جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 7

Chapter 2: Binding the Level-Up SystemThe phone in my hand would not stop shaking as Marcus's name kept blinking on the screen, bright and green cutting through the dark bedroom. Marcus. The man who just left me to die. The man who watched me get torn apart while he drove away in my car. A cold sweat broke out across my forehead as I threw the phone onto the blanket like it was a hot coal. It bounced, still buzzing, still demanding my attention.“ no, no no”. I choked out, pulled my knees up to my chest. “This is not real. It cannot be real.” I pressed the heels of my hands against my eyes trying to block out the image of those rotting eyes. I could still taste the copper in the back of my throat. I could still feel the teeth sinking into my shoulder, ripping my skin to shreds. My whole body was trembling violently when the headboard rattled against the wall.I opened my eyes as I looked down at my hands. They were smooth. There was no dirt under my fingernails, no blood, no scars. T

Chapter 4: Slapping the LeechesThe wood of my apartment door shook as Brenda slammed her palms against it again. I stood in the middle of my living room watching the brass deadbolt jiggle. Then, this noise would have made my throat tighten with anxiety. I would have rushed to open it, Babbling apologies, desperate to keep the peaceNow? My heart was beating hard but it was from a cold sharp focus."Eva! Open this door now!" Brenda shouted from the hallway. Her voice sounded like nails scraping together. "I know you're there! Marcus told me what you did! You have no right to touch my money!""Yeah, open up!" Cindy yelled after Brenda. "You ruined my night! The cashier looked at me like I was a thief because of you!"I walked over to the door. Unlocked it. I didn't push it open. I just cracked it an inch, keeping my body blocking the gap.The three of them were jammed into the hallway. Brenda's face was bright red with her chest heaving under her floral shirt. Cindy stood behind with h

Chapter 6: The Steel WarehouseThe crimson light of the system screen burned into my eyes. My fingers dug hard into the wood of the floorboards. The numbers were spinning down fast. They glowed like coals in the dark cargo hold.Twenty-four hours."LUS " I choked out. My chest was tightening until it hurt. "You gave me your word. You told me I had a month."[THE TIMELINE HAS CHANGED, HOST EVA. THE SICKNESS IS ALREADY SPREADING THROUGH THE SUBWAY STATIONS AND AIRPORT TERMINALS. EVERYTHING FALLS APART IN TWENTY-FOUR HOURS. YOU HAVE TO CHANGE YOUR PLAN NOW.]"Change my plan?" A wild breathless laugh escaped my lips. I pulled myself up against the cold metal wall of the truck. My legs were shaking so badly that my knees were knocked together. "I do not have a weapon. I do not have a wall to hide behind. I am sitting in a rented box in a dark alleyway!"[THEN STOP HIDING, HOST EVA. EVERY SECOND YOU SPEND CRYING IN THIS TRUCK IS ANOTHER SECOND YOU GIVE TO THE DEAD.]The red warning light bl