Morning inside the tower began with shouting again, Not infected, Not danger from outside,

Just people.

Arata Kurozawa opened his eyes slowly while distant arguments echoed through the upper floors for what felt like the tenth time since arriving there. The constant tension inside the building never truly disappeared. Even during quiet moments, it lingered beneath everything like pressure building inside cracked walls waiting for the exact moment to explode.

Beside the far wall, Yuna was still asleep somehow despite the noise, one arm hanging off the couch while her metal bat rested dangerously close to the floor. Airi sat nearby organizing medical supplies quietly while trying not to wake her. Kaede cleaned her rifle near the window in complete silence while Reina checked ammunition counts beside her.

Miyu looked exhausted already.

"...Three separate fights happened during the night," she said while adjusting her glasses tiredly. "One near the water station. Two near food storage."

Airi frowned slightly. "...Again?"

"Resource pressure is increasing," Miyu replied. "The building is consuming supplies faster than soldiers can recover them."

Yuna suddenly spoke without opening her eyes. "...Then people start turning on each other. Easy."

Airi looked surprised. "...You were awake?"

"...Hard to sleep when everyone downstairs acts like animals."

Kaede glanced outside the window calmly. "...Animals fight to survive."

"No," Reina said quietly while loading magazines. "Animals kill for survival. Humans kill for emotion."

That answer made the room quiet for a moment.

Then—A loud crash echoed somewhere below, Followed by screaming.

Yuna sat up immediately. "...See? Right on schedule."

A few minutes later, the group followed the noise toward the lower floors where dozens of survivors had already gathered around another violent argument near one of the supply distribution rooms. Two men were fighting brutally on the ground while several others shouted around them. One woman cried nearby while trying to pull them apart.

"He stole from us!"

"Liar! Those supplies were ours!"

"You people already took extra yesterday!"

The tension spread through the crowd rapidly. Everyone looked exhausted, angry, desperate.

Dangerously desperate.

Soldiers tried separating the fight, but even they looked close to losing patience.

Then—Yuna walked straight into the middle of the chaos, And kicked one of the fighting men directly across the floor.

The entire hallway went silent instantly.The second man froze completely.

Yuna cracked her neck slightly before pointing her bat toward both of them. "...Fight again," she said calmly, "...and I’ll throw both of you outside personally."

Nobody moved, Nobody argued.

Because unlike the soldiers—Yuna looked genuinely willing to do it.

Airi sighed softly. "...You always solve things violently."

"It works."

"...That’s not the point."

"It literally solved the problem."

Before Airi could respond, Daichi arrived with several soldiers behind him. The older captain looked exhausted already despite it still being early morning.

Again, Arata noticed that, Daichi barely rested.Barely ate.

Yet somehow kept moving constantly through the building trying to stop it from falling apart piece by piece.

The captain glanced at Yuna, then at the silent hallway.

"...I’m starting to understand why people listen to you," he muttered.

Yuna smirked proudly. "...Natural talent."

One of the soldiers nearby laughed quietly for the first time since they arrived there.

Small moments like that mattered.

Even brief laughter felt valuable now.

Daichi ordered the crowd to disperse before motioning for Arata’s group to follow him upstairs toward one of the secured military floors. Unlike the crowded lower levels, this area remained calmer, cleaner, and far more organized. Soldiers moved carefully between rooms while maps and supply records covered several walls.

"This is where we coordinate patrols and resource management," Daichi explained while leading them through the hallway.

Miyu immediately became interested in the setup, studying maps and defensive markings carefully. "...You’ve organized zones by risk level," she observed.

Daichi nodded. "Keeps panic under control."

"For now," Kaede added quietly.

Daichi didn’t disagree.

Eventually they reached a larger room overlooking the streets outside through reinforced windows. Several soldiers stood guard nearby while others rested after patrol shifts. The atmosphere felt tense but disciplined.

One younger soldier looked toward Arata curiously. "...Captain says you fight outside regularly."

"We survive outside regularly," Reina corrected calmly.

The soldier stared at their weapons with clear admiration. "...Is it true you fought one of those evolved monsters?"

Yuna grinned immediately. "...Which one?"

"...Wait, there’s more than one?"

"...Unfortunately."

Daichi sighed tiredly. "...Don’t encourage them."

But despite himself—The captain smiled slightly.That small expression didn’t go unnoticed by Arata.

Around the soldiers, Daichi looked different.

Less burdened.

More human.

As if leading them reminded him who he used to be before the world collapsed.

While conversations continued, Arata moved toward the window overlooking the streets below. From here the city looked almost peaceful.

Almost.

But something bothered him, Movement patterns outside felt strange again.Too quiet, Too empty.

Like the infected were avoiding this area deliberately.

His eyes narrowed slightly.

Behind him, Yuna had somehow started arguing with two soldiers over combat methods while Airi tried unsuccessfully to calm the conversation.

"You can’t just rush every infected you see!" one soldier complained.

"Worked so far."

"That’s not strategy!"

"Winning is strategy."

"That’s not how tactics work!"

Yuna pointed proudly at herself. "...Still alive."

The soldier looked genuinely frustrated now while several others nearby quietly laughed.

Even Daichi shook his head slightly.

For a brief moment—The atmosphere felt lighter, Normal.

Then the screaming started, Everyone froze instantly, Not from outside,From inside the building.

A terrified woman suddenly ran through the hallway outside the room.

"Someone’s missing!"

The atmosphere changed immediately.

Daichi stepped forward fast. "...Who?"

"A patrol member from Floor Seven!" the woman cried. "He never came back!"

Several soldiers immediately reacted while others grabbed weapons.

Daichi’s expression hardened instantly. "...When?"

"An hour ago!"

Arata noticed it immediately, Fearz Real fear.

Not panic from arguments or shortages, Something else.

Because everyone understood the problem.

People did not simply disappear inside secured floors.

Not without reason.

Daichi immediately started giving orders. "Search teams move now. Check every stairwell and maintenance corridor."

The soldiers moved quickly, Disciplined.

But tension spread through the room fast.

Airi stepped closer to Arata quietly. "...Do you think infected got inside?"

"No," Kaede answered before he could.

Everyone looked at her.

Kaede’s eyes remained calm. "...There would’ve been noise."

Miyu frowned slightly. "...Then what happened?"

Nobody answered, Because nobody knew.

Nearly thirty minutes later, Daichi returned from the search personally.

And the moment Arata saw his face—He understood immediately.Something was wrong.

"We found blood," Daichi said quietly.

The room became silent.

"Where?"

"Maintenance corridor near the lower residential levels."

"Body?" Reina asked.

Daichi shook his head slowly.

"No body."

That answer felt worse somehow, One soldier cursed quietly under his breath.

Another tightened his grip on his rifle nervously.

Yuna’s earlier relaxed expression disappeared completely now. "...That’s bad."

"Yes," Daichi replied.

Very bad.

Arata’s mind moved quickly.

Missing survivor, Blood, No body, No sound, No witnesses.

His eyes shifted toward the crowded lower floors beneath them.

This tower already stood on the edge of collapse.

If fear spread now—The entire building could fall into chaos before infected even attacked.

Daichi seemed to realize the same thing.

"We keep this quiet," he ordered immediately. "No rumors."

One soldier hesitated slightly. "...Captain... what if—"

"No rumors," Daichi repeated firmly.

The soldiers obeyed.

But fear had already entered the room.

Arata looked toward the dark stairwell outside the hallway.

Somewhere inside this massive building—Something had changed.And deep down—He could feel it.

The tower was beginning to crack.