Liang Sheng had just sat down when a person suddenly popped out from the window above her head.
“Eek!” Caught off guard, Liang Sheng shot to her feet.
“Oof!”
That grunt came from the staff member dressed as a ghost. As Liang Sheng jumped up, her head collided squarely with the worker’s chin.
Ow… Liang Sheng rubbed her head. Why would a ghost make such a human sound? Oh, right—this was an escape room, and the “ghosts” were just actors.
Having calmed down for a moment, she panicked all over again.
That guy had yelled so loudly. What if she’d hurt him?
Instinctively, Liang Sheng clutched her wallet. If she’d injured him somehow, her wallet was about to take a serious hit.
The staff member was fine, just nursing a sore chin.
He tossed a piece of paper to the floor and ducked back into the window.
This batch of customers was even more aggressive than the last. The ghost actor rubbed his aching jaw.
Seeing that Liang Sheng was unharmed, Mo Qingrou ignored her and walked over. She crouched down and picked up the crumpled paper ball from the ground.
The wrinkled scrap had some black writing on it.
Mo Qingrou unfolded it and immediately recognized it as a clue.
Startled as she was, Liang Sheng had completely forgotten what she’d asked Doctor Mo Qingrou earlier. She clutched her chest, counting her heartbeats.
Mo Qingrou, meanwhile, was absorbed in the clue on the paper and didn’t continue the conversation—or rather, she’d forgotten what she was about to say.
Mo Qingrou cracked this puzzle with effortless ease once more. Liang Sheng simply coasted along in the wake of this poker-faced iceberg doctor, winning without lifting a finger.
Ah, gazing at Mo Qingrou’s back now, Liang Sheng found her so dependable, so imposing, so utterly magnificent.
Meanwhile, Gu Yuqi’s group had already cleared five levels and reached the 13th Layer.
Gu Yuqi was starting to worry about her little junior sister Liang Sheng. It had been clear from the moment they entered the room that Liang Sheng was trembling in fear.
Stuck with that poker-faced doctor Mo Qingrou, she should be okay, right? The doctor didn’t seem the type to get scared, but with her aloof and icy personality, could she really protect Liang Sheng if danger struck?
Lost in her anxious thoughts, Gu Yuqi forgot she was still inside the escape room.
Ni Sihan, for her part, hadn’t caused any more trouble since Gu Yuqi had pushed her aside. She settled in happily as a laid-back spectator, ready to coast to victory.
She had no interest in girls, and she knew nothing about the rivalry between systems. To her, this was all just lighthearted fun.
Among them, Song An’an was the purest of heart. Tears still clung to the corners of her eyes; she just wanted to get out of this escape room as quickly as possible.
But the most dangerous one here was Bai Zhen. She kept scheming ways to stir up trouble between Gu Yuqi and Liang Sheng.
Watching the fearless Gu Yuqi, who had no idea what was on her mind, Bai Zhen felt like she was seeing her younger self. And seeing Gu Yuqi and Liang Sheng together reminded her even more of those days years ago, back when they were students—she and her.
Could Gu Yuqi and Liang Sheng really make it work? Could they withstand the gossip and rumors? Bai Zhen wondered.
She had failed. Could they really succeed?
A smile crept across Bai Zhen’s face. She had just wrapped up filming and had nothing much going on. Why not play a little game?
A test to see if it was true love or just a fleeting impulse.
Though as she bowed her head to glance at her phone—at her chat with Liang Sheng—Bai Zhen admitted she might like the bubbly, adorable girl a bit herself. Still, they weren’t right for each other.
She didn’t want to repeat the same mistakes.
After hacking through obstacles and burning through brain cells, the group finally reached the central room an hour and a half later, having passed the tenth layer. This room wasn’t numbered like the others; it was called the Rendezvous Point.
Ah! That meant they could meet up with Liang Sheng’s group here. Aside from Ni Sihan, the other three girls were thrilled.
They waited left and right, ten minutes ticking by with no sign of Liang Sheng or Ni Sihan. Gu Yuqi even wondered if Liang Sheng had fainted from fright and been rushed to the hospital.
The escape room had a two-hour limit. If Liang Sheng and Mo Qingrou didn’t show in the next twenty minutes, the game would end right there.
Ten more minutes passed. Amid everyone’s anxious stares, the door finally creaked open.
Gu Yuqi rushed forward at once, with Song An’an right on her heels. Bai Zhen, seeing their enthusiasm, followed suit. Ni Sihan, left alone and starting to feel scared, trailed after them reluctantly.
The door swung open to reveal Mo Qingrou’s emotionless face.
Where was Liang Sheng? The girls peered behind her, seeing only endless darkness.
Gu Yuqi’s heart sank. Had her little junior sister really passed out from fear and ended up in the hospital?
Spotting the group, Mo Qingrou reached back and patted the small hand clinging to her.
“Come on out. There’s no monster here.”
It turned out Liang Sheng had been plastered tightly to Mo Qingrou’s back the whole time.
How were they standing so close! A sour taste filled Gu Yuqi’s and Song An’an’s mouths at the same time.
Gu Yuqi even felt like she’d misjudged the woman.
So even this icy woman could fall for Liang Sheng. Well, of course—who wouldn’t love her adorable little junior sister? Gu Yuqi felt both worried and proud.
Liang Sheng poked her little head out from behind Mo Qingrou, looking left and right. Realizing everyone was staring at her, she froze for a few seconds.
Then it hit her—they’d cleared all their levels.
Oh no! Senior Sister Yuqi was gazing at her with such concern! Liang Sheng cleared her throat awkwardly, raised a hand to fix her hair, and slowly stepped out from behind Mo Qingrou.
How embarrassing, acting so cowardly in front of all these girls.
“I-I was just covering Gentle Sister Mo Qingrou’s back!” At the worst possible moment, Liang Sheng offered an explanation—as if desperate to advertise her pale attempt at covering up her fear.
“Hahaha!” The laughter echoed eerily through the dim escape room.
“Let’s hurry up and assemble the dummy.”
Ever the voice of reason, Mo Qingrou had no time for jokes. She dumped the fake body parts from her hands onto the table in the center of the room.
The other girls crowded around, examining the prosthetic limbs.
Liang Sheng blinked her big eyes and suddenly spotted the bizarrely crafted fake butt.
She pointed at it, about to say something.
But before she could open her mouth, her Favorability System—Akino Kazuko—sensed that trouble was brewing.
