None of the students even had a chance to try to understand what the mysterious translucent blue interface pulsing before them actually was.
But, in truth, that was the least of their problems.
The two undead students remained in the carriage, motionless, swaying in spasms, growling incomprehensible noises.
From their skin, the same mysterious black mist continued to seep.
Paralyzed, frozen, terror had pinned them all in place.
Fear gripped their chests so tightly that they held their breath, making as little sound as possible, not wanting to draw the cursed ones' attention.
If one undead could wreak so much havoc… what would happen with two?
The mere thought sent shivers down everyone's spine.
Step by step, the group of students retreated slowly, cautiously, but steadily, picking up anything along the way that could serve as an improvised weapon.
The tension was so thick that everyone could hear their own hearts pounding in their chests.
Suddenly, the translucent blue interface vanished as abruptly as it had appeared.
No sooner had it disappeared than morbid screams erupted.
Violent shakes battered the door behind the two infected students, followed by low, terrifying growls that grew louder and louder on the other side of the metallic door.
Those sounds finally answered the question that had haunted everyone from the start:
"Where had all the other passengers gone?"
The calculation was as simple as it was horrifying: the selection trial had officially begun, just as the mysterious message and the sounds behind the door had warned.
In the lower carriages lay the cold, merciless confirmation.
Like a lightning strike, they all understood simultaneously:
"They've all been turned into zombies."
The curse had infected them, reducing them to slaves, puppets of an unknown entity now hunting them.
For now, they were the only living ones, racing through a dark night aboard a train infested with the dead.
Ken stepped back slowly, observing the catastrophic situation they faced. His eyes widened, muscles tensed, ready to react at any moment.
Cold sweat ran down his temple, yet his face remained impassive, an Olympian calm that betrayed none of his inner anxiety.
He analyzed, calculated, forcing his mind to find an escape.
"At least the infected are on the other side of the door. We just have to handle these two…"
Ken hadn't even finished his thought when, like some cruel cosmic joke, the misfortune that had shadowed them since the start of this cursed journey smiled upon them again—in the worst possible way.
The rear carriage door before them, separating them from the infected, which had been locked by the blue translucent symbol, creaked open slowly, a metallic screech filling the air, releasing a cold breath and a heavy silence.
As it opened, a black mist, thick as a sticky fog, seeped slowly into the carriage, carrying a grim omen.
The growls intensified, deepening and rumbling, charged with menace.
The mist was so dense it swallowed nearly all visibility, save for the glowing green eyes of the cursed ones shining in the darkness.
One by one, two by two, three by three, then five… again and again, the undead emerged silently from the fog, joining the ranks of the two infected students.
And as if that weren't enough, the same shrill, morbid rumble that had frozen their blood when the interface appeared echoed even louder through every compartment of the train, coming from the heart of the black mist before them.
That infernal sound made the students' guts twist once again: their predator was approaching.
Ken couldn't believe it, laughing bitterly at his luck. A mocking smile formed on his lips.
"In the end… nothing good ever comes out of this mist."
From the very depths of the fog, a colossal silhouette emerged, two enormous fluorescent green eyes glinting with a sickly light.
With each step the figure took, the temperature plummeted, biting and icy.
A horrible stench of decay slowly seeped into the air.
Then, with a brutal motion, a gigantic hand shot out of the mist and slammed onto the floor, a heavy, deafening thud, followed by another equally merciless strike.
A massive head slowly emerged from the shadows.
That of a humanoid creature of indescribable monstrosity.
Its body was fully covered in an exoskeleton, black as tar, exhaling a suffocating mist that surrounded it like a morbid aura.
A network of glowing green veins traced sinister patterns across its twisted skin, as if an entire hell burned within.
Its cursed eyes glowed with infernal light, as though the souls of thousands of damned were trapped inside, their silent screams resonating through its oppressive aura.
Strange sounds, a mix of muffled screams and eternal suffering, escaped from it, as if the beast had devoured the souls of its victims.
Poised on all fours like a colossal gorilla, it seemed ready to pounce.
Its gaping maw revealed rows of sharp teeth, capable of tearing flesh apart.
Massive arms, powerful as tree trunks, ended in bony claws as sharp as blades.
With every exhale, the black mist spread, filling the space with a glacial cold.
The Corpse King embodied death itself, a calamity from the abyss, and his mere presence made even the bravest falter.
Silence.
At that moment, the last remnants of composure among the unfortunate students vanished like a leaf swept away by a storm.
Panic became absolute, invading each of them like a poison.
They shoved, hit, struggled, desperately trying to open the door still locked by the mysterious symbol.
No friends, no comrades remained: only survival mattered.
The monster opened its maw and, with a guttural roar that resonated like an omen, the horde of undead, until then motionless, lunged at the students like starving beasts.
Their fangs sank into flesh, tearing it apart, spreading the curse with every bite.
Those who escaped the zombies were immediately caught by the Corpse King's sharp claws, sweeping the area like scythes.
The metallic scent of blood filled every corner of the compartment, omnipresent and suffocating.
After a few seconds, the blue symbol blocking the door vanished as well, leaving it accessible to those close enough.
A student shouted, voice trembling with hope:
"The door's open!"
"What now?!" another exclaimed.
The interface reappeared just above the door, displaying a number.
A number that decreased each time someone crossed the threshold. The students froze, hesitant.
