Thinking about the quest he got yesterday, he reached outside the base after placing and preparing everything in his subspace.
⟡ SYSTEM INTERFACE ⟡
[MAIN QUEST]
Secure medical assets & ensure survivor compliance
Target: Senior Surgeon (Unknown)
Location: Ravencross Central Hospital
[SUB-QUEST]
Eliminate all zombies and mutants in the area
[CONDITIONS]
Target must survive
Target must submit or cooperate.
[THREAT LEVEL: HIGH]
Dense infection. Mutants detected.
[REWARDS]
+1000 AP
+2000 Gold
[Healing Skill Fragment]
[???]
Accept Quest?
[YES] [NO]
[YES]
The gates slid open.
Cold air rushed in.
Arien stepped out first.
Sophia followed silently.
He paused for a moment—then raised his hand slightly.
A ripple formed in the air.
From the stillness of his inventory—
something emerged.
Low.
Sleek.
Perfect.
A Bugatti Chiron.
It settled onto the ground as if it belonged there.
Sophia's eyes widened slightly.
"Master… whoa, what is this… a car?"
Arien's gaze rested on it.
"For most people… " It's just a machine," he said quietly.
He walked closer, his fingers brushing the surface.
"But for me…"
A faint pause.
"…it was the first thing I ever wanted without needing a reason."
He opened the door.
"First love."
Sophia stepped closer, still observing it.
"Master… isn't this too delicate? If something happens to it—"
"I already thought about that."
"It's plated with black matter. Even bullets can't pierce it."
Arien sat in the driver's seat.
"Don't worry."
A slight glance at her.
"We'll change vehicles once we get close."
She got in.
The door closed with a soft click.
The engine came alive.
Not loud.
Controlled.
Power waiting.
The engine faded into the distance.
Vrrr…
Silence returned to the shelter.
Inside—
Ash stood alone.
The rifle rested in his hands, but his grip wasn't loose anymore.
It was firm.
Deliberate.
His eyes moved slowly across the room…
then toward the doors.
Each one held a "practice target."
Still alive.
Still breathing.
Clink…
A faint sound broke the silence.
Kael shifted against his restraints, testing them.
Then—
he spoke.
"You don't have to follow him."
Ash didn't respond.
Didn't even look at him.
Kael exhaled sharply, trying again.
"You're being used."
Still nothing.
Not a word.
Not even a flicker of reaction.
Kael's eyes narrowed.
Fine.
Different approach.
"There's no reason for you to stay here," he continued, voice calmer now.
"Help me out, and I can give you something better."
A slight smirk.
"Money. Supplies. Freedom."
Ash remained still.
Like he hadn't heard anything at all.
The smirk faded.
"…Tch."
Kael clicked his tongue.
Then his tone changed.
Sharper.
Ugly.
"That guy you're following?" he said, leaning forward as much as the restraints allowed.
"He doesn't care about you."
A pause.
"He'll throw you away the moment you're useless."
Still—
nothing.
Kael's patience snapped.
"Are you deaf or just stupid?!"
His voice echoed against the walls.
"You're just a dog following orders!"
A breath.
Then, louder—
"If you're a real man—"
he strained against the restraints—
"—unchain me and fight!"
Silence.
Heavy.
Unmoving.
Then—
"…Heh."
A sound slipped out.
Low.
Uneven.
"…heh…"
Ash's shoulders trembled slightly.
The laugh didn't rise—
it dragged itself out.
"…heh… hah…"
Not normal.
Not controlled.
Something… breaking through.
Slowly—
Ash lifted his head.
His eyes met Kael's.
Empty—
but burning underneath.
"Tell me…" Ash said quietly.
A step forward.
"If you were in my place…"
another step—
"…would you do it?"
Kael didn't hesitate.
"Of course."
A grin spread across his face.
"I'm not a coward like you."
Something shifted.
Ash stopped.
Still.
Silent.
Coward.
His fingers tightened around the rifle.
The word echoed—
louder than it should.
Again.
Coward.
For a moment—
he hesitated.
Just a fraction.
And then—
Arien's voice surfaced in his mind.
Calm.
Cold.
Ash's breathing slowed.
Stabilized.
The hesitation—
faded.
Click.
The rifle lifted.
His gaze locked onto Kael.
"…I see."
The silence that followed—
felt heavier than before.
Here's your scene shaped into a tight, intense sequence—clean, controlled, and escalating Ash's instability:
Ash's voice snapped through the room—
"From now on… every word, every move—"
He stepped forward, raising the rifle.
"—even a single strand of your hair…"
Click.
"…can decide your fate."
BANG—!
Kael screamed.
"AAAGH—!"
The shot landed low—
he collapsed forward, body jerking in pure shock.
Ash tilted his head slightly.
"…Ah."
A pause.
"…That wasn't where I aimed."
BANG—!
Another shot—
Kael's head snapped sideways as the bullet grazed past his ear.
"STOP—! STOP—!" he shouted, voice breaking, trembling.
BANG—!
His hand—
pierced.
The gun slipped from his fingers.
"PLEASE—!"
Ash's breathing stayed steady.
Too steady.
He lowered the aim.
"Let's try again…"
BANG—!
Kael's leg jerked violently.
"—AAAGH—!"
Ash frowned slightly.
"…Missed again."
BANG—!
This time—
the shot landed clean.
Kael's body convulsed—
then went limp.
Silence.
Ash watched him for a moment.
"…Already unconscious."
A small pause.
"…Too soon."
He turned.
Another door.
Another target.
Click.
The door opened.
Inside—
fear.
Immediate.
Raw.
"W-wait—! Don't—!"
The man tried to speak—
tried to bargain—
tried to provoke—
anything.
BANG—!
The words cut off into a scream.
