Level-Up Apocalypse: Surviving With The Assimilation System

"What I was doing? Well…" Finn hesitantly recalled.

"I\'m not going to judge. I bet it was a whole lot better than what I was doing," Charlotte assured with a smile.

Even told that, he grumbled a bit before answering, tracing his finger along the hardwood table, "I was mostly occupied with being a college dropout. All that just to work a nine-to-five at "Burger Mart"—not my idea of success."

It was something he didn\'t particularly like speaking about, though in the state the world was in now, it hardly mattered.

"I\'ve always wondered what college was like. Honestly, I even wondered what it was like to work," Charlotte imagined, leaning her elbows on the table as she swayed.

"You do? Why didn\'t you give it a shot?" He asked.

Charlotte nodded her head, playing with her hair around her finger as she answered, "Well, I…before all of this started, I was kept in my room practically my entire life."

"What? Are you serious?" He asked, staring at her.

"Mm" Charlotte nodded. "I had an immunodeficiency disease. The outside air was practically poison to me. I couldn\'t eat anything, couldn\'t walk…"

"Wait, then this…?" Finn realized.

A small smile was on the girl\'s lips as she confirmed it with a gentle expression, "Yeah. When this all started and these systems appeared, it fixed my body."

"Guess that\'s one silver lining in this mess, isn\'t it?" Finn asked, leaning back in his seat.

"Yeah, I guess so," Charlotte said with a small laugh. "I guess I feel like I\'ve been given a second chance to live my life, even if it\'s in this messed up world."

It was nice to see the young woman express herself joyfully, even finding himself with a smile–perhaps something seldom felt in the dark, unruly world.

"You know, wasn\'t the plan to go to the Tower tonight? Looks like that guy sure isn\'t going anywhere right now," Finn remarked, watching the drunken swede from across the bar.

"This place seems safe, though, so it\'s fine to rest for a bit, I think," she said.

Charlotte glanced back, observing with him as somehow, Magnus managed to convince the helmed man to partake in a drink. They were each curiously watching as Jasper brought the glass of rum up to his mouth.

"Hold on, is he about to…?" Charlotte asked.

"Yeah, I think so–I\'ve been wondering what that guy looks like," Finn nodded, whispering.

As they watched with curious gazes, the mysterious knight\'s hand went up to his helm, though neglected to remove it entirely, only sliding the visor of the steel up partially. It was only enough to put the rim of the cup to it before tilting his head back for a drink.

"Damn," Finn sighed in disappointment.

"You should get some sleep," Charlotte suggested, tapping the table as if telling him to lay his head down. "I\'ll keep an eye out, so you can just rest easy, okay?"

"Are you sure?" Finn hesitantly accepted the offer.

"Of course. I feel bad, really…You had only just woken up from that awful night before, then all of this happened today. I can tell you\'re exhausted, so please rest," Charlotte insisted.

It was like being looked after by a maternal figure, though Finn accepted it with a slight chuckle, "Alright, alright. Just make sure that guy doesn\'t drown himself in booze."

"I\'ll try," Charlotte laughed.

Listening to the intoxicated Swede bicker with the knight amidst the ambience of monsters outside, he managed to find comfort in resting his head on his arms. Allowing himself to rest, entrusting himself to his companions, it didn\'t take very long for him to drift away into the realm of slumber.

He didn\'t dream; that itself was a blessing.

Patting his eyes, he found himself staring at the furnished wood he was resting against. The whole left side of his face was warm from having laid there in such a position, lifting his head as he yawned quietly.

"….Haaah…Huuu…"

The snoring came from Magnus, who was sprawled out in one of the booths like a ragdoll.

Across from him, quietly sleeping was the young woman, not making so much as a sound.

Finn looked over, finding that the silver-helmed, short man was still awake, polishing his own gloves.

"You\'re still up?" Finn asked.

Jasper stopped what he was doing, tilting his head up to look towards the awoken man, "It\'s only been a couple hours. Somebody has to keep watch—"

As the knight in the cloud-designed hoodie explained himself, a "thump" resounded, seeming to come from the back of the building.