[ Blink ]
[ 14 ]
Another student stepped through without thinking.
[ 13 ]
Then another. And another.
[ 12 ]
[ 11 ]
[ 10 ]
Nothing happened. A heavy silence fell over the students in the carriage, like a suffocating veil. They exchanged tense glances, eyes locking…
Yes. They understood.
These weren't just numbers.
No!
It was a countdown.
It indicated the exact number of people allowed to pass through that door… and thus, to survive.
So, like animals driven by their most primal instincts, they lunged at each other to cross the threshold.
Muffled screams mixed with punches, nails tearing skin. Some stumbled, fell, got up again, pushing and shoving to see who would pass first.
They hurled insults:
"Get out, you bastard!"
"Move, jerk!"
"Let me through, bitch!"
Swept into the chaos, the weakest were pushed back… and in the next second, devoured, grabbed by the cursed, or torn apart by the Corpse King's massive claws.
Everything became a frenzied chaos.
A maelstrom of violence, where the desire to survive crushed any trace of humanity.
---
"Stop fighting!"
"Pull yourselves together!"
Seo Hanna's voice rang out through the clamor, desperate, as she tried to reason with the students.
But despite her efforts, no one listened. Each was too occupied fighting each other, pushing, hitting, biting, to avoid being left behind.
The desperate girl suddenly turned toward Kim and shouted his name at the top of her lungs, her beautiful face twisted in worry and fear.
The cherished girl from a wealthy family had never faced violence of such intensity; her world had collapsed.
She was lost, unable to know what to do, frozen in place.
Her gaze clung desperately to the boy, as if he were her last hope for comfort.
But the moment her teary eyes met the boy's face…
He was motionless, shocked, staring at the morbid scene before him. The undead feasted on the bodies of his classmates, his friends.
The gigantic monster, the Corpse King, tore and ripped limbs in a blood-soaked frenzy.
It was as if his soul had been ripped from him.
His hand trembled around the iron rod he gripped tightly.
Hanna realized in that icy moment that her last hope had crumbled.
Too discreet in the melee, she was suddenly shoved and violently thrown to the ground. She rolled over herself and ended up at someone's feet.
"Excuse me…" she whispered, hand on her head.
A few drops of black blood fell right beside her… followed by a terrifying growl that promised nothing good.
Grrrrrrrrrr…
The girl trembled violently. On all fours, face to the ground, cold sweat sliding down her temples.
Terror had completely painted her tear-streaked face.
She slowly lifted her eyes.
She saw a familiar face, one of her precious friend's classmates, deformed, staggering, choking in the black mist seeping from his entire face. He was no longer a friend—he was dead.
With a sudden growl, the corpse lunged at her, mouth wide open, ready to tear her apart with blackened teeth.
Grrrrrrrooouaaah!!!
"Back off."
*Silence.*
Out of nowhere, the hard red surface of a fire extinguisher smashed down with all its force on the face of the former friend, now undead, trying to reach the girl's life.
The impact was violent, brutal. A sharp, wet crunch shattered the bones of his jaw. The cursed body was thrown backward, a geyser of black blood splattering the floor.
Cracrrrrrrrsh!!!
"What a nuisance…"
"You okay, princess?"
The girl, still frozen from shock, tears streaming down her beautiful face, looked up at her mysterious savior. Her trembling voice uttered only one word:
"Ken."
Ken Jiheon had appeared just in time.
With a swift, precise movement, he smashed the undead's face to pieces, saving the girl from a gruesome fate. Without a second wasted, he swung his arm sharply.
Wooooshh!
Splash!
He shook off the blood soaking the extinguisher, sending a scarlet spray arching perfectly before falling.
Standing tall, he dominated the scene, while the girl sat on the ground, wide-eyed.
A bitter smirk spread across his lips.
"Tsss… Better and better "
Ken placed the extinguisher on his shoulder, snapped his head, and shouted, his voice vibrating with anger:
"Hey, wannabe hero, what the hell are you doing?!"
"It's not myjob to do yours!"
The young man froze, seemingly cut off from the world.
The cries of distress, the low growls of the undead, the chaos of students tearing each other apart… and above all, the terrifying sounds of the colossal monster.
Nothing seemed capable of breaking his stupor.
Nothing… except that voice.
The voice he had known all his life.
The voice of the rival he had always considered his greatest adversary.
Those words struck him to the core, shaking him awake.
He came back to life.
His eyes instinctively searched, anxiously settling on Seo Hanna.
The scene before him tightened his chest.
The girl's tear-streaked face, twisted by fear…
And in front of her, Ken Jiheon.
His rival, lmotionless, shielding her with his body.
A brutal shock coursed through him.
A mix of anger at himself and shame pierced his chest.
He lowered his gaze, teeth clenched in a rage so intense it hurt.
Then, in a sudden surge, he rose, positioning himself quickly beside Ken.
His hand gripped firmly the iron rod, brandishing it like a sword.
His blue pupils, now burning with unwavering determination, locked on the approaching undead.
"I don't need your help, you damn demon king!" he shouted, voice vibrating with defiance.
Ken looked at him, a satisfied smile flickering on his lips.
"I prefer this I recognize you well there, the aspiring hero."
The zombies lunged at them.
But the two rivals didn't move an inch, eyes blazing.
The hero and the demon king stood side by side, ready to defy hell.