Flick!
As the lights in the reception dimmed, a strange stillness settled over the room. The air grew heavier, and an uneasy tension crept in, twisting the once-familiar atmosphere into something quietly unsettling.
"What's going on? What's happening?"
Darwin stared at the surroundings in confusion.
He raised his head to look at the lights.
They had dimmed down somewhat. That wasn't all. The temperature of the room appeared to have lowered as well.
Every little sensation felt vivid in his mind.
"...I see what's going on. This must be the game's way of trying to build a scary atmosphere. Since I've basically hit all my rejection quotas, it's triggering this scene. Honestly, it's a pretty cheap trick to create tension when you think about it."
Darwin's tongue never stopped moving, criticising the game as he pleased.
"Let me guess. When I check the cameras, one of the guests I accepted will be standing there, right? They're probably smiling or acting creepily or some shit like that."
Reaching for the monitor, he began to check the cameras.
However—
"Hmm. This is surprising. I don't see any people in the camera. Chat. What does this mean? Does this mean that we've chosen correctly? That's pretty eas—"
Trrrrr!
All of a sudden, a sharp ringing echoed through the reception, startling Darwin, and judging by the sudden flood of messages, the viewers as well.
A brief silence followed as Darwin stared at the phone resting beside the monitor.
It was an old, vintage model. The kind with a rotary dial and faded numbers etched around the circle.
Trrrrr! Trrrrr!
The ring reverberated throughout the place, drowning out the jazz music in the background.
"Chat... Should I pick this up?"
Darwin smirked while staring at the phone.
"You think it's going to be a guest? I'm thinking it's a guest."
He reached for the phone a moment later, answering in a polite tone.
"Hello, how may I help you?"
"....."
Silence.
The moment Darwin picked up the phone, he was met with silence.
"Hello?"
Darwin tried to speak again, but once again he received no response.
"Is this a bug? Hello? Anybody there...? Yeah, this is a bug. As expected. He rushed to release the game. This thing doesn't even wo—"
Darwin stopped, his words caught in his throat.
A voice followed right after.
"Room 307."
Click!
The line fell, leaving Darwin standing stupefied.
"Wha... What just happened?"
He looked at the chat, at a loss.
"Room 307? You guys hear that?"
The chat spammed like crazy.
—...I heard that. It said 307. That should be a floor on the third floor, right? Why don't you check it?
—Third floor! Check the camera for the third floor!
—Quick! Quick!
"Huh, alright..."
Listening to the advice of the listeners, Darwin pressed onto the [3] on the monitor, and the screen flickered to the same empty corridor as before. The corridor light was rather dim, with labels on each door indicating the room number.
"There's nothing."
Darwin frowned, staring at the corridor in search of anything. He even tried to click on the room, but nothing happened.
The camera quality was also poor, and the screen flickered at times.
Eventually, after trying for a couple more seconds, he shook his head.
"It looks like nothing is happening chat. I guess this is another way to add cheap tension to this crappy game. Honestly, the amount of clichés that this game uses is a little bit too much. I've already wasted a lot of time getting the guests in. This feels more like a receptionist sim than a proper game."
—You're right. This game is pretty shit so far. How about you switch?
—Play the Nightmare Forge Update.
—Switch game!
—This is boring! Switch!
Darwin wasn't the only one fed up with the game. The comments were similarly fed up, and the previously rising viewers started to drop, going from the peak of 152,302 to 149,083. While the drop wasn't sharp, it was still evident, and the trend was downward.
Seeing the downward trend, Darwin smiled.
"Alright, it looks like everyone is fed up. I'm also fed up. I officially declare this game to be tra—"
Creeeaaak!
A sudden creaking sound cut Darwin off, giving a certain chill as his head slowly turned towards the monitor. It was there that he caught sight of a middle-aged man walking out of room 307, his gaze and eyes empty.
"Oh? It looks like something is finally happening. Still, I think it's a little too late. I think I'm going to quit the game...!!!" Right as he finished speaking, the middle-aged man stopped, his gaze rising towards the lamp at the top. Taking out a rope from his pocket, he tossed it on top.
"Huh?"
—What?
—What is he doing?
—Is he trying to destroy the lamp? What's this?
The camera quality wasn't very good, so it wasn't very clear. Darwin and some viewers squinted their eyes to get a better look at the situation, and as they did, the camera started to lag. The middle-aged man's movement slowed, and just as the chat was starting to grow frustrated, the view returned.
".....!"
The moment it did, everyone was greeted by the sight of the middle-aged man dangling from the lamp above, his neck hanging over the rope.
—Holy shit!
—What the fuck!?
—What the hell is this?!
"Don't worry, everyone. Calm down. There's nothing really scary about this. It's just a man who has hung himself. Although it looks a little realistic, it's nothing crazy."
Although he said this, Darwin felt a sudden chill while staring at the scene. He couldn't explain what it was, but staring at the dangling man in front of him, he felt a subtle tremor coming from his hand.
He pinched the fear away.
"It's just a game. This isn't a real person. There's no need to panic, heh—"
Trrrrr! Trrrrr!
A certain ring echoed across the surroundings once more, prompting the smile that had appeared on Darwin's face to fade rather quickly. Turning his attention towards the phone once more, Darwin swallowed for a moment before reaching for it.
His mouth didn't stop.
"Is it the same guy from before? Is he going to stay silent like last time before saying a room number? Haha... I don't know if I want to wait for so long. I think—"
"Room 502."
Click!
The phone hung up shortly after, leaving Darwin at a complete loss.
One glance at the chat was all it took for Darwin to know what they expected. He reached for the monitor and switched the feed to the fifth floor. The same empty corridor flickered onto the screen a moment later, and his eyes instinctively locked onto room 502.
The surroundings turned silent.
For a moment, even the chat started to slow down as all attention appeared to be focused on the room door.
Ten seconds.
Twenty seconds.
Thirty seconds.
Forty seconds.
Fifty seconds.
Time ticked, and right as one minute passed, a creaking sound echoed.
Creaaaaaak!
It was just like before, the door opened, and a guest came out.
"It's that guy..."
Darwin recognized the man who walked out immediately. In fact, he had also recognized the middle-aged man from before. Both of these guests were guests whom he had allowed to enter the hotel.
"Is he going to hang himself again?"
Darwin pursed his lips before finally collecting himself again and gathering some momentum, "How much do you all bet he's going to kill himself like the other guy? He might not hang himself, but he'll do it in some different way. I'm almost certain that this is how it'll play out."
Smirking to himself, Darwin watched as the cameras started to lag again.
"See? The situation is repeating itself. Watch now. Once the cameras stop lagging, the guy will hav—"
Darwin's words caught in his throat as the cameras flickered back to life. The scene that appeared wasn't what he expected.
"H-ha."
Standing in the middle of the corridor, facing the camera, was the same middle-aged man. His grin was stretched unnaturally wide, and his eyes were open far too wide, unblinking as they locked onto the lens.
No, straight at Darwin as he felt cold chills running down his body.
Before he knew it, his breathing had grown a little heavier as he turned his attention towards the chat.
"....."
It was quiet over there.
The number of new comments wasn't many.
There were still some making fun of the situation, but many were quiet.
And soon, the camera flickered.
The man disappeared from the corridor.
"Huh? He's gone? Where is he...?"
Darwin immediately used the cameras to search the lower floors in search for the man, but as he did, he couldn't find anything at all. Each hall was empty.
Ba... Thump! Ba... Thump!
For some reason, his heart started to beat rapidly, and as he frantically searched the cameras for the man, the phone rang again.
Trrrrr! Trrrrr!
Darwin held his breath, feeling the situation starting to spiral out of control.
However, he still reached for the phone.
He had a feeling that he had to.
And soon—
The voice echoed again.
It's next words, however, made Darwin's entire body shudder.
"Reception."
Click!
