Alice in Borderland ~ Chishiya

7 - ♥7

'Can you see how many of them are on the table?'

I just walked up when I saw two guys talking to each other. The person who spoke tries to look in with difficulty, frowning, but he clearly can't see anything. His companion has no idea either. 'So we don't know how many participants are allowed.' I don't intend on getting in contact with them, but they still address me as soon as I get closer. 'Hey,' the first boy says, 'can you see how many phones there are on the table?'

I follow their gaze and look inside, where one participant can already be found. He's standing with a phone in his hands and has his arms folded. At first glance, he looks strong. He could be an asset on a team challenge, but also an obstacle if I have to compete against him. I decide not to think about that. After all, it's of no use to me: my visa expires today and I have to participate in this game if I want to live.

'No,' I reply, before continuing my way to getting closer to the transparent red laser beams. 'Will you tell us?' the boys asks. 'No,' I reply again, before crossing the invisible dividing line between the street and the arena. I walk into the entrance of the botanic gardens and arrive at the boy, who looks up at me as soon as I enter.

I don't keep looking at him to see his judgment of me. I don't care if he considers me a threat or someone from whom he can easily win if it comes down to it. I walk towards the table and pick up one of the three remaining phones. Since we're the only ones here, I assume there should be a maximum of four participants for this game. 'Sasaki, Kimora,' the female computer voice says after the facial recognition is completed. On the screen, I see a miniature image of the three of clubs, the card that I've obtained.

I briefly glance at the table full of saws, hammers, screwdrivers and other objects. "Feel free to use this" is written on a piece of paper. My eyes slide to the table with four headsets with a visor on it.

'You're not new,' the boy says. Through his voice, I can hear he isn't either. 'That's right,' I reply. I look at the screen and see that the timer expires in three minutes. Outside, a number of people are still looking inside questioningly. I try to make a decision quickly. The group I played my first game with just three days ago, told me that the outcome of clearing the game is not always determined by others. Sometimes other players join in, but you can play a game individually. Sometimes you'll need others and in Yuri's case, you apparently sometimes need someone to be the bait. To be the sacrifice. If this guy and I are the only two participants in this game, I absolutely won't be able to beat him physically. That's why I look outside again and raise two fingers at the people who are looking back. It takes less than a minute before two people join in.

Judging by their faces, they know the setting and how this world works. I'm not sure that I've accepted it yet, but after three days I at least have become more familiar with it. There's still no running water nor electricity, except for the locations that represent the arenas at night. I can't even go to a toilet or shower properly and hot food can't be easily prepared. After saying goodbye to the group, I found some things at a camping store and managed to heat up some canned food with a gas cylinder and a pan. I'm still a long way from accepting how things work around here, but I'll just have to deal with it. And who knows? Maybe this was the last day I had to.

'What have you done?' the other girl in our party asks me. I follow her gaze and see that she's looking at my arms. I shrug. 'Flares,' I reply carelessly, as if it were something I experience every day. I've decided to act like that. I can't stand people seeing me as an easy target. Most of my scrapes are already mending. The thought of Taree's leg comes to my mind, but I push it away quickly. 'And you?' I ask, looking at the side of her body. I noticed she's having a difficult time walking and that she slightly bends her body in a certain way. 'Stabbing wound,' she replies just as careless.