Axel quickly closed the distance to the girl.
But he didn’t attack immediately.
Instead, he remained invisible and quietly stepped into the ruins.
His female teammate seemed focused on analyzing the game’s rules, her curious, clear eyes scanning the surroundings.
She had an elegant and pure appearance, her long ponytail swaying slightly as she moved.
She wore a white cartoon-print T-shirt and tight-fitting jeans, which accentuated her slender legs.
Axel didn’t care.
"First, I need to find some gear."
Remaining in stealth mode, he crept deeper into the ancient ruins. Soon, he spotted several items laid out on a large stone.
He moved in swiftly.
[Bronze Dagger (F-Rank)]: Attack +15, Durability 240/240
[Bronze Wrist Guard (F-Rank)]: Arm Defense +10, Durability 70/70
[Repair Patch]: Restores 120 durability of an item
[Cheese]: Restores 50% HP
He looted everything.
"Melee weapons, huh?"
Axel examined the bronze dagger, its blade gleaming under the dim light.
He had expected guns like in PUBG, but—
[System Notice: As the Survival Game’s difficulty increases, you will encounter a variety of different maps. Weapons, skills, and equipment will vary based on the setting. Please be aware.]
"So, there are other maps where guns exist? And even stronger weapons?"
Most importantly—
Any equipment earned could be brought into reality with Survival Points!
"That’s insane."
Axel’s excitement grew.
But for this match, it seemed only cold weapons were available.
"Not a problem. Since I’m permanently invisible, all weapons are the same."
A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.
He equipped the bronze dagger.
"Every point in Strength adds 1 Attack. With this dagger, my total Attack power is now 27."
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Axel checked his stats:
* HP: 130
* Strength: 12
* Average Human HP: ~100
"That means my teammate has around 100 HP."
"She has no armor, while I have 27 Attack. If I land four clean hits, she’s dead."
"But what if the game has weak points, like headshots?"
Axel calmly analyzed the mechanics.
Within seconds, he silently exited the ruins, dagger in hand.
Still invisible, he snuck up behind the girl.
And then—
He struck.
[Critical Hit! You have struck a weak point, dealing 81 damage!]
[You have killed Player #00498!]
[You have gained +5 to all attributes (valid until the game ends).]
Axel blinked.
He hadn’t expected to one-shot his teammate.
"Her HP was way lower than I thought."
Seemed like headshots in this game dealt triple damage.
And—
Killing teammates still granted attribute bonuses.
However—
"Killing a teammate might lower my final score and reduce my rewards."
"Doesn’t matter."
Axel shook his head.
He felt no remorse for eliminating his teammate.
This was just the first match, and teammates didn’t suffer penalties for dying here.
More importantly—
His permanent invisibility was useless if his teammate could see his location.
To Axel, this girl was a burden—or worse, a threat.
So, he had to eliminate her immediately.
Besides, this was a perfect test to understand the game’s mechanics.
The real objective right now wasn’t winning—
It was learning the game’s rules.
And with permanent invisibility, as long as he stayed careful—
He was practically invincible.
His female teammate’s body vanished, leaving behind a wooden loot crate.
Axel didn’t even bother checking it.
"She spawned and stood still the whole time—there’s no way she looted anything."
Two seconds later—
His invisibility automatically reactivated.
He opened the player count panel.
[Players Remaining: 96]
"Four players already dead? Looks like this game is brutal."
Axel didn’t waste time thinking about it.
Still invisible, he continued searching the ruins for more loot.
Meanwhile, in the Real World – Blue Planet, inside a cozy apartment bedroom—
A young girl with a ponytail suddenly materialized on her bed, gasping for air.
Her name was Tessa Song, a college freshman and one of the 10,000 beta testers of the Survival Game.
Her chest heaved as she processed what had just happened.
"I… I became a loot crate?"
"And… my own teammate killed me?!"
"That bastard!!"
Tessa clenched her fists, feeling furious.
"At least the first match has no death penalties…"
She exhaled, still frustrated.
The game was unlike anything she had ever played.
* A 100-player survival battle.
* Winner earns Survival Points.
* Dying costs you real-life lifespan.
It was similar to PUBG, but the rewards and risks were on another level.
"What kind of psychotic teammate kills their partner at the start?!"
"Next time, I’m killing my teammate first!"
Tessa gritted her teeth.
By instinct, she reached out to rejoin the game.
But then—
[WARNING: This is your second match. If you die, you will lose lifespan based on your time of death.]
[Do you still wish to enter?]
[YES / NO]
Tessa froze.
Her excitement instantly faded.
"Right… this isn’t just a normal game…"
If she died again, she’d actually lose lifespan.
"And I don’t even know the game mechanics yet. If I jump in blind, I might just die immediately again!"
After a moment of hesitation, she made a decision—
She would search online for information first.
But when she scoured the internet—
She found nothing.
No news.
No forums.
No discussions.
Nothing about the Survival Game existed online.
In the end—
She clenched her fists.
"Screw it."
"If I can earn Survival Points, I can recover lost lifespan. Even if I lose now, I can make up for it later."
"I can’t afford to hesitate forever."
"And next time—I’m killing my teammate first."
Finally, she made her choice.
Meanwhile, Axel had already forgotten about his dead teammate.
Still invisible, he continued searching the ruins.
He needed more loot.