Jin woke up feeling like absolute shit.
His body didn't just ache, it resisted him. His ribs throbbed the moment he shifted, his muscles were stiff like they'd locked in place overnight, and when he tried to sit up, a dull burn dragged through his back and shoulders like something tearing loose.
He paused halfway up, exhaling slowly through his nose as he forced himself the rest of the way upright.
How long had he been out?
His eyes flicked instinctively toward the system.
[Time Remaining: 3 Hours, 42 Minutes]
Jin stared at the numbers longer than he should have.
That didn't make sense.
He ran it back in his head, trying to line up when they got here, when they sat down, when he closed his eyes. The realization settled in slowly, as he recounted all the events in his head.
He had been out for over ten hours.
"…Shit."
That explained the stiffness.
Sleeping too long always made your body feel worse, it didn't help that we was essentially sleeping on the floor in a new place that didn't exactly make him feel at ease.
His jaw tightened slightly.
He hadn't meant to pass out like that, he knew he was tired but over ten hours was a bit much.
If something had gone wrong in the middle of the night, he wouldn't have even known it was happening.
Jin rolled his shoulders, forcing movement back into his body. His ribs protested immediately, sharp enough to make him pause, but he pushed through it anyway. Sitting still wasn't going to help him now.
That was when he noticed it, something felt… off.
He looked around, scanning the room properly this time, and the difference became obvious almost immediately.
People were missing.
Not enough to cause panic, but enough to leave gaps. Blankets lay abandoned where someone had slept. A few corners that had been occupied before were now empty, like pieces of the room had been quietly removed overnight.
In the far corner, a couple of survivors sat close together, speaking in hushed voices, their heads lowered like they didn't want to be overheard.
Jin exhaled slowly.
He shifted again, trying to work the stiffness out of his legs, and that was when his eyes landed on something that actually made him pause.
His companions were still asleep.
Seul-ki had fallen sideways at some point, her arm loosely wrapped around Chul, holding onto him like she was afraid he might disappear if she let go. Her breathing was slow, and steady, deeper than anything he'd seen from her since all this started.
And Chul…
For the first time since Jin had seen him, he looked calm.
Jin's gaze lingered a second longer than he meant it to.
Then he exhaled quietly and pushed himself to his feet.
Whatever came next, they needed to be ready for it.
Footsteps approached, they carried a certain weight behind them that made them unrecognizable.
Jin didn't even bother turning his head because he already knew who it was.
"Get up."
Ryu's voice cut through the room without effort.
Jin glanced over, meeting his gaze.
Ryu was already fully alert, posture straight, expression sharp. If he had slept at all, it didn't show.
A few people stirred around the room. Some groaned, others shifted reluctantly.
Ryu ignored all of it.
"I let most of you guys sleep late because of the situation."
"But if you're staying here," he said, "then you're training."
Jin blinked once, still shaking off the weight in his limbs while his companions slowly woke up.
Ryu's eyes moved past him, settling briefly on Echo and Joon-seok.
"You three. Are you staying or leaving?"
Echo frowned immediately, still rubbing sleep from his face.
"Leaving?" he muttered. "What are you talking about?"
Ryu glanced around the room before answering.
"If you look around the room you'll notice some already did," he said. "Some want to go ensure their families are safe and still alive and some don't want to be here when the timer hits zero."
Joon clicked his tongue under his breath.
"Idiots."
Ryu shook his head slightly.
"Not idiots. They just got different priorities."
His gaze returned to them.
"So I'll ask again. Are you staying or leaving?"
Jin glanced at the others.
Echo stretched, rolling his neck with a quiet crack.
"Not like I've got somewhere better to be," he said.
Joon gave a short nod.
"Same."
Jin took a second longer.
He could leave.
The system hadn't locked them here.
But outside?
There was probably still just plain chaos.
He exhaled.
"We're staying."
Ryu nodded once.
"Good."
Then, without missing a beat he continued.
"Then get up."
Jin frowned slightly.
"…For what?"
Ryu raised an eyebrow like the answer was obvious.
"Because you're training."
Echo groaned immediately.
"Man, what the hell does that even mean?"
Ryu crossed his arms.
"It means if you stay here as i said yesterday, you contribute. And right now, that means you won't stick to being dead weight."
Joon narrowed his eyes.
"So what you wanna put us on guard duty?"
"No."
Ryu's tone didn't change.
"I mean actual training like your body and teaching you how to fight. Because if something breaks through here and you panic, you're not just dying, you're getting other people killed with you."
Jin didn't say anything but he knew Ryu wasn't wrong.
Echo scoffed, folding his arms.
"We already have powers," he said. "You really think doing push-ups is gonna fix this?"
