"Alright, alright—no more teasing… Here it is—THE PRIZE FOR THE ONE AND ONLY… MIDNIGHT!"
Akuma's voice, already a razor's edge, scraped against my eardrums, a prelude to the torment I instinctively knew was coming.
My stomach, already a tight knot of apprehension, churned violently.
A prize? For solving a quiz?
In this digital purgatory, where every flicker of hope was a harbinger of deeper despair, such a concept was an outright mockery. My carefully constructed cold exterior, a lifetime's work of emotional regulation, felt like a brittle shell about to shatter under an unseen hammer.
Suddenly, with an electronic shriek that echoed the rising panic in my chest, the massive screen behind Akuma seized.
The room, previously a cacophony of toxic energy, held its breath. Instead of flashing lights or a triumphant fanfare, a stark, unsettling image materialized, searing itself into my vision.
It was a mugshot of me.
