The next morning, while the sky was still covered in a faint layer of fog, a strange sound suddenly rang out from outside.
Crackle… Crackle… Crackle…
At first, it was just small noises, but then it quickly turned into the sound of hurried footsteps, the sound of claws scraping the pavement, followed by the painful groans of creatures that no longer belonged to humans.
Yaka was the first to realize something was wrong. He tried running outside to check and then quickly returned inside the supermarket.
"We have a problem…" His voice was low, but everyone could feel the tension hidden within it.
Everyone quickly gathered together.
"Let's clean up quickly, the monsters might be pouring in here soon" He said in a serious tone.
Outside, the silhouettes of monsters covered the road, the monsters that Yaka and Ruminas discovered yesterday had already approached the front gate of the shopping mall. Their bodies were distorted, their bloodshot eyes were shining in the morning mist, their mouths were wide open, revealing sharp teeth, drooling onto the road.
They filled the street, swarming over abandoned cars, scraping old walls, as if searching for an entrance.
"We can't stay here any longer," Kazin said quickly. "Let's run!"
No one objected. Although it was uncertain whether there were other dangers outside, waiting here was just suicide.
The supermarket was huge, everyone went their separate ways to get food for themselves. Ruminas was no slouch either, she had been waiting for this moment for a long time so now she took it without any regard for anyone.
"Hey, girl, that's a little too greedy," said Kazin.
He walked over, intending to put his arm around her shoulder, but Ruminas quickly dodged it and returned a kick that sent him flying, hitting a shelf and causing it to collapse.
"You!" Kazin's face was twisted in anger.
"If you want to die, just lie there," Ruminas replied simply.
Kazin was angry but Yaka came to stop him, now the important thing is to leave here first so arguing in the middle is not good.
Ruminas had already gathered enough food for the next few months. She only took canned food because other foods would burn if left for too long. As for water, although it was already black, she still brought regular water to drink to avoid the taste.
"That should be enough…"
"Let's go," Yaka took the lead and rushed out.
The group rushed out, but as soon as they reached the door, they stopped.
The monster—was standing right in front of the exit.
"Damn…" Someone cursed under his breath.
A sudden roar rang out as a huge monster sensed the presence of humans. It roared, followed by a series of howls echoing from the crowd behind.
"Fight!" Yaka shouted.
Immediately, everyone brandished their weapons and rushed into battle.
Ruminas moved as fast as the wind, the knife in her hand flashing silver as she slashed down. A parasite lunged at her, but before it could reach her, the blade sliced across its neck, sending black blood spraying everywhere.
[Receive: 20 EXP, 1 monster skin]
With no time to stop, she spun around, dodging another attack, then stabbed her blade straight through its head.
[Receive: 20 EXP, 1 monster skin]
Kazin, with a heavy axe in his hand, swung it with great force, crushing the skull of a monster. Blood and brain matter splattered everywhere, but he did not stop, continuing to swing the axe to the side, sending another flying.
"Don't get surrounded!" Yaka shouted, using his iron staff to repeatedly hit the monsters that tried to approach to keep their distance. But every time one was beaten back, two more would rush in to replace it.
"Get out!" Yaka shouted and he started using his skill.
"Body of steel!"
His outer skin instantly turned into a silver metallic color and he disregarded the attacks and charged forward, the others following right behind.
"At this rate, I'll get away with it, haha" The middle-aged man laughed.
But he didn't have time to rejoice for long because the group was blocked again, this time not only by parasites but also by low-level chaos monsters, dog-shaped parasites.
A dog-like parasite that was already as big as a human like Yaka, and now there were more than a dozen of them here.
"…What… should we do…" The middle-aged man asked tremblingly.
"Damn it, just keep slashing!" Kazin said and swung the axe forward but the axe only touched the parasitic dog's body and was knocked back, completely unharmed.
The monster roared and turned around, swinging its four tails at the crowd, sending them flying backwards. Ruminas had nimbly dodged first, but it was clear that the situation was not good at all.
"Even if I use slash, it's not certain that I can take it down…"
Suddenly, another parasitic dog rushed towards her, Ruminas didn't say a word and just backed away. But the monster continued to advance.
