Story Reader / Affection / Lilith: Daemonissa / Story
Lilith: Daemonissa I
>Boots produce dull thuds against the cotton carpet as they move along the familiar path now covered in blood and grisly remnants.
The woman's figure comes to a stop. She conjures a pure black card with gold trim from her hand and swipes it to unlock the laboratory door.
If not for seeing the true dimensions of this laboratory with their own eyes, many people would genuinely mistake it for one of the VIP suites at Las Prados Hotel.
Identity confirmed. Welcome.
I'm back...?
Lilith strolls into the laboratory. Only the automatic disinfection equipment responds to her presence, the mechanical sprayers emitting their rhythmic, low hum.
Hmph... just as I suspected...
After she turns on the power switch in the dark, a dozen display screens from the deepest part of the room simultaneously turn on, and cold, fluorescent light from the ceiling fills the entire space.
She pulls over an office chair, adjusting it so she can prop her legs on the edge of the desk, and she casually picks up the documents lying there.
Cold light shines on the machines' metal casings as the laboratory's mainframe gradually returns to life after its hibernation.
Then, she carelessly tosses the pages into the air, letting them scatter and float down.
Dear Aunt, what's your final fishing hook trying to catch?
Lilith leans back in her chair as the work interface appears on the screen.
Just as the "work" is about to begin, a blurry figure appears on the monitoring screen—probably at one of the other entrances.
A violent tremor comes afterward. Marble stones and signage crumble right in front of the camera, leaving only static on the monitoring screen.
Entrance D
Entrance D.
The collapsed wall kicks up a lot of dust, momentarily obscuring the view ahead.
Turning back toward the entrance, you see the white marble stones are now stained grayish-yellow with dust as they firmly block the path you came through.
Your first thought is that it was a coincidence, but on second thought, it was more likely that forcefully pushing open the door further damaged the already compromised structure.
As you approach the collapsed marble ruins, you suddenly hear a faint electrical buzzing coming from within.
Through a tiny gap in the debris, you spot the source of the electrical buzz—a digital surveillance camera.
Uncertain whether the surveillance systems here are still operational, you keep your movements small and restrained.
>>>>>>>>Locating satellite signal...
>>>>>>>>Locating failed.
>>>>>>>>Reassessing Punishing concentration...
>>>>>>>>Detection result: Low viral intensity.
After a moment of waiting, nothing changes. The ripple-shaped pattern remains fixed at the origin point, displaying a glaring exclamation mark.
The survey team comes across an abandoned complex. Since no high levels of the Punishing Virus are detected, they decide to enter and set up for a more detailed investigation.
But now, this.
You mutter to yourself as you turn around. The sound of machinery operating fills the air around you, laying a blanket of background noise across the entire hall.
With the path back obstructed, your only option now is to search for another way out through different sections of the facility.
The noise from nearby causes the male Construct to immediately push open the entrance door and grab the weapon at his side.
After brushing away the dust, he turns toward the source of the strange noise.
That appears to be another exit—he looks up and sees the letter "C" hanging high above him.
His gaze returns to the circular City of Entertainment. Unlike the one he sees when he first arrived here, this place is not covered by an enormous dome, but the decorations still reveal a common origin.
A dull pain from where the Inver-Device is installed reminds him of his predicament.
Those blasted fraudsters...
Everything has its price.
And he is now bearing the price of escaping from "darkness".
If the rumors are true, there may be a way here to alleviate his suffering.
With that thought, the Construct quickly steels himself, determined to investigate what exactly caused the strange noise.
Just as he turns around, he hears footsteps coming from the other direction.
The human quickly scans the surroundings for a hiding place.
Who's there?!
Hmph... just as I suspected...
He draws the handgun from his waist, sliding into a sunken entertainment area and pressing his body against cover as much as possible.
He warned Rabio—that bastard of a colleague—about possible unexpected situations before he set out, but the guy swore up and down that he had thoroughly checked everything.
But it turns out a defecting Construct has appeared in what should have been an abandoned building.
—He is definitely going to make that jerk pay for this later.
While thinking this, he yanks off his ID badge, which has the Kurono logo on it.
The big figure from earlier makes no attempt to conceal his position, advancing toward the human with terrifyingly heavy footsteps.
Beep—
It is then followed by a canned sound effect of someone tapping on a microphone.
A beast-like growl emanates from the ceiling, followed by the sound of rails moving. Both you and the nearby Construct find yourselves drawn to these noises.
A massive iron wall slams down with tremendous force, so fast it creates a whooshing sound as it cuts through the air.
Dammit...
