One Hour Left

The digital wind whistled through the air as Hiroshi and his group ran at full speed, each step marked by the awareness that time was running out. The blue light of the dimension around them seemed to blind their senses, but nothing could stop them now. The threat was growing ever closer, and with it, the imminent battle for survival.

Hiroshi looked at Mai, Renji, and Ayumi, his group. Each of them was struggling to grasp the situation, keeping their emotions in check as they prepared for the unknown. Every corner of the dimension seemed to shift constantly, as if playing with their minds, making even the smallest mistake potentially fatal.

"We can't afford to make mistakes anymore," Hiroshi said, his voice firm, though anxiety was evident in his eyes. "We only have five hours. We need to be ready."

Mai nodded, her face serious and focused. "Every move must be calculated. We can't afford to be overwhelmed again."

Renji, usually the most skeptical of the group, seemed now more determined than ever. "There's no room for uncertainty. If we have to face a war, we must give everything we've got."

Ayumi, a little more nervous than the others, clenched her fists. "I don't want to die in this place. I don't want to stay here forever."

With a quick nod, Hiroshi took the lead. "Let's go. Every minute we waste not acting brings us closer to the end."

The group moved in unison, running through a series of portals that seemed increasingly unstable as the countdown continued. Their movements were fluid, precise, as though they were synchronized with a force beyond comprehension. Hiroshi, with his newfound power, felt an unusual strength inside him. But it didn't bring him peace. He knew the true challenge was yet to come.

As he ran, a thought kept buzzing in his mind. Alexi had said that only one of them would be the winner. That phrase haunted him, growing a knot in his stomach. Only one of them would have the right to escape this world, and the others would remain trapped forever. It wouldn't just be a war against other players, but an internal battle, against those he was fighting beside. Hiroshi couldn't forget that detail, and the thought that one of them would have to be left behind tortured him. He could never betray his friends, but at the same time, the idea of being trapped in that dimension pushed him to fight with every fiber of his being.

"This war," Mai murmured, "isn't just a physical battle. It's a mental test, something much bigger. Alexi hasn't told us everything."

"I know," Hiroshi replied, not slowing down. "But we can't stop. Every piece of information we get brings us closer to understanding how to escape. And if we don't find it, we're left with one option: death."

Hiroshi's tone was cold, but his determination burned like fire. The group had a goal: figure out as quickly as possible how to escape this war and how to stop Alexi, the entity who seemed to be the puppet master behind all this chaos.

They stopped for a moment to catch their breath, while the dimension around them continued to shift. The pressure was palpable, like a shadow bearing down on them, ready to suffocate them. The countdown was now less than an hour. The fear of not making it was an unbearable weight, but each member of the group tried not to show their anxiety to the others. Only together would they have a chance.

"Look," Ayumi said, pointing ahead. A large portal was forming, its blue halo flashing like a beacon. "That's our goal. We need to go through it."

The group approached cautiously, but when they were just steps away from the portal, a metallic, distorted laugh echoed through the air. Another message from Alexi.

"Do you really think you can escape this war?" the entity asked, its voice sharp as a blade. "There's no way out. Your only hope is to win."

"We won't give up," Hiroshi replied firmly, staring at the portal ahead of him. "Let's go, together!"