In the suffocating dead-end, through tear-blurred vision, Qiu Mian suddenly caught a discordant note amid the chaos.
The two approaching from upstairs—their footsteps weren’t perfectly in sync?
There was a faint sense that they were… holding each other back?
And the girl in the evening gown gripping her wrists so firmly—her smile was flawless, yet her gaze didn’t seem entirely focused on Qiu Mian. Instead, the corner of her eye subtly tracked the movements above.
Right! There are three of them! And it doesn’t look like… they’re on the same side? At least, not completely coordinated.
An absurd, reckless idea seized her like the last straw a drowning person could clutch.
Since solo strategies don’t work and solo escape is hopeless… what if… I make them interfere with each other?
Qiu Mian sucked in a sharp, wet sniffle, deliberately making her voice sound even more pitiful.
She lifted her head, eyes misty with tears, and looked at the gown-wearing girl. Then she cast a “timid” glance upward toward the stairs and whimpered,
“…They… they’re coming closer… I’m so scared…”
She tried to shrink closer to the girl’s side. Even though her wrists were still held, the movement clearly carried the meaning of seeking shelter.
“You… you’ll really protect me, right? Take me away from here… just you and me… okay?”
Please work, please work!
Come on! Show some proper yandere possessiveness and control!
Snatch me away from “them”!
The smile on the girl’s lips seemed to pause for a split second. A fleeting, unreadable glint passed through her eyes.
Of course she saw through Qiu Mian’s little ploy.
But the words still plucked at a certain string inside her.
The desire to monopolize. To eliminate all other interference.
“Of course.” The grip on Qiu Mian’s wrists eased—just a fraction.
“Don’t be afraid. Come with me.”
With that, she really did turn, pulling Qiu Mian along as she started walking deeper downstairs, completely ignoring the increasingly clear footsteps from above.
An aura that brooked no interruption emanated faintly from her.
It worked! At least we’re moving!
Qiu Mian secretly rejoiced and hurried to match her steps.
Just as they were about to round the next stairwell corner—momentarily slipping out of sight of the two upstairs—
“Trying to run?”
“Stay.”
From above, two voices rang out almost simultaneously. Footsteps suddenly accelerated!
Now!
Using every ounce of strength left in her body, Qiu Mian twisted and yanked—taking advantage of the exact instant the gown girl’s attention was drawn backward and her grip shifted to guide her away.
Miraculously, she actually managed to wrench her wrists free from that cool hand!
She didn’t dare look back. Direction didn’t matter anymore. Like a startled rabbit, she bolted in the opposite direction from where the gown girl had intended to take her—down a narrower side passage branching off the stairs!
Wind’s tight—time to bail!
Behind her came the rustle of clothing and hurried footsteps. Someone seemed about to give immediate chase, only to be subtly—or not so subtly—blocked by another figure.
“Get out of my way!”
“She’s mine!”
Amid the brief, chaotic argument, Qiu Mian had already plunged deep into the passage.
This seemed to be some kind of back-of-house maintenance area. The corridor was dim, lit only by the faint green glow of a distant emergency exit sign.
Did I… actually make it? For now?
She didn’t dare stop. Relying on instinct, she darted through the maze-like corridors, squeezing into the narrowest, most obscure corners she could find—anything to put more distance between herself and that nightmare.
She had no idea how long she ran. Only when the sounds behind her had faded to almost nothing did she finally lean against a thick, ice-cold pipe and gasp for air.
No good… I have to figure out what the hell is going on… Why did I transmigrate… Whose body is this… And those three—no, now four—terrifying girls, who even are they…
Forcing herself to calm down, she began to take stock of her surroundings.
It looked like the internal maintenance level of some large school building—spacious, eerily quiet.
Just as she cautiously poked her head out to try and get her bearings—
Tap.
A soft heel clicked against the floor, coming from behind a massive shadow ahead.
Qiu Mian froze solid.
