Demon Apartment - Chapter 21 - Rock-Paper-Scissors

“Wait…” Dong Ning grabbed Dong Xie, saying, “This kitchen is too cramped. If all four of us go in and something happens, it might be hard to get out…”

If they all went in together and something happened, there would be a scramble to escape. Feng Yu’s possession happened in an instant, so even a brief delay could mean the difference between life and death.

“This…”

“How about just two of us go in? If we find anything, we can share it with everyone outside. To be fair, let’s decide with rock-paper-scissors.”

Rock-paper-scissors?

Everyone was taken aback. Deciding something so important with a game?

Ge Qi was the first to object, “Are you kidding? That’s not going to work!”

“Then you go in?”

“I… I didn’t mean it like that…”

Ge Qi hoped the siblings would go in while he stayed outside. But the siblings weren’t foolish.

“Rock-paper-scissors, it seems fair,” Zhao Long acknowledged. This method, purely based on luck, left no room for complaints. If luck was on your side, you wouldn’t have to go in. No one could blame anyone afterward, except maybe Dong Ning.

Dong Ning’s suggestion was undeniably thorough.

So, Dong Ning extended her hand, saying, “Alright, let’s start. Rock, paper… scissors!”

Everyone extended their hands, and the result was…

Dong Xie showed paper, Dong Ning scissors, Zhao Long and Ge Qi both rock. With no clear winner, they had to go again.

In the second round, Dong Xie showed scissors, Dong Ning rock, Zhao Long rock, and Ge Qi scissors. The losers were Dong Xie and Ge Qi!

Dong Ning looked at her brother, worried, but since she had suggested the game, there was no going back.

Ge Qi looked at his scissors in frustration. Why hadn’t he chosen rock like before? If he had, he wouldn’t have to go in! Dong Xie would have been the sole loser, and the remaining three could have played another round.

But everyone had agreed to the game. Backing out now was not an option.

Dong Xie patted Dong Ning’s head, saying, “It’s okay, I’ll be out soon. Zhao Long, please take care of my sister.”

Dong Xie didn’t want to leave his sister’s side, but perhaps she would be safer outside.

“I understand,” Zhao Long nodded firmly. “I’ll make sure to look after her.”

He could see the deep bond between the siblings, both willing to sacrifice for the other.

Dong Ning looked at her brother, feeling a mix of emotions. Her brother was five years older, and having grown tall quickly during his teenage years, he had developed a habit of patting her head-a gesture of affection and protection.

“Alright, let’s go.”

Dong Xie glanced at Ge Qi, and together they stepped through the door. The narrow kitchen could barely accommodate two people side by side.

Once through the kitchen, the space opened up into a more spacious living room.

“Phew…”

Ge Qi kept a close eye on Dong Xie. If an Evil Spirit appeared, he planned to push Dong Xie towards it to save himself. In his mind, he justified it by thinking: Don’t blame me, life is full of unfair situations. I was just delivering takeout and ended up in this mess. Life isn’t fair!

He assessed their sizes. Dong Xie was probably the tallest person in the Apartment, except for Mo Yuan. Ge Qi figured he would need to attack from behind to succeed. Of course, he hoped it wouldn’t come to that. If he failed, it would mean a fight to the death.

Unaware of Ge Qi’s thoughts, Dong Xie carefully examined the living room. He wondered if the key under the potted plant was like a hidden item in a game. If so, there might be something valuable here. But perhaps he was too influenced by his gaming habits; the Blood Letter Task wasn’t a game. Finding nothing was entirely possible.

The supposed pattern of resident deaths wasn’t absolute; many complex situations could cause exceptions. Blood letter records indicated that a Blood Letter Task could last as short as five hours or as long as a month, so the “safe interval period” wasn’t reliable. As the task neared its end and the Apartment’s restrictions eased, killings could become unpredictable. The so-called pattern was merely a result of the Apartment’s intervention. So, the current “safe interval period” wasn’t particularly trustworthy.

Zhao Long and Dong Ning watched the entrance. Dong Ning began to regret her suggestion. By sending her brother in, she had increased the risk of him encountering an Evil Spirit by 50%. Numerous blood letter records and Feng Yu’s fate made it clear: once an Evil Spirit attacked, resistance was futile, and death was certain.

Dong Ning realized she was becoming increasingly irrational. In the past, she wouldn’t have overlooked this. But the chaos had scrambled her thoughts. She recognized that, unlike in her student life, real-world problems didn’t have standard answers. There was no perfect solution to every problem.

And the most important thing was that she was now facing a situation where even a slight mistake in judgment could lead to disaster. This put immense pressure on her. The most desperate moment in her life had been her parents’ death. Now, the most terrifying thing was the thought of losing her brother. It would be as devastating as her own death.

Just as she was about to rush in, Zhao Long stopped her.

“Dong Ning, there’s no need for you to go in…”

“I have to… I’m worried something might happen!”

Inside the living room, Dong Xie searched but found nothing.

Suddenly, he felt a drop of water hit his forehead.

He raised the candle and looked up.

On the ceiling, there was a pool of liquid dripping down. But as Dong Xie lifted the candle for a closer look, he realized…

It was… a pool of blood!