Ark had missed the last notification. It was something that could not be seen in the first scenario which was wholly managed by the jackals. As soon as the tower connected to the System, it assumed partial responsibility.
Every time a quest would appear or Ark would embark upon a journey to a new floor, the tower would always wish him luck. It would wish people luck. The Tower was generally welcoming and yet Ark never found out the reason why the first three scenarios were so deadly.
After a person managed to enter even the first floor of the Tower, they would not have to fight monsters if they didn’t want to. They would stop aging too. The Tower was like a second home to those who had lost their original ones.
Even after the final calamity had struck, the Tower still wished them luck. It was nothing more than a simple notification and yet still, it sounded like a loving mother’s embrace, like a summer child waiting for spring. It was beautiful in a way that a thousand roses could not replicate. Ark did not have time to worry about such things though. The first horde would soon appear and he intended to kill them all.
The place from which the maximum monsters would come was the area between the two trains. There was something dark lurking there that no one ever knew. Ark would try to keep the people who had not found a safe room yet safe. This was his goal after all. Saving humanity didn’t only mean killing the erased. Ark was weak in his past life but now he was somewhat strong. If he couldn’t do that much, then what was the point of even gaining strength?
Ark stood on the train tracks, between the two trains as the monsters came in hordes.
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Adam was not having a good day. His fiancee had broken up with him and he had been laid off from his long term job. There was nothing there for him to enjoy anymore so he went to one of the local bars to drink his sorrows away. It was then that the System message struck. The tower or something had found its new host and now they were going to be invaded by extra-terrestrial beings. Something like a wind had blown and washed any and all traces of liquor from his body and all Adam had was his mind and body to protect himself.
It did not just stop there. It was one thing if Adam only protected himself. Humans had survival instincts after all, but when Adam saw the mother and daughter who were going to be killed by one of the ghastly monsters, Adam didn’t think, his body moved on its own like a machine operating without human input.
The crowbar was present in his hands and it was a perfect tool for the occasion. Things had gotten out of control and Adam had been made the leader of their entire party. What was he supposed to, after all, hide behind someone like a coward and hope and hope again and again that he could live? Would he be able to let someone die just for him to survive? Adam might have lost everything on that New Years Eve but he had not lost his humanity. He had gained something precious too.
He had gained the trust, he had felt the love of people and he knew deep down that was all because his body had moved on its own. The difficulties of the scenario came with losses too. Dam had tried his very best to save everyone, but it was all in vain. Try as he might Adam could not save them all. Some died because of their own ignorance while some died because of cowardice. Some had died because Adam failed to protect them. It was then he had made a vow, someday he would be strong enough to protect them all.
Not everything had gone to plan though. The System provided weapons did not last for long and people were on their last legs defending the place from being swarmed. What would they do if even one of the monsters managed to enter? They had seen firsthand what a single monster could do let alone a horde. Adam had never seen such blood and viscera in his entire life. Thankfully he had been able to keep it together. Others had not been so lucky, vomiting, crying, and screaming all the way through.
Adam had just been able to manage to fend off the monsters with his now broken crowbar. The monsters had increased in number and just when he thought everything was lost, there was a notification. It was something they had been desperately waiting for. The scenario had finally ended. Some people were confused just like Adam, wasn’t the scenario supposed to last a bit longer after the increase in difficulty? No one complained about it though. They were just thankful that the hell they had been through was finally over.
The hell had just begun. Adam had to sit through the condescending spiel of a talking Jackal of all things, telling them how to use their newly acquired powers. Adam had to grit his teeth to even reach the conclusion. It annoyed him to no end that an insignificant Jackal had made their lives like this. Adam and many others had also visibly restrained people from making any remarks about the animal. They didn’t yet know the significance of the Tower. If they did something stupid, their head might not be in the same position as before.
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After the Jackal was done, Adam opened up his status to see everything. He had leveled up 5 times from the whole ordeal. He also got 3 unallocated stat points. Adam had also gained what seemed like a story card. Not believing everything told by the Jackal, Adam selected 3 Guardian card slots, 4 Story Cards, 4 Utility cards, and 10 Combat cards. Apparently, one of his slots for the story card had already been finalized. Adam had been so focused on not dying that he did not have the slightest idea about what notifications he had.
