Holding a glowing flashlight in his hand, locked in a pitch-black bathroom, Childe started to panic.
In a horror game filled with ghosts, getting locked in a tiny room that's confirmed to be haunted? Yeah, anyone would freak out.
If he had anything in his hand that could knock ghosts flat, maybe he wouldn't feel like such a coward right now.
But since he was stuck, Childe scanned the bathroom with his flashlight.
The sink, toilet, and bathtub were all filthy, like no one had touched them in years.
There was a hole in the wall behind the bathtub, and a little cockroach scuttled into it.
The mirror above the sink was grimy too—only the bottom part was reflective, showing just the lower halves of people standing in front of it.
And in the sink… there was this writhing blob that made Childe's skin crawl.
It looked like some sort of baby embryo—except the head was shaped like a freakin' shark.
But the sounds it made? That was a straight-up human baby's cry.
Then the radio broadcast they'd heard earlier suddenly clicked in Childe's head.
The husband had shot his wife… and she'd been pregnant.
"Wait, no way Σ(ﾟДﾟ;)!! That's the baby that was in the ghost mom's belly?!"
"A ghost baby. A literal unborn ghost baby. This is nightmare fuel Σ(°△°|||)!"
"Damn, even the embryo got caught up in this horror."
"This is just tragic. That poor kid didn't even get a chance to live."
"This bathroom has ghost kids now too?! Nope, I'm out. =口=)ノ"
…
At that moment, the baby embryo lit up by Childe's flashlight began to cry, like it was reacting to the light.
Right then, the bathroom door creaked loudly.
The doorknob started to rattle, like someone on the other side was trying to get in.
Did the crying summon the ghost mom?
Startled by the sudden sound, Childe backed into the wall, flashlight fixed on the door.
The air shimmered strangely, accompanied by a staticy radio hiss.
The pressure in the room felt suffocating. Childe's heart pounded like a drum.
"Man, all I did was shine a light on the ghost baby. Was that really enough to call its mom? (T▽T)"
But the terrifying moment he was bracing for—where the female ghost busted in to shred him to pieces—never came.
Instead, the baby in the sink stopped crying, and the bathroom door slowly creaked open a crack.
The hissing faded, and everything went silent.
"Wait, what? Σ(っ °Д °;)っ"
Childe blinked, totally confused.
That's… it?
No way it ends that easy.
Maybe the ghost was camping outside the door, ready to jump him the second he stepped out.
Still, to keep playing, he had no choice but to leave. The bathroom had no other exits.
Cautiously, Childe pushed the door wider and peeked right—nothing there.
The busted chandelier in the hall was swinging and creaking, and the door to the next loop was open.
When he turned the corner to look back, the hallway was still empty.
"That ghost mom's acting real weird (′～‵●)…"
Childe scratched his head, unable to make sense of it.
Whatever. No point overthinking. Time to move to the next loop.
Cycle seven.
Only the first light in the corridor was still working—the rest was swallowed in darkness.
Thank the Archons he had a flashlight.
Passing the grandfather clock, he checked the time. Still 11:59 PM.
Either the clock was broken, or time in this place was straight-up frozen.
Rounding the corner, he heard the radio again, blaring from near the front gate.
The bathroom door was ajar, and so was the door to the next loop.
Childe was being extra careful now. No more charging ahead like before.
He could feel it—the deeper he went, the more dangerous this was gonna get.
There was no way he'd make it through this one without something popping off.
Maybe the radio had new clues? Maybe something was waiting in the bathroom again?
His thoughts were a mess.
Childe was a warrior—he usually solved problems with fists, not brainpower. Compared to other Fatui executives, his puzzle-solving game was pretty weak.
Add to that how many times he'd already been scared out of his mind tonight, and his brain was basically fried.
Lost in thought, he started toward the end of the hall—
Then froze.
Something was off.
The sound wasn't right.
There were footsteps besides his own.
And judging by the click-clack... it was the sound of heels.
Women's high heels.
His blood ran cold.
High heels = female ghost = bad news!
f**k ∑(￣□￣;)!!
Sis, don't do this to me.
Childe stood still, not daring to take another step.
She was right behind him. He could feel it.
Should he duck into the bathroom?
Run to the radio?
Charge to the end of the hall?
Or… turn around?
No. Absolutely not. Turning around meant death.
Lisa—the female ghost—was always just a few steps behind the player. If you turned to face her, she'd kill you on the spot.
Rui Shen, watching from outside the game, smirked.
This seventh loop was brutal. One wrong move, and Lisa would end you.
You couldn't run into the bathroom. Couldn't answer the phone. Definitely couldn't look back.
Childe stood frozen, sweat dripping down his temple, heart thundering in his chest.
He couldn't hear the heels anymore, but he felt the chill creeping behind him. The low groan too.
"Okay, okay. She hasn't killed me yet. That means there's a way out. Gotta be a way."
"Just get to the end of the hall. Focus."
He stepped forward.
Click.Clack.Click.
Each step of hers behind him struck like a countdown to doom.
The hallway wasn't even that long, but it felt like it stretched for hours.
At the stairs, he grabbed the handle to the next cycle's door.
Twisted.
Nothing.
The handle wouldn't budge.
His face fell.
Dead end in front. Ghost behind.
This was it.
"No no no…"
The crowd watching the stream was holding its breath.
Childe's limbs went ice cold. He could already feel Lisa's smirk behind him.
Nowhere to run. One option left.
Turn around.
Maybe, maybe she was just bluffing again—like last time. Maybe she'd run away if faced head-on.
Wanna bet?
No choice.
Heart hammering, Childe spun around.
Lisa's twisted face was inches away.
He screamed.
"I'm done! Screw this game!! (?｀⊿′)?!"
Yanking off the virtual blindfold, he collapsed back on the sofa, mind spinning.
Rui Shen chuckled. No matter how tough they acted, anyone tossed into his horror games would be scared stupid.
No combat skills, full VR immersion—it was a recipe for screaming.
Childe slumped, frustrated and exhausted.
The great Fatui Harbinger, scared half to death by a ghost.
And worst of all, there was a whole crowd watching and laughing at him.
"Hey, isn't that guy one of the Fatui executives?"
"Yeah, I heard he just showed up in Liyue."
"Weren't the Fatui supposed to be stone-cold killers? Why's this guy such a scaredy-cat?"
"As we say: 'Do no evil, fear no ghosts.' Maybe he's just got too many skeletons in the closet."
"I mean, he still stuck with it. That's braver than me—I quit as soon as I saw the ghost baby."
...
Childe could hear every word and wanted to sink into the floor.
No way.
He couldn't let Her Majesty down like this!
Determined, Childe turned to another game on the screen—Digging for Ascension.
He heard this one was brutal. A true test of patience and perseverance.
Perfect.
He didn't become a Fatui Harbinger by giving up easily. His grit was carved from solid stone.
He was gonna take all the face he lost in Silent Hill · pt and win it back in Digging for Ascension.
Without hesitation, he clicked the game icon and dove in.
Rui Shen lit up with laughter.
This guy. Fell face-first into one trap and now running full speed into another.
What a beautiful soul. Rui Shen really needed more players like Childe to kickstart his business