I didn’t mind waiting since it gave me time to think. My memory was getting clearer, and I kept thinking about those words.

  “You’re an interesting one. They’re going to love you for sure.”

  The receptionist was commenting on my strategising before she said that. Combine that with the game I just played, and it lead to one conclusion. I’d be playing a lot more of these psychological games.

  I replayed my escape plan, and now that I had time to think it through, I think it was over the second I stepped into the karaoke bar. Sure, even if I’d somehow killed the first employee and the receptionist, what if there was still no way for me to unlock the door? I could’ve alerted Ren’s group before I passed out, but what could they have done either? Knowing the detail these guys plan in, they probably would’ve had another set of contingencies for something like that.

  I pushed those thoughts aside and pulled out my phone. I peeled off the sticky note containing my passcode. I’d committed it to memory, but I held onto it in case Keiko says I’ll need it later. I checked out my phone’s functionalities, and I found some normal apps like a clock, calendar, camera etc.

  That’s why my attention was drawn to the only app I didn’t recognise. I realised that must have been the app I used during the game. I didn’t recognise it because the app was already opened when the game started. I decided to search through the app, and I found profiles listed for the others. They included our names and pictures of our faces, so I figured that they just played a similar game.

  When I clicked my profile, it asked for a passcode. Once I entered my passcode, I could see that I had 15453 points in my account. In other words, I won over 50% of the points available. This was a massive win, and I quickly wondered how Yuto would manage with less than half his points remaining. However, I wasn’t worried for him. After hearing his final promise, I was confident that the rebuilt Yuto would make things work.

  Keiko mentioned that our points were linked to our “account” rather than our phone. This implied that entering someone else’s passcode would allow me access to their account. I had a feeling that keeping my passcode a secret would be vital to my survival here.

  “Sorry for the wait, please follow me.” Keiko apologised as she gestured for me to follow her. I could tell she’d regained her composure as she returned to her guarded demeanor, but something felt a little different. She looked me in the eyes for just a fraction of a second too long, and her face seemed a little too tense. After a second, she turned so that she was no longer facing me and we started walking in silence.

  “Keiko, can I ask you something?” Keiko showed a lot of different expressions during the game, and I figured that understanding them could be useful.

  “I’m sorry, but I don’t have too much spare time right now.” Her words were cold, but her tone was emotionless. She was conflicted, but I wasn’t taking no for an answer.

  “I see. This conversation would only take a minute, how about I use my points to buy that minute from you?” I turned around to face the camera we just walked past. “If it helps, I can say with absolute certainty that your boss would like to hear what I say.”

  I could hear Keiko laugh, so I turned around to look at her and she was staring at the camera.

  “Hear him out.” I smiled as my gamble paid off. As expected, the man from earlier had spoken through a speaker once again. I noted how he didn’t give her permission to talk to me. He ordered her to talk to me.

  “Very well. How many points would you like to offer me? And how did you figure out he was my boss?” She was calm and composed - she didn’t seem surprised that I figured out this man was her boss, which was why I was confused. She’s shown that she’s smart, so shouldn’t the answer be obvious to her?

  “He got involved in the game to answer a question that you didn’t know the answer to. He also stopped you from interfering when you were worried about Yuto. You wanted to protect him. You wouldn’t have stopped unless someone who had a lot of power over you gave a direct order to stop.” She looked up at the camera again and smiled as she raised her eyebrows.

  “In terms of how many points I’m willing to pay you, how about 1453?” She looked at me, chuckling with a confused expression. “I know it’s random, but it’s annoying me. I’d like to have a round number again, and 1453 feels like a fair amount. It’s just a bit under 10% of my total points.” I didn’t actually care about having a round number, but it’d be easier explaining it to the others.

  “Sure. Log onto your account, use the search bar to find my name and transfer the points.” I had already typed in her name and the 1453 points, but this reminded me of something.

  “I’ve sent it.” I showed her my phone screen. “You mentioned we could use points for strategic reasons. Why would you need points?”

  “I don’t need them. I can’t even use them. It’s more about making you lose points. That’s why I didn’t care how many points you offered me.” She laughed and I smiled back. I thought I was already low balling her, but maybe I could’ve saved even more points. “Anyways, what was your question?”

  “How many points would it cost to buy the identity of the traitor within my group?” She looked up at the camera and chuckled. We both stood in silence until her boss replied.

  “Haha, you really are an interesting one, aren’t you? Hahaha. No one’s figured it out that quickly before. No, knowing you, you probably figured it out even before this, right?” I stayed silent, making sure not to react.

  Was I really that easy to read?

  He was enjoying this. I didn’t want to give him any more gratification. “Fine then, have it your way. At least tell us how you figured it out.” Keiko turned to face me as I answered her boss’s question.

  “It was smart, staggering our bookings by fifteen minutes. That way, we wouldn’t interact with the other groups. We wouldn’t find out about the varying coupons. You identified the red flags that could cue us in, and made sure we’d never see them.” I turned to face the camera as I spoke.

  “Well then, how did you figure that out?” His voice wasn’t condescending anymore. He wanted to know how I’d beaten his system.

  If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

  “I got lucky. I ran into one of the guys from the other group and talked with him. He told me about his coupons and how they were both set for fifteen minutes after my group’s coupon. After that, the logic behind the why was easy.” I spoke without any emotion. I wanted him to think that he’d gain nothing by playing with us.

  “Sure, you figured out why it was planned that way. Tell me how you figured out a traitor exists.” It wasn’t a question. It was an order.