Both didn\'t need to exchange a word as they quietly stood up, standing together as they looked at the door leading to the back area.

"Do you think something got in?" Finn asked in a whisper.

"Maybe. I barricaded the back door, though," Jasper whispered.

"Yeah, that won\'t really stop any curious monsters," Finn admitted with a quiet exhale, stepping closer to the wooden door.

He turned the handle slowly, not letting it let out so much as a squeak, opening it up. As he swung it open, he raised his dagger, hearing the man beside him bring his sword up as well.

Both quickly stepped in, with Jasper taking the front with Finn watching his back.

—Nothing.

Not a word was exchanged as they glanced around at the dim corridor they found themselves in.

Finn stepped past the knight, using his silent steps to check into the closest room on the left. A quick glance in only found an office with lockers and a rack of coats, with a schedule on the wall.

\'Looks like this is just where employees clocked in…Nothing here,\' he confirmed.

To his right, he watched as Jasper checked the room across, pulling back with a shake of his head to confirm nothing was there.

Shoulder-to-shoulder, he stood beside the helmed man with only one room left: a cracked-open door at the end of the corridor.

THUD

That sound again; a jarring slam that now couldn\'t be mistaken as anything but something presently in that room.

A glance between one another brought Finn to move ahead, not letting so much as a single floorboard creak.

As he got close enough to bring his shoulder against the door, beginning to peek in, he heard breathing.

It was heavy and rugged; like that of a beast.

He glanced back at Jasper, nodding his head as he got a nod in return, readying their weapons.

Finn waited a moment before kicking the door open, rushing into the back room without giving any warning to what lurked.

It was an old storage room with metal racks and dusty boxes, with only a small amount of moonlit dipping through the window.

He had Jasper right behind him, looking side-to-side before finding something at the window. It was the subtle whisper of wind passing through the opening that alerted him.

"Finn—" Jasper called out, noticing it as well.

What occupied the window that was high on the wall at an unnatural height was a lanky figure in black wraps.

It resembled a human only loosely, with twisted joints and an unnaturally long body and limbs.

"…The omen wakes…Chaos stirs…It\'s coming, It\'s coming…"

A voice like that of a breathless whisper came from the unseen mouth of the crooked figure. A tattered hood completely hid its face in a chasm of darkness.

"Omen…wakes…Chaos stirs…" The lanky being pointed its unnaturally lengthy finger right at the assassin.

Finn quickly raised his hand, manifesting the necessary object in his hand for the moment:

["Throwing Knife"] [Mana: -100] [2100/2200]

With a flick of his wrist, he tossed the blade, though it hit the stranger with no impact. Instead, the hooded figure vanished into a billowing shadow, only leaving snowflakes of darkness behind in the opened window.

"What was that thing?" Jasper wondered out loud.

"I\'m not sure exactly, but it didn\'t put up a fight. It didn\'t come here just to leave—it had to have done something," Finn answered, moving towards the window as he held his hand out.

He let the particles of shadow gently befall his palm before looking around.

"Certain monsters might act as scouts. It could\'ve left something here—like a beacon," Finn theorized.

"You seem to have a lot of knowledge about the freaky stuff taking over the world," Jasper pointed out.

"A lot of it is similar to a game I used to play. Not all of it, though…but this was something I remember," Finn explained, kneeling down as he inspected the floorboards.

"Is this what you\'re looking for?" Jasper asked.

Finn turned around to look at what was being pointed at, finding Jasper knelt by the corner.

Sure enough, there was a circular, red seal with a hexagonal pattern painted on the floorboards there.

"Yeah, that\'s it. It\'s a marker," Finn said.

"That sounds problematic just by the name," Jasper sighed.

"It is. We have to go—now, actually. It draws monsters to the marker," Finn said, standing back up. "This place will be swarmed soon."

Jasper exuded a sigh from behind his helmet, "Isn\'t that just snazzy? Well, let\'s wake up the sleeping beauties then."

"I know you said you don\'t want to be part of a group, but…" Finn lingered.

"I\'ll accompany you three to the Tower. I mean, we\'re going to the same place, anyway," Jasper confirmed.

"Great," Finn said with a sense of relief.