A male voice comes from behind an overturned table. You can only lean out halfway before the wall completely collapses, just enough time to quickly note the other intruder's figure.
Adult male, standard build... with half of an Inver-Device broken off on his head.
A defecting Construct.
Before you can feel relieved about staying hidden, the vibrations from the falling steel walls spread from the floor through your entire body.
Overcoming the initial shock, you begin to reassess your current situation.
Beyond the dull impacts of the steel wall, you hear muffled voices coming from the other side. Looking around, you see poker tables and chairs crushed to splinters by the walls, debris scattering everywhere.
Even the ruins at the entrance have been violently demolished. Two walls converge toward the center, forming a triangular space in front of you.
Your current surroundings resemble a sliced cake, and the defecting Construct and you are now separated by a wall.
Just as you are trying to make sense of the situation, a sharp burst of static once again shatters the silence.
Welcome, all!
The voice comes from above. Looking up toward the sound, you finally notice the circular speaker mounted on the ceiling.
This might be your first time in Las Prados... or perhaps you're already a regular.
But standing here proves you've survived the gauntlet and reached the final challenge...
Actually, you encountered almost no obstacles while coming down through the shattered dome. Judging by the enthusiastic yet hollow male voice coming through the broadcast, it must be a pre-recorded message.
We apologize for separating you without your consent... but it's all part of this delightful game—
In this final game, you'll acquire the great key of Las Prados, and your path to freedom lies within... Until then, please be patient.
As for the game itself? Just take a look at the statue closest to you.
A bust of a goddess stands prominently in front of a card table not far away.
The winged goddess holds a roulette wheel in her hands. After lifting it up, you discover a vintage-looking wristband terminal hidden beneath the hollow statue.
Looks like someone's already found it! Excellent... Now, activate it and gently slip it on—it's not mandatory, but the inner band is lined with skin-friendly material, so no need to worry about hurting your arm.
This is not the first time Lilith has heard this crafty voice.
She smashes a statue and retrieves the terminal hidden inside. The screen gradually illuminates, displaying three all-too-familiar gestures.
Rock, paper, and scissors.
Just a game of rock-paper-scissors?
The rules continue to display on the screen.
You will randomly receive two of the three possible gestures—Rock, Paper, or Scissors—from which you must make your choice.
If all three gestures appear simultaneously on the field, the gesture with the most picks wins the round. The punishment will increase with each round.
One round must be played every hour. Those who refuse to participate will receive punishment automatically.
If all other players have made their choices, the last player will have ten seconds to decide whether to join.
Lilith runs her hand over the metal frame beneath the terminal screen, where a line of small text is printed.
—The authority of freedom belongs to the victor.
Only by killing each other can we earn our freedom...
Hmph, that's just like your filtering process.
She picks up the terminal and opens the door.
Warm yellow light streams in, and she remembers the path to reach that place.
As a final tribute to you, and seeing that the table is full again—how could I refuse to join the game?
Still a bit lost? Don't worry... We're about to have a practice round. The microphone on your terminal allows you to communicate with each other. The rest is up to you players to figure out. Bye for now!
The pace of the broadcast's speech accelerates until it falls completely silent after a "polite" farewell.
Three cards light up on the terminal screen in hand. A countdown timer appears just above, ticking down the time left in the round. Above that, five silhouettes are displayed, most likely representing the number of players in the game.
Continuing to examine the terminal, there's an icon in the upper right corner resembling a signal strength indicator, except its end is X-shaped. At this moment, its exact meaning remains unclear.
Cough...
A deep, husky voice breaks the silence.
You mean this is how we communicate?
Another person speaks with a distinctly flippant tone.
Yes, you can jump into the public channel whenever you want.
So, no private chats?
Not after the cards are dealt.
How did you know that...
I'm joining the game on behalf of Las Prados.
If you want to win, you'll have to go through me.
Your suggestion is very helpful, I'll also need to log everyone's names.
A sudden silence falls over everyone.
The atmosphere returns to a brief silence.
The atmosphere returns to a brief silence.
Uh—call me Rabio. I'm No. 2.
He pauses briefly before sharing his "name", which is understandable considering this situation.
Faulkner, No. 3.
I saw you earlier, big guy.
Faulkner ignores him.
I'm Player No. 1. You can call me Collins.
An unexpected coincidence, or perhaps something more...?
According to the terminal markers, isn't someone missing?
Did they get crushed by that guillotine wall?
Of course not...
Just took a moment to shake off what happened earlier.
You hear a slightly amused female voice from the terminal, which means that the last player has arrived.
I'm Eleanor, nice to meet everyone.
