Chapter 15: Exit [1]
Step.
The footsteps crept closer.
Every hair on my body stood on end as I jerked my head back, only to be met with darkness.
Step. Step.
They were getting closer.
Too close for my own comfort.
My heart pounded like it was trying to escape my chest, each beat louder than the last, drowning out everything else.
As my breathing grew louder... it happened.
Flick!
The lights turned on again.
A long corridor stretched before me, with nothing in sight.
Just the silent hum of the lights above.
I swallowed my saliva.
'There's no one...'
Regardless of where I looked, I saw no one in sight. The steps were also gone.
"Was I just imagining things...?"
I thought for a moment before shaking my head. There was no way this was the case. This was certainly part of the scenario.
In fact, just because I couldn't see them didn't mean that they weren't present.
'They could very well be still heading my way.'
The moment the thought crossed my mind, I immediately hurried my steps, moving forward. The goal of the scenario was simple. Find the exit. That was all the Section Chief said before letting us in.
"Find the exit..."
I looked around. The corridor stretched on, just like before—a long white hallway with two corners at each end. Nothing had changed. And somehow, that made it feel even more wrong.
Rushing my pace, I reached the end of the corridor, and yet...
"...The same."
The same long hallway greeted my sight.
No, wait!
I looked up and suddenly saw a black object hanging above the ceiling, staring directly at me.
'A camera...?'
Before I could fully process the situation, the lights above flicked.
Flick!
The darkness took over once more.
My hearing heightened, and my breathing grew more laboured.
'It's just a straight line. I need to—'
Step.
"....!?"
The step returned.
This time, closer than before.
My entire body turned rigid as my stomach churned.
I didn't think twice.
"Fucking...!"
I moved once again, my pace picking up as I tried not to run too fast, afraid of hitting the turn in the distance.
Step, step!
Moving forward, I could tell that the distance between me and the steps was increasing. I was slowly starting to get away from it.
'This is crazy!'
Was this the level of something that was supposed to be manageable?
I clenched my teeth and increased my pace further.
The steps behind him were starting to lag more and more, and then—
Flick!
The lights returned, and everything turned quiet.
"Eh...?"
Looking back, my steps stopped as I realized there was nothing behind me.
"What? I could've sworn that..."
I took a deep breath and quickly pieced all the information together in my mind.
'Ten-second intervals. The lights switch on and off. Every time the light switches off, the steps return. When the light turns off, they disappear.'
As I started to sort through the information I had, I moved forward, slowly inching towards the corner before me.
I was just a few steps away.
'...If I'm right, this is a cycle. Every time the lights go out, the footsteps return—and each time, they get faster.'
My stomach flipped at the thought.
I wasn't very fit to begin with. I was already a little tired from just walking faster.
If the steps grew faster every ten seconds, then...
'I need to quickly find the exit before it's too late.'
But how?
How exactly was I going to do that?
Eventually, I reached the corner and I turned.
".....!"
It was just as I turned that my steps froze.
As I stared down the long corridor, my eyes quickly landed on a door tucked into the right wall. When did that...!? At the same moment, I caught sight of a camera mounted farther down, its lens pointed directly toward me.
I felt watched under the eye of the camera as the lights above me flicked.
Flick!
Yet again, it turned dark.
Step, step, step!
"...!?"
My entire body tensed.
The steps... They were faster again!
Before I knew it, they were almost upon me.
Every hair on my body rose.
'Shit!'
I didn't hesitate to pick up my pace, my heart beating out of my chest as my stomach clamped up and I felt bile build up in my throat.
'...Ah, fuck, I'm about to puke.'
I was now almost jogging.
Speed walking to some extent, as I moved my hand in front of me. Just in case I crashed into the distant wall.
Step, step!
The air felt colder, and the sound seemed to amplify in my mind.
I moved, and moved, and moved.
'How much longer?'
The ten seconds seemed to stretch endlessly as anxiety started to build up from within me.
I could feel the stamina slowly start to drain from me.
It wasn't anything bad, just yet.
However, I knew I didn't have much time left.
I needed to persist.
Persist until the lights turn back on.
And then...
Flick!
They did.
"Haa..."
I let out a sharp breath, swallowing my saliva as I looked around me. The same corridor. The s—No, it wasn't the same.
"....."
I fixed my attention on the door that stood in the middle of the corridor.
Without thinking twice, I moved towards it and reached for the metal doorknob.
Click, click!
But the moment I turned the knob, it refused to open.
'It doesn't work.'
I tried a few more times before giving up.
The door was locked.
I covered my mouth before looking towards the nearby corner. I didn't know how much time was left, but after a brief thought, I rushed forward.
'I just need to confirm something.'
As I reached the corner and turned, my eyes landed on the corridor ahead, and widened instantly.
"As I thought..."
The same hall. The same camera lens. And the same door... or more precisely, the same two doors.
Indeed, right on the opposite end of the first door, there was now another door.
'As expected. Changes don't just occur when it turns dark. Each time the light turns on and I turn a corner, a new change occurs in the corridor. New things get added...'
My heart sped up then.
I felt like I was starting to slowly understand the rules of the scenario.
Soon enough... I could think of a way to find the exit.
I just needed to—
Flick!
Takakaka!
"....!?"
The steps were no longer steps.
They were sharper and faster than before.
My heart almost leaped out of my chest as I immediately rushed forward.
I could feel my breathing growing faster as I ran, but I didn't pay any attention to it.
'One... two... three...'
I just slowly counted the time in my head.
'Ten!'
Flick!
The lights returned, and I held onto my chest.
I didn't waste a second and moved forward, towards the next corner, and turned it.
And as expected...
'Another change.'
Waiting for me at the corner were three doors.
But there was only one problem.
Click. Click. Click.
They were all locked.
I pursed my lips and swallowed quietly.
'If I just resist a little longer, the locks of some of the doors will unlock. At least after I reach a certain number of cycles. I just need to hold on for a little longer.'
All I needed to do was hold on.
But there was only one problem with that.
Clutching my shirt, I tried to collect my breath.
"Haa... Haaa..."
I didn't think I'd be able to hold on for much longer.
I was running out of stamina.
I was...
Flick—!
Darkness.