It didn't matter what they said.
Begging.
Cursing.
Manipulating.
Provoking.
Ash didn't hesitate anymore.
Shot after shot—
BANG—!
BANG—!
BANG—!
Precise.
Deliberate.
Cruel in its consistency.
He made sure of one thing—
They didn't die.
Not yet.
Pain stayed.
Fear stayed.
And it grew.
Because after a while—
it wasn't the gun they feared.
It was him.
Ash.
[ OUTSIDE THE BASE ]
Sophia looked around.
"Master… when did you even get this?"
Arien's eyes stayed on the road ahead.
"In the beginning."
A brief pause.
"…I searched for it."
His grip tightened slightly on the wheel.
"…then I took it."
What he didn't say—
was how long he had searched for it,
when he had limited time.
How precise the moment had been.
How cleanly it had disappeared from a showroom.
The gate closed behind them.
The road stretched ahead.
Empty.
Dead.
Arien pressed the accelerator.
The car moved.
Then—
It surged forward.
Wind tore past.
Buildings blurred.
Distance collapsed.
"The hospital is thirty kilometers away," Arien said calmly.
A slight increase in speed.
"With this…"
A pause.
"…five minutes."
"The car hit them, sending zombies flying across the road."
Bodies struck the surface—
but left no dents.
No blood.
No marks.
They were pushed aside as if they meant nothing.
Sophia held on instinctively.
But Arien—
remained completely still.
In control.
As always.
At a certain distance from the hospital,
The car slowed.
Arien stepped out.
With a thought—
The Bugatti disappeared back into his inventory.
In its place—
a black-matter-plated, weapon-carrying armoured vehicle appeared,
disguised like a beast.
He turned to Sophia.
"Go to that building. Take position on the rooftop."
"Do not fire until I give the signal."
"Use only a silenced gun. And this dagger."
"No noise."
A brief pause.
"You can handle this many, can't you?"
"Yes, Master."
Is Master worried about me?
"Don't daydream. Move."
"We don't have much time."
Sophia moved immediately.
Arien got into the vehicle—
and drove toward the hospital.
The vehicle didn't slow.
It charged.
Zombies flooded the hospital entrance—
twisting, crawling, piling over each other.
Arien's gaze stayed fixed.
Distance—closing.
Timing—calculated.
Three seconds.
Two.
One—
Impact.
The armored beast tore through the gate.
Metal bent. Bodies shattered.
THUD—CRACK—SPLIT—
Zombies were thrown aside like debris.
The vehicle pushed through—
then stopped exactly at the entrance line.
Arien stepped out.
No hesitation.
A flick of his hand—
From his subspace—
Concrete walls.
Massive. Pre-cast. Reinforced.
They dropped into place.
BOOM.
BOOM.
BOOM.
Sealing the gate behind him.
No entry.
No exit.
A controlled zone.
The horde surged forward.
Arien didn't move.
"Begin."
The vehicle responded.
Panels shifted.
Compartments opened.
Automated weapon systems deployed.
Turrets locked.
Targets acquired.
RATATATATAT—!!
THUNK—THUNK—THUNK—!!
Gunfire erupted.
Precise. Relentless.
Zombies dropped in waves.
Heads snapped back. Bodies collapsed.
The ground turned into a moving carpet of corpses.
But—
Something didn't fall.
From within the chaos—
They stepped forward.
Mutants.
Larger. Distorted. Evolved.
Bullets hit—
—and failed.
Skin absorbed impact.
Bones didn't break.
Nine of them.
Watching.
Advancing.
Arien observed.
No change in expression.
"Insufficient."
He raised his hand slightly.
A ripple formed in the air—
and something began to emerge.
Inside—
darkness.
Then—
something moved.
Blackripper.
A weapon built over twelve hours.
Not mass-produced.
Not replaceable.
It didn't promise death—
it delivered it.
Arien stepped onto the vehicle.
The automated guns continued firing beneath him.
He lifted the weapon.
It hummed.
Low. Heavy. Alive.
The first mutant charged.
Fast. too fast ,
As if speed would help.
Arien didn't aim.
He adjusted.
WHRRR—THOOM.
A compressed blast.
The mutant's upper body—
erased.
Clean.
No explosion.
Just absence.
Second—
It leapt.
CLICK—WHINE—THOOM.
Mid-air.
Split.
Two halves hit the ground separately.
Third and fourth rushed together—
Arien shifted his stance slightly.
Minimal.
Efficient.
THOOM.
THOOM.
Two shots.
Two heads gone.
Bodies kept moving—then collapsed.
Fifth.
Larger.
Thicker.
It roared—
Arien waited.
Half a second.
Closer.
Closer—
THOOM.
The chest caved inward—
then detonated outward from within.
Sixth tried to flank.
Arien turned—
just enough.
THOOM.
Spine gone.
It folded instantly.
Seventh.
Crawling. Fast. Low.
Arien lowered the barrel.
THOOM.
The ground cracked.
The mutant disappeared with it.
Eighth—
hesitated.
That was enough.
THOOM.
Silence.
Only one remained.
Inside the hospital—
Survivors huddled.
Shaking.
Listening.
Gunfire.
Endless.
Precise.
"Is that… military?"
"Did someone come for us?"
"Why are there so many gunshots—?"
Hope.
Fragile.
Uncertain.
Then—
A man near the entrance screamed:
"HELP! IT'S BREAKING THROUGH—!"
The final mutant.
At the main door.
Massive.
Deformed beyond recognition.
Its arm slammed against the entrance—
BANG—!!
Cracks spread.
Outside—
Arien raised Blackripper.
Calm.
Unrushed.
Inside—
The door began to give.
CRACK—
The mutant roared—
and pushed forward—
—
To be continued…