As Eric pushed the door open, she stepped into a swirl of pale, icy mist and advanced swiftly a few steps—only to find that the NPCs had vanished from sight.
Steadying her breath, she began cautiously exploring the morgue. The frigid fog clung to her skin and made her tremble. Gritting her teeth, she pressed on, her fingers finally brushing against the cold surface of a freezer drawer. Leaning in, she listened intently.
There should have been a corpse inside. Hearing no sound from within, Eric finally let out a breath of relief.
This wasn't her first time in a morgue.
While she was still alive, she had once visited one in a hospital. Back then, she had been a patient, newly acquainted with the concept of death. One day, driven by impulse, she had snuck into the morgue.
There, amidst the freezing air, she saw wailing families identifying the dead, rows upon rows of grayish bodies, and carts wheeling the deceased away for cremation.
So this, it seemed, was the essence of a human life: live it well while you can, then, when the time comes, leave behind a cold and rigid shell to return to dust.
With a heart heavy with sorrow, release, and acceptance, she had returned to her ward that day, curled up with her blanket, and quietly wept.
Now, back in a morgue once again, her mindset was entirely different.
The last time, she stood among the living and looked upon the dead.
This time, she stood at death's doorstep, clawing for a sliver of hope to survive.
"Don't be afraid," she whispered to herself.
**Knock, knock.**
Startled by the sound, Eric spun around.
A metallic clang echoed faintly through the fog—someone had opened one of the freezer drawers.
The only ones who entered before her were the three NPCs. Had they opened a freezer?
Eric immediately moved toward the sound.
Though the morgue lights were on, the thick mist made it impossible to see more than a few steps ahead. Guiding herself along the icy metal surfaces, she finally glimpsed a hazy pink silhouette.
She stopped at once.
A pink silhouette… Her instinct told her it was the paper effigy in pink clothing that the woman in white had bought.
So it was she who had opened the freezer?
Taking two steps closer, Eric found herself standing beside the ghostly woman. They were too close for comfort. But the ghost was focused on her task, and since Eric made no sudden moves, she was ignored.
She watched as the ghost pulled a corpse from the freezer and placed the paper effigy inside. At last, Eric understood the purpose of this task.
The ghost hoisted the corpse onto her back and disappeared into the mist.
Drawing in a steadying breath, Eric grasped the handle of a nearby freezer drawer. Just before pulling it open, she hesitated—then tapped it twice with her knuckles.
**Knock, knock.**
"Apologies for the intrusion. I'm opening the door now," she murmured.
Then she pulled.
Halfway open, she thought she heard a sigh—a soft exhalation that chilled her to the bone. Her heart leapt into her throat, her mind went blank, and for a moment, she forgot how to breathe.
Swallowing hard, Eric yanked the drawer fully open.
A gust of frigid air surged out. Frost gathered on her eyelashes.
Following the ghost's example, she reached inside to retrieve the corpse.
Touching the body bag felt like grasping a block of living ice. The corpse was unbearably heavy, but Eric braced herself and managed to lower it carefully to the ground.
Just as she straightened up, a force grabbed her by the collar—lifting her off the floor.
Everything happened so fast. Her head slammed into the iron drawer with a sickening clang, pain exploded in her skull—but that wasn't the worst part.
The true terror was that she had been yanked into the freezer. She was now *inside*—like a corpse herself.
In that instant, she finally understood why the woman in white had placed the paper effigy in the drawer.
The drawer began sliding shut again.
Thinking quickly, Eric flailed for something to jam the drawer open. One hand shot out to halt its motion; the other reached into her inventory and pulled out a paper effigy from the supernatural supermarket.
She shoved it beneath her in the freezer.
The moment the effigy entered, the drawer froze in place.
The bitter cold gnawed at her bones—just a dozen seconds inside, and she was already numb.
She forced herself to sit upright, hammering her legs to restore circulation. Then, with effort, she scrambled out of the freezer—only to fall hard onto the floor, her limbs too stiff to function.
