The Hand of Confession – Chapter 121

Volume 5: Days of Applying Makeup to Corpses

Shadow in the Mist

Don’t panic, it’s not a big deal.

The newcomer had been found, and no one planned to linger in this obviously abnormal grove.

The woman in the red dress had the surname Gong, calling herself Gong Lian [宮戀 | Gōng Liàn].

Xiaoqiao seemed to have found a better target, immediately abandoning her act of being fragile and clinging to Guan Qiwen, turning to chat with Gong Lian instead.

In front of Guan Qiwen, she had been a pitiful, weak, and helpless woman, but before Gong Lian, she established herself as a kind and powerful female figure who had been through multiple instances. She quickly had the newcomer Gong Lian wrapped around her finger, making her divulge everything from her age, address, work, income, to her relationship status.

Shen Maomao realized she had underestimated this woman.

Guan Qiwen, tragically abandoned, could only return to the three-person team.

The two women became close friends in no time, walking hand in hand at the front of the group, chatting as they went, their silver bell-like laughter filling the air. They seemed so comfortable and content that they might have truly mistaken this horror journey for a spring outing.

Lou Jingmo tilted her head to look at Guan Qiwen, saying softly: “You can’t outplay her.”

Guan Qiwen rubbed his nose: “This woman’s skill at turning face is quite impressive.”

The six people returned along their original path. Shen Maomao had thought the game would frighten them with a ghost wall situation to get them lost, but unexpectedly, this instance didn’t follow the usual pattern. They returned safely to the building, not encountering even a single wild animal along the way.

When they arrived, the people who had taken the main road hadn’t returned yet. Gong Lian’s face turned pale for a moment when she saw the building, and when she clearly saw the sign above the gate, her face grew even paler.

Xiaoqiao patted her hand: “Don’t be afraid, don’t show weakness at the start of the game.”

Shen Maomao continued squinting through the iron railings at the sign, but the noon sunlight was blinding, with the golden metal plaque glinting bulingbuling [擬聲詞 | nǐshēngcí | onomatopoeia for sparkling]. After staring for a while, she nearly blinded her already poor eyes, so she quickly withdrew her gaze, but couldn’t contain her curiosity as she tugged at Lou Jingmo’s arm: “Lou jie, what does it say up there?”

Lou Jingmo raised an eyebrow: “Are you blind?”

Shen Maomao nodded repeatedly, almost crying: “When I came in, I kept my eyes open trying to see the principle behind players entering the game world, and this is what happened QAQ. Now I can’t tell humans from animals fifty meters away.”

Lou Jingmo: “…Should I say you deserve it, or you deserve it, or you deserve it?”

Shen Maomao: “Ying QAQ.” [嘤 | yīng | cute crying sound]

Lou Jingmo sighed and said: “Close your eyes.”

Shen Maomao reflexively complied.

After closing her eyes, all her senses seemed to be amplified several times over. She felt a slightly cool hand take hold of hers, and Lou Jingmo said with a sigh near her ear: “From now on, keep your eyes closed to rest, I’ll temporarily be your eyes.”

As she spoke, a warm breath fell on her ear, making her slightly uncomfortable, though she restrained herself from pulling away.

“So what’s on the plaque?” She persisted in asking, trying to divert her attention.

“Well, on it…” Lou Jingmo gave a light laugh, with a kind of mischievous satisfaction, “it says…”

“Help!”

“There’s a monster on the road!”

“Ahhhhh!!!”

Before she could finish speaking, a chorus of ghost-wailing and wolf-howling screams came from the distance, so loud it even drowned out Lou Jingmo’s voice.

“What happened?!” Shen Maomao no longer cared what was written on the plaque, as something more intriguing seemed to be happening right in front of her.

“Dong—”

“Dong—”

Massive footsteps echoed from the road, one after another, as endless black mist rolled and spread forward. Within the dense fog, there seemed to be a blur of an enormous shadow slowly advancing with heavy steps, making the ground tremble slightly.

Shen Maomao wanted to open her eyes to see what was happening, but Lou Jingmo covered them with her hand.

“With your level of astigmatism, what could you possibly see clearly? Just keep them closed.”

Though it was clearly for her own good, the words didn’t sound particularly nice.

—Lou Jingmo, such a tsundere!

Shen Maomao thought this while completely surrounded by Lou jie’s scent.

The people at the end of the road ran towards the building with ghost-wailing screams, but the huge shadow in the black mist suddenly stopped. The ground ceased trembling, and Shen Maomao’s eyelashes fluttered twice, brushing against Lou Jingmo’s palm as she anxiously asked: “What’s happening?”

Lou Jingmo: “It’s here.”

What’s here?

“Is everyone present?” The gate behind them was pulled open from the inside, and a man in a black suit stood in the courtyard, saying expressionlessly, “On behalf of all staff at our establishment, I welcome you all.”

Shen Maomao: What establishment? Restaurant? Bar? Hotel?

The man continued: “As previously agreed, the salary is 1,400 per day, paid daily, but we don’t accept employees with heart disease or high blood pressure. Those with such conditions should leave now.”

Hearing this, everyone turned to look at the mist behind them, where that shadow stood silently in the black fog, silently watching the ants on the ground.

