I dive into the horror game, and my inner perv goes wild. I snatch the whip from the final boss, strip him down, and tie him up. The next second, I’m on the floor, convulsing from a system-inflicted electric shock. System: 【Hey there! Watch an ad to unlock this scene, hon!】 I wipe the blood from my nose and swipe my credit card to skip. When I come to, the boss has me pinned beneath him. His fingers trace the lines of my trembling body, a souvenir from the electric shock. His eyes darken. “Does this get you zapped, too?” With every soft kiss he plants on my skin, a fresh jolt of electricity courses through me. My screams are swallowed by his lips. Numb and overwhelmed, I try to crawl away, sobbing. He yanks me back, his expression unreadable. “Where are you going? It’s not like I’m going to eat you.” 1. 【Player Kira has logged in. The system will now match you with other players.】 【Estimated time: 5 seconds.】 … After escaping the Rose Hotel, I was transported back to the real world. Under the rose bush in my yard, my brother’s body was gone. In its place was a quivering, dark, gooey substance. It was Corby, the strange creature I’d accidentally befriended in the last game. I can’t believe he followed me back to reality. Does this mean… I can bring my brother out of the game, too? Every day, I waited eagerly for the next horror instance to begin. But to my disappointment, I couldn’t get back in. Just as I was sinking into despair, a month later, an anonymous package arrived. Inside the box was a complete virtual reality setup, technology far beyond anything I’d ever seen. There was also a silver card with a single question etched onto it: 【Are you willing to step through the door of terror once more?】 2. 【Ding—】 【Player matching successful.】 【Welcome to the game instance: Phantom Penitentiary.】 【Victory Condition—】 【Help the protagonist clear their name.】 The cold, electronic voice echoed in my ears again. I opened my eyes. The familiar training grounds were gone, replaced by a bare, empty room. The system’s final words resonated around me: 【Inmate 0371, has entered the facility.】 Well, then. The good news: I’m not the protagonist this time. The bad news: I’m locked up in a high-security prison. The realization that I was a prisoner hit me, and I couldn’t help but laugh bitterly. No wonder it took a month for me to get another chance to enter the game. The damn system was serving me a shit sandwich. The room was pitch-black, the only light coming from the faint glow of the electronic bracelet on my wrist. I used its weak luminescence to feel my way around the dark. Unfortunately, besides the cot I was lying on, the room was completely empty. As I fumbled my way towards the door, the long-lost live commentary reappeared: 【OMG! No way! Kira is back online! I thought she was a glitch, a staff mistake!】 【Yeah! I was so sad when I heard we wouldn’t see her play again. But I don’t get it. If she didn’t commit a crime, why would she come back? This isn’t a joke. You can actually die in these games!】 【Are you stupid? Her brother is in here! They’re so in love, and he’s so hot. If it were me, I’d come back for him in a heartbeat.】 【If I remember correctly, her brother is Silas, right? Silas killed Kira, that’s why he’s trapped in the horror game. Are you sure they’re ‘in love’?】 【I don’t care! Silas was definitely framed! When they left the last game, the way he looked at her… that wasn’t a brother looking at his sister. That was the look of a man who wanted to crush her, to devour her piece by piece!】 【Is he a Power Ranger? What do you mean he ‘glows’? You trying to get yourself killed with takes like that?】 … From a dark corner of the cell, a wet, slick sound slithered across the wall. My body jolted. I spun around, staring into the darkness where the sound had come from. Strangely, there was nothing there. “Corby?” I called out tentatively. Still no response. Weird. Was I imagining things? I could have sworn I smelled rust. Knowing he was hiding from me, I sighed and lay back down on the bed, closing my eyes to rest. The moment I did, I felt a tickling sensation on my face, like something was poking me. I suppressed a smirk. I kept my eyes closed, waiting for ‘him’ to let his guard down before slowly peeling one eyelid open. In the darkness, a monster was hanging upside-down from the ceiling, its single eyeball emitting a cold, eerie glow as it watched my every move. Seeing it, the tension in my body eased slightly. It was hard to see, but the single eye and the foul stench… it had to be Corby. His eye was a deep, shimmering black, just staring at me blankly. He looked so docile, it made my heart itch. I couldn’t resist anymore. I opened my eyes fully and cupped his face. “Aww, Corby, you’re so cute! Mommy’s gonna give you a big kiss!” “Corby, Mommy missed you so much!” “You’re such a good boy. I knew you’d find a way to come in with me.” Ever since I found out Corby was… created from the flesh and blood of my brother and me, I’d forced him to call me Mommy. The live comments erupted in agony: 【Sisters, you carry on. I’m just gonna go throw up for a minute.】 