My House of Horrors

Chen Ge had his own idea. Using force to stop force was the simplest answer, but to gain the school’s approval and to get accepted all the despairing children, using brute force alone was not enough.

It might not work, but there’s no harm in trying.

After leaving the classroom, Chen Ge stood at the corridor holding two bags. Two students were hurrying to class, and he was the only one taking his sweet time to take in the scenery.

“Hi, can you tell me where the nurse’s office is?”

The students were very unfriendly. Chen Ge asked several students before finally someone was willing to show him the way.

“You’re the new student from the fourth class, right? When I was passing the teacher’s lounge earlier, I hear the teachers and discipline teacher talking about you. They sounded like they were going to punish you.” The girl who led the way looked like a high school student. She had a ponytail and dressed casually.

“They wish to punish me?”

“Sounds like it’s because you have been ignoring the school rules and got into fights in class.” When the girl said that, she stole a curious look at Chen Ge. “Is that true?”

“If I say it’s true, will you be afraid?” Chen Ge maintained the smile on his face. The teachers had their own way of dealing with things; he understood that but did not approve.

“I won’t, I think you did a great job. Those people always mix with the gangsters outside school. It’s about time someone came to teach them a lesson!” The girl appeared to have been bullied before. She chatted for a long time before silently walking closer to Chen Ge. “I hope nothing will happen to you.”

“This is the first time we’ve met, right?” Chen Ge felt the girl was acting strangely, like she was attempting to get in his good books. “Do you have something else to tell me?”

A flash of panic crossed her eyes, but she soon returned to normal. “Actually, I don’t have many friends. In my class, they all laugh at me and like to prank me, so I wish to be your friend. If they bully me again, at least I will have someone else to talk to.”

The girl was not good at lying. When she said the later words, her eyes subconsciously wandered to other places; deep inside her eyes were a thick pool of venom. That resentment was unrelated to Chen Ge. She probably wanted to find someone to help her take revenge on those who had once bullied her.

“I’m sorry, but I’m used to being alone.” Chen Ge knew that the girl did not really want him as a friend. She merely wanted to find someone to protect her.

“It’s fine then.” The disappointment was clear in the girl’s eyes, but she still kept her promise and took Chen Ge to the nurse’s office.

“This is it. I’m going back to class.” The girl retraced her steps. After taking few steps, she suddenly turned around to look at Chen Ge. “Forgot to mention, my name is Yin Hong, I’ll talk to you later.”

The girl forced a smile and ran away in a jog.

Even though it’s a fake smile, she can make it look so sweet. This girl would be quite suitable to work on the haunted house’s front desk.

As he opened the door to the nurse’s office, the curtains flickered. Blood red fog surrounded his body, and it was a red blur inside the room; he could not see anything.

“Is anyone in?”

The nurse’s office was quite large and was made up of four connecting rooms. The outermost room was the consultation room; it was the smallest, with two sets of tables and chairs and two shelves for the amenities.

The nurse’s office feels like a private clinic. Just how many students come here every day?

The blood red wall had thin vessels that crawled on it like worms. A large white coat hung in the corner, but no doctor was to be seen. Chen Ge walked to the table. A document was placed on the table, and it recorded some students’ sicknesses and the corresponding treatments given by the doctor.

Looking through it, Chen Ge found Yan Fei’s name on the third last page. Out of Chen Ge’s expectation, the doctor merely gave Yan Fei some medicine to stop the bleeding and did not provide any psychological counselling. Just based on this note alone, one would not notice the issue’s severity. Those who did not know the truth might think that Yan Fei had just accidentally scratched himself.

Nothing should be assessed from just the surface. According to the note, every student that came here had nothing serious, but they might have been dropped in despair already.

This document was not thick, but each page had the patient’s picture.

To be bullied until they needed a trip to the nurse’s office, this was some serious bullying. Perhaps I can find other children from this note.

The School of the Afterlife was unique; it combined various memories, and the number of lingering spirits and Specters were enormous. It was hard to find the few children who had the qualification to become door-pushers, but this document provided a shortcut for Chen Ge.

Since Yan Fei’s name is here, the other students with the qualification might have their names here as well.

Walking past the consultation room, Chen Ge entered the second room. There were several beds. Other than the slightly bigger space, it was no different from the previous room.

“Sorry, I’m looking for someone.” Chen Ge stood at the door, and his pupils throbbed as a bad feeling rose in his heart. There was no answer, like the sickroom was unoccupied. “This is strange.”

Reaching his hands into the pocket, Chen Ge took out a nail and hid it in his palm. He could hear the static coming from the tape, and then he mustered the courage to step into the room. He carefully walked to the third room. There were similarly beds in the room, but unlike the second room, the beds were sequestered from each other by white curtains. Probably to protect each patient’s privacy, one could not tell who was occupying the bed from outside.

This place is quite dangerous.

After passing many Trial Missions, Chen Ge’s sense of danger was sharpened. He moved with his back to the wall as he nudged his foot forward. Pulling open the curtain that was closest to him, a thick stench drifted out. A black, sticky pool was left in the middle of the white sheets. It looked like blood.

The stench is heavy. This bed was probably recently occupied.

After a brief observation, Chen Ge noticed that the pillow was puffy like it was hiding something. He was about to take the pillow when he felt a chill from behind his neck like something was reminding him to look back. Turning around, Chen Ge saw a doctor in a white coat standing not far away from him. The man was plump, and his coat was bursting at the seams. He was well enveloped by his uniform that contained a coat, mask, and hat. Only his thin neck was exposed.

The body is so large, but the neck is so thin. Is it possible that the doctor is wearing several layers of clothes?

Chen Ge stared at the doctor’s collar, and he caught glimpse of redness there.

The uniform is pure white, but the clothes inside are dark red. Just what kind of doctor is this?