-x-X-x-
The silence that followed the call felt agonizing.
'Reception? Did it say reception? It said reception...'
Darwin's breathing subconsciously grew heavier. He tried his best not to show it once he noticed, but this wasn't something that he could control.
'What is wrong with me? Why am I acting like this?'
"Haha."
He laughed it off.
"I guess it looks like I'm the next target."
His back shuddered.
"So, from what we've observed, it takes about several seconds to a minute before the victim dies. Well, at least for something to happen. We don't actually know what happens. In the first one, the person hung himself, but do you all think I'm going to do the same? Hah."
Darwin laughed again, finding the thought to be ridiculous.
He sat back down and checked his watch.
Tik, Tik—!
For some reason, the ticking of the clock felt louder than ever.
To hide his nervousness, Darwin continued to check the cameras.
"There's nothing here. Nothing here. Nothing else here. Do you guys think the smiling man from before will come to me? Ehhh... Honestly, this is pretty terribly designed."
Darwin continued to point out the flaws of the game.
"The tension would've been a lot higher if the smiling man had appeared on the fourth floor; it would've shown some progression. Honestly, I might've even felt a bit of panic if that happened. But as you can see, the programmer skipped over something that basic. This is game design 101."
Darwin wasn't a game designer, but he didn't need to be to know stuff like this.
The chat also thought similarly.
—Yeah, honestly. What is this guy thinking? I'm honestly not feeling that tense.
—Wasted potential.
—Honestly, for a moment, I thought it was starting to get good. What wasted potential.
—...Has anything happened yet?
Tik, Tik—!
The clock continued to tick. Pulling his gaze away from the timer, he looked towards the surroundings.
At first glance, the reception seemed unchanged, but the dim lights appeared to breathe, pulsing faintly as they fed and withdrew from the shadows.
The air grew thick, pressing in on him, as if something beyond the scope of the reception had stirred awake and was now watching, waiting just beyond the edge of sight for the next second to slip by.
Darwin's lips parted slightly, his mouth dry as if the air itself had drained all the moisture from him.
The gentle tune continued to play in the background, and as he focused his attention on his surroundings, he suddenly felt a change.
Crrr crrr!
"Hmm?"
Darwin's attention snapped toward the speakers as a faint crackling sound bled through them. His body tensed instantly, every nerve on edge, waiting for whatever was about to follow.
"...Is something finally happening? I've been waiting for quite some time. Was wondering if it was coming or not."
He still maintained an outward calm. He couldn't let the viewers think that he was actually nervous.
He waited in silence, his eyes fixed nervously on the speakers.
Crrrrrrr!
The static continued to bleed through, growing louder, swallowing every other sound in the room. It started to grow unbearable, and Darwin's face started to wince. The viewers also started to find it uncomfortable, and just as the noise started to reach a point where the viewers were about to shut the stream off, it stopped.
Silence.
The dim reception turned completely silent.
But it was that silence that heightened the tension.
Ba... Thump! Ba... Thump!
Darwin's heart pounded, each beat drumming steadily in his ears until it drowned out everything else.
He tried to push the sound away, to focus on anything but that relentless rhythm, but it stayed, echoing inside his skull, refusing to fade.
His eyes scanned the surroundings cautiously, ready to react at any given moment. Everything felt off to him.
The shadows seemed to shift and breathe, stretching along the walls in unnatural patterns. The mirrors and paintings around him felt alive, their still surfaces staring at him in the silence.
Everything felt alive, and chills started to spread across his back.
He opened his mouth, trying to say a word, but nothing came out. His throat was completely dry.
And just as the tension reached the limit—
Da Dang!
The speakers fared back to life, causing Darwin's heart to pound.
"Huh?"
He turned his gaze back to the speakers. They were playing again, the same soft jazz tune as before.
The stretched shadows slowly receded to their places, and the invisible 'eyes' that had lingered in the dark seemed to vanish, leaving the room as it was.
"What? Is that all?"
Darwin looked around, trying to see if there was anyone around him.
However, the entire place was deserted. It was just him.
"What's this? Is this really it?"
He looked rather disappointed.
"...I guess this was the cheap jumpscare tactic? Is it trying to build up tension? I don't know, but it certainly wasn't much at all. Haii... And here I was getting excited."
Shaking his head, he sat back down on the chair, wiping some of the cold sweat from his forehead.
—That was incredibly disappointing. To be honest, I expected more.
—All of this for...?
—It's a waste of time. Change the game.
—Hmm. Isn't the music different?
"Hm?"
Picking up a certain comment, Darwin frowned.
He tried to listen to the music better, and as he did, his brow rose.
It really was different!
'There seems to be a soft hum in the music. Like that of a little girl. It's faint, but it's there.'
He hadn't noticed it before, but now that he did, he also noticed something else. The tempo of the music... it was a little bit faster than before.
He wasn't the only one.
The viewers started to notice the abnormalities with the music, too.
And just as Darwin was about to speak....
Trrrrr! Trrrrr!
"....!"
The phone rang again.
For a moment, Darwin was startled. He nearly jumped up at the sound of the phone, but quickly collecting himself, he reached for the phone and responded.
"Room 409."
Click!
The same voice, and the same quick call.
"....."
Staring at the phone in silence, Darwin forced a laugh while checking the cameras on the fourth floor.
He waited exactly one minute, hoping to see something, but...
"Nothing?"
Nothing happened.
"Another bug? This game seems to be full of bugs..."
Darwin frowned, no longer paying attention to the music. He fiddled with the cameras for a couple of more seconds, until—
Trrrrr! Trrrrr!
The phone call came again.
This time, Darwin was less hesitant as he picked it up.
"Room 703."
Click!
"What in the world..."
Darwin checked the cameras for the seventh floor, but still nothing.
"Another bug?"
He frowned, waiting for a minute.
But...
Nothing happened yet again.
"This is the second time nothing has happened. This game is really shit."
Even the viewers were growing frustrated.
Seeing how the situation was turning out, Darwin was just about to change the camera angle when something happened.
Creaaaaak!
The door on the seventh floor opened, and an elderly figure walked out.
"Oh? Something is finally happening."
Darwin narrowed his eyes, staring at the old lady through the poor-quality camera, and just as she walked out of the room, something occurred. She reached for her pocket and retrieved a certain rope.
"....!?"
A familiar scene was starting to play out.
The camera started to lag, and a moment later, her lifeless corpse started to dangle on the rope.
"..."
Darwin felt the air leave his lungs at the sight, an audible gulp escaping him as he hurriedly switched the camera feed. He flipped back to the fourth floor, and the moment the image came into view, his entire body went still.
A woman knelt on the floor, her hands clasped together in desperate pleading.
Standing before her was the same man from the fifth floor, his eyes stretched wide, his mouth hanging open in a grotesque imitation of a smile.
Ba... Thump! Ba... Thump!
Darwin's heart drummed loudly.
The chat stopped moving.
And the surroundings turned silent.
All besides that soft music that played in the background.
As every eye remained fixed on the woman kneeling before the man, the camera feed began to stutter and glitch. The image warped and froze for a moment, then abruptly shifted, revealing the next scene to everyone watching.
"....!!!"
The woman...
She stood before the camera, staring at it.
Her face was deathly pale, her smile stretched too wide, and her tangled black hair hung in disarray. She wore a simple white dress, tilting her head slightly as she stared into the camera.
Catching sight of such a figure, Darwin's legs trembled, the surrounding light turning even dimmer as his heart thumped even louder.
But he cared nothing for that as something else pressed his mind.
'Where...? Where is it?'
Without thinking, he glanced around, his trembling hand reaching for the drawer beside him.
The moment he pulled it open, his breath paused, then turned ragged.
Because inside, lying coiled and waiting, was a rope.
A rope he recognized instantly.
"H-hoo."
His mind spun out of control, a suffocating dread creeping into every corner of his body as his hands shook beyond his control.
