NOVEL NEXT Chapter 2: Hilda vs Time.
A month later...
Hilda slowly stirred awake, she was lying on a makeshift bed, the thin material beneath her barely offering any comfort. The dim lighting in the room cast long shadows across the faces of those around her, their bodies slumped in exhaustion.
'I'm alive...' she thought, a quiet relief tinged with confusion. She pushed herself upright, her body protesting with every movement.
She scanned her surroundings, her eyes landing on the rows of makeshift beds. People lay sprawled out on them, some shifting uncomfortably in their sleep. The room felt cramped, the air thick with the scent of sweat and ash.
'Where am I?' Her mind scrambled for answers, but nothing made sense.
Then, the door creaked open, and a tanned-skinned woman walked in. She moved as she glanced around the room. Her gaze briefly met each and everyone's until it met Hilda's, and she spoke in a calm yet commanding voice.
"Oh, you're finally awake. Took you a month..."
'A month?! I... was unconscious for a month.' Hilda thought as she covered her lips.
"The doctor will come in soon to check on all of you." The woman addressed all the survivors.
A quiet murmur spread through the room, voices rising in hushed whispers.
"We're grateful to him for letting us stay here."
"He's our savior."
"He saved us, we owe him everything."
"Without him, we'd be dead."
"How long can we stay here?"
'What are they talking about?' She thought, her brow furrowing in confusion. 'Who were they talking about? What happened while I was unconscious?'
The woman glanced at the others in the room, then turned her attention back to her. "Hilda," she called, her voice clipped and direct.
Hilda flinched, her heart skipping a beat. She looked at the woman, her eyes wide with surprise. 'Me?' she thought, pointing a trembling finger at herself.
"Yes, the doctor would like to see you." The woman's eyes lingered on her for a moment, scrutinizing her.
"Oh... alright," Hilda replied, her voice wavering slightly. She swung her legs over the side of the bed, her feet touching the cold floor, but her legs felt heavy and unsteady as she stood up.
'Oh right...'
The realization hit her like a cold gust of wind. ' I am Hilda... The extra destined to die at the first level.' The weight of the knowledge sank in, and the room seemed to grow colder. 'What am I supposed to do now?'
She clenched her fists, nails digging into her palms. 'For now... let's just be Hilda.' The thought felt strange, like stepping into someone else's shoes, but it was the only way forward.
Hilda slowly walked toward the woman who stood waiting by the doorway. The woman glanced back briefly, her expression unreadable, before gesturing for Hilda to follow.
The walls were made of old, mismatched wooden planks, the air tinged with the smell of antiseptic and dampness. It wasn't long before they reached a small room at the end of the corridor, its makeshift curtain barely concealing what lay within.
"Go in," the woman instructed, pulling back the curtain and gesturing for Hilda to enter.
Hilda hesitated but stepped inside. The room was cluttered with salvaged medical equipment, tattered books, and empty vials stacked haphazardly on every available surface.
Sitting behind a battered desk was a man with sharp features and calculating golden eyes. His dark brown hair glistened under the dim light of the lantern hanging above, and his lips curled into a smirk as his gaze locked onto Hilda.
"Ah, Hilda," he greeted, leaning back in his chair. His tone was familiar, almost too familiar, and it made her stomach churn for some reason. "You're looking... better than expected. Guess I underestimated you."
Hilda stiffened. 'Viktor.' The name reverberated in her mind like a curse. Once a brilliant medical student, Viktor had dropped out in his third year, turning his intelligence toward manipulation and survival at any cost. He was infamous for charming others into doing his dirty work—Hilda included.
"What do you want?" Hilda asked, her voice sharp but unsteady. She clenched her fists, memories of gamified Hilda's past flooding back.
Viktor chuckled, the sound grating on her nerves. "Straight to the point, I see. Very well. I've found a lead. There's another survival unit nearby, set up in what used to be a hospital. I found out that they've got a stockpile of medicine, including something that could help ease your illness—at least for a while."
Hilda's eyes widened slightly at the mention of medicine, but she quickly masked her reaction. Viktor, of course, noticed and leaned forward, his smirk widening.
"Medicine, supplies, cash—they've got it all. You and me, Hilda, like old times. What do you say?," he continued.
'Like old times?' The words echoed in her mind, cutting through her like a blade. She remembered how he'd abandoned Hilda without hesitation the moment he learned of her illness, leaving her to fend for herself. He hadn't cared then—and he didn't care now. He only saw her as a tool, nothing more.
'I don't remember creating such a backstory. Maybe it was the other game developers I worked with that might have added it,' Hilda thought, her jaw tightening as her gaze fixed on Dante. His smug expression made her skin crawl. 'But either way, this man is despicable.'
The memory of how easily he discarded Hilda burned in her mind.
'The previous Hilda accepted this mission... and died for it.'
Her fists trembled with suppressed rage, nails digging into her palms. 'But I won't make the same mistake.'
"I…" she began, preparing to refuse.
