The Creatures That We Are

Gao Yang changed his mind because he saw the address of the escape room, 26th floor of the Xiangxi Building in Feiyang District, which was the location the mysterious woman had been found to go past when leaving, as Chen Ying had told him.

Could it really be a mere coincidence?

With level 4 Lucky, Gao Yang had come to learn the magical effect of the Talent, and he valued and paid attention to coincidences more than others.

Although the woman wouldn’t be there, perhaps he would get lucky and find some clues.

The six of them hailed two taxis to get to their destination. Gao Yang, Can, and Mi Shi shared a car, while Qiu Qiu, Zhou Jing, and Lin Dajian rode in the other car.

Mi Shi took the passenger seat, and Gao Yang and Can stayed in the backseat.

Can leaned toward Gao Yang and typed a line with her phone, showing it to Gao Yang discreetly.

Can: I remember now, Captain, isn’t the escape room located where Sister Chen Ying talked about? Are we going to investigate? Is it going to be dangerous?

Gao Yang took out his phone to type a response and showed it to Can.

Gao Yang: Don’t worry. Just play like regular patrons and investigate along the way.

Can nodded and typed ‘understood’, handing her phone to Gao Yang.

Gao Yang looked down and paused for a second, expression awkward.

Confused, Can quickly took her phone back and only realized then that Zhou Jing had just sent a message to her. Gao Yang happened to see the notification.

Zhou Jing: Seize the opportunity, Orange. Let’s hope for losing your v-card tonight hahaha.

Can blushed from her face all the way to the back of her ears. She wanted nothing more but to find a place to hide. She shouldn’t be in the car, but under it.

...

The next twenty minutes were the most awkward, difficult twenty minutes in Can’s life.

Finally, they arrived at their destination and got out of the car by the road.

The lower floors of the Xiangxi Building were used for business. Facing a crossroad that saw great traffic, there was a shopping mall, as well as various restaurants and bars.

The six of them entered a narrow alleyway on the left and made it to the back of the Xiangxi Building, riding an elevator to the higher residential floors.

Although the upper floors were supposed to be for residential purposes, most of the flats had been turned into recreational establishments, including arcades, tabletop bars, roleplay murder mysteries, and escape rooms.

They reached the 26th floor. It was an escape room place named Silent Town.

The front desk was manned by a voluptuous woman dressed in white nurse uniform with the collars unbuttoned, the fabric covered in dust and oxidized blood stains. On her face was a faceless mask, and she was holding a plastic scalpel. It was clear that she was cosplaying as a character from some horror game.

“Holy...” Lin Dajian, the resident console gamer among the group, was getting excited. “Who...who’s gonna be able to resist this?”

“Have you made a reservation?” The receptionist had a sweet voice and a friendly attitude, the contrast with her appearance stark.

“Yes, we booked the No.9 Hospital, for a shared group,” said Zhou Jing.

“Oh, No.9 Hospital, a medium-sized escape room for 9 players. The runtime is 1 hour. Two of the players who will be joining you are already here. There’s only one spot left to fill. Here, sign the agreement first.”

Qiu Qiu generously paid for everyone. The receptionist handed them six risk agreements to be signed.

Gao Yang browsed it quickly. Most of the stipulations were commonplace declarations and rules; at the bottom, there was a black boldfaced line:

No humiliating, beating, scaring, pranking, or harassing the NPCs!

Gao Yang sucked in a breath. It seemed that it was quite a common occurrence.

After signing the risk agreements, the six of them walked into the resting area inside. The walls were plastered with posters of horror films and games. The dim light created a somewhat scary atmosphere.

Gao Yang looked around. Sitting on the double sofa in the corner were two people. They must be the ones who were going to play the escape room with them.

One was a young girl who appeared to be a college student, and the other an older man who was 55 or older.

The college girl was average through and through. Her longer hairstyle was a safe choice, and while her facial features were gentle, they were too average to leave an impression. She was also dressed unassumingly in a regular blue jumper, a pair of jeans that was neither tight nor loose, and a pair of gray sneakers.

If she was walking on a street packed with people, she wouldn’t need a Talent to be invisible.

The older man beside her, on the other hand, stood out a lot more.

He was wearing a white oxford shirt with a tie, a pair of fitted suit pants, and a light brown double-breasted vest, paired with a fashionable pair of oxfords, making him look like the perfect embodiment of a gentleman.

His thick blond hair was combed to the back, revealing a smooth forehead. His eyes were a deep ocean blue, and his blond goatee was trimmed neatly.

While there were wrinkles on his face, he didn’t look old, but charming like a bottle of finely aged wine.

One would assume he was a well-studied, cultured, and friendly college professor at first glance.

Gao Yang and the other five sat down on the main sofa in the center of the room.

Zhou Jing and Qiu Qiu acted all lovey-dovey and flirted like they didn’t exist, while Gao Yang, Can, Lin Dajian, and Mi Shi sat on the side like the world’s largest third wheel. They started talking aimlessly in order to lessen the awkwardness.

“What do you think their relationship is, Little Gao?” Lin Dajian nudged at Gao Yang’s shoulder with his elbow, speaking in a low voice.

Gao Yang thought about it.

The pair was strange. Neither the girl nor the old gentleman seemed like the type to come to an escape room.

“Probably father and daughter,” Mi Shi said softly. It turned out that he had been eyeing the pair, too.

“They can’t be.” Lin Daijian smiled strangely. “They don’t dress like that, and they don’t look similar.”

“Can they be...” Can had a bold guess, but she was too embarrassed to say it.

“Lovers,” Gao Yang said in a voice that only the group could hear.

“For real?” Mi Shi felt like the floor was shattering underneath his feet. Although the man looked well put together and quite charming, there was a large age gap between the two.

“The rings,” Gao Yang added.

The three looked over and indeed, both of them were wearing a platinum ring on their left middle finger, which must be a pair for a couple.

The man and girl noticed the attention. The girl lowered her head and started using her phone, while the man nodded at them easily, unfazed, shooting them a friendly smile.

That left the four feeling guilty.

“Um, hey, why don’t we play HOK?” Lin Dajian quickly changed the subject to smooth the atmosphere.

“Yeah, yeah,” Can immediately agreed.

Just then, a young woman appeared at the front desk.

“I’m late. I’ve made a reservation for No.9 Hospital,” she said.

The receptionist responded, “The others are all here. With you here, the group is good to go.”

“I’m sorry. I got delayed.”

The last player to join the group entered the waiting room.

She was dressed in a navy blue checkered dress and a beige cardigan, wearing light makeup. Her brown airy curls were tied loosely into braids, a few strands breaking free by her cheeks mischievously. Her slightly down-curved eyes and lips made her delicate face look cynical.

“Seven...Gao Yang?” Vermilion Bird was surprised.

“Sister Xia.” Gao Yang smiled with a hint of resignation. “What a coincidence.”

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