He wasn't stupid.
He understood what the videos meant. The calls. Every single thing that had happened.
The man was coming.
Floor by floor, he was getting closer.
Three options. That was all Darwin had left.
Hope the man didn't reach him by morning.
Wait for him to arrive.
Or... hang himself.
"Haa... haa... haa..."
Darwin's inpenetrable face finally started showing signs of cracks.
Fear had finally started to consume him.
-x-X-x-
"Haha, this is ridiculous..."
Darwin forced a laugh, staring at the rope in the drawer and taking it out. He got a good feel of it as he promptly shook his head.
"Is the game expecting me to kill myself or something? How ridiculous."
He put up a tough front, but inside he was shaking.
Unconsciously, he started to bite his nails as he sat down on the seat, staring at the cameras.
In order to distract himself, he stared at the chat.
—...So there are three options? Wait until the shift is over. Wait for the 'monster' to come, or kill yourself? Wow...
—That's pretty fucking crazy. The developer was sick in the head when creating this.
—Nah. I mean, this is actually kind of stupid. As if someone would actually kill themselves.
—Now that I think about it, are we sure there's only one 'monster'?
—....
The chat suddenly slowed down.
Darwin's heart trembled upon seeing the last message.
'That's right! Who said there's only one monster? Didn't I allow a bunch of guests in?'
Suddenly, even more cracks began to show in Darwin's face, his body shaking nervously.
Flashback of the scene with the lady on the fourth floor replayed.
'No, no, no, no, no...'
His chest heaved up and down quickly.
The changes didn't go unnoticed, and some people in the chat started pointing them out.
—Lol, look at Samurai! He's fucking trembling!
—Lmaaao. Don't tell me you're scared
—He's fucking scared!
—Lmaaaao!
—I bet that if we look at his seat, it's full of piss.
—Hahahah.
"Scared...?"
Darwin quickly sobered up upon seeing the comments.
He frowned before smirking.
"I'm anything but scared. If any of you noticed me trembling, then you've clearly never tried this VR setup yourself. This place... It's fucking cold!"
He wasn't lying in this regard.
The surroundings... They were turning colder with each passing second. Turning his attention towards the clock, [4 A.M], he knew that he only needed to wait two hours until his shift was over.
Two hours...
In the game, that was about five minutes.
Five minutes.
That was all he needed in order to survive.
—Samurai isn't lying. It's actually pretty darn cold. How about you try it yourself before talking shit?
—Fucking trolls. Just give it a try.
—Lol, here come the meat riders.
—Meat Riders, my ass. Just fucking try it, you idiot.
Many die-hard fans started defending Samurai's trembling. There were some trolls that tried to fan the flames, but they were quickly shut down by them as the place was indeed cold.
'It looks like the situation is getting quite messy. I need to do something.'
He could see that several were starting to doubt him.
Putting on a smirk, he looked at the chat.
"Like I said before, it's cold. That's why I'm trembling. If you don't believe it, you can try it. Stop chatting shit." He then looked at the rope next to him. Grabbing it, he showed it to the chat, "If any of you believe that I'd actually be dumb enough to kill myself, all of you are fucking naive. Why in the world would I do something like this? This entire game mechanic is just to add fear. Worst comes, I'll just die from the monster."
Darwin shook his head, baffled by some of the comments he was seeing.
Did people seriously think he was actually going to kill himself? As if...! He wasn't that crazy. This was obviously inserted to add tension, and to some extent it helped, but it was merely decoration.
Some of the more cool-headed people in the chat also agreed with his analysis.
—I thought it was obvious lol.
—...It's fucking common sense. Why would you kill yourself lol?
"I can also just quit the game."
Darwin shook his head again, setting the rope to the side. Sometimes, he questioned the general intelligence of the people in his chat.
"As I was saying, I h—"
Trrrrr! Trrrrr!
The phone rang again, making Darwin's heart jolt as his mouth snapped shut.
He didn't answer right away; the shrill ringing echoed through the reception, each note scraping against his nerves as his pulse quickened.
Trrrrr! Trrrrr!
Glancing at the cameras and finding nothing out of place, he bit down on his lip, then slowly reached for the phone.
"....."
It was silent.
All Darwin could hear was the frantic sound of breathing.
It was fast.
Almost frantic.
And before he realized it, his own breathing had fallen into rhythm with it, matching each ragged inhale and exhale on the other end of the line.
"Haa.. Haa... Haa..."
And soon—
"Room 605."
Click!
The call ended right after.
By now, the chat and Darwin were both aware of what was about to happen as Darwin turned the camera feeds to the sixth floor.
But the moment he did, his expression changed.
".....!"
Appearing before the camera was an elderly man, his lips curled into a thin, unnatural smile. His eyes were wide, just like the girl's and the man's from before, staring straight into the lens with an unsettling silence.
BA... THUMP! BA... THUMP!
Darwin's face could no longer remain calm.
His face paled, and his feet started to tremble. Biting his nails, he switched the cameras.
Fifth floor.
Fourth floor.
Third—!
BANG!
Darwin shot up from his seat, his eyes fixed on the monitor showing the third floor. There, the white-haired girl in the dress stood motionless, staring straight into the camera, her smile even wider than before.
"She...!"
There was no question about it.
The girl had moved down a floor.
"H-haa."
Darwin had completely forgotten about the chat at the moment. His eyes shook as she stared at the woman, and the more he looked at her, the more unsettled his heart became.
Trrrrr! Trrrrr!
The ringing came again, but Darwin didn't answer it this time.
He was... afraid of what was about to come next.
Trrrrr! Trrrrr! Trrrrr! Trrrrr!
The shrill ring of the phone echoed through the room, its piercing tone swallowing every other sound. With each repetition, the noise seemed to dig deeper under his skin, and Darwin began to tremble, unable to steady himself.
"S... stop. Make... it stop." He began mumbling to himself, his eyes still locked fiercely with the phone.
And just as he thought the sound would carry on forever...
Trrr—
The ringing stopped.
Even the music in the background stopped, everything turning silent.
Not a single sound was heard.
Not a single sound besides the beat of his own heart and his own heavy breathing.
The already dim lights began to fade even more, plunging the room into near-total darkness. Darwin stood frozen in place, the faint glow of the monitor casting long shadows across his face. Slowly, he lowered his gaze and checked the time.
[5:10 A.M]
Fifty minutes left.
There were fifty minu—
Clank! Clank! Clank! Clank! Clank!
"Uk....!!!"
Darwin suddenly jumped up, his face paling as he looked around.
"Who... Who goes there!?"
He squinted, trying to see through the darkness, but it was useless. The air grew colder with every passing second, thick and heavy, until it felt like the very room was closing in around him.
"Who?!"
In his panic, he didn't notice the frantic typing in the chat.
—Above! The sound is from above!
—Check the cameras! The sound is from above!
—Hurry! Hurry!
—Fucking shit!!!
"Haa... Haa..."
Darwin looked around, his face full of panic.
Eventually, he managed to reach the cameras, his fingers trembling as he switched the feed. The moment the images flickered to life, his face drained of color, his expression twisting as a cold shiver ran down his spine.
"....Aha!"
Faces stood before each camera, staring at him with the same creepy smile.
The moment he locked eyes with them, they started moving.
"They're coming! They're coming! They're coming!"
By now, fear had completely overtaken his mind. Rational thought slipped away, leaving only panic. In his desperation, he tried to vault over the counter, but the moment he moved, an invisible wall stopped him cold.
"Akh!"
Darwin screamed, the panic growing even worse.
—Run! They're coming!
—Run!!!!
—Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!
The chat was fully invested now.
Not one person could take their eyes off their feed; all eyes locked onto the panicked Darwin as he frantically looked around, but...
"I can't run! It won't let me run!!!"
He checked the time.
[5:20 A.M]
Still 40 minutes!
