There's definitely something wrong with this murder mystery game

"It's strange, there's no one on the third floor. Have they not come out of that dice rule yet?"

The female social worker was the first to step onto the third floor corridor; she looked around at the staircase entrance, speaking with curiosity.

Hearing this, the female reporter in the stairwell came back to her senses from her previous daze and climbed the steps. The marble in her hand kept rolling in her palm, gently rubbed by her fingertips.

"There might be a Phase Space in this place. They are probably in a different space from us now, similar to your experience when you entered the rule of that painting," the female reporter explained casually.

"If that's the case, are we really outside the rules now?" the girl asked earnestly, "Aren't we inside another game rule?"

"..."

The female reporter's expression became slightly rigid.

Before, when she realized what the young man in black meant, she had actually been pondering over this issue.

If they had truly left the rule, logically, Qiming Building should look the same before they entered as when they came out.

That is, the moment she triggered the rule on the third floor.

However, Rule Fifteen of the Qiming Charity Hall Visit Manual only indicated what not to do, but didn't specify what would happen if a rule was breached, nor what to do next.

So, it wasn't impossible for the third floor to return to normal.

But the incident with the Black and White Dice made the female reporter realize an issue—the old rules had already changed.

Therefore, this situation could easily give those trapped in the orphanage's rules a sense of illusion, making it very difficult to truly discern one's current predicament.

Are they still trapped in the rules, or have they already escaped?

How do you know whether you are in a new rule?

It's really hard to tell.

"Sister, what's wrong?"

At this moment, noticing the female reporter's pale complexion, the social worker approached with concern and looked at her worriedly.

The female reporter waved her hand: "Nothing, I was just thinking, you're right, that's why we need to be even more careful. If we accidentally trigger a rule, we might fall into a passive situation."

The female social worker listened and obediently nodded: "Yeah! I won't run around, I'll follow your lead!"

Hearing this, the female reporter's expression became a bit peculiar.

She didn't say anything more, standing in the center of the hallway and looking around. The first room near the staircase on the right side had a sign with the room number and the adjoining room name.

[307 Nursery].

"You stay here and don't move," the female reporter said, turning her head.

"Mhm," the social worker nodded obediently.

The female reporter walked towards the right corridor, and when she reached the doorway of the second room, she saw the label marked [306].

But there was only the room number without a name, and the door, the same color as the indigo floor, did have a window. She tiptoed closer to the door, trying to peer through the window to see what kind of room it was.

However, just as she raised her eyes towards the window, she locked eyes with a pair of dead, black sclera and brown iris.

Those eyes occupied half the window area, staring straight at her.

Whoosh—!
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The female reporter retreated abruptly, staring at the door in horror, her left hand gripping the marble defensively in front of her chest at that moment.

"Sister? What's wrong?!"

Immediately following that, the concerned voice of the social worker came from not too far away.

"I'm fine..." the female reporter responded almost reflexively.

Her heart continued to beat rapidly from the fright, and she took sharp breaths, her chest heaving violently for a while before slowing down.

Looking at the silent room 306 in front of her, the female reporter didn't approach the door again. Instead, she quickly turned and left the corridor.

Seeing the social worker looking at her with concern, the female reporter whispered, "This side should be the orphans' dormitory. The archive room is probably on the other side. Let's go check there first."

"Okay."

The female social worker still nodded in agreement, but just as she was about to turn around, her body suddenly stiffened, a look of tension and terror in her eyes as she stared behind the female reporter.

Seeing her sudden change of expression, the female reporter's face also stiffened: "What... what is it?"

The social worker edged closer to her, her right hand frantically pointing behind her, shielded by both bodies, and blinked to signal something.

That expression clearly meant there was something behind her.

It was like a scene straight out of a horror film.

The female reporter slowly turned her head, her gaze inching backward, and then she saw a young girl standing a few meters away near the back door of room 306.

The girl was about nine years old, with teak-brown curly hair tied into twin pigtails, dressed in a blue nun's outfit with black lace trim around her neck and both wrists, radiating an educated and graceful air, looking more like a noblewoman from the medieval times.

Only, the abnormal black sclera in her eyes made her seem eerie.

After all, normal people have whites in their eyes, but hers were black.

They say the eyes are the windows to the soul...

"Hello."

Just as the female reporter was inwardly scoffing, the girl across from them curved her lips into a smile and greeted them cheerily.

Her voice was deep and slow, spreading gently like ripples in water, with a tremble that echoed continuously in the listener's mind, giving one the sensation of sinking into the deep sea.

The female reporter was slightly taken aback.

Inclusive, vast, and the blue waters passed beside her...

She felt like a free little fish, enveloped by the enormous and expansive ocean, swimming quietly, soundlessly, and desolately through the ripples of the sea.