As soon as Deon said the phrase, the card in his hand started to glow a fluorescent green. Light swirled around it before moving slowly toward the direction he was looking at.

Specifically, at Hana.

She gasped as it wrapped around her body. The cuts on her palms sealed shut before their eyes, red lines fading into smooth skin. Even the bruising along her wrist faded.

A second later, the glow wrapped around her body once more before fading just as quickly as it came.

Hana followed the light as it vanished before turning to ask. "D–Deon...what did you just do?"

"I’m...not sure to be honest," Deon muttered, taking a closer look at the card. "Is this...some kind of game item?"

But before he could question it any further, the blue panel had appeared to his right once again.

[Congratulations, Contestant Deon Day! For obtaining your first points, your Contestant System has been upgraded.]

[The Shop and Donation Features have been unlocked!]

Deon let the panel hover for a moment before turning back toward Hana.

She was still staring down at her hands, flexing her fingers one by one as if expecting the cuts to suddenly reopen. But the skin remained smooth, the earlier scratches and torn edges completely gone.

Slowly, she looked up at him. There was still fear in her eyes from everything that had happened, but now it was mixed with a combination of confusion, awe, and maybe even relief.

"...Does it hurt anywhere else?" Deon asked.

"Huh?"

"The hound. Did it scratch you anywhere else?"

She blinked once before quickly shaking her head. "N-No. I think...that was it."

Deon stepped closer anyway, taking one of her wrists and turning it lightly under the freezer’s dim light. There was nothing except smooth skin where he distinctly remembered ragged cuts only moments ago.

Weird...

He released her hand. "Good."

Hana rubbed the same wrist after he let go, cheeks faintly warm for reasons Deon couldn’t begin to care about right now.

"Deon..." she said quietly. "You really saved me again."

"Yeah, well." He looked away first. "Let’s consider it repayment for the five dollars."

Her lips parted slightly before a small snort escaped her. It was probably the first normal sound either of them had made since arriving in this nightmare.

She’s stable, good. Hopefully, she doesn’t get a panic attack again.

Deon exhaled and finally turned back toward the glowing blue panel beside him. At his thought alone, the panel shifted. The previous tab rearranged themselves before a new option slid into place beneath [Stream]

[Shop]

So it really is similar to a game system...Let’s check out Shop first.

The screen expanded into a small menu, with rows of different cards categorized beneath glowing headers. Some were dull gray while others shimmered faintly with color.

Rarities, huh? It’s exactly the same as an RPG system.

Deon checked the small legend at the top right of the screen, finding it exactly how he remembered.

[Common — Gray: 5 Points]

[Uncommon — Green: 25 Points]

[Rare — Blue: 100 Points]

[Epic — Purple: 500 Points]

[Legendary — Gold: 2,500 Points]

Yeesh...these are really expensive, aren’t they? I don’t even have enough Points to even buy a gray card right now.

But Deon noticed something else, a small toggle that many would probably miss unless they were actively looking for it.

[Consumable → Non-consumable]

The cards suddenly rocketed up in price, almost doubling their original worth. Deon saw the small detail on the card back itself, in that the Non-consumable card had a shiny, almost sparkly exterior.

Deon raised the card in his right hand, eyes widening as he realized what it was worth.

The non-consumable, uncommon card — Basic Heal— was worth a whopping 50 Points.

Yes! What an absolute score! My luck really is turning around, isn’t it?

Deon was practically jumping up and down in his head. The card he was holding in his hand was almost fifteen Hounds worth in Points.

Maybe miracles were real after all.

But as he was bouncing in joy, a small noise rang out beside him.

Ding!

Deon flinched, nearly dropping the card. A small red notification had appeared beside the [Donation] tab, shimmering softly like it was trying to get his attention.

"...Donation?" he muttered.

Right, the system did say that feature had unlocked too.

Curiosity won instantly. He selected it without hesitation.

The Shop panel folded away, replaced by a darker screen with a single message waiting in the center.

[A Viewer Has Donated:]

[Rare — Lightning Bolt]

[Attached Message: Use this well! You’re interesting!]

Suddenly, in his open palm, light started shimmering, forming itself into a rectangular shape. Deon’s eyes widened as it took form, turning into a card right in his palm.

