The sound of gunfire stopped as suddenly as it had come.
The course, however, continued to breathe.
Walls slid slowly by, like conscious tectonic plates. The corridors closed behind us, leaving no chance of escape. The floor vibrated, giving the impression that we were moving.
I remained motionless for several seconds after they left.
Not out of fear.
The cube, tucked against my chest, was still counting down its pause. Not an alert. Not a single message.
I was breathing slowly.
–…things are dragging on, I murmured.
Every second spent alive increased the debt.
The game wasn't asking me to pay to survive, not yet.
They were lending me their time…
…and charged others for what that time would cost.
I got moving again.
Further on, the path suddenly widened into a circular area, crisscrossed by broken pillars and suspended walkways. Below, a purple mist obscured the actual ground. It was impossible to know whether a fall would mean injury… or immediate demise.
Silhouettes moved across the giant screens above.
The votes were rolling in.
On interactions.
– wait for me, shouted a voice from the back calling out to me.
– No, without even turning around, and disappears into the violet mist
Solitude is more effective.
"Lucky guy…," shouted the voice behind me.
It is my dear.
I was the center of attention.
I was the catalyst.
Attracting everything now
A metallic noise.
I was pressed against a pillar when a blade pierced the exact spot where my head had been a second earlier.
L-07.
He appeared on the opposite walkway, breathing barely faster than normal. His gaze was cold, almost vexed.
"You're annoying," he snapped.
– You should already be dead.
"I know," I replied calmly.
I take a step to the side.
And disappeared again into the mist.
L-07, Jura.
I hadn't done anything.
And that was the worst part.
"You're tampering with the land," he spat.
I raised my hands slightly.
A new message appeared, visible on my watch.
[DEBT: INTEREST LEVEL 2] [EACH FAILED ATTEMPT AT ELIMINATION INCREASES THE RISK FOR THE CRIMINAL]
BAM!
A blade pierced the holographic message
He had spotted me
But each failure weakens them.
"Give up, L-07," I said softly.
– You don't want to be the one who pays for others.
BOM !
An explosion rang out to my right. A walkway collapsed, pulling another player, BR-03, with him; he followed me into the purple mist.
An accident.
The screens exploded with reactions.
– It's not him!
– Yes
– But who?!
– Damn!
– don't even think about failing
L-07 retreated again.
Suffocated by the mist that rose towards him
"How can you breathe in that? You're a fucking bug..." he breathed.
Further on, BR-03.
Property.
Unconscious on the ground.
I walked past him, stared at him for a long time, and then nudged him with my foot.
He is still breathing
I look up and meet
Ji-yunwoo
Walking towards me in the open, without running, Yun Seo slightly behind. No weapon raised. No sign of stress. As if he were walking through a familiar landscape.
I sensed it even before I saw it.
He passed by a few meters away.
He finally turned his head towards me.
His gaze was neither hostile nor benevolent.
He was… tired.
"Are you alive?" he asked.
As we move away
The sound of hurried footsteps.
Seo-Hwan.
He arrived through a side corridor, out of breath, with a wild look in his eyes.
"Are you plotting something?" he spat.
He raised his weapon.
Seo-Hwan shoots.
The projectile veered off course at the last second, hit a pillar, ricocheted, and lodged itself in the shoulder of L-07… who had just arrived behind him.
Cri.
Chaos.
Seo-Hwan turned around in disbelief.
Silence
I stepped back, and disappeared.
A new message flashed.
[INCREASING INTEREST] [SATISFIED CREDITOR]
The screens changed.
[GLOBAL WARNING] [THE DEBT SYSTEM IS NOW ACTIVE]
In the buyers' room, silence fell.
Then a laugh.
Lent.
Deep.
"Interesting..." murmured a buyer. "Very interesting."
I looked up at the cameras.
– …what he is playing at.
I was increasingly doubting this vicious and dishonest game.