Apocalypse: System of lotteries

Mike, dragging a massive sword, charged into the horde of zombies with laughter. Every skill point he had was invested in strength. With one swing, multiple zombie heads rolled.

Suddenly, he spotted a bus. Ripping open its door, he darted inside. He positioned himself at the entrance, raising his shield, felling each advancing zombie with swift blows. He reminisced about the time he had ascended from rank 0 to 5 with just a bus. That was also the time he bonded with Big Brother.

Mike booted an attacking zombie out of the entrance and thrust his sword through another's head, bellowing, "Come on!"

...

Hawkins, wielding a thin sword, and Alan, brandishing a long spear, were ruthlessly dispatching zombies with shattered eyeballs, stumbling about. Amidst the chaos, a large white rooster fluttered around, leaping and pecking at the zombies, hitting its mark every time.

"Good thing you brought those birds along," Hawkins said, driving his blade through the skull of a blinded zombie. "And this rooster of yours is quite impressive."

"..."

Thud!

Three zombies plummeted from the sky, hitting the ground with broken bones. A massive black eagle landed, seizing two more zombies and soaring upwards.

"Such a magnificent eagle," Hawkins exclaimed, "What's its name?"

With a swift motion, Alan's spear penetrated the skulls of two zombies. Pulling it free, he replied, "Golden-winged Roc."

"Awesome!" Hawkins gave a thumbs-up. "Certainly a better name than  Brother's picks."

...

Atop a building, Digennaro gazed at a wild antelope, "I had initially wanted to eat you. But for now, we're 'in this together'. Given that, I've decided to befriend you and won't eat you. Even if we get out of here, I won't."

"Me~h," the antelope, tied to a street lamp below, looked fearfully at the horde of zombies. It turned its gaze to the girl above and bleated.

Holding twin blades, Digennaro waved at it, "Don't worry. If I got you up here, I can get you down. Just hang in there a bit longer."

Finishing her sentence, she turned to a giant billboard on the rooftop and, swinging her blades, chopped its support.

...

Ming pushed aside the rolling shutter. In his left hand, he held an electric drill, and in his right, a thunderous hammer. He stepped over the bodies of the fallen zombies and took to the streets. After surveying the scene, that half-hour of battling had yielded him 128 special gold coins.

He activated the holographic map and once again pinpointed the location of the special shop, marked by a green exclamation point. Closing the map, he immediately smashed an advancing zombie with his hammer and sprinted toward the upcoming street intersection. The special shop would only remain for five minutes, and he couldn't afford to delay.

Suddenly, Ming felt a sinking feeling, and in an instant, he disappeared beneath the street surface.

A moment later, Ming emerged from the sewer, stepping on the bodies of zombies. He cursed under his breath. Soon after, he arrived at the special shop. It resembled an automated vending machine. The screen displayed four options:

[1. Randomly unlock an equipment attribute for 100  coins.]

[2. Randomly unlock a row in the warehouse for 2000  coins.]

[3. Randomly unlock three slots in the puppet space for 3000 coins.]

[4. Randomly unlock a skill for 500  coins.]

"Damn!"

These prices are outrageous! All his savings could only unlock one random piece of equipment.

Damn, it's a real scam. Clearly, the game's rules are getting craftier by the day. Fortunately, his storage doesn't contain any weapons or equipment since they're all worn by the puppets in the puppet space.

So, the random unlocking can only affect his electric drill, thunder hammer, and the equipment he's wearing. At least that's not a total loss.

"Option 1."

[Spending 100  coins.]

[Random unlocking in progress... Unlocking gloves...]I think you should take a look at

"Damn!"

Ming gazed at the gloves. Perhaps it wasn't such a bad outcome. With improved hand speed, he could defeat zombies faster. To his delight, after unlocking the gloves, his personal attributes enhanced, elevating him to a 1-star lord rank.

Now, his top priority was to locate the others and, in the process, accumulate enough coins to unlock the puppet space. if release Raoul, Frank, and Euryale, just one of them would be enough to kick off the hunting spree.

Ming pressed forward, on the hunt for more zombies.

As he walked, he noticed that all the manhole covers on the street had been removed. And beneath? Stacks of zombie corpses. Who could have done this?

…

Digennaro strode into the street, observing the scattered zombies lying beneath a shattered billboard. Some were already lifeless, while the remainder had lost their will to fight. With confidence, she approached and dispatched the remaining foes with her twin blades.

After the brief combat, she brought down the wild goat hanging from the lamppost, gently rubbing its head. "After what we've been through, I think you deserve a proper name," she mused, hugging the goat's head and tapping her nose thoughtfully. "Even though you're a wild goat, you're still a goat. Plus, you've helped me take down so many zombies. It means you bring good luck. So... let's call you Little Susie."

"~~"

"bleated~"

…

Ming rounded the street corner, hoping to find the individual responsible for the manhole tactic. But there was no sign of anyone. It was odd. He was fast; why hadn't he caught up yet?

Suddenly, a soft hissing sound echoed from behind. Turning around, he spotted a mud-covered zombie emerging from a sewer opening. 

Without hesitation, Ming stepped forward, pinning the creature's hand beneath his foot, don't let it crawl out.

"Ouch!" 

"Oh no!"

"??"

Ming paused, startled. A zombie exclaimed "Oh no"? Had it gained sentience? He decided he had to act quickly, raising his hammer to strike.

"Wait, stop! It's me!"

"What the—"

Ming's eyes widened in realization. "David? What happened to you?"

"First, can you get your foot off my hand? It hurts!"

"Ah, right."

Ming bent down, offering his thunder hammer. "Here, let me help you up."

David grasped the hammer and pulled himself ashore. Once safely on the road's edge, he sat down, rubbing his temple. "Bro, that mud is too disgusting. Allow me a moment to gather myself. I wonder, how do you venture into the sewers daily without harm?"

Ming, scratching his head, replied, "Perhaps it's a kind of talent."

"And how did you end up in such a state?" Ming inquired.

David explained, "I opened the manhole cover to lure the zombies inside and kill them. Little did I expect, upon opening it, over a dozen, mutated earthworms spewed this foul-smelling mud at me. In a flash, I was overwhelmed and fell in."

"Earthworms?" 

Ming chuckled at the image, "Take it easy. I'll be right back." Without another word, he jumped into the sewer.

Sitting by the roadside, David, wiping his face, pondered, "What allure does the sewer hold for you?"