It was early in the morning. Marking it four days since the zombies emerged from every corner of the globe. Manila, a place where he was now, being one of them.
Thomas just woke up and was in his bathroom, scrubbing every bloodstain off his arms and face. The water ran red as it swirled down the sink, carrying away the dried remnants of his brutal encounters. He stared at his reflection in the cracked mirror, exhaustion lining his face.
Luckily, there was still electricity.
For now.
The city grid was still functioning, but it was only a matter of time before the power stations were abandoned or overrun.
I need to prepare for when it goes out.
He splashed cold water onto his face, forcing himself to stay alert. His body was sore, and bruises lined his ribs from his fight with the Mawbeast, but thanks to the Medium Health Injection, the pain was manageable. He exhaled slowly, running a hand through his damp hair.
Four days. That's all it took for the world to collapse.
After drying off, Thomas walked out of the bathroom and into the main living area of his rented house. His weapons were laid out neatly on the dining table: his HK 416, MP5, M9 Beretta, and tactical knife, all cleaned and reloaded. He had made a promise to himself—never be unarmed, never be unprepared.
He grabbed a protein bar from his remaining supplies and chewed on it absentmindedly as he opened his system interface.
[User: Thomas Estaris]
[Level: 5]
[Experience Points: 18,234/23,521]
[Blood Coins: 187,950]
[Inventory: You have one reward that you haven't opened yet.]
Reading the line in his inventory, he opened it. There was a glowing mystery box. He remembered that he earned it from completing the mission of escaping the university grounds.
He tapped onto it, and the icon of the box was enlarged and a notification prompt appeared.
[Do you want to open the mystery box? Yes or No]
Thomas selected "Yes", and immediately after, the mystery box began to glow, emitting a faint hum as it hovered slightly above the system interface. His eyes narrowed in anticipation, watching as the box slowly unraveled itself, its golden light fading to reveal a new notification.
[Congratulations! You have received: Experience & Blood Coin Capsule (x1)]
Thomas blinked. Experience & Blood Coin Capsule? He had never seen this item before. He tapped on it to reveal its description.
[Experience & Blood Coin Capsule]
Effect: Quintuple all experience points and blood coins gained from kills for the next six hours.
Duration: 24 hours
Description: A rare system booster designed to maximize rewards in battle.]
Thomas's lips curled into a smirk. This is huge.
Normally, a single zombie kill would grant him 50 Blood Coins and 20 Experience Points—with this capsule, that would skyrocket to 250 Blood Coins and 100 Experience Points per kill.
If he went on a rampage, he could earn enough to level up twice, maybe even three times before the buff expired.
"This…" Thomas muttered, gripping his chin thoughtfully. "This is exactly what I need."
With the Mawbeast proving that stronger, mutated zombies existed, he knew that the normal undead weren't the only threats anymore. His firepower was solid, but if things kept escalating, he'd need better weapons, better armor, and a higher level.
The capsule was the perfect way to power level.
Still, it has its con. In order to maximize the booster effect, he needs to face zombies and kill them. Of course, it was a basic requirement. And he needs to kill a lot of them in order to fully utilize the effect.
That meant, facing off against the zombie horde.
He wouldn't want that. He was struggling when there were tens of zombies charging towards him. He needed to play it safe.
For now, his goal was to reach level 10 and rescue his classmates that are still stuck in the communication room in his university.
However—the experience points required to get to that level must be high. If every level, the experience points needed to get to the next level is more than six thousand, then he has to kill hundreds, if not thousands of zombies.
It's difficult.
Suddenly—there was a notification in his system.
[System Update: Experience points per unit kill are now tripled.]
New Base Rewards: 150 Blood Coins and 60 Experience Points per zombie kill.
"Wait, what?" Thomas exclaimed softly, his eyes scanning the notification that had just appeared in his system interface.
Thomas blinked, processing the sudden boon. This changes everything. It tripled base rewards , meaning each zombie kill would now net him 150 Blood Coins and 60 Experience Points.
His earlier calculation of needing to kill hundreds of zombies suddenly seemed far more achievable. A smirk crept across his face.
"Looks like the system's rooting for me," he muttered, gripping the edge of the dining table. The soreness in his body lingered, but his determination burned brighter now.
Still, he knew this was no time to celebrate or grow overconfident. The more the system gives, the higher the stakes become. The introduction of mutated zombies like the Mawbeast was proof that things were escalating.
Thomas leaned back, taking a deep breath as he planned his next move. If he wanted to maximize the capsule's effect, he needed to head somewhere with a higher concentration of zombies. But charging into a horde without a strategy was suicide.
His eyes wandered to the map of the city pinned to the wall near the dining table. It was dotted with red markers, each representing places he'd encountered zombies.
The city mall, just a few miles from his house, stood out immediately.
"Plenty of space, plenty of undead," Thomas muttered to himself. Malls were the epicenter of chaos when the outbreak began—crowded, confined, and teeming with people who likely turned into zombies. If he could lure small groups at a time, he could rack up kills without overwhelming himself.
However—he needed hardware.
Thomas scrolled through the Vehicle tab in his system shop, his eyes widening slightly at the options. Rows of military-grade vehicles filled the interface, each with detailed specifications and price tags that made him wince. Tanks, armored personnel carriers, IFV were available, but one vehicle stood out to him.
[Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV): M1278 Heavy Guns Carrier]
Cost: 45,000 Blood Coins
Specifications:
Armor Level: High
Engine: Turbo-Diesel
Top Speed: 110 km/h (68 mph)
Weapon Mount: Equipped with an M2 Browning .50 Cal Heavy Machine Gun
Capacity: Driver + 3 passengers, large cargo space
Description: A state-of-the-art light tactical vehicle designed for rugged terrain and high-threat environments. Comes equipped with reinforced armor, exceptional off-road capabilities, and a mounted .50 caliber machine gun. Perfect for combat and survival situations.]
Without hesitation, he selected the JLTV and confirmed the purchase.
[Item Purchased: Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) – 45,000 Blood Coins]
The interface shimmered briefly before a notification appeared.
[Deploy Vehicle Now? Yes/No]
Thomas exited his house and tried deploying it.
Suddenly, a glowing magic circle appeared on the pavement in front of him, its intricate patterns pulsing with a radiant blue light. Runes he couldn't understand spiraled around its edges, and a low hum filled the air. The circle grew brighter, and with a sudden flash, the JLTV began materializing before his eyes.
Bit by bit, the tactical vehicle took shape. First, the reinforced steel frame emerged, followed by its heavy-duty tires, angular armor plating, and finally, the mounted M2 Browning .50 caliber machine gun perched on the turret. The process was mesmerizing, and within seconds, the vehicle stood fully assembled, its matte black paint gleaming in the sunlight.
Thomas took a step back, his eyes scanning the beast of a machine in front of him. It was even more impressive in person than it had looked in the system description.
"Perhaps with this, I can kill hundreds more zombies."