The lady stared at the string of numbers. Her eyes cleared, and she didn’t appear as listless as before. With a cough, the lady pushed the phone to the side. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier that you’re here for an interview?”
She looked Gao Ming up and down. Fa Cai poked its head out of Gao Ming’s bag. “Very similar. The boss used to own a cat too.”
“Does your boss like cats too?”
“Not really. Cats are sensitive creatures. The boss often talks business at places that are not that clean.” The way the lady looked at Gao Ming changed. It was hard to describe. It was not how one would look at a living person. “Since you came at the boss’ recommendation, I won’t waste time. Let’s start the interview now.”
The lady shouted into the shop. The lights went out, and the door slowly closed as if someone was controlling everything from the inside.
“Is the interview conducted outside the shop?”
“Yes.” Putting on a large black sweater, cap and mask, the lady walked in the shadow and led Gao Ming into the elevator. As the number on the elevator panel changed, the temperature in the booth slowly rose. It felt like they were crawling out of an ice cave.
Occasionally, fashionably dressed youngsters entered the elevator.
The number stopped at 14. The doors opened. The youngsters rushed out. Gao Ming and the lady waited at the back. The decor style of the 14th floor was weird. It was like a large mental asylum. The workers there wore white coats and patient garbs.
“Welcome to the urban disease treatment centre!” A sick voice said. A female nurse with scars on her face walked towards the elevator while carrying stacks of files. She was tall and voluptuous. The scars on her face added to her allure. The youngsters who left the elevator with Gao Ming were excited. It was like they were patients at a real hospital.
“The treatment centre has set up tailored treatment proposals for each of you. Now, please fill up your basic information and contact number and sign the agreements.” The nurse gave everyone a form.
Gao Ming glanced at it. The agreement basically included some clauses that released the place from responsibility should anything happen to them within the premises. Gao Ming could understand that. However, the name of the haunted house was printed on the agreement, Shanghai Mental Asylum!
Gao Ming turned to the lady with confusion, “I’m here for an interview with the Ninth Sense Experience Centre. Why did you lead me to your competitor’s haunted house? Plus, their ticket is so pricy!”
“This is part of the interview. Even though their haunted house is not that scary, it is at the upper limit allowed by the law. Our boss brought his girlfriend here not too long ago. They were so into the date that he accidentally forgot to bring home a real madman and left him in this haunted house’s scariest scenario. What you need to do is to find that person among the employees and bring him out.” The lady said easily. Gao Ming frowned.
“Your boss left a real madman inside his competitor’s haunted house?!” Gao Ming was shocked. “Is the competition in this industry so heated?”
“Competition? They are definitely not on our level.” The lady huffed. “That madman is very sensitive and cowardly. He is afraid of his colleagues, so we can’t get him. He’d run away from us. Don’t waste time. If you can’t even do this, we can’t possibly work together.”
After filling out the form, Gao Ming handed it to the nurse. They were led down the long corridor to the check-in corner.
When Gao Ming lined up to pay, he turned around to glance at the elevator. The lady didn’t seem to be used to crowds. She took out a cigarette from her pocket. After she lit it up, smoke trails with red lines slowly dispersed. The redness resonated with the clothes underneath the lady’s sweater. After she puffed out a smoke ring, she raised her slender fingers. She pointed at Gao Ming impatiently, signalling him to listen to the doctors.
“Now that you’ve registered yourself, please wait here for a moment.” The nurse’s expression shifted. The scars on her face moved. “Something happened with the doctors on duty. I have to check on them.” After she took a few steps, she slowly turned around. She looked at each of them and uttered slowly, “I forgot to tell you one thing. There have been a few mysterious deaths in the hospital lately. The victims had a horrible death. It didn’t feel like humans could be the culprit. The case has not been solved. Therefore, please don’t wander around and do not trust any strangers.” The background music tensed. The female nurse continued, “You better stay in this room. If you’re really scared, you can go to the brain metal treatment centre. It can help you end your torment.”
The nurse tossed out a helmet and walked away. She disappeared. The group then realised the path that they had taken earlier was gone. The corridor became hidden behind layers of walls.
“Has it already started?” A girl in jeans hugged her friend, “Jia Jia, I’m at my limits. Can you go back and break up with that bastard already? Every time you break up, you’ll come to a scary haunted house. I can’t do this anymore.”
Jia Jia looked about 20. She was dressed nicely, but her eyes were not lit. “Don’t worry, Ol Cao. My heart is really locked up now.”
“Don’t be scared. It’s fated for us to be in the same team. If you’re scared, you can follow me.” The young man who spoke should be a university student. He looked buff. “I’m An Yuan. This is my roommate, Jie Ge.”
Jie Ge was more casually dressed. “Hey, beauties. I’m An Yuan’s adoptive father.”
“Go to hell.” An Yuan shoved Jie Ge away. “This is our second time playing this. This escape room is very big, and you have a lot of freedom. Your choice will affect the progress of the game. It’s almost impossible to solve it within the time limit.”
“Even though it’s called the scariest escape room in the intelligent city, to take care of most customers, the horrors in the outer layers are not that dangerous.” Jie Ge revealed some information. “I heard that the boss of this haunted house used to work for Immortal Pharma and knew many insider secrets. The haunted house is split into two parts, the body and soul, to simulate the progress of a normal person slowly losing his mind. The outer region, or the body region, is no different from the other haunted houses. The real horrors are in the inner soul region.”
“To enter the soul region, we need to find a medicine that can help us enter the dream. We lost at that stage the last time.” An Yuan shook his fist with regret.