Chapter 18. Safe Zones

Chapter 18 - 18. Safe Zones [Lewd-Reap Activated] [Sexual Intimacy with Target: Elena – Successful] [Analyzing...] [Target Skills Detected: Healing] [Tap confirm to absorb the skill] [Confirm] [Decline] [Awaiting Selection...] The screen flickered before Shin's eyes as he tapped confirm without hesitation. His hand trembled around the dagger in his hand, second-guessing everything. Did he really have it in him to kill Elena? Before he could decide, Elena moved—fast, desperate. She grabbed his wrist and drove the dagger into her own chest. Blood burst from the wound, trickling down her body. Shin's eyes widened in horror. "W-what the hell are you doing?!" He wanted to kill her—he thought he did. But not like this. Not while she smiled through the pain. "Don't worry, Shin," she whispered, voice trembling but calm. "I've made peace with it. I can't complete my quest. Time's up... and I won't kill anyone else to level up. So instead, I planned to die... by your hand. So you can move forward. Not just for yourself—but for me too." Shin's face contorted with confusion and anger. What was she saying? This girl just killed Suzune—and now she's claiming she won't kill anyone to level up? But before he could speak, Elena leaned forward and kissed him. The dagger twisted deeper into her flesh as her blood ran warm down his arm. She pulled away from his lips, her eyes soft. "Please... survive. And if you meet my father at the end of all this... tell him I loved him." Then she embraced him tightly, pressing herself onto the dagger even more. Shin snapped. He shoved her back. "What's wrong with you?! You can't just die like this after killing my grandmother! I was supposed to kill you, damn it!" Tears streamed down his cheeks before he even realized he was crying. Watching Elena—bloody, breath shallow—wasn't supposed to hurt this much. Yet it did. "P-please..." Elena gasped, lungs barely catching air. "Finish... me off, Shin." "I-I can't do it," he choked, collapsing to her side. Desperately, he tried to use the healing skill he'd acquired, but Elena touched his hand, stopping him. "Don't. It'll only drag this out," she said, voice fading. Her other hand trembled as it reached for the dagger in her chest. With a brutal yank, she pulled it free—blood spraying violently onto Shin's face as she screamed in agony. The sound could've echoed all the way to the Scavenger's base. "They'll come... soon," she whispered. "Finish me." She handed him the blood-soaked blade. Shin's hands shook as he took it. Voices echoed outside—the Scavengers were looking for the source of the scream. He placed the dagger against her throat. Eyes shut tight. "I... I always loved you too," Elena murmured. And then Shin pressed the blade, slicing her neck clean through. He bit his lip until it bled, stifling the scream clawing its way up his throat. Tears kept falling, relentless and silent. He bolted out the room, running as fast as he could. Behind him, the Scavengers shouted when they found Gerald's corpse lying on the ground. The system notification buzzed in his mind: [You have received 5000 coins for killing Player: Gerald.] [You received zero coins for killing Player: Elena] His breath caught in his throat. In the beginning, the systems had notified that players could now get coins by killing other Players. The player with a lot of kills also has a lot of coins. So if he didn't get even a single coin from Elena then that means.... Anger surged through him, mixing with grief. She didn't do it. She wasn't his grandmother's killer! How could he even thought she was? Elena wasn't that type! His heart ached even more, realizing the mistake he had done. He needed to find the one who really killed his grandmother and kill them. But what he didn't know... was that he already had. Shin didn't go back to their old hideout. He couldn't. Too many memories. Too much blood that'd keep reminding him of Suzune. But in that grief, he knew one thing. That he had to live. Not for himself. But for all the people he'd lost. He'd survive. Grow stronger and make it to the end. Even if it meant becoming a monster. That night, Shin ran back to his old home. Although it was in shambles, he spent the night there. Morning came. Around nine, the system's notifications flickered to life in front of every person on Earth. [Eliminating all Level 1 Players...] [1.5 Billion Players Eliminated] [1.7 Billion Players Killed by Other Players] [Total Eliminated: 3.2 Billion Players] Screams erupted from nearly every corner of the town. Shin bolted outside. People who had been hiding crept out, pale and shaking. Others who didn't level up sprinted wildly through the streets, trying to outrun the inevitable—but their efforts were pointless. One by one, they burst apart like meat-filled balloons, spraying blood and shredded flesh across the pavement. Starving stray dogs began feasting on the chunks of human meat scattered across the roads, their eyes wild with hunger. Shin's heart slammed in his chest. If I hadn't leveled up... That would've been me. Exploded into mince meat. Torn apart and fed to mutts like street trash. But one thing stuck in his mind. The way they died—burst into meat, not dissolved like his grandfather. That meant something. That meant the elderly might still be alive. Somewhere. He snapped his eyes to his system screen to check his stats. Name: Shin Takamura Age: 20 Sex: Male Level: 2 Title: Newborn Player System Type: Filthbound Unique Skill: Lewd Reap Stolen skill(s) : Healing. Coins: 5000 EXP: 45 Stat Points: 140 MP: 160/160 He scrolled through the system menu and found the upgrade options. Without hesitation, he started pouring in his stat points. [SYSTEM: UPGRADE STATS] Strength (STR): 25 → 30 Agility (AGI): 18 → 25 Endurance (END): 17 → 23 Intelligence (INT): 24 → 35 As the upgrades locked in, Shin felt the change ripple through his body. His limbs felt lighter, his senses sharper, his blood warmer. Around him, the survivors wandered, dazed and hollow-eyed. No one knew what came next. That was until the next global system notification arrived. [Safe Zones Now Available!] [Access Safe Zones through your System Screens] [Safe Zones are places where you could live in Luxury—But It'll Cost You] [Earn More Coins by Killing Other Players!] Panic swept through the crowd like wildfire. Eyes darted. Trust vanished. Everyone looked like prey. Everyone looked like a killer. People scattered like deer under gunfire, running from each other, from the system, from death itself. Paranoia and greed drowned whatever was left of sanity. And so the massacre continued. Even after the second Elimination Round, the killing didn't stop. TBC