The countdown hit zero.
00:00
No explosion. No scream. Just a soft click.
A single door appeared at the far end of the warped hall—tall, metallic, humming faintly. It hadn't been there before. It pulsed like a heartbeat.
The strangers turned toward it, unfazed. The students hesitated.
They found themselves outside the strange
Lu Yiming stepped forward first, followed by Shen Yi. Lin Yi clung to Shen Yi's sleeve. Xing Xing glanced around, counting heads. l
"Not everyone's here," she whispered.
She was right. Some beds were empty. Some classmates—gone. But the strangers remained. Ji Shuo and his group were still present, tense but silent.
The door opened.
Beyond it lay a corridor—white-tiled, sterile, lined with flickering lights. The air smelled of antiseptic and something older. A sign hung crookedly above the entrance:
Welcome to Saint Livia Psychiatric Research Facility
They stepped through.
The hallway widened into a reception area. Desks. Wheelchairs. A cracked clock ticking backwards. And standing in the center, waiting, was a man in a pristine white coat.
"Ah," he said, smiling. "You've arrived."
He looked too clean. Too symmetrical. His eyes didn't blink in sync.
"I am Dean Armand," he said. "Welcome, researchers. We've been expecting you."
Ji Shuo scoffed. "Researchers?"
The dean's smile didn't falter. "Yes. You've been selected to observe and decode the behavioural anomalies within this facility. You'll be staying for one week."
Lin Yi whispered, "We didn't sign up for this…"
Dean Armand turned. "Your rooms are ready."
They followed him down another corridor. Doors lined the walls—each marked with a number.
Inside, the rooms were simple. Beds. Desks. A single lightbulb. And on each bed, a leather-bound book.
The dean gestured. "Your rulebooks."
Shen Yi picked his up. It was cold to the touch.
"These contain the rules of this facility," the dean said. "Everyone must follow them. Or…"
He paused.
Xing Xing flipped through hers. The pages were filled with a strange poem:
[When glass repeats the name you bear,
Speak not—its echo is a snare.
If Room Thirteen begins to grin,
Sit not within its dusk-born skin.
When corridors begin to hum,
Join not the tune, lest silence come.
If dinner smiles with teeth too wide,
Let hunger be your safer guide.
When clocks unwind their ticking thread,
Leave fast, or loop until you're dead.
And should one weep without a sound,
Touch not the grief that circles round.
For every rule that breaks or bends,
A door will open. Not all end.]
And the rest was filled with strange symbols which she couldn't read.
Lu Yiming frowned. "What happens if we break them?"
The dean's smile widened unnaturally. "Each broken rule summons a different entity. They are… corrective measures."
Ji Shuo muttered, "This is insane."
The silver-haired stranger leaned against the wall, amused. "Welcome to your first real realm. Hope you're good at puzzles."
Dean Armand bowed slightly. "Dinner will be served at 7."
He turned and walked away, footsteps echoing too long.
Shen Yi sat on the edge of his bed, flipping through the rulebook. The symbols pulsed faintly.
Lu Yiming glanced at him.
Shen Yi was too focused to notice.