Eryx ran without thinking anymore.
Thinking was dangerous here.
Every corridor felt like it was watching him now—like the school had stopped pretending to be a building and started acting like something alive.
Mira pulled him sharply around a corner.
"Here!"
A metal door stood ahead.
No sign. No label. Just a faint glowing strip above it.
Green.
Eryx frowned. "That's it?"
Mira nodded. "Safe zone entrance."
Behind them—
The sound of pursuit grew louder.
Not random footsteps.
Coordinated.
Hunting.
The door opened with a soft hiss.
Inside was… quiet.
Too quiet.
A large room stretched out with rows of benches, dim lighting, and dozens of students already inside.
Some were injured.
Some were silent.
Some were just staring at the floor like they had given up thinking altogether.
Eryx stepped in slowly.
"This is safe?" he whispered.
Mira didn't answer immediately.
That already told him enough.
A voice came from the center of the room.
"New arrival?"
A tall student stood near a table of weapons.
Jaxon Vire.
He was already here.
Eryx froze. "How did you—"
"Different route," Jaxon said simply. "Don't ask questions you can't survive the answer to."
Mira sighed slightly in relief. "You made it."
Jaxon nodded once.
Then his eyes moved to Eryx.
And stayed there longer than comfortable.
"You're marked," Jaxon said.
Eryx stiffened. "I saw it. In the corridor."
Jaxon's expression didn't change.
"That means you don't stay in safe zones for long."
A silence fell over the room.
Even the injured students looked up slightly.
Mira stepped forward. "Then what do we do?"
Jaxon turned toward the table.
"We prepare."
⚠️ FIRST TRUTH OF THE SAFE ZONE
He tossed a weapon onto the table.
It slid toward Eryx.
He didn't pick it up immediately.
Jaxon noticed.
"Rule Five," Jaxon said.
Everyone went silent.
"There is no permanent safe zone."
Eryx looked up. "Then why is it called safe—"
Jaxon cut him off.
"Because it lasts long enough for you to forget you're in danger."
A distant impact echoed through the walls.
Not outside this room.
Inside the system.
Somewhere deeper.
The lights flickered.
Just once.
Then stabilized.
Jaxon narrowed his eyes.
"They're coming closer."
Mira whispered, "That's not normal timing."
Jaxon nodded.
"It means the system accelerated the round."
Eryx frowned. "What does that mean?"
Jaxon finally looked at him directly.
"It means someone inside the school is pushing the game forward."
A cold silence followed.
Then—
A loud alarm sounded.
Not the Red Bell.
Something different.
Higher pitched.
More urgent.
Jaxon grabbed his weapon.
"Safe zone is closing."
Eryx stepped back. "Closing?!"
Mira grabbed his arm again.
"We have to move."
Eryx looked around. "Move WHERE?!"
Jaxon pointed to a second door.
Hidden behind storage racks.
"Combat corridor."
The room erupted into movement.
Students panicked again.
The illusion of safety broke instantly.
Eryx felt it clearly now.
There was no resting here.
Only intervals between fear.
And as they ran again—
Eryx realized something worse.
The system wasn't trying to kill them quickly.
It was training them to accept it.