AI GAMES

8

We still only had five minutes to explore.

This time, Emily and I split up. She checked out the lounge while I headed to the restaurant.

The restaurant was spotless, with gleaming tables, glass counters, and decorative mirrors. A few patrons were deeply engrossed in their meals.

Then, a man wearing a chef's hat approached me.

He warmly pulled out a chair for me, saying, "Please wait a moment, I'll prepare your meal."

I slipped two beautifully crafted steak knives into my sleeve unnoticed. For the first time since arriving in this strange world, I'd found potential weapons.

After he left, I quickly followed him, glancing at my watch as I did.

Two minutes had passed. I had two and a half minutes left.

There was a restroom beside the kitchen. I ducked inside, turned on the tap to cover my noise, and opened the vent that led to the kitchen.

A strong smell of blood hit me. I paused, holding my breath, but the stench still penetrated my nostrils.

Suppressing the urge to gag, I peered through the vent and came face-to-face with a head hanging from a meat hook.

The head was two meters away from me.

I recognized the head's owner... I had seen him just a few days ago.

He had a ponytail, his eyes wide open, his neck severed, dripping with blood.

To the right, under dim lights, were more hooks on a conveyor, moving counterclockwise.

Thighs, forearms, hands, feet – the dismembered parts were gruesomely arranged.

Just like any slaughterhouse.

Except here, the victims, like me, were human.

I pursed my lips, feeling my heart pounding fiercely. Just as I was about to catch my breath, another pair of eyes suddenly appeared in my line of sight.

Closer this time, just inches away, with wrinkles under the eyes...