Time is accelerating.
Outside the window, which was mostly boarded up and only allowed a few slivers of light to pass through, the light was changing rapidly.
The originally bright room was growing dimmer by the second.
A damp, foul odor, like that of rotting wood, began to spread through the air.
And the time on the wall clock, taken from the hallway, was now continuously advancing—moving, moving, gradually approaching six o'clock, crossing seven, reaching eight, and slowly nearing the nine o'clock position.
Gao Hai collapsed to the floor.
Bzzzz—
A piercing sound rang in his head, and everything around him blurred as if in a dizzy spell.
He thought he could see something.
He saw the young Black man, the one who had seemed perfectly normal when they parted ways, now collapsed on the floor. His eyes were vacant, his face covered in blood, as he mechanically grabbed the hour hand of the wall clock and pushed it forward, bit by bit.
And beside this man, Lao Guo stood expressionless, holding what looked like a human head in his hand, simply watching it all unfold.
Click—
Click—clack-clack—
Cracks large and small gradually spread across the clock in the young Black man's hands.
And his own body began to split open with similar marks, seeping even more blood.
Finally, the clock hand could not be moved another inch.
And the young Black man lying on the floor was now nothing more than a puddle of festering flesh, his original form completely unrecognizable.
"So turning the hands brings a curse? Clockwise seems to inflict more damage than counter-clockwise."
"And even with force, you can only move it close to 9 o'clock. It seems that time cannot be exceeded."
"Good, that gives me a rough idea of this thing's limitations and effects. Now, the problem is how to find 109."
Lao Guo was muttering to himself.
His voice was very soft, kept low, as if deliberately trying to avoid being discovered by someone.
But at that moment, Gao Hai could still clearly hear what he was saying.
109?
Why did he want to find 109?
Was there something special about that room?
Bzzzz—
The piercing, dizzying sound intensified.
The scene before his eyes distorted and gradually blurred into nothingness.
Gao Hai had thought he would either regain consciousness, die, or face some even more tragic fate.
But instead, an intense pain shot through his left hand, so excruciating it felt as if someone were sawing his hand with a dull blade, and had even gotten about halfway through—the kind of searing pain of flesh and bone slowly being separated.
He wanted to scream.
But he found that, aside from his left hand, he couldn't feel anything else.
It was as if the rest of his body had disappeared.
Only his left hand, which somehow still existed, transmitted the agonizing pain.
Bzzzz—
The piercing sound rang out again, only to abruptly diminish.
Then, he heard a voice once more.
[I am Xusheng…]
It was a distorted human voice thick with static, like a faulty tape playing on an old projector.
[Things have finally come to this…]
[I knew there would always be someone unwilling to accept the status quo, who would try to change things, even resorting to irrational actions…]
[I did my best. I organized 18 survivors. I led everyone to explore every room except 304, leaving behind supplies and rule sheets, doing everything I could to help all those trapped here with no escape.]
[At our peak, we once reached 26 people, nearly filling every room.]
[But in the end, destruction is always easier than construction. The actions of just one person, with only a few followers, caused all our efforts to collapse and return to square one. No, we can't even return to square one. The situation here will only get worse from now on; it can never get better.]
[I have a clear conscience about this. I did my best. Perhaps I wasn't ruthless enough, unable to be decisive and kill when necessary, but I never harmed a single person. From the moment I was trapped here until now, everything I've done has been to save, to help. I chose this path, I saw it through to the end, so even in death, I can rest in peace.]
Was he reciting his last words?
The voice was so calm, as calm as two acquaintances bumping into each other on a stroll under the afternoon sun and casually exchanging greetings.
[But for the sake of any who might come after, I must leave something behind.]
[In the end, I saw a part of the truth and came into contact with something that should not be touched. Before my existence fades, I have changed the layout of every room.]
[Lock the main door, close the living room door, wear earplugs, and if needed, a mask to prevent the sound of snoring from spreading. This way, you can pass the night safely, provided you stay in the room you first woke up in. Otherwise, you'll have to rely on luck.]
[The fact that you can hear these words I've left behind proves you have touched the wall clock, and that you possess a sufficiently strong spirit. Perhaps you can accomplish something—if for no other reason than to save your own life.]
[Go to 206. Go down through the crack in the floor of 206. That is the only normal way to reach the 1st floor. Do not take the stairs; they all lead only to the 3rd floor.]
[Room 109 contains all the records. Find 109, and you will understand what happened here.]
[After that, the choice of what to do will be up to you alone.]
The final words seemed to be whispered right next to his ear.
