Twin

At the northern part of Starmap Academy, a small group of youths in Starmap uniforms could be seen struggling against a large horde of zombies that had infiltrated the school environs through the north entrance. Most of these zombies were wearing identical safety engineering uniforms.

"There are still so many of them left—how are we going to survive at this rate?" one of the male students complained, wielding a magic-inscribed red and black hand axe that glowed brilliantly every time it felled a zombie.

"You have the best weapon among us, James—you shouldn't even be complaining. Besides, we level up faster the more zombies we slay, so it's a major advantage for us. It's just like a game," replied another student who swung a sword that was taller than he was.

"Shut your nerd ass up, Jeffrey," James scoffed, smashing the head of a zombie that had tried sneaking up on him.

James and Jeffrey bore a striking resemblance in facial features and height; the only difference between them was that James sported short, curly black hair, while Jeffrey had messy, long black hair.

Surrounding them were five other students—three females and two males. Coincidentally, all the ladies in the group were mages, each possessing the same water affinity.

On the other hand, all the male members were assigned to the melee class, armed with their respective weapons.

"I told you all that we should have taken the east entrance instead. I warned you about the factory near the north gate—they have hundreds of workers, and once they turned, their first target would naturally be our school," one of the mages complained.

Everyone in the small group grumbled, except for Jeffrey, who seemed to be relishing the thrill of swinging his large sword against the zombies. It was evident that he had been the one to suggest this location.

[ Slayed x3 Zombie, +69 EXP ]

[ You've leveled up ]

[ Level 8 -----> Level 9 ]

"YES!!"

Jeffrey rejoiced loudly upon seeing the level-up notification.

"Very soon I'll reach level ten, and maybe I'll receive special perks like in video games, hehe," he muttered to himself.

James scoffed at seeing his brother rejoicing, he disliked that his nerdy sibling still existed in this changed world. If it were not for the fact that both of them were sons of a popular actor, Jeffrey would have definitely been bullied for his odd nature.

James still recalled the times when his brother blasted inappropriate anime soundtracks in their supercars.

He shook his head in pity and refocused his attention on the battle around him.

The fight continued, yet the number of zombies seemed only to increase rather than decrease. It was exhausting.

The mages had run out of mana several times, and they had to step back and recharge before returning to support, while the others pressed on.

However, even though there was no limit to the use of melee classes and weapons, they were still human; naturally, they grew tired and extremely worn out after hours of nonstop action.

Sadly, they could not retreat.

They continued fighting as if their lives depended on it, despite their exhaustion.

"Look over there... other students are approaching."

The mages directed the attention of the group toward Dorian's team that was approaching.

"Ahh, finally, some more hands—everything will be over very soon," a relieved smile spread across James's face.

"Great!" the others rejoiced.

Of course—except for Jeffrey.

"Fuck! They're going to steal my sweet EXPs!" he lamented.

James felt an urge to run over to his brother, kick him in the balls, and then slap the nerd out of him.

Meanwhile, Dorian and his team took note of the zombie horde before them.

"So many of them..." Clarissa muttered.

"Those guys are faring pretty well. They are few in number, yet they held their group against so many zombies. They would be a worthy addition to our group," Brandon remarked.

Dorian, on the other hand, observed the students and their aspects, he had not seen any of them before at Starmap Academy, likely due to differences in class. As for their aspects, he had encountered all of them in the game.

The zombies also took notice of Dorian and his group. Their sheer numbers attracted them, and they began staggering toward the newcomers.

Dorian shrugged, then turned to his team, giving the signal to attack, and they responded immediately.

Brandon, Craig, and the others rushed to the front while the remaining members followed closely behind.

"Stay close to me, Clarissa."

She nodded, clutching the dagger of darkness that Dorian had given her, and proceeded to follow him.

Brandon and Craig were the first to engage in combat, launching their assault immediately. Along the way, both managed to reach level 6—the same level as Dorian. Their attacks had become sharper and faster, while the others appeared weaker and slower in comparison.

Fortunately, Dorian enjoyed an extra boost of agility and strength from Zhen Yuan's aspect; even at the same level as his companions, he remained significantly faster and stronger.

Dorian let the others handle the zombies approaching, while he stealthily slipped through the brawl toward the other students already engaged in fighting.

James was being ganged up on by five zombies.

Dorian arrived before one of the zombies could swipe its rotten, sharp claws and injure James, who was busy focusing on the other four. He delivered a swift roundhouse kick to its head, shattering the fragile flesh and bone that held it together, as blood sprayed onto the ground when it collapsed.

Another zombie spotted Dorian and attempted to bite him, but was immediately neutralized.

James, being the closest, witnessed everything.

"James, thanks for saving my life, buddy," he said gratefully.

"Don't mention it. How long have you all been at this?" Dorian initiated conversation while dispatching other zombies. He could already tell that James was strong—it would be advantageous to have another powerful fighter on his team.

Clarissa remained beside him as Dorian held one zombie down, allowing her to deliver the finishing move and earn 10 EXPs.

"It's been about two hours now, we've slain at least one hundred, yet these disgusting bastards just keep pouring in. It's tiring," James replied.

He had not witnessed Dorian and Clarissa's activity beside him, but Jeffrey had, he paused for a moment, casting a strange look at both of them. He grumbled to himself before continuing to slay zombies.

James was quite friendly and talkative with Dorian; he explained how his nerdy twin had forced them to come here because he wanted to embark on a leveling-up spree. The two fought closely side by side while conversing.

In roughly fifteen minutes, the number of zombies had drastically decreased thanks to the sheer number of students battling them. Even the mages, who had been relaxing earlier, had regained their mana and rejoined the fray, boosting the rate of slaying.

After another fifteen minutes, only one zombie remained, it was staggering toward them from the gate.

"Ahh! The last kill is mine!"

Jeffrey barked and sprinted toward the zombie, slaying it with his sword.

"Hehe, I got the last kill—I deserved it," he smirked.

He then called up his character status to check his level.

[ Level 9, 77 EXP remaining to level up ]

"Just eight more zombies and I would have reached my target for today," Jeffrey sighed in disappointment before shrugging, "Well, tomorrow I can work even harder and aim for level 15!"

A smile crept across his face as he turned to his brother, he wanted to brag about his level, but was met with everyone giving him a strange look, as though he were covered in dog shit.