Endzone: Simulated Apocalypse

Using Luna's hologram as a source of light, Cyanide took a bag of chips off one of the racks. The light wasn't much, but it'll have to do for now.

He noticed there was no expiry date on the package, which was somewhat weird. As such, he picked up a different product — a candy bar — and checked the package on that as well. Again, no expiry date.

Raising an eyebrow, he unwrapped the candy bar, inspected it, then tenderly took a small bite. It didn't taste bad or rotten at all. It tasted just like chocolate. That was it.

"Interesting. It's so old that there's dust on the packaging, yet the food inside is completely fine," Luna murmured in wonder. "Did the technology of this world enable the scientists here to genetically modify food in such a way that they would never expire?"

"…" Silently, Cyanide reached into the freezer for a drink, but rather than a metal can, he felt his hands close around several small, slippery cubes. Their texture was very familiar.

"… Luna, light over here."

Luna obeyed and used Cyanide's character stat screen as a light in front of him. Once there, Cyanide's eyes widened.

"This is… ice?"

"Looks like this was automatically dispensed ice, in case of a power outage," Luna muttered. "In which case…"

"… That means this power outage happened not long ago. Perhaps just a day or so before the game began. It definitely did not happen in parallel with the apocalypse," Cyanide concluded. "Either something broke… or there's a mutant in this city absorbing all of the electricity."

"We will have to take on that mutant sooner or later," Luna said. "But for now, you should get some rest, Cyanide. It's been a long day."

Cyanide nodded, and after a few more servings of hardly healthy foods, headed into the back storage room of the convenience store and slept on top of one of the racks. Luna, on the other hand, remained powered on for the entire night, guarding her master while he slept.

*****

- Midnight -

BING! BING! BING!

The chimes of a grandfather clock rang out throughout the land. Once, twice, twelve times in total.

It was midnight.

Cyanide, hearing this, was disrupted from his sleep, and glanced around to find the source of the sound. However, it appeared to be coming from outside the building.

"Luna… what is this?"

"The Scarlet Hour. It begins now."

"… Huh?"

"This game's admins' lock on my system's programming prevent me from warning you anything about events like this until it actually happens, Cyanide. I have been looking for a way to override this, but…"

"Never mind that. There's nothing you can do right now. Just tell me about this 'Scarlet Hour'."

"The Scarlet Hour begins every night at midnight. A grandfather clock that reaches the entire world of Endzone will strike twelve times, marking the beginning of it. During this hour, mutants will fall into a bloodthirsty, crazy enraged mode, gaining increased speed, power, and durability. However, once this hour is over, they will cease all movement until the sun rises again."

"So… if they cease movement, will I still get rewards for killing them?"

"No," Luna replied. "When they are in their powered-down state, they count as dead bodies and don't give anything upon death. If you try touching them, they'll simply disintegrate into dust and respawn when morning comes with a couple seconds of immunity. However… during Overdrive — their enraged mode triggered by the Scarlet Hour — they will give significantly increased XP and better items."

"Ho… interesting."

In other words, he could not return to that basement from before, where the security guards carried weapons and whatnot. As he had experienced, salvaged parts or equipment directly off a mutant's body would only last for a few seconds before disappearing, but if the part or equipment salvaged was dropped as an item upon killing that mutant, then it would remain permanently. Back when he had been there, he hadn't spotted any spare weapons or ammo lying around, so there was no point going back there if killing those mutants in their powered-off state didn't reward anything anyway.

Cyanide leaped off from the top of the rack and pulled his knife and crowbar out of his cloak's various pockets.

"Cyanide… are you certain?" Luna asked hesitantly. "This will be dangerous."

"Since when was anything I did not dangerous?" Cyanide replied with a dark chuckle.

Hearing this, Luna smiled, then sighed.

"Yes… you're right. In that case, there is no time to waste. There's only 59 minutes and 32 seconds remaining."

Cyanide twirled his weapons around in his hands, then headed out of the convenience store that was his new home.

*****

The night was red.

The moon was not the usual, calming white people were used to, but instead stained a crimson hue with blood. It emitted a terrifying scarlet aura, engulfing the entire world in a sea of calamity and death. It brought forth a premonition — kill, or be killed.

Endzone was a survival game. Most players wouldn't want to risk doing this, even after hearing about the event from their respective A.R.S.As and the possible rewards they could reap. They valued their lives more than good loot or a thrilling experience, which, quite frankly, was probably the smarter decision.

But for Cyanide, who has always lived his life on the edge, he sought the thrill others wished to avoid. Of course, he wasn't just arrogant — he had the skills and intelligence to back up his confidence and decision in challenging this Scarlet Hour.

It didn't take long for Cyanide to find his first target. It looked completely different from during the daytime. Its flesh appeared to have completely worn off, turning them into full-on killing machines instead of cyborg zombies. A mysterious red energy traced through their wired bodies, as if empowered by the blood moon.

"… Luna. You said their strength, agility, and durability increased, right?" Cyanide asked quietly, crouched on top of a building. "What about their awareness? Is that increased as well?"

"Overall awareness, no, but their senses of hearing and sight are improved," Luna replied. "Stage One Mutants remain oblivious as usual, so as long as they are isolated, you should be okay."

"… Perfect."

Using [Inspect] on his target, Cyanide wasn't surprised at all to see the new HP level.

[Name: Overdriven Civilian Mutant (Stage One)]

[Level: 5]

[HP: 250/250]

[Class: Humanoid]

'Normally, a Level 5 Stage One Civilian Mutant would have 125 HP. This is doubled.'

Cyanide waited for the isolated mutant to pass by right below him, then used [Knife Throw] to launch his kitchen knife directly at the top of the mutant's head.

The creature froze momentarily, but it didn't fall over. As expected, something like this wouldn't one-shot kill them anymore. The mutant slowly twisted its head up, glaring synthetic red eyes burning with rage.

Those same eyes, however, soon died out as Cyanide jumped down from the roof of the building and drove his crowbar straight into the mutant's eye, smashing it to the floor. Not wasting any time, he retrieved his knife and cut through the mutant's tough neck before forcefully tearing the head away from its body, killing it instantly.

"… Hm. Their wires are definitely tougher to cut through, that's for sure."

[Obtained Mutant Blood (Low-Grade) x3.]

[Obtained Metal x4.]

[Obtained Wires x6.]

[Obtained Solar Panel x1.]

[Level Up.]

[Level 9 -> 10.]

[You gained 10 CP and 1 SP.]

[Unlocked: Soul Arts]

[Unlocked: Crafting]