[How to live through the Chaos of the New Cursed World?]
Miles stared blankly at the advertisement popping up on his phone screen, torn between the urge to laugh and the tightness in his throat that threatened to bring tears.
The world was falling apart outside his window, and some idiot had decided to capitalize on it with a game ad.
Still, curiosity was a hard thing to ignore. With a bitter huff, he tapped the download button, figuring it couldn't hurt to see what kind of nonsense this was. The file was small, taking only seconds to finish.
Once installed, he opened the app. It prompted him to enter details. A company name, and he just typed in his boarding house's name on a whim, his full name, age, and a few other basic pieces of information.
After hitting "sign in," he waited through a brief loading screen before the app finally pulled up his account, logged in and ready to go.
The screen shifted to a dark, minimalist interface. No flashy graphics, no upbeat music-just white text on a black background:
Welcome, Miles Zeno. This not merely a game.
Miles blinked, rubbing his eyes and staring harder at the display. Had he misread that? He tapped the screen, expecting a "start tutorial" or "new game" button to appear, but nothing changed. Instead, more text scrolled into view.
This is a game, that was created to ensure the user survival in the cursed world.
Then, I hope for the best gameplay you could give us, Miles Zeno.
Main Mission: Survive the Cursed World.
Miles stared blankly into the screen of his phone. The words felt absurd, almost mocking, against the backdrop of screams and chaos he could still hear from outside. He shook his head, about to close the app and focus on figuring out how to actually stay alive-when his phone buzzed violently in his hand.
A new window popped up, labeled
[Tutorial Mission 1: Secure your immediate area.]
- Kill all the cursed within your boarding house vicinity.
Completion: 0%
Reward: Unknown
Beginner Gift Box - Open.
Tutorial Mission 2: First Kill.
- Kill a Cursed.
His fingers froze over the screen.
Kill?
The word sent a jolt through him-even as he heard a crash from the floor below his room, followed by a guttural growl that made the hair on his neck stand up.
Hesitantly, he tapped the "Open" button next to the gift box.
The screen flashed white for a split second, then a notification appeared.
[Item Received: Steel Tactical Knife.]
Miles's eyes darted around the room, confused-until a metallic clink sounded beside his bed.
There, lying on the floor as if it had been there all along, was a sharp, black-handled knife with a serrated edge.
His heart hammered against his ribs. He scrambled to pick it up, the cold metal heavy in his palm.
His heart hammered against his ribs. He scrambled to pick it up, the cold metal heavy in his palm.
Through the thin walls of his room, he could hear more sounds now- doors slamming, furniture being knocked over, and those terrible, animalistic sounds getting closer.
[The app updated in real time: Cursed detected on Floor 2 -3 meters from your location]
Miles backed toward his door, pressing his free hand against it to feel for vibrations.
The growling was louder now, mixed with the sound of wood splintering. He fumbled with the lock, sliding the bolt shut and shoving his heavy desk chair against the handle for good measure.
His phone buzzed again, this time red as if urging him on the incoming danger.
[Warning - Cursed approaching your room. 2 meters away.]
Panic surged through him as he spotted movement through the gap under the door- something dragging itself forward, scraping against the floorboards.
He gripped the knife tighter, his knuckles white.
This wasn't a game. These things were real, and the app.. the app was somehow giving him tools to fight back.
Another notification popped up.
[Tutorial Tip 1: Cursed are vulnerable to damage to the head or heart.
[Tutorial Tip 2: Avoid being scratch or bite by them.]
The scraping stopped right outside his door. Then came a heavy thud, followed by another-each one shaking the wood in its frame. Miles could hear ragged breathing on the other side, hot and wet against the gap.
He had to act.
Taking a deep, shaky breath, he stepped back and grabbed his roommate's metal baseball bat from where it leaned against the wall.
He balanced the knife in one hand, the bat in the other, his eyes fixed on the door. The app's completion percentage still glowed at 0%.
The door shuddered as something threw itself against it, the chair sliding an inch forward.
"Come on," Miles whispered to himself, his voice barely audible over the pounding in his ears.
"You can do this. It's just.. it's just like the game..."
The wood began to crack as splinter kept flying and dropping to the ground.