I ran a hand through my hair and forced a faint smile. "Julie, I need you for something. I want a strategy—one that lets me win without killing anyone. I just... I don't think I can kill. No matter how much I try to convince myself otherwise, no matter how much I hate them, but they're still people like me. I'm not built for this."
Julie leaned forward, elbows on her knees, fingers clasped under her chin. Her digital eyes focused on mine. "I'm sorry, Kirian. That's impossible. The game doesn't allow that. If you don't kill, you can't win. You won't be able to form teams, unlock features, or even survive."
I hesitated, trying to find a loophole. "But... I've never played anything like this. How did I even get here? And if alliances require a kill, that means anyone who wants to team up with me has already killed someone, right?"
Julie sighed and stood, dismissing her chair with a flick. "I'm not allowed to explain how you got here. As for alliances—yes, every player must kill to unlock that option. Anyone asking to team up already has blood on their hands."
My breath caught. "So... you kill just to be allowed to team up with an another killer? That's insane. How can anyone form a team when betrayal is literally rewarded?"
Julie smiled with a mix of sarcasm and sympathy, crossing her arms. "Exactly. You're starting to get it. Everyone here is a killer. Some do it to survive, others for darker reasons. But intentions don't matter when knives are involved. You're just meat to them, Kirian. Choose your threat: kill to stay alive... or hesitate and die. Kill and team up with a killer and kill others... or face killers teams alone"
I stood, fists clenched, and stared at the glowing bracelet on my wrist. "Show me the rules again please."
Julie flicked her index finger through the air, revealing a white screen with the rules written in small, ornate black script. "Since when are you this polite? Fine. Here you go. Ask if you want clarification, just because you realized your mistake and were kind and courteous to me"
I stood there, my eyes scanned the screen. The words blurred together as my brain scrambled to process them all over again. Kill for rewards. Torture allowed. Betrayal encouraged. And then, in the corner, I noticed something new: my balance.
My balance was now -$2,000,000. Wait, what?
My heart dropped. "Julie... Why is my balance negative two million? What does that mean? Did I do something wrong?"
"No." she said, still obscured behind the rules white facade, answered calmly. "Your current credit is $100,000. But the game spent two million to bring you here. That's your debt now. You have to repay it through kills. Once you hit that number, everything you earn after is yours. But if you win without clearing the debt, you'll be thrown back into the next series. Forever. So, make sure you raise the money. You'll only have to kill 20 people or less."
My head spun, I felt nauseous.
It means I'm forced to kill no matter what, which means that peaceful thinking in a game like this will lead to my death and I'm stuck in this hell until I gave in and got my hands dirty?
They also stipulate that everyone is free to restrain and torture opponents however they want.
My stomach churned. My body trembled. This wasn't just a game—it was designed to break people. To twist morality until killing became logical.
What kind of mad person would allow and commit such heinous acts? No, who the madman was who made such rules in the first place?
I can't..
I can't kill..
I hate killing...
I hate injustice...
I hate pain...
I was weak..
I wasn't a fighter..
I wasn't someone built for this. And yet...
But it's not fair for me to live it alone...
It's not fair for me to hate it alone...
It's not fair for me to be the only one who avoids it...
Everyone should feel that way...
Everyone should know the true meaning of pain and suffering...
It's true that I wish all of this for others, but not directly...
It's true that I want to kill them too and drink their blood from their skulls...
But turning that strange lust into reality would be like a step from which there is no return...
Every strange habit is planted in the veins of a person from the first audacity...
Fuck, what am I supposed to do now? No Plan B will likely work.
I have to be careful..
I have to be afraid..
I have to be a killer..
I have to, or I might fall into the hands of a madman..
I don't want to be tortured..
I don't want to be hurt again..
I don't want to suffer again..
I want to die a direct death..
One gasp that takes my soul and spirit to heaven without suffering..
All I want is a normal life with a direct, normal death..
I don't want to be tortured..
I never wanted that!..
While I was lost in thought, I heard screams and groans, accompanied by the sound of gunfire pierced the silence from far away, echoing through the trees
My thoughts were interrupted, and I regained my senses and became aware of my surroundings.
I froze, my entire body tensing. My hands were trembling, and my eyes were brimming with tears.
"Did you hear that?" Julie said, her tone changing. "I think it was a girl. She's screaming. Must be the first victim. Poor thing. Maybe you should hide."
