. That was fast.’ William checked the status panel. Doors continued opening and closing as the last few neighbors hurried outside.
Once everyone was properly covered, William called out, "Make sure a zombie never scratches your face. Everything else is protected. These clothes will buy you a few hits before you’re in real danger."
The crowd offered only weary, bitter smiles, already sensing the difficult days ahead.
Uncle John stepped forward again. He was now dressed in full army fatigues, with a heavy hammer in one hand, daggers and other weapons at his waist, and a long sword strapped to his hip. He was missing only a firearm to complete the appearance.
William’s eyes widened.
’Definitely ex-military.’ Even the way he adjusted the weapons at his waist looked practiced.
"So, where exactly is this portal, and how do we find it?" Uncle John asked, drawing every eye in the crowd toward William.
Dozens of eyes settled on William. No one raised their voice.