BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
The familiar sound of Chrono's phone alarm blared from the bedside table. At this point, it was little more than background noise to him.
The loud, irritating noise that usually jolted him awake now sounded muted, distant—like the low hum of a refrigerator. Chrono sat up slowly, one hand pressed hard against his forehead, fingers digging into his hair. His half-lidded, hollow eyes stared into empty space for a long, heavy moment before he finally forced himself out of bed. Every movement was deliberate and slow, as if his body resisted leaving the safety of the mattress.
He made his way to the door. When his fingers closed around the doorknob, they trembled slightly. He gritted his teeth.
The rotting girl's voice echoed in his mind with perfect clarity.
"Open the door."
The memory hit him like a physical blow. He gagged involuntarily, free hand flying up to cover his mouth.
"How did it end up like this? Why did it end up like this…?" he muttered through clenched teeth, voice unsteady. He lowered his hand and let it hang limply at his side.
I can't stay in my room forever.
I'm getting sick of it.
I need some fresh air.
No…
No, I don't.
It's fine.
Just the kitchen is fine.
As long as I can…
As long as I can make it out of this room.
Then… maybe…
His thoughts trailed off. Chrono's fingers clenched tighter around the doorknob. He drew a deep breath and turned it.
He braced himself, half-expecting the metallic stench of blood and a mountain of mutilated corpses waiting just beyond the threshold. When neither appeared, he let out a soft, shaky sigh of relief.
He descended the staircase with slow, unsteady steps that lacked any urgency or strength. It looked as though one wrong footfall would send him tumbling the rest of the way. As he reached the bottom, he scanned the space for anything out of place—left toward the living room, right toward the dining and kitchen area.
His eyes widened.
It was May.
She sat neatly atop the dining table, legs crossed, hands planted on either side of her. She wore the Aetherreach High uniform: a white blouse and black tie beneath a green blazer, a green pleated skirt that sat above her knees, and a black cap. Her eyes narrowed the moment they met his. A condescending smirk tugged at the corners of her mouth.
Chrono's breath hitched. He remained rooted in place, not daring to move.
"You've finally decided to stop rotting in your room. I'm glad." May's words carried no real warmth. They sounded more patronizing than anything else.
"Why the hell are you here…?" Chrono's voice was low and defensive. He took a small step back.
May paused, looking him over from head to toe as if deciding whether the question deserved an answer. She tilted her head slightly and rested her hands on the brim of her cap, tugging it playfully.
"Y'know, Aunt Mariah never used to make me wear caps."
Chrono's frightened expression hardened into irritation. "Answer my question."
"She'd say it makes me look more gloomy or something. Honestly, I disagree. Caps make you look less gloomy in my opinion."
"..."
May glanced down at him, still looking slightly upward. "Oh, did you say something? Sorry, I couldn't hear you down there."
"Why are you here?" Chrono repeated, voice sharper, more demanding.
May's smirk flattened into a thin line. She lowered her head and looked straight at him. Her eyes narrowed. She looked more annoyed than angry, as though Chrono had stepped into her personal space uninvited.
She didn't answer.
Chrono exhaled through his nose and stuffed his hands into the pockets of his shorts. "If you're here to kill me… just make it quick."
May snickered, then burst into open laughter. She buried her face in one hand for a moment before looking back at him, shoulders still shaking.
"Wow! You can't be serious, Zeph. Stop saying emo depressed stuff like that. It doesn't fit you."
"It's like… it's like when some kid starts acting all sad and avoiding people 'cause their mom said they aren't getting any fast food." She laughed between the words, clearly struggling to contain her amusement.
"You really are an idiot, Zeph. And to think someone like you took my life. Murder sure isn't limited to the intelligent."
"Cut it out! Are you going to tell me or not? Why the hell are you here!?" Chrono's voice rose as he stepped closer, anger flaring across his face.
May's smile faltered. She rolled her eyes. "You still don't get it? Do I really have to spell it out for you?"
"If you're not here to kill me, then what? Why are you even here? Did you come to torment me? Is that it?"
May didn't answer. She folded her arms and closed her eyes, as if trying to shut him out entirely.
"You really aren't going to answer?"
"Zeph." Her voice was flat.
"You've been in your house for ten loops straight. Ten! And you're asking me why I'm here? You're so stupid it's actually impressive."
"So you're here to get me to continue. You want me to continue doing this challenge?"
