"...and that's time!" Mister Θ exclaims as he signals off-screen for the voting to stop.

The masked host takes out his tablet and swipes across the screen a couple of times. As he muses over the results of the polls, he nods his head in satisfaction.

"Good! These are better results than the ones we had yesterday! Here, have a look."

Mister Θ double taps on his tablet and points towards the large TV display above him. The results, like yesterday, are shown in pie charts. Looking at the percentages, one can tell that Winona will be getting Item Box S and Pill I, and Nthanda will be getting Item Box M and Pill S.

"Now, I'm sure everyone is wondering what exactly those boxes and pills are, am I right? Well, let me tell you. For our champion archer, the Item Box S contains a shotgun with a standard box of shotgun shells. Not really an ideal weapon choice for an archer, but at least it's long-ranged. As for the pill she will be consuming...well, she sure lucked out. The 'I' in Pill I stands for Immunity. This pill will give her immunity to the zombie virus!"

Mister Θ glances about sheepishly before giggly adding, "It's a good thing I didn't set up a gambling ring to bet on who would survive the longest. If I did, I would definitely lose big time."

"Anyways, let's look at what our dear little track star has. The weapon in his box is...a mace, and a spiked one at that. As for his pill, it's a speed pill. Wow! Increasing the speed of someone who can already run fast...now, isn't that overkill?"

The masked host chuckles softly before clearing his throat. He straightens the tie on his neck before staring at the camera in front of him.

"Enough dilly-dallying. I'm sure you, the viewers, do not care too much about what items and pills our contestants have received. Come! Let's start the games!"

Mister Θ claps two or three times and walks off-screen. The pillars at the corners of the room begin to brighten as a whirring sound echoes throughout. Soon, the pillars begin to vibrate and the room begins to change. Seconds later, the moldy, old basement-like dungeon floor appears once more. Holograms of the two contestants materialize and stand before the camera.

..........

Inside the Base Room, two people stand in a dazed state. They glance about the unknown trapezoid-shaped room, wondering how they came to this place. They can see that the dimly lit room has no visible outlet, yet the oddly arranged torches seem to indicate that there is indeed a door before them.

As they continue to look about, a buzzing noise suddenly hums out. Nthanda turns his head to and fro before pointing towards Winona's jacket pocket. Upon seeing the young man's indication, the woman pats her pockets and feels a vibrating bulge. Surprise springs from her face as she pulls out a smartphone.

Someone was calling her. As she did not recognize the number, she hesitates to answer it. When Nthanda sees Winona's indecision, he grunts softly and wrenches the phone from the woman's hand. With a swipe, he unlocks the phone and brings it to his ear.

"Hello? Who's this? Are you the masked freak?" Nthanda utters coldly.

"Eh? Ahem...ahem...this isn't Mister Θ, if that's what you're asking." The voice on the other end of the line burst out in unrestrained laughter.

When Nthanda hears the loud, piercing voice, he winces and peers at the phone's display. It's on speaker! No wonder the phone call is so loud. Nthanda embarrassingly holds out the phone for Winona to hear.

Winona takes the initiative to ask a few questions, "Who are you? Where are we? Why us?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! One at a time. Hmm, give me a second. My name is Epsilon, but my peers call me Professor E. You can do the same. As for where you are? Well, that's a little problematic to explain. All you need to know is that you are in a mental asylum."

"Then, why us? Why are we chosen?" Nthanda inquires.

"Isn't it obvious? Hehe, it's because you contestants are all connected by Fate."

"Connected by fate? What do you mean by that?" Winona blurts out in shock. How can they be connected? She has never seen anyone else from the group of contestants before, not even the boy standing next to her.

"Oops! That was too much information. Well, enough questions. Let's begin the games!"

"Wait! Explain what you mean! Professor E? Prof-!"

Before Winona could ask another question, the phone disconnects. All she could hear is the thunderous sound of silence. Winona glances at the young African man next to her and sees the surprise she's feeling on his face.

Nthanda, upon seeing the woman's stare, questions, "Do you know what he meant by connected?"

"I-"

Vrrrr! Vrrrr!

Nthanda glances at the phone and sees a message flashing on the screen.