"No, no, no, no...!"
He bit his nails, feeling the situation turn dire.
To make matters even worse—
Step. Step. Step.
He soon heard the sound of steps. Multiple. All rushing his way.
"Oh, no, no, no, no..."
Darwin glanced around frantically, feeling the cold sweat soaking through his back as the strength drained from his body. His vision blurred; it was getting harder to think, harder to breathe. And as the slow, deliberate footsteps drew closer, one dreadful thought crept into his mind.
"That's right! That's right...!"
His gaze fell on the rope beside his desk.
A crazed look marred his features.
"Yes, there's that way...!"
All traces of reason had vanished. In its place was raw, frenzied desperation. Darwin snatched the rope with shaking hands and climbed onto the chair, his movements clumsy and unsteady.
Step. Step. Step—!
The steps grew even more rushed. They were about to arrive.
"There!"
Connecting the rope with the lamp on top, Darwin didn't hesitate. He placed it around his neck and stared crazily in the direction of the steps.
"Stop me now! Hahahaha! Stop me now!!"
And then—
Crack!
The world turned black.
A large [Game Over] appeared shortly after.
Everything turned silent right after that.
Nobody made a sound; the chat was completely quiet.
That was until...
[Seth Thorne]: Pussy.
A certain comment showed up.
That was also the moment the stream hit its peak.
[●Live]
Viewers — 202, 001
Seth's comment was all it took to bring the chat back to life.
—Holy shit!
—What the fuck just happened?
—I...
—It's the developer! Fucking bastard!
Everyone immediately started to curse him, but he was long gone by the time they started to curse him.
Still, that was all that was needed to wake everyone up out of their stupor.
—Did... anyone get a clip of the last moment?
—I did. Do you think...?
—I don't know, but for a moment, I nearly forgot it was a game. It was incredibly realistic.
—Naah. Samurai is just a pussy. That shit doesn't look scary at all.
—Why don't you try it then?
—That's what I'm doing. I've already bought the game and plan to try it out.
—The same goes for me. I don't believe I'll actually kill myself like that idiot.
—Same. I think it might've been a skit. There's just no way.
Everyone was talking about the game. No one could stop talking about it as clips surfaced online, showcasing the highlights of the streams. The videos started to garner a lot of views, and the general thoughts were, 'Is the game really that scary? I don't believe it. Let me try it.'
Immediately, the Dock page started flooding.
People started to purchase the game one after another.
It didn't take long for the game to reach the trending page, and with each passing moment, it only grew more and more.
*
In a certain room.
"....."
A man stood in silence, blankly staring at the empty ceiling of his room.
Every so often, his hand drifted to his neck, fingers brushing lightly against the skin. The touch was slow, almost absentminded, as his thoughts slipped back to the moment just before.
The sensation was still vivid in his mind, and despite the stream still being on, Darwin's mind continued to linger over the game.
'I...'
His thoughts were empty, and whenever a stray thought managed to surface, it only dragged him back to those final moments, making his whole body tremble with the memory.
He remained like that for an unknown period of time.
Until—
Trrrr! Trrrr!
"Uah! Haaa!"
A scream ripped out of his throat, his chair wobbling as he nearly fell back.
"N-no! No! Make it stop!"
His face was pale with fear, his hand reaching for his pocket and taking out the phone. The moment he saw that someone was calling, his memories drifted back, and he instantly hung up the call.
"No, no, no, no, no..."
He gripped both hands with his head, his lips tremoring.
'Please stop. Please stop.'
But would it really stop?
As if the person on the other side of the phone was playing a sick joke on him, the phone rang again.
Trrrr! Trrrr!
Darwin's face trembled again, his heart racing out of his chest.
The dimness of the room deepened, shadows stretching and warping along the walls. As Darwin's eyes darted around, the unease crawling through him turned into a full-bodied tremble.
"No. Enough..."
He was even too scared to pick up the phone.
Thankfully, the ringing stopped a few moments later, bringing quietness to the room.
That was until—
Ding!
A chime rang, and a message appeared.
Since the phone was lying face up, Darwin could see the message clearly. The instant his eyes caught the words on the screen, his trembling stopped altogether.
[Nightmare Forge Studios Rep.] —
Call me back immediately. Answer now!
Seeing that it was the rep from Nightmare Forge Studios, Darwin calmed down for a second, but he still hesitated to reach for the phone.
Eventually, he decided to use his voice assistant.
"Call back Nightmare Forge."
—Calling back Nightmare Forge Studios Rep.
The phone rang a couple of times, but it soon connected.
"What happened?"
A very unsatisfied voice echoed from the phone's speakers. Before he even gave Darwin a chance to speak, he started berating him.
"We had an agreement! You were supposed to make sure that the game flopped!! You were supposed to criticize it and make those gullible people watching you believe you! But look at what you've done!? The game is trending!"
Daniel's voice was loud on the other end of the speaker.
He was incredibly pissed.
Darwin could sense it, and he tried to apologize, but Daniel was having none of it.
"Due to your actions, we are now forced to cancel our plans! The disruption you've caused is unacceptable. I request an immediate refund of the payment we issued. If this matter is not resolved promptly, I will pursue legal action for breach of contract, and we assure you, the consequences will be significant!!"
"Ah, yes, yes..."
Knowing that he was in the wrong, Darwin immediately nodded.
Even though he didn't like being spoken to like this, he also knew that they were right to be angry. He had indeed messed things up.
He also didn't want to burn bridges with such a large company.
"Good."
Thankfully, his subservient attitude helped ease a bit of Daniel's anger.
"...As long as you comply, there shouldn't be any problems. I still want you to do a stream right now. Do your best to repair the damage that you've caused. I heard that you were pulling great numbers. In fact, let me see how many you have right now."
A muffled clicking sound echoed from the speakers. Presumingly, it was Daniel opening up his stream to check his situation.
"Hmm, very good! You've got more than 200,000 people! This is excellent! Start streaming our game imm..."
Daniel suddenly stopped.
The line fell silent.
"Hello? Hello? Is something happening?"
Confused, Darwin tried to speak a couple of times, but he received no response each time.
And soon—
Click!
The line fell.
"What?"
Having calmed down quite a bit, Darwin was no longer as scared as before as he managed to reach for his phone.
He planned to message the representative from Nightmare Forge Studio, hoping to figure out what was happening. But the moment his fingers brushed the screen, he froze.
His lips trembled, and as he slowly lifted his head, his gaze fell on the red dot right next to the camera.
He then looked at himself on the monitor.
His heart sank.
"Oh, shit."
***
"...Do you think they'll buy the game? I think our game is pretty good. I've shot myself a couple of times while playing it."
"Me too."
"I wonder how the boss does it. Even though I've worked on the game with you all, it still feels unreal that the game can provide such an effect."
"The graphics, too, right?"
Noah, Ryan, and Joseph all stood by the monitors, checking the game for any bugs. Because there was no internet inside the 'Studio', none of them could properly check the situation outside. They didn't know how the game was faring, but thinking about all the backlash that Seth was facing, they weren't very optimistic.
"I'll be fine as long as we break even."
"...How many sales should that be?"
"I'd say around 40,000 sales. I think we can reach that." Ryan replied, though his voice didn't sound very confident.
Noah also didn't sound too confident as he said, "40,000 might be a little too much, but I at least hope we can cross the 10,000 mark by tomorrow morning. I won't check my phone until then. I don't want to jinx it."
"I'll do the same."
"Me too."
As the three were discussing the sales amongst themselves, the door to the studio opened.
A figure walked in shortly after.
"Boss!"
"Boss!"
"Boss!!"
They all shouted in unison, prompting Seth to lift his head.
Noah stepped forward.
"How is the situation outside? What do you think? Is the game doing well? Is it a flop? Please don't tell me it's a flop. I refuse to believe it's a flop."
Everyone looked at Seth, who stopped dead in his tracks.
