Rick immediately showed them the yellowed letter he found earlier.
"I found this in the apartment building."
Big V and Jay moved closer.
The letter was an invitation.
An acceptance letter to join a private laboratory research program.
"I checked the apartments too," Rick continued. "All the calendars inside had the same wedding date marked."
He tapped the paper thoughtfully.
"Everyone in that building was connected somehow.
"And all of them were invited to the wedding."
Big V rubbed the back of his neck.
"The building I woke up in was a morgue."
Rick immediately lowered his head trying not to laugh.
Jay looked interested now.
"What happened?"
Big V pointed dramatically.
"Nothing happened because I respected myself and left."
Jay burst out laughing softly.
"There was this locked room," Big V continued seriously. "Inside was a coffin."
The cold wind outside suddenly blew harder.
"And a corpse laying inside with its heart missing."
Rick's smile slowly disappeared.
"There were red lanterns everywhere," Big V continued. "Wedding decorations too."
He shivered exaggeratedly.
"And some creepy red eyes staring from inside that room."
"…Nope."
"There's a reason secrets stay secrets," Big V declared proudly. "I turned around and left immediately."
Rick nodded approvingly.
"Smart they is a reason it is a secret so leave ita secret"
Jay leaned against the wall thoughtfully now.
"Well we don't need every clue anyway." He lifted the red thread in his hand slightly. "I escaped because of this."
"The real bride probably owned it."
Big V frowned.
"The corpse in the morgue…"
"…Is likely the real bride," Jay finished.
The three went silent briefly.
Jay continued piecing things together calmly.
"I also found clues about the groom's family."
"They were scammers."
Rick immediately nodded slowly.
"They probably arranged the marriage to steal the bride's heart for another family member," Jay said.
"And the hospital lab," Rick added while lifting the invitation letter again, "is where the experiments began."
Big V slowly looked between them.
"So let me get this straight," Rick muttered while thinking aloud.
"The groom traps the bride for her heart."
"The people in my apartment are connected to the groom's side."
"The corpse in the morgue is probably the real bride."
"But none of the bride's family appears anywhere."
Jay nodded slowly.
Rick's eyes darkened thoughtfully.
"So the third person controlling everything…"
"…Is probably the bride's lover."
The night suddenly felt colder.
"The red eyes in the morgue," Rick continued quietly, "were likely watching whoever tried stealing the bride."
Big V slowly rubbed his arms.
"That's creepy as hell."
"If we follow the logic," Jay added calmly, "then the experiments probably happened on the bride's family."
"And the lover," Big V continued catching on now, "was trying to bring her back to life."
Rick nodded slowly.
"If the first story is The Entity…"
"…Then that's probably showing what really happened originally," Jay finished.
"And this storyline," Big V added, "is from the lover's side."
"A misunderstanding," Rick muttered. "He probably thought the bride betrayed him before learning she was forced."
Jay glanced at the invitation again.
"And Rick's role…" He smirked slightly. "Is probably an observer."
Rick raised a brow.
"Someone who knew the truth," Jay continued, "but chose to watch instead of helping."
Rick looked offended immediately.
"Wow. Villain accusations now?"
Before anyone could continue—
The giant screen in the sky suddenly lit up.
CONGRATULATIONS. FIRST LEVEL SOLVED.
SECOND LEVEL SOLVED.
THIRD LEVEL SOLVED.
TWO LEVELS REMAINING.
The dark city shifted again.
More buildings suddenly lit up green across the district revealing new clue locations.
Big V stared at the screen.
Then at the untouched buildings.
Then back at Rick and Jay.
"…Damn."He started laughing."That was fast."
Back to Matthew, Ava, and Philip
The three had already entered the red zone before reaching the lab.
The city here looked far worse than the previous areas.
Buildings leaned dangerously into each other, fires burned endlessly through shattered windows, and the streets were packed with abandoned military vehicles stained dark with blood.
Somewhere nearby
Sirens screamed nonstop
.
Philip, unfortunately, had become the bait.
