Jin looked around him in a frenzy, eyes darting through the dense fog, desperately searching for any sign of the clown.
It had just been there, its presence was suffocating.
But now, the playground was silent.
Jin clenched the action figure tighter in his hand, its plastic surface slippery with sweat.
Every nerve in his body screamed to run, but instead, Jin Qiang stayed rooted to his spot, too afraid that if he moved, the clown would jump out somewhere from the mist and cleave him in half.
His voice cracked as he whispered-shouted, "Xiao Hei! Xiao Hei!"
And with a sudden pop, the cheeky ghost materialized beside him like a stage magician.
"Oh my~ Qiang-ge, you really fucked up didn't you?? Hahaha~ That was a movie-worthy trailer… I was at the edge of my seat with popcorn all over the floor hehe~" Xiao Hei giggled, clearly enjoying the show.
Jin's fear boiled into anger. "You said this was an entry-level haunt!"
"Well~" Xiao Hei hummed. "It is entry-level… by our standards."
"What standards?! 'Unwinnable death trap' is not beginner friendly!"
Xiao Hei twirled midair with a grin. "It's an entry-level of horror Qiang-ge~ Hehe~"
"Just help me out for once…" Jin growled softly. "Find out her real name for me… Go ask the dolls, the spirits—whatever. I'm running out of time here…"
"Ehh~ Why can't you do it yourself?" Xiao Hei pouted.
But before Jin could retort, a chilling laugh echoed across the empty playground.
And both of them froze.
KEKEKE ~
The sound came again, closer this time.
They turned towards the source and saw the clown standing at the merry-go-round's edge, one red boot stepping down as if descending into the mortal world.
"That's why…" Jin muttered, eyes wide.
Xiao Hei clicked his tongue. "Tsk right~ You made a new friend. Okay, Qiang-ge, leave it to me. I'll ask around for her real name. You just… stay alive for now, okay?"
The clown then raised both of its hands—VVRRROOOOMMM—a rusted chainsaw screamed to life.
Jin forced a nervous laugh. "Ha… ha… oh look, it brought a toy…"
The clown descended from the carousel and slowly stepped towards them. Each step is loud and deliberate. Jin took a careful step back each time the clown took one forward, "Xiao Hei, hurry or I'm about to become minced meat!"
"I'll only be gone five minutes~ So try not to get tagged~" Xiao Hei's voice faded as he poofed out of there.
The clown then paused and tilted its head side to side.
Then it grinned even wider and revved the rusty, old chainsaw again.
Jin didn't wait any longer and just took that as a sign to run for his life.
✦ Sanity: 51% → 50% — The last brain cell.
Time Limit: 00:12:02
The chainsaw's roar carved through the night like a jagged scream.
Jin Qiang stumbled through the fog-shrouded playground, his heart thundering in his ears, and his breath coming in shallow, panicked gasps.
The shrill sound of manic laughter echoed behind him, distorted and unreal, as if the very shadows were mocking his fear.
"Mengmeng!" he shouted into the empty darkness, holding the battered action figure aloft like an offering. "Let's play, okay?! Please! Come out!"
No response.
Just the steady revving of the chainsaw, a laughter mangled by the engine's buzz and the clown's boots thudding against the cracked tiles of the playground.
Jin hurdled over a broken swing set, ducked behind a crumbling slide, and dashed through the sandbox.
"MENGMENG!" Jin screamed, voice cracking in desperation. He waved the action figure wildly in the air like a white flag, "Let's play! Gege wants to play with you!!!"
Still nothing.
Only the sound of the chainsaw revving behind him, getting closer with each breath.
Meanwhile…
Xiao Hei zipped through the fog like a drunken hummingbird, stopping to poke his head into play areas, under seesaws, and through haunted tunnels.
"Hellooo~ Spirits of creepy land~ Anyone know our girl Mengmeng's real name?"
"No?"
"No idea?"
"Ohh… No too."
He popped into different spots, questioning the spirits. But none knew the name.
That was, until he found her.
Xiao Hei hovered before the doll, who sat at her usual post at the gray-grimed chair at the crooked playhouse.
"Nurse Mimi~" Xiao Hei said, bowing dramatically. "So, about little Mengmeng… Do you know her real name?"
Mimi tilted her head and the words on the paper sign hanging from her neck had change.
[I already showed him.]
Xiao Hei read the words and blinked. "Eh? You showed him? Not told?"
