The next day, Nal and Zon invited Lin to a competition and also called Egro. But unfortunately for the three, Lin quickly defeated them and became the winner.
"Boss Lin, you were too brutal when you cut off my head. Couldn't you have done it in a more noble pose, and not from behind..." Nal looked at Lin and said.
"You're too pathetic for Boss Lin to even bother striking properly to kill you." Zon scoffed at Nal's words.
"Look who's talking, they cut off all your limbs and then you died. Whose death was funnier: mine, where my head gracefully fell down, or yours, where you were as useless as a rock?"
"At least I could see every attack from the boss, unlike you!"
"Then how did you die?!"
"They're having fun," Egro looked at Nal and Zon and said to Lin.
"Just ignore them, they always bicker over nothing. Though really, it's mostly Nal, and Zon just gets dragged into it." Lin was cleaning his purple katana with a cloth as he replied to Egro.
"Anyway, you were the last to die, so you're the real winner among the three," Lin smiled and looked at the polished blade of the katana, which reflected sunlight like glass.
"Haha, nice to hear that," Egro adjusted his round glasses and asked:
"How did you manage to wield a sword so well? I knew you had good sword skills, but with the katana, it's like you've unlocked a sixth sense. You handle it so naturally. I'm even a bit jealous — I wish I could handle a spear like that..."
"There's no secret."
"Hm? No secret?"
"Yeah. I just try to feel the sword."
Egro frowned and thought to himself:
"Feel the sword... Feel the sword... Isn't that a bit abstract... If he's trying to feel the sword, then he's probably meditating with it... Should I start meditating too?" That thought suddenly came to Egro's mind. He looked at Lin and asked:
"Should I start meditating?"
"What, meditation? That's not exactly what I meant, but if you arrived at that answer, then yes. You should start meditating with the spear, so it's always with you." He paused for a moment and continued: "Maybe then you'll truly begin to feel the spear and be able to wield it properly."
Egro nodded and noticed Nal and Zon approaching them.
"Boss Lin, let's play Zombie Mode!" Nal took the initiative and asked Lin.
"Zombie Mode? The one in Arsenal?" Lin raised an eyebrow and asked.
"Yes. Nal made a bet with me that between the two of us, only he could take first place. But naturally, to protect my pride, I accepted the challenge." Zon said with a grim look, glancing at Nal as he replied to Lin.
"And you came here to invite us?" Egro looked at the two and asked.
"Of course! Two is good, but four is always better! It'll be super fun, I promise!" Nal proudly lifted his head.
Lin nodded and stood up from his seat. He walked toward the room with the gaming capsules and said to Egro:
"Egro, get back home quickly. As for you three, come with me. I've always been curious — what is Zombie Mode?"
Nal and Zon laughed together, and Egro, having ordered a taxi, smiled at Lin:
"Of course, right away. I've played Zombie Mode before, but I always lost when the zone got really small and I was surrounded by zombies... But with you, I think we'll win for sure." He waved at Lin and left the house.
Lin, along with Nal and Zon, entered the room with the gaming capsules and opened them. When they all lay in place, the capsules slowly closed, and they logged into Arsenal!
...
The game avatars of Lin, Nal, Zon, and Egro sat on a couch, waiting for Zombie Mode to be found and launched. After a few minutes, they heard the long-awaited message from the game system announcing the start of Zombie Mode.
[A free Zombie Mode room has been successfully found!]
[Players in it: 127/150]
[In ten seconds, you will be transported to a medieval world struck by a zombie apocalypse. In your hand, you will only have medieval or melee weapons — no firearms allowed! Strictly forbidden!]
[Now, starting countdown: 10... 9... 8...]
[7... 6... 5... 4...]
[3... 2... 1...]
[Welcome to the world of zombies!]
All four vanished from their spots, and when they opened their eyes, they realized they were in the starting location where all players gather before the battle begins.
"What fresh air..." Nal put his hands on his hips and took a deep breath in and out.
"Tell me about it. That's one reason I love Arsenal so much — its air is so fresh, even if it's fake." Zon shook his head and smiled.
"Truly medieval..." Lin looked around.
They were in a town square, with a majestic church in the center and large, beautiful houses on the sides, clearly indicating that they were in the wealthy district of some medieval city.
He quickly scanned the area and already figured out where to run if needed. But he hoped it wouldn't come to that.
"I know this map." Egro announced quickly.
"I know it too." Nal smiled, as if he already knew exactly where and when to run when the game started.
Egro simply smiled at Nal, turned to Lin, and began explaining the map they were on:
"This map is called: Merol — the country we're in, or more precisely: the capital's central city. This city is surrounded by ten-meter-high stone walls, which the zombies are currently trying to destroy. Once 150 players are gathered on this map, the zombies will break the gates and invade the city, killing everyone."
"The main goal of this game is survival, and it doesn't matter how you achieve it. You can team up with other players and defend the city, or escape into the small open world beyond."
"Every ten minutes, the zombies will get stronger and the map will shrink. So it's important to constantly watch the map, or you might accidentally step outside the zone — if you do, you'll automatically become a zombie."
He sighed and continued:
"After death, each player is given a choice: — log out of the server or become a zombie and hunt other players. As you can imagine, most people choose the second..."
Lin listened carefully to Egro and then replied:
"That's not a problem. I think my blade will be enough to kill them all ten times over."
Egro gave a crooked smile and nodded.
"Wouldn't expect anything less from you."
The four slowly walked through the square, observing the players. Until they heard a loud shout from a man:
"Let's all team up! I know a great tactic for luring zombies! With my strategy, all of you can survive!"
The four looked in the direction of the shout and saw a man in a red cloak standing on a fruit cart, explaining his strategy.
"Another scammer." Nal quickly lost interest and kept walking.
"So boring. Don't they have any new ways of luring in gullible players and using them?" Zon followed after Nal.
"A scammer?" Lin looked at Egro, expecting an explanation.
"Yeah. In most team modes, there are scammer players who trick newbies by telling them something, then use them and kill them to gain a lot of XP." Egro patiently explained and kept walking.
"No point in interacting with them. Better to just ignore."
Lin nodded and followed him as well.
After a few minutes, the game system announced the long-awaited message:
[Players: 150/150!]
[The gates will be destroyed by zombies in ten seconds. During that time, group up with other players and defend the city or go solo. The choice is yours!]
[10, 9, 8, 7...]
[... 3, 2, 1...]
[The gates have been breached, and the barriers are down!]
[Good luck surviving!]