The figure finally turned. His voice echoed through the cold air:
"This is reality, John."
He rose, faced them, and said—
"Welcome, players…"
The pressure from that figure was too much. No one could raise their head, and it felt as if a shadow of death was hanging over them. Surprisingly, John could raise his head a little. Maybe intentionally allowed by the figure.
What John saw was not believable—a shadow that changed faces constantly. That figure was not a person; it was a nightmare.
Wait—it was the same shadowy figure from John's dream. But what was their connection? John himself was speechless. He couldn't hold the pressure any longer and lowered his head.
"Oh, quite good!"the shadowy figure spoke while laughing mischievously.
"I have called you three because you broke the rules, but seeing your courage, I am impressed. That's why I am exempting you from the punishment and the third floor."
The shadowy figure turned back and sat on the chair after saying:
"You can go now,"the figure said with a creepy voice.
At first, it took a moment for everyone to digest what had just happened. The figure exempted them from the third floor?
But soon, realizing that the figure had told them to leave, they stood up. This time, there was no pressure—only darkness and horror. That never-blinking eye was still floating there, perhaps monitoring everyone.
Now John, Emily, and Kyle turned back and left the room. Outside the room, the guard was still there.
"Follow me. I will direct you towards your room,"he said and started walking toward a path.
John, Emily, and Kyle started following the guard. This time, they noticed something they hadn't before.
The water tanks in the hallway were filled with blood instead of water, and that blood was slowly draining below. Who knows where it was going? But by the structure, it seemed like it was flowing to the floor below. Likely, it was the blood of players killed in other rooms.
Now they approached a point where five paths diverged. On the upper side of each path, a board was hanging with different alphabets written above. The guard paused a little and started going down one path. On top of it, "Group A" was written. That meant the other paths were for other groups.
But there was a problem—John saw that on two of the paths, the alphabets had a big cross on them. What did this mean? Were those groups eliminated?
Well, John didn't give it much thought, as he already had a huge headache. Everything that happened today was too much for him—and of course, for Emily too. She was deeply shaken.
Now the guard finally reached a door. He waited for a minute, and then the door automatically opened.
Does this door open with body or face recognition? Everyone thought this.
The guard signaled John, Emily, and Kyle to enter the room. They stepped inside. They were now back in the resting room, and the guard closed the door behind them.
Once again, they met the stares of others. It seemed like the others were ready to kill them. But no one spoke. No one acted. They all remembered what had happened to the last guy who did.
Even without the guard present, the fear was already implanted in their minds.
While everyone was staring, a man stood up and came near John, Emily, and Kyle. He was an old man.
John, Emily, and Kyle were surprised—how did he even survive here? Since they weren't actively talking to others, they had no idea who exactly had survived and who had died.
Well, alas, in difficult times, a person only thinks of himself. But a person who thinks about others and leads them is called a Leader.
The man in front of John was the leader of the whole group. And that leader wanted to know if his group was safe with them.
The old man shared some greetings with John, Emily, and Kyle. Then he asked:
"Are you really with them?"he said while looking at Emily, possibly analyzing her trance-like state.
"We were just lucky, that's it,"Kyle said to him.
"We also don't know what's happening,"John added.
Emily was still too shocked to answer.
"I think this lady needs some rest, but we don't know when the next floor will arrive,"the old man said.
At this, John replied:
"She needs some time. I'll put her to bed." Saying this, John excused himself and supported Emily toward the bed.
"So you were called somewhere. What happened?"the old man asked with a questioning face.
At this, Kyle replied:
"Why do you wanna know that , old man?"Kyle said while raising one of his eyebrows.
John came back just as Kyle was saying this.
"What happened?"he asked.
"He wants to know what happened inside,"Kyle answered.
At this, the old man replied:
"I am—let's say—the leader of this group, and I have to make sure everyone is safe,"he said with his left eye closed and a smile on his face.
John and Kyle could now feel why this old man had survived until now. It was because he was intelligent—not just talk. He had the aura of a leader.
The one who would save everyone.
Or—
Sacrifice everyone to save himself.
Realizing that the old man was important to the group, Kyle and John told him only vague information.
"We were exempted from the punishment and third floor. We don't know why,"Kyle said while looking at the door.
"Maybe they have a plan?"the old man said.
"Maybe,"Kyle replied.
Then John said, while looking at Emily:
"Maybe you guys are right. But I'm relieved she had time to recover."
The old man looked at John and then said:
"Well, good for you,"he smiled and then added,"I should go to my group now."
John and Kyle looked at the old man—their eyes praising the demeanor of a true leader.
After the old man returned, he gathered the group and told them something. After a few minutes of argument, everyone returned to their beds.
The intense stares were now gone. The power of the old man was clearly visible.
"Seems like he's the real deal,"Kyle said with a little smirk on his face.
At this time, John was thinking about something else.
Who is that shadowy figure?
'It felt familiar somehow.'
A sense of regret and loneliness was what John felt from the figure—while everyone else was only feeling pressure.
At the same time, the scene shifts toward the main room where the Guide is.
We see the shadowy figure finally rise from the seat. It was still looking at the cameras—especially the camera in Group A's room.
The figure then walks to a hidden room on the side.
There, a man was tied.
Ropes bound his body, and his mouth was also tied.
"I told you to follow the rules, but you disobeyed. Now you will have to pay for it, Guide,"the shadowy figure said in a glitchy voice.
The figure raised one of his fingers toward the tied man.
"HMMM! HMMM!" the tied man tried to resist.
Then a little drop of water started forming on the fingertip of the shadowy figure.
"Go, you insolent fool!" the figure spoke with a cold yet angry voice.
Suddenly, the drop of water headed toward the man with incredible speed. Layers of air formed around its path.
Everything blurred, and what could be seen next was the destroyed head of the tied man.
Blood was splattered everywhere in the room—except the shadowy figure had no blood on him.
With the head of the tied man, the wall behind him was also destroyed. Beyond it, a dead body of a monster lay in the street.
Then the damaged part of the tower started fixing itself. In a minute, it was as if nothing had been damaged.
"Hey, Slave No.10," the shadowy figure called out while still looking at the mess.
"Yes, sire,"
A man came from the dark side of the room, some blood on his clothes and face.
He was the same man who gave the speech at the start of this bloody game."You are now the Guide. Make sure to follow my instructions—and don't turn out like this pest,"the shadowy figure said in a cold tone."And clean this mess."
Then the new Guide, or we should say the Guide, answered:
"As you say!"he said while kneeling.
"Ahhh, I like your behavior,"a grin came to the shadowy figure's face.
"I am now going. Make sure to do what I told him,"the figure spoke with an intimidating voice.
After saying this, the figure vanished from the place—and so did the eye in the main room.
"The game now begins,"the Guide said in a low, mischievous voice.