“Ah. It’s been here since I got here? Looks like someone’s been here!”
“…”
Damn it. Was my act awkward? Basileon looked at me with suspicious eyes.
And then…
Rattle—!
I could hear Havel moving inside the crate, probably feeling cramped.
“Hoo… hoo…”
Fortunately, by mimicking Havel’s breathing, the sound was masked, and Basileon didn’t notice.
I deliberately made my sounds in sync with the rattling noise.
“Basileon. Even though we were apart for a moment, I suddenly have something I want to say to you!”
“What is it?”
“Let’s get out of here first!”
I buzzed around Basileon frantically, making sure he didn’t notice Havel.
Fortunately, he obediently followed me outside.
‘Something terrible was almost going to happen…’
If Havel gets discovered in that kitchen, he’ll be killed on the spot by Basileon.
Because Havel is so slow and not very agile.
Ah. That guy, he’s a glutton, so he does speed up when there’s food in front of him, but he’s still slower than other people.
“Shall we start walking for now?”
Havel stayed in the kitchen, while I opened the map to check the locations of the other survivors.
[Map]
! Basileon Ravenwood 〈1st Floor Hallway〉
! Evan Martinez 〈1st Floor Mirror Room〉
! Lilith Garrett 〈3rd Floor Guest Room〉
! Havel Acron 〈1st Floor Kitchen〉
‘Ah. Why is Evan in the Mirror Room again!’
Since walking forward would soon lead to the Mirror Room, I turned back again.
The chances of Basileon entering the Mirror Room himself were slim, but if he ran into Evan coming out, it would be over.
Neither Evan, nor Havel, nor anyone else in the game must die.
If I don’t make it obvious, Basileon won’t realize that I’m looking at the map.
“So…”
For some reason, Basileon no longer seemed suspicious and followed me diligently.
But…
[Map]
! Havel Acron 〈Passing Through 1st Floor Kitchen Door〉
‘I’m going crazy.’
“Ah… wait a moment. I’ll go get some fresh air.”
I pretended to have a headache and phased through one wall as if I were leaving, then looped around and re-entered the kitchen from the other side.
Because Havel was opening the door to leave the kitchen.
“What are you doing? Why did you come out of the crate?”
“It’s cramped…”
“You idiot! If you open that door, you’re dead! Then forget cake — you’ll be eating clouds in heaven instead!”
Fortunately, Basileon was standing a little ways away from the kitchen, so I whispered in as low a voice as I could.
“Cake?”
“Yeah, cake!”
“That’s right! Cake!”
Havel lunged toward the cake, his bulky body thudding with every step.
Hearing the noise, Basileon started moving back toward the kitchen.
‘This is crazy.’
“Whoa—!”
Before I knew it, Havel had picked up a fork to dig into the cake.
‘Then this is the only way!’
Used 〈Attack〉 on the 〈Cake〉.
〈Remaining Uses: 8〉
Thud—.
I swung the ladle at the cake and smashed it so Havel couldn’t eat it.
“N, no!”
Havel screamed in despair as he stared at the smashed cake.
◇ Fear Level: 7%
Thud— thud— thud!
◇ Fear Level: 32%
Seeing the cake crumble, Havel’s Fear skyrocketed.
Thud— thud—!
‘Yeah! His Fear has surpassed 50%!’
Havel wasn’t afraid of me, the spirit, but whenever I messed with his food, his Fear would rise.
“Aaah! S, stop it!”
“Stop, what’s wrong?”
Used 〈Possession〉 on Havel Acron.
Since Havel’s Fear exceeded 50%, I immediately possessed him.
[Map]
! Basileon Ravenwood 〈In Front of 1st Floor Kitchen〉
“Ha…This is driving me crazy.”
Basileon was walking almost right up to the kitchen.
But I’m a veteran of this insane game. No matter how difficult a survivor character is, their potential is limitless in the hands of a skilled player.
Havel’s trait is “Appetite.” When food is in front of him, his Speed and Agility skyrocket depending on the amount of food.
I opened the cupboard and reached deep inside, pulling something out from the back.
Even this simple action was extremely difficult with Havel’s bulky body.
