Millie Watson was sitting under the pale yellow glow of her desk lamp, the only source of light in her room.
The cold blue tones of her phone screen reflected on her face; her lips were pressed into a thin line.
Midnight had long passed, yet for her, time felt as if it had stopped.
On the screen, the detective character was advancing through the dim corridors of a museum hall.
The echo of sirens, distant whispers, and footsteps reverberating on the glass floor… Millie was completely drawn into the game.
Tonight, in Boniel's detective masterpiece "Crimson Evidence", she would face the culprit behind the city's greatest art heist.
The clues she had gathered over the past two weeks had brought her to this very moment: the stolen "Silver Crescent" statue was just a step away.
In the corner of the museum hall, the shadow of a suspicious figure stirred. Millie's fingers hovered over the control icons on the screen, and she held her breath.
She carefully steered the character toward the shadow. Just as she was about to interrogate the suspect… the screen flickered.
A brief blackout… then a black box appeared.
Congratulations.
As one of our top players, you have earned the right to participate in the "Special Episode."
Accept / Decline
Millie frowned. "This scene wasn't part of the scenario…"
Something she had never seen before. A hidden mission? An update? Or…?
Her curiosity outweighed her caution. She pressed Accept.
At that moment, the light from the screen overwhelmed the pale yellow of the desk lamp.
The brightness rapidly expanded, filling every corner of the room, the walls dissolving into nothingness… Then, the ground beneath Millie's feet disappeared.
She was falling into a void.
A pure white, boundless emptiness. No sound, no direction… only the endless fall.
"Don't get me wrong, but… you didn't have to make such a dramatic entrance."
Millie flinched and turned her head. A boy with brown hair, green eyes, and tanned skin — a mischievous grin on his face.
One arm was wrapped around Millie's waist, the other dangling casually, as if this fall were nothing unusual.
"Who are you?" Millie asked, still trying to grasp what was happening.
"Jason Evans. Professional fall-catcher. First session's free."
Millie rolled her eyes. "Would you mind letting go?"
Jason shrugged, but gently set her down onto a soft, misty surface.
Looking around, they noticed other silhouettes emerging in the distance: a tall young man with navy blue hair, blue eyes, and glasses; a cheerful-looking girl with white hair and purple eyes; a cold-looking person with blond hair and crimson eyes; and a strange red-haired, golden-eyed child who looked about nine years old.
When they gathered together, there was silence at first. Then the white-haired girl raised her hand with a smile.
"Hi! Sunny White. I have no idea where this is, but it's definitely not normal, right?"
"You don't need to be a genius to figure that out," Marcus said in a careless tone, hands in his pockets.
Albert's calm voice broke in. "Let's not panic. First, let's introduce ourselves. Then we can decide what to do."
Jason chuckled lightly. "Ah, the classic 'team leader' attitude… Nice to meet you, glasses guy."
Albert only nodded in response.
At that moment, the childlike figure spoke. His voice was serious.
"This place… isn't ordinary. The visual data is inconsistent, the ground violates the laws of physics."
Millie raised her eyebrows at him. "How old are you, exactly?"
The child smiled faintly. "Older than I look."
Millie sensed something odd in his words but didn't press further.
As everyone exchanged glances, sudden footsteps echoed through the white void…
From within the mist, a figure with a rabbit's head and human body emerged. Following it, a man in his thirties with purple hair and violet eyes stepped forward. His face carried a calm yet measured smile.
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"This journey has only just begun… The mystery will deepen with every page you read. 🚀"