Panic slammed into me. I whipped my head around. My eyes wide open, scanning every shadow. My breath came fast and uneven.
"No," I said, voice shaking. "No way. It's too early. you're wrong!"
"Calm down, bro" Julie said, holding up her hands in an attempt to calm me down. "Calm down. Why are you suddenly so scared? Are you going to lose your mind from the start? Your heart rate is racing, reaching 120 bpm. Try to breathe deeply and calm down. You're not in danger right now, but staying in a place like this in this state isn't a good option. We have to move."
From the intensity of fear and tension, my legs gave out and I dropped to the ground, grabbed my head, and dug my fingers into my hair, pulling it as the moans and screams grew louder.
Another gunshot followed by another distant scream.
I'm going to die..
I'm going to be tortured in the worst possible horrific way a person can be tortured.
I won't survive... This place isn't for me!
Julie's voice blurred into the background. Her words lost against the storm inside my head.
How did I get here?
Did I come here by luck or coincidence?
Impossible..
that's impossible..
If someone else ends up dancing on my corpse while I struggle between life and death, I'd rather die now..
My eyes filled with tears and reddened as they opened wide.
I slowly unzipped the waist bag that hugged my waist and pulled out the knife that was inside.
The girl screaming grew louder..
She was tortured and violated too, and the result was me..
How disgusting..
I closed my eyes and held the knife to my throat..
I felt the cold, sharp edge of the metal against my throat..
I just wanted to disappear..
I hate this..
I hate this so much..
But suddenly, without warning, a familiar voice appeared inside my head "But if you were a bad person, no one would hate you. And if you weren't a bad person now, no one will love you. This is your chance."
I opened my eyes, lifted my head, and looked around, tears of longing piercing my eyes as they searched for the source of this familiar, compassionate voice, but I found no one.
The voice echoed again in my head, "Remember when I helped you conquer your fear of ants at five? When I helped you stand up for yourself at twelve? This is another one of those moments, Kirian. You have to go. Investigate that scream. Save someone. This is how you win trust. This is your moment"
With his final call of my name, I felt as if I were emerging from a dark cave into a place of light.
I came to my senses to find my shirt soaked with my eyes saliva.
I lowered the knife from my neck and I sighed, feeling a huge weight lifted from my shoulders.
I sat up straight and wiped my eyes with the back of my left hand, then took a deep breath as Julie looked at me worriedly, saying, "Kirian, are you okay? Talk to me.You've been silent and crying. Don't scare me like this."
I wiped my eyes again and said, "sorry, I don't know what suddenly came over me. How long have I been like this?"
Julie sighed, then folded her arms "About four minutes. Now calm down and tell me what's wrong?"
I opened my mouth to answer Julie, but the voice in my head interrupted me again, saying, "Don't trust anyone. Don't talk to anyone about yourself. Everyone will hurt you, no one will understand you, and others will take advantage of you, just as they all did before. Follow the screams and save her. Remember, the best chance to win someone with dogs loyalty is to rescue them when they're in real trouble, and someone like you can do that."
I thought for a few seconds, then said to Julie, "Julie, I want to use the scan now."
"Are you sure?" Julie said, a worried look on her face.
Without hesitation, I nodded, said, "Yes, I need to check out the source of this screaming. Maybe I can gather more information about what's going on."
Julie activated the scan, and the bracelet's screen turned green. There was a blue dot in the center, representing me, and two identical red dots about 210 meters to the southeast, representing two other people.
I set off toward the red dots on the scan. The closer I got, the clearer and softer the sound became.
I walked through the long leaves and thin branches of the bushes until I reached the crest of a gentle slope.
My eyes darted through the bushes, frantically searching for what was happening, to the point where they were almost bulging out of their sockets.
I was desperate to know what was happening..
But suddenly, I frozed.
A warm hand settled gently on my shoulder.
The voice whispered again, "Don't look back. I'm with you. Look ahead. Watch the bush."
I remained frozen and standing in place. After hearing that voice again, I had no choice but to obey and feel this strange warmth.
The trees were behind me as I stood on that gentle slope, four meters high.
I looked closely at the bushes until I was shocked and felt a strong grip grabbing my heart, squeezing it tightly. I had expected every scenario and scene except this one.
To be continued...