"WHY AM I ALWAYS THE HUMAN SHIELD?!" Philip screamed while sprinting through the ruined street.
Behind him a horrifying group of mutated zombies chased after him at terrifying speed.
These ones were different.
Taller.
Faster.
Some crawled on all fours while others slammed through destroyed cars just to reach him.
One nearly grabbed his leg.
Philip almost fainted on the spot.
"Ava!!"
Meanwhile
Ava came running out from inside one of the nearby buildings laughing like she was having the time of her life.
"No no no this one is actually ugly as hell!"
Behind her,a giant monster burst through the building wall.
Concrete exploded everywhere.
The creature looked massive, its body swollen with exposed flesh and black veins crawling across its skin.
The second sunlight touched it, the monster started growing larger.
And larger.
And larger.
"What the FUCK DID YOU DO?!" Philip screamed in horror.
Ava ignored him completely and ran straight toward him.
"Fuel!"
Philip immediately threw her the gallon of fuel without even questioning it anymore.
Matthew drove toward them calmly in the black armored vehicle they stole earlier.
The passenger door swung open.
"Get in," he said
Philip jumped inside instantly.
Ava, however, stayed outside.
"What are you doing?!" Philip yelled.
Ava started pouring fuel across the ground while running beside the speeding vehicle.
The giant monster roared loudly enough to shake nearby buildings while the zombies followed after it like an infected army.
More creatures started emerging from alleyways because of the noise.
Philip looked seconds away from passing out.
"Ava!!"
The fuel gallon finally emptied.
Ava tossed it away before jumping smoothly into the moving vehicle.
Matthew grabbed her arm automatically and pulled her fully inside before shutting the door.
The monster behind them had become enormous now.
Its body scraped against buildings while charging after them alongside hundreds of zombies.
Then
Ava calmly grabbed the sniper beside her.
She rolled the window down slightly.
The wind blew violently through her red hair.
Matthew glanced at her once.
"Three seconds," he said calmly while driving.
Ava smirked.
"Enough."
She aimed.
The giant creature had a glowing red core embedded inside its chest.
Boom.
The bullet pierced straight through the weak point.
For one second
Everything went silent.
Then the monster exploded violently.
Fire consumed the entire street.
The shockwave destroyed nearby zombies and buildings instantly while the remaining infected creatures got swallowed by flames.
The car rocked from the explosion.
Philip stared outside with his mouth open.
Smoke rose everywhere.
Dead silence.
Not a single zombie remained standing.
Ava lowered the sniper casually before striking a pose dramatically.
"Flawless victory," she declared proudly like a Mortal Kombat character.
Matthew parked the car slowly while Philip remained frozen.
"…What the fuck just happened?"
Ava blinked innocently.
"I shot it like this." She raised the sniper helpfully.
"I'M NOT ASKING ABOUT THAT!"
Ava leaned back against the seat comfortably.
"Well," she started casually, "every level we solve keeps increasing the number of zombies and monsters following us around."
Philip stared at her blankly.
"So I thought," Ava continued proudly, "why not wipe everything out now before we reach the lab?"
Matthew stayed silent while listening.
"That giant zombie mutates under sunlight," Ava explained while counting on her fingers. "Fuel makes it more toxic and unstable. Plus that loud ugly thing had the ability to attract nearby infected creatures.
She grinned proudly.
"So I fed it exactly what it needed to become one giant bomb."
Philip slowly closed his eyes.
He suddenly understood why Ava and Matthew somehow worked so well together in this game.
Ava behaved like a complete lunatic.
And Matthew—
Matthew acted like the calm, emotionally stable partner helping her commit crimes.
Both of them were insane.
"And also," Ava added happily while hugging herself inside Matthew's oversized sweater, "wearing this makes me feel more energetic."
She buried her face into the sleeve dramatically.
"I smell like him."
Then she sniffed the sweater again.
Matthew narrowed his eyes instantly.
"I said wear it," he replied flatly. "Not sexualize it."
Ava looked at him seriously.
"That sounds like a challenge."
"Ahhh don't spoil the moment," Ava complained dramatically. "Now let's go end this lab game already. I'm hungry."