Taking in the looks around him, he smirked, putting his phone away.
"Don't worry about it. We'll see the results tomorrow."
-x-X-x-
The next day came quickly.
After going to the gym and washing up, I headed to the Studio.
I had yet to check the game's statistics.
In fact, I hadn't even gone online. I didn't know how the situation was going over there.
Arriving at the Guild, I took the familiar path through the corridors and made my way toward my office. The building was unusually quiet, the silence broken only by the faint creak of the floorboards beneath my steps. It was a little early, and a certain emptiness hung in the air, but I paid it little mind and continued toward my office.
"Boss!"
"...You're here, boss!"
"I was dying to wait for you!"
Three voices soon broke the silence as I turned my head to see Noah, Joseph, and Ryan heading towards me.
Seeing them, I paused.
The three of them...
How could I even begin to describe the state they were in? They still wore the same clothes as yesterday, their hair disheveled, and dark circles ringed their tired eyes, giving them a hollow, sleepless look.
I grew speechless.
"You didn't sleep last night, did you?"
In fact, I could even smell some alcohol.
These guys...
"Hehe, we were a little too nervous for the results. We all wanted to check, but we just stopped ourselves."
"Yeah, yeah. We promised to check in the morning."
"I'm dying to know! Can we check!"
"Not yet."
I stopped them before they could do anything else. Looking around, I pointed at my office.
"Let's do it inside, not here."
I didn't want them to cause a mess over here.
The three also appeared to have understood as they hurriedly lowered their voices and moved into the office.
Clank—!
The office fell silent almost instantly, not a single sound breaking the air as every pair of eyes turned toward me. I could feel their anticipation, the weight of their stares pressing in, but I didn't rush. Instead, I calmly set my things down, pulled out my chair, and took a seat.
Was I nervous?
I was.
In fact, I was also dying to know.
However, I was confident in my game. There was no need for me to worry.
I knew it was going to be a success. This was how much confidence I had in the game.
Nevertheless, there were no guarantees, and that little seed of 'doubt' only grew with each passing second as I eventually turned my attention to Noah.
Trying to keep myself grounded, I smiled.
"Alright."
"....!!"
".....!"
".....!"
The three immediately jumped up, Noah whipping out his phone and hurriedly logging on to Dock. Ryan and Joseph both stared at Noah's phone in anticipation, but stopped a moment later, pulling away while closing their eyes.
"Actually, I want to hear it."
"Same."
Both of them shut up.
The room turned deafly quiet.
"....."
I sat in silence, trying my best to remain collected; however, my fists were clenched beneath the desk.
'50,000 sales. That's all I need for success. Let it be 50,000.'
The sales would increase after that.
An opening day of 50,000 would suggest a good opening. Given how the game was priced at 10$, that would also mean that I'd make nearly half a million, excluding Dock fees.
That was all I needed.
"....."
The silence dragged on, Noah's eyes reflecting the glow of his phone's screen.
I waited in the heavy silence, each passing second stretching longer, pressing tighter against my chest. Just as the tension began to feel unbearable, Noah finally lowered his phone.
He looked around, not making a single sound.
And then—
"O-one..."
His lips quivered.
"One hundred and ten thousand."
The words left Noah's mouth slowly, almost disbelieving, yet heavy enough to fill the entire room.
For a moment, I didn't know how to react.
The same was true for the others as they stared at Noah dumbly.
But then—
"Holy shit!!!!"
"What did you just say!?"
"Did you just say 110,000 sales!!! What the fuck!!!"
"This can't be real! Are you sure it's real!!?"
Ryan and Joseph both shouted at the top of their lungs, their eyes wide and faces full of disbelief. I was just like them, but the words refused to come out as I struggled to process the information.
110,000 sales?
'That's more than double what I wanted.'
In fact, this was far more than any other game I had ever made before.
These numbers...
They almost felt unreal.
"Check again! Check again! This has to be a dream! It has to be a dream! These are unreal numbers for such a small game!"
At Ryan's insistence, Noah searched again, but the result was the same.
The Dock page didn't lie.
The first day's sale value was indeed like this.
"Holy shit!!"
Ryan screamed again, jumping up while staring at me.
"Boss! Boss! This is insane! Boss!!"
"...I know, calm down."
I smiled at the three of them, pretending to be calm.
"This is just the first day. This might all be due to the momentum that we've gathered following the stream. There were indeed a lot of people watching. Let's wait to see how things will progress in the future."
Although I said all of this, I was inwardly doing all sorts of acrobatics in my mind. Backflip, frontflip, middle fingers... All of that nonsense.
Yes!!!
"Wow, I can't believe you're so calm, boss."
"I guess you really believed in the game a lot."
"You're right. Let's be calm like the boss. There's no need to be excited just yet. There's still a lot of work that we need to do."
My 'fake' calmness seemed to rub off on them, and they quickly calmed down.
They all turned into work mode shortly after.
"There are several bug and glitch reports. Let's handle those first."
Noah was quick to take charge.
"Ryan, you're better than I am at this stuff. I'll download the report and send it to you. Make sure you tackle that. I want them to be fixed as soon as possible so that we can improve the user experience."
"Got it!"
Ryan hurriedly took out his phone and received the report. He didn't waste a second after that and rushed away into the Studio.
"Joseph, you work with me. Given how many people are playing the game, we need to expand the server size for when the multiplayer feature rolls in."
"Understood."
There were plans to add a multiplayer feature. However, given the time constraints and the challenges of adding multiplayer, we chose to delay it.
We also wanted to see the total number of players who would be playing the game.
Now that we knew, Noah and Joseph got to work.
They were so focused on their job that they didn't even look at me, rushing towards the Studio to work on the changes.
Staring at the two, I smiled.
'I didn't make a mistake hiring them.'
I could tell that they truly cared for the games, and not only that, but they were also extremely capable. Where would I find more people like this?
This was just the start.
I wanted more.
I wanted my games to reach the entire globe, and to do that, I needed an even bigger team.
But still, this was enough for now.
'There's no need to rush.'
Taking out my phone, I started to look at the comments. Seeing them, I smiled. There were quite a lot of positive ones.
However, a certain comment made me pause.
—Do you all think... that this game might reach the global rankings?
Global Rankings?
I paused.
—I think its possible.
The comment made me pause.
It wasn't like I didn't know what Global Rankings were. They existed back in my world, too, but things were quite a bit different in this world. Perhaps because this world appeared to have more 'emphasis' on games due to the existence of VR, or because of the system's workings, but the Global Rankings were a lot more prestigious than the ones in my old world.
They ranked the top 200 games in the world based on several criteria, and the competition over there was ruthless.
It didn't just consider sales value; it also accounted for 'entertainment value', 'core mechanics', 'ratings', and so on... It was a carefully crafted list by several experts at the top.
They also appeared to use AI to ensure the score is as accurate as possible.
"Last I'm aware, it had been quite a long time since a gaming company from Malovia Island has made it into the Global Rankings."
Nightmare Forge Studios claimed to be 'close' to reaching the Global Rankings, but honestly, I didn't think they were close at all.
Their game was great, with unique mechanics and all, but it still lacked the 'X' factor that would put it in the rankings.
Not only that, but its 'horror' nature also put it at a disadvantage.
Horror games didn't perform as well as other big-company games.
"It'd be nice if it touches the Global Rankings."
Still, I didn't have too much hope.
In order for a game to reach the Global Rankings, it needs to have a reach outside of just the island it came from. In that regard, I needed to attract audiences who weren't just from Malovia but also from the Central island.
'That's a bit difficult.'
The culture over there was different, and so was their tolerance for horror.
All in all...
It wasn't going to be easy.
"Well, let's see in the next few days."
I'd get a better idea if it was possible or not. I didn't hold much hope.
Shoving those thoughts away, I continued to look at the comments.
