I woke up to the usual sound: the crash of batons against metal doors, that shrieking reminder that we were nothing but numbers in a massive machine. But this time, I felt the hardness of the tiles beneath my body more acutely than usual. I looked at my "bed"; it was just a frayed piece of cloth. Since I was in fifth place, I hadn't earned the cotton mattress awarded to the top three, but at least I wasn't sleeping on bare stone like those at the bottom of the rankings.
In the corner of the room, there was a small lamp that only illuminated for those holding more than 20 points. It was my lot to have a little light to see my scars by, while my neighbors in the adjacent rooms drowned in pitch-black darkness because their points had plummeted in yesterday's test.
The Struggle of the Tables
We entered the cafeteria, and here Hairo's damned system manifested itself in its ugliest form. The hall was divided into three zones:
The Elite Zone (Ranks 1-5): Clean wooden tables, fresh cuts of meat, and aromatic white bread.
The Workers Zone (Ranks 6-15): Gray stew and stale bread.
The Debris Zone (Ranks 16-20): Leftovers and murky water.
I spotted "Ellie" sitting in the Elite Zone by virtue of her points; she was Number 21's partner today. It was a scene that sent shivers down my spine. She was devouring her piece of meat with her usual enthusiasm, while "21" sat before a luxurious plate of meat and vegetables, yet he wasn't eating. He stared coldly into the void, as if the food meant nothing to him, or as if he were voluntarily fasting to remain a starving monster.
I turned to my left and found "Dan" sitting in the Elite seat next to mine, consuming his food with a terrifying mechanicality. He looked strong; the protein he received thanks to his high points granted him a bulk that no one else possessed.
"So, Skyro... who do you expect your partner to be today?" Dan asked in a gruff voice, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
"I don't know... I just hope it isn't a lunatic like Ellie," I answered, savoring the small piece of meat I had earned with such difficulty. "What about you?"
Dan shrugged apathetically: "I don't care who it is. I just need someone who isn't a burden to me. Someone who moves when I order them to, and doesn't ask stupid questions."
I looked at him for a long time. There was a strange maturity in his eyes. I asked him in a low voice: "What are you going to do about 21? Do you intend to take his number?"
Dan sighed, looking at me with suspiciously calm eyes: "I won't do anything... I will take first place and qualify for the Second Section. The numbers here are a trap, Skyro... they want us busy fighting each other so we forget the real goal. I want to get out of here with an intact body, not as a corpse bearing the Number 1."
The bell signaling the end of the meal rang. I returned to the room, and Ellie followed me to gather her things.
"They just told me... I am 21's partner today," she said with a wave of her hand. "A piece of advice, Skyro... don't lose to us. I got a new blade thanks to my points, and I won't go easy on you."
She left and closed the door. Seconds later, my new partner walked in. A trembling boy, his body so frail that his ribs protruded; it was obvious he had spent the last week in the "Debris Zone" eating scraps. He bore the Number 35, and his collar emitted a faint red blink... he had lost two consecutive tests.
"H... hello..." he said in a choked voice. "I am 35... I will be your partner today."
I looked at him in silence. If this boy lost today, it would be his third loss... and he would be eliminated. And since I was his partner, his loss meant my points dropping, losing my bedding, and possibly my food.
I looked at his trembling hands and asked coldly: "Do you know how to use a dagger?"
He shook his head, looking down at the floor.
I cursed internally. "Hairo" didn't assign partners randomly; he had paired me with a walking "death sentence" to test whether I could carry him on my back or if I would drown with him.
The guard arrived and shouted down the corridor with a voice that shook the walls: "To the courtyard! Those who have points, keep them... and those who have losses, prepare for the guillotine! The test begins now!"
[The Courtyard: The Wall of Trust]
We lined up in the outer courtyard. There was a massive white wall in the center, painted with overlapping red circles. The guard explained the test with icy detachment:
"Today's test: 'The Wall of Trust.' One of you will stand in front of the circle, and the other will hold five knives. You must throw the knives within the area of the circle surrounding your partner's body without injuring them. Accuracy and calmness are everything. The team that finishes fastest and with the highest accuracy gets two points. Any injury means an immediate deduction of one point."
