With labored breaths, the young man ran through the darkness of the forest, a terrifying black shadow chasing him, ready to pounce. He kept running, not watching his steps, and suddenly tripped over a tree root. As he turned around, the figure was already right behind him—closing in—and then wrapped its hands tightly around his neck.
Knock knock knock.
"Hah—"
Thankfully, the sound of knocking pulled him out of his nightmare. He paused for a moment, trying to catch his breath and calm himself down.
The knock came again.
He stood up and walked to the door, opening it to see who it was.
It was one of his friends.
"Joan."
"You okay, bro? I heard you groaning like you were in pain," said the sweet-faced guy named Joan.
"I'm fine. Probably just carried over from a nightmare," replied the tall young man named Hesa, slightly uneasy from seeing Joan's worried face.
"Really? Your face still looks kinda pale," said Joan.
"Yeah, I'll be fine. I just need a drink to calm down," said Hesa.
"Want me to get it for you?" Joan offered.
"No need—wait, hold on."
Hesa glanced around. "This is my place. How'd you get in?"
"I was gonna ask if you wanted to go out with me, and I ran into Jaehyuk on the stairs. He let me in—he said he wanted to use your kitchen since his stove's busted," Joan explained.
"Oh yeah. He's been borrowing neighbors' kitchens or ordering food online these past few days."
Hesa headed to the kitchen, with Joan trailing behind. When they got there, they saw Jaehyuk cooking something—the room lightly filled with smoke and the scent of food.
"Jae."
Jaehyuk turned briefly toward them and then turned back to turn off the stove.
"Your stove's still broken?" Hesa asked.
"Yep. Still saving for a new one. Oh, and Joan showed up just as I got to your place, so I brought him along," said Jaehyuk casually.
Hesa nodded in understanding and turned to Joan.
"And you?"
"I already told you—I wanted to invite you out," Joan said with a grin.
"Oh right! I forgot we made plans," Hesa recalled their group chat.
~~~~~
Jio, as his friends called him, arrived at a table where the rest of the group was already gathered at a restaurant in the mall.
"Sorry I'm late," he said.
"No worries, not even a full hour yet," said Arka, the Aussie exchange student.
"Was that a compliment or an insult?" Jio teased.
"Both," Arka replied with a smirk.
The others noticed a bruise on Jio's face.
"What happened to your face?" asked Setta, the fox-eyed boy.
"Helped an old lady who was getting mugged. Had to throw a few punches," Jio replied.
Everyone nodded in admiration.
"Glad you're okay," Arka said.
"Honestly thought you were the mugger," joked Niki, their Japanese friend.
"Please, I've got money. Why would I mug people?" Jio said confidently.
"Oh yeah? Then you're paying for all our food tonight," Niki grinned.
"Deal," Jio said.
"Hmm, feels like we're missing someone," Arka observed, glancing around.
"Satya, the ice prince, isn't here yet," Setta noted.
"Neither is Hesa," added Jio.
"He came with me, but he went to the bathroom," Joan answered.
Soon, the waiter arrived and began serving their food.
"Something feels... off."
One of them glanced around uncomfortably but said nothing, as the others seemed completely normal.
Meanwhile...
Satya stood waiting for the elevator along with a few others. As the doors opened, he slipped his phone into his jacket and stepped forward—but someone suddenly grabbed his arm.
"Hesa?"
The pale young man was startled to find Hesa beside him, though he had no idea when he'd appeared.
"You going up?" Hesa asked.
"Uh, yeah? The restaurant's on the 4th floor," Satya replied.
"Let's take the escalator instead," Hesa suggested.
"What? Why?" Satya asked, confused.
"Come on," Hesa said, tugging at Satya's hand in a childlike way.
"Jeez, that's so weird… Fine, whatever," Satya muttered, feeling awkward.
They went up the escalator. On the 2nd floor, a loud crashing noise made Satya stop suddenly, pulling Hesa to a halt as well.
"What's wrong?" Hesa asked.
"Didn't you hear that?" Satya said.
"Hear what?"
"A loud crash—like something big fell."
"I heard something faint. Maybe a car crash outside," Hesa shrugged.
"No... It sounded really close. Like something heavy fell right here," Satya insisted.
He considered asking someone or finding a guard, but Hesa interrupted.
"Come on, the others are waiting."
Reluctantly, Satya followed him.
When they rejoined the group:
"We saved you guys some food," Joan said, handing plates to Hesa and Satya.
"Thanks," Hesa said.
"Hey, did you take the stairs or the lift?" Niki asked Satya.
"Was going to take the lift, but Hesa convinced me to take the escalator," Satya replied.
Joan looked at Hesa, puzzled. "Didn't you say you were going to the bathroom?"
"I… I grabbed something from downstairs too," Hesa lied.
"Oh. Okay," Joan said, unconvinced but silent.
"Good thing you didn't take the lift," said Jio.
"Why?" Satya asked.
"It fell. No idea how many people got hurt," Setta said.
Satya's eyes widened. So that loud crash… was the elevator.
He turned to Hesa. "Why did you insist on the escalator?"
"It was full. Didn't you see?" Hesa said calmly.
"I… didn't notice," Satya admitted. He'd been too focused on his phone.
They continued their meal with light chatter. Later, they planned to catch a movie before heading home.
During the movie, Arka started feeling uneasy—despite the movie being a light drama.
He glanced at Setta seated in front of him.
"Why does that guy beside Setta look just like him? Wait… Setta's hair is brown, not lavender. But from behind…"
A tap on his shoulder startled him.
"What?" he said, turning to Niki.
"You okay?"
"Just tired," Arka replied.
"You always nap at this hour?"
"No, just went to bed at 3 a.m."
"Bro. No wonder you're sleepy."
"Whatever," Arka mumbled.
"Go ahead, nap. I'll fill you in later."
"Thanks."
Arka looked again—now the seat next to Setta was empty.
~~~~~
That night, Arka jotted notes in his homework before glancing at the time. 8 PM. Dinner time.
Knock knock.
"Come eat!" his brother called from behind the door.
"Coming!"
He packed his books but paused, recalling the strange events from earlier.
"Was that bad feeling about the elevator? And who was that person next to Setta?"
"And why did Hesa take Satya up the escalator, right before the lift crashed?"
He shook his head.
"Just a coincidence. Probably imagined it."
He left for dinner.
~~~~~
Elsewhere, Hesa stepped out of a glowing portal, his face puzzled.
"Why couldn't I see what happens at the villa tomorrow? I only saw... terror at school."
That had never happened before. He sat on his bed, trying to make sense of it.
"I should try again…"
Just as he reached for his time compass, it was surrounded by black smoke.
Startled, he threw it.
Suddenly, a hooded figure appeared, blocking his view and picking up the compass.
'Hi, time traveler.'
The voice was eerily familiar.
"Why does he sound like me?" Hesa thought, staring at the figure who smirked behind half of his covered face.
"Who are you?" Hesa asked coldly.
'Not important. I just want to play.'
"I'm not a kid," Hesa growled, standing up.
As he reached for his compass, the figure pulled it away.
'I've tampered with the compass so you can't see tomorrow's villa events. One more thing—tell no one. Or it's game over for everyone.'
"What do you want?" Hesa demanded.
'A game. It starts tomorrow... right after the Hitori Kakurenbo.'
With a swirl of smoke, the figure vanished—leaving Hesa alone, furious and frightened.
His mother's heirloom was now in enemy hands.