Are these signs before my death?

Such a thought crossed the mind of the confused soul. But no, that doesn't seem to be the case.

I rub my eyes a few times, but everything is still gray-colored. As the timer gets closer to 0, I remember something.

Yes, the article. This is exactly like the nameless writer's described. The surroundings seem to stop moving completely.

But something different happens that the author didn't mention. In the midst of this confusion, I realize that one thing doesn’t stop moving—clock-related stuff. Unlike the author's story, my TickBit still functions as intended. Then if I look at the huge clock monument that stands in the middle of this park, the clock arm seems to be still able to move. I also approach the middle-aged worker man who is running after the train. He stopped when he was about to raise his hand. He seems to want to take a look at his wristwatch. A silver analog watch is revealed from the sleeve of his coat. Just like the monument clock earlier, this analog watch doesn't stop moving.

By the way, it is almost at 15:00. It looks like the TickBit's timer will indeed stop around that time.

In the last ten seconds, I sit back down on the bench in the park. My head is again filled with questions. What is happening right now, why is it true according to the writer's imagination, and so on.

Will at zero everything return to normal? But then I think back. It would make more sense if the phenomenon started this morning and ended when the timer ran out. So that's not correct.

Uh, wait. So, isn't it more rational if this phenomenon occurs when the timer shows zero? As I recall, and my memory is never wrong, this all happened when the timer still showed the 30th second.

Then, what would happen when the timer went out?

Speaking of the devils, the timer has reached 0 without me realizing it. Then my head starts to feel like it's spinning non-stop; I feel so dizzy. At this moment, I swear to God it is pictured in my mind that the world is so distorted, everything twists and turns. My body feels like it is floating fast, and after that, I see so many amazing things.

But it might just happen in my head. Shortly after that, I couldn't keep my balance and fell. Everything suddenly goes dark. I think I passed out, guys.

***

I feel like I've been sleeping for ages. But when I open my eyes, it's still the same evening. I can't prove it by looking at the clock on my TickBit, because now this hardware has decided to go dormant even though I press the screen and buttons several times. The evidence of time is only the blue-orangish color in the sky that I can peek through the gap in the platform ceiling.

I wake up in the middle of a train track facing some kind of tunnel, and also one behind my back. My back hurts so bad. How not, for some time only God knows how long, I fell asleep on top of pebbles and steels. It shouldn't have hurt as much if I had my backpack on my back, but I'm not wearing it, and I can't find it anywhere.

This place is uncomfortably narrow; rails that can only accommodate one train, a small platform on my left, and to my right is a concrete wall that rises high above. At first I thought someone had moved me to the inner station, but this is different. I don't remember this section being a part of the station.

I stand on my feet to further explore this place and a mission to search my backpack. After a while of walking around, everything here felt odd and suspicious. First, this platform is a subway station's platform look-alike, but here it isn't underground. As said, I could see the sky from the gap in the platform ceiling. Second, there are no doors, let alone stairs. I don't know how I, or the person carrying me, got me into this place. The only way to enter that I can think of is through the tunnels. But the one tunnel behind my back is a pitch-black that railroad track seemed to be eaten by the darkness.

"Hello?" I shouted towards that dark tunnel. Something is answering me, but it’s just a gentle echo. I don't know what's in there, and I'm not going to risk myself checking it.

And it's official: I lost my backpack. There's nothing in it, luckily, unless you consider a thick psychology book as a treasure.

Another tunnel is across that dark tunnel and a few meters away from the platform—the one in front of me when I woke up. But the tunnel has sufficient lighting; there are spotlights that are placed every several distances. So I'll just call that the 'luminous tunnel'. I'm not sure the luminous tunnel is the way to get in or out of here because I think that's a prolonged tunnel that will lead me a lot deeper somewhere. Just my intuition, actually, because there is a left turn a few meters after the tunnel entrance, so I can't see that far.

Above the luminous tunnel mouth is a television, 32 inches apparently. The screen shows black text on a white background, just like the thing on my TickBit. I couldn't read it clearly from where I was standing, so I had to get a little closer.

As I walk closer, I mutter, should I pry it out? It's pretty good for watching sports broadcasts in my room. I have had to be willing to sacrifice quotas for streaming so far. It's unfortunate and frustrating that there's no wifi available in my apartment.

Now I can read the sentence clearly.

“TRACK 7. GREY.”

"PLEASE ENTER THE ROOM LOCATED A FEW STEPS FROM THE TUNNEL'S ENTRANCE."