May clapped mockingly. "Wowww, you got it. It only took you like eleven questions, but that's a positive, right?"
"I don't get it though. Wouldn't it benefit you more if I just gave up, failed the challenge, and died?"
May waved a hand dismissively. "Who cares about that? When a player is down, it's the coach's job to motivate them, isn't it?"
"Motivate? You're trying to motivate me?"
"Yeah, that's right. Because you're pathetic and decided to give up after only three loops. You can't be more of a bum than that!"
Chrono clicked his tongue, jaw tight with irritation. "Well, you aren't being the best 'motivator' right now. Besides, you aren't doing this because you want to. Isn't that right?"
May's eyes narrowed. She said nothing.
"Because you face some sort of consequence if I fail like this, right? Why else would someone like you want me to continue? That's the only reason I can think of."
"Did you read that out of a textbook?"
May hopped off the table and walked closer until she stood directly in front of him. She looked up with a smirk. "But you're right. If I wanted to, I'd just watch you rot in your room until you ran out of loops. But… circumstances prevent me from doing so."
"But this is less about me, and more about you. Do you really want to fail this challenge?" Her smirk faded. She stared at him with an intense, wide-eyed glare.
Chrono flinched and took a step back. "I… I don't know."
"Do you know what happens when you fail?"
He hesitated. He already knew the answer—death—but the way she asked made it sound like that wasn't the whole truth.
"Death…? I die…" His voice was low and uncertain.
"Yes, that's what the figure said would happen. But that's a lie."
"A lie?"
"That's right. To even call it death is a mockery of death itself. Death is the end of life. The release of consciousness from the realm of the living. What happens isn't remotely close to that."
"It's eternal torture."
"Eternal torture?" Chrono repeated, brow furrowing.
"And I'm just supposed to believe this?"
"If you don't believe anything else I've said, at least believe this. You'll be impaled by spears, your limbs outstretched, pinned to a scorching-hot floor by even more spears. An infinite amount of information will constantly be forced into your brain, causing even greater agony. This will play on repeat for eternity. Your body will be constantly rewound so you'll never grow used to the pain. You'll experience everything as though it were the first time."
She stepped closer, hands clasped behind her back. "Do you… do you really want to experience that?"
Chrono swallowed. A bead of sweat slid down from his temple. His face had gone pale. "What the hell…?"
"Yes. That is what happens when you fail. You suffer for eternity—and eternity is a very long time."
He looked down at his feet, teeth gritted. "I don't… I don't want to go through that…"
May smirked and stepped back. "Of course. I can't think of anyone who would. And that's your fate if you fail. The fate you're willingly walking into."
"Is that enough? Is that enough to get you to continue?" she asked, tilting her head.
"No… it's not."
May's eyes widened. Her mouth opened slightly in genuine surprise. "Are you serious…?"
"What…? What the hell are you saying? Eternal torture isn't enough to make you continue? Do you even know what you're saying?"
Chrono didn't answer. His expression and his words refused to align.
"You're an idiot, Zeph. Why can't you understand? What reason do you have not to continue?"
"I…" He tried to speak, but the words caught. He bit down hard on his lip.
"This challenge… my actions are why Talia, Iris, Mom, Dad—all those bodies—why you're the way you are now. I caused all of your deaths. I killed everyone… I'm a monster…"
"The only thing fitting for me is eternal torture, but…" He trailed off, raising one hand and staring into his open palm.
"Talia told me to keep moving forward. To keep living. In order… in order to honor her dying wish, I can't die. I can't fail this challenge."
May rolled her eyes and folded her arms. "Why does that matter? Why does any of that matter? None of the people who died remember they did. So why should you care? Why should you care about any loop you aren't currently in?"
A flash of irritation crossed Chrono's face. His expression hardened. "You don't get it at all… do you?"
May raised a brow. "What don't I get?"
"You can't disregard life, even if none of them can remember, even if you're looping. I witnessed it happen. I saw it happen. In that moment… in that loop… all those people… they're all dead."
"You're the last person I want to hear talking about not disregarding life!" May snapped. She stepped closer and seized the front of his shirt.
"Where was this level of concern when you handed me the book, huh? You didn't care about my life at all. You didn't even consider what would happen to me if you gave it to me. And even if you did, it didn't stop you from handing it over anyway. Do you only care about the majority? Someone as insignificant as me dying doesn't bother you at all?"
