Chapter Nineteen: A Gun in Hand

My words left some of the girls, who had taken things for granted, momentarily stunned. In contrast, Mao Shiba wore an expression of sudden realization, as if he’d only just considered such a scenario.

“So, I don’t suggest we join forces with any other teams right now. The more people, the less flexibility we have, and the lower our chances of getting a gun.”

“What we need to do now is keep searching and let you determine the location of the armory based on what we find.”

“We may not be the first to discover the armory, but we must be the fastest to get there.”

As I finished speaking, I extended my hand in front of me. “Now, is anyone willing to play this game with me, seriously?”

Without any hesitation, Mao Shiba placed his hand on top of mine.

“Count me in.” Another girl quickly joined our group.

Seeing this, the others realized these were the only two choices left: either join us or leave. Perhaps other teams would welcome them, but after hearing what I’d just said, they understood that conflict was inevitable. It was better to take control of their own fates than to become easy sacrifices and be eliminated.

“We’re already a team, aren’t we?” another girl spoke up.

The remaining few didn’t hesitate any longer and came over, stacking their hands together.

“Let’s do our best,” I encouraged softly.

“Let’s do our best!” the girls echoed in unison, then all turned to look at Mao Shiba, who hadn’t spoken yet.

Under everyone’s gaze, Mao Shiba looked a bit awkward but went along with it. “Let’s do our best!”

“Good. Now let’s choose a new direction,” I said. I didn’t know if my choice was right, but I knew gathering everyone together was definitely wrong. It would only make acquiring firearms more complicated.

“Whoosh—bang~”

Just as we’d changed direction several times, a bright flare shot up into the sky about two hundred meters ahead of us.

“A signal flare! Move!”

We were very close to where the flare had been fired from, but I didn’t know if any teams were closer or how many people would be in the first team to get a gun. Every second counted.

Everyone in the team understood how critical time was now; our survival in the first wave of the gun scramble depended on it.

The competition had already been going on for two hours since I got off the bus. If we could get guns and survive this third hour, our only worry would be the armed opponents.

The distance of over two hundred meters wasn’t far. After crossing the white line on the ground, we were only a hundred meters from the armory.

At that moment, we saw ten people in front of a makeshift booth built from branches, collecting their equipment.

Upon seeing us, some of them immediately raised their guns.

They were from the Green Team.

Still, I wasn’t worried they would shoot, because anyone who fired would be eliminated.

Just in case, I reminded them, “No shooting within a hundred meters of the armory, remember? Put your guns down.”

I quickly led my teammates forward.

Fortunately, these were the first arrivals, and there were still twenty guns left.

“Hurry and grab your guns.” Hesitation leads to trouble, and the best plan was to arm ourselves and leave this dangerous place.

Because I’d spoken to them about the risks, everyone felt the urgency and wasted no time. They requested guns from the armory supervisor, loaded their fifty blank rounds, and, under the confused eyes of the opposing team, quickly left.

I could swear that less than five minutes passed from the time they collected their rifles to when we did and left, but already two more teams had arrived—a Blue Team and another Green Team.

“The armory’s over there. First come, first served!” I called out, lighting a fire under them, and hurriedly led my team away.

Seeing no reason to hesitate, they dashed toward the armory, desperate not to be beaten by another team. At last, we were out of the hundred-meter restriction zone and could breathe a little easier.

“No shooting within a hundred meters of the armory—but that doesn’t mean you can’t use your fists,” I offered a friendly reminder, leading the team away quickly under the anxious gaze of the Green Team member who’d already armed himself.

Once out of their line of sight, I changed our direction again, and after another ten minutes of running, everyone was slightly out of breath.

“All right, let’s rest here. I’ll keep watch.” As soon as I gave the order, the girls—faces flushed—sat on the ground, clutching their rifles tightly. Whether it was exhaustion or excitement, I couldn’t tell.

“Excited?” I asked softly.

The girls nodded vigorously.

“Thrilling?”

They nodded again.

“But the real thrill is just beginning.” Seeing their confused looks, I continued, “Do you know why I rushed us out of there?”

“Because someone was coming?” one girl ventured.

“Exactly!” I grinned at her.

“There are over eight hundred of us, and three hundred guns. That sounds like quite a lot, doesn’t it?”

They all nodded.

Eight hundred people and three hundred guns—about one in four would get a gun. Not bad, on average.

I shook my head. “That still leaves over five hundred people without guns. If each team has ten members, that means fifty teams are unarmed.”

“Each of us has fifty rounds, totaling five hundred bullets, but it’s unrealistic to expect perfect accuracy. What if someone ambushes us?”

“But it’s not likely we’ll run into that many people,” a girl replied.

“Of course not. But if we meet friendly teams, we can’t just shoot them, can we? And if they ask us for guns, do we give them any?”

“Absolutely not!” one girl declared, hugging her rifle tightly.

The others, though silent, gripped their guns firmly.

“So, what I want to say is that our greatest threat isn’t the opponents who have guns, but those without guns—and even our teammates.”

“They’re the most dangerous because being unarmed means elimination is imminent. What I’m saying is, before the third hour arrives, whether we encounter enemies or friendly teams, we need to keep our distance. If anyone insists on approaching, I want everyone ready to fire and eliminate them.”

“This is a small trial. If you can’t bring yourself to shoot, then I alone can’t possibly lead everyone into the top hundred.”

“Whether you hit someone isn’t the most important thing; what matters is whether you dare to shoot.”

My words left everyone deep in thought.

“There were just ten flares in the sky. Anyone who wants to avoid elimination will head for the nearest flare. Our priority is not contact but avoidance—let those extra people get eliminated first. So, now we’ll move toward the area of Armory Two and find a spot on the edge where we can hide and have an escape route.”

Everyone still trusted my judgment, since I’d led them all to guns without a scratch.

I figured this was what they called authority.

“Hey? Someone’s over there—it’s Yan Ruyu.” A familiar voice called out. Turning, I saw a classmate from our class, Zhuo Wen, whose pale face was distinctive.

Following the voice, I saw blue armor—an ally. But apart from Zhuo Wen, the other nine had no guns. Seeing us armed, they started heading our way.

“These are my classmates. I can’t be the one to deal with them. Someone who doesn’t know them should persuade or stop them,” I said quietly.

Zhuo Wen was a classmate, but the others were strangers. Getting close to unarmed teammates now was simply unwise.

“Stop there! Come any closer and I’ll shoot!” The most outspoken girl in our team, Huang Xinru, stepped forward, released the safety, and aimed at the group twenty meters away.

“We’re on the same team! How can you point a gun at your own people?” someone in their group protested and kept advancing. Seeing one take the lead, the others followed.

Bang!

Thud!

Huang Xinru fired, hitting the frontmost person in the chest. The sensor went off, smoke billowed out, and he was eliminated on the spot.

“What are you doing?!” the eliminated boy shouted angrily.

“I told you not to come any closer. And now you’re dead—sit there and wait to be picked up,” Huang Xinru replied, turning her gun on the remaining nine.

“The same goes for you. Take another step and I’ll shoot.” Though shaken by the boy’s outburst, Huang Xinru didn’t back down.

“Class rep, what now?” Zhuo Wen looked from me to Huang Xinru.

“Zhuo Wen, you’d better leave. Our whole team agreed not to team up with anyone else. Don’t make things difficult for me, all right?” I replied, turning the decision back to him. If he left, I’d remember the favor and look out for him in class. But if he insisted on pushing, then I’d have no say in how my teammates responded.