How can my name appear on the screen? What room? Is this a prank? The more I think about it, the weirder the situation I'm in right now.

I feel very uncomfortable. I dread to think about what will happen to me after this. I should also mention that it's completely silent; there is no sound whatsoever, no passing vehicles, not even the sound of the blowing wind. At this moment, all I can hear is my heart throbbing faster with every tick of a second.

Something is wrong. Something terrible might happen.

Yet, no point in being confused and stupefied here. I wanted to rush home, do that homework, and play games with Johann. I have no clue except the guidance on the screen. But that's all I have for now, so I should comply. Maybe it'll take me home. I hope.

This luminous tunnel is similar to a train tunnel in general. As far as I can gaze, there are only concrete walls to the left and right, and of course, along with those spotlights. It is not wide. Maybe only about 4-5 times the span of my hand. Well, people who see it will know that this is enough for one train only. The ceiling is also relatively high. I see some kind of vent there that seems designed so the sunlight can help to illuminate. As for the tunnel’s length... Only God knows how long.

After a few steps into this tunnel, I noticed a small gap in the left wall. I know it's rectangular after tracing it with my hand, just like the gap caused by a typical door. In fact, if I take a few steps back, it does look like a door made out of concrete. Could the room mentioned before be on the other side of this isolated concrete? If this is a door, there should be a handle or some other way to open it, right? But I didn't see anything shaped like a handle, just a smooth concrete.

Oh, I spoke too soon. At the bottom of the concrete block, there is a hole that you can insert with two fingers, hidden by the rail's pebbles. I can feel a button after fumbling in the spot. Some mechanics inside pushed the concrete door in when I pressed the button, and I fell into a room. That is a nasty sick contraption. It must be hard to set up. But why does it have to be this difficult? That’s not necessary as any cheap aluminum door knobs can do the job, obviously. They do have so much time in their hands.

This is a small room with insufficient lighting, in contrast to the tunnel. The only light comes from a dim white bulb in the middle of the room. Below the lamp is a wooden chair facing a television table. There is an actual TV, but weirdly enough, it's facing backward. Meanwhile, there is only thick darkness behind the table and the light from the television isn't enough to reveal what’s there.

I feel like a criminal right now, waiting for the interrogation in a very little illicit room. Or maybe this is a confinement room? Who knows, me not.

I waited for 5 minutes, standing in front of the door I hadn't closed like an idiot. I have no balls to sit on the wooden chair. What if there is a serial killer who has been waiting for me in the dark? But if that's the case, I should be dead by now. So I just close the door first, making the room even darker.

As soon I closed the door, the television table swiveled so that the television was facing forward as if inviting me to sit down and watch whatever would be shown. For now, it's just a blank white screen, but maybe black fonts will appear like before.

And as I sit on this cranky wooden chair, I’m startled by a woman's voice. It seems that there is a speaker in the upper corner of this room. But this isn't a human voice; it's like an auto-generated voice from translation apps. It's just that the voice is a better quality version, with her American-English accent. "Please wait," she said.

Shortly after, the female robot comes back.

“Estre number 7, Grey. Existence confirmed.”

H-Huh?

But before I could comment, the television showed that black ink writing.

Welcome to Chronosseum!

"Greetings. Welcome to Chronosseum, a holy nation. A land between reality and imagination, beyond your thoughts and perceptions, and, through space and time.” I don't know why she chose to use my native language this time.

Video compilation of scenery clips from various countries begins alongside the narration from the female robot. I don't know what the video has to do with the narration, but it makes me shudder.

“In this land, fellow Estres living coexist. In this land, Estres compete, looking for a way to be superior to the others. Rewards await for those who win, and punishments will be given for those who lose. However, they will receive the consequences in the 'real', 'mortal' world."

I guess she meant 'earth' by describing 'real and mortal world’? Does that mean this isn't a real world? Did Johann make me play a virtual-reality game that felt extremely real? What kind of 'consequences' did she talk about? Am I one of the 'Estres'? What’s that actually? There are so many questions in my mind right now.

"Competitions and games aren't always about your life and death, but a life-death situation is a possibility."

Wait! Easy there, lady. What kind of game will I (we?) play? No, don't continue to talk, I haven't finished my-

“The watch you currently wear is your life. Losing or letting go of that gadget in this land or the mortal world will not be compromised. Don't worry much. The watch is safe in various situations and conditions; it won't be damaged or destroyed easily. Therefore, keep it in your wrist all the time.”

That's not a big problem, for sure. I always wear my dearest TickBit wherever I go. But for those new to the timepiece, well, maybe that could be horrible, huh.

