Chapter 12: The Water Room Is Attacked Again

One by one, I escorted Chen Hao, Sun Cheng, Wu Mingran, and Li Feng back to their dormitories, then Carbonhead and I returned to our own rooms. Third Brother had come back at some point, his gaze vacant and clearly shaken by what had happened. When he saw me, he only glanced up, his lips twitching as though he wanted to speak but no words came out. I hurried over, patted his shoulder, and said, “Don’t blame yourself. This isn’t your fault, nor is it anyone else’s.”

“If you want to survive, this is the only way.”

Third Brother looked at my uncharacteristically cold expression and trembled slightly. I realized my words were harsh, but it was the truth. If he couldn’t cross this threshold in his heart, he’d be the next to leave. If I hadn’t experienced so much before, I’d probably be worse off than any of them right now.

After a few words of comfort, I climbed into bed. Thankfully, our room hadn’t witnessed any fights—no bloodstains, nothing ominous.

Unlike us, Carbonhead’s dorm had been soaked in blood. Living there would surely leave them with nightmares. Now, all we could do was accept the truth and keep living. Escape? Impossible. Our parents sent us here and closed off our way back. Would we really go home and disrupt their happy lives? Better to die at D University—at least we’d have friends beside us. Dying outside would only leave us alone and abandoned.

Of course, besides those of us sent here by our parents, there were others with their own motives. As Lin Wan once said, many came for the so-called reward. If you become one of the last survivors, you receive the legendary grand prize.

What kind of reward could make people risk their lives to join such a horrifying event? I couldn’t imagine. Moreover, since those strange playing cards appeared, the scales of victory had already begun to tip. Lin Wan even sent me a message yesterday, warning me not to reveal I was an ability user—if ordinary people found out, they might gang up and kill me. Unless they were friends I could trust with my life, I couldn’t let anyone know my secret.

Time ticked by and sleep slowly overtook me. The lights went out; eleven o’clock arrived, and the dormitory building was sealed. The entire building sank into darkness, even the corridor lights extinguished.

Fatty Third had a habit of washing up before bed. He grabbed his basin and made for the door.

“Damn, why are the corridor lights off too?” Fatty Third paused at the doorway, staring into the pitch-black hall.

“It’s nothing. Probably the dorm mother turned off the wrong switch,” I replied absentmindedly. “Fourth,” Fatty Third called back, glancing at me. I immediately understood—though he was big, he was timid, and needed me to go with him.

I pulled two talisman papers from my bed. I’d drawn them myself after coming back—supposedly, if I chanted the right spell, I could trigger my abilities. Who knew if they’d work, but since ghosts were real, maybe my talismans would work too. I comforted myself with this thought.

The moment we stepped into the hallway, the temperature plummeted as if we’d entered an icehouse.

“Are you cold?” I asked Third Brother, scanning the surroundings. The silence was deathly. Although half the people had died in the first round, such stillness was unnatural.

“Cold? You’re just in pajamas, aren’t you?” Fatty Third said, walking ahead with his phone flashlight in one hand and the basin in the other.

I had no choice but to follow close behind. After only five steps, the dormitory door was lost in the darkness behind us. Even the green glow of the emergency exit signs had failed, shrouding the corridor in utter blackness.

The only light was Fatty Third’s phone, which he directed at the ceiling before setting it beside the sink. I hurried to the light for a quick bathroom break. When I came out, I saw a black shadow beside Fatty Third, who was bending over the sink.

I looked up from the feet—a head of long, loose black hair and a mouthful of sharp, inverted triangular teeth.

A sudden ringing filled my head, as if something had exploded inside. My thoughts froze. The figure stood motionless behind Fatty Third, her porcelain-smooth body and black hair so close that he had no idea. I held my breath, inching closer, terrified that any noise might startle her. At this range, I dared not use my ability—I might hurt Fatty Third, or worse, he might discover my secret.

“Fourth!”

Fatty Third suddenly called out, his voice jarring in the quiet washroom. The shadow shifted, attention drawn to him. I didn’t dare answer for fear of provoking the thing.

“Fourth?” Fatty Third called again, his soapy hands pausing mid-wash, foam still clinging to his face.

“Say something, don’t scare me,” he pleaded, his voice trembling. I saw the thing bend down, use her hand to move Fatty Third’s basin aside.

He didn’t notice, only reached to rinse the soap off, but found the basin missing.

“Come on, Fourth, quit messing around,” he muttered, waving both hands blindly.

I picked up my pace, eyes wide as his hand nearly touched the shadow.

“Third Brother!” I couldn’t hold back anymore. I shouted, leapt forward, and tackled the thing to the ground, pushing the basin back toward him.

“Ability—!” I tried to activate my power, but she flung me aside like a rag doll. I hit the ground hard.

“Ow!” I yelped in pain.

Fatty Third wiped his face and turned around. “You nearly scared me to death! What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, nothing—I just slipped,” I said quickly, scrambling up. By then, the shadow had vanished. A cold wind howled—the window in the washroom had been opened at some point, letting the chill flood in.

“It’s freezing,” Fatty Third complained, wrapping his pajamas tighter.

“I’ll close the window.” I hurried over, and as I glanced outside, I saw the Ruthless One perched in the tree, staring at me.

Her mouth gaped, baring pointed teeth, eyes fixed on me with a mocking, terrifying grin. Fear surged within me as I whispered, “Ability, activate.”

A flash of white light shot from my fingertip, striking the Ruthless One in the tree.

Bang—the Ruthless One dissolved into dust, scattering on the wind.

I slammed the window shut and collapsed against it, gasping for breath. My back was drenched in sweat. Even though I could now fight the Ruthless Ones, instinctive terror still gripped me the moment I saw them.

“Fourth, are you alright?” Fatty Third came over and hauled me up.

“I’m fine, just caught a chill from the wind,” I replied, trying to sound casual.

“I’m done here; let’s go back before you catch a cold.”

He gathered his things and headed out. I hurried after him. When we reached our door, we found it closed. We hadn’t locked it when we left—something was off.

“Third Brother, I’m thirsty. Come downstairs with me?” I tugged at his arm.

“But what about my stuff?” he complained, rubbing his head.

“Leave it at the door!” I didn’t give him a chance to argue, dragging him down to the first-floor vending machine.

“What’s going on, Fourth? Tell me if something’s wrong,” he asked with concern.

“It’s nothing,” I replied, fumbling for coins. “I’m just really thirsty.” To prove it, I gulped down half a bottle of iced tea as soon as I bought it.

“You… honestly, what am I going to do with you?” Fatty Third grumbled, but seeing me drink, he tossed in some coins for himself.

Once my nerves had calmed, my brow finally began to relax.

Then, a chill swept over me again. Through the window behind the vending machine, a pair of eyes bore into me—another Ruthless One, her rows of sharp teeth pressed right up to the glass.

Suppressing my fear, I forced myself not to look outside.

“Third Brother, let’s go back.”

This time, our dormitory door was wide open. I ignored everything else, flopped onto my bed, pulled the covers over my head, and refused to move.

Tonight had been one ordeal after another. Out of habit, I glanced toward the window—the Ruthless One was pressed against the glass, watching me. In the next blink, she was gone.