"How's the serum coming?" a tall man asked. He was wearing a lab coat.

"Sir, we haven't finished it yet. It's still ongoing."

The man smiled as he approached the researcher, "I heard you've finished the prototype?"

The researcher started to sweat, "Yes, sir..."

"So, where is it?"

The researcher lowered his head, "We lost it, sir."

The man didn't lose his smile, "How did you lose it?"

"Sir, Aston betrayed us. He took the serum and released the anomalies in Lexington."

The man tilted his head, "The serum was your responsibility, right? Why didn't you report it as soon as it happened?"

The researcher sweated even more, "We were afraid, sir. We didn't know what to do. By the time we realized the severity of the situation, it was too late."

The man closed his eyes, "So what will you do now?"

"We'll try our best to get it back, sir."

The man nodded, "Get to it then. If you get it back, you'll get extra holidays."

"Yes, sir."

The man walked out of the researcher office and went back to his own office. A silver holographic man appeared, "Why did you let him off so easily?"

The man side-eyed him, "He hasn't completely failed yet so there's no need for that."

"Tsk, you just don't want to punish him, don't you?"

"Wow, you got me there. Who would have fucking thought I don't like punishing people? Why are you so casual anyway? There's a war happening and I'm your boss."

"If anything, me being too casual is your fault too. You made me like this."

"Wow, so typical of you. Shifting blame onto me."

"Think whatever you want. You know it's true."

The man shook his head, "As if you can't change yourself."

The silver man tilted his head, "Why would I? I'm perfect the way I am right now."

"Thanks."

"Asshole."

"Thanks for that compliment too, Hermes."

"Bah! Shameless bastard. I'm gonna go hang out with Athena now."

The man shook his head, "Make sure to remind Heimdall to search for Aston. We need that serum now that the real war is coming."

After a humm of affirmative from Hermes, the corridor became silent again, filled with only the footsteps of a man, a legend, and a savior.

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I was on a motorcycle with Eliz. I didn't even know how I got to this point. She said we were going shopping. I didn't know why I agreed. I didn't even like shopping! Shopping was boring and was a waste of time. Why not just buy the thing you want to buy when you want to buy it? I didn't understand the point.

I asked her as I yelled to make myself heard over the wind, "What're we shopping today?"

She yelled back, "Your fashion! It's hideous. We need to change that!"

"Why?! I think this looks pretty good!"

I was wearing a simple black T-shirt with jeans. What's wrong with that?

"Yeah, for a normie that is! You're not a normie, are you? You're a badass web-weaving ninja samurai ghost! You gotta look the part!" She yelled back.

"But it's a waste of money and time!" I protested one more time.

"Don't argue with me! I know good fashion when I see it and yours ain't it!"

I had to admit, she did dress pretty cool. She was wearing a leather jacket with studs and ripped jeans, giving off a rebellious vibe that suited her personality. Despite my protests, I couldn't help but feel a pang of curiosity about what she had in mind.

We arrived at a trendy boutique in the heart of the city. Eliz practically dragged me inside, her excitement palpable. As we browsed through racks of clothes, she enthusiastically picked out various pieces, holding them up for my inspection.

"This shirt would look killer on you!" she exclaimed, holding up a graphic tee with a bold design.

I reluctantly took it from her, examining it with a skeptical eye. "I don't know, Eliz. It's a bit... flashy for my taste."

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She rolled her eyes, "That's the point, Raven! You need to stand out, not blend in like a wallflower."

I sighed, resigning myself to the fact that arguing with her was futile. Besides, a part of me was secretly intrigued by the idea of reinventing my style. Maybe it was time for a change.

After what felt like an eternity of trying on various outfits, I finally emerged from the dressing room wearing a sleek leather jacket, which had Japanese words written on it, paired with dark jeans and a fitted black vest. Eliz's eyes lit up with approval as she examined my new look.

She shrieked, "You. Look. Absolutely. Killer!"

I nodded. It did go pretty well with my eyes and hair which were red. Yes, I did change my eye color to red since it was my favorite color and it looked pretty 'killer' as Eliz say. The outfit felt strangely empowering as if I had stepped into a new persona altogether. Maybe Eliz was onto something with this whole fashion makeover idea. As we left the boutique, I couldn't help but feel a newfound sense of confidence coursing through me, which was quite rare.

Eliz revved up the engine of her motorcycle, a mischievous grin playing on her lips. "So, what do you say we grab some ice cream to celebrate your killer-style transformation?"

I grinned back at her, the wind whipping through my newly styled hair. "Hell yeah."

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As we arrived at the ice cream parlor, I couldn't help but smile at Eliz's infectious enthusiasm. Ordering our favorite flavors, which were coincidentally strawberry, we settled into a booth by the window, enjoying the cool treat on a warm day.

