A massive lobby-like space that stretches out before me; it’s also strangely empty. The walls are made of ragged stone, and they give off a foreboding vibe. This room has seen better days.

In the centre of the room, there’s a small pedestal that catches my eye. Upon it rests some sort of record of who we are, but it seems to have limited knowledge. This record may be some database or archive.

The ceiling is decently high, and the space is illuminated by a series of dimly lit torches that cast flickering shadows across the walls.

There are several doors scattered around the room, but they’re all closed.

One door, however, stands out from the others. It is about three times as big as the others, is marked ‘EXIT’, and has a passcode input device placed beside it.

But last but definitely not least…

Eight people stand before me; six of them are from my class and are of my age, and the remaining two are our teacher, Masaru Shikaku, and the school counsellor, Kiyomi Ayumu.

Most of them look scared and uncertain, just like I feel, and then Ayumu speaks up.

“Another one, huh… That makes nin—”

“Hikari-chan?!”

My ears perk up as a familiar voice interrupts Ayumi.

“Yume-chan? You got kidnapped too?”

She nods as she strides towards me.

It’s a relief to see someone I cherish, but at the same time, I’m disheartened that she’s stuck in this mess too.

“Does anyone know where we are?” A blonde boy spoke up.

“As I have said before, we’re probably underground, judging by the dampness.” Shikaku answered.

“And those doors…”

Yume points to the many doors scattered around the room.

“Where do you think they lead?”

Everyone looked at each other in hopes of someone else answering.

Then suddenly, Shikaku steps closer to one of the doors, specifically the one marked ‘E’.

“I guess we’ll have to find ou—”

“Wait!”

But before he can finish his sentence, Ayumu interrupts him.

She walks over to the exit door and examines it.

“If this is the exit, why would they make it so obvious?”

“You’re actin’ like that’s a bad thing. A better chance of escape is what that gives us.”

A boy with fiery red hair and a toned, athletic physique stepped forward and spoke up.

Ayumu shoots him a glare as Shikaku lays a hand on her shoulder to calm her down.

“Ayumu-san, let’s not make a scene.”

He then wraps an arm around Ayumu, pulling her away, probably to speak privately to her.

All of a sudden, a static noise fills the room, causing everyone to look around, trying to locate the source. Then, a grey screen appears on a vacant wall, and on it, a shadowed figure appears.

On it, a shadowed figure appeared.

“Greetings participants. You have been selected for a game where your lives will be on the line—your fear will determine your path. Know that only four of you will have the amenity of surviving and escaping.”

Suddenly, a small hatch opens up beside the screen revealing a singular object resting on a cushioned platform. A classic-looking revolver sits within the hatch, its polished barrel and chambers exuding an eerie sophistication. I don’t know much about guns, but the sight of this firearm sends shivers down my spine.

“But if any five players wish to end their lives prematurely, that is also acceptable.”

A heavy silence hangs in the air until a platinum-blond gal breaks it.

“Four live, five die… This can’t be real, right?”

“We’re in some kind of fucked-up death game, aren’t we?”

The red-haired boy announces.

“Akagi-kun! Watch your lan—”

“Who gives a shit about language when our lives are on the fuckin’ line?!”

As much as Ayumu-sensei wanted to protest, he wasn’t wrong. Takumi Akagi’s outburst, vulgar as it is, mirrors the collective frustration and disbelief of us all.

“We shouldn’t lose our composure. We need to figure out how to get out of this.”

Yume gestures towards the scattered doors, questioning their purpose.

“Where do you think they lead, Hikari-chan?”

That’s when the figure speaks again, as if they were listening and anticipating our reactions.

“Behind each doorway is a challenge conceived to mimic the fear in you all. Complete them and obtain a fragment of the code to flee. With that, you may unlock the exit gate and run with your life.”

The screen fizzles out, leaving us with more questions than answers. Amidst the apprehension, a soft murmur emerges from a brown-haired boy.

“Fear-inducing challenges? “I can’t believe this. This has to be some sick joke, right?”

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His disbelief lingers, but the ominous atmosphere in the room provides no comfort.

Yume and I glance at each other, knowing we have to stick together to survive.

Akagi’s frustration changes into a bitter laugh.

“Fear-inducing challenges my ass. I didn’t sign up for this crap.”

“I agree with Akagi-san.” I speak up, but the mention of challenges tailored to our worst fears sends a shiver down my spine.

I glare at the screen that now displays the rules.

“Rule I: The exit gate will not open if more than four people remain alive, even if you have the full code.

Rule II: Time is crucial. Once you have completed two challenges, a time limit of 9 hours will begin.

Rule III: Any additional methods of escape are forbidden.

Rule IV: Any disobedience will lead to punishment, which can be universal, such as the timer activating early, or individual, such as a painful death. Depending on what rule has been broken.”

Rule five and beyond are all blurred. I assume the person behind this game doesn’t want us to know them yet, though whether they apply or not currently is the issue.

“Fuck the rules, I’m busting through the exit door.” Akagi still protests, insisting on breaking the rules and forcing his way out.

Ayumu tries reasoning with him, but he’s having none of it.

“The figure said it’ll open if more than four remain alive. So if I smash through the door, it should work, right?”

