Chapter 34: Help us [2nd update]

'Drip, drip……'

Water dripped down, continuously emitting a clear splashing sound.

Hoshino Ai realized at this moment who that woman in the mirror was.

It was none other than herself!

The girl with long purple-black hair turned around immediately, her gaze no longer daring to look at herself in the mirror; for the first time in her life, she had seen such an ugly appearance.

Having seen it once, she had absolutely no desire to see it a second time.

"W-we…… have all been infected, what should…… we do?"

Even Hoshino Ai knew that if the degree of infection deepened further, the moment of death would be that much closer.

"It's, it's the water's problem, right? After Lin Ye-kun came into contact with the water, we became like this."

"The function of the water is, unsurprisingly, to eliminate the influence of the bed-creaking sounds from next door, which aligns with the reminder in Rule 8."

Lin Ye had a guess.

"The sounds next door don't just affect our desires and impulses; they also cause us to hallucinate, which is why we were so slow to discover the condition of our own bodies."

As for why their bodies still appeared normal after the influence was eliminated, Lin Ye could only temporarily attribute it to the special rules of the hotel.

"Then does that mean the influence of that sound is what caused us to suffer the infection?"

"That is the most likely possibility for now."

"Then we should be safe now, right! The sound can no longer be heard; it has no influence on us anymore."

It was unclear whether the sound had stopped on its own, or if they could no longer hear it because they had eliminated its influence through the water.

It was just that she had clearly showered before the sound emerged, yet she still heard it; could it be that the sound must first appear and exert its influence before the water can be used to resolve it?

However, she had touched the water before Lin Ye, but the fire of desire in her heart remained; it was only after Lin Ye also touched the water that the fire of desire and impulse rapidly subsided.

Does it only take effect when both people touch the water?

Hoshino Ai racked her brains and came up with a reasonable explanation.

"We are safe for now. You should put on your clothes first."

Under Lin Ye's reminder, Hoshino Ai immediately reacted and realized her current naked state; she found some clothes and put them on at once.

Although she knew how hideous she must look in Lin Ye's eyes, she still felt shy.

Two minutes later,

Hoshino Ai finished tidying her clothes and adjusted her currently terrible and shameful complex state of mind.

Time passed midnight.

Lin Ye, who was standing in front of Hoshino Ai chatting with the girl, noticed at a glance that the black-gray patches on Hoshino Ai's face had deepened.

Just as he was about to say something, the door was knocked upon.

"Lin Ye-senpai, it's…… it's me,"

"W-we feel…… something is wrong,"

"Sawayanagi-kun, he, he is about to…… lose control of himself now,"

"Please, help us……"

……

That was Kuroda Hikari's voice.

She was outside the door asking for help.

"It's Kuroda-san……"

Hoshino Ai swallowed and looked at Lin Ye.

"Should we……"

"According to the plot of eerie ghost story novels, the most likely scenario is that the entity outside is the Eerie, tricking us into opening the door."

"I understand."

Hoshino Ai nodded as if she understood, putting away her sympathy.

But she then saw Lin Ye turn and walk toward the door.

"Lin Ye-kun, you……"

"You stay inside, I'll go take a look."

Now that the 'un-ah' sounds had stopped, he found that Hoshino Ai's level of infection had clearly increased; his own situation would be no better.

He needed to collect more intelligence; continuing to cower in the room was no different from sitting and waiting for death.

Hoshino Ai was anxious and uneasy, but in the end, she gritted her teeth and followed; her fate was already tied to Lin Ye's, and rather than waiting in the room worrying, it was better to follow and perhaps provide a bit of help.

'Click……'

The door opened.

"Lin Ye-senpai, help…… us……"

The moment she raised her eyes and saw Lin Ye behind the door, Kuroda Hikari's eyes changed immediately; the rationality she had been maintaining seemed to collapse in that instant.

"I…… want……"

……

【Time Stop】 activated.

Everything came to an abrupt halt.

Only Lin Ye remained able to move in this world.

Lin Ye looked at Kuroda Hikari before him; the chestnut-haired twin-tailed girl had a flush on her face, her hair was somewhat messy, and her left hand was clenched into a fist as if to suppress the emotions in her heart, but her skin was normal, without the mutated black-gray patches.

He carried the girl to the hallway.

In the hotel hallway after midnight, the lights were much dimmer; the green light emitted by the emergency exit signs mingled with the yellow lights of the hallway, adding a much richer, eerie atmosphere to the dark red carpet.

Lin Ye looked at 307 directly opposite.

Sawayanagi Taisuke, who had just opened the door to 307, had bloodshot eyes, his body hunched over, hands reaching forward, attempting to grab the fleeing Kuroda Hikari, but there were no traces of mutation on his skin.

"Need shower water."

Lin Ye carried the girl toward 307, pushed Sawayanagi Taisuke aside with his left hand, and successfully entered.

Finally, he grabbed Sawayanagi Taisuke by the back of his collar and dragged him into the room's bathroom like a dead pig.

"Now is the time to verify my hypothesis."

……

…… ===== CHAPTER 35 =====