Coming to, I snapped my eyes open as pain—unlike anything I'd ever felt—shot through my body. It felt as if I had fallen from a three-story building. The pain was strong, but I gritted my teeth as I realized I didn't recognize my surroundings. For a moment, the pain made me forget what happened—the last expression my mother held before we were torn apart. I slowly rose and began surveying what surrounded me.
For as far as the eye could see, it was only a stone floor. It was rough and cold. A faint light came from above. It was subtle, but it allowed me to see what was around me. All the contents of my briefcase were scattered around me and… a chain?
The chain I was holding onto before I... left. I guess I fell—but from where?
Where am I? I thought.
But that thought lasted a second. I realized I was still wearing my jacket and immediately checked for my phone. Maybe I could check my location or contact someone. But the jacket was empty. My stomach fell. I patted myself, frantically checking every pocket. Nothing. Searching through the clutter of my briefcase, it was nowhere to be found. But my jacket felt heavier than normal...
So once again, I patted myself down—this time thoroughly. I felt something in the inside pocket of my jacket. Could it be? I quickly reached inside and felt—
My phone!
I drew my phone from my jacket like a sword from a stone. I was so happy that I had forgotten about the pain in my chest. I quickly recoiled and held my ribs. I brought my phone to my face and realized the screen was dark. My weak smile dropped.
I charged my phone this morning—there's no way it could be dead. Then again... I don't know how long I was out for. Maybe it just powered down to preserve the battery. Yeah, that's gotta be it.
I held the button down, and thankfully it powered on. A white screen nearly blinded me. I felt a weak smile slowly grow on my face, then fade again as the screen stayed white. It doesn't usually take this long for it to power on... but I felt I was just being impatient.
So I waited. And waited. And waited... but no matter how long I stared at that blank screen, it wouldn't change. Now I was really growing impatient.
"Ugh! Stupid phone, why won't you work?!"
I gripped my phone with both hands and slammed it on the ground. I was so frustrated I couldn't contain my anger. I slammed it as hard as I could. However, even with all of my strength put into it, the phone stayed intact. In fact, it didn't even have a scratch on it.
It settled screen-down, and I could clearly see the back of it—and on the back was a company I had never heard of: "Res Cradle."
What...?
That's not my phone company name. A sudden realization struck me: That isn't my phone.
If that wasn't my phone, what was it? And how was it able to function like a cellphone—or look like one? I grabbed the phone-like object and flipped the screen toward me:
[Welcome Resident 3415682, Your stream will start shortly.]
I blinked at the screen, struggling to process what it said. The words didn't register—they just floated there, empty.
'Stream'? What did it mean?
No—more importantly, if there's a stream… then that means someone is watching.
But who?
Or worse... what?
Argh, this is driving me crazy. I can't be the only one down here.
"IS ANYBODY OUT THERE?"
My voice echoed—soft at first, then strangely louder. The sound came back at me like a shout from someone else. My whole body jolted.
"Geez… that scared me."
But then a thought struck me. How could my voice come back like that... unless...
"Wait... please, God, don't let me be right."
I sprinted into the darkness. It probably looked insane, but I had a theory: if the echo returned like that… then this space wasn't just dark. It was closed.
I ran harder. My breath rasped in my throat. And then—I saw it. A dim light in the distance.
Could it be...?
I pushed myself forward. The moment I reached the light, my stomach dropped. The same scattered briefcase. The debris. The chain. I was right.
This place... was a loop.
I stumbled backward, tripping over myself. My ragged breath intensified.
This... this can't be possible.
No—this is a nightmare. Like the one I had last night. If I sleep, it'll all be over. Yeah. That makes more sense.
I had just begun believing that this was a nightmare, curling up on the ground like a baby, but I was soon brought back to reality when my phone buzzed wildly. It vibrated like an angry nest of wasps. I pulled it out of my pocket and saw—me?
Or rather, a video of me, from behind. I turned around to check if I could see a camera, but nothing was there. Just the same darkness as before. I looked at my phone again, and there was a live viewer count that said 2,000, and there was a chat. People were saying things like:
"What is he doing?"
"Oh~ He has white hair."
"Wonder what he's thinking right now."
"Why is he just laying there?"
Desperate for any sort of clue as to how to leave, I shouted in the direction of the camera:
"Help! Please! I know you're watching! They've trapped me here and I can't find a way out!"
I tried so hard to get the attention of whoever was watching. Maybe they'll help me. I checked my phone, and the chat stopped moving for a second—then sped up like never before.
I tried my best to read, but all I could see was—laughter.
"HAHAHAHAHA"
"LOLOLOLOL"
"THIS IDIOT! HAHAHAHAHA"
I don't get it. Why were they laughing? What could be so funny about me being stuck here, asking for help?
The view count skyrocketed—3,000, 4,000, 7,000—the numbers didn't stop. Eventually, it settled at 15000, and the chat was going too fast for me to read. The people sending messages were like rabid animals. Any move I made, any sound I made, only egged them on.
I stared blankly into my phone.
Why is this happening to me?
I fell to my knees. The chat went faster.
I have done nothing wrong to anybody, yet I am here... why?
Then I heard a ding. It was like a notification—but in the physical world. I looked up and, much to my surprise, a floating red screen appeared.
What is that...?
I stood and attempted to grab it—curious, but also desperate. But my hand went through it. It wasn't real.
Then, a countdown appeared on the screen. 15 seconds.
It counted down, and the chat sped up unlike anything I had seen before.
"It's starting!"
"I can't wait!!!!"
"Wait, I don't have my popcorn!"
"WOOOOOOOOO"
"This is going to be the best one yet."
The lower the timer got, the wider my eyes got, and the more my mind began racing. But one thought dominated my mind:
What will happen once the countdown reaches zero?
I guess my question will be answered soon.
As the timer hit 5, the screen flashed as each second passed—3, 2, 1, 0.
I flinched, preparing myself for some sort of explosion or something flashy, but the screen simply disappeared.
A wave of relief washed over me. I half expected to blow up the moment it hit zero.
The relief was short-lived as reality itself began to fracture in front of me.
It looked like a gate or a door to another world, but I couldn't see what was on the other side—it was all white. It let off a low hum and pulsed every few seconds.
I was too scared to move.
Then the screen appeared in front of me again:
[Tutorial: Kill the goblin]
[Reward: Life]
[Penalty: Death]
"Wha... What...?" I stammered.
It didn't seem real. It's like I'm stuck in some sort of twisted solo fantasy game.
"A goblin?" I muttered.
"Like the ones in the video games...?"
"Heh." I chuckled, but it wasn't out of humor.
"You've got to be kidding me..." I said.
"This has to be some sort of joke, right?"
My voice shook.
The fracture let off a deafening screech as it glowed brightly. I covered my ears to ease the ringing.
"What...?" I gritted.
I looked up—and a shadow appeared at the entrance of the portal.