"So, Raven," Eliz began between spoonfuls of ice cream, "what's next on our agenda? I'm thinking maybe we should hit up that new arcade downtown. I hear they've got some killer VR games."

"What type of VR game?"

"The type produced by Quantum Innovation. You in?"

I considered it for a second. I heard that games here were fully immersive VR games. Which was a completely new way of playing I've never done before. I was a gamer before so I agreed, "Sure, why not? That sounds like fun."

As we finished their ice cream, I felt a rush of excitement at the prospect of trying out the immersive VR games by Quantum Innovation. It was a welcome change from my usual routine, which consisted of training, training, and even more training, and I was eager to dive into this new experience.

With our plans set, we made our way to the downtown arcade. As we arrived at the downtown arcade, I noticed that Eliz's eyes were sparkling with excitement. The neon lights of the arcade flickered, which cast a vibrant red glow over the bustling venue. Eliz led the way, going past the sections for old arcade games made in the 90s and console games made in the 10s and the 20s. until we reached the section dedicated to virtual reality experiences.

"Which one do you want to play?" The Japanese receptionist asked us.

After looking through it, I picked the most interesting one. A zombie apocalypse game called, The Eternal Dusk, which sounded interesting, and the synopsis drew me in even further.

The World had fallen into chaos due to the event known as 'Zero Hour.' A lab leak occurred in South Africa, which released the terrifying disease which spread through saliva. The official name 'Z-Disease', which was coined by the surviving scientists, was better known as the zombie virus. While the outbreak occurred, it was dismissed by the public as a conspiracy theory, until it was too late. 90% of the population had turned into zombies, some of them evolved and become what is known as Mutants. You play as the protagonist, Elena, who got bitten and mutated. Can you make a cure? What will you do? Are you ready?

Just reading that, I had goosebumps. I didn't know why but it sounded very appealing to me. I immediately chose it.

After stepping into the pod and donning the VR headset, I was directly pulled into the world of The Eternal Dusk. I felt a shiver run through my spine. The control I had was uncanny. I could do anything! There was no action restricted. Well, some actions were restricted such as touching the lower part or removing the pants but that was okay. I still had limitless control over the body. The protagonist, Elena, was clearly taller than me so I had a few problems at the start with balance but I got the hang of it after 5 minutes.

I looked around the place, a forest. It smelled like a forest, it felt like a forest, and it sounded like a forest. I called out the game status. I had quite a few skills, which were Parkour Expert, Proficient Linguist, Botanical Knowledge, and Expert Marksman. All of these were passives and I had no active skills. I suddenly felt a hand grabbing my leg and pulling me. I wanted to kick the leg away but it was unnaturally strong, which made me fall. And I felt a bite on my ankle. Hmm, did they lower the pain? Well, that's good. I was bitten now. Guess I'll turn into a zombie now.

As I struggled to shake off the zombie's grip, I felt a strange surge of panic coursing through me. it didn't feel like a game anymore—it felt all too real. With a burst of adrenaline, I managed to wrench myself free from the zombie's grasp and scrambled to my feet, my heart pounding in my chest. My hand instinctively reached for a gun. And there it was, a Glock, which was quite weird since Glock didn't exist in this world. I didn't pay it any mind and I put three bullets into the zombie's head.

I played the game for 2 more hours. The in-game days passed quickly and I soon mutated into a mutant in the game. But the only changes I felt in the game were the increase in strength, agility, and stamina. The only physical change was that my eyes started glowing in the night which allowed me to see in the night.

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I got off the pod and groaned. I wanted to play more. The game gave me a lot of freedom in everything. And I was feeling a sense of adrenaline playing the game. I wanted to feel that rush again.

With a sigh, I peeled off the VR headset and stepped out of the pod, rejoining Eliz in the bustling arcade.

"Wow, you were in there for quite a while," Eliz remarked, a playful grin tugging at the corners of her lips. "Did you enjoy yourself?"

I nodded, still feeling the lingering rush of adrenaline from the immersive gaming experience. "Yeah, it was... intense. I've never played anything like it before."

Eliz chuckled, her eyes sparkling with amusement. "Well, you certainly seemed to be having a blast in there. Maybe we should come back sometime and play together. This time, some multiplayer game."

I had to admit, the idea appealed to me a lot. "Sure, if I don't have anything else to do, we can hang out here."

"Yeah!"

As we got out of the arcade, I found myself in the heart of Section 23, The Downtown. I took a deep breath and started to walk back towards Eliz's motorcycle but she stopped me.

"Stop right there. Let's take a picture of you, huh?"

I agreed, "Sure."

I posed there. I put my hands into the jacket as I turned to the side and side-eyed her. My red hair flowed in the wind as the red neon lights shone on my back. Eliz took the picture and sent it to me.

"Perfect shot. Take a look."

I marveled at the image, which honestly made me cooler than I actually was.

image [https://i.imgur.com/SLI5vRB.jpeg]