She nodded and the words changed again.
[He has what he needs. If he remembers.]
Time Limit: 00:08:54
Jin Qiang darted behind a plastic tunnel. His breathing came in gasps now, legs aching, and ankles throbbing.
The clown was still after him, but it slowed down midway.
He slowed down and turned around to peeked out, hoping maybe—just maybe—it was gone.
Wrong.
It was right there, head tilted to the left, a blood-red grin stretching toward its ears, and it was still chasing him.
"XIAO HEI!!"
With a puff, Xiao Hei reappeared and nearly smacked into Jin. "Qiang-ge~ I'm back!"
"DID YOU GET THE NAME?!" Jin's voice cracked as his head faced towards Xiao Hei, panic sharp in his chest.
"Well~ Not exactly…Tehee~" Xiao Hei said, acting cutely as he calmly floated beside Jin who was running.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN??!!" Jin's breath fogging in the cold, fog-thick air.
"Well, after asking around, only Mimi knew it. Remember her? The nurse doll you got the first clue from? Anyways, she said she already showed you her name."
"WHAT?! NO, SHE DIDN'T! I don't remember anything except her telling me to take her creepy pill!"
"Maybe you weren't paying attention? I mean, not surprising~ You were screaming half the time. Hahaha~"
"I'M STILL SCREAMING!!!"
"Couldn't she just tell you again?!"
"She said she can't say it directly," Xiao Hei shrugged. "You know… nurse stuff. Patient confidentiality~"
"I'M GOING TO DIE BECAUSE OF HIPAA!?"
"You're doing great Qiang-ge~ But you should run faster… Its getting closer~"
Jin looked over his shoulder and screamed. "I'M ALREADY SPRINTING LIKE A MADMAN!"
"Ohh..."
Jin's head whipped around to Xiao Hei, "WHAT OHH?! DON'T JUST OHH! GIVE ME A SNARKY ONE-LINER AT LEAST! Now it just sounds like I have no choice but dying!!"
"Hehe~ Don't worry. It won't catch you for now."
"CAN'T YOU HELP? DON'T YOU HAVE SKILLS OR SOMETHING?!"
"Ohh, I dooo~ but—"
"BUT WHAT?!"
✦ Sanity: 50% → 49% — The last brain cell.
"Okay okay! Fine~"
[Skill Activated: Clingy Aura]
Xiao Hei latched onto his back like a spectral koala, and a soft purple aura wrapped around Jin like a spectral blanket.
"What the hell are you doing?!"
"Activating the buff. Hugging is part of the deal Qiang-ge~" Xiao Hei chirped.
"Let go!"
"Make me~ hehe~"
The killer clown then slowed down, and the chainsaw's roar quieted.
Jin turned his head to check and saw the clown had paused.
He stopped running and panted, saying, "So you do have a use."
"I told you so~" Xiao Hei chimed, still clinging to his back.
"What did you do?! And can't you get off of me now?" Jin said as he looked over at Xiao Hei, who was still stuck to his back like a leech.
"I used my skill, Clingy Aura~ It's an active ability that reduces ghost aggression by 20%, and possession risk by 30%, but can only be used when your sanity dips below 50%."
KEKEKE~
Jin froze and slowly turned his head to the side towards the clown.
"Hey… why's it moving again?"
"Well~ I said reduced aggression, not eliminated~"
Just as Jin Qiang caught his breath, the chainsaw roared again, and he bolted again.
"WHAT GOOD IS THIS BUFF?!"
"Well ~ I never said it was OP. If you want another ability, then level up~!"
"XIAO HEI!"
"Alright, alright~ I'll try asking Mimi again! So keep running, and don't die~!"
Poof.
Time Limit: 00:05:29
Jin ran, tears swelling up in his eyes. "MENGMENG!!! Let's play!!" He waved the action figure like a cursed maraca.
Behind him, the sound of manic laughter exploded, followed by the roar of something heavy grinding metal—Jin looked back in horror. The clown wielded the rusted chainsaw, dragging it behind him as he gave chase, his wild eyes glowing with joy, as if this was the game he'd been waiting for all along.
"NOPE!" Jin shrieked, nearly tripping over his own feet. "MENGMENG! MENGMENG, LET'S PLAY! LOOK! IT'S MY FAVORITE! PLEASE, JUST TAKE IT!"
The playground blurred around him as he sprinted and screamed.