Gao Hai finally opened his eyes.
The time on the clock had already reached 8:50.
The sky outside was completely dark. The living room was pitch-black, illuminated only by the faint glow of a lighter in Kaguya's hand.
And in that faint light, Gao Hai saw Maki crouching on the floor, clutching her forehead. Stretching out from the darkness around her were shadowy, indistinct arms, as if trying to drag the girl away.
"Hey—"
The chaotic voices in his mind had not yet completely subsided.
His still somewhat stiff body had now regained its mobility.
After hesitating for less than a second between the options of standing by and offering help, Gao Hai, being closer, reached out towards Maki.
He reached for the backpack she was wearing, the one containing the two wall clocks.
Maki, who for some reason seemed to have slipped into a state of semi-consciousness, did not react, allowing Gao Hai to unstrap the backpack from her.
Without a moment's hesitation, Gao Hai turned and threw the backpack towards Kaguya, who was not far away.
I'm sorry for not choosing to save you, but if Maki's current state is caused by the power of a horror story, she's probably a lost cause already. In comparison, the clocks that can turn back time are the most crucial lifeline. This item must be preserved!
In the next moment, Gao Hai felt an icy touch.
Those indistinct arms had seized him as well.
"Quick—"
Before he could get out the words "Turn the clock," Gao Hai, along with Maki, was dragged into the pitch-black floor.
Just before his vision was consumed by darkness, he seemed to hear the faint sound of a child's laughter.
Thump!
With another dull thud, Gao Hai fell straight onto the ground. Then, Maki Shijo's small body slammed sideways onto his stomach.
That exquisite agony of feeling like all his organs were about to be squeezed out of his mouth was, Gao Hai could only say, truly eye-opening.
"Ho...ly crap... what the hell is going on..."
He helped Maki sit up.
This was no time to appreciate the soft fragrance of a girl in his arms.
Gao Hai looked around and saw a cute table lamp lit on a small table, in a room that was arranged quite cozily.
This was not Room 208 from before.
Although the size and structure were similar, this room was clearly not the same one.
Gao Hai stood up and gave the room a quick scan. It looked like a woman's living space. Despite being in a rundown place like Shirakawa Apartments, with visible signs of grimy decay on the walls, floor, and ceiling, the owner had made a great effort by putting up many cute stickers. She had also furnished it with various tables and chairs, and the bed was a fairytale style of mixed pink and sky blue, as if she was trying her best to give the place a sense of ceremony.
Unlike the previous rooms, the window in this living room was covered directly with translucent gauze, which let in a faint bit of light, though now that night had fallen, no light could be seen.
"Ughh... my head hurts so much. It feels like that time I went to India with my family and got food poisoning from something I ate. I was stuck in the hospital for a whole week, so weak I couldn't even stand up and walk... Ugh... what on earth is happening? I... huh? Where is this?"
With a pained whimper, Maki Shijo also sat up from the floor and looked around in confusion.
"No matter where this is, it's probably no good place. We'll have to count on Miss Shinomiya now," Gao Hai said with a dry laugh, a faint unease in his heart. He scanned their surroundings more carefully and relaxed slightly only after seeing no immediate abnormalities.
That Lao Guo, whatever he was plotting, had already forced the young Black man to turn the clock, so he no longer had a second piece of cannon fodder to do his bidding. And Kaguya's side still had four people. Any one of them could turn the clock back, resetting everything to the beginning. At that point, with their memories intact, they could respond better. He believed that even the two deadweights, Sun Dajun and Miwa Maeda, would now have some grasp of the situation.
Gao Hai believed Kaguya Shinomiya was a rational person.
If it were her, she would have immediately taken out the wall clock and acted.
So he just stood there and waited.
Understanding Gao Hai's intention, Maki Shijo nodded slightly and also waited quietly, waiting for the moment of rewind.
One-one-thousand, two-one-thousand, three-one-thousand...
Gao Hai silently counted the seconds, counting the agonizing passage of time.
Fifty-nine-ninety-eight, fifty-nine-ninety-nine, sixteen hundred...
But even after he had counted a full 10 minutes, 600 seconds, the rewind still had not come.
No way, right?
He desperately wanted to ask.
The rewind didn't happen.
Even when he counted up to 20 minutes, it still didn't happen.
There were no chaotic noises, no abnormal sights.
This dim little room, lit only by the small table lamp, just maintained its quiet atmosphere, continuing on, unchanging. Nothing happened, as it enveloped Gao Hai and Maki Shijo within.
________________________________________
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