"When I died—when you turned me into this—you kept pushing. You continued the trial. And yet your sudden concern for life is stopping you from continuing? It's suddenly too much for you? Where's the resilience you got from my death, huh? Do you not care about me at all?"
Her voice rose, sharp with genuine anger.
"You're an unfair, disgusting piece of trash. You have morals you can't even abide by, and it's pissing me off."
"You even… you even said you were going to defeat me. You said you were going to get rid of me before this challenge ends. Do you have no accountability? You turned me into this. I didn't ask for this… and your solution is to get rid of me?"
"Who gave you that right? What gave you that right? Truth is, you don't care about me or life. It's only ever a problem when you can't bear it, huh?"
"You're a demon. No—you're worse than the devil himself. To hell with you and your double standards…"
May released his shirt. Her hands fell to her sides and clenched into fists so tight her nails drew blood.
"And that's why… that's why there's no way I'll let you fail like this. I don't want to suffer the same fate as someone like you."
Chrono's eyes widened. "Suffer the same fate? You mean…?"
"That's right. If I don't force you to trigger a certain number of Umbra Laws, I suffer the same fate if you fail. Eternal torture. And if you do nothing, there's no way I can force you to trigger any laws."
"So then I'll also get punished." She spread her arms and looked up at the ceiling with a bitter laugh. "I'll get punished for something I was dragged into. What a joke."
"Because unlike you… I didn't take up a glowing book on the beach. I was an innocent bystander forced onto the front lines. And I'll receive the same punishment as you if I fail."
"I'll die because you refuse to do anything. Because of morals you don't even abide by."
"What purpose do you even serve? Do you only exist to make me suffer?" She lowered her arms and her head, glaring at him.
Chrono opened his mouth, but no words came. He looked bewildered. It was hard to disagree with anything she had said. In her eyes, she had been treated unfairly from the start.
"That's… that's not it," he managed weakly, struggling to hold her gaze.
"What isn't it, Zeph? Gosh, you just always have something to say, huh? You're so annoying."
"I do care… I do care about your death. I didn't exclude you. It's just… I've reached a breaking point. With everything that happened last loop—knowing it's my fault—how can I really continue? How am I supposed to just brush this off?"
May clicked her tongue and folded her arms again. "You're so unbelievably selfish. There you go again, rambling about how it affects you and only you. You aren't the victim here. Stop acting like it."
Chrono offered no response. The guilt on his face was plain. He bit his lip hard.
May sighed and uncrossed her arms. "Fine then. You won't be persuaded by words? Then I'll force you."
"Force me…?"
"That's right. If you don't continue the challenge, I'll kill everyone you care about. Every single loop until you run out. On the last loop, they'll die permanently—along with you. You don't want that now, do you?"
Chrono's eyes flew wide with panic. "You're going to what!? There's no way you can do that!"
"Oh really? What's stopping me? I tried talking things through with you, but you continue to be stubborn. If being reasonable doesn't work, then the only other option is to be unreasonable."
She shrugged. "I planned for this, of course. I had to consider the possibility that, for whatever reason, you'd refuse to continue even after I told you what happens if you fail."
"So I held them hostage. Your parents, Talia, and Iris. All of them are tied up in your parents' room."
"You… you're lying! Stop lying to me!" Chrono's voice rang through the house. He swiped a hand through the air as if trying to physically push her words away.
May examined her nails. "I mean, sure, you can believe that. But you're free to look in there yourself."
"There's no way I can look…"
She lowered her hands and met his eyes again. "You sure are a piece of work. It doesn't matter if you look or not anyway. If you truly care about those people, then you have no choice but to continue the challenge."
"You value them over yourself, right? I don't see any reason you wouldn't continue after hearing my threat."
"Unless… maybe… you really didn't care about them in the first place. You care too much about yourself and your own well-being that you're ready to disregard the people you care about."
"But wait—that wouldn't make sense, would it? The entire reason you're in this situation right now is because you care about them. And if you didn't care, all of this would be for nothing."
"So then… you really have no choice. You have no choice but to continue."
"There's no other option."
"Choose them… or yourself."
May's words echoed inside Chrono's head. He gritted his teeth, squeezed his eyes shut, and sank to his knees, clutching his head with both hands.
"I don't… I don't want to make this choice. Just… just leave me alone."
"Idiot! I die if you fail. It's impossible for me to leave you alone. What aren't you getting? Do you hate me so much that you're willing to throw away the people you care about just to drag me down with you?"