Who the f*ck would dare leave?!

Shen Maomao clung to Lou Jingmo’s hand, desperately wanting to see what was happening: “Lou jie! What kind of job pays this much? Do you require educational qualifications? Is 1,400 per day for real? You’re not going to make us commit arson and murder, right?”

The man coldly replied: “It’s true. You’ll start work today, and you’ll receive your pay at this time tomorrow. We’re a legitimate establishment, we don’t engage in illegal activities.”

“Holy sh*t?” Shen Maomao said in disbelief, “That’s so generous?”

At 1,400 per person per day, with at least 11 people in this game, that meant paying out 15,000 in wages daily. Even if they owned a mine, they couldn’t afford such wasteful spending.

When things seem too good to be true, there must be a catch. Great benefits might come with equally great risks, making Shen Maomao feel uneasy.

The man stopped responding to her and turned to the others: “Does anyone want to leave?”

No one spoke for a long while.

So the man assumed they agreed to the rules and turned to lead them into the building: “Since none of you want to leave, please follow me. I’ll show you to your accommodations first.”

He walked quickly, completely unconcerned whether people might fall behind. The players hesitated for a moment before hurriedly following.

Lou Jingmo released her hand from covering Shen Maomao’s eyes and rubbed her sore wrist: “Open your eyes now, it’s inconvenient to walk. Try to keep them closed as much as possible afterward.”

Shen Maomao quickly nodded and followed the order to open her eyes. After her vision cleared from its blur, she finally made out what was written on the vertical plaque—First Funeral Home.

Shen Maomao: “Holy sh*t!”

Lou Jingmo grabbed her hand: “Stop saying ‘holy sh*t’ and hurry up.”

A funeral home was too intense!

The two fell to the back of the group, with Shen Maomao looking around left and right, her eyes full of curiosity.

To be honest, this was her first time visiting a funeral home.

The group was led by the man through the funeral home’s lobby, up the stairs, and finally to the innermost rooms on the second floor.

Shen Maomao looked around and noticed there were thirteen players in this instance.

As if seeing through her thoughts, Lou Jingmo said leisurely: “Thirteen isn’t exactly a lucky number [十三 | shísān | considered unlucky in Chinese culture as it sounds similar to ‘sure death’ in some dialects].”

Sure enough, the man said in the next moment: “Each room can accommodate a maximum of two people. Choose your rooms first, then wait for me in the lobby downstairs.”

Shen Maomao’s heart skipped a beat as she hurriedly asked: “What if three of us don’t mind it being cramped?”

A strange smile crept across the man’s pale cheeks, his eyes gleaming with an odd light: “You can try.”

Shen Maomao: “No, no, I’m scared, never mind.”

After such a warning, who would dare court death?

Seeing she didn’t persist with her suggestion, the man’s face showed clear disappointment before returning to its expressionless state: “Does anyone else have questions?”

Xiaoqiao asked: “Excuse me… where are the keys?”

The man replied: “There are no keys.”

“What?! No keys?”

“This won’t do, we won’t even know if someone kills us in the middle of the night!”

“Can’t you provide locks? It’s not safe for us girls to stay together without locks…”

Before Xiaoqiao could say anything, several other players started complaining. The man maintained his expressionless face and said unhurriedly: “What’s the rush? I haven’t finished. There are no locks, but you can bolt the doors from inside, and they absolutely cannot be opened from outside.”

He looked around at everyone present: “Any other questions? If not, I’ll head downstairs.”

The players looked at each other and shook their heads.

After the man’s figure disappeared from the second floor, Xiaoqiao immediately pulled the newcomer Gong Lian toward the room she had already picked out and rushed inside.

Seeing this, Lou Jingmo didn’t hesitate either. She pushed Shen Maomao and said quickly: “Go to 218, stay with Xiaokong!”

“Okay!” Shen Maomao hurriedly dragged the still-confused Xiaokong into the room Lou Jingmo mentioned, then closed the door behind them.

Xiaokong looked completely bewildered: “Y-y-y-you… why are you grabbing me?”

Shen Maomao: “…” Oh right, she had grabbed him just because Lou Jingmo said so, but he might not want to room with her.

“Um…” she finally thought to ask, “Do you have a teammate?”

Xiaokong: “Well… no.”

Shen Maomao clapped her hands: “Then it’s perfect! Unless you want to room with those selfish ghosts?!”

Xiaokong struggled for a second before his attitude became firm: “No, you’re a girl, and I’m a grown man. I can’t stay with you…”

Shen Maomao: “If I’m not afraid of you, what are you afraid of?”

Xiaokong: “Still no, I… sigh, it’s just not appropriate.”

Shen Maomao: “Oh, then go ahead, find another empty room, leave me here alone…”

Before she could finish her act of playing pitiful, Xiaokong pulled open the door bolt and walked straight out, showing no regard for her, Shen-whatever-her-name-was.

Shen Maomao: “…” What the hell? What just happened?

Lou Jingmo poked her head out from the room diagonally opposite: “What’s wrong?”

Shen Maomao: “I’m not sure either, but I think I just got rejected…”

Lou Jingmo: “Don’t panic, it’s not a big deal.”

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