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I'll lose my sanity ──
next to you
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❝In which , chishiya is strangely surprised to see another player on the seventh floor ──
...
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[ ❝abandon all hope , ye who enter here❞ ]
the silence and darkness of the alternate tokyo was the bare shell of what the city had once been in dreams and fond memories. the ghost of the pedestrian clamour rang against the windows , and the circuits lit up suddenly ── bulbs burning to signify the opening of another of those horrid game venues. a few people huddled against each other beneath the gigantic signboard reading in elegant cursive 'golden paradise' , silhouettes traversing through the stairs towards the foyer of the building which had been a renowned hotel in the previous world , the one they had been obliged to leave behind.
"uhm ──what is , everyone doing here ?", a newcomer questioned , a boy with queer round spectacles.
"don't tell me there are still people who don't know what is going on", a middle-aged man with slanted eyes and a gold tooth gritted out in response. to be honest , yui hardly understood what was going on ── except the boy was probably like her , while the man with the gold tooth and the two girls who were probably friends possibly knew what was going on.
"let me have a break , and don't come in our way", one of the girls warned , picking up one of the mobile phones arranged upon the coffee table in the corner. yui and the boy followed suit , letting their fingers grasp one of the sleek devices. the cold of the marble pillar seeped through the back of her clothes as she leaned against it , examining the phone in her hand , which had no signal so she wouldn't possibly able to call anyone. whatever this was , it was too serious to be a casual atmosphere. suddenly , the screen lit up , words appearing that read ──
FACE REGISTRATION IN PROCESS , PLEASE WAIT A MOMENT.
her brows furrowed , before the words disappeared ── new kanji assembling on the screen to read ,"please wait for the game to commence. five minutes until registration closes" along with a ticking timer.
"uh- um , do you know what all of this is ?", the boy with the spectacles crept closer to her , swallowing uneasily.
spectacles here is so nervous and he is showing it too easily. he is giving others leverage.
"no , i don't", yui answered softly . before turning away.
"whatever this is ── nobody is willing to help us out. should we stick together ?"
no , i don't want dead weight on me.
"sure", yui shrugged. "besides , i just want to get over with this shit quickly." at this , the boy visibly relaxed. humans. social creatures seeking comfort in the herd. simply partnering with her for whatever was to come didn't automatically guarantee either of their safety.
