The cafeteria went silent. Even the sound of chewing stopped.
Brad, the captain of the football team, towered over Su Chen. He was flanked by three other players, all holding makeshift weapons—legs torn from chairs, kitchen knives, and a fire extinguisher.
"You deaf?" Brad sneered, stepping closer. "I said, hand over the pipe. The Protection Squad needs weapons to defend *you* weaklings. It's for the greater good."
Su Chen looked at Brad. Then he looked at the air above Brad's head.
[Eye of Truth Activated.]
[Target: Brad (Level 1)]
[Weapon: Broken Chair Leg (Durability: 3/20)]
[Strength: 7]
[Agility: 5]
[Hidden Status: Bully. He has never been in a real life-or-death fight.]
Then, Su Chen looked at the ceiling of the Safe Zone.
[Safe Zone Rule #1: Killing another Player results in immediate execution by the System.]
[Safe Zone Rule #2: Non-lethal combat is permitted. Pain is not filtered.]
Su Chen smiled. It was a cold, terrifying smile.
"The greater good," Su Chen repeated. "Interesting."
"Yeah, so give it here," Brad reached out to grab the rusty pipe.
Su Chen didn't pull back. He simply twisted his wrist.
WHACK.
The movement was too fast for Brad's Level 1 eyes to follow. The rusty pipe cracked against Brad's outstretched hand.
"ARGH!" Brad screamed, clutching his wrist. The sound of bone fracturing echoed through the silent hall.
"You crazy freak!" one of the lackeys yelled, raising a kitchen knife. "Get him!"
The three lackeys charged.
To the other students, it looked like a 3-on-1 beatdown.
To Su Chen, it looked like a slow-motion movie.
[Attack Incoming: Right Swing (Speed: Slow).]
[Attack Incoming: Overhead Smash (Speed: Very Slow).]
Su Chen took one step forward. He didn't retreat; he entered their guard.
He kicked the first guy in the knee.
[Critical Hit. Knee dislocation.]
The guy collapsed, howling.
Su Chen ducked under the fire extinguisher swing and drove the butt of his pipe into the second guy's stomach.
The guy folded like a lawn chair, vomiting his lunch onto the floor.
The third guy, holding the knife, froze. His hands were shaking.
Su Chen stared at him.
[Target Morale: 0%.]
[Surrender Probability: 100%.]
"Drop it," Su Chen whispered.
Clang. The knife hit the floor.
Su Chen stepped over the groaning bodies and walked up to Brad, who was on his knees cradling his broken wrist.
"You... you can't do this!" Brad blubbered, tears mixing with sweat. "We're in a Safe Zone! You can't kill me!"
"I know," Su Chen said, tapping the pipe against his palm. "I read the rules. I can't kill you."
He leaned down, his face inches from Brad's.
"But I can break every bone in your body and leave you here for the monsters. That's not against the rules."
Brad went pale. The arrogance evaporated, replaced by pure terror. He realized he wasn't dealing with a student. He was dealing with a predator.
"I... I'm sorry! Take the food! Take whatever you want!"
Su Chen straightened up. He lost interest instantly. Brad was just an ant—not worth the calories to beat further.
Su Chen walked to the food counter. The students parted like the Red Sea, terrified to make eye contact.
He grabbed three sandwiches, two bottles of water, and a chocolate bar. High-calorie density. Essential for the early game.
He sat down at an empty table in the corner. No one dared to sit near him.
He took a bite of the sandwich. It tasted dry, but to him, it tasted like victory.
While he ate, he opened his System Menu.
[Current Coins: 1,500]
[Experience to Level 3: 150/1200]
"Need to farm more," he muttered.
Suddenly, the entire cafeteria shook.
A massive holographic pillar of light erupted in the center of the room. It shot through the roof and into the sky.
[System Announcement: The Regional Leaderboard is now active.]
[Top 100 Players in the Region (City) will be displayed.]
[Top 10 Players will receive Daily Rewards.]
[Rank 1 Reward: Random Gold Treasure Chest.]
The students gasped. Everyone looked up at the giant golden list floating in the air.
Names began to populate the list. Most were greyed out or anonymous.
[Rank 10: "Tiger" - Level 2]
[Rank 9: "Viper" - Level 2]
...
[Rank 3: Lin Xi - Level 2]
"Lin Xi is Rank 3?" Su Chen chewed his chocolate bar. "Not bad for someone who lost her dagger."
Everyone was scanning the top of the list, whispering furiously.
"Who is number one?"
"Is it the military? Or a pro gamer?"
The text for the top spot shimmered with blinding gold light.
[Rank 1: Anonymous]
[Level: 2]
[Achievements: First Blood, First Elite Kill, First Hidden Chest.]
[Combat Power Assessment: SSS]
"Holy crap," a student whispered. "SSS combat power? Brad is only E-rank!"
"Who is Anonymous? Is he here?"
Su Chen wiped the crumbs from his mouth. He tapped his own interface.
[You are currently Rank 1.]
[Do you wish to reveal your name? Yes/No.]
He selected [No].
Fame was a trap. It made you a target. He wanted the rewards, not the attention.
[System Notification: You have maintained Rank 1 for 1 minute.]
[Daily Reward Distributed: "Gold Treasure Chest" (Locked).]
[Condition to Open: Must survive the First Night.]
Su Chen's eyes narrowed.
The First Night.
In every apocalyptic novel, the first night was the filter. The "Tutorial" was just the warm-up. When the sun went down, the real monsters came out.
He looked out the window. The sun was setting. The purple sky was turning a deep, bruised black.
His [Eye of Truth] flared up, scanning the horizon outside the Safe Zone.
What he saw made his blood run cold.
The darkness wasn't empty. It was moving.
Millions of red numbers appeared in the distance, like a sea of fireflies.
[Horde Event Detected.]
[Zombie Tsunami approaching.]
[Time until impact: 1 hour.]
Su Chen stood up.
"Enjoy your dinner," he said to the room at large.
He walked toward the exit.
"Hey!" Sarah called out, her voice trembling. "Where are you going? It's getting dark! The Safe Zone is the only safe place!"
Su Chen paused at the glass door. He looked back at the students, huddled together in the light, thinking the barrier would save them.
"The Safe Zone has a durability limit," Su Chen said calmly.
He pointed at the floating barrier status that only he could see.
[Safe Zone Energy: 100%]
[Estimated Depletion Rate upon Horde Impact: 10% per minute.]
"This glass house will shatter in ten minutes once the sun sets," Su Chen said. "I'm finding a bunker."
He pushed the doors open and stepped out into the twilight.