Eric Bennett: "For example?"

Adam Grant said, "For example, you could kill people who are wearing shoes."

Eric Bennett: "..." He silently glanced at the shoes on his own feet.

Seeing his reaction, Adam Grant laughed, "I'm just giving a random example. What if the rule in this world is that you can kill people who aren't wearing shoes? If you take your shoes off, you might end up dead instead. Besides, these rules aren't singular—sometimes you need several conditions to be met at once. So, after summing up the patterns, sleeping through the night until morning is actually the safest thing to do." He paused for a moment. "Of course, that's assuming you can actually fall asleep."

Because of Adam Grant's words, Eric Bennett was reminded of what happened last night. He glanced at Grace Cooper, who was sitting beside him absentmindedly cracking sunflower seeds, and couldn't shake the feeling that he had brushed shoulders with death the night before.

It seemed that with just one careless move, he could have become one of those two cold corpses on the third floor.

"Go to sleep," Adam Grant said. "Good night."

Eric Bennett nodded. "Good night." He called out to Grace Cooper, asking her to go to bed with him.

Grace Cooper yawned and casually put the remaining sunflower seeds on the table. She rubbed her eyes and muttered, "So sleepy, let's go to bed early tonight."

Eric Bennett said, "Alright, let's sleep early."

Because of what happened last night, the third floor was now completely unusable, so everyone moved to the second floor.

Eric Bennett still shared a bed with Grace Cooper. This time, he was prepared—he decided to lock the window first and planned to draw the curtains as well, but the curtains seemed to have not been used in ages and wouldn't budge no matter what he did.

Grace Cooper, wearing pajamas, lay in bed and whimpered, "Qiushi, it's so cold."

Eric Bennett was still fiddling with the curtains. Without turning his head, he replied, "If you're cold, put on more clothes."

Grace Cooper: "...You don't have a girlfriend, do you?"

Eric Bennett was baffled. "A girlfriend? Why would I need a girlfriend?"

Grace Cooper fell silent. By the time Eric Bennett finished with the curtains and turned back, she was lying stiffly on the bed like a dead fish.

Eric Bennett still didn't get it. "What's wrong with you?"

Grace Cooper's voice was soft as she said, "Don't you... have anything you want to say to me?"

Eric Bennett fell into thought. He looked at Grace Cooper's beautiful face and finally had an idea. He said, "I do."

Grace Cooper showed a satisfied smile. "What do you want to say?"

Eric Bennett: "Well, it's just that... if we run into a ghost tonight, could you run a bit slower?"

Grace Cooper replied coldly, "No."

Eric Bennett was annoyed. "Then why the hell did you ask me what I wanted to say? Go to sleep!"

So they each turned to their own side of the bed, facing away from each other, and started getting ready to sleep.

According to Adam Grant, being able to fall asleep peacefully was the best outcome for the night, but Eric Bennett's mind was filled with all sorts of thoughts, and he found himself completely unable to sleep. Meanwhile, Grace Cooper behind him fell asleep instantly like a pig, which made Eric Bennett grind his teeth in frustration.

As the night deepened, the temperature dropped lower and lower. Fortunately, the blanket was thick and there was a warm person sleeping beside him, so it wasn't too hard to endure.

Eric Bennett closed his eyes, sorting through the clues from the day, and his consciousness began to blur as he was about to drift into deep sleep. But just as he was about to fall asleep, he vaguely heard a strange sound. Unlike the knocking from yesterday, this sound came from the ceiling above them—a sticky, heavy noise, as if something was slowly dragging itself across the roof of the third floor. Eric Bennett's hearing was sharp, and his drowsiness vanished instantly. He held his breath for a moment, then slowly opened his eyes and looked up at the ceiling above them.

There was nothing there, just old wooden boards.

Yet Eric Bennett's body began to feel cold, because he clearly heard the sound stop right above his head.

"Plop, plop." The sticky knocking sound assaulted his eardrums, growing louder and louder, making goosebumps rise all over his body. He gritted his teeth and was about to sit up in bed when a hand reached out from beside him and wrapped around his waist.

"What are you doing?" It was Grace Cooper's drowsy voice.

"Did you hear anything strange?" Eric Bennett whispered, "On the roof."

"Sound? What sound?" Grace Cooper said, "I didn't hear anything. Stop moving, I'm cold." Her breath gently brushed against Eric Bennett's ear, carrying the scent of ice and snow.

"You..." Eric Bennett wanted to say more, but felt Grace Cooper's arm tighten around him.

"Go to sleep," Grace Cooper said.

Eric Bennett had no choice but to close his eyes.

Grace Cooper slowly traced her fingers along Eric Bennett's waist. What should have been a somewhat intimate gesture now felt full of comfort.

The knocking on the roof continued, but Eric Bennett didn't feel as scared as before. Sleepiness began to rise in his mind again, and he finally drifted off.

The next morning.

Eric Bennett woke up in Grace Cooper's arms.