No… way…
From the darkness, a figure slowly emerged.
Another girl.
She also wore a mask—this one a plain, even somewhat chipped white ceramic that covered the upper half of her face.
She was dressed in an ordinary, slightly worn dark hoodie and long pants. She stood there silently, holding neither knife nor teacup—just quietly watching Qiu Mian.
That gaze… made the goosebumps that had only just settled rise again in full force.
Fourth one?! Is there no end to this?! Is this place a yandere wholesale warehouse?!
Qiu Mian’s legs were jelly. She almost dropped to her knees on the spot.
The relentless barrage of high-intensity frights and sprinting had burned through every last drop of her stamina.
Whatever… just end it… make it quick…
Exhaustion crashed over her like a wave.
Looking at this newest masked girl—who, at least for the moment, wasn’t showing overt aggression—Qiu Mian forced out a smile uglier than tears and mustered the very last dregs of her give-up energy. Her voice came out weak and listless:
“So… you’re… here for me too? You also… ‘love’ me?”
The white-masked girl didn’t answer. She only tilted her head slightly, as though studying Qiu Mian carefully.
Fine… guess that’s a yes.
Qiu Mian took a deep breath and decided to go with the “brush-off” tactic.
“Okay okay okay, got it, message received. I… uh… kinda like you too?”
She spoke at lightning speed, desperate to either send this one away or at least stall her. “Look, it’s dark and dirty here—not really chatty vibes. Why don’t you head back first? I promise… next time I’m free, I’ll come find you to hang out?”
As she babbled, she tried to inch sideways, eyes darting around for any new escape route.
The white-masked girl remained silent.
But she took one step forward.
Qiu Mian immediately froze, throwing both hands up in surrender. “Whoa whoa! Easy! I’m not coming closer! See? Super cooperative, right? So… let’s talk this out? What exactly do you want? A hug? Or… a kiss?”
By the end she could feel her own face heating up at how ridiculous it sounded, but survival came before dignity!
The girl stepped closer again. Now the distance was dangerously small. She raised her hand, as though to touch Qiu Mian’s cheek.
Here it comes, here it comes! Same old routine!
Resigned, Qiu Mian squeezed her eyes shut. Internally she was ranting at the sheer absurdity of this transmigration experience while outwardly she leaned her cheek forward just a fraction and muttered,
“Fine fine fine, here you go, take it, one kiss and we’re even, okay? Then we can each go our sep—”
The words died in her throat.
The expected soft touch never came.
Instead—
A sharp, icy sensation pierced her left side just below the ribs, instantly blooming into searing, molten pain!
“—?!”
Qiu Mian’s eyes flew wide open. In utter disbelief, she looked down.
The hand the girl had raised now held an unremarkable short knife.
And more than half of its blade had already sunk into the soft flesh of her abdomen.
Bright red rapidly bloomed across the front of her light-colored dress.
The pale, steady hand gripping the hilt belonged to the girl.
Behind the white mask, no expression could be seen.
“Wh… why…”
Qiu Mian’s lips moved, but only a breathy wheeze came out.
Pain crashed over her like a tidal wave, draining her strength in seconds.
Her vision began to sway and darken.
The knife… actually… went in…?
It hurts… way more… than I imagined…
But… aren’t they just yanderes…? Shouldn’t it be… imprisonment, obsession, twisted love…? Why… straight to…
Her body’s power vanished in an instant. She crumpled forward like a broken doll—only to be gently caught by the girl in front of her.
Consciousness blurred rapidly. Her final, fragmented thoughts were filled with unwillingness and sheer absurdity.
This transmigration… sucks so bad…
Opening straight into… hell-tier love-rivalry deathmatch… no, four-way now…
No system… no golden finger… no cheat at all… nothing…
Is it really… going to end… like this…? I haven’t even…
Darkness rose like a gentle tide and swallowed her whole.
Everything went black.
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