"Huh...?"
The Section Chief’s hand paused.
Staring at the notification that flashed in front of his eyes, he didn’t know how to react. Help? What was the red dot?
The sudden turn of events caught him off guard.
He had been prepared for many things, but this wasn’t one of them.
Ding!
[Time Remaining: 00:00:30]
The Section Chief’s eyes jumped up at the sight of the timer.
’Shit!’
He cursed under his breath, scrambling to think of what side to pick.
’From the start, I’ve been made to build a defense in order to block what I presume is the red dot. However, it suddenly turns out that I can work with the red dot?’
This situation confused the Section Chief. He had no idea which side was the correct one; however, if he had to think quickly, the most logical answer would be the red side. He had been trapped inside the Gate for a week, all with the goal of stopping the ’red’ dot.
It was clear that whatever this red dot was, it was against the one in charge of this Gate.
In that case...
’If I help out the red dot and the red dot succeeds, I might be able to get out of this place.’
This felt like a logical conclusion.
But at the same time...
’What will happen if I stop the red dot? Will I also be able to get out?’
"Ukh."
The Section Chief ruffled his hair, his eyes locked onto the timer.
[00:00:15]
His hand reached for the mouse, his finger rising to tap one of the options.
And just as he was about to select an option, the walkie-talkie next to him vibrated.
A voice followed a moment later.
—Reject it.
The Section Chief blinked, his finger pausing mid-motion.
—Don’t help the red.
He recognized the voice. It was Seth’s.
—Huh? Seth? You’re speaking again?
—Seth!
Other voices followed a moment later. However, the Section Chief couldn’t think about them.
’He knows what’s going on?’
This wasn’t the first time during the Gate scenario that he had acted in a manner that suggested he knew something. The Section Chief’s suspicions grew after this, but he didn’t have time to voice his concerns.
[00:00:03]
There was not much time left!
Thus, clenching his teeth, the Section Chief decided to listen to Seth.
Click!
[No]
There was an immediate shift at the moment he rejected the red dot.
The surroundings started to change. The air grew colder. Tighter... And for a moment, the Section Chief felt as though someone was standing right behind him.
Watching him.
But that wasn’t all.
Almost immediately after, the red dot started to move.
A notification followed.
[Target has started moving]
[Stop it]
The Section Chief sprang into action.
His layout was fairly complex, almost maze-like, making it difficult to reach any of the exits directly. The area was divided into sections he could seal off individually, allowing him to redirect the red dot and guide it toward whatever area he chose.
If he played it well, he could also make it go around in circles.
’I don’t quite understand what I need to do. As far as I’m aware, I’m supposed to prevent the dot from reaching one of the zones, but I can’t fully prevent it. The best I can do is slow it down. Especially since I don’t have unlimited energy.’
—Section Chief...? What is going on?
—Is something happening?
Voices continued to echo from the walkie-talkie next to him. They were numerous and also distracting. Unable to fully concentrate, he reached for it and spoke, "I’ve encountered a situation. I am recording it now. I’ll send it to you when it’s over. For now, all I can say is get ready. Don’t speak for now. I need to focus."
Putting the walkie-talkie back on the table, the Section Chief shifted the cursor and pressed onto one of the doors he had set up.
Click!
[Door Locked]
The dot paused.
It stood there for a couple of seconds before turning in a different direction.
’Good.’
The Section Chief was happy with the sight.
But it was only temporary.
There was another meter he needed to keep a close eye on.
[Energy : 9,801]
Each second that he kept a door closed, he’d use 50W of energy.
He had to manage it carefully.
The dot continued to move. As it did, the Section Chief continued to carefully control the doors, locking them at the opportune time and leading them around the maze he had created.
He was doing a fairly good job.
However, he could also feel the presence in the room growing more and more pronounced.
The feeling of being watched intensified with every passing second, and just as he closed another door, the walkie-talkie vibrated.
—Lead it to Zone 6.
"Eh...?"
The sudden instruction caught the Section Chief off guard. For a moment, he got distracted, and the red dot used the opportunity to move closer to the path that led to Zone 8.
’Shit!’
Without wasting a second, the Section Chief closed several doors, blocking several paths and forcing it away from the exit.
The energy levels dropped rapidly as a result, but he couldn’t care less as he reached for the walkie-talkie.
"I could’ve ignored it before, but I can’t anymore. How do you know what is going on? Why are you telling me to lead to Zone 6? Tell me so that I can understand."
—....
The walkie-talkie remained silent.
Staring at it, the frown on the Section Chief’s face only increased.
He was starting to feel that something was wrong.
But eventually...
—Do as I say. Lead it to Zone 6. I will explain everything later. There’s not much time.
"....."
Staring at the walkie-talkie in silence, the Section Chief stared at the monitor in front of him, his hand pressing onto the mouse as he blocked several more areas. Although he didn’t reply to Seth, he still decided to follow along.
Seth clearly knew something about the situation.
He didn’t know how he knew, but it was clear to him that he knew something.
Click! Click!
Closing and opening several doors, the Section Chief created a path for the red dot to move all the way towards Zone 6.
As he did, he spoke into the walkie-talkie.
"Okay, I’ve done as you’ve asked. Can you tell me what’s going on?"
—....
But the walkie-talkie remained silent.
Nobody responded.
"Seth?"
The Section Chief spoke once more.
But yet again, Seth didn’t reply.
’Did something happen, or is he ignoring me?’
Thinking for a moment, the Section Chief flipped the walkie-talkie over. He took out a small cord and connected it to the back of the walkie-talkie and then to his phone.
One unique feature of the walkie-talkies was that they could help determine the locations of any other walkie-talkies connected to them. He could also make them create a sound. He wanted to use it to determine where Seth was.
A page appeared a moment later, displaying several red dots.
They were presumingly the others.
’Where is Seth?’
The Section Chief looked carefully, his eyes narrowing.
But as his eyes swept the map, they suddenly fell towards a certain spot.
A spot where two dots appeared.
"...."
His expression changed.
A terrifying silence ensued a moment later.
One that was broken by a certain beeping. One that came from right...
Behind him.
Di!
Di!
Di!
Slowly, the Section Chief turned his head. And it was there that he locked eyes with a certain walkie-talkie. Resting on the soft gray carpet in the corner of the cubicle.
That was the moment realization dawned on the Section Chief.
’Shit...’
The walkie-talkie buzzed a moment later.
Young. Old. Female. Male.
Each time it buzzed, a new voice echoed.
—T-thank you.
—T... thank you.
—Thank you.
—Thank.. you.
—Thank you.
And soon—
Ding!
A notification appeared on the screen.
[Target has made it into Zone 6]
[Your services will no longer be needed]
The Section Chief’s world turned dark.