She immediately pulled out her phone and snapped a picture of herself holding the sniper beside the burning city ruins.
Philip stared at her in disbelief.
"Wait." He pointed accusingly. "You brought your phone inside the simulator?"
Ava looked offended.
"What are you going to do?" she asked while rolling her eyes. "Arrest me?"
Philip opened his mouth.
Then closed it again.
Fair enough.
Ava ignored him completely afterward and grabbed Matthew's hand again while dragging the sniper across the ground with the other.
The metal scratched loudly against the ruined pavement behind her.
Matthew glanced once at the weapon dragging beside her.
Then at Ava humming happily while walking.
He decided not to comment anymore.
The three finally entered the laboratory.
The inside looked horrifying.
Emergency red lights blinked weakly overhead while shattered glass covered the floor.
Large containers filled with dark liquid lined the walls, some broken open with claw marks around them.
Something wet dripped slowly somewhere deeper inside the lab.
Philip looked around cautiously.
"So…" he lowered his voice slightly, "how are we supposed to find the key?"
"The underground level," Matthew answered immediately.
Philip frowned.
"Are you guessing?"
"I think the top floor makes more sense."
Matthew sighed and rubbed his temple tiredly.
"Philip." He looked at him calmly. "Don't tell me you still haven't figured out the story properly."
Philip blinked.
"The person who started everything," Matthew continued while walking deeper into the lab, "did it to revive his dead lover."
Ava nodded beside him proudly like a student agreeing with her teacher.
"The experiment failed," Matthew continued. "Now she's stuck between life and death."
Philip's eyes widened slightly.
"And all the zombies and monsters are connected to her," Matthew finished.
The lab suddenly trembled faintly around them.
"Which means," Matthew said calmly, "she's the heart of the entire lab."
Philip slowly started connecting the pieces.
"She wouldn't be placed at the top level," Matthew continued. "Someone important like her would be hidden underground."
"And," Ava added while swinging the sniper lazily over her shoulder, "the mastermind wouldn't keep her around normal experiments."
Philip stared at them blankly.
"…When did all this appear in the clues?"
Matthew looked at him for a long second.
Then sighed again.
"You're smart IQ wise," Ava answered for him. "But emotionally and story wise? Dumb."
Philip looked offended instantly.
"Don't the monsters literally scream a girl's name whenever they appear?" Ava continued.
Philip paused.
"…Oh."
"And remember the underground tunnel leading to the lab?" Ava continued excitedly. "The whole story keeps pointing underground."
Matthew nodded slightly.
"The simulator is three connected stories," he explained calmly. "Which means one thing ties all three together."
"The bride," Ava answered immediately.
Matthew glanced at her briefly before continuing.
"The monsters are connected to both the lab master and the bride."
"The cure," Ava added while pointing the sniper upward dramatically, "isn't for the lab master."
Philip finally understood.
"It's for the bride."
"Exactly." Matthew nodded.
"If we go upstairs," Ava continued excitedly, "we'll probably face the lab master."
"If we kill him," Matthew added, "the lab gets destroyed."
"But we won't fully clear the game," Ava finished.
Philip slowly looked between them.
"The bride is the one giving clues," Ava said quietly now. "Because she wants to die."
The atmosphere inside the lab suddenly felt colder.
"She's connected to every zombie and monster," Matthew continued calmly. "If she dies peacefully…"
"The monsters get released too," Ava finished.
Philip stared at them in disbelief.
"…You two are scary."
Matthew ignored that entirely and left, after sometime no sign If him.
"Where's Matthew?" Philip suddenly asked after looking around.
Ava blinked.
"Oh." She pointed downward casually. "He left ages ago to find the underground path."
Philip froze.
"What?"
"We're staying here," Ava continued happily while loading another bullet into the sniper, "to shoot anything trying to stop him."
Almost immediately—
The entire laboratory shook violently.
A massive roar echoed from below.
The walls cracked.
Large footsteps thundered upward through the building.
Ava's eyes lit up instantly.
