Lone Supporter

At the man's voice, the girl across from him also shifted her gaze away. Yimo finally let out a sigh of relief and looked toward the man striking up a conversation.

The man was in his twenties and looked quite heavy, weighing over two hundred pounds. He wore a T-shirt and sweatpants, with a long-haired, blue twin-tailed anime girl printed on the shirt. His naturally curly hair was somewhat messy, like a bird's nest, and the translucent words "Lone Supporter" floated above his head.

Although his appearance wasn't exactly impressive, he looked rather amiable and approachable.

"Hey, Brother Kirito. Looks like I've found an ally this round. How about we form a temporary alliance?"

Kirito?

Oh, Yimo remembered. Before the game started, there had been a nickname-setting option. He had entered "Kazuto Kirigaya," and the same semitransparent words were indeed floating above his head.

So that was... a nickname.

After figuring that out, Yimo glanced again at the girl who had left such a deep impression on him. Her nickname was "Twilight," which sounded somewhat artistic.

"Brother Kirito, stop staring. Anyone that beautiful must have spent points on her appearance. Where would there be any beauties like that in real life?"

"Only the two-dimensional world has infinite possibilities!"

"By the way, brother, what game is this for you?"

"I drew an SR card this round. I'll carry you through the whole game!"

Hearing that, Yimo thought of the card he had drawn and became interested. "Oh? What does it do? Let me see what you've got, Brother Lone Supporter."

"By the way, this is only my second game. I'll have to ask you, big brother, to take care of me!"

When he said the second sentence, Yimo moved a little closer and lowered his voice.

Hearing this, Lone Supporter gave a thumbs-up and said loudly, "No problem! This is my thirteenth game. I'll carry you to victory!"

At his words, several people nearby couldn't help sizing him up, each with a different expression.

Instead, the blond boy and the Little Punk Girl had quieted down considerably. The blond boy was currently persuading the Little Punk Girl, who seemed to have suddenly become interested.

After speaking, Lone Supporter looked somewhat intimidated by the others' gazes, but he still stuck out his chest and raised his head. "It's obvious that the survivor faction has more people this round. Why don't we discuss things together?"

"Then we can deal with the killer together and try to finish the game as soon as possible. Wouldn't it be best if everyone could get their points?"

After saying this, Lone Supporter patted Yimo on the shoulder and whispered into his ear, "Actually, this is only my third game too. We're about even, but try not to make yourself look too useless. Otherwise, you'll be in danger if they target you."

Hearing that, Yimo nodded without speaking and began observing everyone else's reactions.

In fact, Yimo had already started taking the game seriously.

After all, there was absolutely no way to explain all this as a dream anymore.

Of the remaining people, only two responded to Lone Supporter. One looked like a high school student, while the other looked like a woman in her thirties. Both came over.

Leaving aside the delinquent boy-and-girl pair who hadn't come over, there were two people left.

One was a muscular man nicknamed "Horse Hunter." He wore shorts and a black tank top, and there was a scar across his bald head. He bared his teeth and sneered at Lone Supporter. "Tch. Just a bunch of brats."

The other was Twilight. She remained unmoved by Lone Supporter's words and was carefully examining something in the corner of the room, completely ignoring everyone else.

Horse Hunter walked over with great interest and asked, "Hey, gorgeous, want to team up with me?"

"Stick with big brother, and I'll make sure you survive this game. We'll kill those little brats playing house!"

Hearing this, Twilight looked up at him with narrowed eyes and said impatiently, "Get lost."

Her tone was extremely cold. Horse Hunter froze, then clenched his fists tightly and raised his hand as if to strike Twilight.

But Twilight didn't even look at him. She simply waited for the game to begin.

"You little bitch, you're asking to die!"

"Apologize to me now, and it's not too late!"

"Otherwise, if I catch you!"

"Heh heh..."

At those words, Twilight suddenly stood up. Although Horse Hunter was more than a head taller than her, she was in no way inferior in presence. She said calmly, "Are you so sure that you didn't get the survivor role, and that I didn't get the killer role?"

At Twilight's words, Horse Hunter suddenly fell silent. "Fuck...!"

Twilight ignored him and moved to another spot, leaving Horse Hunter to stew alone.

Just then, the delinquent boy had already placated the Little Punk Girl. He took her hand and walked over to Horse Hunter. "Big brother, you don't look like an ordinary person. How about we follow you from now on?"

"What a bunch of useless idiots."

"By the way, big brother, what's going on here? Can you explain it to us?"

Horse Hunter hadn't gotten anywhere with Twilight. He turned to look at the delinquent boy and girl. Although they didn't look capable of fighting, they were still a little better than the others, so he decided to let them follow him for now. They might prove useful.

But before he could say anything, the system's notification sound rang out.

'Faction assignment complete. The game begins.'

'The killer's actions are restricted for ten minutes.'

After those announcements, nothing seemed to change for anyone else. Only Horse Hunter suddenly became excited. A bloodthirsty red gleam flashed through his eyes as he stared excitedly at the empty space before him. He waved his hand through the air several times, as if trying to operate something, but then paused in confusion. Turning to the two people before him, he said, "Follow me. Once we clear the game, we can leave."

"Hehehe, big brother will keep you safe."

After saying that, he planned to turn and look toward Twilight, but she had already opened the room's door and left on her own first.

As soon as the game began, Lone Supporter hurriedly urged everyone to leave. "Time is precious. Let's get out of here first. We can talk while we walk."

Then he took the lead and ran outside.

Although he was fat, his physical fitness was surprisingly good.

Yimo followed closely behind, with the woman and the student behind him.

However, when the high school student saw the delinquent boy and girl, he couldn't help warning them, "It's your first time playing this game, so hurry up and run too. That guy is the killer!"

"If you lose the game, you'll really die!"

The high school student meant well, but the delinquent boy didn't see it that way. He even cupped his hands toward Horse Hunter in a gesture of respect, then arrogantly shouted at the high school student, "Fuck, who do you think you are?"

"You're giving orders from over there? You'll be the first one I kill!"

Afterward, he stylishly raised an eyebrow at Horse Hunter and said, "Big brother, am I right?"

Horse Hunter said, "Hahaha, that's right! I'll take you with me and kill every one of them!"

Seeing this, the high school student pursed his lips. Urged on by the woman ahead of him, he hurried after her out of the room.

Yimo was the third person to leave the room. Outside was a dim mine tunnel. The uneven ground made it difficult to walk, and a set of tracks ran through it. Wooden crates filled with ore were stacked around them. Through the thick dust, it was clear that they had not been moved in who knew how long.

There was a safety lamp at regular intervals along the tunnel, but the light was rather dim, and the lamps occasionally went out. Visibility was extremely poor.

The first thing Yimo did after leaving was look for Twilight. He thought that it would be too dangerous for a girl to move around alone in such an environment.

But when he looked toward both sides of the mine, there was no sign of her anywhere.

Instead, Lone Supporter grabbed Yimo and said, "Brother Kirito, stop looking. Hurry up and go."

"We're short on time. Who knows, maybe that woman's even more ferocious with a knife than anyone else!"

"Your life is what matters!"