Matthew Atkinson & Natalie Russell
Fifth Layer of the Supernatural Realm
"Wait a minute. Matthew... Matthew Atkinson? Isn't he the author of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone?"
"Huh? Really? I thought his name sounded familiar."
"Now everything makes more sense. The brain of a genius who imagines such a world must not work the same way as ours."
"What a shame. If I had known, I would have asked for his autograph beforehand. My children are big fans of that book."
"Yeah. My kids and my wife are the same. If I ask, would he lend me the second book in the series? There are still 15 days to release day, and my kids are already driving me crazy."
Matthew's performance just now changed everyone's opinion of him. And when some people in the crowd realized he was the author of the Harry Potter books, the conversation suddenly changed, and everyone started praising Matthew.
Grand Magister Russell frowned slightly as he listened to the discussions.
He couldn't help but ask himself. Was his opinion about that Atkinson kid wrong?
He had heard of the Harry Potter books, too. After all, his daughter was the face of the book.
And Natalie hadn't even mentioned her involvement in such a project to him.
At first, he thought it was just a small business and intended to buy the book when it came out. But then he learned that Matthew was the author and completely abandoned that idea.
Most likely, that Atkinson kid was using his daughter Natalie's name to make money.
But now, hearing the conversations in the crowd, he realized the book was quite famous and that many people were fans of it.
Just then, on the screen in the theater, the scene shifted to a snowy landscape.
Matthew and his group just arrived here.
Seeing this scene, many people in the theater were surprised.
"What's going on? Why didn't the captain forfeit?"
"That kid Matthew, he wouldn't be planning to continue to challenge, would he?"
"Didn't anyone tell them that once a mode level starts, they can't quit halfway through?"
"This kid is just reckless."
"Perhaps this kid is confident in himself and believes he can win the championship again this time?"
"You can't joke around with Natalie's life."
"You're wrong about that. In the Supernatural Realm, which layer isn't full of danger?"
"If this person is indeed the author of Harry Potter, I think they will be successful. People like that have a completely different way of thinking than others."
"Stop arguing, they've started..."
...
The second escape room of the Escape Mode was a place of ice and snow.
Matthew laughed as soon as he saw it.
It was another familiar scene for him.
The others, on the other hand, began to explore their surroundings.
"Watch out for the ground."
Matthew suddenly warned, "We're standing on ice, and there's a river below. The current seems very strong. If we fall in, we'll surely die."
Upon hearing this, the team members immediately looked down.
Sure enough, they all saw the water flowing beneath the ice.
"Everyone, please walk carefully and don't step hard on the ice," Matthew said again.
Everyone nodded and walked cautiously.
After his performance in the first round, the team members now have great faith in their captain, Matthew.
Moreover, when everyone came in, their eyes looked around, but no one noticed the river under the ice except for Matthew.
Such keen observation skills were truly extraordinary.
"Everyone split up and search, and report back on everything you find."
Matthew repeated it, then reminded him, "If you find anything strange, notify me immediately. Don't touch it lightly."
"The temperature here is very low. We were sweating profusely in the sauna just now, so we need to leave as soon as possible."
What he said makes a lot of sense.
The team members all agreed.
Because at this point, everyone was already feeling the chill.
Especially because their clothes were soaked with sweat just before, the cold weather made them highly uncomfortable.
The escape room concept created by Supernatural Realm was really good at making things difficult.
"I found a fishing rod, but there was no hook."
"There's a door here, which should be the exit, but it's locked, and we need a key to open it."
"There's a gap in the ice on my side, and there seems to be something inside."
"I found a down jacket..."
...
Everyone reported their findings.
Matthew immediately walked towards Sam Harris's direction.
What Sam Harris discovered was a gap in the ice.
Seeing this, the others moved closer as well. Carefully.
When the team members arrived at Sam Harris's side, they saw a circular gap in the ice, as if someone had dug it out.
Additionally, inside the gap, a piece of metal hung from nearby aquatic plants and was not washed away by the current.
"Look, look at the shape, it looks like… a key… Achoo." Filip Walker said, and then sneezed.
Now, everyone was getting colder and colder, and some people were shivering.
Even Natalie's face turned pale from the cold.
Seeing this, Matthew stopped wasting time and immediately said, "Lucian, give me your fishing rod."
Upon hearing this, Lucian Richards immediately handed the fishing rod to Matthew.
The group discovered that although a fishing line was attached to the fishing rod, there was no hook at the end.
"There's no hook here. How do we hook the key up?" Sam Harris asked.
Matthew said, "There's definitely one thing missing. Let's search carefully again."
Upon hearing this, the team members all went to search for him.
"Matthew, you should put this down jacket first." Zoe Chapman said.
She was the one who found the down jacket earlier.
Matthew took the down jacket without ceremony, but instead of putting it on, he first checked its pockets, and when he found nothing, he kept groping around in it with his hands.
Soon, he seemed to touch something, and then, with a little force, tore the down jacket a little.
-Tear
He tore a little hole in the lining of his down jacket.
Then, a compass fell out and landed on the ice.
Actually, Matthew knew the compass was inside the jacket. It was just that in the movie he'd watched, the compass was in the jacket pocket, but this time it was hidden inside the inner layer.
It looked like the Supernatural Realm had made some minor changes. But overall, the details were the same.
Matthew quickly followed the compass and found the magnetic fishing hook hidden inside the polar bear statue's mouth, then returned to the side of the hole in the ice.
"The item has been found. You no longer need to search."
Matthew shouted, then tied the magnet to the fishing line.
He didn't throw away the down jacket but handed it to Natalie beside him.
"Nat, put it on."
Although Matthew used a commanding tone, Natalie was touched by his gesture.
The fact that Matthew still thought of her and worried she might catch a cold in this situation was enough to show that he cares deeply about her.
The girl obediently took the down jacket and put it on.
Seeing this, no one else said anything.
...
In the theater, everyone's eyes lit up when they saw Matthew's outstanding performance.
Grand Magister Russell, meanwhile, stared intently at his daughter's expression.
Seeing the look on his daughter's face, he knew that his wishful thinking was doomed to fail.
This kid from the Atkinson family was far too clever.
Even in this critical situation, he still didn't forget to take care of Natalie.
Based on his understanding of his daughter, she was probably already completely devoted to that Atkinson family boy.
...
"Matthew, you're amazing. You even managed to spot that."
Zoe Chapman couldn't help but praise Matthew when she saw him tie the magnet to the fishing line.
The down jacket was in her hands just now, and she had checked the pockets of the down jacket, but she never expected that the compass was hidden inside the down jacket's lining.
"It's nothing, you can find it if you look closely."
Matthew casually replied and picked up his fishing rod.
He had already tied the magnet.
He carefully placed the magnet into the gap, then slowly lowered it into the river, gradually bringing it closer to the key.
A moment later, under his control, the magnet successfully attracted the key.
"It's stuck, pull it up quickly." Charles Francis couldn't help but say.
Filip Walker immediately retorted, scolding, "Charles, shut up and don't bother Matthew."
Upon hearing this, Charles Francis immediately shut his mouth.
Matthew was not disturbed and maintained his own rhythm, carefully lifting the fishing rod.
He knew everything about this place and was well aware that there was more to the key than met the eye.
Things were not as simple as his teammates thought...
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Next Chapters' Name:
Ch.137: The Champion Team
Ch.138: Unknown Levels (End of the 5th Layer)
Ch.139: Moving Back to Campus