Chapter 11 – Countdown to Oblivion
Kuro stirred awake beneath the cracked ceiling of the looted pharmacy. The flickering light from a broken neon sign outside painted the room in eerie pulses of red and white. Yumi was still curled up nearby, her breathing soft and steady. Alice sat against the wall, checking the magazine of a pistol with clinical efficiency.
Then, the familiar chime.
[Fragment Quest 3 – UNLOCKED]Objective: Prevent the Umbrella-launched missile strike on Raccoon CityTime Remaining: 72 MinutesFailure Consequence: Fragment Lock – Total AnnihilationReward: ???
Kuro blinked at the message. Once. Twice. Then groaned.
"System... that's not a normal quest. That's a suicide pact."
[System Notification: Optional objective becomes mandatory due to story progression. Good luck, Kuro.]
He dragged a hand over his face. "You smug little—"
Yumi stirred, rubbing her eyes. "What's wrong?"
Alice raised an eyebrow. "You look like you saw the reaper."
He showed them the screen.
Silence.
"Of course they'd nuke the city," Alice muttered. "Umbrella never cleans up their messes, they just wipe the map."
Yumi's face paled. "We have to stop it. We have to."
Kuro looked at her, surprised at the determination in her voice. He nodded. "Then we're going underground."
Thirty minutes later...
They stood at the edge of a storm drain access shaft. According to Alice, it led into the undercity labs — specifically to a control hub used by Umbrella's satellite systems.
Before descending, Kuro opened his system menu.
And stared.
[Purchase Menu – Active]Available Points:• IP: 140,000• AP: 18,500• EP: 6,000• SP: 340,000
Kuro's jaw dropped. "Wait. Three hundred and forty... thousand SP?!"
He stumbled back and stared at the sky. "Oh sweet divine lewdness… I could hire a battalion of succubus maids. With matching uniforms. And personalized hairbrushes!"
Yumi blinked. "...What?"
Alice didn't even look up. "Don't ask. Just let him finish the episode."
Kuro dramatically wiped a nonexistent tear. "All I ever wanted was one elf waifu... and now I can afford four. Life is beautiful."
[System: Please refrain from excessive fantasy. SP is not edible.]
"Yet."
He refocused and browsed the IP upgrades.
Suggested for Fragment Quest 3:• Pulse Phase Blade (40,000 IP) – A refined energy katana that phases through armor• NanoStim Support Kit (8,000 IP) – Boosts healing effect and AP regen for one ally• Shadow Cloak Upgrade (15,000 IP) – Passive stealth field
He bought all three.
[Purchased: Pulse Phase Blade][Purchased: NanoStim Support Kit][Purchased: Shadow Cloak Upgrade]
Yumi blinked as her body briefly glowed soft blue.
[Yumi's support efficiency increased. Minor AP regeneration now active.]
She smiled. "That felt… weird. But good-weird."
Kuro swung the new blade. It thrummed with silent energy and hummed as it cut cleanly through a metal pipe.
Alice nodded approvingly. "Nice toy."
"Birthday came early," he smirked.
Inside the tunnels, the pace slowed. Tight corridors. Low visibility. Echoes of shuffling feet.
Kuro led. Alice covered the rear. Yumi stayed centered, her eyes scanning constantly.
Halfway in, they encountered auto-turrets. Kuro phased through the first barrage, barely dodging. Alice took a ricochet to the vest and grunted. Yumi, thinking fast, activated a bubble shield on reflex — it absorbed two blasts before cracking like glass.
They pushed forward, corridor by corridor. The smell of rot thickened.
[Time Remaining: 53 Minutes]
Then came the infected dogs — faster, leaner, more agile. A pack of four.
Chaos erupted.
Growls. Gunfire. Claws.
Kuro downed one with a spinning slash. Alice emptied a clip into another mid-leap. A third lunged at Yumi—
She screamed and drove a broken pipe into its gut, pinning it to a wall. Her hands trembled. She looked down at the blood, wide-eyed.
Kuro wiped his blade and nodded. "That's how it starts. You survive. Then you fight."
At the final junction, they reached the security door — Umbrella's central terminal.
Locked. Biometric scan required.
Alice tried her hand. Access Denied.
Kuro knelt and pried open a panel. "I can override it. Two minutes."
Then the ceiling groaned.
A thud.
A hiss.
And something landed hard.
Eight feet tall. Armor plated. One red cybernetic eye. Clawed arms twitching with toxin.
[WARNING: Boss-Class Entity Detected – Codename: REAPER V.1]
But before the creature moved—
[Fragment Quest 3 – COMPLETE]Rewards Unlocked:• IP: +100,000• AP: +40,000• EP: +15,000• SP: +0• Special Unlock: "Hero of the Ashes" Title – Grants 5% resistance to all explosive damage and fire-based attacks. May influence public perception across worlds.
Kuro flinched.
"…ZERO SP?! Are you kidding me?!"
[System: Perhaps finish the mission before you complain about the tip.]
He groaned. "You better not be withholding waifus out of spite."
[System: …]
Alice narrowed her eyes. "Incoming."
The Reaper charged.
The floor cracked beneath its feet. Kuro barely dodged left, slashing across its torso — sparks flew. Alice emptied a fresh magazine into its face. Yumi scrambled to heal Alice's grazed arm.
The Reaper swiped. Kuro blocked with his blade — the impact sent him flying across the hallway, slamming into a bulkhead.
"Yup. That hurt."
He stood, blood trailing from his lip. "Okay. No more playing nice."
He activated Slayer Mode.
[Slayer Mode Engaged – Temporary stat amplification x2 – Duration: 60 seconds]
Lightning crackled along his limbs.
He vanished in a blur.
This time, he landed six hits in a heartbeat — the Reaper's metal plates cracked. It roared and unleashed a sonic shriek.
Alice dropped to a knee, hands over her ears.
Yumi collapsed to her side, dazed.
Kuro gritted his teeth, surged forward, and drove the Phase Blade deep into the monster's chest — just as Alice tossed a grenade into its mouth.
"CATCH!"
Boom.
The Reaper's torso detonated in a burst of acid and smoke.
It staggered.
Then crumbled.
Dead.
[Boss Defeated – Codename: Reaper V.1]
Kuro collapsed to one knee, panting. "Remind me to never underestimate anything with v. in its name."
Yumi nodded, dazed. "Yeah... noted."
Alice checked the terminal. "Override complete. Missile neutralized."
Then, the system pinged again.
[Fragment Quest Chain Complete – RACCOON CITY]
All rewards distributed. Preparing world stabilization.]
Kuro stood. "So... what's next?"