The laughter faded.
[congratulation on achieving an epic feat]
[killing an evolved zombie]
Riko exhaled, his breath shaky but steady. The reality of their survival was still sinking in, but his body felt like it had been crushed under a ton of bricks. His limbs ached, his knuckles throbbed from gripping the pipe too tightly, and exhaustion gnawed at the edges of his consciousness.
Takeshi wiped sweat from his brow, his face still twisted in something between disbelief and manic relief. "Holy shit," he muttered again, shaking his head. "We actually fucking lived."
Riko let out a dry chuckle but didn't reply. He stepped back from the crumbled edge of the bridge, staring down into the abyss below where the leader had vanished. And saw nothing no sound came from the depths, no movement or anything, It was really dead. Not that you could see anything in the darkness below.
He clenched his fists. It took everything just to kill one of them.
And there were still more out there.
The remaining creatures had disappeared into the night after their leader fell, but Riko wasn't naive enough to think they were safe. They were never safe.
He turned his gaze toward the rusted door Takeshi had tried to break open earlier. Now that they weren't seconds away from dying, they had time to do things properly.
Takeshi must have thought the same.
"Let's get inside before any more of those things show up." Riko said and Takeshi nodded, while He picked up a loose chunk of concrete from the ground, gripping it tight before slamming it against the rusted handle. Once. Twice. The metal groaned, then snapped.
"Good enough."
The door creaked open, revealing a dark stairwell leading downward.
Takeshi hesitated.
"There's something everywhere we will just have to fight it out if we meet something." Riko pushed forward, stepping inside first.
The stairwell was empty.
They descended slowly, their footsteps muffled by layers of dust and grime. The air was stale, filled with the scent of rust, old wood, and something faintly rotten.
They emerged into what looked like an abandoned apartment hallway. The peeling wallpaper, shattered light fixtures, and broken doors made it clear that no one had lived here for a long time. But at least it was shelter.
Takeshi let out a deep breath, rolling his shoulders. "Alright, I say we find a room, barricade it, and get some rest."
Riko didn't argue.
They moved quickly, checking doors until they found an apartment with an intact lock and only one entrance. The furniture inside was old and covered in dust, but the place was secure.
Takeshi slumped onto a moth-eaten couch, exhaling sharply. "This… is the first time we've actually been able to stop since this bullshit started."
Riko sat against the wall, pipe still in his lap. He didn't relax. Not fully. "Yeah."
Silence stretched between them.
Despite his exhaustion, Riko's mind was still sharp. He had a lot of questions—about Crossing Realm, the creatures, the other players. He needed to understand the rules of this world if he wanted to survive.
Takeshi, on the other hand, looked like he was struggling just to keep his eyes open.
"Get some rest," Riko said finally. "We will switch places every 2 hours."
Takeshi said in a straight face. "Thank you for saving me i woulnt have made it this far without you, so truly thank you"
"Get some sleep."
Takeshi sighed and Within minutes, his breathing slowed.
Riko stayed awake while keeping Watch. "Saving you huh, that beast the moment i saw it stand still in the fence watching Takeshi try to desperatly climb i could tell it's sadistic nature, if i ran away alone it would take me serious and kill me like pray, the moment i saw it stand still and watch Takeshi try to climb while smiling is when i made my that conclusion"
"if i helped another pray out and showed we desperatly where at it's mercy and tried to help eachother, it would lower it's guard as it would think we are stupid, one was a risk and one was guaranteed death, so i took the risk, it payed off, as it let us run witch lead to it's unlucky death."
"Same with the last time all the saving was more to lower it's guard rather then save you" Riko thought as he stated at the sleeping Takeshi
And For the first time in what felt like forever, the city was quiet.
But the silence didn't comfort him.
It made him uneasy.
"Alright let's switch up, Takeshi stirred awake while Riko went to sleep and they continued like that untill Morning came, with Riko last in watch"
The big town remained a Graveyard even more so now than in the night.
Takeshi stirred awake to the dim light of dawn creeping through the cracked windows.
His entire body ached. His throat was dry. His stomach was painfully empty.
But he was still alive.
He glanced across the room. Riko was still by the wall, head tilted slightly downward, arms crossed. His eyes were closed—but Takeshi knew better than to think he had actually asleep.
Takeshi stretched with a groan. "We need food."
Riko's eyes flicked open immediately. "Yeah."
They left the apartment, stepping back into the ruined town witch felt more like a city.
The morning light did little to make the world feel any less dead. Buildings stood hollow, streets were littered with abandoned cars and debris, and there was still no sign of life.
It was like the entire city had been swallowed and stripped of its people.
As they moved cautiously through the streets, Takeshi kept his voice low. "Think there are other players out there?"
Riko didn't hesitate. "Yeah."
Takeshi frowned. "They could be dangerous."
"They could be useful."
Takeshi snorted. "I'll take that as we're gonna find out either way."
As Takeshi and Riko went to find food they spotted them.
Players.
They where near an old convenience store.
A group of three.
Riko recognized two of them immediately from the tutorial room.
One was a short-haired girl in a hoodie—the one who had hesitated to speak before they were teleported. The other was a tall, broad-shouldered guy with a scar over his eye.
The third was a younger guy with glasses. He had been the one who tried to get everyone to plan before the tutorial had started.
They hadn't noticed Riko and Takeshi yet.
They were inside the store, gathering supplies.
Takeshi leaned in slightly. "So? What's the move?"
Riko narrowed his eyes. There was no benefit in fighting right now. They had no reason to sabotage anyone yet.
For now, information was more valuable.
He stepped forward first, making no effort to hide his presence.
The moment he crossed the store's threshold, the girl in the hoodie snapped toward him, hand gripping something hidden in her pocket.
The tall guy with the scar tensed immediately, stepping slightly in front of the younger one with glasses. Protective.
Takeshi clicked his tongue, muttering under his breath. "Great. They're on edge."
Riko raised his hands slightly, non-threatening. "Relax. We're not looking for a fight."
The girl didn't move. "Who says you'd win one?"
Takeshi smirked. "Well, at least you don't sound like an idiot."
The scarred man cut in before things escalated. "What do you want?"
Riko met his gaze evenly. "Information."
Silence. Then—
"…Same." The man exhaled. "Guess that means we talk."