Drawing the Blood Sigil on the Door

Leonard was no saint untouched by earthly desires.

The problem was that he had just fought his way back, covered in grime and reeking of zombie stench, hardly in the mood for anything romantic.

Forget Rebecca.

Even if the campus beauty had shown up, Leonard wouldn't be interested right now.

"Just stay here and rest easy. If any more zombies come scratching at your door, I'll deal with them. I can't guarantee everything, but I can keep you alive until Day 4, when the game ends and we're all freed."

Leonard shoved her back into her room and shut the door.

Rebecca's attempt at seduction had failed miserably. She stomped her feet in frustration, full of resentment.

Leonard turned back to his own room and reached for the door, but paused.

He hadn't used the Blood Sigil-Exorcism. He'd picked up earlier.

If he could draw one on his door, it might offer some extra protection.

There had to be more than just this one Blood Sigil.

If this was part of a larger in-game system, it was definitely worth investing in.

With that in mind, Leonard brought his finger to his mouth. After a brief inner struggle, he bit down hard, drawing blood.

He squeezed out the fresh blood and began drawing on the door.

The Exorcism required only six strokes.

But they were tricky, some twisted, some looped back. Not exactly beginner-friendly.

The image of the complete exorcism was vivid in Leonard's mind. As he moved his finger, each stroke came naturally.

Every successful stroke gave off a faint red glow.

First stroke, success.

Second, success.

Third, success.

Fourth, fail.

His finger had strayed slightly, throwing the line off.

A tiny mistake, but the price was huge.

Puff!

A failed Blood Sigil released a puff of black smoke, and all the bloody lines on the door vanished.

Leonard had just wasted 8 HP for nothing.

Well, not nothing.

[Blood Sigil Drawing Failed. Gained 1 Proficiency Point.]

Just like crafting gear, drawing Blood Sigil had its own proficiency stat.

The higher it got, the better the results. Every bit counted.

Leonard still had four healing potions. He could afford to be wasteful for now.

He bit his finger again and started over.

Failed the second attempt.

Failed the third.

On the fourth try, just as he began, something unexpected happened.

A zombie burst through a nearby door and staggered into the hallway, sniffing the air.

"Great timing," Leonard muttered, but kept working.

The tension caused his sanity stat to drop.

Still, Leonard didn't stop.

He'd killed enough zombies by now to have some confidence.

Stay calm under pressure.

"Graaahhh..."

The zombie detected him and started moving in his direction, picking up speed.

Third stroke, success.

Fourth, success.

Fifth, success.

Sixth!

As Leonard finished the final stroke, the zombie was just meters away.

His finger carved the last line with precision.

The entire Blood Sigil flared with red light.

[Blood Sigil Drawing Success. Gained 5 Proficiency Points.]

Success yielded a bigger reward.

Leonard flung open his door and ducked inside.

The zombie lunged and missed, stopping right in front of Leonard's door.

The Blood Sigil lit up again, glowing bright red.

"Graaah!"

The zombie shrieked and stumbled away in pain.

It actually worked!

Leonard slumped against the wall, breathing a sigh of relief before collapsing to the floor.

Before this game, he was just an ordinary guy.

The constant danger had pushed him to the edge. He needed rest.

Resting restored HP, stamina, and sanity—always worth it.

Across the hall, Rebecca had seen everything and sent a message:

[Hey cutie, what was that thing you drew on your door? Can you draw one on mine too?]

Leonard was half-asleep and ignored her.

Meanwhile, in the player chat group.

Most players had holed up in their rooms and started chatting out of boredom.

[20 avatars have already gone dark.]

[It's barely nightfall and that many are dead?]

[No—some logged out during the day.]

[There were no zombies during the day. That means they were killed by other players!]

[We're all stuck here together. Why would anyone kill another human?]

[Don't be naive. Killing gives EXP, plus you get their gear, items, even dorm keys.]

[You seem to know a lot. You a killer yourself?]

[Bullshit! I'm just warning you.]

Arguments broke out in the chat.

100 players. 20 gone in two days. One-fifth dead.

Not a good sign.

Suddenly, someone posted a cry for help.

[Room 350 here! A zombie's about to break through my door! Someone help me! I'm still a virgin. I don't want to die yet!!]

The previously heated chat fell silent.

[Please! Anyone! The door's breaking!]

[Help!!]

[Hurry!!]

Then the player "Eighteen This Year" went dark.

Everyone knew what that meant.

[Weren't we told we'd be safe inside our rooms?]

Someone asked.

That's when Max dropped a bomb.

[Bad news, everyone: the zombies have gotten stronger tonight. They can break through doors now. Good luck. If you don't want to die, message me and join my team. Ladies first, of course.]

Max was second only to Leonard in level, currently level 4.

Another player, "Shadow Violet," was right behind at level 3.

Leonard was a total anomaly, practically a glitch.

For normal players, reaching level 3 or 4 was already impressive.

——

After a brief rest, Leonard slowly woke up.

It was still night. Zombies were still active outside.

Feeling refreshed, Leonard got up and got to work.

He dumped everything from his backpack onto the bed, sorting items into groups. Some went in the drawer, some stayed out.

Then he opened two chat groups to see what everyone was up to.

And got a shock.

The admin group was discussing zombie deployment!

Someone had mentioned this earlier, but now it was happening.

Deployment was confirmed, they were just deciding how many and where.

Then Leonard noticed a chilling keyword in the conversation.

[A VIP complained that tonight was too boring. Requested at least 15 level-2 zombies and 3 mutated ones!]

VIP?

Who the hell was the VIP?

Leonard stared at the screen, eyes narrowing.