Immediately, BloodReign_666 clicked on his avatar's profile. 

He paused, then typed "enter." The look in his eyes says it all—a mix of disappointment and the feeling of being abandoned.

Playing alone these past few weeks reminded him of the days when he hadn't met his old friend.

It felt almost like a routine, like he was just trying to keep his number one rank in the server.

Playing with him made the game more fun, he thought.

But he had to keep those thoughts aside, as Lucien had to focus on the current situation.

<{ [ BloodReign_666] } : "What made you disappear for three weeks?"

No response.

Lucien furrowed his brows. Come on, reply...

Since there was no response, he requested an invite to KillSwitch to teleport him to his location.

In a matter of seconds, BloodReign_666 was teleported to KillSwitch's base. 

<{ [ BloodReign_666 ] } : "Dude, look at my messages. I seriously thought you died or something!"

<[ KillSwitch ] : "Huh?"

His response came a few seconds late,

<[ KillSwitch ] : "I went on multiple back-to-back business trips, and hadn't had time to log on."

Lucien sighed, but felt relieved at the same time. He patted his racing heart, at least nothing bad happened.

<{ [ BloodReign_666 ] } : "Could you tell me next time? I thought we were good enough friends to let each other know about things like that."

KillSwitch toggled the "pray" pose.

<[ KillSwitch ]: "I tried my best, I'm very sorry."

Lucien glanced at KillSwitch's character doing the praying pose, he shaked his head and chuckled a little.

<{ [ BloodReign_666 ] }: "Alright, I understand."

<{ [ BloodReign_666 ] } : "It's a shame because the devs had to make this event's boss way too OP."

<{ [ BloodReign_666 ] } : "I could have really used that Void Obsidian to ascend my sword."

<[ KillSwitch ]: "Don't worry."

<{ [ BloodReign_666 ] } : "?"

KillSwitch's character disappeared for a few seconds before returning to the same spot.

After a few seconds, Lucien received a gift in his in-game mailbox.

<[ KillSwitch ]: "For you."

<{ [ BloodReign_666 ] } : "You're kidding right..."

!!

<{ [ BloodReign_666 ] } : "Wait, how much did that cost!"

Lucien's mouth gaped when he looked up the price of the void obsidian, he tried to push back his jaw but the shock was too great.....

KillSwitch's character slowly started circling around BloodReign's.

<[ KillSwitch ] : "It doesn't matter, I feel really bad for ghosting you like that."

<[ KillSwitch ] : "Plus- I do value you as a friend. And you know, I've been dying to play with you too."

The words, "dying to play with you too." Warmed a certain part of Lucien's heart. Hearing those words made him really happy.

<{ [ BloodReign_666 ] } : It doesn't matter, I've already forgiven you..."

<{ [ BloodReign_666 ] } : "But um, thank you. I appreciate it, and I appreciate you as a friend too."

<{ [ BloodReign_666 ] } : "Since you've already given it, I'll gladly accept."

In a high-rise penthouse, a man in casual attire let out a chuckle. The laughter was electrifying to the ears, like tickling the heartstrings — it was very pleasant. 

His gaze lingered on the character in front of him, holding some unknown meaning, he typed out the words, "All yours."

Lucien's eyes sparkled at the sight of the Void obsidian. He got his sword off a random mountain while killing zombie camp bases, and it was a complete suprise when he casually found one of the rarest swords in the game inside a chest.

While it was quite strong, the higher you upgraded the sword, the rarer the materials it required.

And one of the upgrade materials just so happened to be a void obsidian.

With his newly upgraded sword, the two tested it out on a few unsuspecting zombies loitering around.

Hours passed by just like this, as his focus remained fixed on the game, the world outside faded into the background. 

Lucien sat back on his chair, he closed his eyes, the rush of adrenaline subsiding. 

His mind can't help but wander to what KillSwitch said.

He imagined a middle-aged businessman suited up and going on multiple business trips, just to kneel and apologize to his in-game character.

He felt like laughing, but due to his edge lord complex, held it in.

He sensed his body getting weak, and his stomach started to gurgle, but it was already midnight, and he didn't feel like going out.

Without even bothering to call delivery, Lucien called it a day and told himself that he would just stock up on groceries in the morning.

                      ***

The sound of the alarm clock came ringing, the time was 8:40, Lucien brushed his teeth and got ready for a bath.

He twisted the shower valve and the cold water rushed over him, immediately grounding his thoughts. 

The sensation reminded him of a tranquil waterfall, each drop washing away his morning grogginess.

He twisted the shower valve once again, stopping the flow of the water, and this time he reached out for the lavender bath soap.

The soapy suds clung to his slender form, their gentle lather following the natural lines of his body.

Lucien was about to reach for the bottle of shampoo when he heard his phone's ringtone ringing.

In a rush, he rinsed off the soap, wrapped himself up in a towel, and picked up his phone.

"Hello?" He gripped his phone, a little annoyed at who ruined his relaxing bath time.

"Honey!"

A soft, feminine voice came out from the other end.

"How are you? Have you been eating properly?" 

"Mom? Im okay... How about you? I've been eating properly..." He swallowed and sucked in his lips.

The voice from the other side instantly became lively,

"That's great! I just came to check up on you. I sent some money to your online bank account, get yourself something healthy, don't just binge on energy drinks!"

"Yes mom... I will." He answered, the call went on for a while before Lucien reminded his mom of his grocery shopping trip.

She felt reluctant, but knowing that her son had something to do, she hung up the phone.

Lucien breathed a sigh of relief before finishing his bath.

His attire today consists of his favourite oversized black hoodie, black ripped skinny jeans, a chain necklace, and dark sunglasses.

Upon arriving at the grocery store, countless shoppers immediately noticed him, some even whispered amongst themselves.

Shopping with this fashion made him stick out like a sore thumb, but he paid no mind, he stayed true to himself, and didn't want to conform to societies "lame way" of dressing.

He directly proceeded to his favourite aisle, the ready-made and instant noodles aisle.

Contrasting his usual apathetic attitude, he thoughtfully looked at the different instant noodle prices, choosing the cheapest one.

He thought, by this method, he would save the most when the apocalypse arrives, so he grabbed ten packs.

Then, feeling a tad bit guilty, he picked up a caesar salad, some greek yogurt, and a few fruits. 

He remembered his mother's words on the phone, and decided to listen to her.

It was her money after all.

He stepped out of the grocery store, pulling his hood up and dropping his head low, starting his slow march home. 

The intensity of the heat waves became even stronger, sweat started to drop from Lucien's body, especially being covered in that thick hoodie.

It was already two in the afternoon.

But Lucien didn't falter, despite the heat, he had to keep his swagger.

Instead, he refocused his thoughts on the apocalypse.

"If zombies were to exist, that grocery store would've been filled with zombies, the doors boarded up with wooden planks and I'd be the only one out of there."

Lucien scoffs, "But that day is far from now, the world isn't prepared for doomsday, but I sure as hell am."

He quickened his pace home, not wanting to pass out from heat stroke.

As soon as he entered his apartment, he turned on the AC and dropped off the bag of instant noodles on the counter, before turning on his computer.