【I told you she has a thing for ugly creatures. She can even bring herself to kiss that hideous face.】 【I’m crying, she’s so dedicated. No wonder her popularity on TerrorStream is through the roof. The producers even spent a fortune to give her a dedicated camera angle, something usually reserved for the main protagonist. She deserves it.】 He’s not a hideous monster. He’s my precious baby. Our big, beautiful boy. As if startled by my sudden movement, a flicker of panic crossed ‘his’ eye. In a flash, ‘he’ vanished back into the darkness, thinking he was well-hidden, curled up silently in a corner. He even squeezed his eye shut, as if that would make him invisible. I was speechless. After a moment of silence, I walked over to him. The closer I got, the more that familiar, pungent odor filled my nostrils. It was sharp, but strangely comforting. I breathed a sigh of relief. It really was Corby. His long, dark hair brushed against my fingertips, tickling me. I curled my fingers, wrapping a strand of his hair around them and giving it a gentle tug. “Corby?” I smiled. The single eye remained tightly shut. I feigned anger and poked his eyelid. “Why aren’t you talking? Cat got your tongue?” Startled by the sudden touch, Corby flinched. Seeing him about to bolt, I quickly yanked him down from the ceiling and gave ‘him’ a massive hug, nuzzling my face into ‘his’ chest. “Where are you going? It’s not like I’m going to eat you.” I closed my eyes, overcome with maternal affection. It hadn’t even been half a day, but I’d missed him terribly. I patted him here and there. Feeling his arms and legs, a question popped into my head. “Corby, why are your arms so thick? Did you sneak some snacks after I left?” “And look at these legs! And this waist is huge!” “Also, didn’t I tell you to take a bath every day? Why do you still smell so much like blood?” I nagged like a mother hen, my confusion growing. I’d only been gone for half a day. How did he grow into such a behemoth? He was a whole size bigger. I was truly baffled. “Wait, since when do you have abs? Do you monsters work out now?” “And… why are you hiding a club…” My hand froze. I didn’t dare explore any further. I could feel the ‘club’ in my palm growing larger. A horrible realization dawned on me. My smile stiffened. I swallowed hard, not daring to move. “Um… Corby… is that you?” I asked hesitantly. “Are you talking to me?” From above my head, a voice, deep and raspy like a broken machine, grated out. If I had any doubts before, they were gone now. The moment the monster spoke, I was certain. This wasn’t Corby at all! This was a man’s voice! There were only two of us in here. Who else could it be?! And how did he manage to stay silent for so long?! A chill ran down my spine. I stiffly craned my neck to look up at him. The monster's eyeball was glowing brighter now, casting a sinister, cold light. Just then, my bracelet must have brushed against something, because it lit up, illuminating his entire face. Let’s just say he was even more of a visual train wreck than Corby. Far more. Matted hair, a face of mangled flesh, and a dark red slime dripping from his body. I never thought I’d find a monster uglier than Corby. 3. A single, explosive “Holy shit!” escaped my lips. I scrambled back, yanking my hands away and pushing off him, my back hitting the far wall. I shuddered, biting my tongue hard to suppress the bile rising in my throat. I wanted to claw a hole in the wall and disappear. I frantically wiped the hand that had touched him on my clothes, forcing myself to picture my brother’s face just to keep from vomiting. The monster’s single eye darkened. After a long pause, he spoke, his voice a low rumble. “Disgusted?” Being stared at with such ‘intensity,’ I felt like I couldn’t breathe. “No, no, no, of course not!” I denied frantically. “I couldn’t possibly like you more!” He let out a dry chuckle. “Is that so?” I nodded vigorously. “Mhm!” His black eyeball stared deep into mine for a moment before closing heavily. He turned his back to me, silent. For a long while, he just stood there. Finally, he lifted his foot as if to leave. Seeing this, my tense body began to relax. But before I could even let out a sigh of relief… He—shook—his—body—like—a—wet—dog. Except dogs shake off water. He had no fur. He was covered in dripping, crimson slime. The viscous liquid, mixed with blood, flew in a perfectly calculated arc, drenching me completely. Just before he left, he glanced back at me, a look of profound grievance in his single eye. “…” Standing there, covered in filth, my feelings were… complicated. What the hell was that for? 4. The timer on my bracelet hit 5:00 AM. With a cold, electronic ding, the dead silence of the prison was broken, and it came alive. It was still pitch-black, but now I could hear the voices of other players, distant and near. If I listened closely, I could even make out the sound of someone sobbing quietly. Suddenly, a set of bold red letters lit up the wall. 