The story card he got was reminiscent of how Adam acted throughout the entire first scenario. He had asked around the community and apparently, no one had got story cards other than himself. Adam felt proud of himself. He had managed to achieve something. Probably, the Tower was his own calling. His story card was great too.
[STORY][4 SLOTS][1 CARD]
‘A Ruler of the weak and strong’ : You who have persevered through thick and thin and did something that is a testament to your heart. This is your story…Protecting someone at first glance from a vile monster or leading men much wiser than you. You have achieved something only achieved by someone fit to be a ruler. May you continue to do so. The Tower wishes you the very best of luck
Effect: In the presence of your allies and subordinates, cast an aura which acts as a safe room. The safe room is invulnerable to all attacks in a 20 meter radius all around you
Time period: 15 minutes
Cool down period: 24 hours
Type: Epic Active Type
With this, Adam would probably be able to save his allies during a time when their safety was the most important. The second scenario was going to start soon and Adam and his team had to go to the subway station quickly. Luckily for them, the subway station was only a block away. Adam and Co began their trek through a road full of corpses and blood. Only time knew, what would happen to them.
When they reached the subway station there was still some time left for the second scenario to start. There were people other than their own group who had reached the subway station first. In fact, Adam's group was probably the last one to enter the subway station. Apart from them, there were other people. They were probably the survivors of some particular block.
The people looked haggard, but that was normal. Who wouldn’t be but they seemed to be smiling and cheering? They looked happy even in such a grim situation. Adam didn’t know what had happened. There were only a few people who looked pissed.
Eager to know what happened, Adam decided to make acquaintances with them. Apparently, there was a hidden person who had killed over 500 monsters by himself. They further told Adam that the man himself was responsible for the first scenario ending early.
Adam didn’t know whether to curse him or bless him. On one hand, the difficulty had shot up but on the other hand, the time for the first scenario was far less than could be expected. Adam wanted to know where that man was and when asked about the whereabouts, he was pointed atop the train where a lone man was sitting cross legged.
The man, no boy did not look older than twenty. Adam was surprised. Was such a boy capable of doing such things? There was a tingling feeling inside Adam’s heart. He was not much older than the boy himself. He was 25 now, he could probably be the boy’s older brother.
A feeling of rivalry kicked in almost immediately for Adam. Maybe the boy would also want to protect people. As far as Adam could see, the boy with the blue robes had people’s best interests in mind. That was a thought for later though.
Adam decided to send everyone around the station to scout for safe rooms. The safe rooms were found but there was one problem, other people were occupying the spaces too. There was nothing they could do which would resolve their problem.
Adam decided to tell the people about his story card. Some of the people went independently to sit in some of the same rooms which were not yet occupied while most of them stuck close to Adam.
It was then that the notification for the second scenario rang out. It even told them the best of luck. The horde had started to come and many people had not found any safe rooms yet. If Adam knew anything about the System, it was that the first horde of monsters would probably not be tough.
He decided to relay this information to the other people in the group. The crowd who had not managed to obtain a safe room yet seemed relayed by his message and readied their weapons. Adam looked up towards the train to find out the boy with the blue robes was long gone.
Adam felt worried. The boy would probably get killed. Killing mindless monsters was easy enough but would he be able to survive? Adam could not even move away from his group to check on him. If he did, he could not activate his story card on time. If that happened, people would die because of a single mistake he made.
Although the notification rang out about the first horde attacking them, Adam and his group could not see a single monster in front of them. Was it because they were inside the safe room? Some people decided to go out to check if anything was happening but that too was a bust.
Did the System malfunction or something? Why was there, not a single monster? Adam was perplexed. Almost 15 minutes passed as tense silence filled the entire subway station. It was only after the time period had passed, that Adam saw something unbelievable.
The boy with the blue robes climbed up on the train, his clothes bloodied and torn in places. All that was left of his sword were tiny fragments and that too was thrown into the train tracks.
The first day had ended and there was not a single casualty among the people, all because of a single man. Something stirred inside Adam’s heart once again. Perhaps, this was what they called fighting spirit