“We don’t know how durable that door is, and I doubt the Game Master would allow that to happen.”

“We don’t fucking know unless we try!”

Akagi charges towards the exit door and collides with it creating a loud this.

Ayumu grabbed him and pulled him away; her long, flowing black hair danced gracefully in the air, adding to her already impressive display of agility and strength. Despite the urgency of the situation, Ayumu remained calm and focused.

“This is not how we’re going to solve th—”

During their struggle, a loud clanging sound filled the room.

“Rule V has been disobeyed. Activating Universal Punishment: Permanent activation of the timer.”

A robotic female voice, eerily calm, announces.

“Thank you for demonstrating the consequences of disobedience. Hopefully, you will not repeat it.”

We turn to the screen, and a timer appears on the top left.

“8 hours and 59 minutes.”

Akagi curses as Ayumu loosens her grip.

“You fucking IDIOT! We’re going to DIE because of you!”

The platinum-blond gal shouts at Akagi as her hand smacks his face sternly.

“Sai-chan, stop; violence won’t help.”

Yume interjects, grabbing Riko Sai’s hand and trying to calm her down.

“We have 9 hours now Akagi-kun. Please beha—” Shikaku firmly says before being cut off by an authoritative yet alluring voice.

“…If you all haven’t noticed yet, the markings on the doors spell something out.”

Everyone’s attention is drawn to a tall girl with long, white hair that extends down to her legs, who looks incredibly beautiful with her porcelain skin and deep blue eyes. Her body is slender and toned, and her movements are graceful.

“Eh? Shirayō-chan? What do you mean?.”

“Each door has a singular letter on it; it’s English, I may add, and when we put them together, it spells ‘Vengeance’.”

Kurogetsu Shirayō points to each door, and sure enough, the letters add up.

And sure enough, the letters add up to spell ‘Vengeance’.

“Uhm, Shirayō-chan? What is ‘Vengeance’?”

“It’s the English form of 復讐.”(Fukushū)

Why ‘Vengeance’? Did we somehow piss someone off to the point where a death game was the only way to redeem ourselves?

The room fell silent as everyone pondered the significance of the word.

“So, they spell out ‘Vengeance’, alright… What the fuck does that have to do with anything?”

Akagi speaks up, still feeling the sting from Sai’s slap.

“It could mean anything. Shirayō-san any theories?”

Yui Masumi asks, her glasses glinting slightly.

“Whoever this game master is knows us. That’s definite.”

Yume Ishida turns to Shirayō, who replies softly.

“They know us? How could they possibly know all of us?”

I glanced at Yume, our expressions reflecting the same confusion.

“It’s not impossible. They could’ve stalked us or had connections to our teachers.”

“If that’s the case, then there’s a high chance it’s someone from our school.”

Everyone went silent, and after a brief moment, Akagi spoke up again.

“Don’t spout bullshit, who in our school would even have the time to set something as ridiculous as this up?”

Everyone went silent, and after a brief moment, Akagi spoke up again.

“Don’t spout bullshit, who in our school would even have the time to set something as ridiculous as this up?”

Silence again, and everyone collectively thinks; the still—active timer isn’t making this any better either.

“I don’t mean to interrupt the moment, but is anyone keeping an eye on the timer? It would be problematic if it hit zero before we solved anything, after all.”

The brown-haired guy added, prompting everyone to look at him, slightly startled.

“For the first time, Kimura-kun is right, we’re all screwed if we spend too much time chitchatting.”

Yukihiro Kimura blushed at those words, turning his head away from Sai and staring at the timer instead.

“So… now we have to see what’s behind these doors, then?”

“Well we don’t have any other options.”

Akagi strides confidently towards the door marked ‘A’.

The rest of us exchange uncertain glances, knowing that whatever lies beyond these doors may test us in ways we can’t fully comprehend.

“What the…?”

“Is there a problem, Akagi-kun?”

“Locked? Seriously?” He mutters, rattling the handle with increasing intensity.

“The door is locked?!”

“Maybe we should try another door.”

“I’ve already tried door ‘V’, it’s locked too.”

Shirayō’s eyes scan the room, assessing the situation.

“Shikaku-sensei, do you have any ideas about how to proceed?”

Shikaku’s eyes narrow, contemplating the locked doors.

“Well, breaking through them isn’t an option, and time is ticking. We’ll have to split into groups and check the remaining doors. But be cautious, we don’t know what challenges await behind them.”

“I feel a little conflicted with this idea.”

Despite the urgency of the situation, my scepticism lingers as the group contemplates the idea of splitting into smaller teams to explore the mysterious challenges behind each door.

“Doesn’t fuckin matter, we have no choice.”

Akagi’s rough tone contrasts sharply with his refined appearance.

“I feel a little conflicted with this idea.”

Despite the urgency of the situation, my scepticism lingers as the group contemplates the idea of splitting into smaller teams to explore the mysterious challenges behind each door.

I sigh a deep breath, hoping this doesn’t end badly.

Akagi, Kimura, and Masumi attempt to open door ‘C’, I, Ayumu, and Yume, attempt to door ‘E’, and Sai, Shikaku, and Shirayō attempt to open door ‘V’.

They all wouldn’t budge.