Ryu didn't even hesitate.
"Do you know how to use your ability properly?"
Echo opened his mouth.
Jin glanced at Joon and he had the same reaction.
Ryu let out a quiet breath.
"Exactly."
He gestured loosely around the room.
"The system gave everyone something. That doesn't mean it gave you the ability to survive."
His voice stayed calm, but there was weight behind it now.
"If you don't know how to act under pressure, if your body gives out halfway through a fight, if you hesitate when it matters…"
He paused.
"…then your skill doesn't mean shit."
Jin clenched his jaw.
He had lived that already, hesitation can kill you if you come under threat.
Ryu stepped back slightly.
"The system isn't done with us," he said. "And if you think it's going to get easier when that timer hits zero…"
His gaze sharpened.
"…you're wrong."
Silence followed.
Echo exhaled slowly.
"So we're doing boot camp now?"
Ryu didn't react.
"You either get stronger," he said, "or you don't."
Jin took a breath then stood.
Joon followed without a word.
Echo sighed.
"Yeah, yeah. Fine. But if I die doing laps, I'm blaming you."
Ryu turned.
"Move."
The cold air hit harder outside.
It cut through the lingering heat in Jin's body, sharp and grounding, and for a moment it almost felt good.
The station's parking lot had been cleared out, leaving a wide, open space. Enough room to move, train, fight or whatever they needed.
Jin glanced around.
There were about a dozen people gathered, some were officers and some were survivors.
Most looked willing to work but others looked like they had no idea what they'd just signed up for.
Ryu stepped forward and turned to face them.
"This isn't complicated," he said. "We're not making soldiers. We're making sure you don't die in the first five minutes."
That got a few reactions.
"If you can't run," Ryu continued, "you can't escape. If you can't last five minutes, you're dead."
Jin felt that in his ribs.
"Start running."
Ryu just turned and moved.
The officers followed instantly.
Jin hesitated for half a second, then forced himself forward.
Echo groaned.
"You've gotta be kidding me."
"Run," Joon muttered.
The first lap wasn't bad.
The second one started to burn.
By the third, Jin could feel it settling into his lungs.
By the fourth, his breathing tightened, each inhale shorter than the last.
Echo was already struggling.
"This is bullshit," he gasped. "We're gonna die before any monsters finds us."
Jin didn't respond.
He just kept moving.
Because stopping felt worse.
Because falling behind felt worse.
Because the officers ahead of them, didn't look tired.
That part pissed him off more than anything, he was reminded of the feeling of lacking something others had so he continued pushing himself.
When they finally stopped, it was total collapse.
Jin bent forward slightly, hands resting on his thighs, breathing heavier than he wanted to admit.
Echo dropped flat onto the ground.
Joon stayed standing, but barely.
Ryu looked at them like he expected this.
"You see it now."
No one answered.
Ryu shook his head slightly.
"Your skill doesn't matter if your body fails first."
He didn't give them long to recover.
"Line up."
Jin straightened slowly, rolling his shoulders as he stepped into place.
What came next sounded really simple. It was a lesson on how to make a fist without breaking your fingers and how to throw a punch without losing your footing.
It felt simple...
Until it wasn't...
By the fiftieth repetition, Jin's arms burned.
By the hundredth, his shoulders felt like they were tearing.
Echo was cursing under his breath the entire time.
Joon stayed quiet, focused.
The officers moved through the line, correcting, adjusting, pushing.
When they finally stopped, Jin's arms felt like dead weight.
His breathing was still uneven.
And Ryu?
Still completely fine.
"This," Ryu said, gesturing at them, "is where you start."
Echo wiped sweat from his face.
"Great. So we suck. Got it."
Then-
"Can we at least get guns?"
Ryu didn't hesitate.
"No."
Echo blinked.
"…Seriously?"
"We're not handing out firearms," Ryu said. "Not in this environment."
Joon stepped in before Echo could argue.
"He's right."
Echo turned.
"What?"
Joon exhaled.
"After everything we've seen? You really trust random people with guns?"
Echo paused and didn't answer.
Jin didn't either because he agreed.
Ryu nodded toward the building.
"There's riot gear. Batons. Some protective gear."
That wasn't great to hear but it was usable for now.
Jin's fingers twitched slightly.
Because now he was thinking so far he had survived with scrap weapons.
A pipe.
A knife.
And still managed.
So what would happen if he had an actual weapon made for actual combat?
Jin looked back at Ryu.
"We'll take whatever's available."
Ryu nodded.
"Head to the storage room."
Jin turned and started walking.
Echo muttered something under his breath.
Joon followed.
Training was done.
Now came the part that mattered.
Getting ready for what came next.