Lucas didn't even notice the changes on his live broadcast panel.
Because at that moment, a new notification flashed before his eyes, glowing with urgent red letters:
> [Main Mission Activated: Survive in the teaching building for five hours.]
Five hours?
Lucas narrowed his eyes and quickly re-evaluated his surroundings. From earlier, he knew most classrooms were marked "Moderate Danger."
Only the corridor where he currently stood had been marked as "Low-Level Danger."
So, logically...
Wouldn't staying here be the safest strategy?
Lucas adjusted his grip on the kitchen knife, shifting it to his dominant hand. His eyes remained alert.
Then suddenly, at the far end of the corridor, something shifted.
A thick mist began creeping in, slowly swallowing the far edge of the hallway.
Lucas blinked. At first, he thought it was a trick of his eyes. He even rubbed them.
But no—the mist was real, and it was thickening with every second.
A new warning screen flashed in his view:
> [Danger Alert: The Fog of Changming High School – High-Level Danger]
So much for hiding in the corridor for five hours.
Lucas's instincts kicked in immediately.
"It's not going to be that easy," he muttered, turning swiftly.
He darted in the opposite direction, his shoes squeaking faintly against the dusty floor.
> [First Floor Corridor: Low-Level Danger]
That rating would likely change the moment the fog fully entered this space. Time was running out.
As Lucas moved quickly down the hallway, the fog crept forward, silent as death, steadily swallowing the corridor behind him.
---
Meanwhile, in the game's live broadcast center, the panic was visible.
Multiple player screens flickered and turned black.
> [Player Lisa Thompson was swallowed by the fog. Mental energy dropped to 0. Assimilated into a copy creature.]
[Player David Williams encountered a vengeful spirit in Class 1A. Mental value dropped to 0. Assimilated into a copy creature.]
[Player Noah Reed was swallowed by the fog…]
One after another, new players were being wiped out within minutes.
The mist was like a silent executioner.
In less than five minutes, the majority of newcomers were eliminated.
Among all the blackout screens, only a handful remained lit—and Lucas's broadcast was one of them.
More and more viewers flooded into his stream.
---
> 🗨️ "This fog is brutal. No way a new player could react in time unless they're damn sharp."
🗨️ "Why is his mental energy still at 100? He's in a death zone!"
🗨️ "This guy's calm is honestly disturbing. Not even flinching?"
🗨️ "As long as he doesn't randomly open classroom doors, he might survive."
🗨️ "Mark my words—this one's a sleeper hit. A total dark horse."
> 🗨️ "Who said being in a psychiatric ward means you're mad? Could be depression. Doesn't mean he's irrational."
The audience was split between admiration and unease.
One thing was certain: Lucas didn't behave like any ordinary rookie.
---
Back inside the haunted school building, Lucas had reached the staircase.
The mist was still limited to the first floor, crawling slowly but inevitably. It would take time to spread to the second floor.
Lucas, instead of rushing upward blindly, paused.
His sharp eyes fell on the restroom doors at the corner of the second floor.
The risk assessment overlay lit up one after another:
> [Women's Restroom – Low-Level Danger]
[Men's Restroom – Moderate Danger]
[Second Floor Corridor – Low-Level Danger]
[Trash Can at the Corner – Moderate Danger]
[Class 1, Grade 2 – Moderate Danger]
[Class 2, Grade 2 – Moderate Danger]
Again, a pattern.
Every closed-door area seemed to be at least moderately dangerous—except the women's restroom.
An odd detail caught Lucas's attention: the word "Problem" was slapped on the women's bathroom door with what looked like red ink—or possibly blood.
"Why is the women's room safer than the men's?"
After mentally calculating the fog's spread rate, Lucas gripped his kitchen knife and made his decision.
He walked briskly toward the women's restroom.
---
> 🗨️ "He's really going into the women's room? LOL!"
🗨️ "Ruthless. Respect."
🗨️ User #22637 sent 1,000 🌸 'flowers'
---
As Lucas pushed open the door, the stale, coppery smell of blood hit him like a wave.
At that moment, a blood-red game notification appeared in front of him:
> [Hidden Quest Triggered: Changming Ghost School – Women's Restroom]
The restroom floor was tiled in grimy beige.
A steady stream of bloody water trickled from a broken faucet, pooling across the floor.
Floating in the crimson water was long black hair, snaking across the tiles like living tentacles.
Lucas's eyes followed the strands.
They led upward...
There, perched atop a toilet tank in the furthest stall, was a figure.
A female ghost, face eerily beautiful but lifeless, dressed in a tattered, blood-streaked school uniform.
Her limbs were thin and elongated. Her eyes, barely open, stared into the void.
> [Hidden Quest: Stroke the female ghost's hair for 5 minutes.]
[Reward: Unknown]
[Warning: Hidden quests are not mandatory. If you die during the hidden quest, you die permanently.]
[Note: Hidden quests can only be completed by the player who triggered them.]
Lucas squinted.
Touch her hair for five minutes?
He let out a breath.
That was like asking someone to pet a sleeping tiger.
It would take five minutes—more than enough time for her to tear him apart if something went wrong.
Still...
A new danger notification appeared:
> [Haunting Female Ghost – Danger Level: Low]
Lucas froze.
Then, very slowly, the corner of his mouth lifted into a smirk—his first smile since entering the game.
---
Back in the broadcast center, more live screens were going dark.
Lucas's screen remained lit—now capturing something that stunned even seasoned viewers.
> "No way... He triggered a hidden quest?!"
"That place had hidden content this whole time?!"
"It's a starter dungeon—who would think it has secret events?"
"Damn. Hidden quests are deathtraps. Poor guy just walked into one."
"And with a Luck stat of 0 too... the irony."
Viewers watched in silent tension.
Some began to express regret.
> 🗨️ "He had so much potential. Hate to see it wasted on a hidden mission."
Lucas's viewer count climbed—now over 300.
> 🗨️ YayaLooksForward sent 1,000 🌸 'flowers'
🗨️ The Five Tigers Guild sent a ✈️ 'plane'
Then someone noticed something else:
> "Wait... look at his stats!"
"What now?"
"His Spirit value... It's still 100?!"
> Everyone: "????"
They all stared.
> Still 100. Not a single point dropped.