บท 166: Ch. 166: The Price of Failure

Ch. 166: The Price of Failure

Beep! Beep!

"---------."

Beep...!

The sound was faint at first, muffled, like I was hearing it through layers of water. Then silence again, thick and overbearing, pressing down on me. My body felt heavy, my chest ached, and my limbs refused to respond. It was as though I was pinned beneath the weight of a thousand curses.

Somewhere in the distance, voices emerged, fragmented and muddled like distant echoes in a cave.

"I think he's waking up." A male voice— energetic, middle-aged, and tinged with surprise.

"Is he really?" Another voice, this one female and older, cracked with time and sarcasm. "What I see is just a half-dead man lying there waiting to die."

Harsh words, but the voice sounded strangely familiar. But I could not quite place it.