She felt like a block of ice shattering on impact.
Forcing herself upright again, she shoved the freezer drawer shut.
Only after standing in silence for a long moment, and confirming nothing else stirred, did she finally breathe out.
She turned toward the direction from which she'd heard noise while trapped. Someone else was inside.
**Bang! Bang! Bang!**
No cries for help—only desperate kicking.
Eric frowned. When they entered the hospital, she had seen that most of the players following the NPCs were the ones who had made purchases in the incense shop.
So why were they being trapped?
Could it be that only paper effigies could serve as escape keys?
Kneeling down, Eric stored the corpse into her supermarket inventory and moved toward the sound. She had more supplies—a bundle of spirit money, for instance.
Inside one drawer, Piper's fists grew weaker with each passing second. The intense cold dulled her mind. She had used healing kits again and again, but they couldn't keep her warm. Her body and soul were being frozen.
She opened her mouth, but no voice came out.
Was she going to die here?
Die in a morgue, in a haunted hospital, inside a supernatural dungeon?
In her fading consciousness, Piper suddenly felt hot.
Too hot. She began undressing.
She *had* to take off her clothes—it was too hot…
Just as her hands moved, someone grabbed her wrist.
A voice, faint and distant, reached her.
"…wake… up! Healing… kit… wake…!"
She was slapped awake. The voice grew clearer.
"Buy a healing kit! Do you still have points?!"
*Healing kit…*
Survival instinct kicked in before consciousness returned. Piper purchased a kit.
The warmth surged through her.
The cold receded.
She gasped and bolted upright—awake.
Eric watched her revive and exhaled in relief. "Come on. Let's get out of here first. Take this with you."
Piper opened her mouth to thank her, but no sound came. She smiled bitterly. She still wasn't used to being mute.
She signed, *Thank you.*
"No need. Let's move." Eric shoved the drawer closed. Inside were two bundles of spirit money—both hers.
Moments ago, she had followed the sounds here and knocked, calling out politely, unsure what kind of ghost she might be dealing with.
**Better to be respectful—to ghosts, too.**
She had bumped something on the floor—a corpse bag and a dropped bundle of spirit money.
The player inside must've been pulled in just like her, but hadn't had time to prepare a paper effigy.
Eric tapped on the drawer and called out gently, "These offerings are for you. Please release the one inside."
The drawer creaked open just a sliver.
One bundle wasn't enough?
She shoved in another. Only then did the drawer fully open.
Piper didn't ask questions—couldn't, anyway. But she knew Eric had saved her life. She hoisted the corpse onto her back. It felt like a mountain.
Then she felt the weight lighten—Eric was helping.
Together, they moved toward the exit.
A sudden scream rang out nearby, followed by a frantic clatter of footsteps.
Fearing collision, Eric signaled Piper to move aside.
**Bang!**
The morgue door slammed shut.
"Go," said Eric.
When they finally stepped outside, Piper still felt like it had all been a dream.
"You made it out?!"
"Why only one corpse? Where's yours?"
"In my inventory. Too heavy," said Eric.
"You pulled it out too? How?" Carson pressed urgently.
No one asked Piper—they all knew she couldn't speak.
Carson's face was pale. From his voice, Eric guessed he had been the one who screamed earlier—Dominic.
"Where's the woman in white?" Eric asked.
"She left—same as you, carrying a corpse. Didn't say a word, just went upstairs."
"That mother and son duo—they left with one too."
"I copied her," Eric said simply. "Pulled out a corpse, put in a paper effigy—that's how I got out."
Then she asked, "What happened to you? Why did you run like that?"
"I nearly got dragged into a freezer!" Carson's voice cracked. He was visibly shaken.
He had entered the incense shop—but bought nothing.
At the hospital, he followed everyone into the morgue, hoping to just *watch*, like before. But after fumbling his way to a drawer—his mind went blank.
When he came to, the drawer was already open a crack.