The second I spotted the supply box, I was over the moon. During my escape in Level 1, I'd lost my precious almond water. Even though my sanity wasn't too low, I was getting thirsty after eating that jerky earlier. Almond water could not only restore sanity but also quench thirst. The supply box was a total lifesaver.
I quickly popped it open. Inside, there was a neat row of almond water—mostly gray and green, with just one red bottle. What made me even happier was that beneath the almond water, there was a small backpack, a military knife, and a bunch of compressed biscuits and canned meat!
I figured this stash would last me three or four days. But what really got me pumped were the backpack and the knife. I counted everything: three bottles of gray almond water, two green, and one red. There were eight compressed biscuits and five cans of meat.
I stuffed it all into the backpack, zipped it up, and slung it over my shoulder, keeping only the knife in my hand. I kept searching for a way out.
Honestly, I had no clue how to get out, but I had to try my luck. Maybe I'd stumble across a door, and when I opened it, I'd be back in Level 1?
I kept exploring. I didn't have any way to keep track of time. Along the way, I downed a bottle of gray almond water. Surprisingly, after drinking it, I felt full.
I couldn't help but marvel at how magical the almond water was.
As I went deeper, I started seeing more and more floors glowing with that orange light. A few times, I almost couldn't stop myself from walking towards it.
Just as I'd finished half a bottle of almond water and a compressed biscuit, and was about to stash the biscuit bag back into my backpack, I heard that buzzing sound again, right above my head.
I knew that entity was back. I quickly found cover and ducked behind it.
The buzzing sound hovered above me for a while before suddenly stopping. At the same time, the light bulb above me started flickering and shaking, making a "creaking" noise.
I hid in the shadow behind the pile of junk. The dim light stretched the shadow of the junk, blending my shadow with it.
But what I didn't realize was that the entity was crawling on top of the junk, and its shadow was blending with it too!
I didn't dare to look up. I'm not sure how much time passed. I cautiously peeked out from behind the junk, but as soon as I did, I came face to face with that entity!
A death moth larva.
Startled, I jumped back. At the same time, I got a clear look at the thing—a massive moth!
The moth seemed just as startled by my reaction. It suddenly spread its wings and lunged at me. I swung the knife in my hand and kept backing away.
But the knife didn't seem to faze the moth at all. Its wings flapped violently, and it landed right on my face.
At that moment, I suddenly remembered the almond water in my hand.
They say a person's potential is limitless in a desperate situation. With the moth on my face, my brain went into overdrive. I thought, if almond water can ward off mental pollution, maybe it can ward off entities too?
There was half a bottle of almond water beside me. I grabbed it and splashed it at the moth crawling on my face. The moth seemed to hit something terrifying and jumped off with a "pop."
Luckily, it only landed on my face and didn't bite. Now, the moth had just been doused with half a bottle of almond water, and seeing the bottle still in my hand, it was wary of me, only circling in the air, not daring to get closer.
I carefully backed away, and with my other hand, I quietly reached into my backpack and pulled out another bottle of almond water.
But just then, something totally unexpected happened!
Suddenly, there was a loud "click," and I realized I'd stepped on the attic floor!
My body instinctively crouched down, and my entire leg sank into the floor.
You know what they say—when it rains, it pours. As I stepped on the floor, the standoff between me and the moth broke, and it lunged at me. But I hadn't even managed to grab the almond water yet...
I struggled like crazy, trying to pull my leg out, but then there was another "click," and the floor beneath me completely gave way. I fell right through!
A few seconds later, I didn't feel the impact of hitting the ground. Instead, I felt this dizzying sensation, like I was still falling.
I'd been no-clipped!
It's way too easy to get no-clipped in the Backrooms... Where would I end up this time?
That's what I was thinking right before I got no-clipped.
I've noticed that whenever I'm in serious danger, I just get no-clipped out of nowhere. Maybe it's some kind of weird luck. I thought to myself, feeling kind of helpless.
Once the falling sensation stopped, I quickly got up and started looking around.
When I saw my surroundings, I froze for a second. I was in this clean, fancy hall.
The place was decked out with early 20th-century decor and furniture. Smooth jazz was playing from somewhere, and there were neatly arranged potted plants in the corners and on the tables...
The scene was almost too perfect.
Sunlight was streaming through the windows, making everything feel warm and cozy. But to me, it felt completely unnatural.
Because in the terrifying Backrooms, a scene this peaceful and warm was just... wrong. I pulled myself together, tightened my grip on the dagger, and started exploring the area carefully.
After walking around for a bit, I figured out I was in the main hall of a hotel. The area seemed safe for now, and there were no entities around.
I let out a sigh of relief and slowly sat down on the floor.
That's when I noticed the floor was covered with this red and gold carpet, looking super luxurious.
I took a deep breath and stood up again.
From past experience, I knew that staying in one place too long usually led to something weird happening. I didn't dare linger here. I had to find a way back to Level 1.
There were a lot of rooms around the hall, and on one side, I even spotted an elevator.
I wasn't about to step into that elevator, though. Who knows what entities might be inside or where it could take me.
I focused on exploring the nearby rooms, hoping to find some useful supplies.
Each room had a golden sign with a number on it. But most of the rooms were empty, and some doors were even locked.
Then I noticed one door that stood out. It also had a golden sign, but this one had the number "3" written in black.
"Room 3?"
I thought to myself and slowly pushed the door open, stepping inside.
Once I was in, I was totally surprised. Not because of anything scary, but because this room was fully furnished. It had all the toiletries, an en-suite bathroom, and even everything you'd need to survive.
On the bedside table, there were three bottles of almond water—two gray and one green. Next to them were a few packs of military rations.
After checking the room and finding nothing unusual, I grabbed the supplies from the bedside table and stuffed them into my backpack.
Now I had seven bottles of almond water.
"I wonder what kind of useful supplies I'll find when I get back to Level 1," I thought to myself.
After collecting everything, I left the room. Even though it seemed like a decent place to stay, I didn't dare linger. Who knows what kind of terrifying thing might happen if I stayed too long.
After leaving the room, I wandered around the hall and stumbled upon a long corridor. I thought it might lead somewhere, but it just ended up in another room. This room was pretty big but completely empty, except for a single mahjong table in the middle.
What was even weirder was that the walls were covered with doors—so many that they were practically touching each other. There were even doors on the ceiling and floor. The whole scene gave me the creeps. I turned to head back to the hall, but then all the lights in the corridor suddenly went out.
I stared into the pitch-black corridor, swallowed hard, and turned back. Compared to the dark passage behind me, this lit room seemed a lot more inviting. I sat down beside the mahjong table and looked at the doors around me. After a lot of hesitation, I decided to open one of them and see what was inside.
I randomly picked a door and opened it carefully. Behind it was a corridor lit with these old-school oil lamp-like fixtures along the sides. It was actually pretty bright. I cautiously took a few steps into the corridor. Thankfully, the lights above me didn't suddenly go out, and the door and room behind me didn't vanish. I breathed a sigh of relief and started moving forward.
But halfway through, my body just froze. I saw dozens of those huge moths I'd encountered in Level 19 crawling all over the ceiling. I stood there, completely stiff, terrified of making any noise that might disturb them. The memory of Level 19 was still fresh in my mind. Just one of those moths had thrown me into a panic—now there were dozens of them...