"Don't be afraid, Yang Mo. Look, it's all fake! It's not really that scary," Jang X reassured with a playful smirk. She gently pulled Ling Ina's hand, signaling her to open her eyes.
"Well, usually, haunted houses are just full of illusions. Just think of it like playing a game," Yang Mo added, his voice calm and steady.
Hearing their words, Lingy Luo felt a bit more at ease. She slowly adapted to the eerie atmosphere, becoming bolder with each step. When a little ghost child floated toward them, she instinctively reached out, and to her surprise, her hand passed right through it.
"Haha! This is actually pretty funny. The effects are so realistic!" she laughed nervously.
Suddenly, the lid of a coffin creaked open in the middle of the room. The scene was eerily chilling. Without warning, a zombie inside sat up abruptly, its mouth gaping open, spraying a stream of crimson liquid toward Lingy Luo.
"AHH!" she screamed, instinctively burying her face into Yang Mo's chest, clutching his waist in a death grip. Her heart pounded against her ribcage. But after a moment, she noticed something was off. Why did this embrace feel different? Hesitantly, she opened her eyes and looked up—only to realize she had just thrown herself into Yang Mo's arms!
Embarrassment flooded her face as she quickly released him, taking a step back. Yang Mo, too, looked flustered, his ears turning red.
"Jang! Weren't you standing next to me?!" Lingy Luo stammered, trying to recover from her moment of panic.
"I was… but I stepped aside to check out the props on the floor," Jang X snickered, covering her mouth as she watched the scene unfold.
Yang Mo coughed awkwardly and tried to regain his composure. "It's all fake. See? There's no actual blood." He gestured toward the zombie, which kept sitting up and spewing more harmless liquid.
Gu Defan, who had been standing near the zombie, chuckled and reached out to give its head a solid pat—except he smacked it a bit too hard.
Crack!
The zombie's head detached and tumbled to the floor, rolling away.
"Wha—!? Be careful! What if you break the prop? The staff might make you pay for it!" Jang X scolded.
"Pay for what? There's no one watching! And besides, look at how scared Lingy Luo was! This guy needed a lesson!" Gu Defan declared, grinning as he gave the now-headless zombie two more kicks. Then, out of curiosity, he picked up the head and examined it. Inside was a small projector—the source of the illusionary blood.
"Pfft! This thing looks terrifying, but it's really just a bunch of gadgets," he laughed, shaking the head toward the others.
Jang X raised an eyebrow. "Since you're so bold, how about you lead the way for us next?" She crossed her arms, waiting for his reaction.
"Uh…" Gu Defan's face fell. "Y-you go ahead if you're so fearless!"
The group laughed and continued their way through the dimly lit corridors. Pushing open the next door, they were met with complete darkness. At first, nothing could be seen, but as their eyes adjusted, faint details began to emerge. The room was much more intricately decorated than the last. A mechanical mannequin was eerily grinding something in a human-head-shaped mill, its movements disturbingly lifelike. Distant ghostly screams echoed through the space, amplifying the unsettling atmosphere.
Snap.
Jang X suddenly felt something tap her shoulder.
"Gu Defan, stop it!" she snapped, assuming he was messing around.
"What?! I didn't touch you!" Gu Defan protested. In fact, he had taken refuge behind Yang Mo the entire time.
Jang X frowned and slowly turned her head.
A pair of pale hands rested on her shoulders.
Her breath hitched. The figure behind her was a faceless man, its featureless face somehow even more horrifying than any grotesque ghost. And unlike the previous illusions, she could feel its touch.
"A g-ghost!" she shrieked and bolted toward Lingy Luo, nearly knocking her over in the process.
"Ohh… I am the faceless man… and you must pay the price…" a slow, eerie voice groaned from the figure.
Then, it suddenly doubled over and coughed.
"Agh! My back! Damn it!" the faceless man groaned, clutching his lower back in pain.
Silence.
Lingy Luo blinked. "Wait… This sounds like an old man."
Realization dawned on them. Haunted houses often hired real people to play NPCs, and this must be one of them.
"What do you mean old man? I'm only 68!" the faceless man grumbled, straightening his posture with some effort. "I'm just filling in today because the regular guy is on leave! If the staff weren't on vacation, I wouldn't even be here!"
The group stared at him in stunned silence before bursting into laughter.
"Well, sir, you did a great job! Scared us half to death!" Jang X admitted, wiping away tears of laughter.
Even Yang Mo couldn't help but chuckle. "Alright, let's keep going. We still have a haunted house to survive."
As they moved forward, Lingy Luo, still gripping Yang Mo's sleeve, took a deep breath. Maybe haunted houses weren't so bad after all…