Another day passed. The silence in the mall was still thick with fear, but I felt... different. I wasn't scared. I wasn't even tired. If anything, I felt better than I ever had.
Sean came up to me, looking me over with a strange expression. "Someone looks like they had a nice sleep. I actually thought you were dead for a second—you wouldn't wake up."
"Ah, I see," I muttered.
"You look changed, Arthur. What happened?"
"I don't know. I don't feel bad. It's more like... I'm free. No stress. Like a bird finally out of a cage."
"I mean, we are finally out of the school," Sean said, trying to be rational. "We could have died there."
"It's not just that," I said, though I didn't explain further. "Anyway, gather the people. We need to plan."
Once a crowd had formed, I stood before them. "We need to talk about what's next. There are too many people here, and the food won't last forever. This is a mall—there's equipment here to make real weapons. And if we go out, we can scavenge better gear from the dead."
A big, bulky man stepped forward, his face set in a scowl. "No. We should just wait here. Help will come."
"Are you mad?" I responded, my voice cold. "No one is coming. We need to arm ourselves now in case those things break in."
The man rebuked me instantly. "Just because you made it here, don't think you're some kind of hero. You're a kid. You should just listen to the adults and sit aside."
Something inside me finally cracked. The lingering frustration from the wish, the blood, and the fear turned into a hot, white anger.
"Listen here," I spat, my voice rising to a scream. "I fought my way through this hell to increase my chances, not to listen to you! Calling me a kid? Who do you think you are?"
I stepped closer, my "mind of its own" body tensing for a strike. "Where were you when the goblins attacked? Hiding. And now that they're dead, you think you can boss people around?"
Sean grabbed my arm, trying to pull me back.
"Arthur, calm down!"
I didn't stop. I looked the man dead in the eye, my hand gripping the rusted blade I'd taken from the school. "I fought my way here. If I can kill those things, I can kill you, too. Killing you would be easier than killing them."
The man took a step back, the blood draining from his face.
"Know your damn limits," I growled.
He backed down for now, muttering under his breath, "You're nothing... just a kid. Without that blade, you'd be dead."
I watched him go, a new understanding taking root in my mind. In this world, the monsters weren't the only things I had to fight. Using others for your own benefit... that was just human nature. I had seen it in games, and now I was seeing it here.
I took a deep breath, looking around at the stunned crowd. "Anyone else have a problem?"
"We need to start planning what happens next," I said, my voice cutting through the murmurs of the crowd.
"For now, we go to the roof. We need to watch the surroundings for movement."
I looked at the group. "Does this mall have any guns?"
A hand rose tentatively. One of the security guards cleared his throat. "No store here sells them, but... I have a personal one."
"Better than nothing," I said. "Keep it as insurance. Keep it safe, keep it hidden. We don't just have to worry about monsters now. We have to worry about humans, too."
I gestured to Sean. "Follow me to the roof."
As we climbed the stairs, Sean leaned in close.
"About the gun... were you talking about that guy from before? The big one?"
"Yeah."
"I don't think you should have been that mad at him, Arthur," Sean whispered. "Maybe he just wanted us to be safe."
"No," I snapped. "He was scared."
"That's exactly what I'm saying—"
"He wasn't scared of the monsters, Sean. He was scared that someone else was taking his position. He was the biggest guy here, naturally a leader. Probably a gang boss or a bully before this. People were listening to him, and it gave him a sense of superiority. When I showed up, he was terrified he'd lose his power."
I stopped at a storefront window and smashed the glass with the hilt of my blade. "Look, binoculars. Take them."
We reached the roof and the wind whipped against us. I adjusted the focus on the binoculars and scanned the horizon. "Goblins... more goblins... wait."
"What is it?" Sean asked.
"Orc's. And over there... a giant wolf."
"Where?" Sean grabbed the binoculars. "Oh... I see it."
"That's the bigger predator I sensed," I said, my eyes narrowing.
"So what do we do next"
"we officially start hunting tomorrow. Let's go back down."
When we regrouped with the survivors, I put on a different face.
"I have good news," I lied, keeping my voice steady.
"We are in a safe zone for now. The goblins we killed on the way in were the main hunters here. There are a few left, but we can deal with them."
A sigh of relief went through the room.
"Tomorrow, we train. We hunt the remaining goblins to clear the area and scavenge for food. For today, rest."
"What about the big predator?" someone asked.
"It's a giant wolf," I said. "And there are some orc's. But they're far enough away that we're safe for now.
I'm going back to the roof."
"Why?" Sean asked. "You need sleep."
"I'm going to watch them,"
I said, looking toward the stairs.
"I'm going to watch how they hunt. If I can mimic their movements, I can learn how to use these weapons properly. I've always been good at that."
Hours passed as I sat on the edge of the roof, my eyes fixed on the streets below. I watched how they moved, how they tracked, and how they attacked.
Instinctively, I began to mimic their movements, but as I did, I felt a wave of cold clarity. Their movements were crude. Unrefined. The goblins and orcs didn't have technique; they had weight. Their thrusts were always the same—a straight, clumsy line—because they relied on the size of their blades. In their minds, bigger was simply better.
I thought they'd be smarter, I mused. They just rely on the sheer mass of the iron.
If you step to the side, you escape the stab entirely. Because their weapons are so heavy, they can't adjust mid-swing, leaving them wide open. It was the same for the ones carrying clubs; they struck with everything they had, but once that club hit the pavement, they wasted precious seconds trying to lift it back up. In a real fight, those seconds are an eternity. You could kill them twice before they even stood straight again.
I sighed, leaning back.
The only real trouble for now was the spears because of the range, but if I sharpened my own blade enough, I could probably just shear the wooden shafts in half. All I needed now was to train my body to stay in that "hyperactive" state—the adrenaline rush I felt back in the school cafeteria—without losing my mind to the red haze.
"Time to get to work," I whispered.
I climbed down from the roof and found the store clerk. "Find me a whetstone," I commanded.
They scrambled to obey, returning quickly with a professional-grade stone from the hardware section.
I sat on the floor, the rusted goblin blade across my lap, and began the long, rhythmic process of grinding away the decay. With every stroke, the rusted orange gave way to a cold, gleaming silver.
"Rest today," I told them, my voice echoing in the quiet mall.
"Sleep well, because from tomorrow on, we fight. We're going to show those things exactly why we survived the chaotic world."
I didn't wait for their cheers. I just sat back down and went back to polishing my blade, preparing myself for the inevitable carnage of tomorrow.