Horror Game Developer: My games aren't that scary! Chapter 232: Phone [2]

The room was quiet.

Besides the soft breath that whispered into my ear, I couldn’t hear or see a single thing.

The breath dulled my senses, yet somehow made them sharper, as if I were standing inches from someone I couldn’t see but could The weight of the presence pressing against the dark.

I felt the pounding of my own heart, ringing inside my ears.

The call stretched every nerve in my body to its limit, like invisible threads pulling tight across my skin.

I sat frozen in my seat, thoughts emptied, letting the breath speak and the silence swallow everything else.

The silence felt as though it stretched on forever.

And just as my nerves pulled taut like an elastic band stretched to its limits, ready to snap...

The breath turned into something else.

A voice.

Male? Female? I couldn’t quite tell. I could hardly focus on the voice. I wanted to reply, but held myself back.

The voice whispered again.

I chose to remain silent.

But...

The voice whispered. This time, it felt more desperate.

There was a pause, filled by a noise I couldn’t place... Like meat dragging across tile. The voice swallowed hard.

The call paused.

All I could hear was the heavy sound of the caller’s breath.

It was rougher than it was before, and the darkness around me suddenly seemed to stretch. In that moment, it almost felt as though my surroundings had changed.

As if...

I was actually there.

My nose wrinkled instinctively.

It was faint at first, but then... Yes.

I smelled it too.

I... also started to smell the copper.

I opened my mouth.

But just before I could get the words out.

A loud metallic sound echoed.

"....!?"

I flinched.

It seemed to come from before me as my head flicked up.

But all I saw was darkness.

My body tensed, and I slowly reached for the knife on the table.

The voice became more hurried. I could hear the panic in the caller’s voice.

But then...

—....

The noise ceased.

The single sound of a step.

Not from the phone, but from before me.

I shivered.

My heartbeat, which I had managed to settle just before starting, started to race, and my body tensed involuntarily.

The darkness was dense. Thick enough to swallow even the outline of my own hands. I gripped the knife tighter, my knuckles aching, and instinctively began to crouch.

The space around me felt like it was shrinking, walls bending inward, pressing me down. I slid under my own desk.

My breathing slowed, falling into rhythm with the caller’s.

It was shallow, quiet, barely there.

I forced myself to stay as silent as possible.

The darkness made it impossible for me to see, but I could feel its presence. It stood right before me. Looking in my general direction.

I clenched my teeth, feeling my stomach starting to churn.

I felt an endless number of questions in my mind, but I could only throw the questions away for later.

I held my position, breath steady, every muscle tense, waiting for the presence before me to vanish.

...Or at least, for something to happen.

Every second felt agonizing.

But then—

I heard the sound of something slamming above me.

"....!?"

It suddenly felt as though my heart had given up on me. Whatever figure was above me, it had sensed me!

My breathing continued to sync with the one on the phone as I could hear the panic and fear on the other end.

I was no different.

Holding onto the phone tightly, I held onto the knife with my other hand and pressed my back against the bottom of my desk.

The banging continued.

It was louder than before.

Pieces started to fall on my face as I closed my eyes and tried my best to ignore it.

I heard a crack, and the table shattered.

My expression changed drastically. I felt a shadow appear above me, hovering its head over the hole above to stare at me.

Unable to bear the pressure any longer, my body tensed and snapped into action. I lunged forward, knife aimed blindly at the shifting shadow.

"Ha—!"

But just as I moved, the call cut off.

The line went dead.

Everything turned quiet as I paused mid-motion.

The light turned on, and I found myself sitting in my chair, hands clutched against the armrest, while the phone was positioned perfectly in front of me.

"I..."

I blinked a couple of times, unable to understand the situation.

The first thing I needed to do was calm my mind as I took several deep breaths before leaning against the chair. My back was drenched in sweat while my hand continued to tremble.

Staring at the phone in front of me, the only thing that I was able to see was the [Unknown Caller] ID.

It was the only thing that was on the phone.

I thought back to the previous conversation that we had, and pressed my lips tightly.

I couldn’t focus then, but I could do so now.

I looked at the time.

One minute exactly had passed.

I closed my eyes and focused.

I thought long and deeply before a sudden thought came to my mind, and my breath paused.

I bit my lips while staring at the phone in front of me.

The more I looked at it, the more I was sure of my assumption.

And as the idea settled in my mind, an unknown feeling settled over me.

...One that I couldn’t quite explain.