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Chapter 24 - Something in The Mirror

After dinner, everyone took a short break. The scent of spices and stew still lingered in the air, drifting lazily through the corners of the grand hall. The candlelight flickered. The atmosphere had begun to loosen until one voice shattered the quiet.

"Even if this is just a game, it concerns our life and death. We can't afford to sit around doing nothing," Song Yao said, standing up, her voice unusually tense and firm.

Jiang Che looked up, frowning. "What are you planning to do?"

"We split up and search for clues," Song Yao replied. "We can't just sit here for wasting time."

The others exchanged glances, some nodded, and others looked hesitant.

Just as everyone began to move, Song Yao suddenly froze mid-step, her expression shifting.

"There's a mirror in my room," she said softly.

"Mirror?" someone echoed, confused.

"I can't explain what's strange about it...But I always feel like the mirror is staring at me."

The air fell into a brief stagnation, and others began to recall the layout of their own rooms.

"I have one too," Xing Wang said, his face paling slightly.

"I have one in my room too." Lin Qiao added immediately.

The others looked at each other, clearly, there were no mirrors in their rooms.

Ji Ran's expression shifted and he whispered the fourth rule that they had not paid attention to before:

"Beware of mirrors—they don't always reflect you."

The temperature in the hall seemed to drop a few degrees. The candlelight trembled, casting distorted shadows.

"What if the mirrors aren't just decoration?" Lin Qiao asked quietly. "What if they're watching us?"

"Or doors," Xing Wang said flatly. "To somewhere we don't want to go."

"This isn't the time for wild guesses," Jiang Che said, standing up. "We check the rooms with mirrors. See if anything's strange."

"We go together," Liu Zehao said nervously, glancing at Song Yao. "No one goes in alone."

"What about those without mirrors?" someone asked.

"We check those too," Ji Ran said. "Maybe they were excluded on purpose."

In the end, the group quickly formed teams and decided to start with the three rooms known to have mirrors, which were those of Song Yao, Xing Wang, and Lin Qiao.

"Listen up," Jiang Che added. "No matter what you see, don't go in alone. If there's anything strange, shadows, or movements in the mirror, get out immediately."

They all nodded. No one laughed. No one questioned the legitimacy of the rules anymore.

They began to move, their shadows stretching long and thin beneath the flickering candlelight.

And Rule Four is—

Beware of mirrors.

They don't always reflect you.

At this moment, Rule Four finally sounded like a real alarm bell in the hearts of each of them.

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