Tick… Tock… Tick… Tock…
Luna's unfocused eyes continued watching as the clock hand continued ticking clockwise. Her fingers fidgeted with a wooden pen, and an open book was laid on the desk.
Her house was shrouded in darkness. Her parents had lay down on their beds, eyelids tightly shut, and slumber engulfing them.
The short hallway had a tiny portion of light coming underneath Luna's door. Her room was bathed in warm light, and the bed was covered with a blanket.
"Why did I talk about him about such a stupid thing?" When the pen dropped to the desk, she covered her embarrassed face with her ears painted red.
"He must think I am weird… maybe he even thought I suggested something… dirty…"
As her cheeks flushed further, she revealed her pink face and deep blush, "Well… if he wants to, I might… say yes."
Ba-Dump! Ba-Dump! Ba-Dump!
The increase in her heartbeat forced her to grab her painful chest. Her lips twitched as her face showed apparent signs of pain. Her limbs convulsed as her whole body began screaming in pain.
After a terrifying long minute, she heaved a sigh of relief as she collapsed on the floor. The pain disappeared as quickly as it appeared. Her heart was still pounding up and down.
Luna used her feeble arms to push herself up, but the lingering fear of new pain slowed her movement.
"It's returning…" A speck of fear was reflected in her eyes. She knew what the sudden appearance of pain meant. The Winter Illness had come back knocking.
With the help of the chair, she finally managed to stand up, "No… I was supposed to have one more month… Why… did this happen?"
That meant one thing, and Luna knew it. The Winter Illness returned stronger than ever. Her lifespan was reduced by another month, and knowing what might happen, she might not live through the following year.
Luna plopped down on her soft bed and sobbed with an inaudible tone. However, at that moment, she wiped her tears and removed all thoughts of giving up.
There was one way to save herself, and she knew what to do. She grabbed the VR Helmet, positioned it around her head, and firmly gazed toward the windowing stars.
"I want to help him… I want to save myself…" As her pinkish lips moved up and down, she worded one last time before entering the game.
"Enter!"
…
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The tight staircase could only fit two people to walk side-by-side. They continued conversing as the two young men's footsteps echoed across the walls.
"I am not too sure about this…" A bronze-haired youth said while holding a bat with barbed wire wrapped around it in his right hand.
"About what?" His close friend, a blond-haired youth, asked while holding a bat with barbed wire. He was, however, left-handed.
"Following Oliver's orders…" The bronze-haired man swung the bat around him, imagining that Isaac was standing right in front of them, "He will doom us all."
"Hey… He might be eccentric and slightly unreasonable at times, but remember who helped you graduate." The blond-haired man tried to speak some reasoning into his friend.
"Sigh… You're right…" The bronze-haired youth knew his future would be ruined if Isaac wasn't taken care of. His future seemed quite bright. He could get a good job in a top company, marry a beautiful girl, and have a few sons and daughters.
Then, the surroundings turned much darker than previously when they were about to reach the third platform that led to the third floor.
The two men tightly grabbed their bats and looked around with wary. After a short while, a tiny peek of light came from the surrounding windows.
The staircase now had better visibility.
They were about to smash their bats down, but they only saw the stairs and two doors.
"Sigh…" They heaved a sigh of relief and stepped toward the stairs. They were about to continue marching toward the fourth and final floor.
When they turned their backs at the door, Isaac sneakily slipped out of the slightly ajar door and grabbed the bronze-haired man's collar before forcefully yanking it backward!
The bronze-haired man's vision swam rapidly, and he lost a grip on his bat. Then, the back of his skull hit the tiled floor, and the air left his lungs, making his chest sink in.
Isaac dashed across the small room and grabbed the bat as he slid toward the other door. However, the blond-haired man was already smashing his bat down with an enraged look flashing across his face.
Isaac tilted his head counterclockwise and took a brisk step backward. The bat brushed past his nose and smashed right into the chest of the bronze-haired man.
"Ugh!" The bronze-haired man spat out a mouthful of blood, and whiteness began spreading around his pupils. He lost consciousness with one last breath.
"I-I am sorry!" The blond-haired man shouted at his fallen friend. But then, Isaac smashed his bat at his kneecap, and an ear-splitting scream echoed throughout the hospital.
The blond-haired man fell to the floor with foam pouring down from the corners of his mouth.
On the first floor, Oliver and Luke came to an instant halt and felt their skin turning cold as the scream echoed around them. They shared glances, and both briskly stepped forth and started moving up the stairs.
After a short while, Isaac tied and clogged up the two men. Then, he dragged them to the nearby empty storage room, left them there, and stepped out with a new phone on hand.
Isaac casually went through the blond-haired man's chat conversations. The things he saw made him have a chilly look.
Then, he pulled out his own phone, opened a camera app, and snapped several dozen pictures. After that, he pocketed the second phone and began texting on his own phone.
A moment later, he pressed sent with his right thumb and saw that the message had been forwarded. The last phase of the war was commissioned with that one text message.
