"...A book?"
It was roughly the size of a notebook. Its cover shimmered with a soft silver glow.
There was no title, author, or design. Only countless tiny runes drifted across its surface like ripples across still water before slowly settling into place.
The moment he touched it...
A strange sense of familiarity spread through him.
As though...
It had always belonged to him.
"...Where did this come from?"
He was certain he hadn't been carrying it before.
Murmurs spread through the stadium like wildfire.
Jon looked up.
Books.
Thousands of them glistened underneath the sunlight, giving the stadium a brightened glow.
Every person who had survived now held one.
Some stared at them in confusion; others turned them over repeatedly, searching for an explanation.
A young boy tugged nervously at his mother's sleeve.
"Mom..."
"Is this yours?"
She looked down.
"No..."
"I have one too..."
A student several meters away frowned.
"It was just... there."
"I don't remember picking it up."
Another cautiously opened his.
His expression immediately changed.
"I..."
"I can't read this."
"What?"
"The symbols..."
"They don't make sense."
More books opened throughout the stadium, and confused voices echoed from every direction.
"I've never seen this language."
"Is this some kind of prank?"
"Who's doing this?"
One girl suddenly gasped.
"The symbols moved!"
"They're changing!"
"They're not changing."
"They are!"
"They're moving when I look at them!"
The panic began quietly.
Like ripples spreading across a pond.
A young man suddenly threw his book onto the running track.
"This--This is some dark magic stuff. I don't want this thing!" The silver cover struck the rubber surface.
Instead of bouncing...
The book dissolved into countless silver particles.
The crowd stared. Then a heartbeat later...
The particles reformed back in his hands.
He froze.
"...What?"
He threw it again, and the same thing happened.
Nearby, another student tried the same.
Then another.
Books flew across the stadium in rapid succession, and every single one returned.
Someone screamed.
She dropped hers and stumbled backwards as though it were alive.
"It won't leave me! It keeps coming back! Whoever is doing this, stop!"
The murmurs became shouting.
Fear spread faster than understanding.
The security personnel immediately reacted.
"Everyone, remain calm!"
"Please stay where you are!"
"We don't know what's happening yet!"
Their words only made things worse.
People didn't need comforting words; they needed explanations. Sensible enough to explain the abrupt and sudden confusion.
Without it, they now wanted to escape.
Parents grabbed their children. Athletes abandoned their belongings ---medals, backpacks, phones. Everything was forgotten.
The crowd briskly rose from their seats and surged toward the stadium exits.
Not everyone moved at first. But the fear had taken root. Others, seeing the sudden movement, also followed.
Jon looked down once more at the silver book in his hands.
Slowly, he lifted the cover.
The first page revealed a single rune.
Nothing else. And just like everyone else, he couldn't read it.
Yet...
The longer he looked...
The quieter the world became.
The shouting faded, and his breathing slowed.
The rune seemed impossibly simple. Yet it carried a depth he couldn't begin to understand.
Just staring at the page made him feel like he did during any race. That calm feeling. It felt...
"Jon!"
A hand grabbed his shoulder.
The spell broke instantly, and he looked up.
Coach Harris stood beside him, breathing heavily after forcing his way through the crowd.
Relief washed across the older man's face.
"There you are. You alright?"
Jon blinked several times before nodding.
"I...I think so."
Coach Harris nodded and glanced around the stadium. His expression hardened.
"I don't know what just happened, but we're leaving. Now!"
Jon instinctively closed the book. Without thinking, he tucked it beneath his arm.
Coach Harris noticed, "You're taking it?"
Jon hesitated. "...It doesn't feel like I should leave it behind."
Coach Harris looked at the identical books surrounding them.
"...Neither does mine. Let's go."
Neither of them, or rather, no one in the stadium, had realized that the true nightmare hadn't even begun.