Adrian raised his hand with a gentle flourish. One by one, the wall sconces lit up, casting a warm yet subtly oppressive glow along the ceiling, which gathered into a soft golden guiding line at the foot of the carpet, slithering silently toward the end of the hallway.
A faint breeze stirred the mist. As it parted, ten heavy wooden doors emerged, which were old and solemn. Each bore a number in gold, from one to nine.
However, the tenth door was nowhere to be found.
"These are your individual quarters," Adrian said, bowing slightly with composed grace. "Each key corresponds to a room. Inside, you will find all the necessary provisions. Be sure to return before the bell tolls at ten o'clock. Your room is the only place truly safe at night."
With a snap of his fingers, the air shimmered.
Nine ornate keys materialised from thin air, glowing faintly as they floated toward the nine players and settled gently in their hands.
"Wait… only nine?" someone muttered.
The silence broke. Eyes darted to the keys, and then to me.
I remained standing by the long table, hands empty, expression calm.
Jiang Che frowned even more tightly and asked in a low voice: "He doesn't want to take the key? Didn't he come in with us?"
"He was different from the start," Ji Ran whispered. "Didn't the butler call him 'Young Master' earlier?"
"Could be a hidden NPC," another player said in a low voice with a tone of defence and hostility. "A disruption role set by the system?"
I heard them, but only smiled. "I honestly don't know why they call me that. Maybe… it's just part of the setup?"
At that moment, the others stared at me. Under the light, I neither confirmed nor denied,
as if this misunderstanding had nothing to do with me and didn't need to be revealed.
Adrian watched from the side, smiling as he added softly:
"The Young Master's quarters are arranged separately."
He raised a gloved hand, pointing toward the east wing.
There, a previously shrouded corridor lit up. The golden trail extended into shadow, leading to a solitary black-lacquered door.
It was a black painted wooden door, extremely heavy, with dark silver lines embedded in the door frame. It had no number engraved on it, nor was it keyed, but it faintly released a kind of palpitating oppression. It had nothing in common with the other nine doors, as if it did not originally belong to the category of "players".
"That is the main manor. Unauthorised access is strictly forbidden."
"Understood." I nodded, looking as calm as if I was walking towards my own quarters.
I turned and walked away, not looking back.
My footsteps were light, deliberate, and silent on the carpet.
As I entered the corridor, the others watched, their expressions mixed with some tense, some unsure.
The door closed behind me with a decisive "click."
It was as if a veil had fallen between their world and mine.
A hush fell over the room.
The fire flickered. The ticking of a distant clock echoed. No one moved.
"Is he really… one of us?" Lin Qiao whispered, voice uncertain.
"I'm not sure." Jiang Che's eyes were fixed on the shut door. "But if he isn't… then what role is he playing?"
His words were like an icy needle, piercing the little sense of security that had just been established.
No one answered. No one laughed anymore.
From that moment on, they remembered one thing:
The "Young Master" was not one of their team.