Horror Game Developer: My games aren't that scary!

Chapter 625: Surgery [3]

It felt as though time had stopped moving. Zoey found herself moving from one room to another, tending to the numerous patients. Blood greeted her in each room, the pain reflected back onto her as a sense of exhaustion crept up onto her mind.

Tick. Tick—

Tick!

The more time dragged, the more she felt like she was starting to lose it.

"Nurse! Nurse!"

"Over here! I need immediate help over here! This is an emergency! We need you to quickly come here!"

"I need urgent help over here!"

"Nurse!"

The calls were endless, one bleeding into the next without pause, and as Zoey was ushered into another room, her stomach lurched violently in her chest.

Her eyes landed on the patient, and she froze for a split second at the sight of exposed organs spilling from the open abdomen, glistening under the harsh lights as the doctors worked with slow and careful movements to guide them back inside.

Squelch!

The wet, visceral scene made her throat tighten, and in that exact moment, a strange sensation twisted through her own gut, as if something inside her was being shifted and handled.

’Hold it in. Ukh... I need to hold it in.’

She clenched her teeth hard, forcing herself to stay upright as the feeling churned within her.

"Nurse, I need your help over here."

Stopping, one of the doctors looked at her.

He held onto a section of the exposed organs, intestines to be exact, squeezing it slightly as he worked, and at that exact moment, Zoey felt the pain surge through her own body.

——!

It was sharp and electric, the sensation twisting through her insides as it stole the air from her lungs.

Her legs trembled uncontrollably, nearly giving out beneath her as she struggled to stay upright, barely managing to keep herself from collapsing to the ground.

"Nurse?"

The doctor raised the intestine, and Zoey felt her legs give even more.

"C-coming..."

Forcing the pain down, Zoey moved towards the doctor as she stood next to him. Pulling his mask down, the doctor handed her the guts.

"Hold this for me."

"...."

Zoey stood in silence, staring at the guts and then the doctor. Would a hospital even allow something like this?

’No, there’s no point in even thinking about this as a regular hospital.’

Sucking in a cold breath, she reached forward and grasped a section of the intestine, a faint squelching sound rising as it shifted in her hand. It pulsed softly against her fingers, the warmth spreading down on her hand, and even though she handled it as gently as she could, the sensation echoed into her own abdomen.

The rhythmic movement became hard to ignore despite her best attempts, each pulse more pronounced than the last, forcing her face to scrunch up as she fought to keep her composure.

"Keep it like that. I’ll be inserting the intestine now."

The doctor spoke calmly, his focus shifting to the other end of the intestine as he began guiding it back into the patient’s body slowly.

As Zoey held onto it, a creeping sensation spread through her. It felt invasive, and it was accompanied by a strange tingling that made her stomach twist.

Her face tightened further, her expression scrunching up as she struggled to endure the feeling without letting go.

Tick! Tick—

The ticking of the clock continued to echo in the background as she bit her lips, trying her best to not mind the sensation as the doctor slowly but surely put the intestine away.

There was no clear pain, but the sensation was all too clear to her as her hand trembled from time to time, flinching at the unexpected sensations that she was feeling.

It felt like it dragged on forever, each second stretching painfully until the doctor finally took the intestine from her hands and guided it back into the patient’s body. Only then did Zoey let out a quiet sigh of relief, her shoulders loosening for just a moment. But even as the tension eased, she knew it was far from over.

The doctor began to stitch up the hole in the stomach, the needle and thread piercing along the skin as Zoey took several steps back, her head turning away from the scene.

But even though she couldn’t see what was happening, she felt it all, the thin yet crisp sensation crawling all over her skin as if a centipede was crawling all over her stomach.

Something built up inside her throat as she forced it all back, her head turning towards the entrance where another nurse greeted her and beckoned her in her direction.

’There’s more?’

Zoey’s heart sank, but she followed along.

At the same time, she looked at the time.

8:05 P.M.

Her stomach nearly flipped onto itself, her legs growing weaker as she stared at the clock one more time. Only twenty minutes had passed?!

Zoey’s hand reached for her mouth, a powerful weakness running through her body as she struggled to come to terms with the situation, the exhaustion she felt from before growing even more pronounced.

But right as she managed to step out of the room, the nurse next to her urgently spoke, "Nurse! We need to hurry! There’s a situation in the other room!"

