I'm looking at the ceiling.
A faint smile appears.
– …too bad for them…
– I don't intend to stop.
A deathly silence.
She keeps staring at me
Then.
BOOM!
Explosion.
The door collapses
Everyone ends up on the ground, piled on top of each other.
And those who did not follow the fall ran inwards.
Create.
It grabs on and pulls.
– Hey!
– I want to see it!
– Let go of me!
– Non !
– wait !
I remain motionless.
With my good eye.
I spot it.
A tall, muscular man.
A nervous girl, the one from earlier.
A discreet guy who stayed at the back with his arms crossed, and another injured guy, I'd say, had an arm amputated.
And especially the one they nicknamed "the old woman," she's anything but old.
Strange profiles among rather ordinary people, is this another level?
I breathe.
– where is here… I murmured.
– how I ended up there…
I look around.
Without a sound, she gets up and walks to the window, opens it and stretches her arm outwards.
- look at
An icy breath seeps into me.
Behind her…
A city.
Grey and sad buildings, in this white snow.
Streets drawn in white.
Screens as black as my vision.
And… people.
Not really many.
About ten.
All with tracksuits attached to their hips.
I remain frozen.
– …are we still in the game…?
They're looking at me.
Surprise.
"Who are you...?" the boss asked.
I touch my temple and answer without hesitation.
– Ki-Moon.
– And I intend to return alive.
She stared at me, scrutinizing me from every angle.
"That's impossible," she breathed.
Pause
– firstly, your soul is already affected by the "frost", your fingers and toes are already blue, you will soon disappear, and secondly, it is a thousand times better to stay and live here than to return to the game
Around me, some people began to tremble at these words.
Me…
Pause.
– …I don't care, they will be deleted.
I get up and walk forward.
– I'm getting out of here
"You?" the little girl asked me.
The chief stood silently to the side
"We were all the same the first time," continued the muscular man.
– You wake up, there were thousands of us with hope, we traversed this land, fought monsters all along the way, again and again, without respite, without a break, for fear of being eaten
Pause
Why, in the end, fight like slaves in the game without a break just for entertainment? At least here we have a semblance of life; we protect our village and live in peace without being forced to kill each other in a game.
I breathe.
I smile.
Slowly.
- All right…
I look at the chief.
– Listen to me.
– Stay here…it's your choice
– "It's better to have a demon you know than an angel you've never seen"
I'm not forcing you to do anything, but letting them win without lifting a finger... you don't have family or friends that this game has taken from you. I have nothing left to lose.
– I will do everything to take them with me.
When I saw him
His inert body lay submerged in the snow, gradually being covered by the rising storm.
Gently blowing on him
I thought to myself that it was another one who had fled.
Heads bowed, a crowd of about 15 people advanced with skin bags on their backs.
"HURRY!" I ordered, speaking from the front.
– (the storm is coming, yet another one)
I thought
The group agreed and doubled their pace despite the depth of the snow.
Something appears.
Initially unclear.
Then clear.
A Body.
Real estate.
Half covered.
"What is that thing?" asked a member of the group, watching the leader freeze in place.
A white outfit with a flag and a number on the back.
I'm stopping.
My heart starts beating again.
- Serious… ?
- Again…
What is a player doing here?
The group had stopped, observing their master who had paused over the body