The game is about to start. You will each get a 'Starting Weapon' and a 'Starting Pill' as decided by the viewers through majority vote. The items will show up soon after you finish reading this message. Use your weapons to fight off the enemies on this floor. You can't use someone else's starting weapon as these weapons are bound to their respective owner. Make sure you take your pill within a minute after it arrives or face the consequence of dying. After you prepare yourself, the doors to the dungeon will open. Enter and win! Defeat your enemies and live!

Oh, and one more thing. Any injuries you incur during the game will be healed upon completion of the dungeon floor. No matter how serious, as long as you have breath, you will be healed.

As soon as Nthanda finishes reading the message out loud, the two of them hear a 'shwoop' followed by two dull thuds. They glance around only to see two boxes of varying sizes on the floor a couple of feet before them. Where did they come from?

Nthanda cautiously approaches the boxes, followed by a curious Winona. When the woman sees their names on the boxes, she rushes towards them and picks up the box with her name. Her box is long and rather heavy. She gently shakes it, but can't hear anything moving inside.

"These boxes have our names on it! That one is yours, Nthanda."

"Careful! We don't know what's in there. What if it's a trap?" Nthanda cautions as he takes a step back.

"I don't think there's anything to be worried about. Didn't you read the message earlier? These boxes should contain our starting weapons and starting pills. Here, I'll open mine and show you."

Winona rips open her box, uncovering a shotgun nestling firmly within a layer of styrofoam. By the gun, there are two containers. One contains a standard box of sixteen shotgun shells, while the other holds a small porcelain bottle. Inside the bottle was a brownish green pill the size and shape of a gumball.

"See? Nothing to worry about. Quickly open yours and show me what you got."

Nthanda grudgingly agrees and tears open his box. Once he lifts up the cardboard lid, he sees an one-handed spiked mace. Next to the mace is a small porcelain bottle, which contains a similarly shaped yellow pill.

The young man holds up the mace, weighing it in his hands, and nods in satisfaction. He places the mace back into the box and takes out the yellow pill. As he sniffs at it curiously, a strong medicinal aroma emits from the pill, making his nose twitch in irritation. Remembering that they need to consume the pill within a minute, the pair quickly swallow their respective pills.

"Uwuu...so bitter!" Winona can't help but stick out her tongue in disgust. The pill she consumed tasted like an expired grapefruit dipped in bitter melon pulp.

As the bitter taste subsides, Winona scans her body for visible changes, but there aren't any. Could the pill be a dud? Or maybe it's just a regular medicine pill. The woman checks up on the young African man before her, and notices that his expression is a bit weird.

"What's wrong, Nthanda?"

When Nthanda ate the yellow pill, his face immediately scrunched up as an unforgettable sourness washed over his taste buds. He nearly choked as he swallowed the pill whole. Just as he was about to grimace in regret, a change abruptly erupts within him. He can feel his surroundings begin to slow down. His eyebrows knit deeply, revealing his ugly look. While he is considering the problem with his surroundings, he hears Winona's inquiry. Though the voice reaches him at a slow pace, every word is heard clearly.

Nthanda looks up and gives a wry grin. "Nothing. Just feeling a bit light-headed."

"Could it be the pill? Is it something bad? And why are you moving your head so fast?"

"No...." Nthanda shakes his head, but the last sentence from Winona brings about a sudden realization from him. "Wait! What did you say?"

"Um...is it something bad?"

"No, the last one!"

"W-Why are you moving your head so fast?"

Why is his head moving so fast! When Nthanda mulls over this question, he finally understands. Why are his surroundings moving so slow? They aren't! In actuality, he is moving too fast! His overall speed increased by many times, causing the surroundings to seem slower! Nthanda stares at his hands and clenches them. This pill...it must have been a speed pill! What a miraculous object!

While Nthanda is shaking in excitement from his discovery, Winona worryingly taps his shoulder. "Y-You alright?"

"Hmm? Oh, yes! Yes, I'm fine! There's nothing to worry about." Nthanda waves his hand dismissively and walks towards his box. He hefts up the spiked mace and heads towards the door that appeared after they swallowed their pills. He glances back at the stunned woman and signals at her.

"Come on, let's go!"

"Ah, okay! Wait for me!" Winona exclaims as she hurriedly picks up the shotgun, storing the box of shotgun shells in her jacket pocket.

With five large steps, the young woman enters through the doorway along with the young man. As soon as the two contestants enter the dungeon floor, the door closes shut behind them.

The second round has begun.