Round Three

The lobby music played on, its soft melody twisting the tension in the air like a knife. Players shuffled around, checking their equipment and exchanging glances, their unspoken anxiety building as the countdown loomed.

"3"

The brawl at the stairs erupted once more, chaos spilling into the narrow confines as Takumi led the group toward the fire escape. The clang of their footsteps against the steel stairs rang loud, a metallic symphony of urgency and desperation.

[00:00:40]

'Forty seconds for three floors… generous, but still ten seconds less than before. Looks like this is how it's going to go. The floors are dropping, so the next round might be on the second floor,' Isamu thought, his lungs burning as he pushed forward. The faint tang of rust lingered in the stairwell, mixing with the sour scent of sweat.