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The fugitive’s expression changed when he heard Han Fei’s voice. Confusion appeared in his eyes but only for a moment. The two didn’t communicate more than that. Han Fei reached the center of the corridor. He didn’t stay with the others. He even maintained a distance away from his wife.
“The water will not reach the second floor temporarily. You come with me.” The hotel boss knew that he was going to die. He waved for the worker to carry him to his room.
“What is so mysterious that you have to discuss it behind us? Is it a secret of this hotel? Is this whole thing your creation?” There was no pity in the magician’s eyes. He saw how weak the hotel boss was getting, and he became more relaxed.
“I’m aged and I don’t have much time. I want some alone time with my family.” The old man urged the worker to enter the room with him, but Mad Laughter stood at the door. He didn’t seem to intend to let them pass. “The wound on your neck is serious. You need immediate rescue. I’ve played a doctor before so I know some first aid.” Mad Laughter leaned against the door. “I can help you.”
“Not necessary.” Compared to the magician and the fugitive, the elder was more afraid of Mad Laughter. He saw the man’s smiling, handsome face, and his heart shivered.
“What is more important than your life?” Mad Laughter still didn’t move. “There should be a first aid kit somewhere. Otherwise, find some clean towels and let me help you stop the bleeding.”
“Why are you so guarded against us? Are you the killer? Or do you have something hidden in your room?” The magician walked over. He looked at the paintings on the wall. “Based on the info the killer stuffed inside the back of the victim’s head, everyone here should be guests, but you introduced yourself as the owner. That is very strange.”
“At least that proves that I’m not the killer.” The boss’ blood leaked down his neck.
“Perhaps you’re the first to arrive here and assume this place as your own home. You said you’re the owner but you’re just a thief! Perhaps you’ve killed the original owner!” The magician didn’t raise his voice, but he did raise a lot of questions.
In this Heart hotel, every guest had their surface identity and a real identity.
The officer was supposed to maintain justice and order, but when in danger, the solution he came up with was to kill everyone. Mad Laughter looked sunny on the surface but Han Fei knew how scary the man really was. The same went for the hotel boss, the magician, and even Han Fei. People would only share what they wanted others to see. They would hide their darkness inside their hearts. Human nature would only be exposed in the moment of life and death.
“Two of us might be the killers. Before the voting is over, no one is leaving the group’s line of sight.” The magician didn’t care what the hotel boss wanted to tell his employee. The boss wouldn’t tell everyone either, so the best solution was to stop the boss from saying anything and have the secret rot inside the boss’ heart or dead body.
The winds crashed against the window. The roof cracked about a finger wide, and the black rain seeped into the room. The first floor had started to flood. The black water was murky and viscous like some of the guests’ lives. The hotel in the middle of the maze swayed. This building had a special meaning to the theme park. Its collapse might signify the end of something.
“We’ll continue to vote.” The quiet worker suddenly spoke. He seemed to be comforting his boss.
“No problem. But before that, I have something to say.” The scriptwriter leaned against the corridor wall and sat on the ground. He pointed at the wound on his chest. “I believe I saw the person who wanted to kill me.” Everyone immediately turned to him.
“Who is it?”
“His face is rather special and different from us. I need them to remove their masks before I can make the decision.” The scriptwriter pointed at Han Fei and the worker. All the eyes instantly turned to the two.
“This person arrived last and he has been wearing a mask. That is indeed suspicious.” The boss wanted to point a target away from himself.
“Do you want me to remove the mask?” Han Fei’s voice came from under the mask. “My face has been ruined. I don’t want to scare anyone, so I’ve been wearing the mask.”
“I remember the killer’s facial silhouette. I can recognize him once I see him again.” The scriptwriter, Mad Laughter, and the fugitive stood together. They had formed a group.
“Facial silhouette? Then the person you saw is definitely not me.” Han Fei placed his hands on the edge of the mask. As he pulled, blood flowed down his chin. When he took out the mask, the people in the corridor sucked in cold breaths. A mess was under the smiling mask. He had no facial features. The cheeks had grown attached to the mask. His face had no silhouette.
“I’m not the killer.” Han Fei held the mask. One side of pure white, and the other side was pure blood. The scriptwriter studied Han Fei’s ruined face for a while. Then, he shook his head. “It’s not him. It should be the other person.”
Han Fei’s wounds reopened since he removed the mask. The worker had no reason to keep his mask on anymore. After some hesitation, the worker removed the mask to reveal F, the player who had mixed among the player after stealing everything from Han Fei.
The others didn’t react when they saw F but the wife’s expression shifted. “Fu Sheng…” F moved his eyes away. He acted like he didn’t know her.
“That’s right! He’s the killer!” The scriptwriter pointed at F. His face was pale but his tone was firm.
“Impossible! He has always stayed by my side! You’re framing him!” The hotel boss immediately defended his employee.
“No. I’m sure he’s my attacker!” The scriptwriter repeated.
“It looks like I was right after all. The hotel worker and boss are killers. They’ve killed the real owner and set up this whole scene.” The magician added. “Stop acting. Tell us the way to escape from here.”
