The butler, Kaiden, observed the people with various expressions and then spoke.
“There are currently three rules you must follow. You must dine together in the dining room every evening, do not enter someone else’s room without permission, and thirdly, you will not kill the sacrifices until the third day.”
When Kaiden mentioned “sacrifices,” his gaze lingered on Luda for an oddly long moment. Luda pretended to be unfazed, not revealing her surprise.
Though everything was predetermined, the invited individuals still didn’t know they were sacrifices.
After looking at him, pretending to be studying his monocle, Kaiden eventually averted his gaze.
“In addition to this, there are a few more things you should know, but I will provide detailed explanations in your respective rooms. Also, the most important thing, whether you are a sacrifice or a ghost, can be confirmed when you return to your rooms. That’s all for now.”
Kaiden finished his instructions and left the reception room without looking back.
Apart from one change regarding the duration of the no-killing period, everything Luda heard matched what she already knew.
“But why three days instead of five?”
When she asked, the game initially had a five-day period where sacrifices couldn’t be killed. But now, Kaiden had mentioned three days, which was different and raised her concern.
Other than that, the common rules were straightforward. Since it was only the first day, there was no immediate threat to anyone’s life until the third day.
“I should try to form some reasonably trustworthy alliances during these three days,” Luda thought to herself.
In her experience with the game, how they spent the relatively safe early stages greatly influenced the types of endings they could achieve later.
[You have received Butler’s explanation.]
[Proceeding to the next step of the tutorial.]
[Objective ▶ Interact with the characters in the reception room.]
The tutorial had moved on to the next step. Luda turned her attention away from the system window and observed the situation in the reception room.
It was oddly quiet. Everyone seemed disinterested in the Night of the Ghost as if it was of no concern to them.
“Usually, a character would step forward at this point.”
And shortly afterward, as expected, someone finally broke the silence.
“How about we introduce ourselves?”
Luda looked toward the source of the gentle voice. The man with bright blond hair and beautiful light green eyes was strikingly handsome.
His clothing was rather peculiar as well. He wore a black cloak over a white priest’s robe and had a long red belt with golden patterns around his neck.
Luda saw the name “[Yulian]” floating above his head.
It was a name she was already familiar with. In Love in Horror, Yulian was one of the more communicative characters at the beginning and, except for some quirks, was relatively easy to interact with.
“I’ve spoken, so I’ll start. I’m Yulian. And you are?”
Yulian directed his gaze towards Luda, awaiting her response.
“I am…”
Luda was about to respond when she was interrupted.
[Please set your player name.]
[PLAYER: Luda]
Luda gazed at the semi-transparent window that had appeared on the table. The name was already entered, and there didn’t seem to be a way to change it in the current system window.
She waited silently, and the screen changed on its own.
[PLAYER name set as ‘Luda.’]
“I’m Luda.”
After the message confirmed the name had been set, Luda finally spoke. There wasn’t much else to say besides her name. Besides, Yulian had no other information displayed aside from his name.
“Do you have anything else to say?”
“No.”
“Very well. Now, may the other two introduce themselves.”
In the cold atmosphere, Yulian continued, unfazed.
Then, someone who had been observing quietly from the opposite side spoke up.
“I’m Kyren. But does everyone really believe this ridiculous story?”
As introduced, the name “[Kyren]” floated above her head. She was a pale-skinned woman with sharp features.
Her tangled violet hair and purple eyes gave her a seductive allure. Coupled with her black dress, she exuded an unapproachable aura.
“Well, I think I’ll wait and see.”
Yulian replied with a faint smile, unfazed by Kyren’s demeanor. The sunlight streaming through the large window of the reception room illuminated his face.
Luda, on the other hand, turned her head in response to Kyren’s comments.
“It’s boring and tedious, isn’t it? What’s the point of these antics?”
The black-haired man who had been leaning back in his chair, watching as a bystander the whole time, spoke up. Above his head, it read “[Esteban].”
Esteban, dressed in a somewhat extravagant black suit, twisted his lips in disdain.
Luda couldn’t hide a slight furrow in her brow at his haughty attitude.
“He’s starting again from the beginning.”
Esteban had been a character Luda didn’t particularly like throughout the game.
His unruly midnight-black hair and contrasting crimson eyes scanned the reception room before stopping on Luda.
“You must be the sacrifice.”
Esteban stated matter-of-factly, then rose and confidently walked out of the room.
“Is he out of his mind?”
Luda was about to utter something when the system window popped up.
[You have interacted with all the characters in the reception room.]
[The tutorial is now complete.]
[‘Hell Mode’ has been automatically selected.]
[Affection feature has been unlocked.]
[Inventory feature has been unlocked.]
[Due to ‘Hell Mode,’ characters’ threat levels will increase.]
[You are now free to proceed.]
[Good luck.]
Luda glanced at the overwhelming number of system windows that appeared and quickly looked down. She didn’t want to seem suspicious by staring blankly into the air.
“But why Hell Mode?”
And it was automatically selected, no less.
She had played through the game before, and it had normal and hard modes, but “Hell Mode”?
The connotation of the term didn’t sit well with her. Moreover, it came with unfavorable effects.
“Could this be related to the difference between three days and five days?”
It was possible. Typically, as the difficulty mode increased, all conditions tended to become worse.
“Shall we go outside then?”
Breaking through the oppressive atmosphere, Yulian spoke up, offering to leave the reception room.
* * *
“Let me guide you to your rooms.”
As they exited the reception room, Rita spoke, and both Yulian and Luda followed. Luda took a moment to survey her surroundings. The reception room was at the back of a large hall, with long corridors stretching on both sides. Looking up at the stairs leading to the second floor, she sensed someone’s gaze and turned her head.
Rita was staring intently at her.
“Please follow me.”
Rita led the way down the left corridor, and the others followed suit. Along the corridor, there were sporadic candelabras hanging on the walls.
After a short walk and a turn around a corner, they arrived at a corridor lined with doors.
“Your room is here, Luda.”
The room that Rita guided them to was at the very end of the corridor. Before entering her own room, Luda took a moment to check Yulian’s and Kyren’s rooms.
Their rooms were adjacent to hers, with Kyren’s and Yulian’s rooms following in order.
Fortunately, the location of their accommodations and the reception room seemed unchanged from before.
However, the mansion was so vast, and in reality, everything felt quite unfamiliar. Moreover, there was a significant difference between what they had seen on the screen and the reality of the mansion. The characters were experiencing the same sense of unfamiliarity. What they had previously seen as colorful illustrations was now tangible, making it feel surreal.
Upon entering the room, Luda immediately noticed a change. Items were placed on the small table that hadn’t been there before.
The first things that caught her eye were two pieces of paper, tightly bound with red strings. One was white, and the other was black.
Next to the papers were a small key and a pocket watch.
Luda picked up the white paper and sat on the bed.
She pulled the red string to open the paper, and at that moment, a system window appeared before her.
[Player ‘Luda,’ welcome to the cursed Hailik Manor.]
[You have become a participant in the Ghost’s Night as a sacrifice and must survive until the end without being murdered by a ghost.]
[There is only one way to exit this game.]
[Survive the Ghost’s Night and achieve the true ending condition!]
The message had a cheerful tone, but the content was grim.
Luda’s gaze fixated on the last line.
“A true ending? Was there such a thing?”
