The basement level seemed to be in a blackout, cloaked in darkness, with only a flashlight providing visibility.
Leonard spotted a light switch on the wall and walked over to press it. Nothing happened.
No power, just as expected.
Leonard kept exploring and found some areas still sealed off.
These restricted zones might unlock in the coming days.
His flashlight was a huge help. He gradually discovered several vacant rooms and ransacked them.
Food, supplies, clean water... quite a haul.
His dimensional backpack was almost full!
He couldn't carry everything, so he had to be selective.
His main goal was to find the morgue.
He didn't waste time on regular rooms and sped up his search.
Time was running out.
According to the system, daytime lasts a full hour, while nighttime only lasts thirty minutes.
There were roughly ten minutes left before sundown.
Leonard pressed forward, his flashlight illuminating only a narrow area, while the rest was swallowed in unknown darkness.
The air carried a faint stench of rot, growing stronger the further he went.
Junk littered the floor, books, filthy clothes, broken buckets, and more.
There were even two bloody handprints smeared on the wall.
Every time Leonard saw something like that, his sanity stat wavered slightly.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
Suddenly, a ringing sound startled Leonard.
He gripped his Madman's Hand Saw tightly and took two steps back, his breath quickening.
The ringing persisted sharp and grating, like an old-fashioned alarm clock.
Frowning, Leonard pushed forward and found the noise was coming from a clock on a counter.
Just an alarm, nothing more than a cheap scare tactic.
"Low-tier scare," he muttered and slammed the button with his fist, finally silencing the noise.
The rotting smell ahead grew even more pungent.
He reached a set of double doors where the stench peaked.
They were locked with iron chains.
He raised the flashlight and shone it upward.
Bold letters read: Morgue.
"Finally found it," Leonard grinned.
Most people would be terrified in a place like this, enough to scare themselves senseless.
But Leonard had worked at a funeral home. He was used to corpses. This was nothing.
He raised his weapon and smashed at the chains.
-28!
-28!
-33!
Damage values popped up until the lock broke with a loud clatter.
Leonard pulled the doors open.
Light revealed rows of body storage units.
Due to the power outage, the refrigeration was off. No wonder the stench was overwhelming.
—
Meanwhile, on the 8th floor.
Three players gathered in front of Room 815.
"Look at that door. Definitely higher grade than ours."
"This has to be the top-ranked player Zore's room. No mistake."
"We're just scouting today. Tomorrow, we come back."
"Why not now?"
"Breaking in now won't yield much. If we wait till tomorrow, there'll be more loot. We'll sweep it clean and divide the spoils."
"Smart plan. We'll strike when he's away, safe and risk-free!"
The three schemed quietly and finalized their plan.
There were many ways to play the game.
Stealing from others? One of them.
—
Back to the basement, inside the morgue.
Leonard was no stranger to these corpse storage units.
Some drawers were pulled open, others sealed shut. Each had a tag with a number and name.
He stepped to the other side, grabbed a handle, and yanked a drawer open like a heavy cabinet.
Sticky fluid dripped from within.
Inside lay a male corpse, eyes shut, completely still.
From its mouth and fingernails, Leonard could tell. It was a zombie.
By game rules, zombies are dormant during the day.
Leonard was mentally prepared and unfazed.
He raised his flashlight and shined it on the zombie's face.
The rotting flesh was uneven, full of wounds and crawling with bugs underneath the skin.
"Time's limited. Let's get to work."
Leonard knew exactly what to do.
He flipped his Madman's Hand Saw and aimed the blade at the zombie's head, slamming down again and again and again…
Until the head was pulverized and EXP was gained.
These zombies were defenseless in their sleep which is perfect prey.
Come nightfall, they'd all rise again.
In the admin chatroom, someone was closely monitoring Leonard.
[He's lucky. First one to find the morgue.]
[He gets free kills on all the zombies inside.]
[9 minutes till nightfall. He needs to hurry.]
[There's more than just zombies in those drawers. Plenty of good stuff too.]
[I don't want him wiping out all the zombies. Makes night two too easy, no threat at all.]
[We can always use admin privileges to spawn more later.]
[No need. It's just a beginner match. Let more people clear it.]
[You're too soft on newbies. That's not how a survival game should be!]
The admin chat buzzed with conflicting opinions.
"Nine minutes left. Gotta move fast!"
Leonard picked up the pace.
When night came, these corpses would be a real threat.
So he had to move quickly.
Open a drawer, kill a zombie.
Open a drawer, kill a zombie…
Leonard repeated the cycle in a bloody frenzy.
Whenever his stamina dipped, he'd eat the energy bars he'd looted earlier.
Kill after kill, his experience bar climbed. Occasionally, rare drops appeared.
[Target eliminated. Gained 5 EXP. Level up to 5. Attributes increased. Skill slot unlocked.]
Level up!
Leonard felt a warm surge throughout his body, muscles tingling.
He finally unlocked a second skill slot.
Now he could equip two skill cards at once.
But… he didn't even have a second card!
Skill cards were rare. He hadn't found another yet.
No time to celebrate. He pressed on, opening more drawers and eliminating the remaining zombies.
Clang!
Another drawer flew open.
Inside weren't zombies, but two items.
One of them was a skill card!