【Welcome to the Phantom Penitentiary Factory.】 All inmates must adhere to the following rules— 【1. Inmates must remember their number and arrive at the designated location before the countdown ends.】 【2. Your electronic bracelet will display your destination.】 【3. Factory maintenance hours are from 20:00 to 05:00. Please refrain from wandering unless absolutely necessary.】 【4. The Warden's orders are absolute and must not be defied.】 【Finally, romantic relationships are strictly forbidden within the prison factory!】 【Violators will be punished!】 For some reason, as that last rule was announced, a strange feeling washed over me. It felt… out of place among the other life-or-death rules. Just then, the cold, electronic voice returned: 【All players are now active. Mission directives have been issued.】 【Player count: 300.】 【Good luck.】 The words had barely faded when the lights flashed on. The sudden brightness was blinding. I instinctively threw a hand up to shield my eyes. At the same time, my bracelet started beeping frantically. I squinted, fumbling with the device, trying to turn it off. But aside from its alarm and glowing function, it seemed to have no other features. Not a single button. Giving up, I sighed and started searching the room for a way out. The walls were made of a cold, silvery metal, and even the cell door was constructed from some high-tech material. Getting out of here was going to be next to impossible. The shrill alarm from my bracelet hammered at my nerves: “Inmate, please proceed to the designated location.” “Inmate, please proceed to the designated location.” … The door was flush with the wall, practically seamless. The realization made me pause. So. How did that monster get in? And how did it get out? Time was ticking away, and I still couldn’t find an exit. My brow furrowed, sweat beading on my forehead. The countdown on my bracelet showed only ten minutes left. I forced myself to calm down and searched the room one more time. It was only when I got close to the door again that I heard it—a faint beep-beep. I pressed my ear against the door to listen more closely, but the sound vanished. I glanced down at my bracelet, then stepped back from the door and approached it again. The crisp, electronic beep returned. After a moment's hesitation, I steadied myself and walked forward. Just as I suspected. As I moved, the silver cell door began to turn transparent. By the time I had stepped completely through, the door behind me solidified back to its original state. 5. I was out of the cell. I wiped the sweat from my face. The first thing I saw was a giant elevator in the center of the massive, open-atrium prison, running straight up to the highest floors. My cell was on the fifth floor, at the far end, a good distance from the elevator. The entire prison was a massive cylindrical structure, at least seventeen stories high. But my bracelet indicated my destination was on the eighteenth floor. As more and more people escaped their cells, a crowd formed in front of the giant elevator. I scanned the faces. Everyone looked utterly bewildered. The elevator doors were closed, but the countdown continued. With only eight minutes left, the electronic voice chimed in again. 【Initial phase: Cell escape. 13 players failed. Current player count: 287.】 【Round one will now officially begin.】 【Players must reach the designated location on the top floor within eight minutes.】 【Please note: The main elevator ascends one floor per minute and can only hold 20 people at a time.】 【Alternatively, players may use the pedestrian stairwell located next to the elevator. Friendly reminder: The stairwell is teeming with anomalies. One wrong step and you might just end up in a monster’s gaping maw.】 So, do I fight 287 people for a spot on an elevator that only holds 20, or do I risk the stairwell filled with unknown dangers? The stairwell was not only dangerous, but I’d also have to sprint to the top floor in a ridiculously short amount of time. This isn’t looking good, I thought. Screams echoed from above as bodies began to fall from the upper levels. In the end, I chose the stairs. Perhaps the only thing more terrifying than monsters are desperate people who have lost their minds.
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