Sweet Home (3)

Nan Yue had the illusion that Grandmother was neither human nor ghost, but some kind of beast.

She watched Nan Yue at all times, waiting for the right moment to pounce and tear her throat out.

"Grandmother, why is the door locked?"

Anyone else might have been running around in a panic by now, but not Nan Yue. Having lived in fear for years, she was all too familiar with it.

But she remembered what her teachers said: no mission was without a way out.

In other words, as long as she conquered her fear, she wouldn't die here.

For Nan Yue, this was a guaranteed win. If she only had to overcome fear to survive outside the Scavenger Project, she would have given anything.

So at this critical moment, Nan Yue didn't run, break down, or apologize. Instead, she asked the question directly.

Why was the door locked?

Normally, a door was locked from the inside to keep thieves out, but now it felt more like it was meant to keep her in.

Nan Yue had a faint feeling that if she showed too much desire to leave, she might be in danger.

It was better to play dumb and stall for as long as possible.

Grandmother looked at her eerily, and after a long silence, she said, "It's not safe outside. Stay here."

"Amin must stay here with Grandmother forever."

Nan Yue felt her mouth go dry. She nodded. "Okay, I won't go out."

Hearing this, Grandmother beamed, her strange smile returning.

"What does Amin want to eat?"

Nan Yue didn't want to eat anything, but she spoke anyway. "I want roast duck."

Nan Yue had never eaten roast duck. People in Nameless City were at the bottom of society. If they hadn't joined the Scavenger Project, the government only cared that they stayed alive and kept studying.

Meals were always steamed buns, rice, and a blended vegetable and meat mash, but she had seen pictures of roast duck when studying the "Food" chapter in class.

"As long as you are outstanding enough to become employees of the Scavenger Project and save enough money, you can go to other city-states. There, you might be able to enjoy everything you've seen in books."

Her teacher's words seemed to echo in her ears as she tentatively mentioned the item she was most interested in.

Grandmother nodded. "Good. Grandmother will make roast duck for you tomorrow."

Nan Yue didn't know how she would manage to make roast duck, but since she couldn't leave, she didn't press the issue.

Grandmother's branch-like hand gripped Nan Yue tightly, forcing her to sit back down on the sofa.

The house grew even quieter at night. Although the window behind her was open, not a single sound drifted in.

It was as if there was nothing outside, as if this house existed in a world of its own.

The television remained silent, leaving only Grandmother's bizarre humming to fill the room.

Nan Yue felt she had heard it somewhere before, but with years of accumulated knowledge, trying to identify a song with such unclear lyrics was like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Suddenly, the overhead light began to flicker as if there were a loose connection.

The room was briefly plunged into darkness. Nan Yue's heart skipped a beat, and a faint alarm began to ring in her mind.

When the lights flickered and darkness swallowed Grandmother, Nan Yue felt she looked much older and more sinister than she did in the light.

Grandmother didn't look at her; she didn't even seem to notice the flickering light, her eyes still fixed on the television.

"Zzzzt... zzzzt..."

Nan Yue thought she could hear the static from the television screen crackling, mingling with Grandmother's eerie singing.

Like everyone else, Nan Yue had undergone plenty of horror simulation training at school, but she felt none of them were as terrifying as this.

There were no jump scares, no gore, and no violence. No one was even attacking her, yet an irrepressible chill of horror crawled up her spine and spread through her entire body.

Grandmother blinked so slowly that Nan Yue didn't notice at first that she was slowly turning her eyes toward her.

By the time Nan Yue realized it, Grandmother's pupils, clouded with that white film, were already angled toward her.

Yet Grandmother's head and body remained perfectly still. Only her eyeballs trembled as they strained further toward the corners of her sockets.

I can't let her see me!

For some reason, that thought suddenly flashed through Nan Yue's mind.

Nan Yue stood up with a start. "Grandmother, I'm tired. I'm going to bed now."

Nan Yue didn't dare look back. She had passed two rooms on her way to the dining area earlier. One was open, and the other was locked. She rushed into the open room and immediately bolted the door.

Nan Yue breathed heavily in the darkness. Her back was drenched in a cold sweat, but she told herself her psychological value was still stable.

She had lived with fear for a long time, so her tolerance and acceptance of it were higher than others.

She couldn't control her physical reactions, but she could maintain her composure.

She fumbled for the light switch. After flickering a few times, a dim, yellow light illuminated the room.

Nan Yue hadn't chosen wrong; this must be Amin's room.

The furnishings were simple but cozy. There were many books that girls liked to read, the bed was covered in a small floral print sheet, and a small stuffed duck sat on the bed.

Nan Yue had never seen such a thing before. She picked it up and touched it a few times. As expected from what she'd learned at school, such toys could provide psychological comfort.

The room wasn't large, but it managed to fit a small bed and a desk. Many books were piled haphazardly on the floor, forming tall walls of paper.

Nan Yue stepped forward and rummaged through the desk, finding a photograph.

The photo showed Amin and Grandmother. Grandmother's expression was the same as before, looking rather unsettling.

Amin was a delicate-looking girl, sitting primly and offering a somewhat forced smile to the camera.

Did Amin and Grandmother have a bad relationship?

From the photograph, Nan Yue felt this family wasn't as warm and harmonious as the ones described in her books.

Nan Yue conducted a thorough search of the room. Her focus was intense, and her racing heart gradually began to steady.

Soon, she found a slip of paper under the bed.

There was adhesive residue on the back of the paper. It had likely fallen off after a long time.

She held it up to various spots in the room and found where it belonged: a small patch of wall near the window that was whiter than the rest.

So this had been posted there, where Amin could see it whenever she was reading, writing, or daydreaming.

Under the dim light, Nan Yue began to read the slip of paper.

【House Rules】

Leaving the house at night is not permitted.

Curfew is at 20:00.

Late-night snacks are not permitted.

Visiting classmates' houses is not permitted.

Bringing male classmates home is not permitted.

Closing the room door is not permitted except when sleeping.

Nan Yue looked at the note. These were likely the rules that had to be followed in this house.

Her previous residence had rules too, but they mostly dictated times for classes, meals, and sleep.

But her books said that home was the warmest and most relaxing place. The rules on this paper seemed a bit excessive.