Sylas Young hadn't experienced a supernatural scenario before, and her nerves were shot. The moment she saw that ghostly face, her Sanity Level took a nosedive. Even after she'd bolted outside, it continued to drop.
Finally, just as it hit the 30% threshold...
She fainted.
She fell flat on her face mid-sprint, skidding across the ground. With the remaining momentum, her head slammed into a tree. Thankfully, the bulletproof helmet absorbed most of the impact, so her health only dropped by 3%.
Thus, she lay there, knocked out in a thoroughly ungraceful position, head tilted awkwardly, and hips raised, cherry blossom petals drifting onto her body.
But…
There was absolutely no elegance to the scene.
As a player with eight mission worlds under her belt, Sylas had a solid following—especially given her popularity as a food show host in real life. Hundreds were watching her livestream at that moment.
The chat was abuzz with mixed reactions.
[…]
[???]
[Is the camera just stuck here? Is this it? Seriously…]
[Sigh.]
[Feel bad for her teammate.]
[So, passing out happens at 30% Sanity Level?]
[Not really… Sanity is more of a mental state gauge, and not everyone passes out. Some go completely mad even when it hits zero, but don't faint.]
[Passing out is a form of self-preservation; in some ways, it's a blessing.]
[How are we supposed to play like this? Passed out from the get-go?!]
[I'm a fan of Sylas's looks, but wow… she really is kind of… inexperienced.]
[I want to see what's happening inside! Damn it!]
[I'm switching streams. I think her teammate's name was Luo Shu. I'll go look him up.]
Unwittingly, the knocked-out rookie was driving traffic Luo Shu's way.
Meanwhile, Luo Shu stood face-to-face with something terrifying.
A ghost in a business suit, complete with a briefcase, stood before him.
The suited ghost shuffled forward, blood-streaked face hovering close, empty eye sockets boring into Luo Shu with a chilling smile.
"Can you help me find my eyes?" it rasped.
It was speaking Japanese. Yet, through the strange system of Horror Game, Luo Shu understood it clearly, as though it had been translated for him.
This time, Luo Shu wasn't scared; his Sanity Level only spiked by two points.
He knew this ghost likely posed little real threat. It was the beginning of the game; as a level-one novice with no assets, skills, or weapons, there was no way the game would throw a lethal encounter at him so soon.
So, he took a closer look.
In life, this ghost must have been quite refined, but now its skull was smashed in, blood streaming down its face, and its eyes were gone. It looked gruesome.
Suddenly, Luo Shu replied, "Why do you need your eyes? To find your dead wife and daughter?"
His words acted like a trigger.
The ghost's expression twisted in agony. It dropped its briefcase, clutching its head, and wailed.
"Ah… my wife… my daughter… Hahn… you both died so horribly…"
Luo Shu took note of his own health and stamina. Being this close to the ghost, he felt an icy chill creeping over him, slowly draining both stats at a rate of about one point every few seconds.
As the ghost's distress escalated, so did its power. His health began dropping by one point per second, stamina by two points.
Luo Shu quickly backed away.
At the doorway, he could still feel the chill, but his stats stopped depleting. Glancing outside, he saw Sylas lying peacefully on the ground and decided to leave her be.
He stood at the threshold, observing quietly.
After a few moments of anguish, the ghost returned to its usual demeanor, now colder and more menacing.
"Get out! Leave now! Or… join us in death!"
Yet Luo Shu, hearing this threat, did something unexpected. He strode toward the ghost.
The ghost paused, startled. "You… you aren't afraid of dying?"
Luo Shu stepped right through the ghost's semi-transparent, icy form, as if passing through thick, freezing liquid. His health ticked down slightly.
Without turning around, he walked deeper into the mansion. "If you're trying to scare me, it means there's something holding you back. Either you can't kill me, it'd cost you too much to do so, or… you don't want to kill me."
The ghost twisted its face in a fierce snarl.
Luo Shu waved a hand dismissively. "I'll go find your eyes. Just wait."
The ghost looked like it wanted to say something, or perhaps lash out, but it held back with visible restraint. After a final scream of frustration, it vanished down the corridor.
Luo Shu's livestream exploded with excitement.
[So calm, it's eerie.]
[That's a med student for you—cool-headed to the core.]
[No way! Not all med students are like this… this guy's just not normal.]
[Look at his Sanity Level…]
[Barely moved… it even increased slightly!!]
[What's going on? Is this some kind of bug?]
[Sanity reflects mental stability; does that mean he just doesn't feel fear?]
[But if he doesn't feel fear, wouldn't the Sanity Level stay static? Why would it increase?]
[No idea!]
[How'd he guesses about the wife and child?]
[He must've guessed—this is a huge house, not likely to have been occupied by just one person.]
[He noticed the shoes! He's sharp as a tack! Men's, women's, and children's shoes, all covered in dust—dead, all of them!]
[Enough chatter! This mission world is fascinating. Why's the ghost only scaring him instead of attacking?]
The Japanese-style mansion wasn't large, and the corridor soon led to a small living room.
Luo Shu noted that the living room was remarkably tidy, in stark contrast to the dilapidated exterior. It felt jarringly out of place.
Suddenly, a sweet, childlike giggle echoed from somewhere in the room.
"Hee-hee…"
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