Idris’s brow knitted instinctively as the old lady’s face filled the screen. Every detail stood out to him. The deep lines etched into her skin, the emptiness in her hollow, faintly blue eyes, and the mole that rested right beneath her right eye.
Her appearance was enough to jolt Idris out of his lethargic state of mind as he stared at the old lady on the screen.
“They sure didn’t skimp out on her design.”
Every detail of the old lady seemed meticulously crafted, adding a certain sense of realism to the scenario as the old lady once again spoke.
“I thought you wouldn’t have come, officer.”
Officer?
The camera panned down, displaying a police uniform before eventually panning back up towards the old lady, who had moved back a few steps.
Her hand was raised to display a small lamp.
“…I have been waiting quite a while. I was starting to get impatient.”
Her lips slowly pulled up to reveal her toothless smile, and Idris smirked.
’Are they making her as ugly as possible? What a cheap trick to add horror.’
He shook his head.
He was already starting to lose interest in the game.
No, in fact, why was he even playing it? He was supposed to quit the game. How did he end up playing it?
“It hasn’t been long since my husband disappeared. Perhaps you might be able to find some clues if you look inside. I am happy to be of your assistance.”
The old lady then proceeded to move to the side, holding onto the lamp to light up the dimly lit surroundings even more.
A series of basic commands appeared shortly after.
W — Forward.
A — Left
D — Right
S — Back
Left Click — Pick Up
“Hm? Rather simple commands.”
Just one look, and Idris was able to tell that the mechanics were quite simple. This made his frown deepen.
’I can’t even fight or do anything else? What am I even supposed to do?’
He shook his head. He didn’t even feel like critiquing the game any further.
Moving the mouse and looking around the place, his gaze once again fell on the old lady who stood by the side, smiling quietly.
“Seeing as she isn’t talking anymore, her role is done?”
Idris more or less already had an idea of what he needed to do. In essence, he had to find clues regarding the old lady’s husband. Something must’ve happened to him, and as an ’officer’ he came to investigate the situation.
This appeared to be the background of the game.
“…I guess that’s all?”
He moved the mouse and looked around before approaching the old lady once more.
He left-clicked, and she smiled.
“Officer? Would you like my help? Feel free to ask me when you need.”
The interaction ended there.
’I guess it’s safe to say that she’s just here for the atmosphere and the info dump.’
Idris drummed his finger over the table before shaking his head.
“I’ve already had enough of this game.”
He wasn’t interested before, and he wasn’t interested now.
’Why in the world would Jamie tell me to play this? Maybe it scared him, and he thought it would scare me?’
But just the thought made him frown. Did Jamie really think that just because he hung around haunted places, his tolerance would be the same as his?
“That’s… ridiculous.”
Idris didn’t even know whether to feel mad or annoyed. He was feeling a mix of both, and just as he was about to shut the game for good, a sudden tune filled the air.
“Hm?”
It was soft, and yet… the moment that Idris heard it, it almost felt as though the thoughts in his mind faded.
“….!?”
It took a moment for Idris to snap out of it, and when he did, he was shocked to see that his hand was pressed onto the mouse, while his fingers were on the keyboard, moving the character towards one of the open doors in the distance.
“What? What’s going on…?”
Idris hastily pulled his hands back, staring at the keyboard in front of him with a deep frown.
Covering his mouth, he looked towards the beer that was resting on the table.
’Did I drink too much? Am… I that drunk?’
Wasn’t he just about to quit the game? Why did he suddenly start playing the game?
And…
“Why in the world is my heart beating?”
Pressing his hand against his chest, Idris felt it. His own beating heart. It was beating at a beat that was way above the norm.
Idris sat upright as his frown deepened and his gaze turned towards the game once more. More specifically, towards the open door before him, as all he could see was the darkness that stood on the other side.
A gentle tune played in the air as, for some reason, he found himself swallowing his saliva.
“What…”
It was that simple action that caused him to be taken aback.
Staring at the door, and then his hands, which were slightly sweating, his face started to contort.
“I’m drunk, aren’t I?”
The thought that he was scared never crossed his mind once.
In his mind, it was impossible for him to be scared of this game. He had to be drunk. That was the only possible explanation for his weird reactions.
And that tune…
“It’s annoying. How do I turn it off?”
Idris pressed the [esc] button and tried to look at the settings, but no matter how he looked, he couldn’t deactivate the music.
“The hell? What sort of game won’t allow me to turn off the music?”
While he could turn off all sound, all he wanted to do was turn off the music and nothing else. For whatever reason, the music was making him unsettled.
However, it was clear that the game wouldn’t allow him to do so.
’This really is a shit game.’
Clicking his tongue, Idris took a deep breath before looking at the door once again. He had previously wanted to quit the game, but now things were a little bit different.
He was actually quite annoyed.
’Jamie wants me to make a video, right?’
“Fine.”
His lips curled upwards as he brought his hands onto the keyboard and mouse again.
’I’ll do the review. It’s just that… It won’t be one where I’ll be very nice.’
“Kek.”
Without wasting a single second, Idris reached towards the top of his computer and activated the camera. Seeing the green dot flash, he suddenly smiled.
“Yo! How ya’ll doing?”
He moved the mouse left and right.
“Welcome back to my channel. As you all can see, I’m playing a new game. Er… What was it called again?”
Idris thought for a moment before recalling that the game didn’t have a name and rolled his eyes.
“Never mind. It doesn’t have a name yet. I guess you can say it’s a prototype. An exclusive prototype that you will only get to see on my channel, kuk.”
Taking a sip of his beer, he continued.
“Anyways, from what I heard, this game is made by the same guy who made the recent office horror game. As you can see, the graphics have improved since then, but that’s about it. Do you think the game can scare me?”
Idris laughed while slamming the can down.
Bang!
“What a joke! I got bored with that game in the first minute. The same can be said for this one.”
Clicking his tongue, Idris pressed the [W] key and proceeded forward.
“Let’s see if the developer improved since the last game. Did he get better or did he regress? No, wait… Can you even regress from the bottom?”