Stepping outside into the fading light, Tang-Ji was almost blown away by the arctic breeze. Trembling in the freezing cold, an intruder was persistently trying to claim its territory on her exposed skin.
Besides a half-torn winter coat she had on, she wore only a single layer of clothing to protect herself from the cold, nor did her stockings help against the icy grip on her leg.
She could feel her fingers slowly going numb, and she fumbled them clumsily as she sought refuge within the folds of her damaged coat, desperately trying to preserve whatever warmth lingered beneath.
In the wake of the recently resolved battle, Kazami was now faced with another unexpected turmoil.
Standing face-to-face with Ukiyo, his eyes flickered with uncertainty.
"Mai…" His voice was low, strained. "Why didn't you tell us sooner?"
Silence hung between them, thick and suffocating. He could feel his pulse in his throat.
"Instead, you—" He exhaled sharply, shaking his head. "You chose to deceive us. Pretended to be just another program. A machine with no will of its own."
His fingers curled into his palms. The frustration, the confusion—it tangled inside him, impossible to ignore.
"So tell me," his eyes locking onto hers. "What are your true intentions?"
Ukiyo, or rather, Mai, met his gaze with a solemn expression.
'Maybe we're all cold machines that are stuffed in human skin.'
She noticed his glares intensified.
"Sure, I'll be your marionette for the sake of all the other puppets on TV." She murmured with a small sinister smile perking at her lips.
"I had my reasons. The world outside the game is not as forgiving as you might think. I'm a Japanese idol, and my association with V.I.R.M. brings its own set of challenges. I couldn't risk revealing my identity," she explained.
Kazami frowned.
"But why play the game in the first place? And why hide your true self from us? You must have known about this, this plan to trap hundreds upon hundreds of players within this death game; why didn't you try to stop them? Or is it because you're working with them?"
Mai sighed, her shoulders slumping slightly.
"I wanted to experience the game like anyone else," she began, her voice tinged with a quiet vulnerability. "Free from the expectations that come with being a celebrity."
She paused, glancing down for a moment, her fingers fidgeting.
"I yearned for a taste of normalcy, even if it was just in this virtual world."
The silence lingered, thick with unspoken thoughts. She raised her gaze again, her eyes meeting his.
"As for hiding my identity... it was self-preservation. A way to shield myself from the backlash and unwanted attention."
"And if you're wondering if I knew we'd all be trapped in a death game... my answer is no. I didn't."
Her voice wavered slightly, her hands folding tightly in front of her.
"I was only asked to promote the game, play an idol's role. They wanted me to be the NPC guide, a singer—helping players feel more at home."
She paused.
"Or so I was told."
Kazami's expression softened. "So, I presume your goal is the same as ours—to clear the game?"
Mai nodded. "Yes, Kirizkuuk. In this virtual facade, we're all players with the same objective, are we not?"
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As Tang-Ji leant against the frigid outer wall of the mansion, she began tracing her finger along the vapours of her frosty breath. The sensation of the ice-cold surface was slowly beginning to seep through the fabric of her clothes, sending a shiver through her whole body.
"Aaaaa–Achoo!" She sneezed violently against the unforgiving wall.
'Kazami and Ukiyo haven't come out yet; I wonder what's taking them so long,' she thought to herself.
She had been waiting painstakingly in denial, truly believing that one of the few individuals who really understood her couldn't be deceiving her. However, she was also somewhat glad that Ukiyo was a real person.
Despite her winter coat, it was still freezing outside; she could tell that a storm had recently passed as the mansion's gate and trees were coated with thick powdery snow, some of which turned into grey slush from where footsteps had been imprinted.
'Did someone come through the gate?' She wondered, feeling a little light-headed from the cold.
Closing her eyes momentarily, she felt the cold embracing her with anger, a fleeting whisper of winter's icy grip, wailing against her spine. As soon as she opened her eyes, she was taken back to the first flakes falling.
'I wish to be held in a warm embrace.'
Tang-Ji didn't have an exact measurement of time, but from her guess, it was probably well past midnight. She was in her house on the top floor, looking down through the window of her room. The sky was ink black, and the only light was coming from the distant moon and the lamp hanging on the metal gates.
