Eric Bennett really couldn’t fall asleep, so he relit the kerosene lamp and stayed up the whole night. The nights here were terrifyingly long; outside, the wind and snow howled, while inside, a beautiful woman slept soundly. Grace Cooper was sharing a bed with a man she had just met, yet she showed no sign of being on guard. Her breathing was even, and a faint blush colored her fair cheeks, making her look especially alluring.

Eric Bennett glanced at her, then quickly looked away. He wasn’t exactly a gentleman immune to temptation, but he wasn’t the type to take advantage of others either.

The next day, it was around eight o’clock before the first hint of sunrise appeared on the horizon.

It had snowed all night, and outside was a vast expanse of white.

Grace Cooper woke up with a soft groan, first stretching out an arm, then instantly pulling it back. “It’s so cold…”

Seeing her like this, Eric Bennett thought, You sure didn’t say that last night.

“Qiushi,” Grace Cooper said, “go find me some clothes, will you? I only have a dress on… it’s way too cold.”

Eric Bennett agreed. He was actually planning to find some clothes for himself too, to layer up a bit, since it was still the height of summer in his own world.

Author’s note:

Also, the top has already appeared, and he really is quite messed up, hahaha.

To avoid too much immersion, let’s change the supporting character’s name—Xiong Qi will now be Adam Grant.

Chapter 2: The Iron Door and the Key

After daybreak, the terrifying atmosphere from last night had dissipated quite a bit.

Eric Bennett was about to head downstairs along the second-floor corridor when he heard a rustling commotion coming from the third floor, as if many people were discussing something. He hadn’t planned to check it out, but then he heard a woman’s wail—so full of grief, as if something truly tragic had happened.

After a moment’s hesitation, Eric Bennett turned and headed up the stairs to the third floor to see what was going on.

The building was made of wood, and the boards on the stairs were a bit worn; every step creaked loudly, and some spots even trembled, as if they could barely support a person’s weight.

When Eric Bennett reached the third floor, he saw several people standing in the corridor. But what really caught his attention was the thick smell of blood in the air.

The scent was so strong it stung his nose, and Eric Bennett had a bad feeling. He moved carefully, edging his way behind the group.

“I knew it,” the tall man who had brought Eric Bennett and the others here yesterday, Adam Grant, was speaking in a low voice to someone. “Something really did happen last night…”

Little Scott was talking too. She said, “I thought so too. At first I thought it was…” She trailed off, turning to glance at Eric Bennett who had just walked up behind her. “Never mind.”

Eric Bennett thought, What do you mean by that? At first you thought it was who—me and Grace Cooper? He looked up and saw a door behind Little Scott.

The door was half open, and blood was pooled all over the floor. Because it was so cold, the blood had already congealed, but it was still clear that there was a lot of it.

“What happened?” Eric Bennett asked.

“Someone died,” Adam Grant replied, his tone very flat.

Eric Bennett: “…Someone died?” If it had been yesterday, he probably would have found it unbelievable—how could people talk about something like this so calmly? But after what he’d experienced last night, he was now fully aware that this place was no longer a world where common sense applied.

“Yeah,” Adam Grant said.

Eric Bennett shifted his angle and glanced into the room. That one look made him gasp involuntarily. The room was covered in congealed blood, and two bodies lay sprawled on the floor, so mangled and bloody that they were completely unrecognizable. Rather than people, they looked more like two skinned lumps of meat. Blood had flowed from the room across the floor and up the walls—there was hardly a clean spot left on the entire third floor.

Even though Eric Bennett had mentally prepared himself, he was still sickened by the sight. He turned away, covering his mouth, and Little Scott, understandingly, said, “There’s a bathroom in the next room.”

Eric Bennett rushed into the bathroom and threw up.

When he finally came out, Little Scott remarked, “I thought you wouldn’t throw up.”

Eric Bennett: “Huh?”

Little Scott said coolly, “You and Grace Cooper are actually pretty well-composed for newcomers. Usually, after the first door, most newbies are in terrible shape. The survival rate is about 20%.”

Eric Bennett: “…”

Little Scott said, “Come on, let’s go down for breakfast.”

Eric Bennett asked, “Aren’t we going to do anything about those two bodies?”

Little Scott gave him a strange look. “What do you want to do?”

Eric Bennett had nothing to say. As he followed the others downstairs, he suddenly remembered something and asked, puzzled, “Wait, when I was on the second floor, I heard a woman crying upstairs…” He looked around and confirmed that among them, only Little Scott was a woman, and judging by her calm demeanor, she didn’t seem like someone who would break down sobbing.

“A woman crying?” Little Scott said. “None of us heard that. You must have imagined it.”

Eric Bennett: “…Alright then.”

Breakfast was already prepared on the first floor, steaming hot and laid out on the table. The cooks were said to be villagers from the local area, and they looked no different from ordinary people.