"Request backup! We need support now!"
The guards frantically shouted into their radios, their voices edged with panic. Their gunfire blazed once again, but it had no effect on the hulking figure in front of them.
Roshan, the massive creature, moved with terrifying speed despite his bloated, clumsy appearance, smashing one of the guards into pulp with a single, brutal slap.
"Run!"
At this moment, Ruri had only one thought: escape.
Tad, the intern cameraman who had followed her into this dangerous situation, abandoned the camera without a second thought and bolted towards the car parked at the base of the hill.
Get to the car. Only then would they have a chance to survive this nightmare.
Seeing Tad sprinting ahead, Ruri snapped out of her shock and ran towards the vehicle as fast as she could. Relief washed over her when she saw that Tad had left the car where they parked it, waiting for her. It hadn't moved.
Out of breath, she reached the passenger side and shouted, "Quick, start the car! We need to get out of here!"
But Tad didn't move. His face had turned a ghastly pale as he stared blankly ahead at the scene unfolding at the factory.
"What's wrong?!" Ruri's voice was rising in panic now.
Tad, still in a daze, muttered, "I... I don't know why, but the car won't start."
"How is that possible?!" Ruri's heart sank. "It was working fine when we got here!"
Tad's forehead was slick with sweat as he frantically pressed the ignition button, his foot stamping hard on the brake. But the car remained still, making only a low, sputtering noise before falling silent again.
"How can this be happening?" Ruri whispered in disbelief.
If Novak had been there, he would have had the answer. The apocalypse was approaching fast, and only two days remained before the catastrophic event that would change everything. The magnetic field of the Cosmic Will was beginning to take effect, causing many machines and electronics to malfunction, rendering them useless. The car was just another victim of this growing disruption.
Ruri and Tad had run straight into this new reality at the worst possible time.
"It's all your fault!" Tad suddenly exploded in rage. "If it weren't for you, dragging me here for your stupid story, I wouldn't be stuck in this nightmare, about to die with you!"
Ruri froze. The Tad she knew—calm, composed, and gentle—was gone. His face was twisted with anger, veins bulging from his forehead, his eyes wild with fury.
She opened her mouth to say something, but in the end, only three words escaped her lips:
"I'm sorry..."
It was true. Ruri had been so focused on getting her big scoop, driven by the same ambition that had helped her rise to her current position. She had taken risks before, but never like this. Now, her reckless pursuit had landed them both in mortal danger.
But her apology only seemed to ignite Tad's frustration even more.
"Sorry? What good is 'sorry' now?!" he yelled, slamming his fists against the dashboard. "The car won't start! We're trapped! We're going to die here!"
Ruri glanced toward the monster still wreaking havoc at the factory. She knew there was no way they could outrun it on foot.
"Maybe... maybe we should try running?" she suggested weakly.
"Run?!" Tad's voice cracked with disbelief. "Didn't you see what that thing just did? There's no running from that!"
His words trailed off suddenly, and Ruri froze as well. A sound—faint at first, then growing louder—caught their attention. It was the whistle of an approaching vehicle.
Both of them turned toward the road, where the reflection of headlights glimmered in the distance. A black van was speeding toward them.
Without wasting a second, they leapt out of their car and ran to the middle of the road, waving their arms frantically to stop the approaching vehicle.
The van slowed to a stop. As it did, Tad rushed toward the driver's side, shouting desperately, "Please, let us in! There's a monster back there—we need to get out of here!"
The window rolled down, revealing a short-haired woman with strikingly glamorous features. Even in their panic, Tad couldn't help but notice her cold beauty.
"Move out of the way if you don't want to die," the woman said sternly.
"Sister, please," Ruri pleaded, her voice trembling. "Our car won't start. If you leave us here, we'll be killed. Please, help us!"
The woman remained indifferent, about to turn them away, when a voice crackled through the van's intercom.
"Let them in."
With that, the woman closed her window, but the van's rear door swung open, offering them refuge.
Relief washed over Ruri and Tad as they scrambled into the van, their breaths coming in heavy gasps. They had narrowly escaped death, and now, for the first time, there was a glimmer of hope.
Inside, they quickly noticed the two passengers seated in the back. One was a woman dressed in a stunning black-and-white cheongsam, her neck adorned with a diamond necklace, and a pink diamond bracelet on her wrist. Her elegant attire spoke of wealth and power. Even Tad, in his frazzled state, couldn't help but marvel at her opulent appearance.
Beside her sat a young man dressed in black, who seemed to be her bodyguard. Something about his face seemed oddly familiar to Tad.
But it was Ruri who broke the silence. Her eyes widened in shock as she recognized the woman sitting before her.
"Madam Song? What are you doing here?!"
Daphne didn't respond to her. Instead, she turned her attention to the man seated across from her—Novak.
Seeing his calm, almost resigned expression, she smiled faintly, as if this chaotic scene was of no surprise to her.
Novak, however, could only shake his head in disbelief. Earlier that morning, he had seen this same woman, Ruri, delivering the morning news on television, completely composed and polished.
How, in just a few short hours, had this glamorous host fallen into such a messy, desperate state?