Chapter 4 — Me Lo Airport

9. The game enters day five. As soon as I left Haidilao, I immediately encountered Ngo Tri and his group. His team had swelled to more than twenty people, sharing cookies. Just glancing at the packaging, my head went "bang" — that's where the cookies were stolen from me! Each package has a corner that I intentionally tore off as a mark. I blushed and walked quickly: "Ngo Tri, you stole my cake!" Ngo Tri smiled brightly and gave me one: "Don't be angry. I said from the beginning that you should join me, but you refused." “Give me back the cake.” “Let me ask if my teammates are willing to pay?” — He pointed behind him, more than twenty eyes shining with greed were staring at me. I took the piece of cake he gave me, took a step back, and asked: "Is it still time to join your group?" “Sister, it's late.” — Ngo Tri smiled, still looking as gentle as ever: "From the beginning, this game is not for lonely people. If you want to live, players must join forces to steal other people's resources. As for you, no money, no food... there is no useful value at all." At this moment, the system announced: 【Welcome players to the fifth day. To increase the fun of the game, from today, all water purifiers in the airport will stop supplying water. The water source in the toilet has been contaminated and cannot be drunk.】 Immediately, the public channel exploded: "Fuck you, interesting!" "Out of water? Three more days left?! Do you want to kill us all?!" Ngo Tri's group also began to stir, fear quickly swallowed up the short-lived joy of just having food. Water — which is even more dangerous than food — is the deadly currency in this game. But Ngo Tri remained calm, raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, his voice was calm but contained an irresistible power: "What are you afraid of? It's just water." His eyes glanced at me, then turned back and said to the group: "The other players still have water. The robbery is over." My heart sank. Before I could run away, more than twenty pairs of bloodshot eyes locked on me — and right after that, the whole group, like a pack of hyenas, smelling blood, rushed towards me at the same time!

