Under the Red Moon

The worn leather bracer felt cool against his skin as he strapped it onto his arm. It wasn't much to look at, but the +1 defense boost felt significant, a nice improvement.

Looking up at Ji-woo, he saw a hesitant smile creep onto her face. "Alright, Mr. Level-Up-er," she called down, "Come on back up before another one of those things decides to join the party."

Min-joon chuckled, the sound a little shaky but genuine. Scrambling up the fire escape, he rejoined Ji-woo on the rooftop.

The red moon was still hanging ominously in the sky, but it seemed a little less frightening now. He had faced a monster and emerged victorious. Maybe there was hope after all.

"That was…" Ji-woo started, searching for the right words. "Crazy. And terrifying. And somehow… cool?"

Min-joon grinned. "Cool is definitely not the word I'd use, but yeah, definitely crazy and terrifying." He held up the worn leather bracer. "At least I got a souvenir for my troubles."

Ji-woo knelt beside him, examining the bracer with a curious frown. "So, what does it do? Does it make you invincible or something?"

He shook his head. "Not quite. It gives me a tiny bit more defense, that's all. But hey, every little bit helps, right?"

He looked at the city sprawling before them, filled darkness and danger. "So, where to next?"

Ji-woo pointed towards a cluster of buildings in the distance, their structures vaguely familiar. "I remember seeing a news report about a group of survivors barricading themselves inside the Central Library. Maybe they have food, water, or even some answers about what's going on."

Min-joon's eyes widened. "The Central Library? That's, like, miles away."

Ji-woo shrugged. "Better than sitting here doing nothing, isn't that what you're been saying. Besides, with your video game powers, maybe you can handle whatever comes our way."

He chuckled, a nervous edge to it. "Don't get too used to calling me a video game character. This is all very real, and very dangerous."

Ji-woo's smile fadded slightly, but she nodded in agreement. "I know. But you also seem different. Stronger. Maybe with this system, we can actually make it out of this."

Min-joon glanced at the blue interface hovering in his vision.

"Alright," he said, taking a deep breath. "Let's go find this library and see what kind of adventure awaits us."

Together, they stood on the edge of the rooftop, the red moon casting long shadows behind them. The city stretched out before them, a battlefield waiting to be explored.

"Alright," Min-joon said, adjusting the worn leather bracer strapped to his arm. "The Central Library is about two miles south. We need to stick to the rooftops whenever possible, but be prepared to drop down if we need to."

Ji-woo nodded, her expression a look of fear and excitement. Although she was shorter than Min-joon, she had a striking presence. Her dark hair was pulled back into a messy bun, and her eyes seemed to sparkle.

Ji-woo playfully swatted his arm. "Don't get cocky, Mr. Level 1."

Taking a deep breath, Min-joon activated the system interface. A map materialized, a red dot marking their location.

"Alright," he said, pointing at the map. "Looks like we need to hop across a few buildings before we reach the main street. Then we can follow the rooftops south."

He crouched down, scanning the gap between buildings. It was a narrow space, maybe ten feet across. But the drop to the street below was certain to be instant death.

"Think you can make it?" Ji-woo asked, her voice barely a whisper.

Min-joon took another deep breath, steeling his nerves. "Just gotta focus and jump," he muttered to himself. "Like clearing a gap in a video game."

He pushed off the rooftop, launching himself into the air. Time seemed to slow down as he arced through the air. He felt adrenaline coursing through him, the thrill of the jump momentarily taking away the fear.

Just as he was starting to lose confidence, his fingers touched the edge of the other building. With a grunt, he pulled himself up and rolled onto the hard surface, gasping for breath.

"See?" he said, turning to Ji-woo with a triumphant grin. "Easy."

Ji-woo, who had been watching with wide eyes, gave him a shaky thumbs-up. "Easy for you, maybe. My heart nearly leaped from my chest."

She followed him, stepping back before jumping herself. Soon, they were moving across the rooftops together, leaping and scrambling silently.

The red moon illuminated the desolate city, revealing abandoned cars littering the streets and buildings with shattered windows. The silence was broken only by the occasional distant screech or the screams of those who were unfortunate to encounter a monster.

Suddenly, a red blip appeared on Min-joon's system interface, blinking faintly on a rooftop adjacent to theirs.

"Shit," he muttered, activating the zoom function. "Looks like we have company."

The system magnified the image, revealing two figures on the rooftop, hunched over and scavenging through what appeared to be a duffel bag. They were humanoid, but their skin was green, and their eyes glowed with an strange red light.

['Level 1 Ghouls,']

Min-joon frowned. Ghouls? This was getting more like a monster movie than a video game.

He nudged Ji-woo, pointing slightly towards the neighboring rooftop. "Two Ghouls," he whispered. "Looks like they haven't noticed us yet."

Ji-woo's eyes widened. "What do we do? Fight them?"

Min-joon chewed on his lip, his heart pounding in his chest. These weren't Feral creatures – they seemed different, more intelligent. And there were two of them.

"We could try to sneak past them."

But as if sensing their presence, one of the Ghouls turned its head, its red eyes locking on them. It let out a growl that sent shivers down Min-joon's spine.

"Sneak past them?" Ji-woo repeated, her voice barely a whisper. "I don't think so."

The Ghouls lunged forward, scrambling across the rooftop surprising fast. Min-joon gripped the baseball bat tightly, trying to subdue the fear that threatened to consume him.

"Alright," he said, his voice surprisingly steady. "Here we go."