บท 2: The Apocalypse Game

One of them was the school's beauty and the class president of Class 3-1, named Bonnie.

The other was his deskmate, Ritchie.

According to the information revealed, Ritchie would awaken a B-level supernatural ability.

And Bonnie, to Jeremy's astonishment, would awaken an S-level ability!

This made Jeremy take a second look at her.

She was the first person he had encountered capable of awakening an S-level supernatural ability. Bonnie furrowed her brows upon noticing Jeremy's gaze.

She had no fondness for a classmate who constantly skipped school yet still managed to outperform her academically. To her, Jeremy was simply squandering his time and talent.

Jeremy noticed Bonnie's expression but didn't mind it.

He was not about to quibble with a girl. They were from different worlds.

By this time, Ritchie had brought over the backpack.

Just as Jeremy was about to reach for it,

"Catch, Jeremy!"

For some reason, Ritchie decided to toss the backpack the short distance to Jeremy, striking what he believed to be a cool pose.

Jeremy sighed, already accustomed to Ritchie's antics, and caught the backpack firmly.

"Crash!"

Unexpectedly, due to the momentum, the backpack's zipper burst open.

Suddenly, weapons such as claw knives, nail blades, stun batons, military spikes, curved knives, and anti-wolf sprays were all exposed to the onlookers.

The whole class went silent instantly.

Everyone stared at the contents of Jeremy's backpack, including Bonnie, who was also taken aback. What was this guy doing with so many weapons in his backpack when he was just hanging around? Ritchie scratched his head, puzzled, "Are you… preparing for a fight or something?"

Jeremy, unfazed by the stares, zipped up his backpack and casually replied, "Something like that." Indeed, he was preparing for a fight, albeit potentially against monsters.

The classmates exchanged looks and subtly moved away from Jeremy.

It was best to keep a distance from such a dangerous person.

Bonnie hesitated on whether to report this to the teacher.

Ritchie, however, volunteered enthusiastically, "A fight? Count me in!"

As a good brother, fighting was a joint affair, even if it meant getting beaten up together.

Jeremy glanced at Ritchie. Despite being a bit odd, he was a good person at heart.

After thinking it over, Jeremy pulled a military knife from his backpack and handed it to Ritchie, saying earnestly, "Go wait for me on the rooftop. I'll come find you later."

Of course, Jeremy was deceiving him.

If the apocalypse were to arrive, Jeremy wasn't sure he could look after Ritchie. Keeping him in a place where no one else was seemed like the best option.

"Holy shit, a military knife!" Ritchie exclaimed with exhilaration as he took the knife, as if he had discovered some kind of rare treasure.

Several male classmates looked on enviously at Ritchie, utterly fascinated by the military-grade weapon.

Bonnie, on the other hand, watched Jeremy with a puzzled look, wondering where he had acquired such an item.

There were only 7 minutes left.

Jeremy planned to go back and find Emma.

Officially, they were teacher and student, but secretly, they were lovers. Jeremy wouldn't leave her behind.

Before leaving, Jeremy turned back to address his classmates, "There's a rabies virus spreading through the city recently. Those infected show aggressive behavior. If you don't want to get hurt, it's best to find a weapon to defend yourself."

With that, Jeremy didn't spare another glance at his classmates and turned to leave.

He had said his piece. Whether they lived or died was up to them now. Jeremy felt no obligation to protect them.

After Jeremy left, the classroom was filled with puzzled faces.

One student questioned, "Is that true? Jeremy wouldn't be playing a trick on us, right?"

Another student said incredulously, "Do we even need to ask? Has anyone heard about a rabies virus spreading recently? This has to be one of Jeremy's pranks!"

A hesitant student added, "But Jeremy doesn't seem like the type to joke around."

"I don't believe it anyway," most of the class dismissed the warning and didn't take it seriously.

Yet, some quietly slipped paper cutters into their pockets, just in case.

Bonnie shook her head, dismissing Jeremy's actions as a childish cry for attention.

