Dead To Begin

Level 5 – Quest

“I see it!” Joanne shouted excitedly, instantly drawing Jackson and Smith’s attention.

“What do you see?” Jackson asked, still busy fighting off the zombies attacking him, ignoring the system screen in front of him.

“These zombies keep emerging from the ground. The more we fight them, the more they multiply,” she explained.

“Then what are we supposed to do? We can’t just stand here and wait for them to attack us.”

Jackson kicked a zombie that nearly bit him, then turned to fend off another from the opposite side.

While Jackson and Joanne were busy fighting, Smith was trying to open the instructions on his screen.

One persistent zombie kept interrupting him, causing him to fail repeatedly in tapping the interface.

Smith retaliated, throwing punches and using every move he could to weaken the enemy.

Suddenly, a zombie attacked him from the side and bit into his upper arm, making him wince in pain.

“Shhh…” Smith tried to stay calm and fought back. His arm throbbed, and blood soaked through his shirt.

He quickly tapped the screen, trying to find a way to defeat the zombies. Only two options appeared—he chose the second.

A new screen popped up, revealing the quests they needed to complete for Level One.

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`  View Mission  [✓]

Zombies are surrounding and attacking you from all directions. To escape, you must find the hidden button that opens the gate to Level Two. This button is concealed in the darkness and can only be seen using a special item obtained from your reward.

Your quests for this level:

1. Defeat at least 100 zombies (43/100)

2. Find the button that leads to Level Two

3. Obtain your first Kane Collection item

*Note: Avoid being bitten by zombies.

A bite = becoming one of them.

The effects of a zombie bite last for less than one hour. If you don’t receive help within that time, you will die and turn into a zombie.*

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Smith froze as he read the note at the bottom of the quest screen. He glanced at his bleeding arm.

Trying to stay calm, he tore a strip from his shirt and wrapped it tightly around the wound.

“The most important thing now is not to let them know. I have to find the cure so I can survive… and save Kay,” he thought.

Smith turned to Joanne, who was wearing the Owl Glasses.

“You!” he called out, pointing at her. Luckily, Joanne turned to him.

“Use the item you received to find the button that leads to the first Kane Collection.”

“The button?” Joanne repeated.

“That button will open the gate to Level Two,” Smith explained. Joanne nodded in understanding.

“We have to work together. If we want to make it out of here alive, we need to cooperate,” Smith urged.

“You’re only saying that so you can get us out and ditch us in the next level, aren’t you?” Jackson glanced at him briefly, then resumed fighting the relentless zombies.

“Let’s put our rivalry aside for now and work together to escape,” Smith insisted.

“That’s exactly what we need to do. We must stick together to get out of here. It’s all written in the game rules I read,” Joanne replied, scanning the area.

“I found it!” she exclaimed.

“Where?” Jackson asked.

“It’s far from here—straight ahead, at twelve o’clock. But it’s located very high up. We’ll need to climb to reach it,” Joanne described what she saw.

“That’s the second mission completed. Now we need to defeat 100 zombies. I’ve taken down about 43, and there are still more coming. I’m not sure if your systems show the same count.”

“My screen shows 59 out of 100,” Jackson said, quickly checking his system.

“That means each of us needs to defeat around 100 zombies to complete the mission,” Joanne said, kicking a zombie that lunged at her.

“We need to move!” Smith shouted.

“What do you mean?” Jackson asked, confused. He jumped and kicked a zombie square in the face, knocking several down at once.

“We can’t keep fighting in one spot. We need to move to reach the button and find the Kane Collection.”

“Then let’s go! Follow me!” Joanne led the way, fighting off zombies alongside her teammates.

They arrived at their destination.

“This cliff is really high. We’ll have to climb to reach the button,” Joanne explained.

“I’ll go first. Then I’ll pull you up one by one,” Smith offered.

Among them, Smith was the tallest and, judging by his appearance, clearly the oldest.

Without hesitation, Smith began climbing, searching for footholds while the others continued fighting.

Next was Jackson. He climbed quickly and reached the top with Smith’s help.

Once both were up, it was Joanne’s turn. She climbed slowly, but as she did, the zombies began swarming toward her, piling up like a mountain trying to reach her.

Joanne was terrified. Her hands trembled, and she lost focus. She feared one of the zombies might grab her and pull her down.

“Don’t look down!” Smith shouted. Joanne nodded and kept climbing.

She was just half a meter away from where her teammates stood when suddenly one of the rocks beneath her foot crumbled.

She nearly fell, but managed to steady herself using her other foot and both hands. She kept climbing.

Just as she was about to reach the top, she felt a zombie grab her leg and yank her downward.

“KYAA!!” Joanne screamed, startled and panicked.

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