Xiu stared at the single crumpled dollar bill in his wallet, the last remnant of his dwindling luck. The city around him was a blur of indifferent faces, neon signs flickering like dying stars. He had been walking for hours, his stomach growling louder than the distant traffic. One dollar. What could he even buy with that? A half-stale bun from a street vendor? A sip of watered-down coffee?
He sighed, rubbing his temples. Life hadn't been kind lately. Laid off from his dead-end job, evicted from his tiny apartment, and now this—standing on the edge of a sidewalk, wondering if this was rock bottom or if the universe had more creative ways to screw him over.
Then, a voice cut through his thoughts.
"Hey, man. Spare a dollar?"
Xiu turned. A disheveled man stood before him, his clothes ragged, eyes hollow yet oddly intense. The guy looked like he hadn't slept in weeks, his fingers twitching as if electricity ran beneath his skin.
Xiu hesitated. This was his last dollar. But something about the man's gaze made his skin prickle—an unnatural weight to it, like the man wasn't just asking. He was testing.
With a dry chuckle, Xiu held out the bill. "Guess it's your lucky day."
The man's cracked lips stretched into a grin. Instead of taking the money, he reached out—and touched Xiu's face.
"Mine too."
A blinding light erupted.
Xiu's vision whited out. His body lurched, stomach flipping as if he'd been yanked through space itself. Then—
Thud.
He hit the ground hard, coughing dust. His head spun as he pushed himself up, blinking against the sudden assault of unfamiliar sights.
Where the hell was he?
No more city streets. No more indifferent crowds. Instead, he was in the middle of a ruined urban sprawl—buildings half-collapsed, cars overturned, the air thick with the scent of smoke and decay. The sky was an eerie shade of crimson, like a permanent sunset drenched in blood.
"What the—"
His voice echoed too loudly in the silence. Too alone.
Panic clawed at his throat. Had he been drugged? Kidnapped? His fingers dug into the cracked pavement beneath him, the rough texture too real to be a hallucination.
Then, a sound.
A low, guttural moan.
Xiu's blood turned to ice. Slowly, he turned his head.
Ten feet away, a figure shambled toward him. Its skin was gray, peeling in places, eyes milky and unseeing. Its jaw hung slack, strings of dark saliva dripping from its teeth.
A zombie.
No. No, no, no. This wasn't happening.
The creature lurched forward, arms outstretched, fingers curled into claws. Xiu scrambled back, his back hitting a rusted car door. His pulse hammered in his ears, drowning out all thought except one:
Move. Or die.
His hand slapped against something cold and metallic. A knife—rusted but sharp—discarded near the car's wheel. He snatched it up just as the zombie lunged.
Instinct took over.
Xiu sidestepped, slashing blindly. The blade caught the zombie's throat, blackish blood spraying. The thing gurgled, but didn't stop. It grabbed his arm, rotting nails digging in.
"Get off!" He drove the knife into its skull.
The zombie stiffened. Then crumpled.
Xiu panted, staring at the corpse. His hands shook. He had just—he had just killed something.
Then, a pulse of warmth surged through his body. His veins lit up with a faint golden glow, energy crackling beneath his skin. A voice, mechanical and detached, echoed in his mind:
[Congratulations. Level Up.]
A transparent screen flickered before his eyes:
Name: Xiu
Level: 1 → 2
Strength: +1
Agility: +1
Unallocated Points: 1
Xiu gaped. "What the actual—"
The screen changed.
[Return Protocol Initiated.]
[Would you like to return to your original world?]
[Y/N]
His heart leapt. "Yes! Hell yes!"
The screen glitched. Then:
[Error. Insufficient Energy.]
[New Mission Assigned: Eliminate 5 Zombies.]
[Reward: Activation of Return Portal.]
Xiu's hope shattered. "Are you kidding me?!"
A chorus of moans answered him.
He turned.
Down the street, more figures emerged from the ruins. Five. Ten. Too many to count.
The knife in his hand felt heavier now. The glow under his skin hummed, as if laughing at him.
Xiu swallowed hard.
"Well… shit."
He tightened his grip.
And ran toward the fight.