Chapter 5: The Obvious Mistake
I didn't reply.
I just kept staring at the message.
Try not to waste the next one.
"…Right."
I locked my phone and dropped it on the bed. It bounced once and landed weirdly near the edge.
For a few seconds, I just sat there.
Nothing happened.
No blue screen. No weird voice. No sudden "you have died" or whatever.
Just my room.
Same as always.
"…I'm actually losing it."
That felt more believable.
I stood up, stretched a bit, trying to shake off that feeling in my chest. The one that wouldn't go away no matter how much I tried to ignore it.
"Okay. Normal day."
I said it out loud this time.
Didn't help.
I grabbed my bag, checked my pockets—phone, keys—then walked out.
The hallway was the same. Quiet. A bit too quiet, maybe, but that's normal in the morning.
I headed for the elevator.
Then stopped.
Just for a second.
I don't even know why.
My hand hovered near the button like I was expecting something to happen.
Nothing did.
"…It's just an elevator."
I pressed it anyway.
Waited.
Doors opened.
Same metal box.
Same dull reflection staring back at me.
I stepped in.
Pressed the ground floor.
The doors closed.
For a moment, everything was fine.
Then that feeling came back.
That small, annoying something's off feeling.
I frowned a bit, staring at the panel.
"You're overthinking again."
Probably true.
The elevator started moving.
Small drop.
Normal.
I leaned back and let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding.
Then—
A sound.
Quick.
Sharp.
Like something snapped.
I straightened immediately.
"…What was that?"
The elevator jerked.
Hard.
My hand shot out for the rail—
Missed.
"…No, no—"
The floor dropped.
Not slowly.
Not like before.
Just—
Gone.
My stomach flipped, and for a second my brain just didn't catch up. Everything felt light, wrong, like gravity stopped working properly.
The lights flickered.
Then darkness.
Metal grinding. Loud. Way too loud.
I tried to grab something—anything—
Nothing.
No time.
"This is—"
The impact hit before I could finish.
Everything slammed at once.
Then—
Nothing.
—
I woke up.
And the first thing I thought was:
This again?
I inhaled too fast and ended up coughing. My chest tightened like it didn't like that.
"…Okay… okay…"
I sat up slowly this time.
Much slower.
The room—
No.
Not a room.
White.
Everything was white.
Walls. Floor. Ceiling.
Too clean.
It didn't even look real at first, like one of those empty 3D models before anything gets added.
"…Yeah. This is new."
My voice sounded off again.
Still me.
But not quite.
I rubbed my face, then looked down.
Uniform.
Dark. Slightly rough. Not something I've ever owned.
"…Of course."
New body.
New place.
Same problem.
I let out a breath and looked around properly this time.
That's when I saw the glass.
A whole wall.
And behind it—
People.
I froze.
Students.
A lot of them.
All wearing the same uniform as me.
Some were shouting. I could see their mouths moving, but I couldn't hear anything. The glass blocked everything.
A few of them were hitting it. Hard.
And behind them—
A teacher.
He looked stressed. More than that—desperate. Trying to open something, maybe a door on their side.
"…What is this?"
No answer.
Of course.
I stood up slowly.
My balance felt a bit off, but I managed.
To my left, there was a door.
Plain.
Too plain.
And at the far end—
A bigger one.
Metal.
Heavy-looking.
The kind of door you don't open unless something lets you.
I didn't like that.
Not even a little.
Behind the glass, one of the students suddenly looked straight at me.
Like he just noticed me.
He froze.
Then started hitting the glass harder, pointing toward the big door.
His mouth moved fast.
I couldn't hear him.
But I didn't need to.
It was obvious.
Run.
"…Yeah, that's reassuring."
Right on cue, that blue light appeared again.
"…Of course you're here."
The text formed slowly in front of me.
Synchronization Complete
Failed Attempt: 1
Lives Remaining: 98
I stared at it.
Then at the people behind the glass.
Then back at the text.
"…Failed, huh."
Didn't feel like I had much of a choice, but sure.
Another line appeared.
Reinitializing Subject…
"Still don't like that word."
Nothing.
The text shifted again.
New Environment Loaded
I looked around.
"…Yeah, I noticed."
Last line.
Please Proceed
"…Proceed where?"
The light flickered.
Then disappeared.
Just like that.
Silence again.
I stood there for a few seconds, not moving.
Then looked at the big door.
Then at the people behind the glass.
Then back at the door.
"…Alright."
I rubbed the back of my neck.
"…Let's try not to die immediately this time."
Didn't sound very convincing.
But it was all I had.