Zoey wanted to refuse, the words almost rising to her lips, but she knew she did not have that option. Instead, she followed behind the nurse, her steps quick and unsteady. At the same time, her eyes darted around, scanning the chaotic surroundings as she desperately searched for any sign of Rowan and Seth.

’Where the hell did the two go? Could they also be somewhere over here? I hope that’s the case... I don’t know if I can hold on for much longer.’

Her relationship with Seth was strained at the moment, but there was no denying his skills.

If he...

’No, even if he’s here, it wouldn’t change a thing. None of my skills is of any use in this place. I’ve been searching everywhere, but it’s clear that there’s no shortcut to this trial. We just need to keep going without breaking.’

But that was easier said than done.

"Nurse, over here!"

Being led into another room, Zoey braced herself for whatever awaited inside. The thought of the pain she was about to endure made her stomach twist, but she forced herself forward anyway. However, the moment she stepped in, her eyes widened slightly as her gaze landed on a familiar figure, standing with their back to her as they worked on the patient.

"Seth?"

As if recognizing her voice, Seth raised his head and their gazes met.

Though he said nothing, there was a subtle shift in his movements that made it seem as if he recognized her, his hand lowering for a brief moment.

...Or at least, that was what Zoey thought at first.

’Bastard!’

In that instant, a sharp tingling flared at the back of Zoey’s mind, spreading rapidly as she clenched her teeth and shivered.

"Nurse, please help the doctor."

It was only when the nurse prompted her that Zoey snapped back into motion. She stepped closer to Seth, and only then did she notice how pale his face had become, his features drawn tight with fatigue.

Without thinking, she grabbed a cloth and began wiping the sweat from his forehead, trying to steady herself and push away the strange, lingering sensation as he continued to work.

"How long have you been working for?"

"....."

Seth didn’t answer. Perhaps he was too focused on the procedure to answer.

Zoey didn’t hesitate as she continued wiping his face, gently clearing away the sweat so he could focus on the procedure. In that moment, just for a brief second, her resentment toward him faded, and she found herself truly looking at him, taking in the fatigue etched across his features.

He couldn’t be considered to be extremely handsome, but that was mainly because he never cared for his own body. If he did care for himself, then maybe...

’No, what am I even thinking?’

Pulling herself away from such thoughts, she wiped down his face again.

Seth remained completely focused, his attention fixed on the patient without wavering. Noticing his concentration, Zoey chose to help him quietly from the side, staying out of his way as he carefully removed a piece of flesh from the brain.

The sensation echoed sharply in her own mind, forcing her to clench her teeth as a surge of discomfort rose within her, nearly making her shout for him to be more gentle.

Thankfully, the procedure didn’t last long as he was able to handle it quickly, taking off the growth and then placing the skull back. By the time Seth was done, he seemed to be completely exhausted as he fell back on his chair, his breathing extremely heavy.

Staring at him, Zoey stared at him in silence before reaching for the water bottle next to her and handing it to him.

"Here."

Seth raised his head, looking at the bottle and then her.

Zoey frowned.

"What? Do you think it’s going to bite you or something? Don’t worry, I’ll be the one biting you if you don’t take it."

Only then did Seth take it, reaching for the bottle and trying to open it. However, he seemed too weak to manage it. Zoey clenched her teeth, stepped in, and took the bottle from his hands, twisting the cap open before handing it back to him.

But the moment she did, she noticed the stare coming from Seth.

"What?"

He still remained silent, but Zoey understood as her face scrunched up.

"Seriously? No, fuck no."

"....."

"...I said no."

"....."

"No means no."

"...."

"You... I still—Fuck, fine."

Taking the bottle back, she moved closer to him and placed it to his lips as he leaned his head back to drink the water. Some of it spilled over, and Zoey could only wipe it away with her cloth as she muttered, ’Drink properly. You’re a grown adult.’

At the same time, she looked around to check on the nurses. Usually, they’d already be rushed somewhere, but somehow they were given some room to breathe as the patient was just getting pulled out of the room.

She could hear something else in the distance, perhaps a new patient coming in, and Zoey pulled the bottle away.

"You’ve drunk enough. Sort out your mind. We’re about to receive more patients soon."

Sure enough, not even a few moments after the words left Zoey’s mouth, something stirred from the entrance of the room.

Clank! Clank! Clank!

As the door opened, a new patient came in as Zoey placed her hand over Seth’s shoulder.

"I’ll leave it to you..."

She paused before adding.

"...Doctor."