Kaleidoscope of Death

Chapter 63: The Seventh Door

As the day to enter the door grew closer and closer, Lin Qiushi and Ruan Nanzhu also just about got done with their prepwork.

This was the first time Lin Qiushi would be entering a door with someone from the internet. Ruan Nanzhu told him there were always risks with internet gigs, so they must hide their true identities well once inside. Being discovered would be quite troublesome—but this, to Lin Qiushi, felt suspiciously like an excuse to get him to crossdress.

Once Ruan Nanzhu put on women's clothes with him however, the sense of imbalance in Lin Qiushi's heart eased by quite a lot.

Cheng Qianli seemed to know what Lin Qiushi thought about this, and cautioned solemnly for him to keep heart, and not to let Ruan Nanzhu's scary ways rot his mind too.

Lin Qiushi looked at Cheng Qianli, but didn't speak.

Cheng Qianli, "why are you ignoring me..."

Lin Qiushi typed on his phone: I'm getting into character as the mute girl.

Cheng Qianli, "..." Lin Qiushi, you're totally screwed.

Sometimes being too well-adjusted wasn't a good thing after all.

Finally, after a few days of wandering about the mansion in a dress, Lin Qiushi saw the day to enter come. He was eating at the dining table when a mysterious sensation suddenly manifested. He was very familiar with it. Lin Qiushi set down his chopsticks, turned, and pushed open a random door in the room. He wasn't surprised at all that the space beyond had turned into the twelve metal doors.

Five of the doors were sealed off, and six others couldn't be opened. The only one that could be opened belonged to the door's owner.

Lin Qiushi took a deep breath, grabbed the handle, and tugged.

The door opened obligingly, and the scene before Lin Qiushi morphed, becoming a long walkway. It seemed to be stairs out of a basement. The air was musty, and the stairs seemed long and endless. Lin Qiushi slowly ascended, and after many turns, finally saw people waiting in a lobby.

As he removed the bracelet from his wrist, he studied the surroundings to confirm that he was indeed in the sanatorium named in the hint. Even though it was a sanatorium, it carried the disinfectant scent of a hospital. There were abandoned sickbeds everywhere. Passing one, Lin Qiushi actually saw brown stains of dried blood.

Eight people had already gathered, nine including him. Some gazes passed over him, but some took interest and began looking him up and down. Their gazes held a distinct intention, but Lin Qiushi stayed impassive and pretended he didn't see any of it.

Someone walked in front of him, extending a hand with a smile. "Hello, I'm Jiang Yingrui. Can we get to know each other?"

Lin Qiushi typed on his phone: sorry, I can't speak. I'm Lin Qiuqiu.

Jiang Yingrui said, "oh, please excuse me. Which door is this for you?"

Lin Qiushi: sixth.

Jiang Yingrui seemed very interested in Lin Qiushi, and wasn't dissuaded at all by Lin Qiushi's cold attitude. In the end Lin Qiushi had to bluntly write: excuse me, but I'd like to be alone for a bit.

Jiang Yingrui read these words and smiled. "Fine then."

At least he didn't bellyache about it, just turned and left. It seemed he'd wanted to team up with Lin Qiushi, but Lin Qiushi's rejection was clear.

The lobby they were in was on the first floor of the sanatorium. Outside was an overgrown courtyard, and above were the patients' wards.

There were six stories total, demarcated clearly by function. It seemed though that nobody here was in a good state of mind—at least, Lin Qiushi saw plenty of messy scribbles and graffiti covering the walls.