"Ohhh." She clapped excitedly. "The lab master is coming it means Matthew is already underground"
Philip suddenly felt nervous.
"…What do we do now?"
Ava smiled brightly at him.
"Hold this."
She shoved her heavy bag into his arms.
Philip nearly collapsed from the weight.
"What now?" he asked cautiously.
Ava's smile widened.
For some reason Philip suddenly felt genuine fear.
Before he could react
Ava grabbed his wrist and dragged him upstairs at terrifying speed.
"WAIT—"
The two rushed toward the second floor using the emergency staircase.
Behind them
The lab master finally appeared downstairs.
The creature was enormous.
Its flesh looked melted together with machinery and human bodies fused into its skin while glowing tubes pulsed through its spine.
The thing roared loudly enough to shake the entire building.
Ava stopped at the railing above the lobby.
Then whistled loudly.
The monster immediately looked up.
Its massive red eyes locked onto them.
Ava smiled sweetly.
Then suddenly shoved Philip over the railing.
Philip's soul almost left his body.
"A V AAAAAAA—!!"
While he fell
Ava waved at him politely.
A sweet innocent smile sat on her face.
Which somehow made it worse.
Philip fell directly into the monster's mouth.
Crunch.
At the exact same moment
Ava pressed the remote detonator in her hand.
Boom
.
The lab master exploded violently from the inside.
The entire laboratory shook as alarms screamed everywhere.
The screen above them flashed instantly.
MISSION COMPLETE ESCAPE IMMEDIATELY BEFORE FACILITY COLLAPSE
Ava immediately turned and ran.
Not a single ounce of guilt on her face.
She sprinted out of the collapsing lab, jumped into the vehicle outside, and drove back toward the starting point at terrifying speed.
Meanwhile—
Matthew had already escaped through the underground tunnel with the antidote key.
The second the countdown reached zero
The simulator ended.
The two exited the game room.
Matthew stepped out first calmly.
Ava followed behind him stretching lazily.
Then Matthew looked around once.
"Where's Philip?"
Ava shrugged innocently.
Matthew's mouth twitched slightly.
"…Right."
The two walked toward the waiting area where Rick, Jay, and Big V had already returned.
Rick looked up immediately.
"Where's the human shield?"
Ava looked away.
A few minutes later
Felix, Kai, and Derek finally exited too.
Felix looked genuinely traumatized
.
His soul looked exhausted.
"What happened to you?" Rick asked immediately.
Felix stared ahead blankly.
"…I saw things."
Before anyone could ask further the staff finally escorted Philip out.
Philip looked weak.
Broken.
Emotionally destroyed.
The second he saw Ava
He pointed at her with trembling fingers.
"YOU—"
Everyone turned toward Ava immediately.
"You MONSTER!"
Rick instantly burst into laughter.
Felix suddenly looked much happier seeing someone suffer more than him.
"What happened?" Kai asked the staff curiously.
The staff answered professionally.
"He was swallowed alive by the boss monster."
Philip looked dead inside.
"Then he experienced simulated digestion before exploding internally due to a bomb."
Dead silence.
Then Rick collapsed laughing onto Jay.
Big V nearly fell off the couch laughing.
Kai bent over covering his mouth.
Even Derek looked impressed.
Matthew closed his eyes briefly before chuckling under his breath.
"Seriously, Ava?" he asked while rubbing his forehead.
Ava pouted immediately.
"What?" she defended herself shamelessly. "It was for the good of everyone."
Then she looked toward Philip innocently.
"What's wrong with being a human shield?"
Kai's lips twitched.
"What did I tell you earlier, Philip?" he asked calmly. "You naturally look like a human shield."
Derek nodded seriously.
"It's your fate now."
Then he added thoughtfully—
"At least now you can cross 'getting digested and exploding' off your life experience list."
The group exploded into laughter again.
Philip rolled his eyes weakly while sitting down dramatically.
"Very funny."
One of the staff members looked genuinely concerned.
"…Do any of you require therapy after the simulation?"
"No need," Philip replied weakly while standing back up.
Then he pointed at Ava again.
"But she does."