As soon as Yu Sheng and Little Red Riding Hood took their first steps toward the silent, unsettling cabin, the squirrel gave a loud squeak of terror and fainted, tumbling off Little Red’s shoulder. It would have hit the ground if Yu Sheng hadn’t caught it by the tail at the last second, moving with lightning speed.
His reflexes came from countless hours of practice warding off Irene’s mischief—the little doll could leap at him faster than a snake when she wanted a bite.
“You can’t drag me to my doom!” the squirrel wailed, flailing in Yu Sheng’s grasp. “I’m just a squirrel! This is so unfair!”
“Quiet,” Little Red said in a low voice that hinted at danger. “If you really don’t want to die.”
The squirrel instantly went still.
Yu Sheng stopped a few steps from the cabin door, the squirrel still dangling from his hand. Even in the forest’s dim light, he could see the building clearly—it was identical to the “shelter cabin” he’d seen once before. The same old, dark wooden walls, the same fading red roof, a narrow wooden door, and small windows. Two steps led to the door, their planks speckled with rot.
But there was something missing: life. It looked abandoned, a place left to decay for decades without quite collapsing. Red scraps of cloth and strings still hung from the door and windows, but they were tattered, stained a darker shade, as though drenched in dried blood ages ago.
“Have you ever seen anything ?” Yu Sheng asked Little Red.
She shook her head. “Never. This is my first time getting this deep.”
The squirrel refused to answer. It trembled so hard Yu Sheng could feel its tiny heart hammering in its chest. The closer he got to the cabin, the more desperate and panicked it became.
“Squirrels don’t place… squirrels don’t place…” it muttered, voice shaking.
“Hey, calm down,” Yu Sheng said gently, trying to soothe it. Something about its reaction felt wrong. “We’ll be safe. I can open a door and take us out anytime. I’ll make sure you’re out of harm’s way. We just need a quick look…”
Then, spotting something in the squirrel’s panicked eyes, he narrowed his gaze. “You know something, don’t you?”
“Know something? No! Squirrel doesn’t know a thing!” The squirrel struggled even harder. Its motions turned wild, like it was losing its grip on sanity. “N-nobody has ever seen this place! You shouldn’t have, either—”
It froze, twisting its head as if listening for something.
“Do you hear that?” it whispered, voice trembling. “You must hear it…”
Yu Sheng didn’t hear anything in particular. He was about to speak when pain flared in his hand. The squirrel had bitten him.
Startled, he loosened his grip. The squirrel tore free, screeching, “Run! Run! All the wolves are here! Hurry—you run too!”
With that warning, the squirrel vanished into the dark, its shrill cries fading quickly among the trees.
“It ran off,” Little Red said, still caught off guard. She’d never seen it so scared.
“At least it told us to run before bolting,” Yu Sheng mused. He glanced back at the cabin. “Its panic got worse the closer we came. It didn’t freak out that much when we first saw the cabin. Any idea why?”
“No,” she said, looking uneasily at the dark windows. “The squirrel’s always been odd, and I don’t really know more about it than you.”
She took a breath, trying to steel herself. “Let’s go inside.”
Even now, she showed no sign of hesitation.
“I’ll go first.” Yu Sheng stepped toward the door. “The squirrel seemed more terrified than usual, which means this cabin could be more dangerous than anything else in the Black Forest. Your condition isn’t great—stay behind me.” ꭆἁ𝐍Ồ𝐁Ěş
He laid his hand on the doorknob.
Little Red seemed about to protest, but she stopped herself. She gave him a silent nod instead.
Yu Sheng inhaled and held the breath for a moment, bracing himself. Staying on high alert, he pushed the door open.
It swung in quietly, without a hint of resistance.
But there was no sudden rush of foul air or swirl of dust. Yu Sheng waited by the threshold for a couple of seconds, watching for any movement inside the cabin—or outside, in the forest. Nothing changed. Slowly, he edged a bit closer, peering into the gloom.
His low-light vision was good enough that he could see clearly, but what he saw made him step back in surprise.
Little Red must have noticed. “What’s wrong?” she asked, moving to look inside.
Yu Sheng blinked, trying to shake off his shock. After a moment, he nodded. “Come in. You need to see this.”
They entered together.
The first thing Little Red noticed were the red cloaks.
They hung on the walls, lay in ragged piles on the floor, or dangled from the rafters. It was hard to guess exactly how many—ten, maybe twenty or more?
They were torn and stained, some barely recognizable as fabric. In the dim cabin light, their crimson looked so dark it could have been old, dried blood.
The soft creaks of the floorboards as they walked made the quiet cabin seem even more unsettling. Yu Sheng moved a bit deeper in, then glanced at Little Red.
She gave a shaky nod and followed, pressing nearer to him. After a moment, she spoke in a hushed voice. “This place…”
“Probably explains why the squirrel freaked out,” Yu Sheng said, sighing as he glanced from the tattered cloaks to the red hood on her own shoulders. “Don’t be scared.”
“I’m… a little on edge, sure,” she admitted. Her attempt at a smile fell flat. Gently, she stepped over one of the fallen cloaks, grimacing at the sight of the shredded cloth hanging from the walls. “So… this is what’s left after everything ends, right? No wonder it’s hidden so deep.”
Yu Sheng looked at her red coat. He remembered a question he’d had for a long time. “Your coat—you always wear it, even outside. Is it just part of looking like Little Red Riding Hood?”
“It keeps me stable,” she said softly. “Once you accept the red hood in the Black Forest, you can’t stray from being Little Red anymore.”
She lowered her gaze. “Fairy tales don’t like adults. And they don’t like ‘unruly kids,’ either.”
Yu Sheng’s frown deepened.
“This is all too twisted,” he muttered, annoyed. After a second, he tried to soften his expression and looked over at her. “You sure you’re okay staying here? If it’s too much, go wait outside.”
She shook her head. “I’m managing. Honestly, it’s better in here than out in that black forest.”
They searched the small cabin from corner to corner, but the child, Xiao Xiao, was nowhere to be found.
“She’s not here,” Yu Sheng muttered, frustration creeping into his voice. “I thought for sure she’d be inside.”
“The forest goes deeper,” Little Red said quietly. “Further in, it only gets darker.”
Yu Sheng didn’t respond. He turned in a slow circle, scanning the cramped space.
No—he was certain she had to be here.
Wolves prowled in the darkness, still waiting. He could sense it. They were hunting for something. For someone.
Then he felt a faint tug—a connection through his blood. Narrowing his eyes, he let that sense guide him. He was seeing through the wolves’ eyes, through the forest’s shadows, feeling something that wasn’t entirely his.
Little Red watched in surprise as Yu Sheng crossed to a narrow bed in the corner. He ran his palms over the wood and worn blanket as if looking for something.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he pulled a small knife from his pocket.
Its blade flashed in the faint light.
Yu Sheng kept his calm, careful expression as he continued exploring. Suddenly, without warning, he slashed at the air near the bed.
His blade connected with something solid—a sound like flesh splitting. A sharp tang of blood hit the air.
“Ah, there you are…” he said, voice almost gentle. A quiet satisfaction curled in his tone. “You’ve been hiding so well, Granny Wolf…”
This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation