Dancing with the Deaths

Chapter 4 - The Side Alley to Hell

Three hours later.

Night had fully fallen. A-117 Supermarket was now the only island of light in the ocean of darkness that was the dead city. Outside the blue-glowing glass walls, the shadows of the Ekorupts shifted restlessly, but they dared not attack yet because the light intensity of the Level 1 Wall was still strong.

In the back room, Marsel was crouching in front of a large electrical panel box that hummed roughly.

[Backup Generator: Minor Damage]

[Repair Required: 10 Energy Points]

"Such a waste of energy," Marsel muttered. "But if the power goes out, the AC dies, the freezer dies, and all the food spoils."

"Your Majesty," Tyrex said, sitting on a stack of instant noodle boxes and wiping his 'Basket Shield' with a dirty rag. "That old man has been peeking at us from behind the door. His eyes are shifty like a sewer rat's."

"Just ignore him," Marsel said, pressing the confirmation button on his holographic screen.

Blue light flowed from Marsel's body into the generator machine. The machine vibrated, its rough noise disappearing, replaced by a smooth, efficient hum.

[Repair Complete.]

[Energy Remaining: 40 Points.]

Suddenly, Mr. Budi entered the room, his steps hurried. He had removed his jacket, and his shirt sleeves were rolled up, but his tie was still crooked.

"Marsel, I have conducted a self-inspection," Mr. Budi said in a self-important tone. He pointed toward the iron door in the corner of the room that led to the side alley—a rarely used emergency exit. "I noticed you allocated a huge amount of energy to the front wall. That is wasteful."

Marsel stood up, wiping his hands on his pants. "And what do you suggest, sir?"

"That," Mr. Budi pointed at the emergency door. "That side door is unimportant. The alley there is narrow; monsters couldn't possibly pass through in large numbers. You should reallocate that energy to turn on the AC in the staff room. It's terribly hot in here; I could get dehydrated."

Marsel stared at the door. A rusted iron emergency door.

[Structure Analysis: Side Door (Condition: Critical/Fragile)]

Marsel's System told him otherwise. The door's structure was extremely weak. The hinges were barely holding on.

"No, sir," Marsel said. "That door is actually the weakest point. I'm going to use the remaining 40 energy points to upgrade that door to a Level 2 Wall."

"What?!" Mr. Budi glared. "Are you insane? 40 points? That's all our remaining energy, isn't it? You want to waste it on a door that's never used, while I'm sweltering in here? What kind of managerial logic is that? Total inefficiency!"

"This isn't about comfort, it's about survival," Marsel stressed.

"I disagree!" Mr. Budi stepped forward, trying to intimidate Marsel with his posture (even though he was actually shorter). "As the most senior person here, I veto this decision. Turn on the AC, or I will... I will incite these two friends of yours to stage a coup!"

Marsel turned to Tyrex. Tyrex was busy twisting a metal shelf rod into the shape of a pretzel. Marsel turned to Nana. Nana was counting the stock of bandages with a tired expression.

"Good luck with the coup, sir," Marsel said flatly.

He turned back to face the rusted emergency door. He placed both hands on the cold iron surface.

"System, allocate all remaining energy for Side Door Structure Reinforcement."

[Confirmation: Spend 40 Energy Points?]

[Warning: Fortress Energy will be 0. Other features will be temporarily deactivated.]

"Do it."

"DON'T!" Mr. Budi screamed, trying to pull Marsel's hands away.

*VROOOM!*

A blinding blue light exploded from Marsel's hands. The rusted iron door transformed. The rust flaked away, replaced by a thick, glowing layer of silver metal. Additional steel bars magically appeared, locking the door flush with the concrete wall beside it.

[Upgrade Complete: Side Gate (Level 2 - Reinforced Barrier)]

[Energy Remaining: 0]

The lights in the room flickered once, then died completely. Only the faint blue glow from the newly upgraded door illuminated the room. The AC was off. The fans were off.

"You..." Mr. Budi pointed a trembling finger at Marsel's face in the darkness. "You are truly an idiot! Now it's dark! It's hot! And we have no backup energy! What if there's an attack from the front, huh? You jeopardized my life for the sake of this junk door!"

"Sir, quiet down," Marsel hissed sharply.

"I won't! I want to protest strongly! This is a dictatorship! A dictatorship of potato chips and iron doors!" Mr. Budi yelled, his voice echoing. He kicked the new door in frustration. "Useless door! There's nothing behind th—"

CRASH!

A massive impact shook the door from the outside.

Mr. Budi stumbled backward in shock, falling onto the floor. Dust rained down from the ceiling.

CRASH! CRASH!

The impacts were so violent that the surrounding concrete walls developed hairline cracks, but the Level 2 door didn't budge an inch. Its blue light pulsed angrily with every hit.

From the gap beneath the door, a chorus of wet growls could be heard. Not one, not two. Dozens.

"What... what is that?" Mr. Budi squeaked, his face, which had been red with anger moments before, now white as paper.

Marsel activated the transparent Scan (using his personal stamina reserves, not the fortress energy).

[Detected: Horde of Wild Dog Ekorupts (Lv. 2)]

[Count: 25 Subjects]

[Status: Frenzy (Starving)]

"Wild dogs," Marsel whispered. "They smelled us. That side alley is where the restaurant next door dumps its trash. That's their den. If this door hadn't just been upgraded..."

Marsel pictured the old, rusted iron door in his memory. It would have been breached with a single charge. And those 25 monster dogs would be tearing them apart right now.

Mr. Budi swallowed hard. His eyes were fixed on the door, which continued to vibrate under the assault outside. He imagined if Marsel had followed his order to turn on the AC.

"Are there... a lot of them?" Mr. Budi asked softly, all arrogance gone from his voice.

"Enough to finish you off in ten seconds," Marsel replied coldly. He reached out a hand, helping Mr. Budi stand—not out of respect, but pity. "Still want to complain about the AC, sir?"

Mr. Budi patted his dirty pants, trying to salvage a shred of his shattered dignity. But his hands were still trembling. He didn't dare meet Marsel's eyes.

"W-well... it's called field analysis... sometimes you can be wrong," Mr. Budi stammered. "Good. Your initiative... decent. I... ahem... I'm going to check the mineral water stock. That's important. Hydration."

Without waiting for a reply, the former official quickly bolted out of the generator room, nearly tripping over his own feet.

Tyrex chuckled softly, his bass voice echoing in the darkness. "He ran like a chicken seeing a frying pan."

"Let him," Marsel leaned his back against the door he had just built, feeling the vibrations of the monster impacts against his spine. He was exhausted. His energy was zero. But he had been right.

Nana approached, offering a bottle of mineral water she had retrieved from somewhere. "Drink this, Mas. You look pale."

"Thanks, Na." Marsel drank the water greedily. "Tomorrow is going to be a long day."

"Why?"

"Our energy is zero," Marsel crumpled the empty plastic bottle. "Tomorrow morning, we have to go out again. And this time, we need to get more than just 15 points."

Outside, the mutant dogs were still howling, scratching at the steel door that separated life and death. Marsel closed his eyes, savoring one more night where he had managed not to die.

*