Midgard Park was overflowing with life.
Dense vegetation spread across the land in every direction. Towering trees stretched toward the sky like silent guardians, their branches weaving a natural canopy overhead. Countless species of plants covered the ground—ferns, moss, flowering vines—creating an environment so rich and vibrant that it almost felt unreal.
The place radiated peace.
It was difficult to believe that only a few hours earlier this same world had been soaked in blood and violence.
The calm was broken by a sudden distortion in the air.
A strange warping sound rippled through the park, like reality itself bending. Tiny pixels of shifting light began to appear, floating in the air like fragments of broken stars. The glowing particles flickered through different colors—blue, purple, green—before slowly gathering together.
The lights condensed.
First came fingers.
Then hands.
Arms followed.
Moments later, complete human bodies formed from the dancing pixels.
There was just one problem.
They were still floating slightly above the ground.
As the final features formed, a mouth suddenly opened.
"Shiiiiiiit!"
Bray's scream shattered the quiet park.
Slam!
Slam!
Slam!
Gravity reasserted itself without mercy.
The boys crashed into the ground one after another, each impact sending sharp jolts of pain through their bodies. Bray groaned loudly, rolling onto his back while clutching his ribs.
Yet despite the rough landing, something about them had changed.
They looked… refreshed.
Bray's blue hair shimmered more brightly than before, almost glowing beneath the sunlight filtering through the trees. Their clothes were perfectly clean, as if they had never fought at all. No blood stains, no dirt, no torn fabric.
Even Jamie, who was still unconscious, looked completely different.
His hair had regained its natural shine.
The pale exhaustion on his face had vanished.
His breathing was steadier.
After staring at each other for a moment, the boys silently arrived at the same conclusion.
The teleportation had purified their bodies.
Every injury, every trace of exhaustion from the previous battle had been erased.
None of them knew it yet, but that mysterious restoration would become extremely important later.
Another distortion rippled through the air.
The warping sound returned.
Within seconds, three more figures formed from swirling pixels beside them.
Slam!
Slam!
Slam!
"My ass!" Charlotte yelped the moment she hit the ground, grabbing her backside as pain shot through her.
Alexander and Bray immediately turned their heads.
"Girls," they said at the exact same time.
The three girls lifted their heads.
"Boys," they replied in perfect synchronization.
For a moment, the two groups simply stared at each other.
Relief and pride mixes In with a quiet sense of survival.
None of them spoke, but the look they exchanged said everything: they had all made it through the second game alive.
What none of them realized yet was how horrifying the true scale of survival had become.
Three hundred participants had entered Midgard.
Only two teams remained.
And if that fact wasn't terrifying enough, there were still eight games left.
Bray broke the silence first.
"You won?" he asked, disbelief written across his face.
The last time he had seen the girls, they had been completely surrounded—former teammates and assassins closing in from every direction. At the time, their survival had seemed nearly impossible.
Charlotte raised an eyebrow.
"Why are you asking like we were going to lose?" she shot back sharply.
"Don't blame me! you were completely outnumbered!"
Charlotte crossed her arms, clearly ready to argue.
But before the tension could grow, Lora stepped forward.
Her voice carried quiet concern.
"What happened to Jamie?"
She walked toward the unconscious boy lying on the grass. Kneeling down beside him, she gently lifted his head and rested it on her lap.
Her expression softened instantly.
"He got knocked out by poison," Bray admitted, avoiding her eyes.
"Poison?" Charlotte asked, her tone suddenly serious.
"It's… a long story," Bray replied.
Emily stepped closer as well.
"Will he be okay?"
Alexander answered before Bray could.
"He will, he just needs fresh air."
The words sounded reassuring, but none of them were completely convinced.
For several seconds, the group remained silent.
Charlotte eventually broke it.
"So… Greg is…?"
Bray didn't hesitate this time.
"Dead."
The word landed heavily.
Sadness spread quietly through the group, but alongside the grief was something else—comfort.
They were together again.
A soft breeze moved through the park, brushing past their faces and carrying the scent of fresh grass and leaves.
Clean air filled their lungs.
Then—
Cough!
Cough!
"Jamie!"
Everyone rushed toward him at once.
His eyelids fluttered weakly.
