“There are eleven people within the abandoned factory, of which seven belong to the original team, with four belonging to an additional team that has been sent in order to rescue them.”
I sorted through all the information that I had managed to gather from the scout. Thanks to the compass, I was able to find him every time that I moved out.
’Although it says that there’s a chance that I might be led in the wrong direction, for now, everything went well.’
I leaned back against my chair and placed the mask down.
I was quite honestly tired. My body still worked, but the fatigue wasn’t physical… it was more mental.
Although I had yet to encounter the serial killer again, every time I left the office door, my nerves tightened to a point of discomfort. It wasn’t the kind of fear that came and went. It lingered, stayed lodged deep inside my chest, and waited to explode at the first sign of danger.
The serial killer wasn’t the only person that I needed to worry about. In fact, the more time I spent here, the grimmer the situation became.
This scenario was incredibly hard.
“So far, from what I’ve managed to get, of all the scouts that are present, five are death row inmates. A few have gone astray and started killing the others, but nobody is sure of who.”
I rubbed the bottom of my chin, the stubble scraping against my fingertips.
I really need to shave a bit…
“They don’t have any means to communicate with each other, and apparently, the roads continuously change with each reset for them.”
I stopped at the last point. This was the odd thing.
Their paths continuously changed each time, but from what I’d managed to understand, it wasn’t the case for me.
The road was consistent each time.
“Is it because I entered through a different method, or is there another reason?”
I remained seated where I was, frowning while musing over the situation. The office, dimly lit by the overhead lights, was quiet aside from the faint ticking of the clock on the wall. Dust lingered in the air, faintly visible in the beam of light. The chair creaked slightly whenever I shifted my weight, and each sound seemed to heighten in my mind.
And then—
To tok—
The knock came.
I pressed my hands against the arms of the chair and prepared to stand when I suddenly stopped.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to me.
“Wait…”
I stared at the door. Instead of leaving like before, I remained where I was and sat back down.
I had previously always left whenever someone knocked on the door. However, this time I remained still.
Why was someone knocking? Who was knocking?
’From what I’ve managed to hear, everyone also spawned in a completely different area. I’m the only one who is in the office.’
Was there a reason for the knock?
I continued to stare at the door as silence took over the surroundings.
Tik, tik—
The clock ticked.
I continued to wait.
A minute passed by like this.
Nothing happened. The door remained shut while time continued to flow normally.
The loop had yet to break.
’At least for now, everyone seems to be alive.’
Each loop was different, so I never bothered recording the time at which the loop restarted. I was just curious as to what would happen to the room if I remained in it.
So far, nothing…
“Maybe I’m completely safe in this roo—”
Clank—!
The handle of the door suddenly jerked downward, and my expression changed. I gripped the sides of the chair tightly, the worn leather digging into my palms as I continued to stare at the door.
Clank, clank!
The handle pulled a couple more times, each attempt stronger than the previous. I swallowed quietly, barely daring to breathe.
CLANK—!
The sound thundered through the office, rattling my chest. It was as if someone, or something, was trying to force its way inside.
Clank!
The attempt repeated, slower this time, dragging out the sound like nails against my spine.
I stayed where I was, frozen, until the noise abruptly stopped.
Silence.
The pressure in the room felt heavier than before.
Slowly, carefully, I stood up from my seat, each movement careful so the chair wouldn’t creak. My eyes never left the door.
I inched forward, my breath shallow, until I stood within reach of the handle. I didn’t dare touch it.
Exactly as I began to move closer, the handle stopped moving. The silence wrapped around me once again, pressing in from all directions.
Holding my breath, I narrowed my eyes, staring at the handle as though my gaze alone could stop it from moving.
’Is it over…?’
I didn’t believe it for a second.
I continued to wait, every muscle in my body tense.
BANG!
The sudden impact made the door shudder in its frame. My heart skipped a beat.
Bang!
The door smashed again, this time more powerfully than before, as the frame shook further.
’Shit!’
I stumbled back, retreating toward the desk, my hand fumbling along its surface until it landed on the knife. I clutched it tightly before reaching for the mask with my other hand.
I hastily put on the mask.
Bang, Bang—!
The door buckled with each blow, the wood groaning under the pressure. I could see that it wouldn’t be long until the door shattered.
I waited.
’Not yet. Not yet.’
BANG!
Waited for the next movement.
And then—
Swoosh!
I pulled the door open and slashed.
“Akh—!”
A figure stumbled back, clutching their arm where I had grazed them. Their face, pale and drenched with fear, came into view.
I froze at the sight.
They did too, as their entire body started to tremble.
“N-no… way.”
They looked at me, horrified. Almost as if I had just torn away their last shred of hope. Their lips quivered as though the words had been forced out of them. I could see the sheer terror in their eye as they looked at me.
I wanted to speak, but before I even had the chance…
Step
The sound came from beyond the light that spilled from the office.
My heart sank.
I slowly lifted my head, gaze dragging toward the area around me.
There, standing just at the edge of the darkness, a figure watched silently.
My body froze.
They stared straight at me.
Step
They took a step forward, echoing down the surroundings
And then, from within the thin stream of light spilling through the crack of the office door, a figure emerged. Its presence was silent yet suffocating, the pale glow clinging to the white mask it wore, making the hollow eye sockets appear even darker.
…Like pits that swallowed everything they touched.
Ba… Thump! Ba… Thump!
I felt the beat of my own heart drumming loudly inside my mind.
“N-no… No… Oh, my god.”
As if sensing the serial killer looming just behind, the scout before me began to panic, their face draining of all color.
“I… thought I had found it. I-s there no way out? How is this possible…? No, no, no, no…”
They held onto their heads as they had completely lost it.
No, they had completely lost it.
I could see it in their eyes. They were hazy and unfocused. The last shred of sanity was gone.
“I-impossible. This gate is impossible…”
I clenched my teeth, pulling my gaze away from them.
It was only one second. The time I spent looking at them. And yet, the moment I pulled my gaze back towards the masked man before me, I found him to be completely gone.
’Huh…?! When!?’
A shadow detached itself from the darkness, and before I could even react, a figure loomed directly in front of me.
“….!?”
A pair of cold hands clamped down around my neck, pressing with terrifying strength, and the air was wrenched from my lungs. My body twisted, but the grip only tightened, suffocating me completely.
In that moment, all I could do was stare at the empty eyes that hid behind the mask.
That cold… and empty gaze.
And then—
Crack—
I heard the sound of bones breaking.
The surroundings turned dark.
I found myself back in the office again.
Clank!
I stood up from my chair as I felt the pain linger painfully in my neck.
“Haaa… haaa…”
Holding onto my neck, I heavily gasped for air as sweat trickled down the side of my face. I stumbled around the desk and pulled the mask away as I took even heavier breaths before eventually calming my mind and thinking back to what had happened. There were still a few things that didn’t make sense, but a lot of the things were now starting to make sense to me.
Although I was still not extremely certain, I had a vague idea of the truth
This place.
This office…
“It’s the exit.”
Yes, the key to this loop was my office.