Ch. 10 - Paranormal Entity: Where's the Door?!

The moment those words were spoken, an icy chill ran through both Bai Wan and Liu Tong — but neither of them said a word.

“Really? Thank you so much, Brother Zhang!” Lin Xi’s voice brimmed with excitement. Sleeping alone had been terrifying; having someone with her made everything feel safer.

Then Bai Wan half-joked, “Tsk. Mr. Zhang is a respected teacher. His reputation matters, you know. A man and a woman alone in a room... aren’t you afraid of ruining his image?”

“Mind your own business,” Lin Xi snapped, walking over to Zhang Wen and resting her body against him with an affectionate air.

Bai Wan said nothing more. 

Lin Xi was a stranger to him. He didn’t have any personal stake in what she chose to do. Offering that one piece of advice was already more than enough — his conscience was clear.

Because, honestly, risking his life to save someone he barely knew? Only naive anime protagonists would do things like that.

One by one, the others returned to their rooms. Bai Wan waited until everyone else had gone inside, then quietly pulled out a set of disposable stickers he’d found earlier in the library. Carefully, he placed one on each door, marking them. Only after completing this task did he return to his own room.

Meanwhile, Lin Xi entered Zhang Wen’s room.

“The bed’s pretty big. Should be enough space for two people.” Lin Xi slipped off her denim jacket, revealing a generous figure and a slim waist, an enticing contrast.

As a popular livestreamer, she knew exactly how to use her assets. And she was using this chance, casually undressing to subtly flaunt her figure.

Zhang Wen was a PE teacher, and his skill was sprint-based. If she built a good relationship with him now, he might just save her in a pinch. Unfortunately, Zhang Wen didn’t seem the least bit interested. Since entering the room, he’d been sitting on the bed in silence, seemingly lost in thought.

Assuming he was simply in a bad mood, Lin Xi didn’t press him. She climbed into bed herself, curling up on the far side.

She kept trying to act pitiful and delicate, but Zhang Wen barely responded.

After an hour, he suddenly spoke. “By the way, Lin Xi, what survival item did you pick earlier in the shop?”

Hearing him finally respond, Lin Xi perked up, assuming he was taking an interest in her.

“I chose the emergency desk lamp — the one that protects you from a paranormal entity for five seconds!”

Zhang Wen nodded. “Ah, that one. I picked the goat blood bandage — figured it’d be good in case I got injured. Looks like our items complement each other nicely. Actually, would you mind letting me take a look at your lamp?”

Lin Xi hesitated for a moment, but remembered what Liu-ge had said: each item was bound to the player. No one else could use them. Even if someone took it, it’d be useless to them.

Feeling reassured, she pulled the miniature lamp from her pocket. It was tiny when stored, but returned to normal size when taken out — presumably for convenience during gameplay.

Zhang Wen held the lamp in his hands, studying it carefully.

But something suddenly felt... off. That strange sense of wrongness she’d been feeling for the past hour.

It had been bothering her ever since she entered the room, but she’d dismissed it as nerves. Now, though...

“It’s time to turn off the lights,” Zhang Wen said suddenly, walking over to the door and flipping the switch.

Click.

Darkness swallowed the room.

He climbed back into bed, lying down with his back to her.

Lin Xi felt exhausted too, so she lay down as well.

But no matter how tired her body was, her mind stayed unnervingly alert. It was a familiar feeling — the same restless energy she had whenever her insomnia flared up. So instead of trying to force sleep, she sat up.

The room was pitch-black, illuminated only by a faint shaft of moonlight through the window. Zhang Wen lay beside her, his back still turned.

Strangely... having someone nearby made her feel safe.

With nothing else to do, her mind wandered back to that nagging sense of unease.

What had been bothering me?

The clock outside chimed softly — midnight.

Stretching, Lin Xi rubbed her eyes. After crying the whole night before, they were still sore and puffy. Even blinking hurt.

Wait... blinking? Blinking?!

Lin Xi stiffened and stared into the darkness at Zhang Wen. And finally, it hit her — the thing that had felt so wrong since they entered this room.

Since Zhang Wen had walked in... had he blinked even once?

BOOM.

Cold blood rushed through her body.

She realized it then — Zhang Wen lying beside her was far too still.

Still... like a corpse.

Panic surged.

She reached into her pocket to grab her survival lamp — but it was empty. He never gave it back.

Her face was drained of color. She looked like someone who’d just been slapped with a terminal diagnosis.

Survival instinct kicked in, and she scanned the room.

There — the lamp had been placed on a table across the room.

Gritting her teeth, Lin Xi lifted her head. Zhang Wen still appeared to be asleep, eyes closed.

She began inching her body toward the table.

Grab.

A cold hand seized her arm.

“Where are you going?”

Lin Xi froze.

She turned her head slowly.

Zhang Wen lay there, one eye shut... and the other cracked open, glaring at her with venomous malice.

He had been pretending to sleep.

And that half-open eye… it was monstrous.

“AHHHHHHHHH!”

Her scream echoed through the entire ship.

……

Bai Wan jerked awake, eyes sharp.

Both hands were already in his pockets — left gripping the desk lamp, right holding the bloodwine.

Five seconds of protection. One minute of invisibility. These were the only cards he had.

As for the cursed artifact — the blood-soaked skeleton bandage — he didn’t have the funds to use it yet.

He listened to the scream fade into silence... and shook his head.

Sounded like Lin Xi was done for. Not that he felt particularly sorry for her. Her survival instincts were abysmal. Even if she survived tonight, she’d never make it through the next dungeon.

After the scream, the ship grew even quieter.

Someone had just died. A paranormal entity was loose.

No one dared step outside.

Everyone remained holed up in their rooms, silent.

Then came the familiar sound.

Tap. Tap. Tap...

Footsteps!

'Zhang Wen' was walking through the halls.

“Again?” Bai Wan held his breath, just like before, pretending his room was empty.

Seconds later, the door handle jiggled. The entity was trying to enter.

Bai Wan gripped his lamp tightly, ready to activate it at the first sign of breach.

But then, unexpectedly…the handle began to fade.

Then the door itself started disappearing...

Until only a wall remained.

Bai Wan blinked, stunned.

No way...

That weird feeling...Did a bug just trigger — now?

This wasn’t the first time a door had glitched like this in his life.

But in the Paranormal Game? Seriously?

He stared blankly at the newly-formed wall.

Well, he was safe now.

But...how was he supposed to get out?

Outside the room, 'Zhang Wen' stood there in a daze, eyes fixed unblinking on the wall in front of him.

And perhaps it was imagination, but the face — previously twisted with malice and killing intent — now seemed tinged with a trace of confusion. 

'Zhang Wen' touched the wall.

Where’s the door?

Where’s the handle it had just grabbed?

How was it supposed to kill someone now?

Ahhh…?

A moment of perfect silence. Bai Wan and the entity stared at each other through the wall — on one side, confusion. On the other, equal confusion.

Maybe this was the first time in Paranormal Game history... that a player and an entity shared such a peacefully dumbfounded moment.

BANG BANG BANG!

‘Zhang Wen’ erupted in fury, slamming fists against the wall.

Inside, Bai Wan just looked tired.

“Why are you mad at me? This isn’t my fault! I’m a victim here too!”

Now what? There was no door anymore.

Was he supposed to just wait in here... until the game ended?

Comments