The world slowly came back into focus for him, though his ears still rang faintly, as if distant crowds were cheering somewhere far away.
"Guys…" he murmured hoarsely.
"They're here, and so are we!" Lora said with a triumphant smirk while holding his hand.
Jamie blinked slowly.
"Lora?"
His gaze dropped awkwardly.
"Yeah," she replied softly.
"Lora!!!"
The next second, Jamie shot upright in panic.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" he blurted out, bowing repeatedly in apology as if he had committed some unforgivable mistake.
"You did nothing wrong," Lora said quickly, trying to calm him.
Before Jamie could respond, Bray suddenly stepped forward.
"Jamie!"
He raised his hand and pressed two fingers against Jamie's forehead.
Jamie froze instantly.
"Don't ever die on me again," Bray said firmly, his overprotective tone impossible to hide.
Jamie stared at him for a moment.
Then a small smirk appeared on his face.
"So much happened in one game, the good and the bad. But one thing's certain.We faced it all as friends."
Charlotte tilted her head, intrigued.
"What are you smiling about?"
Jamie immediately straightened.
"Nothing important,"she said, brushing it off while standing up.
Then she suddenly noticed something.
"Wait, what's with the golden hair?"
The group exchanged confused looks.
"We don't know either," Alexander admitted.
Before anyone could say more—
A brilliant flash of light exploded in front of them.
A small figure slowly descended from the glowing portal.
It was a short girl wearing a white robe decorated with purple stripes. On her head sat a strange green helmet shaped like a melon, with several small holes punched through it. The openings were translucent enough that her mouth remained visible.
She hovered slightly above the ground.
"Hey humans!" she squeaked cheerfully.
"Heeey…" the group replied uncertainly.
Their voices carried equal parts caution and confusion.
"Don't you recognize my voice?" she asked.
Jamie shook his head.
"Sorry… we don't."
"Oooh," she said thoughtfully.
Then she snapped her fingers.
"I get it!"
She raised her hand and pointed toward her neck.
Everyone froze.
A wave of realization passed through them.
"You're the mechanical voice!" Bray blurted out.
"Not only that, i'm also the system."
Jamie's heart skipped a beat.
The system…
Does that mean she knows about the Glitch?
Alexander stepped forward and bowed respectfully.
"Thank you for your service to us."
The girl giggled.
"I like you, you're a nice human!"
Alexander blinked, surprised by the compliment.
"There's no need to thank me," she added casually.
Curiosity finally got the better of him.
"Why did you appear now?"
"Oh! i almost forgot.I'm here to take you to the third stage."
The announcement immediately filled the group with tension.
They had barely survived the second game.
And now another challenge was already waiting.
"We'll begin once the last human arrives," she continued.
Everyone looked around in confusion.
"Everyone we know is already here," Bray said.
The girl giggled again.
"Not everyone."
She pointed behind them.
"Him."
The group turned.
And there he was.
Long hair flowing behind him.
Steps steady.
Confidence radiating from his posture.
Every bruise had vanished.
He looked completely restored.
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
They had all believed he died during the attack.
His body had vanished during the chaos.
Yet now he was walking toward them as if nothing had happened.
"Wait for me!" he shouted with a grin.
Jamie's eyes filled with tears.
Greg was actually alive.
Without thinking, Jamie sprinted forward and threw his arms around him in a crushing hug.
"Ooh," Greg muttered in surprise.
But when he saw the pure joy on Jamie's face, he relaxed.
Behind them, the others watched the reunion.
Lora's cheeks turned slightly red.
Emily noticed immediately.
"You wish that was you," she whispered.
Lora stayed silent.
Her expression said everything.
Jamie had woken up on her lap.
Yet the first person he embraced so warmly was someone else.
"Cut him some slack,he thought Greg was dead."
The words stung slightly.
But slowly, Lora's expression softened.
Clap.
Clap.
"Come on humans, i don't want to be late for my tea party." the small girl called impatiently.
Her voice carried a strange hint of nervousness.
Within seconds, the group gathered together.
Curiosity, excitement and fear.
All of it mixed together.
The girl cleared her throat dramatically.
"Hmhm."
Then she spoke the words that froze everyone in place.
"It's time for you to learn the core behind Midgard."