But before she could utter another word, a holographic screen appeared before her eyes.
Hilda stared at the holographic screen, her breath caught in her chest.
---
[Ding!]
[Welcome, Hilda, to the Hourglass Timelimit System.]
---
Her eyes darted to the lines below.
---
[Status Window]
Name: Hilda
---
[Stats]
Health: -2 (Critical)
Strength: 0
Stamina: 1
---
[Lifespan Remaining]
1 Day, 4 Hours, 15 Minutes
---
[Illness Status]
Pulmonary Hemorrhagic Syndrome (Severe)
---
'Pulmonary Hemorrhagic Syndrome.' The name alone made her chest tighten. She knew it well—it was her cruel creation, a ticking time bomb designed to ensure Hilda's swift demise. ' Of all illnesses I chose this...'
---
[Time Currency]
0 TC
---
---
[Ding!]
[Task: Accept the doctor's proposal and agree to his plan.]
[Reward: +3Hours to Lifespan.]
'Three hours… Barely enough to take a breath. But if I refuse...'
---
[Penalty for Refusal: Immediate deduction of remaining time.]
---
Her stomach twisted as the realization sank in. 'A penalty? Immediate deduction of my time?'
"No way," she whispered, her voice trembling. 'The system wants me to accept this guy's twisted plan?'
"Something wrong, Hilda?" Viktor's smooth voice snapped her back to reality. He leaned forward, the smirk on his face oozing confidence. "You're hesitating, Hilda. Don't forget—you're running out of time, and I'm your best shot at survival."
'You? My best shot at survival?' Hilda's teeth clenched.
---
[Ding!]
[Tick-tock, Hilda. Remember, refuse, and I'll happily snatch a few hours from your sad little life. Consider it my way of keeping things... interesting.]
---
Her fists tightened as her nails bit into her palms. 'What kind of messed-up system is this?' She glanced at Viktor. His calculating eyes watched her every move, no doubt already guessing she'd say yes.
'Fine,' she thought bitterly. 'I'll play along—for now. But the moment I have the upper hand, I'll make him pay for what he did.'
"I'll do it," she said flatly.
Viktor's smirk widened. "Knew you'd come around. You've always been reliable like that." He leaned back against the rickety chair, arms crossed like he'd just won some grand prize.
Hilda forced herself to remain still, her hands clenched tightly on her lap to hide her rising disgust. But then, her eyes narrowed. Something strange was happening to Viktor—he was engulfed in a faint yellow aura, almost like a sickly glow pulsating around him.
'What… is that?' she thought, her pulse quickening.
The system chimed in with its usual grating, patronizing tone.
[Oh, look who's finally paying attention! Took you long enough. That's your Passive Skill: Hazard's Insight kicking in. Congrats, you're not completely useless!]
Hilda gritted her teeth. 'Hazard's Insight?'
[Yes, you brilliant little apocalypse princess, Hazard's Insight lets you perceive auras. Yellow means moderate threat. You know, like this guy could ruin your day but probably not your life… unless you're really incompetent.]
She swallowed down the urge to curse aloud. 'So, yellow is… manageable?'
[Sure, if you're not an idiot.]
"You know the drill," Viktor said, his voice cutting through her thoughts. His tone was casual, like they were discussing the weather. "You sneak in, grab what we can, and get out before anyone notices. You're still good at sneaking around, right?"
Hilda raised an eyebrow, her gaze never leaving the aura shimmering around him.
[Careful now, he thinks you're still the same obedient little scavenger.]
Hilda's lips curled into a faint, mocking smile.
'Good at sneaking around,' she thought, her lip curling in disdain. You mean stealing for you, like the fool Hilda was.
She nodded stiffly, forcing a neutral expression. "Yeah, I can handle it."
"Perfect. And don't worry, you'll be accompanied by my men. They'll protect you," Viktor said, standing up with a practiced air of confidence. He grabbed a bag of supplies from the corner of the room, the gesture almost casual.
'Lies… ' Hilda thought, her eyes narrowing slightly. 'They won't protect me. They'll use me as a scapegoat the moment things go south.'
Viktor slung the bag over his shoulder, turning back toward her. "We move at dusk tomorrow. Rest up until then. You'll need your strength."
He left the room without another glance, the door creaking shut behind him.
The silence that followed was thick with tension. Hilda released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, her eyes flicking back to the holographic screen still floating in the corner of her vision.
[First Task: Accept the doctor's proposal and do as he says.]
[Status: Accepted.]
[ Reward: +3Hours to Lifespan.]
[Lifespan Remaining: 1 Day, 7 Hours, 20 Minutes.]
She clenched her fists again, anger bubbling in her chest. 'Just Three hours? That's all my life is worth to this cursed system?'
Hilda sat back on the makeshift cot, her mind racing. 'She had no choice but to play along, but that didn't mean she had to follow Viktor's plans blindly.'
'If I'm going to survive, I'll need to be smarter than both him and this system. And this time, I'll be the one calling the shots.'