A breath—
A sound so faint it was almost imperceptible.
And an icy current of air blowing on the back of his neck.
At that moment, Gao Hai felt as if someone were clinging to his back, pressed tightly against him, their head bowed, breathing again and again.
Was it a hallucination?
Or was there really something on his back?
There was no longer any light in his field of vision.
Gao Hai had walked into absolute darkness, where he could see nothing at all.
Splash, splash—
The cold, stagnant water sloshed with every step he took.
The breathing behind him followed closely, not falling a single step behind.
Where am I now?
Unable to see anything, Gao Hai couldn't help but wonder.
The chill on the back of his neck seemed to grow more pronounced.
All he could hear was the monotonous sound of splashing water.
Splash, splash—
Then, his calf seemed to brush against something.
Something large floating in the water, though it didn't seem too heavy.
It bobbed slightly from his touch. Faintly, it felt as if fingers had grazed his calf, but he couldn't be sure if it was real or his imagination.
Gao Hai paid it no mind and continued forward, following the wall.
Splash, splash—
He reached out, his hand landing on the damp wall.
His feet trudged on through the cold water that rose past his calves.
Just how long was this corridor?
How much longer until he reached the end?
Gao Hai hadn't expected to grow so agitated so quickly.
He felt like every breath he took was a bellyful of cold air, so frigid his throat felt like it was about to freeze.
Splash, splash—
The sound of splashing water echoed, one after another.
This time, something seemed to walk past him.
Someone moving slowly, almost brushing his shoulder, yet he felt no movement besides the sound of footsteps, as if the person didn't exist.
"..."
Gao Hai remained silent.
He just kept moving forward.
Reaching out, he felt for the wall.
But this time, Gao Hai didn't touch the wall. His hand met empty space, touching only air.
Huuu—
Another icy breath fell on the back of his neck.
After a brief silence, Gao Hai reached out again, feeling around slightly to the side, and touched the angled corner of the hallway.
Have I reached the turn?
Gao Hai recalled the layout of the second floor. He was now certain that the first floor's layout had been altered just like the second, both transformed into an extremely wasteful configuration that would be impossible in real life.
He had now reached the end of the corridor. Around the corner, he should find the main door and the bathroom.
Come to think of it, if the apartment sizes were similar, this same corridor on the second floor had only taken him a few steps to cross. But the distance he just covered, Gao Hai estimated, had taken him at least a minute. He wasn't sure if the spatial structure here was abnormal, or if the loss of sight had simply slowed his movements considerably.
Regardless, he had to keep moving.
He had only covered a short distance so far.
At the very least, he had to reach the main hallway and see what condition it was in. Then, find Room 109—this place that was mentioned repeatedly, this place that Xusheng said he must go to yet absolutely could not, this place so closely tied to Sanchez, the culprit behind the demise of the Shirakawa Apartments survivors, this place that would attract a veteran player like Lao Guo to try every means to reach.
What could possibly be in there?
Splash, splash—
Gao Hai continued onward in the pitch darkness.
He rounded the corner, proceeding cautiously as he recalled the apartment's structure.
The sound of breathing vanished at that moment.
Did it finally give up?
Just as the rulebook said, as long as you don't interact, as long as no communication occurs, the anomalies on the first floor don't seem to harm people.
With this in mind, Gao Hai walked step by step towards where the front door should theoretically be.
He reached out, fumbling forward.
Gao Hai quickly felt the doorknob.
His spatial memory seemed to be quite good; he had found the door on his first try.
But, is this door closed?
What state is the hallway outside in right now?
Gently, he turned the doorknob.
Gao Hai heard the crisp click of the lock disengaging.
Then, little by little, he opened the door, leaving no gap between this room and the hallway.
He didn't rush out.
Instead, he first reached out to feel the door itself.
Gao Hai felt rust and some strange marks, as if gouged out by a sharp object.
He felt around patiently in the silent darkness.
And so, he finally touched what he was looking for—the raised figures on the door, the room number nailed to it.
106.
Corresponding to Room 206, where the kitchen floor had collapsed.
This was Room 106 on the first floor.
So, based on the second-floor map, Room 109 on the first floor should be to my right, the second door on the opposite side.
Gao Hai carefully recalled the layout of the second floor, then took a step, preparing to enter the hallway.
At that moment, the rope tied around his waist suddenly tightened, then loosened, then tightened again, repeating three times.
This was the signal he had arranged with Kaguya and Maki.
Has it been half an hour already?
Although the hallway was right in front of him, Gao Hai didn't hesitate. He grabbed the rope, pulled it tight, relaxed, and repeated the motion twice.
Then, without a moment's hesitation, he closed the door to 106, turned, and started back the way he came.
As much as he wanted to immediately explore Room 109 and find out what was inside, since this was a team effort, it was best not to act rashly on his own.
As he thought this, Gao Hai took just one step and bumped into something.
Something large, at least 175cm tall, seemingly wearing heavy clothes, standing in the corridor.
"..."
In the silent corridor, there were no sounds other than the splashing of water as Gao Hai moved.
He took another step forward, moving slightly to the side, and bumped into a second thing.
This one was taller, perhaps 180cm, also wearing heavy clothes, just standing silently in the corridor.
"..."
Gao Hai continued walking forward.
And so he quickly bumped into a third, a fourth, and even more of them.
He began to squeeze his way through them.
One silent figure after another stood in the corridor.
Cold things, making no sound, no movement, no breath.
From the main hallway outside, a sound seemed to emerge.
A noisy clamor that seemed to be spreading down from the direction of the stairwell, growing steadily louder.
As if someone were struggling for their life.
As if many people were locked in a fierce brawl.
This chaotic sound gradually filled the hallway outside the main door.
Gao Hai had squeezed past those things and returned to the living room, which had some light.
A gaze came from the direction of the sofa; something there had lifted its head and was watching him.
Gao Hai remained silent in response, his head held straight, his breathing perfectly calm. He walked straight toward the kitchen, not forgetting to immediately close the door between the living room and the corridor after entering. As he closed it, he never once glanced back, shutting the door with his back turned completely to the hallway.
He stepped into the kitchen.
He walked to where the hole was.
Gao Hai looked up towards the light from above, towards Maki, who was cautiously peering down.
"I am Gao Hai. I am not a resident of Shirakawa Apartments. I am a player in the Sacrificial Game, trapped here and trying to escape..."
Uttering the string of words at a steady pace, Gao Hai recited the phrase they had agreed upon before he left. This was an identification method they had devised, since every communicable anomaly in the apartment so far believed itself to be a part of the residence. As long as they could confirm a survivor's perception on this matter wasn't distorted, they could basically be sure the person was still themselves and could still be trusted.
"Confirmed. The password matches perfectly. No problem."
Maki then nodded to Kaguya, who was beside her but out of sight, and spoke.
"Alright, get ready to come up."
Kaguya's voice immediately followed.
Gao Hai nodded lightly, standing below the hole and waiting for those above to reach down and pull him up.
"Are you ready to come up?"
Kaguya's voice sounded out, asking again.
"Ready."
Gao Hai replied calmly. The word came out almost subconsciously, without any deeper thought.
Then, realizing something, Gao Hai shifted his gaze from above down to what was in front of him.
"Hai-kun?"
Maki's confused voice sounded from above.
And Gao Hai, understanding the situation, had already taken a step back.
In that last exchange, Kaguya Shinomiya's voice hadn't come from above him.
It had come from in front of him, directly in front of him.
Gao Hai, failing to raise his guard in time, had answered that voice.
Splash, splash—
The stagnant water covering the kitchen floor began to ripple slowly.
________________________________________
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