September 10th, 2025. Kagatsume High School.
The sky was clear and bright as Riku looked out the window of his fourth-floor classroom, ignoring all the chatters that his classmates were spouting in the middle of breaktime.
He wanted to relax his tired eyes for a bit as he was waiting for the loading screen to finish on his mobile phone.
Seconds later, it chimed, snapping his attention back to the screen titled "Armory: Dead Zone Protocol." A game that was released yesterday evening when he was looking for a zombie apocalypse game that he could finish.
The gameplay was very simple, the character had access to a shop system where could purchase a variety of weapons. Things like handguns, shotguns, sub machine guns, assault rifles, basically every weapon! There were even military vehicles that the character can buy but can only be unlocked upon reaching a certain level and skills.
It was addicting to the point he had been playing it all night without sleep. He couldn’t even focus on the previous class but he could review the notes anyway later when he gets home.
Now, he was on level 50, and had tons of arsenal in his inventory. He even had his own Inkas Sentry that he recently purchased to safely roam the city.
Suddenly, he heard the student yelling in the schoolyard. It was a roar mixed with yelling that one couldn’t help but feel irritated by it. He figured it might be the students fooling around in their PE class. So he didn’t bother looking towards the source of the sound.
However, the yelling and roaring sound kept increasing. Disturbing the atmosphere of the class. This time, one of his classmates looked below and saw —and they screamed.
The scream from his classmate drew the attention of everyone in the classroom. Curious, he paused the game and stood. He looked below.
Puddles of blood stained the track, while several boys and girls lay collapsed on the ground.
"What the heck is that..."
He looked around the schoolyard to analyze the situation. The students he had seen lying on the ground rose and began running unsteadily toward the school building.
"Oh, so they are okay. They are standing."
"But why are they running like that?"
"Maybe it’s a roleplay."
"Hey guys! I think you got to hear this!"
"There is a mayhem happening across the country, and there is even a word zombie in it."
"Zombies? What do you mean zombies! Those are not real."
Riku observed his classmates and saw the skeptical looks in their eyes. Of course, even him wouldn’t believe that those down below are zombies. But, there is this feeling in him that it might be the case.
One of his classmates even tried calling the police but she couldn’t get through.
He returned his attention down below and saw people panicking, screaming, and crying. Others were desperately trying to get their hands on anything that might serve as a weapon. And he witnessed one of them bashed a skull, he grimaced.
"Did you see what he did!"
At this point, Riku’s heart rate was starting to rise as he was finally considering the possibility of a zombie apocalypse happening. He took a closer look at one of the zombies. Their skin was gray, and their eyes were cloudy white. It was a typical appearance for a zombie.
And everyone in the classroom is realizing it. They began to scramble out of the classroom. Riku followed them naturally. In the hallway, it was overflowing as the students from other classrooms were flooding into the hallway. It was the same atmosphere outside, panicking and screaming, others even pushed another just so they could escape.
Soon after, there were zombies in the hallway and it was hell! His classmates tried to retreat to their classroom and Riku did the same. He looked behind while running and saw students being eaten gruesomely.
Soon after, there were zombies in the hallway and it was hell! His classmates tried to retreat to their classroom and Riku did the same. He looked behind while running and saw students being eaten gruesomely.
One girl tripped, and within seconds, two zombies tackled her. Her scream was cut short by the sound of flesh tearing. Riku’s stomach turned, but he kept running. A boy next to him shoved him aside to get ahead, nearly sending Riku into the wall.
"Damn it!" Riku hissed, staggering but regaining balance.
The classroom door was open—just a few more meters.
He dashed through the doorway and slammed it shut behind him. But in his panic, his foot caught the edge of a fallen chair. His phone slipped from his grip. The last thing he saw before his head collided with the sharp corner of a desk was the shattered screen lighting up with a familiar glow.
His vision went black.