DECEPTION (Female Reader) [SAKAMOTO DAYS]

21: "Admin Rights"

(Y/n)'s POV:

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'So, I was actually right...' The thought floated through my mind, an eerie calm washing over me as I lingered in this limbo.

I felt a twisted sense of amusement creep in. I had planned for this, theorized that death in this virtual world didn't mean the end of everything. Not for me, anyway. The others, though... those poor souls who failed to wake up after dying in here, they must think they're gone for good, tricked by their own minds into believing this game was real.

From the moment I started putting my plan in motion, I questioned everything. I made a theory-one that hinged on the idea that our brains wouldn't truly shut down just because we 'died' here. The key was simple: remember that it's all a simulation. That's all it took to keep the mind tethered to reality. To keep from actually dying.

I floated in the darkness, my consciousness still intact, my body long since discarded in the incinerator. It didn't matter anymore. I was past caring about that shell. What mattered was the truth-something I alone had figured out.

'Those poor fools... the ones who couldn't piece it together. They died knowing nothing. Too late for them to process that their "death" was nothing more than a digital mirage.'

I had outwitted the game, even in death. And now, even if I was gone from their world, I was still here. Alive.

Ľ̴̨̢̡̢̡̛̛̜̘͖̥̝̖̝̣̦̹̯̝͇̱͈̳͑͂̇̂ͨ̐ͭ̾̊̍̃̏̀ͩ̃͘͟ͅ O̷̧̨̧͚͇̺͈̖̞ͣ͌͗ͨ̏ͤ̈́͑ͣ̌͒̆ͧ̿̕͢͝͝ G̯͚̣̯͊̒͐̈́_̧̛̰̣̲͙͉̦̗̭͈̓̾́̀́̒͗̂̀̓ͩͤ̃ͫ̓̊̿ͦ̽̅͌̚͝G̴̢̧̠̦̥̯̙͓̮̺̪̿̊͊̑̉̒̈́͗͂͛ͯ̕͢͞ͅ I̬̘͔͇ͩͮ̿͞N̩͉͇_̛͍̩͎̰̫͖̘̣̺ͭ͗̿̀͒ͦ͌͒͆͢͠͡G̸̵̵̛̮̠̫͕̪̭̯̟̣̟̩͙̭̣̙͉̅̋ͯ̀̇͐ͣ̈͌ͨͣ͛ͨ̒̏͊ͫ͐͋͠ 0͚̏ͦÜ̏_̸̢̛̛̛̙̙͕͙̟̤̼̣ͨ̃̏̾ͫ̌͆̏̉̈̐̈́̋́̚͡T̻̥͚̖̣̳͇̞̗̳͚͉̱̯̯̘͕͇̭̼͛̽̍̄͂̿̍ͤ̍ͪͭ̿̈́͊̀ͦͩ̓̚͟͝͞ͅ

My consciousness finally snapped back into reality, and it felt like I'd been trapped in that virtual world for an eternity. The weight of the headset still sat heavy on my skull, but now it felt foreign-like I'd just woken up from a nightmare that lingered too long. My body was stiff, every muscle protesting as I moved, slowly peeling the device off my head.

'Days... it's been days since this thing had control over me.' I thought, my mind reeling as reality settled in. I blinked hard, trying to shake off the fog that clung to me. My breathing felt shallow, as if I hadn't taken a real breath in forever.

The room around me was eerily quiet, almost sterile. No more simulated voices, no more artificial chaos. Just silence. It felt unsettling-too calm after everything that happened in the game.

"But I'm back." I stretched out my fingers, flexing them like I was testing whether they were still real. A strange, bittersweet relief flooded me.

I looked around the room and spotted both Uzuki and Rion, still unconscious, their bodies slumped in the chairs, headsets locked firmly over their faces. The sight was strangely serene-like they were just sleeping off a long day rather than trapped in a virtual nightmare. The area around us was secure, just as we'd planned it. No one would disturb us here. Days had passed, and I was the first to wake up.

I stood up, muscles protesting, and walked over to check on them. Their faces were peaceful, but I knew better. If they were anything like me, their minds were still haunted by what we experienced. I couldn't help but wonder if, deep in their dreams, they were still thinking about the victims-the ones we were sent to save. The people trapped in those government capsules, whose lives were put on the line in exchange for twisted experiments.