“Monsters? What kind of monsters have you met here?” Han Fei didn’t fully trust the woman. It was impossible for a normal housewife to survive inside this monster-infested dresser with just pure luck.
“The monsters with many arms that we encountered are the most common one. They are like parasitic moths commonly found inside dressers. They rustle through the clothes to find leftover objects to feed on the wearers’ memories. I call these multi-limbed bugs the Scavenger. Other than these Scavengers who feed on memory fragments, there are humanoid monsters or rather they used to be humans. They have lost their identities so I call them The Lost. A long time ago, I had a partner who roamed this dresser with me, but one day, he suddenly disappeared. The spot where he occupied turned into a set of bloody clothes, they were the exact same set he was wearing before he went missing. I believe he had joined the Lost.
“The Scavengers and the Losts normally wouldn’t come after us, there are far more dangerous monsters here. One of them will disguise themselves as the dresser door. If you open them, you’ll not find the exit but a gaping maw waiting for you.
“The other kind of monster looks just like humans and they are the most dangerous. They will morph into clothes and melt into the surroundings. When you get close to them, they will bind and slowly consume you.”
The Butterfly’s dresser was a space between nightmare and reality, dominated by people and monsters lost in it. This creepy dresser might have to do with Butterfly’s talent. Han Fei knew that Butterfly’s favorite tactic was to enter people’s minds and then use their dreams to slowly influence reality.
“It’s amazing that you have managed to survive here for so long.” Han Fei said sincerely, “Can you remember how long you’ve been here?”
“There is no day and night cycle here so I really can’t tell. At first, I did try to keep a track of time but time eventually runs away from you. Now I can’t even tell whether it’s day or night outside this dresser.”
“Then how did you manage to take care of your everyday needs? Is there food and water here?” Han Fei regarded the woman with suspicion, this was a suspicion a normal person would have. Although to be honest, Han Fei already had a guess in his heart. The woman was probably already dead, she was just a ghost who had not yet fully forgotten about her past.
“Water…” The woman was silent for a long time before she lifted her head. “I didn’t want to tell you this early lest I scare you away. But since you’ve asked, then I shall not lie to you. Come with me.” The fruit knife in her grasp shook. She was very nervous like an inexperienced hunter. The blood stains on the clothes around them thickened. After evading a few more Scavengers, the woman led Han Fei deeper into the dresser. Strange voices whispered into his ears, it was like the lingering spirits on the clothes were talking to him. The deeper he went, the more unsettled he felt. The clothes were getting bloodier, some were so fresh that the blood was still dripping. If he leaned closer to the clothes, he could even hear groans of pain.
“We’re here, I call this place the canteen.” After a half an hour of trekking, the woman finally stopped. She picked up the clothes beside her and after apologizing to it, she placed it in her mouth. The blood flowed into her body and her eyes turned crimson. After she had her fill, she turned to Han Fei. Blood dyed her lips and teeth red. Blood splattered down her face. She looked just a monster, different from the housewife that she presented herself as earlier.
“I have scared you, haven’t I? Don’t forget that I’ve also saved you earlier.” The woman put down the clothes. “This is the only way if you want to survive here. Initially I was very against it too but I have no other choice. I have to save my son. To do that, I am willing to do anything.”
“You are a great mother.”
“Don’t patronize me. When hunger and thirst catch up to you, you’ll make the same choice because it is the only choice.” After the woman drank the blood, her own capillaries started to bulge and her face paled. Whenever she spoke, 2 voices emitted from her throat, but the other voice was extremely weak. Han Fei now understood why the woman’s voice was so unique. To survive, she had literally absorbed countless people’s blood.
“Other than me, have you met anyone else here?”
“I have but most are at the edge of madness. Some have turned into the Losts, others would become part of the hanging clothes soon.” The woman looked at her skin which was turning red. “Actually that is the other reason why I’ve saved you.”
“What is it?”
“I feel like I won’t be able to resist for much longer. If I turn into a set of clothes, I hope you’ll bring me with you instead of leaving me here among the hanged.” The woman didn’t force Han Fei, she negotiated with him, “And if it’s possible, help me look for my son. When he disappeared, he was wearing pyjamas with bear print. If he’s still alive, please take care of him for me; if he has been changed into clothing, please put me next to him. Okay?”
“Don’t be so pessimistic, perhaps we can find him and leave this place together.”
“I hope so.” The woman clearly didn’t believe Han Fei.
“I am serious.” Han Fei was about to ask for more information when the woman suddenly waved for him to bend low. The clothes not far away started to sway and soon they saw a 40 plus man with balding head and formal shirt tumble out from the maze of clothes. He didn’t notice Han Fei and the woman. He was half-crouched on the ground as he moved slowly forward. “What is this place?!” The middle-aged man’s face was twisted from fear. His mental state was unstable. He didn’t dare to make too much noise lest he attracted the monster. He could only rely on himself. The middle-aged man crawled some more but all he could see was red. Everything was red. “What is happening?!” The man’s emotions frayed. Before he lost his mind, Han Fei and the woman came out from their hiding spots.
“Don’t worry, like you, we’re trapped here as well…”
“Don’t come any closer! Stay right there!” When the middle-aged man saw the blood on the woman’s face and the knife she was holding, he warned shakingly.
“I’d advise you to keep your voice down. If you attract the monster’s attention, do you think you can run faster than us?” Han Fei already put away Rest in Peace before he showed himself. Raising his arms in surrender, Han Fei slowly approached the middle-aged man. “Brother, looks like you haven’t been here for that long. Am I right?”
“I can’t tell how long it has been, perhaps about 10 hours? I stayed still for a long time before I was forced to move because I saw the monsters coming towards me.” The middle-aged man was extremely frightened. Han Fei’s calming voice was like a balm to his soul.
“Can you tell me how you got into this place?”
“I don’t know!” The middle-aged man pulled on the little bit of hair he had, “My upstairs neighbour was making a lot of noise at midnight. I couldn’t sleep so I went to give him a piece of my mind. But when I arrived, his door was left open.”
“And you entered his house? Why didn’t you call the police?”
“At the time, I was so angry I didn’t think that much. When I got in, there was no one around. Just as I was wondering whether to call the police, I heard a sound coming from the bedroom. I pushed open the door to take a look.”
“And you saw someone inside the dresser?”
“I saw my neighbour lying in bed, he was sound asleep. I believed he was faking it because he was just making all those noises earlier. But when I touched his face, I noticed something was wrong.” The man said with regret. “His face was so cold, there was no human warmth.”
“That means he has been dead for some time already, it was not him who made all that noises, but probably the actual killer.” Han Fei analysed.
“That was what I thought, but at that moment, my brain suddenly went dizzy and I collapsed. When I woke up again, I was already inside this place.” The middle-aged man pouted, “The stock that I bought just had a sharp rise recently, I thought my luck was finally changing, but I guess I was wrong.”
“The person who placed you here probably wanted to get your neighbour but got you by accident. Can you tell me more about your neighbour?” Han Fei was confused. The middle-aged man sounded like he was just dragged into the dresser not too long ago. The Butterfly should have been busy dealing with police and Huang Yin, it wouldn’t go after random people.
“That neighbour of mine is very strange. We’ve been neighbours for years but I shared less than 3 words with him. He was a hermit and avoided all human interaction. I heard from the other neighbours that he used to work at a big company but due to some trauma, he became like this.”
“Worked at some big company?” Han Fei narrowed his eyes. “Do you know his name?”
“It’s Feng Ziyu. He was getting weirder recently. He acted so strangely like he was living in some kind of mysterious world that only existed in his mind.”
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