When walking back towards the cabin, she paused at her uncle Tim's RV. Like a glitch in the code, the world snapped into a new setting.
She saw the glare, something hit her in the eye, and when she looked, she found the RV keys inside the ignition!
More Hidden Keys!
She looked behind her, making sure no one was coming this way, then quickly opened the door to her uncle's car and took the keys.
[x3 hidden keys added to inventory. 4 keys remain.]
Yes, she knew it!
She went to the restroom and made her way back to the bonfire, joining in the scary stories and singing and laughter.
The sunset sank into the lake completely, casting long shadows across the area as the shadows of the bonfire and the people surrounding it danced. The cheerful laughter and singing from the bonfire had suddenly faded, replaced by good nights then silence that pressed on her chest as everyone headed to bed for the night.
She was blinked to the next scene again, now in the living room lying on the couch where she was dazed looking at the roof of the cabin.
She really couldn't seem to get used to the new scenes' random blinks.
A low growl echoed behind the cabin. Her skin prickled.
It seemed the zombie attack was about to happen now.
She tapped her module screen, seeing red dots appearing then disappearing on her map. What is going on? Why did they disappear?
Seven days equal an hour in real time. That was how long she had to survive Floor 1. Not just survive—thrive. Complete hidden objectives, kill zombies, unlock plotlines, resources, and chest drops.
She's not a perfectionist freak, but for the stakes of rewards, resources, better materials, and blueprints she will make sure to try and score 10 across all boards.
"Time to get serious," she muttered, flipping the screen to show her Level 1 status: 390/400 exp. Hmm, she only needed 10 exp more to level up to level 2.
She didn't really need a plan. Shelter was already covered. Everything else didn't really matter much to Ming Sūlín as she was looking forward to some zombie killing.
She still wanted to gain points for hidden objectives, which might be protecting her family and the others for the next seven days until the completion of the dungeon.
Although the dungeon said survive for seven days, kill zombies and is rated on characters' performance, hidden plotlines and objectives, it didn't give any real specifics. Nor did it have any restrictions other than saying character performance mattered.
Ming Sūlín climbed out of her blanket, now roasting pajama pants and a hoodie.
Scanning the area, she spotted a cluster of abandoned cabins about a hundred meters from the main house that wasn't there before. They looked ransacked but intact enough to offer cover.
Ming Sūlín adjusted her hood, tightened her sandals, and crept toward the back cabins, every muscle taut.
Suddenly, the bushes nearby rustled.
She froze, heart pounding.
Out stepped a gaunt figure, clothes torn, eyes hollow—one of the zombies.
The stench hit her before the figure lunged.
Ming Sūlín ducked, swinging her fillet knife in a tight arc aiming for the head. The zombie's head cracked with a sickening crunch, and it collapsed.
[You killed x1 Zombie. Kill points +2, 20 exp]
[Loot: x2 rolls of old cloth, x1 damaged inventory backpack (3 slots), x1 cabin key, a yellow grade attraction ring]
[Attraction ring: the ability to lure nearby enemies, beasts, hostile within 1 meter radius with 5% chance at high-grade loot drops]
[Items dropped in inventory]
5%?! That's actually not a bad find. Ming Sūlín put on the ring.
[Congratulations player on leveling up to level two! An additional 10 slots added to inventory! You received x10 yellow grade mech soldiers, x1 yellow grade basic furniture set blueprint, 5 gold, 50 silver, 1500 copper coins]
Now that she was leveled up, it should be a bit easier to handle the first floor dungeon. Which is also a good opportunity to use this first floor as her time to level up as quickly as possible before she reached the other floors or exited the dungeon and came back a different day.
"Easy enough," she whispered, but the relief was short-lived.
From all directions, more shambling forms emerged—twisted bodies, gnashing teeth, empty eyes locked on her.
She backed up, drawing fillet knife.
Gripping the knife tightly, she met the oncoming horde with steady breath.
The first wave crashed into her.
She dodged left, stabbed right, dodged swinging a head strike—each movement practiced and precise.
[You killed x5 Zombies. Kill points +9, 100 exp]
[Loot: x10 rolls of old cloth, x1 silver bracelet, x12 pieces of rotten flesh, x1 pair of torn jeans, x1 lighter, 30 silver, 789 copper coins]
But they kept coming—slow, relentless. Ming Sūlín paced herself, starting the game of cat and mouse, leading a few to the side, separating them from the larger herd and quickly finishing them off.
[You killed x2 Zombies. Kill points +3, 40 exp]
[Loot: x5 rolls of old cloth, x5 pieces of rotten flesh, x2 candy bars, x1 old pair of boots, x1 rusted watch]
[You killed x1 Zombie. Kill points +1, 15 exp]
[Loot: x2 rolls of old cloth, x1 torn jacket, 5 silver, 347 copper coins]
The zombies dropped were quite all right and decent enough as they were completely different and random, other than the rotting flesh and rolls of cloth some zombies had more than others.
[You killed x3 Zombies. Kill points +4, 60 exp]
[Loot: x1 set of old clothes, x1 shoes blueprint, x1 paddle boat blueprint, 109 copper coins]
But they kept coming—slow, relentless.
A deep growl from the woods split the air. She looked up just in time to see a hulking figure break through the trees. Larger, faster. Different.
A zombie hound.
Its eyes burned red, saliva foaming.
Ming Sūlín barely had time to sidestep its snapping jaws.
This fight was about to get ugly.
She pivoted, running back toward her cabin door, praying it was secure enough.
Slamming the door behind her, she barricaded it with her body, trying to find a chair or something heavy with weight to keep the door in place.
Breathing hard, she pressed her back against the door.
This wasn't going to be a simple survival game. It was a warzone.
And it was just only the first day it started!
She heard noise coming from upstairs as her father, mother, brother, Henry, and Tammy, her two cousins Steven and Jake all came down the stairs hearing the commotion.
"What's going on? What's with all the noise and why are you holding the door like that?" her mother asked, turning on the lights as her father came down the stairs walking in her direction.
"No, Dad! Stop! There's a dog with rabies outside!" she shouted, stopping everyone in their tracks as they looked at her in shock and confusion.
Well, she just can't outright say that it's a zombie hound dog outside and a huge herd of zombies waiting to tear your guys' flesh out!
Actually… Hmm, maybe she can say it like that?
"Bang!" her body jolted forward. She quickly studied herself and pressed her full body up against the door.
Everyone jumped, flinching back before they started to jump into action.
Gregory, the father, quickly ran over to her and helped, pressing his body against the door as he called for the other help.
"Honey, Henry, and Tally help drag the La-Z-Boy over here against the door quickly, don't waste time!" Gregory raised his voice a bit in urgency before returning to her.
"Explain to me what happened?" he questioned her.
"I woke up because I heard some weird growling behind the cabin, so I went to check it out since it sounded really close. There was a lot of shuffling, like someone walking around."
"What happened after?" Gregory asked next.
"When I got closer, I smelled this awful stench—like rotting flesh or a dead animal. Then I pointed my light and this guy, covered in bite marks and blood, suddenly lunged at me."
Ming sulin pause a moment moving to the side as the other came over with the large chair pressing it against the door.
"I dodged and ran back toward the house, but the dog was foaming at the mouth, bloody, and had bite marks too. It started chasing me, so I slammed the door shut and stayed inside. That's all.," she answered quite quickly and confidently, already prepared for this question.