She stood up, planning to report Jeremy's behavior to their teacher, Emma, to prevent him from causing any trouble.

…

Leaving the teaching building, Jeremy quickly made his way to the faculty building.

On the way, he pulled out his phone and called his psychologist, Claire.

After two rings, the call was picked up.

"What's up?" A cool female voice came through the phone.

Jeremy, while running, instructed, "There might be some trouble soon, it's dangerous outside. Lock the door and stay in your clinic, don't go anywhere. I'll come to find you."

Hearing Jeremy's urgent tone, Claire was silent for two seconds before replying, "Understood." Then Claire hung up, and Jeremy felt a weight lift from his heart.

Claire was a smart woman; even if she doubted the truthfulness of his words, she wouldn't joke about her own safety.

Soon, Jeremy was back at Emma's office.

Emma had just changed her clothes and was preparing to head to class with her books in hand.

Upon seeing Jeremy, her eyebrows furrowed in disapproval. "Are you planning to skip class again? This class is mine, and if you run off, don't bother looking for me this week."

Jeremy didn't respond; instead, he pulled her into the office and locked the door behind them.

Seeing Jeremy lock the door, Emma blushed and spat out,

"Really? Didn't we just... I have to teach now, we can continue after school..."

She was cut off mid-sentence by Jeremy.

Jeremy said earnestly, "Stay here, don't go anywhere."

"Huh?" Emma was puzzled, not understanding what Jeremy was intending to do.

However, seeing the rare serious expression on Jeremy's face, she nodded obediently, "I understand."

Jeremy's gaze shifted towards the window, the ominous text reappearing in his mind.

[Alert: 2 minutes and 31 seconds left until the apocalypse game begins.]

Jeremy's eyes flickered, wondering if it was all an illusion. He would soon find out.

Time ticked away.

Under Jeremy's watchful eye, the countdown began.

10 seconds... 9 seconds... 5 seconds!

Jeremy stared intently at the timer, his mind tense.

[Apocalypse game countdown: 3 seconds!]

[Apocalypse game countdown: 2 seconds!]

[Apocalypse game countdown: 1 second!]

Time reached zero!

A breeze passed, gently swaying the lush pines outside the teaching building, but nothing happened. It was the end of class, and the campus was as noisy as usual, with no signs of anything amiss. Jeremy frowned, questioning if it had all been his imagination.

Just then, Jeremy sensed something and abruptly looked up at the sky.

His pupils dilated in shock.

The sun in the sky had somehow turned blood red!

Simultaneously, crimson, blood-like text slowly began to appear in the sky.

[The Apocalypse Game Begins!]

[Game Introduction: Those eliminated under the light of evolution will turn into monsters, while the survivors will become players. Players can gain experience or items by killing monsters, and a few may awaken special supernatural abilities...]

Watching the lines of blood-red text slowly emerge in the sky, Jeremy didn't know whether to be relieved that it wasn't his illusion or to mourn the fact that the apocalypse had truly arrived.

The blood-red text continued to emerge, as if an invisible hand was writing with fresh blood.

[To enrich the player experience, various resource chests will be randomly refreshed in the game, containing powerful supernatural items that can help players quickly enhance their strength.]

[We will also periodically launch various game events. We wish all players a pleasant gaming experience.]

[Game Planner: The Hanged Man]

Reading the last line, Jeremy felt a chill run down his spine.

This apocalypse game was artificially created?!

Who or what was The Hanged Man, and what was the purpose behind creating this game?

Jeremy had countless questions but no answers.

Meanwhile, people outside also noticed the changes in the sky.

"The Apocalypse Game? The Hanged Man? Is this his prank?" Countless people looked up at the brilliant blood sun and the red text in the sky, all wearing faces of confusion, with many pulling out their phones to take photos and videos.

But then, they noticed something was amiss.

"My hand, my hand!"

A boy looked at the blood-red patterns on his hand in horror.

The blood patterns were spreading across his body at an alarming rate...

Then, the boy's body began to emit a red glow as if it was being scorched at high temperatures, with wisps of white smoke rising.