But—
—Global Rankings? Nah. That's not possible. I really doubt he can do it.
—Why do you say so?
—The game just isn't as good as people say it is.
—Have you even played it?
—Wait, but if the game really makes it to the Global Rankings, wouldn't he be eligible for the Silver Game Award?
Silver Game Awards?
I stared at the name for a moment, but nothing rang a bell. In the end, I did a quick search, and that's when I realized what it was.
"So there's an award like that?"
The main criteria to be eligible for the Silver Game Award were to crack the top 200 Global Ranking at least once. It was an extremely prestigious award, second only to the Gold Game Awards, which recognized the best game of the year, and it brought massive fame to the game that won it.
In fact, many of those who won the Silver Game Award went on to become some of the best developers in the industry.
"It says right here that the main criteria for one to be eligible for the Silver Game Awards is for the Studio working on it to be less than two years old, with a team of less than ten people."
Thinking about it, I fit the criteria quite perfectly.
My Studio was not even one year old, and my team was composed of four people.
Well...
That was, unless I took into account the Conductors and the others, but they were more like an extension of me, if anything.
"Ehm."
I continued reading the award description.
'There's monetary compensation for the winner, going at around 5 million dollars, and each participant must come from a different island, meaning that..."
I paused.
"Meaning I need to have the best game on the island for anyone who fits that criteria."
I stood in silence for a short moment before closing off the page.
There was no need for me to think about being the best for those who fit the criteria. At the moment, my game was on its way to being the best on the island. It was even possible for me to be nominated for the Golden Awards, but there was an issue.
One couldn't be nominated for both the Golden and Silver Awards.
They had to give up one.
"Well, it's not a hard choice."
To me, the answer was obvious.
The Silver Awards.
What was the point in participating in the Golden Awards, knowing that my chances of winning were extremely low?
'Might as well participate in the Silver Awards where I'm more likely to win.'
My mind was made up.
I planned to sign up for the Silver Awards to see if I could get my hands on the Award —or, more specifically, the five million.
I wanted the money.
"...Still, I should be making a good amount from this game."
The sales were incredible, and I could see that the momentum was still there. Fidgeting with my hand, I opened my phone once again, and as I did, I couldn't help but notice several headlines.
Malovia Times — [New disturbing game makes its way into the market. A game that boasts about getting its own players to kill themselves. Is this safe for the community? Especially in times when depression is at an all-time high?]
New Daily — [Shocking and disturbing game! Is this the current state of the gaming market? A game that makes one kill themselves! It is reported that several hundred people have already been admitted to hospitals regarding the game. Should the BUA do something about it?]
"....."
I pursed my lips.
Well...
I scratched the side of my cheek.
It wasn't like I didn't expect such a result. With that said, I didn't think it would even go so far as to get people admitted to the hospital.
My horror game...
It really wasn't that scary!
***
Severed Stars Guild, Guild Master Office.
"..."
Staring at the monitor in front of him and seeing the numerous articles that were created about the new game developed by Seth, the Guild Master couldn't help but smile. Although he hadn't tried the game, Seth had personally given him a copy.
This was part of the deal he had with the Guild.
Neither of the two was against the arrangement, and seeing the result of the game Seth had released, the Guild Master's smile only grew.
"He's exceeded my expectations."
This game...
It was an excellent game.
He had already gotten a few Guild Members to try it, and the results were splendid. These games were indeed perfect for training the recruits, and the best part was that they didn't cause any deaths.
The Guild Master could already foresee the future of the Guild with the games, and the thought made him appreciative of what Seth was doing.
And so—
"Hello?"
He made a certain call.
"Yes, make sure to take down all of the reports going around about the game. Yes, make it quick and minimize their impact. Thank you."
The Guild Master hung up the call a moment later.
With the same smile on his face, he looked at his monitor. Not even a minute after he hung up, the article was gone.
A pair of dimples formed on his face.
"...I hope you enjoy my gift."
This was him rewarding Seth for his usefulness.
-x-X-x-
There was another piece of explosive news that made the rounds across the entire island.
Breaking — [Foul play? Nightmare Forge Studios, a company famously known for its latest game release 'Death Company', has been recorded stating that they are trying to sabotage the career of another developer. What is the truth to this statement?]
Breaking — ["There's no real truth to the statement. The recording comes from one of our rogue employees. None of us was aware of his intentions, and we immediately fired him. Our company does not need to rely on such cheap tricks."]
Breaking — [Stock for Nightmare Forge Studio plunges after controversy. Will they be able to get out of this predicament?]
One news article after another started to be released.
Clips of what had happened during the stream had also gone viral across the entire web, and the backlash the Studio was facing was quite severe.
"Have you contacted the journalists? Tell them to run a segment on the misunderstanding! Any publication is fine!"
A voice shouted within the confines of a certain office.
The CEO's face was black, unable to hide the humiliation and anger across his face.
BANG!
Smashing the phone down, he cursed a couple more times.
"Fucking bullshit!"
He turned his head in the direction of where a man stood, his face lowered in silence. The CEO's face twisted.
"Do you understand what you've done?"
"...Yes."
Daniel didn't shrink away from his responsibilities.
He had indeed made a mistake.
But...
"I wasn't aware that he'd be so stupid to take the call in the middle of a stream. I've already contacted the lawyers of our team to make him pay for the damages that his carelessness has caused."
"No shit!"
The CEO slammed his hand against the table.
"That bastard...! He needs to pay for his idiocy! We pay him to help us, not to screw us over!!"
Veins pulsed at the side of his neck as he shouted at the top of his lungs. It wasn't so often that he'd be so enraged, but the damage that his company's image had sustained from the incident was almost irreparable. They had only just barely managed to come out of a bankruptcy, and yet...!
"Argh!"
The CEO let out another angry shout, ruffling his hair in annoyance.
He eventually managed to calm down as he turned his attention back to his assistant.
"How is the situation with the update going?"
"About that..."
Daniel stared at the CEO, lowering his head once more.
"We were in the process of finishing the testing phase. As you know, we have several dozen people testing the update. The programs all appear to be working in function, with no issues with them. It's just that... we delayed it due to the situation that has currently taken plac—"
"Release it."
"Huh?"
Daniel stared at the CEO, whose eyes had turned bloodshot.
"You say that you've tested it and all the programs are in function, right? Then what are you waiting for? Release it!!"
The CEO slammed his hand down on the table again, making the poor assistant flinch. Seeing the rage on the CEO's face, Daniel could do nothing but lower his head and nod.
"Yes, I'll get to it."
Actually, it wasn't so simple.
The testing was done, and the update was flowing smoothly.
Adding the programs to the game was extremely easy. The one that they were truly interested in was the music piece. Unlike the copy that they had, the effect of the original was much better.
Adding it to the update was extremely easy.
The main issue was that, given the current backlash, proceeding with the update would make things worse for them.
'Still, the CEO's decisions are absolute.'
Daniel's eyes turned resolute as he walked towards the programming area.
The update for 'Death Company' was released an hour after.
***
The entire day was a festive one.
The numbers for the game continued to climb, and by the time it was time for dinner, sales had increased by another 20,000.
This unprecedented release brought immense joy to the team.
"Cheers!"
"Let's go!!!"
We all sat in a nice restaurant near the Guild.
For once, we decided to splurge a little. I still had a bit of money to invite them over for dinner.
"This is the second night in a row... that I'm drinking, but this feels so much... different compared to... hic... yesterday!" Noah muttered, his face nearly pressed against the table as he took a sip of his beer, only for it to spill all over the table instead of his mouth.
"Oy, watch it!"
"Careful, you bastard!"
"What? What?"
Seeing the scene, I couldn't help but smile a little.
This was the first time in a while that I felt a little bit happy. Of course, I knew that things were going to become quite hectic yet again. However, I planned on taking these few moments to relax.
Especially since I knew that the 'Fourth Order' mission was finally coming up.