Obtained 〈Mysterious Box〉.
Inside the box was an afternoon tea set and coffee. When I was another survivor, I used this to restore health.
Thump, thump…
Seeing the afternoon tea set, I could feel Havel’s heartbeat racing wildly.
Trait 〈Appetite〉 activated.
Speed and Agility increased.
‘Good!’
With my body now lighter, I hid behind the kitchen door.
Kiiiek—.
[Map]
! Basileon Ravenwood 〈Passing Through 1st Floor Kitchen Door〉
“Surely there’s a little rat hiding somewhere.”
Basileon, having re-entered the kitchen, spoke in a chilling voice.
“That earlier thing seemed suspicious.”
Basileon slowly walked toward the wooden crate.
Euph.
Even if I stayed still, Havel’s breathing was too loud. So I held my breath completely.
Kiiieek—.
The moment Basileon opened the wooden chest…
Tak—.
I used that moment to slip out of the kitchen.
Then I started grabbing the afternoon tea set from the box and eating it greedily.
Trait 〈Appetite II〉 activated.
Speed and Agility increased.
‘Eating while running… I feel like I’m going to puke!’
But there was no choice if I wanted to run fast.
I kept shoving food into my mouth.
Trait 〈Appetite II〉 activated.
Speed and Agility increased.
The more I shoveled the afternoon tea set into my mouth, the more the trait stacked.
Even if Havel isn’t as fast as the other survivors, he’s now fast enough to outrun Basileon in the early stages.
‘It’s lucky that this happens to be the kitchen.’
I’m lucky, since not every place I go has food hidden around.
I turned around to see how far Basileon had followed me, only to be met with an unexpected sight.
“Hng?”
Basileon was standing still in front of the kitchen. He wasn’t following me.
And his gaze had a look as if it could pierce through everything.
‘Could it be… that he’s noticed I’m Evien?’
“Ey, I don’t know…”
So, while climbing the stairs to the second floor, I paused at the landing. Using Havel’s body, it was just too exhausting.
“Huff… huff… ha… this is insane.”
But at this point, there’s no way Basileon will catch up. The early-game Basileon is slow anyway.
Wiping away Havel’s sweat, pouring out like broth, I lifted my head—and…
“You…”
“Ugh!”
Right in front of me stood Basileon. This was unbelievable!
There was no space to run, and seeing Basileon radiating murderous intent right before my eyes, fear washed over me.
I pressed myself against the wall, unable to move, trembling uncontrollably.
Srrrng…
Basileon drew his flamberge without hesitation.
And then…
Thud—.
In the blink of an eye, the sword moved, aiming to stab me…
…Wait, it didn’t actually stab me.
Strangely, it didn’t hurt. Squinting slightly, I saw that the Flamberge was embedded in the wall. It seemed to have missed me and struck the wall instead.
“You…”
Trembling all over, I barely opened my eyes and looked at Basileon.
Why did that delicate, cold face of his look so sad today?
A wounded look in his eyes. Through the strands of disheveled hair, a complex emotion flickered across his gaze.
“…”
[Basileon Ravenwood]
◇ Intimacy: 42%
◇ Anger: 59%
Once again, his intimacy decreased while his anger increased.
Basileon and I stared at each other in silence for a while.
“….”
At that moment.
Are my eyes deceiving me?
Tears slid down Basileon’s cheek, traced his jawline, and fell to the ground.
In his crimson eyes, I could see a deep, buried sorrow.
Startled, I widened my eyes and stared at Basileon.
Then Basileon turned his head away, as if he didn’t want to show his face.
Then he withdrew the Flamberge from the wall and sheathed it.
[Basileon Ravenwood]
◇ Intimacy: 37%
◇ Anger: 63%
If his anger level rises uncontrollably, Basileon will be consumed by madness.
If that happens, he’ll become completely uncontrollable, raging so wildly that even I, as a spirit, wouldn’t be able to stop him. That can’t happen…
“Go.”
“…Yes?”
Basileon just passed me by.
With those sorrowful eyes that are so hard to ignore.
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Oh my god.
I can’t believe how strange this game is 😆
Though as a horror genre? Havel would probably be hard-mode character?