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for Advance Chapter
"I heard that this Saturday's competition tutoring has been cancelled."
I held the phone in my hand and read the message three times before pressing send.
Then came a long and anxious wait.
Five short minutes felt like half a century. When my phone went dark, I stared at my nervous face reflected on the screen.
Suddenly the phone vibrated and the screen lit up again.
"Yes, Mr. Su told me, thank you for the notice."
Seeing the watercolor portrait of a smiling girl, and thinking of the clear-eyed girl behind it, I felt a sweet sense of relief, but then I became even more nervous and anxious. I sent a second message: "I heard there's a new escape room in the city. It's really interesting. If you don't have anything else to do on Saturday, would you like to go? I can also accompany you and act as your security guard."
I have simulated the rhetoric of this sentence in my mind hundreds of times. I have carefully controlled the tone of each word, trying not to appear too deliberate, too forced, or too casual, but still revealing a hint of desire.
After this message was sent, the screen fell dark again. This time the waiting time was obviously much longer than before. Although it may have been only a few minutes longer, it seemed like centuries had passed in my anxious heart. Just as I held the phone in my hand and began to look up at the ceiling, the phone suddenly vibrated again.
I quickly raised it again and sighed. The message on it read, "But I already have an appointment with Teacher Xie Kai on Saturday. I have to go to his house to take Chinese reading comprehension lessons."
I put my phone down, feeling a sudden jolt of despair, like a weight had finally fallen from my chest, only to hit my feet. A wave of loss washed over me, and I couldn't help but pull the covers over my head.
Just then, my phone vibrated again. I nearly kicked the covers off my head and quickly searched for the phone I had just thrown away. Finally, I found the still-lit screen. The message on it read, "But I've asked Teacher Xie for a day off this week. I can go with you."
"yeah!!"
I was so excited that I couldn't help but sit up and punch the air wildly. My heart was so full of joy that it seemed to explode. I finally succeeded in asking Zirou out alone for the first time!
......
Maybe because this escape room was newly opened not long ago, although it was Saturday, there didn't seem to be many people, so the owner came out to greet us himself.
While introducing the venue, the boss led us to the locker room.
"Well... to give everyone an immersive experience, we need to change costumes according to the scene. Since many scenes are closed, we only have these few types of costumes left. Please take your pick. You can rest assured that the costumes we use here are the best. The crew will also use these."
When I saw the dress-up segment, I thought Zirou would resist, but unexpectedly her eyes lit up and she went straight into a themed dressing room.
As expected, I underestimated women's nature.
There were not many clothes to change in the boys' locker room, and I was too lazy to change, so I went to the waiting area. But I didn't expect that Zirou would make my eyes light up.
Zirou didn't change into her usual outfit, opting for a JK uniform that exuded the quiet elegance of a high school girl. She wore a sweater over a shirt, giving her a more academic vibe. The JK skirt she wore was even shorter than usual, revealing her snow-white thighs, which looked as if they had lost their color. Her skin, whiter than snow, made her look particularly youthful.
With white stockings on her calves, she transformed into a pure and lovely girl. However, Zirou was not very used to this short skirt and kept trying to cover it with her hands.
After changing our clothes, we followed the boss inside. Because part of this secret room was decorated in the style of an abandoned factory, it looked a bit eerie.
"Are you... a little scared?"
I felt that Zirou, who was hiding behind me, seemed to be trembling slightly, but she didn't make any sound. I lowered my head and glanced at her. Zirou, who was usually very pretty, now looked a little pale, but she still raised her head to look at me and smiled lightly, "It's okay, I'm not afraid when you are here."
"Our escape room isn't a traditional haunted house or a test of intelligence. Instead, it features a variety of realistic scenarios, such as simulated classrooms and libraries, to satisfy your sense of school adventure. There's also a simulated medical room and diagnostic equipment, a research institute with various research equipment, and a cabin escape scene simulating a plane crash... Because many of these scenarios are very physically demanding, we'll provide food and supplies along the way. We hope everyone enjoys their day."
The boss continued to walk ahead, guiding us and explaining the rules of the game. After we walked through a long corridor, he suddenly leaned against a revolving door on the wall and disappeared.
This scene scared us. I felt Zirou behind me leaning closer to me. Her sweater almost rubbed against me, making my back feel itchy.
Thinking that the literary goddess who usually keeps strangers away at school is leaning timidly behind him, a sense of pride as a boy arises in my heart.
After the boss disappeared, Zirou and I were the only ones left walking forward in the long corridor.
Not long after we walked, we saw an LED sign light up in the corridor, which read "First Level Challenge"
When the door to the challenge opened, there was no complicated-looking mechanism. Instead, there was a gate between it and the door to the next level that was unlikely to be opened by force.
We went in and found it was a large room.
We saw four swings in front of us and a horizontal bar in the distance about 3 meters above us, with a few things that looked like keys on it. We were all very confused.
A cold announcement came from above the room.
"The first level is a big challenge for physical strength and balance."
"There are four keys on the beam in the distance. Two of you must stand on the swing. The mechanism will gradually swing to the highest point. Stretch out one hand and grab the key. Only when you have all four keys can you open the door to the next level."
I stepped forward to observe the swing, which was suspended by a heavy rope, but couldn't figure out what it was. I guess I had to do as I was told. I've always been afraid of heights, and my legs were already a little weak, but seeing Zirou staring at me, I had no choice but to bite the bullet and be the first to stand on it. Zirou followed suit.
As the mechanism pushed harder and harder, we were both swung up, and the arc became higher and higher.
Although my legs were also weak, my eyes were still on Zirou, who was even more timid than me. Zirou could hardly stand still, and she was half-crouching on the swing. But when she swung to the highest point, she bravely reached out and took the key from the beam.
After we picked up the key, we quickly threw it back to the ground and continued to hold the ropes on both sides of the swing with our hands. Unexpectedly, an accident happened - Zirou's swing board broke in the middle. Zirou, who was already unstable, screamed and couldn't hold the rope at all. She was thrown into a pool full of sponges and soft balls in the distance.
When I saw Zirou being thrown out, I didn't care about my own safety and let go of the hands holding the double ropes. I was also thrown into the pool where Zirou was. Fortunately, the pool was padded with soft materials. Except for the moment when I was thrown out, my whole body felt weak, and I didn't feel anything when I fell into the pool.
I stretched out my hand to Zirou, who was at an arm's length away. Zirou held my hand tightly. Almost at that moment, a gate under the entire pool seemed to be opened. Zirou screamed again, and the two of us, holding hands, fell into a room on another floor with the soft cushions in the pool.
I took the opportunity to hug Zirou tightly, and we both rolled into another pool on the next level. I quickly looked up, only to find that the gate we fell from was slowly closing again.