There was only a week left until I had to complete the 'cult' mission, and the closer the deadline drew, the heavier my heart became.
I was still far from reaching the Fourth Order, and while I had been collecting some fragments here and there, it was still not enough.
'...I might just ask the Guild Master at this point. To hell if he asks what it is for.'
I was sure that he wouldn't mind giving them to me.
With that being said, I knew that it wouldn't come for cheap.
'The game is going well, I've taken care of that annoying stream, Nightmare Forge Studios will soon be taken care of as well. I've gotten the Guild Master on my side; I no longer need to worry about the rat...'
For a moment, I felt like I was on top of the world.
Since when had things ever been going this smoothly for me?
Staring at the drink in my hand, I took a quiet sip, feeling the soft burn lingering at the back of my throat. I was just about to say something to my employees when something tickled my ears.
Pausing, I took out my phone and checked Dock.
"It's here."
Nightmare Forge Studio's latest update.
I stood up from my spot and reached for my coat that hung by the corner of the room.
"Huh? Boss? Are you going somewhere?"
"Boss?"
"Don't leave, boss...!"
Everyone immediately noticed my actions and tried to stop me from leaving, but I just raised my hand to show them my phone.
"I'm just going out to take a phone call. Don't worry. I'll be back in several minutes."
"..Oh."
"You should've said so."
"Silly boss."
Seeing how drunk they were, I shook my head before going out of the restaurant and walking into a more remote area with no one present.
Leaning back against the wall, I took out a cigarette and smoked it.
*Puff*
It wasn't often that I smoked, but in the times I did, it was to help me calm my nerves as a tall and stitched-up figure appeared before me.
Without looking in its direction, I mumbled,
"Do it."
*Puff*
"...Make them pay for stealing from you."
-x-X-x-
"..."
The Conductor stood in silence, its gaze hovering in Seth's direction as he took another drag of the cigarette. It was dark in the alley, and as a soft breeze brushed the surroundings, Seth took another drag of the cigarette, his eyes darkening alongside the night.
*Puff*
"...Do as you wish. I'm not going to interfere."
There used to be a time when he would've thought about the consequences of his actions, but lately, he found himself thinking less and less of such matters.
'I've been liking the peace quite a lot lately. Had I acted faster, I probably would've gotten rid of the rat faster, and I wouldn't have had to take such drastic measures with the Guild Master. I also would've been able to handle Nightmare Forge Studios a lot faster.'
At the end of the day, it all came down to the fact that he was a 'pushover'.
Indeed, he was one.
He was both a coward and a pushover.
This much he was aware of.
But at the same time, he was slowly changing.
He could feel the change.
*Puff*
Taking the last drag of the cigarette, he tossed the cigarette to the ground and lifted his head to stare at the Conductor.
"Don't hold back."
Riiiiiiip—!
A wet rip echoed across the surroundings, the Conductor's stitched coming apart as its lips pulled into a grotesque smile.
"Very well."
"....."
Seth's gaze continued to hover over the Conductor for the briefest of moments before he turned around and stomped on the cigarette on the ground.
His body faded from the alley a moment later.
And soon—
The Conductor made its move.
*
What did music mean to the Conductor?
It meant everything to him.
In that case, how did it feel when it knew that someone stole from it?
Rage.
Unbelievable rage.
It wanted nothing more than to tear apart the ones responsible for stealing its music.
How dare they!?
But the Conductor was no longer the same as it had been. Its powers were greatly weakened, and it was no longer in full control of its decisions. It had given up those rights after being defeated by Seth.
As such, the Conductor could only hold back its rage.
But each day that passed, the rage it felt only grew. It grew to the point where it wanted to destroy everything that was within its sight.
And thankfully—
'Do as you please.'
He was finally unleashed.
Upon entering a certain room, the lights flicked on.
He entered the room in silence, his eyes sweeping over the scattered instruments before he made his way to the podium, where his baton rested, waiting for him.
Picking it up, he slowly lifted it in the air.
The room fell completely still.
But within the stillness, the Conductor could hear it.
Countless melodies drifted through the air, each one concealing the true tune that belonged to him. His lips curled wider, and his eyes slowly tore open, revealing two hollow, depthless voids.
And then—
Swooosh!
He slashed the baton down.
Regardless of how far he was, his music was always within his control.
***
The update released by Nightmare Forge Studios was met with significant backlash from some members of the internet.
—They really released the update?
—Are they really that desperate?
—I mean, if you think about it... It makes sense. They are currently facing significant backlash, and the best way to address it is to send out the update. That will get people to talk more about the game than their situation. It's not like this is the first scummy company out there.
—You're right. Still, I'm not buying it. Boycott this shit!
—Boycott!!
Many were calling for a boycott, but the movement was hardly significant.
The update was still downloaded by many, with several dozen others purchasing the game altogether.
To make matters worse, many of the people who had been criticizing the game or the update suddenly found their posts removed or deleted.
Silenced!
They were all being silenced!
In a certain room.
"Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit."
Darwin sat alone in his room, gnawing at his nails as the screen before him flickered, the update slowly downloading. His hair was a tangled mess, and dark circles clung stubbornly beneath his tired eyes.
"Despite everything that I've done for them, they're doing this to me... Shit! Shit! Shit! It was just a simple mistake. It's nothing too big."
Darwin stared at the papers in front of him.
They were the lawsuit sent over to him by Nightmare Forge Studios following the situation.
Darwin understood that they had no real legal grounds, but he also understood that this wasn't their goal. They were trying to destroy him with legal fees and time. They were planning on dragging it out in order to make him suffer.
"Shit...!"
Darwin cursed once more.
Thankfully, there was a way out.
'So long as I can help them regain their reputation. Yeah, I can do that.'
His following had grown significantly following the previous stream. In fact, over 50,000 viewers were waiting for him to start his stream.
"Hoo. Hoo."
Darwin took several deep breaths, taking some time to fix his hair and putting light makeup under his eyes to hide the dark circles before forcing out a smile and turning on the stream.
"Yoooo! How are you all doing!? I can see that a lot of you are excited for the upcoming stream! Nice!!"
He glanced at the chat, and the smile on his face nearly faltered.
However, he still managed to retain it as he focused on the update that had just finished downloading.
"Today I'll be playing the newest update of Nightmare Forge Studio's game, like I previously mentioned. I honestly can't wait to try it. I've been told it's a really amazing update with all-new features and modes. Let's give it a go!"
The entire time Darwin spoke, he didn't once talk about the situation. He kept ignoring it, and as a result, the chat kept exploding. Even the viewers started to grow as a result.
"Ehm. Let's start."
Darwin started the game a moment later.
He was already familiar with the game and, as such, was able to easily handle the first few parts without any problems. He also took the time to explain how the game worked to the new viewers.
The game's music echoed in the background as he played.
What he didn't notice as he played the game was the sudden itch on his neck.
Scratch!
At first, it was easy to ignore it.
However, as the game progressed, the itch only grew.
Scratch! Scratch! Scratch!
"Huh? What the hell?"
It wasn't just his neck this time.
His back, his cheeks... His entire body started to itch.
He wasn't the only one experiencing such an inch.
Even the viewers were no different, their entire bodies starting to itch.
Scratch! Scratch! Scratch! Scratch! Scratch! Scratch! Scratch! Scratch! Scratch!
—What the hell?!
—What's going on!?
It grew more and more unbearable with each passing second, but this was merely the start.
".....!?"
Suddenly, the room started to tilt.
"Huek!"
Darwin held onto the chair, trying his best to keep himself from falling.
"W-what the....!!"
Left to right.
Right to left.
It suddenly felt as though the entire world was tilting.
But that wasn't even the worst part.
Soon—
Ba... Thump! Ba... Thump!
Darwin felt a quiet sense of dread, the room suddenly chilling as his entire body started to shudder.
