Escape Room

The night seemed to have grown deeper. Ye Shuang stood by the window, feeling around the edges. After confirming that he couldn't open any of the windows, he returned to the edge of the bed and sat down. "These windows are reinforced, aren't they? Why else would they be so sturdy?"

It felt as if this had all been premeditated.

"How long do you guys plan on locking me up?" Ye Shuang turned his head. An Shiyi was lying on her stomach on the bed, an open comic book in front of her.

The young woman had her lower legs crossed in the air, leisurely flipping through the pages.

"How should I know? I'm a victim here too, you know," An Shiyi said. She rolled over and sat up with a soft grunt of effort. "You might as well just sign it."

"How could I possibly sign that?" Ye Shuang said.

"True. As expected, it's because the slime is too small, right?" An Shiyi nodded, sounding completely in agreement.

"It is a bit small... Wait, no, this isn't the time to be talking about that!" Ye Shuang immediately retorted.

"Ugh, so troublesome."

"I'm the one who should be saying that, aren't I?"

An Shiyi thought for a moment before finally saying, "What's so bad about it? That girl likes you so much anyway, and she doesn't even mind all the other stuff."

"..."

"If push comes to shove, how about just being friends with benefits?"

Ye Shuang felt helpless. But in the next second, the room's lights suddenly went out. He froze for a moment. Fortunately, the moonlight shining through the window kept the room from becoming completely pitch black. He reached out to feel around the bed, but his hand brushed against soft fingertips.

"Ah, sorry."

However, a moment later, Ye Shuang noticed fingers crawling over the back of his hand, slowly intertwining with his own.

Just as Ye Shuang looked up in the dimly lit room, An Shiyi leaned in and kissed him on the lips.

The sensation, like chilled jelly, brought Ye Shuang back to his senses, and he leaned back.

In the room, the young woman's face was faintly visible in the shadows. She seemed to be smiling. "Mhm... Not bad. Anyway, one more person liking you won't make a difference."

"Mister, this is a room you can't leave unless we do it," she leaned in and whispered into Ye Shuang's ear.

"Considering me would be a better choice, right?"

Ye Shuang slowly widened his eyes.

Right at that moment, with a loud bang, the nearby door was kicked open!

The violent crash made both Ye Shuang and An Shiyi look toward the door. A short-haired young woman stood there, glaring at them with burning eyes. "What are you doing?"

"What?"

"Why are you in this room?" An Shiyu demanded. "No wonder the mister on the security feed hasn't moved an inch. You tampered with it?!"

"Since we're pursuing excitement, we might as well go all the way," An Shiyi said, spreading her hands.

"Heh!" An Shiyu flicked her wrist, and several cold-gleaming throwing darts shot straight at her!

An Shiyi tilted her head. With a series of thuds, the darts embedded themselves into the wooden headboard right behind her.

"Tsk, someone's impatient."

"Who's impatient?!"

The two fish started fighting right in front of Ye Shuang. Realizing things were going south, Ye Shuang shuffled into the corner. His gaze eventually landed on the kicked-open wooden door not far away.

...

The two girls grabbed the decorative samurai swords in the room and began clashing, sending metallic clinks ringing out. Every strike sounded like a blacksmith hammering iron. Even though An Shiyu was the better fighter, An Shiyi wasn't far behind, making it hard to tell who would win.

"Oi, even though these blades are unsharpened, getting hit by one is still dangerous," An Shiyi said as she blocked An Shiyu's downward slash.

"Even better, you thieving cat." An Shiyu kicked out at her.

"Oho." An Shiyi nimbly gripped her sword and jumped back. "Didn't we agree to do this together? How am I a thieving cat?"

"Heh," An Shiyu sneered, resetting her stance. "You say that, but your actions don't look like you want to share. You actually sneaked over here by yourself."

"So petty." An Shiyi glanced around and then smiled as if she had discovered something.

"Mister isn't here anymore, you know."

An Shiyu noticed this as well. She looked around and finally saw the wide-open door behind her.

An Shiyu: "..."

"What a pity. I was planning to force him to go all out tonight," An Shiyi said, standing next to An Shiyu and throwing her hands up in mock helplessness.

"And whose fault do you think that is?" An Shiyu shot her a glare.

"Wasn't I just warming things up for you?"

"..." Rendered speechless, An Shiyu looked at An Shiyi with disdain. Then she said, "Mister won't be able to escape."

"Oh?"

...

Meanwhile, Ye Shuang was speed-walking down the wooden corridor. Naturally, he had seized the opportunity to get out of there as fast as he could.

Visiting the Anshi household as a guest was the most regrettable decision of his life. Fortunately, he managed to find a chance to slip away; otherwise, he would have been eaten alive by those two girls.

But this place was just too massive. For a moment, Ye Shuang had no idea which direction to run.

"Oh, Mr. Ye Shuang, where are you going?"

A voice rang out. From around the corner, an old woman stepped into view.

She was holding a lantern, her expression kind and gentle. "Did you get lost looking for the restroom?"

Ye Shuang recognized the old lady. She was the same servant who had opened the door for him earlier that evening.

"Hello, where is the exit?" Ye Shuang immediately asked.

"The exit? Are you leaving already?"

"Uh, I have an urgent matter."

The old lady kept her smiling face, quietly staring at Ye Shuang. This bizarre atmosphere finally made Ye Shuang realize something.

"You..."

[Character: Sato Aya

Although her outward identity is a servant of the Anshi family, she possesses the strength to take down three or four grown men.]

"Mr. Ye, I apologize, but please go back," the old lady said with a smile, pulling a rope out of her pocket.

Ye Shuang turned around and bolted.

The old lady, who had been walking slowly with a hunched back, instantly transformed into a star athlete. Straightening her posture, she began to sprint after him, flashing a wide grin. "Hehehehehe."

"Holy crap?!" Ye Shuang's eyes bulged.

Did she really have to be this terrifying?!

Is she crazy?!

Fortunately, the system had previously upgraded his stamina. By running with all his might, she actually failed to catch up to him.

Taking advantage of the gap, Ye Shuang ducked into a dark room.

"Thump, thump, thump—"

Soon, a flurry of rapid footsteps rushed past. It seemed the old servant had headed off in another direction.

Listening to the sound fade away, Ye Shuang slowly let out a breath.

He subconsciously turned his head, only to meet a pair of eyes.

"?!" The next second, a hand clamped over Ye Shuang's mouth.

"U-um, it's me." A phone's flashlight flicked on, and Ye Shuang realized that the person who had silently appeared beside him was actually a familiar face.

"Ducky?" Seeing An Shiyaya, Ye Shuang relaxed a little.

"Are you okay, Teacher Ye?" An Shiyaya asked softly.

Just as Ye Shuang was about to answer, a knock suddenly sounded from outside the door. "Miss Yaya, are you asleep?"

Ye Shuang instantly realized who it was—the old lady from just now!