A king's weapon. A big target.
Anya's words echoed in my head. I looked at the Phantom SR-90 sniper rifle resting in the crate. It was beautiful. It was powerful. And it terrified me. Using a weapon like this meant changing everything about how I played, how I survived. Snipers did not run. They found a high, hidden place and waited. They needed patience. They needed a steady hand. I had neither of those things.
But the power… a single shot could kill anyone. That kind of power could keep me alive.
I looked at the S-12 shotgun in my hands. This weapon had saved my life. I understood it. It was brutal, direct, and effective at close range. It fit my instincts. Run, get close, end the fight.
The system only allowed one primary weapon and one secondary weapon. I could not have it all. I had to make a choice.
I walked back to the system workbench. The menu for my loadout appeared in front of me. I had the S-12 Shotgun in my primary slot and the P-19 Pistol in my secondary. The pistol was weak, almost useless against anyone with real armor or a better gun.
The choice became clearer. The pistol had to go. The real question was, which weapon deserved the primary slot? My reliable shotgun, or the high-risk, high-reward sniper rifle?
I thought about the pack. I thought about the coming fight with Ouroboros. They would be hunting me. They would be expecting me. If I tried to fight them head-on with a shotgun, I would be outnumbered and outgunned. But if I could see them from a distance, if I could take one of them out before the fight even began…
It was a risk. A huge risk. But maybe it was the only way.
I made my decision. A pragmatic choice. I kept the S-12 Shotgun as my primary weapon. It was my safety net. My tool for close-range survival. I knew how to use it.
Then, I selected the Phantom SR-90. I moved it to my secondary weapon slot. It replaced the pistol. A notification confirmed the change. My loadout was set. I was sacrificing the quick-draw versatility of a pistol for extreme long-range power. My back was now covered by either a shotgun blast or a sniper round. Nothing in between.
I felt a new weight on my back. I reached around and my hand touched the cold metal of the Phantom rifle, now attached to my armor by a magnetic harness. It was real. This was my new life.
Anya watched me make my choice. She nodded slowly, a flicker of approval in her eyes. "Good choice," she said. "Keep what you know. But learn what you don't. That rifle might be the only thing that saves you when they come for you."
She then looked me dead in the eye, her expression serious and hard. "Listen to me, newbie. A piece of advice. Don't trust anyone in here completely. Not even me. In the arena, everyone is fighting for their own life. You only have one. Don't waste it trying to be a hero for someone else."
Her words were cold, but I could tell they were a genuine warning. They were the words of someone who had learned that lesson the hard way.
Before I could respond, a new sound filled the Safe Zone.
It was not a soft chime. It was a loud, deep alarm. A siren. It echoed off the white walls, startling everyone in the room. The other players, who had been keeping to themselves, all looked up at once.
On the largest wall, a massive countdown timer appeared in glowing red numbers.
[NEXT MATCH BEGINS IN: 60 SECONDS.]
My heart leaped into my throat. So soon? I was not ready. The room was more crowded now. Maybe twenty players in total. Everyone was silent, their faces tight with tension as they stared at the timer. The brief moment of safety was over. The nightmare was about to begin again.
A new set of windows appeared in my vision, detailing the next match.
[MATCH TYPE: DOMINATION]
[MAP: DISTRICT 7 - ROOFTOPS]
[OBJECTIVE: CAPTURE AND HOLD 3 CONTROL POINTS TO EARN POINTS. FIRST TEAM TO 1000 POINTS WINS.]
My stomach dropped. Domination. A team-based game mode. And the map… District 7.
I knew District 7. It was one of the most infamous maps in Aegis Protocol. A dense city environment with towering skyscrapers. All the fighting happened on the rooftops, with players jumping between buildings and fighting across vast, open spaces.
It was a sniper's paradise.
And it was a complete nightmare for someone whose primary weapon was a shotgun.
I immediately regretted my choice. I should have made the Phantom my primary. I should have practiced with it. Now it was too late. The loadouts were locked.
Another window appeared. It showed the team rosters.
[YOU ARE ON: BLUE TEAM]
My name, "Leo," was on the list. I scanned the other names on my team. And right below mine, I saw her name. "Anya."
We were on the same team. A small wave of relief washed over me. At least I would have one person who wasn't a complete stranger by my side. Maybe her warning about not trusting anyone didn't apply if we were on the same team.
Then my eyes moved to the roster for the other team. Red Team.
The blood in my veins turned to ice.
There were ten names on the enemy team. And next to five of those names was a small, familiar symbol.
The black serpent eating the gear. The mark of Ouroboros.
An entire squad of them. They were on the other team. They were my direct opponents.
The name at the very top of the Red Team list, their highest-ranked player, their champion, was a single word.
"Viper."
And next to his name, glowing with a faint red light, was the Ouroboros symbol.
Anya was looking at her own HUD. I saw her face go pale. She looked over at me, her eyes wide and grim.
"Viper," she said, her voice barely a whisper. "He was the pack leader's second-in-command. The one you killed. They were partners." Her eyes locked with mine, and the terrible truth of the situation became clear. "He knows who you are, Leo. He knows what you did."
The countdown timer hit zero.
[0]
[MATCH STARTING. TELEPORTING TO MAP...]
The white room began to dissolve into a vortex of blue light. The last thing I saw was the Red Team's roster, burned into my vision. The five Ouroboros symbols glowed like a promise of death. A promise of revenge.
I killed their leader.
Now I had to face his entire pack. His best friend.
And they were hunting me.