Suddenly, his eyes drew to the monitor in front of him.
The game was still on, but he appeared to notice something within it.
A figure.
Tall and lanky.
It stared straight at him, hands raised.
"Haa... Haa..."
Darwin's breath grew more and more ragged, his expression twisting.
W-what...
What in the world was happening?
And soon—
The figure slashed down.
"Haaaa—!"
He suddenly found himself running towards the screen, his face planted right on it.
Crack!
A crack sounded, and the screen cracked.
But it wasn't over.
BANG! BANG!
Darwin smashed his head over the monitor again, this time harder.
"Haaaa! It... It-hurts... Ha... Haha.. Hahahaha!"
Soon, his screams turned into laughs.
"It hurts! Hahaha!"
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
"Hahahahahaha!"
He wasn't the only one to act like this.
Almost everyone watching or playing the game experienced the same thing.
BANG! BANG!
That night...
Terror reigned.
It was a night of terror.
-x-X-x-
Nightmare Forge Studios.
"How is it going? Is the update doing well?"
The CEO paced his office, staring at Daniel, who sat on the sofa, his eyes closed as he tried to remain calm. It hadn't been long since the update had been released, and the two of them were unable to hide their nervousness.
This was make-or-break for them.
Given the backlash they were facing, their only hope was that the game would perform well.
If the update they spent so much money and time on didn't perform well, then...
Over.
Their entire careers would be over.
"God damn it. How long until we get the analytics on the game performance?!"
Unable to hold his nervousness, the CEO slammed his hand against the side of the sofa.
"It's already been several hours!!"
"...."
Daniel remained quiet upon hearing the CEO's outburst.
Ever since the incident, he had been rather irritable. Every little thing would tick him off.
Especially when taking into account that it hadn't even been that long since the update had been released. The analysts were probably still running the statistics and all of them.
The CEO should be well aware of all of this, but he just wanted to vent.
Opening his mouth, Daniel was just about to change the topic when...
Trrrr! Trrr—!
A phone began to ring.
The CEO and Daniel both paused.
Trrrr! Trrr!
It wasn't just one.
It was two phones.
Both looked at each other, turning their attention towards their phones.
The moment they did, their screens abruptly changed.
Flick! Flick!
A clown appeared a moment later, staring at the two with a smile.
"Hello there~"
His voice was high-pitched and friendly.
But the moment he spoke, a cold chill swept the room.
The two tried to react immediately, but it was a little too late as a certain tune played in the air.
"Mr. Jingles says, pause...!"
The two froze in place.
".....!?"
".....!!"
Their eyes shook, their minds screaming at the same time as they tried to free themselves, but as if they lost completely control of their bodies, neither of the two could move at all.
'What's going on?!'
'What is happening!!'
Panic began to settle in their minds.
However, this was merely the start as the shadows around them shifted.
Flick!
The light turned off, and all cameras deactivated.
A cold breeze washed over as a shadow began to elongate a moment later, taking the form of a man wearing a gray coat. The moment he appeared, the hearts of the CEO and Danial froze, their eyes falling on the pair of dead eyes that stared straight at them.
Just a look at the eyes and the two felt as though the very air had been sucked out of the room.
"Hmm."
Taking a casual look at the place, Seth sat down on the soft couch and crossed his legs, taking out a pack of cigarettes before lighting one up.
*Puff*
Smoke floated in the air as he took a drag of the cigarette.
"I'm not a big smoker."
He began speaking, his voice sounding cold.
"...I've smoked on certain occasions, but lately, I've been finding myself smoking a little bit more."
He tapped the end of his cigarette, letting the ash fall lightly onto the glass table in front of him. Taking a quiet look at the cigarette, his face scrunched up for a brief moment.
"I've been feeling a little off lately. My head throbs here and there on occasion. It's been getting a little bit better, but..."
He paused, alternating his gaze between the two of them.
For some reason, as the CEO and Daniel met his gaze, their bodies stiffened even more, hearts pounding at the sight of his eyes, now darkening into an even deeper shade of black.
"There have been too many things that have been bothering me lately. A lot of those things could've easily have been taken care of had I been a little bit more... how do I say it? Firm? Straightforward? Or..."
Seth paused, his expression turning even more hollow.
"...Assertive. Yes, that's the word."
*Puff*
"I should've been more assertive from the start. I should've dealt with the lot of you faster instead of letting my problems grow. I even tried to give the two of you chances, but neither of you took them."
Seth paused as he looked at them.
"Why do the two of you have to make life more difficult for me? Do I really have to take matters into my own hands?"
The two tried to shake their heads, telling him that he didn't.
But their bodies were frozen, alongside their mouths.
Neither could make out a word.
"I guess I do."
Seth tapped the end of his cigarette again before rising to his feet, his gaze settling on the two of them as his voice dropped even lower.
"Neither of you will remember this conversation once I leave."
Coming to a pause, Seth suddenly laughed.
"I guess to some extent you can say this conversation is pointless; however, you can say that I'm not the most normal human there is. I'm a little twisted. That is..."
*Puff*
"I like watching the faces of people who suffer because of the things that I do. I really do."
*Puff*
"I've always been like this, and probably will never change. I'm twisted, and this is why I'm telling the two of you."
Seth's lips curved into a faint, cold smile as his eyes lingered on the CEO and Daniel, both trembling uncontrollably. Their voices quivered as they tried to speak, maybe to plead, maybe to beg for forgiveness, but it was far too late for that.
He took out his phone.
I just need a little something from you two before I leave.
Flick!
The screens of their phones flickered, and Mr. Jingles appeared once more.
He issued a command, and the faces of the two grew even more dire. But they could do nothing about it as their mouths soon opened, and they started speaking. The entire sequence of events that followed took several minutes before Seth put his phone away.
"That'll do."
He patted his coat before looking at them for the last time, the cold smile still lingering on his face.
"Those are some good faces. It's the entire reason why I decided to come here personally."
'Bastard!'
'Once I get out, I'll kill you! I'll kill you!'
His lips curled further at the sight of them. It was almost as if he could read their thoughts.
"...I just wanted to see the faces you'd make knowing that I was the one who had caused your downfall. I... just wanted to see the faces you'd make knowing that I am the reason why this company will go under. I..."
Seth stopped, his entire body slowly turning black as he started to fade into the ground.
"I just wanted to see the faces you'd make in your final good moments."
His figure completely disappeared shortly after. Of course, he erased all traces of his appearance as he left.
The room plunged into silence, the fallen ashes fading into the shadows, the CEO's and Daniel's eyes shaking uncontrollably.
'No! Come back! No!!!'
'No!!!'
Da~ Da~Dada~
"Mr. Jingles says, forget all about what just happened, and everything related to it!"
The minds of the two blanked.
By the time the two snapped out of it, the sun rose from the window.
"Huh?"
"What's going on?"
It was the light from outside that made the two more alert, and as they stared toward it, their groggy minds regained some semblance of clarity.
"Ah!!"
"The update!"
The two shot to their feet, ready to rush to the lower floors and demand the analytics team's report on the update, but just as they did, they realized something.
Their phones.
They were buzzing.
Trrrr! Trrrrr! Trrrr! Trrrrr—!
Both stopped at once, turning their attentions to the phones.
The moment they did, their expressions changed drastically.
"What?!"
"Ahh——!"
They had hundreds of missed calls.
Not only that, but a certain headline was making the rounds on the internet.
Breaking — [Terrifying sights in Malovia Island! A gaming studio resorting to the usage of anomalous objects in order to increase player retention and gaming ability! Thousands injured! Hospitals full! BUA is taking the case extremely seriously. The perpetrators will most likely be arrested soon!]
And sure enough—
BANG!
The doors of the room slammed open, and several figures dressed in black entered the room at the same time.
Catching sight of the figures, Daniel and the CEO's faces changed drastically.
"O-oh, no..."