[Instance: Starlake University — Activated]
[Welcome, participants.]
[Please observe all dormitory regulations and enjoy your stay at Starlake University.]
[To win this game, you may—]
1.Survive for ten days.
2.Uncover the secret buried beneath the campus.
3.Eliminate the Unspoken.
4.Or… perhaps you'll find a way out.]
[Any of the above will be considered a victory. Now then—let the game begin.]
The cheerful tone of The Announcement was almost mocking, as if it found their confusion entertaining.
Iris's eyes flicked over the glowing words again.
Survive ten days, eliminate the Unspoken, find the exit...
Multiple win conditions.
Which only meant one thing—
None of them would be simple.
Just as the screen dimmed, Iris's phone buzzed again.
It wasn't a message from The Announcement this time—but a notification from a chat app.
There was only one group.
[Starlake University — Freshman Dormitory Group Chat]
Member count: 859.
Judging by the number, it included everyone trapped inside this instance.
The chat was on lockdown—no one could send messages except the admin, whose username read:
"Class Coordinator."
A series of calm, polite messages began to appear:
"Good evening, students."
"Your first class begins at 8:00 a.m. sharp tomorrow. Attendance is mandatory."
"Remember to bring your Student ID before leaving your dorm."
"If you have special circumstances, please report to my office for leave approval."
"You may also seek my assistance if necessary—but only if I'm wearing white."
"Your personal class schedules have been distributed. Please check your devices."
After that, the chat went silent.
Iris opened her schedule.
Tomorrow, 8:00 a.m.—Third Teaching Building, Room 302.
No subject name.
Just time and location.
Like a class waiting to be filled with something else.
"Are you kidding me? I've been out of college for years, and now I have to attend some stupid morning class?!"
Rina snapped, still half-dressed, her voice sharp with defiance.
"I'm not going. What's the worst that can happen?"
"We should go," Tasha murmured, her tone wary. "The rules said we need to follow them if we want to survive."
Iris lifted her gaze, studying the three women in silence.
Maybe it was time to test her talent.
If one of them isn't human, she thought, then the Eidolic Shift should react.
Her eyes lingered on Rina—the loudest, most restless one.
After all, the Rulebound Horrors had been around for a full year.
Anyone who still pretended not to know about them was either lying… or not alive.
Iris exhaled slowly and whispered in her mind:
Activate Rule-Tier Talent — α: Eidolic Shift.
A faint hum echoed in her skull. Then, a cold line of text appeared before her eyes:
[Talent Activation Failed — Target Not Rulebound.]
Her brow furrowed slightly.
So she's not the anomaly?
Or… maybe the "extra one" in this room isn't a Horror at all.
At least the failed attempt hadn't consumed her daily use.
Iris exhaled quietly, then turned her gaze toward Tasha.
Another message appeared—
[Talent Activation Failed — Target Not Rulebound.]
So, not her either.
Finally, her eyes shifted to the girl trembling in the corner—Mina.
The moment their gazes met, Iris's vision fractured.
The dormitory seemed to twist and tilt, her body dissolving into a blur—
—and when her sight cleared, she was standing in the corner, staring back at herself.
What...?
Her breath hitched.
Did my consciousness just enter her body?
Before she could process it, white text bled across her vision—
cold, mechanical, and absolute.
[Dorm Eidolon Rules — Room 403]
1. You are a timid female. Play your role convincingly. Do not let your roommates suspect you.
2. Do not look into mirrors.
3. Your task is to lead your roommates into violating the rules—preferably by luring them out of the dorm at night.
4. If a roommate dies, you may assume her identity.
5. Ensure you visit the Experimental Building once per day to replenish energy.
6. If your identity is confirmed by a roommate, you are no longer required to hide. Use all means necessary to eliminate the threat.
7. You may not directly harm a roommate first. However, if a roommate attacks you, you are permitted to retaliate.
The instant Iris finished reading the last line, her vision blurred again—
and she was back in her own body.
A mechanical chime rang beside her ear.
[Eidolic Shift successful.]
[You have manifested as the Dorm Eidolon and acquired its ability: Wakebound.]
[Description: You require no sleep. You will not experience fatigue or drowsiness during the night.]
Iris froze, momentarily overwhelmed.
That's… a lot to unpack.
So her Rule-Tier α Talent really could verify whether someone was Rulebound—
but a successful manifestation consumed the day's use.
And the revelation was chilling:
the Dorm Eidolon had its own rulebook—
its own mission—
and it had been living among them, pretending to be human.
For a brief moment, Iris's pulse quickened—not in fear, but in fascination.
No need to sleep…
That meant no risk of being ambushed in the dark.
She could stay awake.
Watch.
And maybe… enjoy the show.
While Iris was still processing everything she had seen, the tension in the room began to thin—if only slightly.
The woman on Bed Four finally stopped yelling. Her chest still rose and fell sharply, but her tone had softened. She sat cross-legged on the mattress, tapping at her phone in desperate repetition—refresh, retry, refresh again—as if the outside world might answer if she just insisted long enough.
The short-haired girl on Bed One glanced toward the corner, where the timid girl—the Dorm Eidolon—still crouched, arms wrapped around her knees. For a moment, Bed One looked as though she wanted to offer comfort… but the first rule whispered in everyone's mind:
Don't get too close. Don't trust too easily.
Her hand froze mid-air. She forced a weak smile, then simply lowered it again. No introductions. No small talk. Just silence.
Iris said nothing.
In this world, kindness was a liability.
She could claim that the girl in the corner wasn't human—but who would believe her?
More likely, they'd turn on her first.
So she simply watched, eyes half-lidded, her expression unreadable.
Let them decide for themselves, she thought. The rules will sort the truth out soon enough.
Iris moved to her desk, determined to search for any detail she might've missed.
Her chair still had a backpack draped over it. On the desk lay a few toiletries—standard, unused, too neatly arranged. Beside it stood a narrow wardrobe, and below, a set of drawers and a small storage cabinet.
She checked everything, one by one.
The drawers were empty, except for a single student card bearing her name and an unfamiliar emblem: Starlake University.
Everything else was hollow. Lifeless.
She crossed the room and stepped out onto the balcony. The air was cold—unnaturally so. Beyond the railing stretched a wall of darkness, thick and absolute.
No streetlights.
No stars.
Not even the faint glow of a distant building.
It was as if the dorm existed inside a sealed box cut off from the world.
After double-checking that every window was locked, Iris pulled the curtains shut.
The faint rustle of the fabric sounded far too loud in the silence.
Seeing Iris reach for the doorknob, the short-haired girl finally broke her silence.
"Where are you going?"
"Bathroom," Iris replied calmly. "Lights go out at ten. If we're going, we'd better hurry."
The girl checked her phone—10:95 p.m. already. She glanced back at the others:
the loud, fiery one had flopped back onto her bed, scrolling irritably through her useless phone, while the small, trembling girl still hid under her blanket, too terrified to move.
"I'll come with you," the short-haired girl said quickly.
Iris nodded. "Fine."
The two stepped into the corridor together. Their footsteps echoed against the linoleum floor, each sound sharp against the oppressive silence. The hallway lights buzzed faintly, flickering every few seconds, as if warning them to turn back.
Ahead, near the end of the corridor, a cluster of students had gathered outside the bathroom door.
Iris frowned. What now?
When she finally pushed through the crowd and saw the notice taped on the bathroom wall, her expression darkened.
Even the bathroom had rules.