Screams erupted from every corner. On the square, cartoon-suited monsters struck as one. Blood and severed limbs painted a horrifying scene.
People had nowhere to run—the monsters were everywhere.
A wobbling cartoon-suited figure lurched toward a terrified female student. The poor girl stood frozen, legs trembling uncontrollably, utterly unable to move.
Just as the monstrous thing raised a hand—
Screeeech!
A deafening tire screech ripped through the air.
An Li executed a sharp drift, sending something flying. I’d gripped the door handle tightly the whole ride, too afraid to speak, scared I’d vomit.
Yeah, I *did* tell her to drive faster. And she did. Nearly cost me half my life.
“Stopped?” I croaked. “Did you… hit something?”
“Not a person,” An Li said, unfastening her seatbelt, hand on the door handle. “Don’t get out.”
She stepped out and slammed the door shut.
I knew it was dangerous outside, so I just nodded to myself. Glancing sideways, a female student stared at me through the window, face pale with shock.
She stood dangerously close—An Li must’ve nearly hit her. The girl looked utterly terrified.
I tentatively waved. “Hello…”
“Ah!”
She shrieked and ran off.
“…”
Having scared her away, I couldn’t ask what happened. I unbuckled, slid into the driver’s seat, and looked out.
Even braced for it, the scene stunned me. Indescribable horrors swarmed everywhere. Dozens of injured people writhed on the ground. And beyond them—motionless, mutilated corpses.
Cartoon-suited monsters chased survivors. Police had banned these costumes long ago… yet here in Dingsheng Square, they were everywhere.
Worried, I scanned for An Li. After exiting, she’d charged straight for the giant humanoid inflatable at the square’s center, ignoring everything else.
“Is this ‘take down the leader first’… or are the others just clones?”
My mind raced. First mission with An Li, zero experience—but I’d binged enough anime and games to guess.
“Technically… rolling the window down isn’t *getting out*, right?”
Sticking my head out doesn’t count. Yeah. Totally fine.
I rolled the window down. Panicked crowds scrambled wildly. They surged toward the railing exit, but in the chaos, those in front tumbled down—and those behind trampled them, sealing the escape.
A few calmer people sought other exits. No one ran toward our car. An Li had smashed straight through the railing, driving from road into the square’s inner circle.
Except for one person—or rather, two.
“Mommy… Mommy!”
Amid the square’s cacophony of screams, the child’s shrill cry cut through—growing clearer, closer.
A young woman sprinted, clutching her little son. Her legs weren’t strong; she’d kicked off her heels, running barefoot—but moving with desperate speed.
The boy in her arms looked years younger than me—maybe kindergarten age. He didn’t understand. He just cried instinctively.
I took a deep breath. *If she reaches here, I’ll open the door.*
She never made it.
A clumsy cartoon-suited monster lunged sideways. Its noodle-like arms shot out, latching onto her right calf.
*Snap.*
Her calf tore free.
“Ah!”
She collapsed, face deathly pale, drenched in cold sweat. If ten fingers ache to the heart… how much worse a whole leg?
“Run!” she gasped, shoving her son up. “Run now!”
The boy didn’t understand. He only knew Mom couldn’t run—and he must obey.
“Mommy… run with me…”
“RUN!”
She shoved him hard. He stumbled, crying, took a few steps—
“Come on! This way!” I yelled, leaning out the window.
He didn’t hear. Legs wobbling, he shuffled… the wrong way.
Then tripped.
I slammed the window frame, heart pounding.
Those things defied physics. Contact meant severed limbs—no struggle, no warning.
If it touched me? Even my old self wouldn’t survive a single graze.
The monster ignored the bleeding woman and ambled toward the boy. She screamed in despair, pain and blood forgotten.
She’d bleed out in minutes. Her danger far outweighed his.
I couldn’t get out—not from fear or weakness. The boy had run the wrong way.
And now, the monster stood squarely between us.