Hana stared as well, pointing at the thing that just magically appeared in his hand. "Deon, what did you do? Is that another one?!"

For a second, Deon couldn’t answer her. He was too busy staring at the card that had just materialized in his hand.

Unlike the Basic Heal card, this one carried a smooth blue border that gleamed with a metallic sheen instead of the shiny green.

"...I don’t know," he said honestly. "But I think somebody just gave me this."

"G-Gave it to you?" Hana repeated. "Who?"

"That," Deon said, pointing upward with the hand holding the Heal card, "is a fantastic question."

He blinked, expecting it to wisp away the very next second. Yet the card in his palm remained very real.

Deon lowered his eyes back to the panel.

[Current Viewers: 1]

One person somewhere beyond this madness had watched him kill a monster, heal Hana, and apparently decided he was worth investing in.

Was it some kind of god? Who the hell is even watching me right now?

Deon flipped the card over. The same unreadable symbols covered the back, but the front displayed two clear words in bright white lettering.

[Lightning Bolt]

He swallowed once. Even without testing it, he could tell this was nothing like Basic Heal.

Hana took one cautious step closer. "Can you...use it?"

"The Heal card is reusable," Deon said, more to himself than to Hana. "This one isn’t."

"So...you can only use it once?" Hana asked.

"Looks that way."

He clicked his tongue softly. A one-time attack card that could probably save his life at the perfect moment. And right now, more valuable than anything he’d owned, ever.

Then he looked at Hana.

She was trying to appear composed, but her hands still trembled slightly from the fight. Every few seconds, her eyes flicked toward the freezer door like she expected another hound to burst through it.

If we get separated, she’s dead weight without something to keep herself alive.

No. Worse than dead weight. She’d become a liability I’d have to keep saving.

Deon exhaled through his nose and extended the green card toward her.

"Take this."

Hana blinked. "W-What?"

"The Heal card." He nudged it forward impatiently. "Take it."

"Uhm...are you sure?" she looked at the card before staring back at him. "It looks really valuable. I think you should keep it..."

"If we get separated, I’d rather you have some kind of insurance," Deon said, before raising the blue card in his hand. "Besides, I’ve got one of my own. I’ll manage."

Hana stared at him for a moment longer before she slowly extended her arm and accepted it with both hands, almost reverently. "...You trust me with this?"

Deon nodded. "You helped me kill that Hound, so you should get something out of it too. Keep it safe."

Hana looked between the card and Deon several times before giving a small nod.

"Mm...okay."

"..."

"Thank you, Deon."

He clicked his tongue, looking away like he was suddenly interested in the wall. "Repayment for the five dollars. Don’t get emotional." 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

But as the situation settled down, Deon realized that the sounds coming from outside had come to a silence.

He didn’t trust it for a second, keeping his eyes on the metal door, waiting for another sign that one of those things could still be outside.

But nothing came.

Beside him, Hana hugged the Heal card close to her chest. "...Do you think they left?"

"No," Deon answered immediately. "I think something happened."

"...That’s somehow worse."

He ignored the comment and stepped toward the door, raising a hand for her to stay back.

"Behind me."

Hana nodded quickly.

Deon gripped the handle, easing it down as slowly as he could manage. The freezer door cracked open with a low creak. He stepped out first, shoulders tense as his eyes darted around, trying to spot any danger.

The place looked like a battlefield after the soldiers had already gone home: overturned carts, broken shelves, and blood smearing across the tiles.

But worst of all—there was nobody left. Nothing but the corpses of the people they were just talking to, eyes still open and bones bent in impossible angles.

Hana clasped her mouth with a hand, suppressing a meek sound that came out of her throat.

The goosebumps from earlier crawled faintly along his arms again. Not as violent as before, but enough to make his jaw tighten.

They turned the corner, finally seeing somebody they knew.

The man in the gray suit.

His jacket was torn at the shoulder, shirt stained dark with sweat and blood. His hair, once neatly combed back, now hung loose over his forehead.

And in his right hand was a kitchen knife. Fresh blood still ran down the blade, dripping steadily onto the floor.

The man stopped when he saw them, eyes widening for half a second before settling back into calm.

"...You two survived."