Glowing Sky

Vincent was the only one awake, taking the first watch while the professor was scheduled to take the second in about four hours.

Usually, there would be two to keep each other awake, and Vincent had told them to face each other during their watch so there would be no blind spots.

But everyone was passed out, letting the system install the full game.

'So they get a warning while I don't.'

The fifth sigh of the night escaped him as he wallowed in self-pity. 

In preparation for his lone watch, the second entrance to the large living room was closed off with a refrigerator blocking it. Vincent's back was against the wall next to it, facing the other entrance with a fully loaded gun in his hands.

Meanwhile, everyone was huddled in one corner, deeply asleep.

Ever since they left the mansion, they began sleeping together to make it easier for the watcher to wake them all up in case of an emergency.

Pekpek was stationary at the centre, its fires slowly dulling as it neared the end of its fuel. 

Vincent picked up one of the broken pieces of a wooden chair leg and tapped the floor, signalling for it to come.

Pekpek perked up and obediently tottered forward, tilting its body toward Vincent, knowing its fire was going to be fed.

This was confirmed by Palya and Angel earlier. As long as they kept feeding it, the duration would be prolonged.

Vincent softly chuckled as he lightly tossed the wood, the fires instantly roaring back to life and driving away the creeping cold.

'Now what would happen if we make another one? Can there be two at the same time? And if not, do we always have to come back to the original body?'

More questions about the game's mechanics flowed unbidden as he watched Pekpek go back to its station.

'Guess it will take a while to test. The girls would hate to see Pekpek go limp again. What a nasty system. It's as if it knew the significance of names.'

They hadn't known its exact duration. There was no prompt telling them that the spell was ending either, so Pekpek went all limp after an hour and a half, causing Angel to panic.

Casting the spell again did the trick, and they've been feeding Pekpek ever since.

After an hour of silence, Vincent's mind habitually wandered.

Even after seven years had passed, he was still debating if his father was haunting him or if he simply respected the man so much that all the teachings the old man crammed into him when he was alive continued to influence him, shaping every decision he made.

Vincent blamed his overly cautious mindset on his father.

In his years living alone, there were definitely times when he was proven that he didn't have to be so uptight, but then his father's voice would echo.

"Would you rather regret that you came unprepared or lose with dignity knowing you've done your best?"

'Oh, shut up, old man. You're dead.'

Vincent sharply inhaled, pushing the memories away. He grounded himself to the sounds of the campfire in an attempt to clear his mind.

He knew the reason his father's voice was becoming vivid by the day was because it had been a long time since he'd seen their altar. 

'I should light a candle before we leave for Vancouver.'

But his thoughts were cut off.

A sudden popping noise reached his ears, followed by the climbing sound reminiscent of a firework.

Vincent's eyes shot open, narrowing toward the entrance. 

Then the distant, muffled crack of an explosion made him aware of what it was.

'A flare? At night? And it sounds like it was shot near the care home.'

Shaking the professor awake, Vincent placed a finger on his lips and gestured to remain low.

The professor nodded hastily, his drowsiness vanishing at the sight of Vincent's stern look.

Vincent then handed the professor his gun, telling him through hand motions to keep an eye on the door. 

The professor's eyes widened in shock. He caught Vincent's wrist just as he was about to leave, shaking his head in question.

Vincent firmly held the professor's shoulder before freeing his wrist from his grip and showing an 'OK' sign. He half-summoned his sword from his inventory to show that he was armed.

But the professor's concerns weren't about that, he wanted to know what Vincent was planning to do. He had no way to communicate his thoughts through his limited sign language—he didn't even know if Vincent understood it.

In the end, he helplessly watched as Vincent quietly disappeared to who knows where.

A few minutes before the sky was painted with bright yellow, Ahmad and Carl were hiding between the residential houses across from the care home.

They were freezing.

The effects of the Frost Troll's zone were mercilessly taking 1 of their HP every ten minutes, and they were following too far behind to be under the effects of Angel's campfire.

They were helpless. Any closer and they knew they would be discovered, so they endured it.

Going back to the University would take another hour, and that was enough to kill Carl.

Internally, Ahmad knew it was their fault for being mesmerized by the party's way of fighting. They should have turned around after half an hour. 

But as someone who casually gamed, Ahmad felt as if he was looking at live-action characters. By the time they noticed their health bars, they had reached the care home.

"A-Ahmad. I can't take this anymore. I'd rather take my chances and die from that party's guns than freeze here to death."

Carl was shaking uncontrollably, moving up and down with his toes in an attempt to warm up his body. 

Ahmad was doing the same, but they both painfully knew that their actions were useless. 

The zone's effects bypassed the common sense of the old world. Only magical fire would drive it away.

"You know what. You're right. Go, go!"

Determined, they started running toward the care home. They were careful not to slip, reaching more than halfway.

Whoosh!

"Ah—"

The hairs on Ahmad's back instantly stood on end, chills ran down his spine as he noticed the swift change in the wind behind him.

It was so abrupt that Ahmad's body turned before he could register that his mind was already screaming for him to run.

"Shit, shit, shit—!"

Turning around again, his imbalance made him stumble for a bit, though luckily, he picked himself up before he completely fell.

But he would suddenly change his course one more time, making himself fall back, scrambling backward as an entity appeared, blocking the entrance to the care home.

[Frost Rabbit lvl 2]

A long splash of blood stained the Frost Rabbit's white fur. Bits and pieces of brain matter spilled from its mouth. Its eyes were glowing in delight as it savoured its food.

Half of Carl's head was being held by its right hand, and the tips of its lips curved, smiling at the sight of its frightened prey.

Ahmad's entire body went cold. His mouth continued to spill curses, his hands searching through his jacket for the flare that Joseph had given him.

Fear had taken hold, driving away his rationality. In this instant, he forgot the reason why Joseph had given him the flare.

It wasn't to call for help.

It was to pull the aggro within an area.

Ahmad got up and prepared to run again.

But the rabbit was finished admiring his panic. 

It lunged at him with its jaws open, stretching wide until its own flesh started ripping.

Instinct made Ahmad raise his gun and aim it at the monster. But as his mind and body fought, he fell back just as he took the shot.

Bang!

But his aim had shifted upward. The jarring sound and glaring light were a beacon in the sky.

Ahmad was saved by his fall as the rabbit went over him, skidding to a stop about two meters away. 

Yet there was no time to celebrate his small success. 

Pushing himself up, he aimed the flare at the rabbit again. His breathing was ragged, his lungs burning. His legs wanted to continue fleeing, but he persisted in putting up a tough front.

Influence from things he had seen on the internet was directing his choices. But the shaking of his arms betrayed his act. 

Flares only had one shot.

All his hopes were placed on this one bluff.

There were a few seconds of stalemate. It looked like the rabbit fell for his ploy. 

Just then, the faint sound of howling in the distance startled them both, and the rabbit's hostility spiked.

Another hunter was in the area, and its food might get stolen.

It didn't care about Ahmad's weapon anymore. 

The rabbit sprinted forward, hopping with its arms stretched out.

Whoosh!

Stumbling across the compacted snow, the rabbit had failed to catch its prey and met air instead.

Enraged, it sharply turned to check why and found Ahmad floating about ten meters in the air, struggling to hold onto his collar so as not to choke.

The rabbit was stunned.

And Vincent took that opportunity to ambush it from behind.