Their ghostly white rays illuminated the bits of snow falling; it was such a serene scene that it almost seemed 'beautiful,' despite foreshadowing the violent storm that was soon to come.
"So much snow..." She huffed, releasing more white vapour. "Christmas…"
Tang-Ji blinked a few times, not quite lucid yet, causing a few snowflakes to fall off her eyelashes like dust. The snow wasn't heavy yet; she might be able to wait it out for the night as just another flurry.
However, she knew staying would mean risking everyone's life, so she decided to swallow her exhaustion and continue on.
Cocooned in the half-broken waterproof tarp that was her only defence against the weather, she imagined it would be alright to journey, even if she was caught outside in another snowstorm.
She was sure that as long as everyone stuck together, they would be able to overcome any obstacles that blocked their path. The thought caused a weak smile to creep onto her face, and she was filled with relief.
Slowly, she slumped down into the pit of snow, giving in to the blistering pain in her legs. With her hand now resting on the snow's cold yet soft surface, her pupils began dilating as she slowly entered a trance.
Moments later, she found herself gently rolling over onto her side and tucking her head further inside the layers of warmth. She tried to fall asleep again.
Cold. That was her first impression when she woke up once more, later in the night. It was snowing harder now, the wind roaring furiously as it beat against the trees.
As she jolted herself awake, memories trudged about in her mind—slow, languorous, and incoherent.
"Cold… so cold," she mumbled.
She wasn't sure what she was seeing anymore. Was it the night sky, or was it just her vision growing dark? It didn't really matter, did it? Everything was just the same, the same… everything…
"Cold. Dark and cold. Dark."
Her eyelids drifted closed, and all she could see was darkness, her last lucid memory being a soft thud ringing against her ear. She groaned weakly, feeling as if she were lying on a very cold pillow, as her consciousness slowly faded away.
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Tang-Ji's eyes fluttered open, adjusting to the dim light of the small shack.
The throbbing ache in her head was accompanied by a damp sensation on her forehead, causing her to search around blindly for something to dry herself with. Confusion clouded her mind as she tried to piece together her surroundings.
The biting cold of the snow didn't seem to be present, and then the realisation slowly sank in—she was no longer out in the storm. However, her body was completely drenched, and the clothes she was wearing were completely soaked from the snow.
Finally adjusted to the lack of light, Tang-Ji looked around to see that the shack was tightly packed with makeshift furniture. Pushing herself up from where she lay, she realised that the surface was not hard, but rather that it was surprisingly plush and comfortable.
It was a bed—not a clean bed, but a dingy one—that simply did the job. Across from her, a small wooden table held a flickering oil lamp that barely shone through the darkness. A few worn-out blankets were strewn across the floor, and the air carried the faint scent of burning wood from a feeble campfire struggling to stay alive in the corner.
As Tang-Ji's gaze roamed the room, she noticed a figure nearby. Her vision was still hazy, but as he turned, she recognised him—Kazami. Questions swirled in her mind.
Why was he here? How did she end up in this shack?
The last thing she remembered was the freezing cold and the relentless snowstorm.
Struggling to sit up, Tang-Ji swung her legs off the makeshift bed, only to be met with an eerie discovery. She could see through her own body, like a translucent ghost.
Shock crept onto her face as she turned to look back at the bed, where her physical form lay motionless as if her soul were separate from her body.
She gasped, stumbling backwards.
The realisation hit her. She was no longer in her own body. Confusion and fear filled her eyes as she tried to make sense of the inexplicable situation.
'What happened to me?' She tried touching her own body; however, her fingers slipped right through her arm, no longer able to feel the smooth, warm sensation of human skin.
"Kazami, what's going on? Where is Ukiyo?" Her voice faltered slightly, the words coming out quicker than she intended.
He turned back towards her, his gaze empty and direct, like he wasn't looking at her but through her. Tang-Ji attempted to call out again, but her voice fell on deaf ears. She waved her hands in front of her face, watching them pass through each other.
She continued to yell out his name, but to no avail, as he continued to be unresponsive to her voice. All she could do was observe his interactions with her body, still laid out on the bed.