“To give you a better idea about how this nation works, let's just start our premier game. Please pay attention to the rules of the game shown on the television. Press the green button on your TickBit when you’re done. We will start the game after all of Estres presses the button. Estres imposed a sanction if they intend to make others wait longer by not pressing the green button."

Fuck. It looks like I got involved in something dangerous, especially with that earlier sentence about the 'life' and 'death' situation. Those two words are not meant to be used casually. But for now, I can only follow what she said. I didn't want to put myself in danger more than this, so I resisted the urge to ask questions. I have something to do first.

Premiere Game

“Train Track Race”

15K race in railroad tracks

Game type:

Individual - Sports

Number of players:

100

Rules:

1. Estres will be given a name label.

2. Estres are declared to finish the game when their name label crosses the finish line.

3. Estres have to run along the railroad tracks; there will be sanctions for those who do not run on railroad tracks.

4. There are three checkpoints along the track in the form of a small platform; 5K, 10K, 10.5K. Feel free to rest and eat the available food and drinks to fill your energy.

5. The first two checkpoints are located just before a gate. Estres and their track partners must press a button shown on the TickBit screen simultaneously when they arrive to open the gate and continue the race.

6. Any actions that injure other players will be subject to severe sanctions; Be kind, be friendly to others in this premiere game.

7. Estre's race position is hidden and will only be notified when they reach the finish line. However, there will be a global announcement when the 96th crosses the finish line.

Win condition:

Finished before 100th position.

Lose condition:

Finished in 100th position.

Reward:

Refreshing Coconut Drink

Punishment:

Something horrible

Excuse you? What kind of game is this? Am I participating in a variety show sponsored by crazy rich investors? The scale is enormous. Come to think of it; if there are 100 players, this means there are 100 railroads, right? What station has this many rails? Not to mention I feel this is all organized with the help of super-advanced technology. Who organized this event?

Okay, okay. Right now, I have to clear my mind and process the information I just got. First, I once liked sport, basketball was my life back then, but I'm just a nerd these days. I don't really exercise that much, I don't even have time to do a morning run. Then they slapped me with 15K Runs? I might explode. It's going to be a challenging game for sure, but I should be fine if I can manage my stamina well. There are several areas to rest and drink after all. Well, at least I don't think I'll end up in the 100th position, as long as others are not decent marathoners.

A lot of things feel complicated and strange. In this game, the players have to reach the finish line ASAP, right? But the player and his track partner must keep running side by side in order to open the gates and continue the run. Then it would be useless to run as quick as possible if in the end I had to wait for my partner to arrive at the gate. This is a bit unusual in an 'individual' game.

There are other oddities as well. Some numbers are way too specific, such as 10.5 and 96. I don't know what that means yet, but I have to remember them. The rewards and punishment are also quite bizarre. Isn't the essence of the game to aim for the prize? But I feel like the prize is... Pointless. And in that case, we players fight for a win just so we don't get punished, right? Maybe this is no ordinary sports game.

At least, I don't think the first game will involve a life-and-death situation. This is just the premiere game, plus we can't hurt other players. But still, I have to be careful.

And the word 'premiere' is tingling me... Will there be more of this?

When I thought I had understood everything, which I barely did, I pressed the green button on my TickBit. The female robot told me, back with her American English, to stick a name label that had been placed on top of the television while waiting for all the players to press the green button. I attach the label to my chest. It looks like I have to keep this name label to be declared as a finisher later.

Then a big black curtain falls behind the television, revealing a door with a black-tint window. The door is locked now, so I can only peek outside.

There is another door across from me, so I'm assuming that whoever there is will be my partner. In the right corner, I can see two track curves, mine and theirs. That means the left-turn I saw prior will lead to that tunnel. The same goes for theirs, I suppose. And now with that added track, the tunnel is a touch wider. That's all I can observe.

After waiting for a few minutes, all the players had finally pressed the green button. The female robot again gave us orders through the speaker. “Game: Train Track Race, will begin in 3... 2... 1...” followed by the sound of blasted empty bullets.

The door in front of me immediately opens, as does my partner’s door on the other side, revealing a middle-aged man wearing a classy suit. TickBit wrapped around his left wrist. Typical office boss.

“H-Hi, are you my track partner?” he said in a polite tone as he approached me. I can't believe I see a man, probably in his 40s, be my track partner. I don't really mind at all, actually. A big but; he's overweight.

Oh this is going to be a very long and annoying game.