Chapter 264: Till my fingers fall off [2]
Clank! Clank!
I pulled the handle down a couple of more times.
However, regardless of what I did, the door remained locked.
"....."
I stared at the door in silence before pulling away.
Glancing back, I stepped into the room and hurriedly rifled through the drawers, heading straight for the one where I put the spare key to the office.
I pulled it open and peered inside.
"Gone."
The spare key...
It was gone.
"Shit."
I covered my mouth and stared at the door again.
My heart pressed tightly against my chest as I looked at it. The situation was clear. Someone had entered my office while I was gone and taken the key. The most worrisome aspect was the fact that whoever took my key was able to bring it with them even after the loop reset.
The first thought that came to my mind was, ’Did a scout take the key?’
This felt like the most probable conclusion. While I was gone, they most likely ended up finding the office and entered it, hoping for it to be the exit. However, once they entered and realized that they were led out, they probably grew desperate and looked for something to help them leave.
...The key being the most probable item.
"It sounds plausible in theory, but..."
I took a deep breath while staring at the door.
"...It’s very likely not what happened."
If it was truly one of the scouts, then the moment that time reset, they shouldn’t have been able to lock the door. They should’ve been transported elsewhere."
In conclusion, it was impossible for it to be a scout.
The only one that could be responsible for this was the serial killer.
Or...
The one who originally knocked on my door.
Tik, tik—
The tick of the clock continued to echo as I remained seated where I was, sorting through the entire situation in my mind. The more I thought about the situation, the more confused I became.
Especially when...
"...."
No one knocked on the door.
I looked at the clock and then the door.
’Usually, the knock comes a minute into the scenario. The fact that I don’t hear any knocking is worrying.’
This pointed to only one conclusion: the entity that normally knocked on my door at the beginning was almost certainly the culprit.
Drumming my fingers against the table, I stood up and headed for the door.
I reached for the handle and tried to pull once more. However, the door was thoroughly locked. I cursed before taking out my key; however, I cursed yet again when I stared at the handle.
"Fuck."
The keyhole was blocked.
Putting in the main key, I could feel that something was blocking the key from entering, and regardless of what I did, the key wouldn’t budge.
I didn’t panic.
Instead, I extended my finger, and a black film materialized, stretching into a long, slender rod.
From that point, I tried pushing the thing that was blocking the keyhole.
However—
"....."
Nothing.
The thing blocking the door couldn’t be moved at all.
I frowned and moved back.
At the same time, a long and slender finger appeared next to me as I nudged at the keyhole in front of me.
"Try going on the other side and seeing if you can get the door open."
The Dreamwalker’s figure slowly seemed to dissolve into the ground, slipping beneath the gap of the door. Although I couldn’t see what it was seeing, I could feel its figure appear behind the door as it tried to reach for the handle.
However, right as it reached for the door, it stopped.
"Hm?"
I didn’t understand what was happening.
However, something felt clearly wrong with the situation as I felt something stir outside.
Then—
BANG!
The door rattled.
My heart jumped as I looked at the door.
BANG!
The door rattled again, this time more powerfully. I stepped back, staring at the door in apprehension and confusion. What was happening? Wha—
"Ukgh!"
A sharp, splitting pain tore through my head, and I clutched it as I stumbled backward. The agony pierced deep into my mind, forcing me to lean on the table for support while I drew deep, ragged breaths.
By the time I recovered my breath, I realized what had happened.
The Dreamwalker...
It had been killed.
"Shit."
I fixed my gaze on the door, feeling the walls and shadows around me begin to stretch as my heart pounded in my chest.
The situation became clear to me in that moment.
I couldn’t leave.
I was trapped.
Whatever entity was standing outside, it was trying to keep me sealed in the room.
"Why is that...?"
I pressed a hand to my lips as a flood of thoughts surged through me. The entity had always knocked before. Why had it suddenly stopped and locked me out? What had changed? What had—
"Ah."
Something dawned on me.
What had changed since the past?
"Realization."
I...
Now knew that the office was the exit.
If before it wanted me to leave, it now wanted me to stay.
Why?
Because it understood that I had found the exit.
And for what reason did it not want me to leave now that I had found the exit?
It was clear to me now.
"It doesn’t want me to help the others find the exit."
Ba... Thump! Ba... Thump!
The key to clearing the scenario finally became clear to me. It wasn’t about finding the exit. It was about getting everyone within the scenario to find the exit and leave together.
This was how the scenario was cleared.
"Oh, shit..."
I covered my face with both hands while sitting back down at my desk.
It all finally clicked. Yet at the same time, it felt as if the difficulty had spiked by several degrees. On top of that, I had no sense of how much time had passed in the real world. Maybe only a little, but it wouldn’t be long before those in the Guild realized I was missing.
Just the thought gave me a headache.
’I need to quickly find a way to clear this scenario. Otherwise, by the time I manage to get out, everything will be a mess.’
But how...?
How exactly could I clear the scenario now that I had been locked into my own room with no way out?
I ruffled my hair in annoyance while looking around.
"Somehow, I need to find a way to get everyone into the office. But if I can’t get out, how am I supposed to do that?"
My head hurt just thinking about my situation.
However, in the midst of my despair, my gaze couldn’t help but lock towards the side of the room.
Right where a certain keyboard appeared.
My mind paused.
"Wait..."
I stood up from my seat and walked towards the keyboard. Tracing my fingers across the key and turning it on, I looked back at the door.
Ba... Thump!
My heart raced again as I looked at the time.
This...
"It can work, right?"