After passing through the right hallway, Jo, Reina, and dozens of other players entered a large room that resembled a military base. The blue neon lights were bright, and everyone wore blue headbands, indicating that they were members of the Police.
Jo turned his head, looking at the faces full of tension. Most of them looked foreign, but in the middle of the crowd... two familiar faces appeared.
"Ren! Taka!" Jo shouted.
His two old friends turned their heads at the same time. Their faces were initially shocked, then turned to relief. They immediately ran over to Jo and hugged him tightly, like a long-separated family.
"We thought you were dead in the first game," Taka said in a trembling voice.
"I thought you guys disappeared too," Jo replied. "But we're here now... and that means we have a chance."
Reina just smiled thinly from behind Jo, then greeted Jo's two friends with a nod. Ren returned politely.
In that brief hug, for a moment, humanity was felt again. But that moment did not last long, because a loud and cold voice echoed again in the ceiling:
"The game will start in 2 minutes."
"Number of players in the Police group: 60 people."
"Number of active bombs: 6."
"Location: Secret, scattered throughout the floors of this building."
"The difficulty level of this game is: 10 Kriting."
There was a moment of silence. Some people even swallowed hard. "Ten Kriting?!" muttered a player next to Jo.
The 10 Kriting level was the highest level in this game system, a level that was almost impossible to win without a mature strategy and full cooperation.
Jo stepped forward as if to take the lead.
"We can't panic," he said loudly. "There are 6 bombs, there are 60 of us. That means every 10 people can take one spot."
Someone spoke, "But we don't know the location!"
Reina chimed in, "We will definitely be given a hint. This game always gives loopholes but only to those who think quickly."
Not long after, from the ceiling of the room, a large monitor lit up, showing a building plan with a key-shaped symbol, spread across six spots.
"That's it!" Jo exclaimed. "Those dots are most likely bomb sites."
Ren quickly moved to a computer terminal near the wall. "I can access a detailed map of the floor from here. I work in cybersecurity in the real world, so hopefully my experience will be useful here."
Taka nodded. "We need a fast team, a sabotage team, and a guard team. If there's a shootout with a terrorist group, we can't afford to mess up."
Jo turned to Reina. "What about Mina?"
Mina will be the key to the game later."
Jo clenched his fists. But in his heart, determination was burning even harder.
"Game time starts in 30 seconds."
"The game zone will open automatically."
"Good luck surviving."
The thunderous sound of running shoes, communication between groups through signs and whispers, and heavy breathing filled the government district building that had now turned into a battlefield.
Jo stood in the middle of the dark corridor, staring at the holographic map displaying the status of the bomb sites. Five sites were safe. Five out of six. But it all felt… too easy.
"Wait…" Jo raised his hand, stopping the movement of everyone who was still active on the communicator. "This is strange."
All members of the group fell silent.
"We have secured five sites. Without resistance. Not a single trace of terrorists. It could be…" Jo took a breath. "…all the enemies are at the last site. Maybe they are holding our group hostage there. Maybe they are using one site as a final trap."
The atmosphere became tense. Ren looked at Jo worriedly. "If all the terrorists are really there… we will be faced with a major battle."
Jo nodded. His face was serious. But his gaze was undaunted. "We don't have much time. I will go alone to lure them. Make them think I am alone."
"What?! Are you crazy, Jo!" Reina shouted.
"Trust me." Jo looked at Reina and the others. "This is the only way. You hide on both sides of the entrance. Once they come out, attack from both directions. Meanwhile, the third team enters through the back window to deactivate the bomb."
Taka chimed in, "I'm on the window team. I know how to quickly break the trigger circuit."
"I'm on the right side of the door," Reina said.
"I'll lead the left side," Ren added.
Jo checked the time on his watch. 3 minutes left.
He took a deep breath and started walking towards the sixth point.
In front of the last point.
The hallway was silent. Only the sound of Jo's footsteps echoed. In front of him, a room with a large iron door with a code written on it: Point 6.
With calm steps, Jo approached the door.
"Who's there!" a voice shouted from inside.
"Don't move or we'll shoot!"
Jo didn't respond. He kept walking… until
BRAAAKK!
The door opened. Thirty-five armed terrorists came out, pointing their guns at Jo.
"Now!" Jo shouted as he fell down.
From both sides of the door, Reina, Ren, and dozens of other players appeared and immediately launched a surprise attack. Electricity, stun guns, and blunt weapons struck the unguarded terrorists.
From the back window, Taka, Mina, and the team slipped in. Twenty-five terrorists in the room tried to defend the bomb, but they were outnumbered. Taka immediately opened the bomb panel and started working quickly.
1 minute left.
"Time is short! Focus!" Jo shouted.
The terrorists began to panic and fell one by one. Mina knocked one out from behind. Ren paralyzed the one who tried to escape.
Taka shouted, "One more cable DONE!"
The bomb panel showed the status: OFF.
SIREN SOUNDED.
"Congratulations to the Police Team!"
"All bombs have been deactivated before time runs out."
"Game over. All surviving players get an additional 10 days of life."
Cheers erupted from inside the room. Everyone hugged, cried, and laughed in relief. Jo sat on the floor, his body tired, but his eyes sparkling.
Reina approached him, sitting next to Jo.
"You almost died, you know," she said.
Jo smiled. "But we live. This time, we live."
Behind the joy felt by the political group, all the terrorist groups were shot dead by arrows from who knows where. So that blood was splattered everywhere from the bodies of the terrorist group.
Jo, Reina, Mina, Taka and Ren returned to the Apartment and enjoyed their 10 days of added life.