The test proceeded in turns. The atmosphere was charged with the sound of knives striking wood and the muffled screams from some teams that failed.
The first team's turn arrived: 21 and Ellie. 21 stood with a terrifying coldness. He grabbed the first knife and threw it with blinding speed. The blade embedded itself mere millimeters from Ellie's neck. Ellie didn't even blink; instead, she smiled with blind confidence, as if she knew 21 would never miss. He threw the five knives in seconds; they all outlined her head and body with surgical precision. They finished in record time without a single scratch.
Then came Hugh and his partner; they were well-coordinated and completed the task with good accuracy. Dan and his new partner (Number 33) succeeded as well, although Dan threw the knives with such force that the wood splintered, but he didn't hit his partner.
Then it was my turn with 35. I stood in front of the wall, trying to steady my body. 35 held the knives, his hands trembling noticeably.
"Calm down... focus on the circle, not on me," I told him, trying to soothe his nerves.
He threw the first knife... it was wide. The second... closer. On the third, he lost control completely; the knife flew and lodged itself right into my right arm. I felt the searing heat of the blade piercing my flesh. I let out a muffled scream and gritted my teeth.
"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" 35 cried out, on the verge of collapsing.
"Keep going!" I snapped at him sharply. "Don't stop now, we will lose everything!"
Because of my injury, a point was instantly deducted from us. I pulled the knife from my arm and requested a switch. Now it was my turn to throw. I gripped the five knives in my uninjured left hand. My mind meticulously analyzed the angles and distances. I threw the first... the second... the third... the fourth... the fifth. All of them embedded themselves right beside 35's limbs with extreme precision. I didn't allow myself to make a mistake despite the throbbing pain in my arm.
The test ended. We returned to our rooms. 35 wouldn't stop apologizing and crying in the corner of the room.
"Stop apologizing," I told him while bandaging my wound. "This place doesn't recognize sorrow; it only recognizes results."
The days passed like grinding gears in a ceaseless machine. A full week of grueling physical and mental challenges. I was passed from one weak partner to an even weaker one. On the fifth day, I navigated the "Dark Maze" with a deaf partner, and on the eighth day, I crossed the "Rope Bridge" with a girl who screamed the entire time. I covered their shortcomings, carried their dead weight, and thought for them.
By the tenth test, the administration issued a new decree: communication in the cafeteria was forbidden. We began eating at staggered times, and sometimes in our rooms. My communication with Dan and Hugh was completely severed. We only saw each other as competing numbers in the outer courtyard under the watchful eyes of the guards.
25 Days Passed.
Only 5 days remained until the end of the month. Neither 21, Ellie, Dan, nor Hugh had been my partners at all over the past two weeks. The system was deliberately shuffling the deck to keep us in a constant state of anxiety. Today, I sat in front of the blue screen in my room, staring at the scoreboard.
[Leaderboard - Day 25]
First Place: Number 21 (50 Points). (Won first place 25 times; never lost, regardless of the team he joined.)
Second Place: Number 23 "Ellie" (25 Points).
Third Place: Number 38 "Hugh" (24 Points).
Fourth Place: Number 39 "Dan" (23 Points).
Fifth Place: Number 37 "Skyro" (21 Points).
I looked at my ranking. I am in fifth place... The gap between me and Number 21 had become as vast as an ocean. His strength, precision, and speed in every test made him seem like a machine designed specifically for this place.
I closed my eyes, tracing the old wound on my arm that had now become a permanent scar. 15 days without speaking to anyone except my temporary partners, whose numbers I couldn't even remember. 15 days of absolute isolation, where Dan and Hugh had become nothing more than names on a list, and potential enemies in the courtyard.
Tomorrow is the twenty-sixth test. And the pressure was beginning to eat everyone from the inside out. I sighed as I lay on my cold bed, staring up at the white ceiling, whispering to myself:
"Please... tomorrow... I just hope to get a partner I know... a partner I can trust, just for once."
The countdown had begun, and the factory never stopped turning.