"You're sick." May's voice was thick with genuine disgust.
"Please. Just give me more time to think about it." Chrono pleaded weakly. His hand dropped from his head to his chest, fingers curling into a tight fistful of his shirt as if trying to hold himself together.
"What the hell do you need more time for? This isn't a hard decision, Zeph." May's voice was sharp with anger, clearly fed up with his hesitation. "I won't give you any more time. You will answer right now."
A heavy hush settled over the room. The only sounds were the low hum of household appliances and the distant hush of the sea breeze beyond the walls.
This…
This doesn't feel right.
I don't want to continue simply because I've been threatened.
But…
I need to make a choice sooner or later.
No—there is no later.
I can't keep running away from this.
I don't need more time.
I just need to make up my mind. Right now.
I need to make a decision.
I have no choice but to.
I have to do it.
And…
I think…
I think I have the answer.
I think I know what I want to do.
Chrono opened his eyes and slowly rose to his feet. He released his shirt, letting his hands fall loosely to his sides. His expression was calm—too calm—yet something heavy and unresolved lingered behind his eyes.
Sorry, Talia.
But in the end… I couldn't…
"May." Chrono's voice was plain, cutting cleanly through the silence.
May didn't speak. She simply raised one eyebrow in acknowledgment.
"I have a question. I need you to answer it."
When she still said nothing, he continued. "I want to know how time acceleration works."
"Huh?" May's face twisted into genuine confusion. "Why is that even important?"
Chrono exhaled slowly. "I just want to know. It's the ability that allowed March to kill Talia. I at least want to understand how he did it."
May scoffed. "And why should I give you what you want?"
"Alright then. I'll promise you this. I'll give you my answer if you explain how time acceleration works."
May sighed, clearly irritated. "If you're lying, I'll kill you."
"Fine. Here's how it works."
She crossed her arms. "It's a predicted path determined by the universe itself. Like if a sprinter was in a hundred-meter race, the universe would predict them finishing that race. But obviously, in order to reach the end, you have to sprint there."
"Time acceleration ignores that completely. The sprinting. It would instantly bring you from the start of the race to the end without you ever having to sprint—like a teleport."
"So the universe predicted March would be in front of Talia at a specific point in time, and he could instantly close that distance without ever needing to actually move there himself."
"Oh, and of course—it only works after he activates a veil. And it only accounts for what position he'd be in after the veil was activated."
"That's it, basically." May's eyes narrowed. "So are you going to give me your answer now?"
Chrono nodded once. "Yeah. I will."
"It's ironic, really."
"What is?" May asked.
"Talia dying to an ability that forces you to move forward in time… and her dying message telling me to move forward."
A bitter, humorless smile tugged at the corners of Chrono's mouth.
"It's almost as if… moving forward is a burden. Something that will only cause more problems for me."
"My decision would be a no-brainer if it wasn't for Talia's dying message. And I wouldn't have lost to March if it wasn't for his acceleration ability."
"It doesn't help that I'm looping as well. A situation where moving forward in time is impossible."
He looked down at his open palm, then slowly clenched it into a fist.
"Truth is, I can't move forward. I can't honor Talia's dying wish."
"Even if I do get past this challenge, I'll be thrown into another. I'll have to loop again, face another challenge harder than this one. That isn't moving forward."
"Someone as incompetent as me… cannot move forward."
"That's why…"
"So you're going to give up?" May cut in bluntly, her voice sharp.
"You're going to dishonor Talia's dying wishes by not moving forward—by giving up. And that'll result in the deaths of everyone."
"Is that really what you want? Are you really that selfish?"
Chrono lowered his hand and met her eyes. "I'm… I'm well aware of what I'm saying, and what I'm implying."
"If anything… this is the most selfless thing I'll ever do…"
"Liar…"
"So that's how it looks to you, huh? I'm just a liar in your eyes."
"How is this remotely selfless?" May spat, her voice rising with rage. "You're saying you're going to give up and not move forward, knowing the consequences of your actions if you do so. Everyone you care about dies, Zeph. This isn't remotely selfless. It's selfish."
"You're throwing away everyone's life simply because you can't do it anymore, and I'm supposed to believe you're being honorable in any way or form? Ridiculous."
Chrono drew a deep breath, closing his eyes. He inhaled slowly through his nose, then exhaled through his mouth. When he opened his eyes again, they were steady.
"May." He stepped closer to her. "I've made my decision."
"And my decision is… this."