Dark Warlock in the Apocalypse

The feeling of surging righteousness wasn't just something Justin felt. All the survivors had come out of their homes to observe the skeletons roaming the streets. Among them was the young man who had earlier suggested saving others.

"...."

"...."

There was an awkward silence as everyone moved the moment rewards were presented. The young man muttered quietly, seemingly to himself:

"If everyone was going to move now, they should have done so earlier. People are something else..."

His sarcastic comment made a few survivors' eyebrows twitch in annoyance. The young man, realizing he had misread the atmosphere, flinched and shut his mouth. No one wanted to flaunt their moral superiority in a situation where it could lead to conflict.

With the tension settling down, Justin turned to Ethan Cooper and said, "Well, let's head out and start saving people, shall we?"

"What? Just the two of us?" Ethan responded, unsure.

"Do you have anyone else in mind?" Justin asked.

"Well, no, but isn't it a bit risky with just the two of us?" Ethan's gaze drifted to the skeletons wandering nearby. The sight of them slicing people to pieces earlier still lingered in his mind.

Justin, noticing Ethan's concern, shrugged nonchalantly. "And you trust random strangers?"

"At least they won't suddenly attack us," Ethan retorted.

"You can't be too sure about that," Justin shot back. "Who's to say they won't bash your skull in the moment they complete their own quest?"

"What? Why would anyone do that?" Ethan was baffled.

Justin gestured toward the survivors with a nod. "There's one village but fifteen heads. People get greedy."

Ethan fell silent, the reality of Justin's words hitting him hard. In the game, having a lot of players didn't matter. The starting points were spread out, and the first one to reach a village took control. But now, with the game turned into reality, the situation had changed completely. The village was home to fifteen players, all of whom were potential competitors.

"If someone with short-sightedness and a lust for power gets greedy, there's no telling what they might do," Justin explained.

"But you're not like that, are you?" Ethan asked, his suspicion clear.

Justin chuckled. "I already told you, it's possible for people with short-sightedness. But those with their heads screwed on right won't try something so foolish."

"What do you mean by that?" Ethan asked.

"This is real life, Ethan. In a game, you can handle everything with a mouse and keyboard by yourself. But how exactly do you plan to do that here?"

"Oh…" Ethan's eyes widened with understanding.

In a game, governance and diplomacy could be handled with a few clicks. But in reality, there was no interface to control an entire city. Even the status window was only relevant to individuals. Everything had to be done manually, and there was no way anyone could manage all of that alone.

"If you don't have middle management, nothing's going to work," Justin continued. "And who do you think will take those roles? Other players with skill and ability."

Even if a hierarchy did develop, cooperation among players was still crucial. There was no way around that.

"But people don't always act rationally," Ethan pointed out. "Sometimes greed can blind them. That's why it's safer if we stick together for now."

"Fair enough," Justin agreed. "But don't worry about the skeletons."

Unlike the occasional goblins, the skeletons seemed to be everywhere. Their numbers resembled the hordes from a zombie apocalypse. Ethan glanced at Justin, unsure.

Justin grinned confidently. "Didn't I tell you I'm a Warlock ?"

If Ethan thought the strength of a Warlock in long-range attacks, he was sorely mistaken.

"My magic packs a real punch," Justin said, a glint in his eyes.

After all, the real strength of a Warlock wasn't just in ranged attacks, but in devastating ones.

Meanwhile, Derek Stone, the tattooed man, was swearing under his breath.

"Shit, shit, shit!"

Derek was furious because, even though he wanted to complete the quest, he couldn't do it alone.

"This is impossible to do solo. I need at least one other person," Derek thought to himself.

The skeletons weren't like the goblins, who were weak and few in number. If he charged in alone, he'd get surrounded and killed in no time. He needed someone to watch his back if he wanted any chance of survival.

The real problem, however, was that no one was willing to team up with him.

"If I'd known it would turn out like this, I wouldn't have messed with them in the first place!" Derek cursed internally.

He had picked a fight with every survivor when they first arrived at the safe zone, thinking it would give him an advantage. But all it did was isolate him from everyone else. Now, no one would want to team up with him, and even if they pretended to, they'd likely stab him in the back the moment they got the chance.

"No, there's still a chance," Derek reassured himself, trying to remain hopeful. "They're all watching each other, too."

He wasn't the only one who had trust issues. The other survivors were just as wary of each other, and Derek could tell that nobody fully trusted anyone else. They all wanted to complete the quest but were suspicious of their fellow players.

"At some point, one of them will be left out. That's when I'll step in. They might not like me, but if they want the rewards, they'll have no choice but to team up," Derek reasoned.

Earlier, the system message had made it clear that those who hadn't completed any quests had their quests removed entirely. It was only a matter of time before this quest faced the same time restriction.

"If they don't want to be left at the bottom, they'll have no choice but to take my hand. I just need to wait until someone's desperate enough."

Of course, there was always the possibility that Derek would be the one left out, but he chose to ignore that thought. He didn't want to entertain any more negative possibilities.

As Derek was busy masking his anxiety with a neutral expression, a commotion caught his attention.

"Hey, what's that? Someone's leaving the safe zone!"

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