[Notice: Scenario 2 will begin in 7 days (Zone Time)][Core Recovery Phase Initiated]
The message lingered longer than usual, like the System wanted them to feel the clock ticking.
Seven days.
Not long enough to rebuild. Just long enough to remember you're not safe.
No one spoke when the alert faded. They just stood there, surrounded by the wreckage of their last fight—the final pieces of bone still smoldering in the dirt.
By midmorning, the survivors had gathered in the partially repaired dining hall. A fire crackled in a barrel at the centre of the room, warmth pushing back the morning chill. The structure was still cracked, but it held. For now.
The core group sat in their usual corners.
Conner leaned against a table, methodically checking his bowstring, the Uncommon Bone Bow sitting across his knees. His eyes never stopped moving—walls, exits, every person nearby.
Joey laid on his back on two chairs, feet up, arm behind his head. "I slept like crap," he muttered. "Woke up dreaming that metal was trying to crawl into my ears."
Katie looked up from her notes. "That's not how your Trait works."
Joey blinked at her. "How would you know?"
She just smirked.
Neive was feeding her horned summon a few leftover crackers, its smoky body purring lazily across her lap. "I dreamt I was being eaten by a spell," she said. "I feel like that's more accurate."
"Did you feel it?" Katie asked suddenly, tone shifting. "When the System ended the Scenario. Like it marked us."
The group quieted.
They had.
Conner brought up his notification again, reading it for the tenth time:
[Core Point Acquired: 1][Performance Bonus Granted – Title: "Precision Survives"]A title earned through consistency and lethal efficiency. Slight bonus to Perception when facing enemies above your level.
"Still no idea what the Core Points actually do," Joey said, sitting up. "But I got a new skill. Forge Pulse. When I land a metal strike, it sends a shock through the target."
"Sounds brutal," Neive said.
He flexed. "I mean… kinda is."
Katie held up her new cloak, the Frozen Thread Mantle, spinning it once. "Mine reduces mana cost and adds a passive chill to anything I touch."
"I got a Trait buff," Neive added. "Makes my summons more stable. Less mana drain."
They all turned to Conner.
He just nodded once. "Perception buff. Against higher-level enemies."
No flair. No bragging.
Just function.
Chadwick entered a few minutes later. His coat was clean, or maybe just replaced. His dark brown skin caught the firelight as he moved with quiet precision, every step calculated, like he didn't waste motion even in peace.
His eyes scanned them. "You all recovered?"
"Mostly," Katie said. "We were just talking about the System rewards."
He nodded, but didn't elaborate.
Joey, of course, didn't let it go.
"You ever going to explain how you got here in the first place?" he asked, waving a hand. "I mean… we're all locked in this zone. You dropped in out of nowhere. That's not standard."
The group went quiet again.
Chadwick exhaled slowly. "I used a Zone Transfer Scroll."
Neive blinked. "What?"
"They exist," he said. "Rare. I found one in a chest during my last Scenario. One-use. Rips a hole in the border between locked zones. If you use it right... you can slip through."
"Why here?" Conner asked.
"I was tracking a kill-mark. Long story. But once I landed here… the zone locked behind me. I've been stuck like everyone else since."
"So you've seen what comes next?" Katie asked.
"I've seen what might come next."
That sat heavy on the group.
Later that day, the survivors started rebuilding the inner walls of the hall. Luc, Mira, Taz, and the others had picked up tools. No one gave orders. Everyone just moved.
Even without monsters breathing down their necks, there was urgency in every action. Scenario 2 was coming.
Conner helped secure the barricades along the north wing, working beside Joey.
"You're quiet today," Joey said.
"I'm always quiet."
"Yeah, but today you're… like, tactical quiet. Like you're three moves ahead of something."
Conner shrugged. "I'm thinking about what happens if we don't survive the next one."
Joey didn't answer right away. Then: "We will. But if we don't... we make it hurt."
Conner actually cracked a smile at that.
That night, the main five met in the courtyard. The stars were faint—half-swallowed by lingering mana mist—but they still showed up. One or two. Enough.
They circled a small campfire, resting without words for a while.
Katie looked up. "You know, I think I'm starting to hate quiet."
"I thought you liked it," Neive said.
"I did. Before. Now it feels like a countdown."
Neive nodded slowly. "Like it's waiting to break."
"I miss music," Joey said suddenly. "Like, dumb music. Loud, trashy gym music."
"I miss books," Katie whispered. "Paper ones. No screens. Just ink."
Neive looked to Conner. "What about you?"
"I miss…" He paused. "I don't know. Things being small. Predictable."
Chadwick sat slightly apart but leaned in just enough to listen.
"What happens in Scenario 2?" Conner asked.
"I don't know," Chadwick replied. "But if Scenario 1 was a cleanse… the next might be a test. Or a message."
Neive shifted. "A message from who?"
"The System," Chadwick said. "Or maybe the people behind it."
That hung in the air like frost.
A few minutes passed. Someone lit another bit of firewood. The shadows danced higher.
Katie stretched, her coat shimmering. "So, uh… Neive. You and Conner getting pretty chatty these days."
Neive raised an eyebrow. "You jealous?"
Katie smiled, sharp and low. "I'm observant."
Joey made a choking sound. "Are we having a romance arc right now? In the apocalypse?"
"God, I hope not," Neive said.
Conner just blinked. "You're all insane."
"True," Katie said. "But at least we're surviving."
Later, before the fire died, Conner walked the perimeter once more—bow across his back, arrows stocked and sorted. The mana was quiet.
He stopped beside Chadwick again.
"You think we're ready?"
"No."
"Good," Conner said. "Means we'll work harder."
Chadwick looked at him, and for the first time, nodded with something close to respect.