He instinctively raised his MP5 at the door, his finger on the trigger, ready to pull it the moment he knew that whatever was inside was hostile or not.
Since there was a possibility that it wouldn't be hostile, he couldn't just fire at the door blindly and kill an innocent survivor inside.
Just as he had thought that none survived in the school and only him, a possibility arises.
He mustered up himself and reached for the doorknob once again. He turned it and—it didn't budge. It was locked.
"Okay…" Riku exhaled softly.
He knocked on the door—firm, but not aggressive. Three taps.
Then silence.
No response.
He waited a few seconds, his eyes flicking down the door of the music room behind him just in case.
He turned back to the door and leaned in, pressing his ear gently against the cool wood.
For a moment, he heard nothing but the sound of his own breathing.
Then—
A sound.
Subtle.
A light shuffling. A faint scrape of something, maybe a chair leg. Maybe a shoe.
He wasn't sure. But it was there.
Someone was inside.
Riku's eyes narrowed.
They were just… not responding.
He raised his voice slightly, keeping it as calm and non-threatening as he could.
"Hey… I know you're in there," he said softly. "I'm not one of them. I'm human. Just like you."
Still nothing.
He pressed his forehead against the door for a moment, sighing quietly. Then spoke again—lower this time, more sincere.
"I've been through hell just getting to this floor. I've seen things I never want to see again. I'm not asking for much. I just want to know if someone else made it. I don't want to be the only sole survivor in this school."
A creak.
But not the door.
From inside. Same shuffling sound again. Someone was definitely in there.
They were just too scared to answer.
Riku took a step back and lowered his weapon slightly, trying not to look like a threat—though no one could see him through the door anyway.
"Look, you don't even have to open the door if you don't want to. I'll leave if that makes you feel safer. Just knock twice or something. Let me know you're okay in there."
Silence.
His heartbeat thumped steadily in his chest, not out of fear—just tension. That kind of uncomfortable pressure you get when you know you're standing near another soul but invisible walls keep you apart.
A few seconds passed.
Then—
Knock. Knock.
Two soft taps.
Riku felt his chest loosen a little.
A breath escaped him.
"…Thank god," he whispered under his breath, eyes flicking toward the ceiling for just a second. Not in prayer, but in relief.
He took a step closer again.
"Alright. That's good. It means that I'm not the only survivor in this school. Look, if you don't mind, I'm going to stay here in this classroom for a bit to get some rest. I'm not going to stay here for long if you are wondering. I will leave this school the moment I get an opportunity."
He waited for a moment if they were going to respond in any way but there was none. It seemed to him that they don't like talking.
"Okay, I'm going to shut myself up. I will let you know when I leave this room."
With that, he walked away from the door and carried one of the chairs lying around and sat on it.
There's an important thing to do, and that was to check his stats.
[User: Riku Hayashi
Level: 3
Experience Points: 1,245/4,500
Skill points: 10
SP BALANCE: 4,890
Armory Shop:
Skills:
[Skill Points Available: 10]
> Weapons Handling: Lv. 3 (30/60 SP)
> Melee Weapon Proficiency: Lv. 2 (30/60 SP)
> Hand-to-Hand Combat: Lv. 2 (20/30 SP)
> Stamina & Endurance: Lv. 2 (20/30 SP)
> Scavenging:Lv. 1 (0/10 SP)
> Tactical Awareness: Lv. 1 (10/20 SP)
> Driving: Lv. 0 (0/10 SP)
> Piloting: Lv. 0 (0/10 SP)
> Maintenance & Engineering: Lv. 0 (0/10 SP)
> Medical Knowledge: Lv. 0 (0/10 SP)
]
Looking at his stats, Riku was satisfied with the progress. Sure, the leveling system sucks because whenever he leveled up, the experience will start to zero. He has a decent SP which he can use to purchase more magazines and possibly a new weapon. And as for the skill points, he decided to allocate them all to hand-to-hand combat.
