The next day, the guild visited as usual for a basic checkup. They took out my IV drip today. I chatted with Karun for a while before Liam and Aiden came in. Seeing that Karun could move now, they said it would be better for him to get some physical activity and took him outside for fresh air.
I was left all alone, lost in thought. My mind wandered to our journey so far and what my family's reaction would be when we returned. Would my parents suspect that we were on a dangerous mission and not just a business trip? My line of thought was broken when Ryan walked in.
"Oh, they've taken off the drip," he said, greeting me in his usual cold tone. Ryan—the ice-cold guy whose face always remained stern, showing no emotions. Every time I saw him, I got the feeling he hated me. No, I knew he hated me.
"Yes," I replied, trying to smile and be polite.
But even so, I wondered. Why was he the first to run to save us after the game ended? I still couldn't believe what Gibbard and the others said about him. Ryan—who seemed to hate me—running to save me so frantically? It didn't add up.
"You'll bore holes into the back of my head, Kathy," Ryan muttered, breaking the silence. I realized I'd been glaring at him while he checked the medicines on the table beside my headboard.
"Can I ask you something?" I said slowly.
"Yes, please do. It's better than being drilled with your looks," he shot back.
"You hate me, don't you?" I asked, narrowing my eyes, determined to get the truth out of him—even if he denied it.
"Yes," he replied without flinching.
"Hmm?" was all I could manage in response.
Ryan stopped what he was doing, grabbed a stool, and sat closer to me. "To be honest, yes, I hate you," he began. "I hate that you had to go through all of this. I hate that you agreed to such a deadly mission. I hate your guts for it."
"What?" I exclaimed. "You think I willingly came here? We didn't have a choice, Ryan. The chairman put us up for this. He practically forced us!"
"Put your hand on your heart and answer honestly, Kathy. Did you truly have no other choice?" Ryan said, grabbing my hand and pressing it to my chest.
I froze, thinking. It took me a minute or two to mumble, "Well...he did put us up for this, but... now that I rethink it... yes, we might have had a choice. Maybe we could've run away, left the country."
"That's it, Kathy," Ryan said softly. "I don't harbor any hatred or ill intentions toward you. I just hate that you had to go through all of this." There was a tinge of sadness in his voice—a sadness that hinted at a deeper story.
"Ryan," I said, breaking him out of his thoughts. "You know why we were chosen to be here, don't you?"
He didn't hesitate. He nodded.
Before I could ask further, Ryan glanced around to make sure no one else was there and began speaking. "It was because of me, Kathy. I'm sorry you had to go through this."
"Hmm?" I raised an eyebrow. "Because of you?"
"Yes. I believe the chairman told you his sons went missing in the game. But that's not the whole truth." Ryan paused, his gaze fixed on the ground. "His sons weren't just missing. They were dead."
I wasn't shocked. Somehow, I had already guessed that. "I see..." I murmured.
Ryan continued, "I knew you were one of the developers for this game, Kathy. I was searching for you all over the world."
I stared at him in disbelief. "Wait, what? How did you know?"
"Ethan," Ryan said, and just the name seemed to pull a string in his heart. His eyes clouded, as if memories were flooding back.
"Ethan?" I echoed.
"Yes. The chairman's second son. Before he died, he told me everything. He almost made it out alive. I had given him a transceiver—something I designed to work under any conditions. He reached the exit, Kathy. He transmitted everything he saw in the game. That's how I got your picture. But... he couldn't make it. His injuries were too severe. I lost him."
I sat frozen in shock, speechless.
"I wanted to avenge him," Ryan continued, his voice trembling. "I wanted to end this monstrous experiment, to know what exactly happened to Ethan. I was selfish. I told the chairman, and we started searching for you. But you had no apparent connection to the game, and I began to think I was foolish—dragging two innocent lives into this. But the chairman was adamant."
His words stung, explaining so much. I finally understood why the chairman had been so set on sending us into the game. And Ryan... though his words didn't explain it all, I could feel the weight of his emotions overpowering him.
"It's okay, Ryan," I whispered softly. "It's not your fault."
Ryan's shoulders tensed, his voice trembling as he replied, "I'm sorry, Kathy. Ethan… he promised me a life I could only dream of." His gaze grew distant, eyes clouded with grief. "We were going to come clean to the chairman, to finally live freely—together. But everything happened too quickly, and I lost him."
He paused, swallowing hard, as though holding back the weight of his emotions. "This damn game took him from me. It took everything."
For the first time, the cracks in Ryan's icy demeanor began to show. The stern, unfeeling mask he always wore crumbled just enough for me to glimpse the man he used to be—one who had loved deeply and lost tragically. I imagined him before all this: someone who smiled, who hoped, who dreamed of a future with Ethan by his side.
Now that future was gone, stolen by a monstrous game and a cruel twist of fate.
As he walked out of the room, his final words stung my heart. "At least now that the game is shut, I've done what he asked me to do. I'll cherish him forever."
The room felt heavy with silence. My morning had been dull and gray, and I couldn't shake this sadness. Karun tried asking what was wrong, but I couldn't talk about it. My thoughts drifted to Kris—another heartbreak. He had jumped into the glitch to save us, his love for me pulling him through that hellish world. Did he truly hope that one day I would show up? Kris had said he was a "premium NPC" who would unlock only when I entered the game. Was this fate? Or the red thread of destiny pulling two people together, no matter the odds? If so, maybe Kris was my other half. But I could only meet him in my next life. In this life, I was destined to carry the weight of these burdens.
My gloomy mood was finally broken when Hemma burst into the room with her cheerful smile. She rushed over, hugging me so tightly I could barely breathe. "I knew you'd make it out alive!" she exclaimed.
She had brought a sumptuous meal for everyone. Soon, Astrid and the others joined, and the room was filled with laughter and chatter. For the first time in days, it felt lively again. And though there was still a thorn in my heart, pricking me with pain, the warmth of this moment—the healing from happiness—was enough to make me forget it, even if just for now.