Its tail lashed out, Ruminas dodged it but at the same time did not forget to give it a slash in return.
"Its tail isn't as hard as the armor on its body…" She calculated silently.
The monster roared.
Ruminas wanted to try a little more, but at that moment, two more parasitic dogs rushed to attack her. Ruminas had no choice but to retreat.
BOOM!
She only had time to jump to the side before the ground cracked open where she had been standing.
"Everyone! Get inside!" Yaka shouted. "We can't hold out for long!"
They fought and retreated. The monsters continued to come like a tidal wave, showing no signs of stopping.
Ruminas gritted her teeth and chopped off one of its arms, but another immediately rushed in from her blind spot.
Just before it could hit her, Yaka pushed her aside, using his entire body to block the attack.
"ARGH!"
Sharp claws dug into his shoulder, but he held the iron bar firmly, swung it hard and sent the monster flying away.
Ignoring the sharp pain, he just muttered, "Hurry up… I can't hold on much longer…"
BOOM!
The supermarket door was pushed open, the group squeezed inside, then slammed shut just as the monsters were about to rush in.
Outside, the screaming continued. They pounded on the door, trying to break through the last barrier between them and their prey. Those inside tried to barricade the door with everything they had, but it was all to no avail.
Yaka gasped, pressing his ear to the door, his face drained of color: "They'll get in here soon…"
The door behind them shook violently. The monster's roar echoed through the air, mixed with the sound of frantic clawing at the walls.
Everyone piled up every obstacle they could find in front of the entrance, but everyone knew clearly—it was only a matter of time before the monsters broke through this obstacle.
A heavy atmosphere fell over the group. No one spoke, only heavy breathing and the pounding of hearts in their chests.
And then—
"Heh… Heh heh… HAHAHA!"
A burst of eerie laughter rang out, breaking the silence in an instant.
Everyone immediately turned around, weapons raised, eyes warily looking towards the direction of the sound.
On a chair placed in the middle of the supermarket aisle, a person wearing a clown costume was sitting comfortably.
He sat cross-legged, holding a cup of tea as if enjoying an elegant tea party in the midst of the apocalypse. His face was pale, a smile stretching from ear to ear, his eyes shining with a strange delight.
He picked up the teacup, took a sip, then slowly put it down.
"Oh, what a beautiful performance. Tense, suspenseful, thrilling… but unfortunately lacking any creativity!" He waved his hand as if he were evaluating a boring play.
Kazin gripped the axe tightly, his eyes cold as he looked at him. "Who are you?"
The clown tilted his head, his lips curling up.
"Me? Hmm… A game lover. A lover of interesting plays. And of course—a person who can help you escape from those monsters out there."
He pointed to the door that was shaking.
"But there's a trade-off. I can help you escape from here, but in return you have to play a game of mine first."
Everyone fell silent. No one trusted this guy, but the current situation didn't leave them much choice.
Yaka frowned, his voice gruff: "What if we refuse?"
The clown's smile widened.
"Oh, then I have another game for you. It's called—'See how fast the monsters can tear you apart'!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a loud CRACK was heard.
A wooden door had been torn in half. A monstrous arm reached through the crack, its fingers trembling as if trying to reach out to them.
The clown clapped his hands. "So? Do you choose my game, or theirs?"
All was silent no one said anything.
Ruminas is using appraisal on this clown.
[NPC: The Evil Clown]
[Description: a wanderer who wanders around looking for someone to play with but he will never let anyone win. He can pretend to lose and then suddenly turn the tables to witness all kinds of other people's emotions]
[Characteristics: likes to use tricks, ability to manipulate others through words]
[Weakness: sincerity]
"NPC? And it has a strange weakness too?"
There is no other choice.
Although no one trusted the clown, they were forced to play by his rules. If they won, they could escape. If they lost, the door would be thrown open, allowing monsters to rush in and tear them apart instantly.
[NPC The Evil Clown has proposed a mini-game? Accept?]
[Reward: 100 EXP, 5 Random Stat Points]
"Oh, so this is a little game? Of course I agree!"
Not only her but everyone else chose to agree to participate.
"Hahahaa, then let the game begin!" The clown spoke.