Yet, still no response from the little ghost girl.
"I just want to survive one stupid stream…" he mumbled under his breath, "Not get murdered by a budget Pennywise with a chainsaw."
He tried to think. What did Mimi mean?
(Showed me… not told me…)
His thoughts scrambled as he tried to recall something, anything, that could save him.
Then he stumbled on the cracked pavement—one misstep— he fell and tumbled hard.
"Fuck! Nonononono—" He dragged himself up, teeth gritted, hopping forward on one leg. The pain was blinding, and it shot like lightning from his ankle, and his body crashed to the ground again.
His scream echoed through the empty playground, and the toy fell from his hand and rolled into the dust beside him.
For a second, the world felt still.
"No no no—shit! Come on!" Jin whispered-shouted, clutching his ankle.
The pain made it hard to think, and hard to breathe.
✦ Sanity: 49% → 47% — The last brain cell.
He then looked up, and the trees swayed, uncaring.
The wind whispered like a mockery.
And the laughter behind him was now louder... Closer.
His hands trembled as he tried to crawl, dragging himself away from the sound of doom behind him. "I'm gonna die here. "I'm gonna die. I'm actually gonna die in a haunted playground…"
✦ Sanity: 47% → 45% — The last brain cell.
He laughed bitterly, half-hysterical with tears in his eyes as panic crushed his chest. "I'm gonna die. I'm gonna die. All because of some damn doll."
He slammed his palms on the ground. "Why did I even come here?! This isn't fair—none of this is fair!"
He then began to sob. "Even my skills are useless. What's the point of 'Fainting or playing dead like a pro'? When I'm actually about to be dead…This is bullshit—!"
Time Limit: 00:03:33
"Fuck no, I don't want to die like this… That nurse doll said I know Mengmeng's real name? I just took one dusty candy from that small bottle."
[What could it be? I don't remember anything special written on the bottle or the paper sign…shit shit shit…. Damn it! All I remember is that candy pill that tasted like dust and strawberry… Wait… could it be?]
"CAO MEI?!" Jin shouted as he grabbed the action figure and raised it.
The killer clown with the chainsaw was nearly upon him, its mechanical buzz thundering closer.
[Shit! That wasn't it??? Then what?]
Jin Qiang tried hard to recall the memory with Mimi, the nurse doll.
[Small bottle of medicine. Only take one pill. Tasted like dust and strawberry…]
Then he heard it.
Step… step… step…KEKEKE~
Slow heavy footsteps, with a sickly laugh, echoed nearer, and the rusted chainsaw had quietly died down.
The footsteps got louder and then abruptly stopped.
Jin Qiang knew right then…. That it was now behind him.
✦ Sanity: 45% → 44% — The last brain cell.
His body froze, trembling a little.
He knows he shouldn't look, he didn't want to either.
Every nerve of his was screaming at him not to look.
To just stay still.
But his mind betrayed him. He had to confirm it.
He had to see.
Slowly…. So slowly… In a mermaid position on the ground, he turned his head like a sloth.
And there it was.
Pale, cracked grease paint. Black-ringed eyes. A smile too wide for a human mouth.
The clown's face was just inches from his.
✦ Sanity: 45% → 42% — The last brain cell.
DING.
He heard his phone's notification.
[Skill Activated: 💤 Fainting (Active/Passive)]
Play dead like a pro and gain a chance of dodging death during hauntings.
Passive Trigger Detected: Emotional Overwhelm
Ghost Mercy Activated
+5% Sanity
Duration: 1 Hour
Cooldown: 24 Hours
(Wait! What's happening? I feel weak all of a sudden…)
Jin suddenly felt his limbs going numb.
(Am I dying because of shock and horror?)
He exhaled, and his body slumped forward, slowly collapsing to the ground.
His consciousness flickered like a dying light.
(Fuck… Damn it all… If I knew I was gonna die, I should've at least splurged a little bit on my last supper, now all I can remember is the taste of that damn candy pill… Dust and strawberry.)
And as the darkness crawled into the corners of his vision, with his last breath, he whispered the words…
"...Chén Méi..."
Jin's eyes slowly closed, and the last thing he heard was the clown's wet gurgling laugh, light footsteps landing near him and Xiao Hei's perky annoying voice that yelled "QIANG-GE!!!" with a hint of concern.
His world then faded into silence.
✦ Sanity: 42% — The last brain cell.
Time Limit: 00:00:00