Ryu Hyun moved his fingers to scratch the thick black wall that enclosed him. He was in a small, box-shaped room about the size of three adult men in length and width.
The air also felt stuffy here along with the dim light from the lamp ball, hanging in one corner of the wall, which spawned a sense of terror from the unknown.
Until his nails peeled and bled, Hyun couldn't leave even a scratch on the wall. He was trapped here. His heart felt squeezed, painful, burning as if spreading from the core of his body with a stab in every breath.
Hyun clutched his chest, his breathing becoming more and more unstable. He was dying without treatment.
"Haah... Haah... Haah, it hurts... Brother," he moaned, holding the stabbing in his chest that seemed to tear his soul apart.
He was used to calling his brother "Brother". Only on a few occasions did he call him "Hyung," because the term "Hyung" seemed foreign to his brother.
Thinking of his brother, Hyun tried to calm down, he must not panic or his illness will strangle his breath. There is no inhaler here, just a nauseating and traumatic empty space.
As if someone heard his call, the cramped room suddenly lit up, shocking Hyun with the transparent screen display on all sides of the wall. Hyun, who often played video games with his brother, widened his eyes at the familiar but unimaginable sight in front of him.
The pain in his chest subsided suddenly as if healed by something invisible, Hyun stared at the transparent screens with trembling body.
[Welcome to the Clause Room in the Death Game world, Spectator Ryu Hyun. Please ensure that you enjoy the interesting show during your VIP time.]
All screens displayed the same message, Hyun immediately felt a dizzying spinning sensation, strangely he couldn't feel sick even though he wanted to.
[Until your VIP time is over, all your biological needs are deactivated for your comfort. Thank you for joining the God of Death game world. I, Administrator Tarnia, welcome you, Spectator Ryu Hyun.]
Hyun's pupils trembled after reading the entire message. As if having completed the initial introduction well, the transparent screen changed and changed its appearance to look like CCTV mode, there were many small thumbnails scrolling and several small screens recording certain activities.
"VIP?" Hyun was confused by the meaning of that term here because he had only heard it from a movie shown by his brother.
Why is he a VIP? Then, what is a Spectator? Why are both words emphasized as if they have another meaning?
Before he had time to think about it further, the transparent screen changed again to a pop-up message display.
[Spectator Ryu Hyun, please choose the available recording ticket within the specified time, if you fail to choose, our System will choose it for you. You are required to watch it until it is finished.]
Deg!
Hyun knew that the message in the pop-up was a threat. He must choose himself or he will be forced to watch something terrifying. Also, he remembered that his biological needs were deactivated, so that means he doesn't have to worry about his illness. At least, that's Hyun's naive thought.
He looked at his fingers, which were previously bleeding, now dried and the wounds closed. Hyun thought positively that being here wasn't that bad, he didn't have to experience the painful suffering from his illness all the time, this was something to be thankful for. But there was one thing that still bothered him, he didn't remember how he could be here.
The transparent screen returned to the manifestation of small thumbnails that were recording tickets. Hyun saw a countdown timer in the upper left corner of the screen in front of him for 30 seconds. He must immediately choose one of the recordings displayed.
Looking from the right side to the left, all the thumbnail recordings looked terrifying, there was nothing normal at all. Hidden fear began to bind him. It was a childhood trauma when his parents were still alive..
He had been kidnapped and confined in the same closed room as now, then the kidnappers ordered him to watch a scary movie so that he would not dare to fight them. They also gave him the opportunity to choose a film that he considered acceptable, exactly the same as what is happening to him now.
Hyun's brown eyes gradually dimmed and dark, as if possessed by a demon, he suddenly pressed one part of the thumbnail on the screen. His expression couldn't be understood.
Ding!
The cheerful sound of the System sounded along with a new notification on the screen.
[You have selected recording No. 999. Enjoy~.]
The recording, which affects the soul, begins to play. Hyun's iris reflects one bloody scene after another, far worse than any movie he has ever watched. However, he remained silent, didn't complain at all. Slowly, something was awakened from within his soul.
°~***~°
[Spectator Ryu Hyun has completed watching recording 1430. This is a new achievement, you have our respect. Your VIP time is extended.]
In the same room, Hyun closed his eyes, which he didn't know when he last rested. Each recording lasted one hour, because his biological needs were deactivated, he wasn't worried about anything wrong with his body, so he didn't hesitate to continue almost a third of the recordings offered.
One after another, bloody scenes played in his mind without stopping. He remembers every detail, every pain conveyed by the participants in the recording, and each of their stories.
This is his secret, Hyun has a much higher mental endurance than anyone else. If he is shaken, his disease will relapse very strongly.
When he was kidnapped in the past, the kidnappers didn't know that he suffered from this annoying disease, so they didn't consider whether Hyun might die from his disease or not.
No one knows how hard he fights to survive. The pain in his chest is so tormenting, but he doesn't want to die. There are many things he wants to do in the outside world, especially with his brother.
Thinking of pleasant memories with his brother, Hyun was finally able to bury the bloody scenes little by little from his mind.
He glanced at the transparent screen, the VIP-related notification. Somehow, he must find out the reason why he received a VIP Spectator ticket in this Death Game world.
From the information he learned through the recordings he watched, the participants were also suddenly dragged into this world for no apparent reason. They have to fight to survive by completing the provided games. If they fail, they will be immediately erased by the Death Game GM.
There is a pause in the game if they succeed, they will be transferred to a city called Calamity City, where the lives of the survivors begin with them being required to complete a game at least once a week.
As for the VIP Spectator position, it is equivalent to the Death Game GM. Unfortunately, Hyun has not yet been able to use most of the features allowed, this is due to the restrictions on his VIP service. Which only means one thing, his position is not his own right now.
He absorbs various information before deciding to use one of the features he can use. That is, to provide clues to one of the survivors what he chooses in the recording that he watches.
Hyun looks at the dark violet-colored hell flower logo where the feature is for a few seconds, then he presses it. The feature is called Sponsor.
***