Episode 2: Glitch in the System
8:11 AM
Somewhere between consciousness and the floor
I didn’t pass out.
Not really.
It was more like my brain hit a loading screen and forgot what it was supposed to render next.
Everything went black, then white, then—
---
[FLASHBACK LOADING…]
00:10:03
Gym Storage Hall
The door was open.
Blood on the floor.
A trail leading inside.
I stepped over a body. Didn’t look at the face.
That part is clear.
Everything after that?
Not so much.
---
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
Fragment 1: The Wildling
It was crouched over someone.
Someone breathing.
Someone not breathing.
Someone—
The memory stutters.
Its limbs were too long.
Its head twitched like a broken animatronic.
Its face—
No.
Skip.
My brain refuses to render that part.
---
Fragment 2: The Pole
I remember the weight of it.
Cold metal.
Slick grip.
My hands shaking.
Not fear.
Not bravery.
Just… calculation.
I moved.
It moved.
Something hit the wall.
Something screamed.
The sound wasn’t human.
Or maybe it was.
I don’t know anymore.
---
Fragment 3: The Mask
Not the Wildling’s.
The other one.
White.
Blank.
Watching from the corner of the room like it was taking notes.
I blinked and it was gone.
Or maybe it was never there.
---
Fragment 4: The Bag
I don’t remember packing it.
I don’t remember choosing what to take.
I just remember weight.
Dragging.
Pulling.
My arms burning.
Someone grabbed my sleeve.
A voice said something like “help” or “don’t” or “please.”
I didn’t look back.
I couldn’t.
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Fragment 5: The Door
00:00:07
The classroom door.
The countdown.
The silence.
I remember stumbling in.
I remember the looks.
I remember dropping the bag.
But the part right before that—
the part where I should’ve died—
is missing.
Like someone deleted the file.
---
[FLASHBACK CORRUPTED]
A sharp sound snapped me back.
Not a scream.
Not a voice.
A notification.
A single chime from the classroom screen.
“Player 12 has completed their first task.”
Player 12.
Me.
Ayato.
The room stared.
I stared back.
And for the first time since this started, I realized something:
The Game Master wasn’t just watching us.
He was watching me.
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