“Ah.” As expected, I woke up for the third time. Of course, the gun was right beside me. Great.

I picked it up and jumped on my feet. Everybody around me were enemies. I was forced to learn that the hard way. I couldn’t let my guard down for even a second. Next time, I’ll be the one to shoot first. I won’t go down without a fight, dang it!

With that resolution, I started searching for a hiding place. With all said and done, hiding in a safe spot still sounded like the best idea. I’ll fight when I have to, but it was better to avoid fights in the first place, right?

“Hmm.” I didn’t recognize this spot. It seemed I woke up in a different location than before. Nonetheless, the overall scenery was the same.

There was greenery all around, with trees scattered here and there. Behind me was a shore and a sea which stretched as far as the eye could see. Thinking of it, there was a shore at my previous location as well. Was this an island? I made a mental note to investigate that later.

For now, I found a big rock and ran toward it.

BAM BAM BAM

The white flashes and loud bangs made it easy figuring out where most of the action was taking place. I positioned myself behind the rock, in a way that nobody would see me from the battlefield’s direction.

Now, I only had to wait. Once the number of opponents plummets, I’ll just have to defeat the remaining few. Yeah, just shoot them down. No problem. Not at all. Yeaaaaah.

Hiding behind this rock should be safe. Thanks to my shooting practice from the previous round, I knew the “bullets” from these guns couldn’t penetrate through the rock. Right. I should be safe here. And yet...

“Grr.” My body was fidgety. Countless bangs resounded on the other side of the rock. I could hear people running and cursing. Yet, I had no idea what was really going on over there. I couldn’t confirm the situation with my own eyes.

How many people were still standing? How skilled were they? Did anybody notice I was hiding here? I knew none of that. It was tempting to sneak a peek, but that’d kill the whole purpose of hiding.

In short, it was stressing as heck. I clenched my gun and took deep breaths to calm myself. There was no knowing when the situation would suddenly turn for the worst. I had to be ready for anything.

I thought back on the scummy woman who shot me in the back last round. Just like me now, she had been quietly hiding behind a rock. She was safe and hidden, until I waltzed in and ruined everything for her. She was startled by my sudden appearance and didn’t know how to react. If I had been more resolved, I probably could have finished her off right then and there.

The exact same scenario could happen to me as well. A random passerby would pop outta nowhere and shoot me before I get to react. I had to tighten up my guard to the max.

Right. Left. RIght. Left. I glanced from one side to the other, making sure nobody approached from my blind spot. Ugh. My neck hurt.

How long had I been sitting here? With my mind constantly on edge, a mere minute felt like an hour.

The gunfire stopped at some point. Or rather, it moved elsewhere. I could still hear faint bangs from time to time, but they were far away. Did it mean this area was safe now? I was curious, but I didn’t dare peeking out. Curiosity killed the cat, as they say.

TAP TAP TAP

Fast paced footsteps resounded behind me. They drew closer and closer and closer. Damn, did somebody find me!?

From the left? Or from the right?! I turned from side to side, hoping to intercept the incoming enemy as soon as they appear.

“Phew! Hah.” A man popped up. He leaned on the rock while catching his breath.

An enemy.

It was an enemy.

I had to shoot.

Shoot.

SHOOT!

“Ah! Fuck!” The man noticed me. His right hand moved. His gun was about to lock onto me. He was about to shoot. Shoot. Shoot. Shoot.

“Keh!” I clenched my gun and tried to take aim. My movements were much slower than I expected. My body had grown lax from all this sitting. Damn!

“W-Wah!” My back slid downwards amidst the action. “Agh!” My shoulder hit the ground.

BAM

White flash. The man fired first. It was over... or so I thought.

“Fuck!”

“Huh?!” I didn’t feel anything. I wasn’t hit? The bullet must had missed me by a hair’s breadth while I was falling. Lucky!

Despite my awkward position, I somehow managed to take aim at the man. He was about to shoot me again, but this time I was faster.

My gun was locked onto him.

I just had to pull the trigger.

Just pull it.

C’mon.

Pull it.

Pull. Pull. PULL!

BAM

Finally, my fingers obeyed me. A white beam leapt out of my gun and struck the man’s stomach.

“Shit...” The man blinked a couple of times with a dazed expression, then his body buckled over. He collapsed on his knees, then into the ground. That was it. He didn’t move anymore. He was out. I eliminated him. I did it. I freaking did it!

“Haa. Haa.” I took deep breaths to calm down my racing heart. I couldn’t believe I actually shot somebody, but there was no denying it. The man was definitely lying over there, motionless. It was impossible to tell whether he was unconscious or... dead.

I reached out to check his pulse, but immediately stopped myself. Did I really want to know? I had survived being shot from this gun twice already. Surely this guy will make it through as well. He’ll be just fine. Surely. No worries.

The way he crashed into the ground was quite unsettling. It won’t be strange if he suffers a brain injury from this. But hey, I also dived into the ground head first after being shot, yet here I was. So, no problems. The guy’ll make it. No worries.

“Haa.” I took my eyes off the body/corpse of the man. My heart was still pounding. Though I hadn’t shot anybody to death (hopefully), rendering a man unconscious was still an act of violence. It was a crime. I mean, look at the poor guy. He was completely... completely... not there?!

“Wha?!” The man was gone! He had been lying right there a moment ago, but he vanished without a trace! Where!? How?! Why!?

Maybe my shot failed to seal the deal?! I scanned the area, but he was nowhere in sight. He didn’t stand up and walk away. He simply... disappeared.

BAM

“Ugh.” A dull pain in my back. I knew this feeling all too well by now. Numbness spread throughout my body. Damn. I was careless.

“Who...” I tried to turn around. I had to catch a glimpse of my assaulter before losing consciousness. Bending my falling body, I somehow managed to rotate in the middle of the fall.

The man in front of me... was unfamiliar. He wasn’t the guy I shot. Just a random scumbag who sneaked up to me while I was distracted. I was fine with that. It meant the guy I shot was truly eliminated... literally, without leaving a trace.

Will my body also vanish into thin air? An unsettling thought. Nonetheless, I was sure I’ll simply wake up in this hellhole again, as if nothing happened. Hah.

Even though I was eliminated yet again, at least this round I managed to take out one enemy. It was progress! Kinda...