CHAPTER FOUR: Nine Seconds
00:02:42
Noah
Noah's legs ached. His breath came in gasps, clouding the cold air as he hurtled down the twisting hallway.
The shadows behind the mirrors were getting closer. Now they screamed when he ran past, voices mimicking people he knew—his mother, his teachers, even his younger self.
> "Coward."
"You left her to die."
"You don't deserve to win."
He stumbled into a corner and found a stairwell leading downward. At the bottom—another door. This one was frosted glass, with a blinking red light above it and a label etched into the wall beside it:
> EXIT – PLAYER VERIFIED
Noah reached for the handle.
A mirror beside the door cracked. His reflection didn't copy him. It stared, then smiled. Not friendly. Not his.
> "You're not done."
The exit door began to fade. A low buzzing echoed above him. A warning.
> CONDITIONS NOT MET.
Noah screamed in frustration and turned back—when something caught his eye: a shard of glass, lying on the ground near the mirror. On it, scratched hastily, were the words:
> "RUN PAST YOURSELF. DON'T STOP."
Noah blinked. "Run… past… myself?"
Another reflection appeared—a perfect copy of him, now standing in the middle of the hallway, eyes shut, lips twitching.
And the timer flashed above.
> 00:01:12
He didn't know what it meant. But he ran anyway.
Straight down the corridor—toward the reflection.
The fake Noah opened its eyes.
And smiled.
---
00:01:05
Reina
"We have four keys," Reina whispered. "Where's the last?"
They'd searched every room. Mayu had one key clutched in her hands, trembling. The university students had another. The salaryman had taken a wound to his leg, bleeding heavily, but alive.
The fifth key was missing.
The scratching at Room 5 had become banging now. Something was inside. Crying. Or pretending to cry.
Reina's heart was a jackhammer.
> 00:00:49
"We're out of time," the salaryman gasped. "It has to be in there. What if it's… a test? What if the warning's fake?"
Reina looked around. Everyone was silent.
Then, the door to Room 5 slowly unlatched.
Not by them.
From the inside.
> creeeak
The door opened an inch.
Reina moved instinctively—slamming it shut, forcing the latch back down.
"No. We'll find another way."
> 00:00:21
Then she saw it.
A mirror on the ceiling—one they hadn't noticed. It reflected Room 2. Inside, behind a loose vent cover… a red glint.
"The ceiling!" she shouted.
Mayu ran, scrambling back to Room 2. She yanked open the vent and pulled free the final key, cutting her fingers on the edge in the process.
> 00:00:09
They slammed all five keys into the exit lock.
The door clicked.
They ran through—just as the countdown hit:
> 00:00:01
And behind them, Room 5 burst open.
Something tall, wet, and twitching stepped into the hallway—but the door slammed shut, locking them out from what came next.
---
00:00:00
Noah
The fake Noah lunged.
Noah dove through his own reflection.
The glass didn't shatter. It folded, swallowing him whole.
For one moment, there was only blackness and cold and whispers in a language he almost understood.
Then—
He fell through the other side.
Into a white corridor.
A screen appeared.
> PLAYER 091: SUCCESSFUL ESCAPE. SPADE GAME COMPLETE. REWARD: 2♠ OBTAINED.
Noah fell to his knees, trembling.
"Two of Spades," he whispered. "There are more…"
Far away, another screen flickered to life.
> PLAYERS 034 – 035 – 037 – 038 – 039: SUCCESSFUL ESCAPE. SPADE GAME COMPLETE. REWARD: 2♠ OBTAINED.
Reina leaned against the wall, soaked in sweat, her hands trembling. The others were silent. Alive. Barely.
One trial done.
A deck still full.