  “You gave us different coupons. It’s obvious that it was to encourage our entire friend groups to go to karaoke. That means someone had to tell you how many people were in our friend groups.” I paused. “They also needed to tell you what time we’d all be free. That way, you knew what time to make the coupon valid.” Right now, I was in control of this conversation. I kept going.

  “By the way, did you get my message?” I turned to Keiko since I wanted to see her reaction. She looked at me, then at the camera. Her face went blank, but it was almost too blank. There was too much shock and no confusion. Was she pretending not to know about it?

  “Haha, of course I did. We heard about your escape attempt. We knew you’d be interesting, and after watching that game, it’s safe to say you didn’t disappoint. But talking to you directly is completely different… it’s… fascinating.” He paused. I wondered what he felt right now. Power? Entertained? I couldn’t tell from just his voice. He laughed again.

  “You are exactly the type of person we want in this game. Contestants like you don’t come around very often, but they always make for a good show when they do.”

  Contestants

  Game

  Good show

  Are we competing on a show for some kind of reward?

  What reason did the traitor have for entering us into this game?

  Why go through the effort of kidnapping us?

  “What message are you guys talking about?” I turned around to meet her eyes, and I still couldn't tell if she was acting or not.

  “You remember when I asked what would happen in the event that we tied during one of the bidding phases?” She looked up as she thought about that moment.

  “Yeah, what about it?” She’d hesitated, as if she was trying to figure it out for herself before asking.

  “Your boss gave you a very sophisticated answer. Despite that, it was easy to understand. He wasn’t nervous. He wasn’t rambling. It was an answer that was prepared. It wasn’t thought of on the spot. Since you didn’t know the answer, I knew your boss didn’t tell you.” Keiko visibly gasped when I said that, but that was another red flag. She masked her expressions well and kept her composure during the first half of the game, so why would she gasp and make herself look weak to her boss?

  “Is he right? Why wouldn’t you include it on the rule sheet? Or even tell me about it ahead of time?” She had turned and asked the question towards the camera, rather than me. There was a tinge of annoyance and hurtfulness in her voice, but I decided to continue.

  “Based on how specific the rules were, I was surprised this hadn’t been mentioned. The rules were so specific that it gave people who paid attention to details a huge advantage-”

  “Ok, sure, I get that. What does that have to do with a message though?” She seemed hurt, and it came across in her impatient tone. I understood why she might be upset, so I ignored the interruption and kept going.

  “The kidnapping was planned and executed perfectly. There weren’t any missed details. The rule sheet was the same. It seemed like this specific rule wasn’t included on purpose to see if anyone would point it out.” As I turned back to the camera, Keiko interrupted me again.

  “What was the actual message though? How is it relevant to that rule?” She’d started by talking to me, but she’d turned to the camera. She wasn’t asking me about the message and the rule. She was asking her boss.

  This was way too desperate. She's definitely acting, but what does she have to gain? Is she trying to seem engaged for some sort of promotion? No - applying normal societal rules here won't work. This place kidnapped us and forced us to play a game - assuming that normal societal conventions hold true would be a careless mistake. Her boss stayed silent, so I continued explaining.

  “The rule meant that if the first bid was a tie, both players would lose their bid. This means we would lose at least 4000 points. Since we don’t know what’s next, that could be a terrible disadvantage.” I turned and started facing her, but she ignored me. She kept facing the camera.

  “I think your boss wanted to see if people could think that far ahead. It discourages players from bidding “optimal” amounts. What if you wanted to bid 2000 points, but you’re scared your opponent would do the same? You could bid 2001 points. But what if your opponent does the same?” She turned back to me, continuing to act as if she just connected the dots.

  “That’s why you bid that seemingly random 2047.” She paused as she forced a smile. “You managed to save your points so you could get data on Yuto. By choosing a random number, you also showed us you understood the trap.” She looked at me for a few seconds.

  What is she thinking right now?

  “That’s not all.” We both turned to face the camera again. “His random bid also lulled Yuto into a false sense of security. He played the game and the metagame, both at the same time.” He laughed, but this wasn’t a laugh born through pure entertainment. I could tell that he was interested to see what I’d do next. He wanted to see how I’d respond to the next game he throws at me. However, he’d have to wait to get those answers. We turned around and started walking away from the camera.

  “Akira, before I have to let you go, I’ve got one more question for you.” We both turned around. I took a few steps towards the camera.

  “Yeah? Go on.” I ordered. He didn’t notice. Maybe he did. Maybe he didn’t care. I couldn’t read past his carefree attitude.

  “You know there’s a “traitor”. What are you going to do about it?”

  A few seconds passed. I hadn’t thought about it yet. I know so little about what I’m doing here. About what’s next. I need more information.

  “I can’t do anything until I find out why they helped kidnap us.” I lowered my head and looked down the corridor as I thought. “They must have a reason. I’ll decide what to do once I’ve figured it out.” He immediately burst out laughing.

  “Haha, it seems I’m quite like you. I would’ve said the exact same thing.” He paused. “Well, if you’re anything like me, you’ll figure that out soon. Bye for now, Akira. I look forward to seeing what you do in the next game.” Keiko stood still for a few seconds before turning around. She kept walking in silence and I quietly followed her. After a few minutes, we stopped at a door.

  “We’ve reached our destination, but before we go any further, could we have a quick conversation?” She turned around to face me. “As you can see, there aren’t any cameras here. It’ll just be us two listening.”

  She wasn’t making eye contact.

  Why was she so nervous?