Other than the woman, the others were ready to throw the boss and the worker out. Han Fei didn’t say anything. He held the mask and glanced at his wife. If the hotel boss died, would his wife vote for Fu Sheng or him?
The blood scab opened. Han Fei was tired. He sat at the staircase and studied the rapidly rising water level.
‘The waiter has no reason to kill the scriptwriter. Plus, they were so far from each other. There was even an officer standing between them. If the killer wasn’t the worker, why would the scriptwriter frame him?
‘The biggest possibility is that the glass shard was plunged into the scriptwriter’s body by the Mad Laughter or the scriptwriter so that they could use this chance to frame someone.’
Han Fei believed the reason Mad Laughter and the scriptwriter did this was to frame him. However, the scriptwriter strayed from the script. For some reason, he decided to frame the masked F instead.
“When the chandelier fell, he was busy trying to find the flashlight. He didn’t even have the kill to attack the scriptwriter. Don’t be tricked!” The hotel boss explained but no one cared. Someone had to die for the others to survive. This was the perfect excuse. The hotel boss despaired when he saw the cruelty in the others’ eyes. After he died, the next one on the line would be the worker.
“Fine. Since you don’t believe me…” The boss grabbed the worker’s arm. He whispered in his ears. The worker’s expression changed like he was really shocked. While the worker was stunned, the boss wrote down the worker’s name with his blood. He glanced at the other guests. “Now, only he and I know about the secret of this game. Cast your votes! If he doesn’t survive until the end after I die, all of you will die with me!” “That acting is not bad.” Most people didn’t believe the boss. Only Han Fei and Mad Laughter stared at the worker’s face, trying to read something from it.
“You have many ways to survive. Why do you have to use your power to save to kill instead?” The hotel boss cast his vote into the black box. He wanted to help keep the worker alive as long as he could.
The black rain flooded the first floor. The third round of voting ended swiftly. No one died. After the officer died, the fugitive was reunited with Mad Laughter. They followed the previous arrangement. Mad Laughter voted for the fugitive, the fugitive voted for the scriptwriter, and the scriptwriter voted for Mad Laughter. Since there was no victim, the rain pelted even harder. The crack on the roof expanded. Rain poured in.
“Continue.” The old boss forced himself to cast another vote. His arms trembled wildly. More blood oozed out of his wound. He could barely catch his breath. The magician and the scriptwriter purposely made the fourth round of voting as long as possible. They looked at the hotel boss not as a human but as a sacrifice. The worker tried his best to help his boss but it was to no avail.
The fourth round ended. There was still no death. The black water rose to the staircase. The couches they sat on had been soaked. The dead body on the dining table floated on the black water. His hands opened wide like he was welcoming them.
The rain poured, and the hotel might fall at any moment.
“Continue!” The hotel boss suddenly found a burst of strength. After he voted for the worker, he held the wall and walked towards the magician. With everyone watching, he grabbed the magician’s sleeve and whispered something to him.
“Don’t misunderstand. He didn’t tell me anything.” The magician quickly explained, but no one believed him.
After that, the old man suddenly stopped. He didn’t have the energy to move anymore. However, to Han Fei’s confusion, the worker didn’t come to help his boss like he usually would. Instead, he was conflicted over the name to write.
‘Something’s wrong…’ The fifth round of voting was over. Han Fei had a bad feeling. He moved towards his wife. Once he took the first step, the half-dying old man moved too. ‘What is he doing?’ The sick old man posed no threat, but Han Fei suddenly remembered the worker’s hesitation. Han Fei had captured that moment. A guess appeared in his mind. ‘The old man knows that he’s going to die so he had the worker write someone else’s name? He wants to use the few seconds when the black mist appears to bring someone down with him!’
As that thought appeared, the dying old man’s skin cracked open. Black mist flowed out of his mouth and nose as he charged at Han Fei!
‘I’m his target?!’ The old man somehow knew the wife was Fu Sheng’s mother. Only by killing Han Fei that she’d fully focus on helping Fu Sheng. The old man knew he was going to die, so he used his death to find a way of survival for Fu Sheng. The black mist consumed everything it came into contact with.
Han Fei was prepared for the old man’s ambush. He retreated quickly. The old man lasted in the black mist longer than the officer. When he saw Han Fei retreat, he immediately pounced at the mute girl.
For Fu Sheng, the best outcome was to eliminate Han Fei so that he’d have the woman’s support; the second-best outcome was to kill the girl so that the magician would be forced to cooperate with Fu Sheng. Black mist consumed the heart. The kind elder was like a ghost. His arms, corrupted by black mist, reached for the girl. The frightened girl tried to evade him, but she was caught at the corner.
“You have to die for more people to survive. He is the best choice.” Black mist touched the girl but something unexpected happened. Han Fei, who was already safe, suddenly charged forward. Just as the girl was about to be engulfed by the old man, Han Fei risked his life to drag the girl to safety.
Han Fei hugged the girl. He subconsciously touched the girl’s arm that was touched by the black mist. The scriptwriter saw everything. Everyone saw the girl as a key. Only a young building manager treated her like a real child.
Staring at the messed-up face, the scriptwriter had made his choice.
‘The girl has Little Eight’s face. She’s his earliest friend. He won’t sit there and allow her to be killed.’
