The villa should have been silent.
Instead, the night screamed.
The first explosion shattered the calm like glass, sending shockwaves through the forest and rattling the villa's reinforced windows. Birds fled into the darkness, and distant zombie howls answered the noise.
Luo reacted before thought.
"Everyone down."
The words left his mouth cold and sharp, carrying an authority even he didn't recognize.
Lily grabbed his wrist instinctively.
The moment their skin touched, the air shifted.
No light. No sound. Just pressure.
The same strange pressure Luo had felt before—like the world holding its breath.
Then it was gone.
Mia hit the floor behind an overturned couch. "Please tell me that wasn't planned."
Yuna peeked out nervously. "I officially hate rich people alarms."
Outside, powerful white floodlights ignited one after another, illuminating the forest in harsh, artificial daylight. Shadows twisted unnaturally between the trees.
Figures moved.
Not zombies.
Humans.
---
"They found us," Lily whispered.
White Hand suppression units emerged from the forest, their armor gleaming, movements precise and mechanical. Between them, zombies were herded forward like cattle—chains, sonic pulses, and electric prods forcing them toward the villa.
"They're using zombies as shields," Mia muttered. "Cowards."
Luo's jaw tightened.
Something stirred in his chest.
A memory without shape. A fight without faces. Blood on his hands—but not whose.
"Lily," he said quietly, "stay close to me."
She nodded without hesitation.
---
The first wave hit.
Zombies crashed into the outer wall, shrieking and clawing. Suppression units fired controlled bursts, thinning the horde just enough to keep pressure constant.
It wasn't an attack.
It was a test.
A low hum filled the air.
A suppression field activated.
Lily gasped, dropping to one knee as the water in her veins rebelled violently.
"Lily!" Luo caught her before she fell.
The moment he did—
The suppression wave bent.
Just slightly.
Not enough to be obvious.
Enough to matter.
Mia noticed. Her eyes widened. "Luo… what did you just—"
"I don't know," he snapped. "Focus!"
A suppression unit breached the villa wall, weapon raised.
Luo moved.
No hesitation. No fear.
He crossed the distance faster than he should have, twisting the rifle aside and slamming the armored soldier into the ground hard enough to crack concrete.
The impact echoed unnaturally loud.
The soldier didn't get up.
Mia stared. "Since when can you do that?"
Luo stared at his own hand.
It was shaking.
"I don't know," he whispered.
---
Another unit charged.
This time, Luo didn't attack.
He stepped.
The air distorted—just for a heartbeat.
The soldier tripped mid-stride, crashing forward as if gravity had betrayed him.
No flash. No aura.
Just wrongness.
Lily felt it.
Her eyes widened as she looked at Luo—not with fear, but awe.
"You didn't touch him," she whispered.
Luo swallowed. "I didn't mean to."
Something deep inside him approved.
---
Outside, the fight intensified.
Mia fired clean shots, dropping zombies with brutal efficiency. "If we live through this, I'm charging therapy fees."
Yuna ducked behind cover. "I didn't sign up for this update!"
A suppression unit aimed directly at Lily.
Time slowed.
Luo stepped in front of her without thinking.
The bullet stopped.
Not shattered. Not deflected.
Stopped.
Midair.
For less than a second.
Then it dropped harmlessly to the ground.
Everyone froze.
Luo's vision blurred. His head throbbed violently.
Too much.
He staggered back, Lily catching him.
She pressed her forehead to his chest, whispering urgently, "Stop. You'll hurt yourself."
Her touch grounded him.
The pressure vanished.
The world snapped back into place.
The suppression units abruptly halted.
Their visors flickered.
Then—retreat.
Zombies collapsed where they stood, skulls detonating as if remotely terminated.
Silence returned unnaturally fast.
---
A calm voice echoed through hidden speakers.
"Enough for tonight."
Sanitizer.
"Well done, Subject L," the voice continued. "You protected her without crossing the line."
Lily clenched her fists. "Show yourself!"
A pause.
"You don't need to awaken yet," Sanitizer said. "But you will."
The speakers cut off.
The lights died.
Darkness reclaimed the forest.
---
Lily turned to Luo, hands trembling.
Without thinking, she pulled him close and kissed him hard—desperate, grounding, real.
Mia looked away, jaw tight.
Yuna blinked rapidly. "I'm… going to pretend I didn't see that."
Luo rested his forehead against Lily's. "I'm sorry."
"For what?" she whispered.
"For whatever I am."
She smiled softly. "Then I'll learn it with you."
---
As the group caught their breath, Mia suddenly stiffened.
"Luo," she said quietly. "We're not alone."
Through the shattered window, figures stood on a distant rooftop.
Humans.
Armed. Watching.
They didn't attack. Didn't signal.
Just observed.
Then vanished into the night.
Luo's instincts screamed.
"This city has more players than we thought," he muttered.
And somewhere far away, something ancient stirred—recognizing him.