The speed of this rat was practically something a human could not contend with.
Liam trembled, feeling that he could die at any moment.
"Armor, armor!"
Fortunately, he remembered his armor in time and immediately thought of using it.
In an instant, something appeared on his body—an armor whose color looked like a mixture of milky white and silver.
It was magnificent, complete with a helmet that covered his entire body.
What he felt after putting it on was not heaviness. Instead, it felt extremely light, as if his own body weight had vanished.
At the same time, he felt incredibly safe, as though he were inside a sealed space that could not possibly be breached.
The giant rat had already reached above his head. Wearing the armor did not allow him to dodge.
But—
Crack!
When the rat bit down on his head and sank its fangs into his neck, its fangs shattered instantly, blood spraying all over Liam's armor.
Liam hurriedly retreated while the rat seemed utterly shocked.
"Aghhhh…" It hissed hoarsely again, but instead of retreating, it lunged at Liam once more.
This time, it tried to claw him.
Clang!
Like glass striking steel, the rat's claws shattered as well.
However, Liam did not feel nothing. The impact from the claws produced a powerful shock, violently shaking his body.
His head immediately spun, and his vision blurred.
He shook his head to stabilize his thoughts.
Fortunately, it wasn't that severe.
As for the rat, after its claws were destroyed, it looked to be suffering greatly, bleeding even more heavily.
It seemed to have trouble keeping its balance while standing.
Liam felt that an opportunity to counterattack had appeared.
He looked around, searching for something to use as a weapon.
Fortunately, there were plenty of discarded objects around.
He grabbed the nearest one—a piece of iron with a sharp end.
It turned out to be extremely heavy due to how solid it was. Liam struggled to lift it.
Even with the armor, it didn't help at all in this regard.
Still, he managed to carry it and stab toward the rat's neck.
Pluff!
The iron pierced through the rat's neck without difficulty. It seemed that the creature was only agile and possessed sharp fangs and claws, while its defense was weak.
Liam used all his strength to push the iron deeper until it completely pierced through its neck.
In an instant, the rat's mouth opened wide as blood poured out, staining its remaining teeth red.
DING!
(You have killed a Level 1 Monster. You gained 25 EXP!)
(EXP: 25/100%)
"Only 25?" Liam's eyes widened when he saw it.
That meant he needed to kill three more monsters like this.
"So troublesome," he muttered, unable to hide his disappointment when the monster didn't drop any items as a reward.
"Mm!" Liam dismissed the armor when he heard footsteps behind him.
It was Jack, who had finally arrived, immediately stunned when he saw the massive rat corpse.
"Liam, did you kill it?" he asked.
Liam simply nodded and checked the map again.
What shocked him was that only a third of the red dots remained. They were even located far away from him.
It seemed that other people had already found the monsters and killed them.
Some people were strong, had skills, or possessed weapons. Naturally, they were also capable of killing monsters.
"Did you gain any power?" Jack asked again.
"What power? I only got 25% EXP," Liam replied.
"Only 25?" Jack was stunned.
"I was just lucky killing that rat. Otherwise, it would've been extremely difficult. I almost died," Liam said.
"Really?" Jack looked unconvinced.
"You'd better be careful from now on. I'm sure there will be many killers. After all, killing humans is easier, and the rewards are far greater," Liam said as he took a step forward, deep in thought.
He knew all of this wasn't meant for fighting monsters—it was meant to make humans kill each other.
After all, the name itself was Battle Royale.
As he thought about this, Liam unconsciously began imagining what it would be like if he killed someone.
The thought tempted him directly.
It was hard not to be tempted, because the reward was power.
If one had power, why worry about punishment?
Liam knew this temptation would ensnare many people.
Even Jack might be tempted.
He could suddenly go mad and stab him.
Liam quickened his pace, filled with unease.
From now on, every human needed to be treated with caution.
He couldn't tell who would go insane first.
Entering the apartment building, he immediately stepped into the elevator, which was fortunately still working—though very slowly.
While waiting for it to arrive, Liam opened the forum.
(A homeless man suddenly stabbed his friend!)
The top post instantly made him narrow his eyes.
So it had already begun this early.
Liam exited the elevator and entered the nearest door.
It was an old apartment with only one bedroom, a small living room merged with the kitchen. Even the bathroom, which was combined with the toilet, had no door.
Liam sat on his nearly broken sofa, staring at the Daily Reward System, which now displayed a countdown until he could receive another reward.
There were still more than 23 hours left. Liam grew restless, wishing time would pass as quickly as possible.
"Ahhhh—!"
"What?!"
Liam stood up instinctively. A loud woman's scream suddenly came from beyond his apartment wall.
"Was that Mrs. Perez?"
Liam grew uneasy.
He had a neighboring couple who fought far too often.
The husband was an alcoholic, while the wife was rumored to work as a prostitute.
Although fights happened frequently, Mrs. Perez had never screamed this loudly before.
Liam suspected that the woman's husband had done something extremely dangerous.
On this floor, aside from them, there was only one elderly woman—so who else would check besides Liam himself?
He hesitated for a moment before standing up, feeling less afraid when he thought about wearing his armor. However, he first stepped out the door. After confirming that there was no one in the corridor, he put on the armor.
His steps were still light while walking down the hallway. There was no sound at all.
He looked toward the adjacent door, which was already open.
At first, there was nothing unusual, but as he got closer, his eyes widened.
"Damn it!" he cursed upon spotting a trail of blood.
"Mrs. Perez…" Panicking, he pushed the door open.
What he saw was completely different from what he had expected.
He found a woman in her mid-thirties with messy red hair standing there, holding a blood-covered knife.
In front of her lay a half-naked man in his forties.
A hole had opened in his abdomen, and blood was pouring out from it.
The man wasn't dead yet. He was gasping for air, staring at the woman with bulging eyes.
"H-How dare you?" he said hoarsely.
Though his eyes were wide open, they were rapidly losing their light as blood continued to flow from his stomach. Even if a medical team arrived, he likely couldn't be saved.
Now, blood was starting to gush from his mouth as well.
On the other hand, the woman stared at him viciously.
But when Liam appeared, she staggered.
"Who are you?" the woman panicked, pointing her knife at Liam.
Facing someone he had thought was a victim but was actually the suspect, Liam didn't know what to do.
Subconsciously, he was still thinking that things would become complicated if the police arrived.
At the thought of the police, he quickly took out his phone.
With just a thought, he moved the phone out from the pocket of his clothes beneath the armor.
He quickly opened the camera and recorded the scene.
If the police came, this would be evidence of who the suspect was, ensuring he wouldn't be implicated.
"You—how dare you!" Mrs. Perez, who seemed to have gone insane, suddenly leaped toward Liam, trying to stab him as well.
Clang!
Liam didn't even bother dodging, because he knew he was safe.
The knife didn't just bounce away—it shattered. It seemed that this armor truly had the ability to destroy hard objects that struck it.
Once the recording reached that point, Liam shoved Mrs. Perez aside and ran toward the elevator.