“Let go! This is mine!” — I hugged my backpack tightly, but my hands couldn't support dozens of arms. The strap was ripped off, the zipper was torn, and two heavy bottles of mineral water inside were violently stolen. The remaining sugar packets also scattered everywhere and were immediately scrambled over. I was pushed to the ground. Ngo Tri's voice was cold: "Spending your life is already very merciful, go away!" I jumped up and rushed away, not because I was afraid of him, but to... steal the country. Before the others could react, I arrived at the place — the liquid disposal area. According to airport security regulations, the amount of liquid carried on the plane cannot exceed 100ml. At the security gate, guests will leave bottles of mineral water, soft drinks, fruit juice... in trash cans or specialized collection baskets placed next to them. At the domestic departure area, in front of me were three chest-high, giant-capacity transparent plastic bins. Inside was filled with all kinds of bottles: mineral water, purified water, energy drinks, carbonated water, tea, fruit juice... all kinds of bright colors, some were newly opened, not even opened yet. Two NPCs wearing auxiliary security uniforms were standing nearby. Rushing into the trash will definitely activate it warned and was dragged out by security guards. Don't hesitate - the opportunity comes in the blink of an eye! I immediately put on a look of extreme panic on my face, quickly walked to the security gate, and aimed straight at the liquid containers. “Please give way!” — My voice was hoarse, as if I was about to cry, as I pushed through the queue and successfully attracted the attention of the staff. “Passengers please line up!” — A middle-aged employee frowned and stopped me. "Sorry! Sorry!" — I spoke quickly, frantically, pointing to the liquid disposal bin: "My ring... seems to have fallen there. It's a souvenir left by my grandmother! It's my only treasure, please let me go in and find it... just a little! Please!" My tears flowed out at the right time, looking both real and urgent. The man paused for a second, then leaned over to make way: "Hurry up! Don't slow down the line!" "Thank you! Thank you so much!" — I gratefully ran over and hugged the whole box. "In order not to affect everyone, I'll take the trash bag somewhere else to search!" Having finished speaking, I lifted three large trash bags from the bin and quickly retreated from the staff's sight. Oh my god... this water is enough to keep me alive for three more days! I quickly picked out a bag full of unopened bottles, then walked out of the security area, my heart pounding. Not daring to linger, I rushed straight into an empty disabled restroom and locked the door. It is absolutely impossible for any player to know that I alone own that many moves. I climbed onto the toilet, opened the toilet ceiling, and hid some of the water there. After that, I took the rest and dispersed them into a few other narrow gaps in the area. Next, I ran to the international departure security area, repeated the same trick, collected a large amount of water and hid it. It's not because I'm greedy — it's because… I have a bigger plan. 10. As of the end of Thursday, there are 67 players remaining. Ngo Tri's team has up to 25 people, acting like a swarm of locusts - every time they encounter a player, they search everything, from water, food to even a piece of cookie. Anyone who dared to resist was immediately punched and kicked mercilessly. The NPC completely ignored this violence, and the security guard did not show up to stop it. “Pop!” — A player fell to the ground because of low blood sugar, the back of his head hit the cold tile floor, blood immediately spilled out. “Dead… dead?” — Someone asked in panic. Several staff wearing white blouses carrying a stretcher appeared, quickly placed the victim on the stretcher, and covered him with a white cloth. Immediately after that, the cleaning staff came forward to clean the blood stains on the floor. It all happened so fast that I didn't have time to blink. The system quickly announced: 【Player number 93, physical index is 0, is eliminated. Burdened with a debt of 1 million yuan.】 Today the number of eliminated people broadcast on the loudspeaker was much higher, the number dropped dramatically. I knew I had to find allies — build a team strong enough to confront Ngo Tri. In my mind, I quickly scrolled through the faces I had observed these past few days, then stopped at a group of six people. Leading the way is player number 84, who looks very agile, the rest are all tall boys with healthy physiques. I found them in the arrivals hall. Observing for a moment, I realized that their condition was not good — one person's lips were dry and cracked, another person was constantly licking his lips. Apparently they are short of water. This is it is an opportunity. I carried a branded bag and walked closer: "Hello, I'm Ly Quynh, player number 66. I want to join your team." Player number 48 stood up, his eyes alert: "Go away, we don't accept women." I gave them the bag, inside were three bottles of water. The group's eyes immediately lit up. I was straightforward: "I have a safe water source, ensuring the basic drinking needs for the whole team. In return, I want to join and share food together." Number 48 is still skeptical: “How much water do you have?” “If we save, there will be enough for the seven of us to survive the remaining three days.” “We need to know where the source is.” — Player number 33, the most alert in the group, spoke up to investigate. I immediately shook my head: "You just need to know that I have a way to find water, and I'm willing to share it with the whole team. That's enough." The water storage location is my trump card — it absolutely cannot be revealed. Number 48 turned around and exchanged quick glances with his teammates. "Okay." — Finally, he held out his hand: "Ly Quynh, welcome to join. I'm Luc Mac. These are Dai Vu, A Triet, Tieu Man, Beo Dinh and Dai Trang. Team rules: absolutely do not betray teammates." I nodded: "Happy cooperation." Thanks to the water source, I was able to exchange food for the team.

Friday's dawn did not bring hope, but only sowed more despair. I went alone to the security area, hoping to get some more water. But there are now five guards standing guard, eyes glued to the liquid containers. It seems that the system has blocked this line again — the last stable water source... has been cut off. Yesterday, some players who couldn't stand their thirst drank water from the restroom. The virus took them down, and they were eliminated soon after. At that moment, the loudspeaker in the airport suddenly rang out: 【To speed up the elimination and enhance the entertainment of the final battle, now activate the "Elimination Survival" mechanism!】 【Today, the 20 players with the lowest hunger, thirst, and physical strength will be eliminated at 0:00.】 【Please note: In the T3 terminal, 3 "Emergency Supplies Boxes" will randomly appear. supply", inside contains enough food, water and some medicine. The location of a supply crate will be announced throughout the map every time it appears.】 Immediately, the public channel exploded in curses and despair: "This damn system just wants us to default, we've all been fooled by it!" “First you cut off the water, now you force players to kill each other, too cunning!” “Calm down, you'll find your own way to death by T3!” Panic spread throughout the team.