Horror Game Developer: My games aren't that scary!

Chapter 364 364: A friendly warning [3]

”...I didnʼt expect you to come.”

The ratʼs voice was somewhat hoarse as he spoke, his eyes trailing my every movement as I entered the interrogation room. Looking around, the room was rather small, and besides the soft lights coming from above, the metal chairs and table; there was nothing else in the room.

I took another look around before pulling the metal chair and sitting down.

”.....”

The room fell silent shortly after, neither one of us speaking.

We just sat in silence, staring at each other wordlessly.

But then—

”Congratulations.”

The rat began to speak, his voice lighter than before.

”Youʼve finally gotten rid of me. Iʼm sure you must feel a lot better now.”

”...I wonʼt deny that.”

It felt like a massive boulder had been lifted off my shoulders. Knowing that the rat was no longer going to be something that I needed to worry about left me feeling a lot better.

Yet even then, not all the weight seemed to lift from my shoulders. As I looked at the rat, a sense of unease lingered. I knew things wouldnʼt be that simple, and that thought alone made my eyes narrow.

ʼI need to figure this out now before itʼs too late. ʼ

”Hah.”

The rat chuckled, bringing his hand to his mouth.

His hands were bound to the table by a pair of chains, a precaution to keep him from lunging at me like he had before.

On the other hand, my hands were free.

If I wanted to, then I could very well attack him.

Not that I would, since there were still people watching outside.

ʼ...It would certainly feel good, though.ʼ

I had done it twice now, and it felt extremely addictive.

”You made a mistake doing what you did.”

The ratʼs words brought me out of my thoughts. As my eyes narrowed further, the ratʼs dimples became clearer.

”Of all people that you shouldʼve made a deal with, thatʼs the last person you shouldʼve done it with. Heʼs not someone that you should associate with. Heʼs...”

The rat... No, Myles stopped, his expression trembling for a moment as the dimples faded completely.

”Heʼs no different than a demon.”

Mylesʼs voice became even more hoarse upon saying the last words. Staring into his eyes and seeing how bloodshot they were, I started to have a sinking feeling as he stared right back at me.

The room fell silent for a short moment, but that moment lasted just a few seconds as the door to the room opened and several figures walked in.

”Itʼs time.”

”Huh? Time...?”

I looked at my watch. Hardly five minutes had passed...

”These are orders. We canʼt have the talk go on for longer. Please be understanding.”

The guards stepped up beside Myles, unfastening the restraints around his wrists as he rose to his feet. Seeing him now, he looked less like a Guild member and more like an inmate from a maximum-security prison.

And yet, the rat continued to keep his gaze fixed on me, the dimples on his face appearing again.

”Hereʼs a friendly warning.”

One of the guards tugged him towards the door, his body moving along with the tug.

Just as the two neared the door, the dimples on the ratʼs face became even more pronounced, something about his face making my heart sink. It was almost as if he was looking at someone... pitiful.

Who...? Me?

And then—

”...Run.”

Clank!

The door closed, plunging the entire space into silence.

I stood there, completely absorbed, trying to make sense of the ratʼs final words.

”Run?”

From who? The competition? The Guild? Or...

The Guild Master?

Who did I need to run away from?

*

The ratʼs words continued to linger at the back of my mind even as I left the place. Run...? Run from who? While the rat had never specified the person, there was only one person who came to my mind.

The Guild Master.

He was the only person I had made a deal with.

It was just that...

ʼIs he saying this to make me paranoid, or is there truth to his words?ʼ

I was rather curious about how the rat came to know about the Guild Master. In the game, he was supposed to be a loner whose family had passed away. He was technically supposed to be an orphan.

...He shouldnʼt theoretically have any relationship with the Guild Master.

Then again, it would be naive of me to think that this Myles and the one from the game were exactly the same. There had been changes to Zoeyʼs story, too.

ʼI should try to dig some information on the rat. Maybe I can find something.ʼ

I had a rather solid plan in mind, but despite the plan, I still couldnʼt shake the sense of unease that I felt from his words.

I reflected on my first impression of the Guild Master, and the more I thought about it, the more off it felt... Perhaps my decision to go with him may have been the wrong decision.

”Thereʼs no point regretting my decision.”

Shaking my head, I sighed.

ʼItʼs too late to regret, and this can just be the rat trying to make me feel paranoid. At the end of the day, I need to stick with my decision.ʼ

From what I understood, the Guild Master was the type of person who only cared about useful and non-useful people. So long as I continued to hold his interest with my achievements, I wouldnʼt have to worry about myself.

”Yeah, Iʼll just keep doing what Iʼve been doing.”

I may have made a deal with the devil, but at the same time, this wasnʼt without its own benefits.

By working directly with him, I could now act more accordingly and at the same time gain access to far more resources. This would help fuel my growth.

”Yeah, this is good.”

Clenching my fists tightly, I walked past the empty corridor and made my way back towards my main office.

The stares continued to linger, their gazes burning even more than before.

I ignored all of it and entered my office.

Clank!

Closing the door behind me, I sat down on my chair and sighed.

”Even though Iʼve gotten rid of the rat, why do I feel even more stressed?”

I rubbed my face while blankly staring at the ceiling. The silence that followed felt comforting, and as the silence continued, I reached into my bag and took out my laptop.

”Right, letʼs try out that game...”

I needed something to take my mind off the current situation, and what better way to do that than by playing games?

It just so happened that I had a great game to play.

”It should be this one, right? Seeing how the results are good, I take it that the staff they hired after I got fired was good.”

Booting up the game, a sleek interface appeared before me, so polished it stirred a twinge of envy. It was far more refined than anything I had ever made.

”I guess this is the difference between a high-budget company and a solo developer.”

Moving the mouse cursor over the menu, I clicked on [Play Game].

The game booted right after that.

I cracked my fingers with a little bit of excitement. I really wanted to see what sort of game my old company had made.

But just as the game began, I saw a certain warning appear.

[Please connect the VR headset]

Oh.

ʼI almost forgot about that.ʼ

This wasnʼt a computer game.

I scratched the side of my face, let out a sigh, and made my way to the classroom I had converted into a workroom. There, I connected the game to one of the capsules before stepping inside.

The scenery changed for me, and I began the game then.

ʼThere shouldnʼt be any more problems.ʼ

But—

”What...?”

Halfway through the game, I began to realize that something was terribly wrong.

So much so that a heat began to rise in my chest, a surge of anger unlike anything Iʼd ever felt before coursing through me.

BANG!

I smashed my hand against the table, rising up as I stared at the laptop.

”How is this possible!?”