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004. THE DAY THAT THE MUGUNGWHA FLOWER BLOSSOMED ( chapter four! ) ⁱ ᵏⁿᵒʷ, ⁱ ᵏⁿᵒʷ, ⁱ ᵏⁿᵒʷ ᵗʰⁱˢ ˢⁱᵗᵘᵃᵗⁱᵒⁿ'ˢ ˢᵗʳᵃⁿᵍᵉ ⁱᵗ ᵗᵃᵏᵉˢ ᵃ ˡⁱᵗᵗˡᵉ ᵍᵉᵗᵗⁱⁿᵍ ᵃ ˡⁱᵗᵗˡᵉ ᵍᵉᵗᵗⁱⁿᵍ ᵘˢᵉᵈ ᵗᵒ -stalker's tango, autoheart.
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ASUKA BECAME AWARE of herself and her surroundings in small gradual pieces. It first began with the sound of loud classical music blooming through the speakers overhead, followed by the disgustingly painful pounding in her skull, tight and congested, like she had spent the previous night drinking. Eventually it was the sensation of a hard, slightly uncomfortable mattress pressing against her back and a thin blanket draped over her legs, and when she finally felt the urge to open her heavy eyes, she's greeted by blinding, artificial light, forcing the girl to squeeze her eyes shut, once more, offended by the sudden assault against her vision.
It almost felt like she was in a hospital due to the fluorescent lighting above her, and the sick feeling settling in her stomach. She briefly wondered if she did actually get drunk last night and ended up being spiked, which was why she felt so terrible. But the rustling sound of multiple people moving around caused the girl to curiously open her eyes once more, allowing them to adjust to the new lighting.
It barely took Asuka a moment of adjustment before the sudden realisation sunk in that she wasn't in a hospital bed.
Her widened eyes darted frantically around the place as she jolted upright, ignoring the way her brain swam with the sudden change in altitude. All around her were mountains of metal-framed bunk beds as tall as the walls neatly stacked on top of each other like a crude dormitory, filled with people beginning to wake up, sharing the same confused look she had. The area, she had realised, was about as big as a warehouse, but it almost looked more like a homeless shelter due to how many beds were set up.
Large metal doors loomed up ahead, tall and menacing. The whole place just seemed so sterile and bland, empty aside for the beds, like they were merely cattle waiting to be slaughtered. Above the metal doors was a black rectangular screen showcasing the number of participants for these games. 456 it read. That seemed like a lot compared to regular TV programs that follow the same premise. How hard were these games going to be? There could only be one winner, in the end, and having over 400 players to compete against was going to be difficult.
The haze of sleep had left Asuka's mind in a heartbeat as she examined the various players crawling out of bed and wandering down the steps to the centre. All of which were wearing the exact same thing.
The whole situation sobered her up when she looked down at herself. Gone was her thick coat she had gotten in the car with, now being replaced with the same teal green jacket, sweatpants and white slip-on shoes everyone else was wearing, hers with the numbers 273 stitched onto it. The thought of someone stripping her out of her clothes just to dress her in clothes not unlike the uniforms she wore at school for P.E made her stomach curdle in disgust.