[[Skill Points Available: 0]
> Weapons Handling: Lv. 3 (30/60 SP)
> Melee Weapon Proficiency: Lv. 3 (30/60 SP)
> Hand-to-Hand Combat: Lv. 3 (30/60 SP)
> Stamina & Endurance: Lv. 2 (20/30 SP)
> Scavenging:Lv. 1 (0/10 SP)
> Tactical Awareness: Lv. 1 (10/20 SP)
> Driving: Lv. 0 (0/10 SP)
> Piloting: Lv. 0 (0/10 SP)
> Maintenance & Engineering: Lv. 0 (0/10 SP)
> Medical Knowledge: Lv. 0 (0/10 SP)
]
Now, for supplies. Riku opened the Armory Shop and bought five magazines for the MP5, costing him 750SP. For Glock 17, two magazines for 120SP. And for grenades, well, he decided to keep what he has in stocks as he has plans on buying a new weapon.
MP5 was such a great weapon from the start, but there were limitations to it. Ammo conservation was an issue, and while it shredded zombies in tight hallways, it lacked stopping power when things got up close and personal—especially with how things were evolving.
That Screamer…
He didn't want to relive that again unprepared.
Riku opened the Armory Shop again and swiped over to the Shotgun category.
If this was going to be a long-term survival scenario, then he needed something that could punch harder than a 9mm. Something that made things stay dead the first time.
His eyes scanned the options:
[Shotguns - Available]
Mossberg 500 Tactical – 1,500 SP
A pump-action classic. Reliable. Common. Accepts 5+1 rounds.
Damage: Moderate | Range: Close | Recoil: Medium
[Pump-action]
Remington 870 Express Tactical – 1,900 SP
Another pump-action. Slightly heavier. Built like a tank.
Damage: Moderate+ | Range: Close | Recoil: Medium
[Pump-action]
Benelli M3 Super 90 – 3,500 SP
Dual-mode shotgun (semi-auto and pump). Law enforcement grade.
Damage: High | Range: Close-Mid | Recoil: Manageable
[Pump/Semi-auto]
Kel-Tec KSG – 4,000 SP
Bullpup. Compact. Two tube mags. 14-round capacity.
Damage: High | Range: Close | Recoil: Sharp
[Pump-action, Fast reloads if trained]
Then below those, the Locked Tier.
Tempting names lit up his screen, grayed out:
AA-12 Automatic Shotgun – LOCKED – Level 10
SPAS-12 – LOCKED – Level 6
Saiga-12 – LOCKED – Level 8
M1014 (Benelli M4) – LOCKED – Level 7
Too far for now.
He returned to the available section, tapped for more details. He already knew some of these from games and forums. The Benelli M3 caught his attention the most. The dual-mode function? That was huge. He could fire fast in semi-auto if overwhelmed or pump it if things went wrong.
It wasn't cheap. But at this point, survival wasn't about saving SP.
It was about living long enough to spend it.
He tapped purchase.
[Benelli M3 Super 90] purchased – 3,500 SP deducted
Remaining Balance: 520 SP
He grabbed it out from his inventory and felt it.
Heavy, but manageable.
The polymer stock rested well against his shoulder. The matte black finish was clean as if it came out from factory. He checked the chamber—it was empty, of course.
Riku immediately bought ammo for the weapon, 12-gauge shells (25x), for 150SP.
He bought two, leaving him with an SP of 220.
He loaded six into the tube and racked the first shell with a satisfying chik-chak that echoed in the silent classroom.
"Now we're talking…"
He slung the MP5 across his back, making the Benelli his new primary.
His current loadout are
Primary: Benelli M3 Super 90
Secondary: MP5
Sidearm: Glock 17
Explosives: 2x Frag Grenades
Melee: Tomahawk
With the new weapon, he felt invigorated and felt that he could get out of the room and kill more zombies and get out. However, the pressure on his body was catching up.
His body ached, protesting to him that it needed rest.
Riku had no choice but to listen to his body. After all, he was dealing with an enemy with unlimited stamina and endurance. Zombies don't feel tired, humans do. If he wants to get out of this school in one piece, he must take a rest.
And since the music room is seemingly safe, despite it having an unknown survivor in the equipment room, he decided to stay here for a while.
He approached the equipment room door and spoke.
"Look, I'm going to stay here for a couple of hours. Like I said earlier, I'm going to take a rest because I have been killing a lot of zombies earlier. So…that's it. I'm fine here since all the doors are locked. Whoever you are, just stay there."
After that, he turned back and walked to the chair. And as he was about to take a seat, the door of the equipment room creaked as it opened.
Riku's eyes widened.