In the pitch-black room, only a sliver of light seeped through gaps in the taped-up window, faintly  illuminating the chaotic mess on the floor.

A shattered bowl—apparently dropped during some intense argument—still lay uncleaned.  
Water stains, hastily wiped but clearly meant to hide something.  
And a pitch-black plastic bag, grotesquely bulging, oozing a faint trickle of red liquid...

Suddenly, a figure emerged—shorter than a man (say, 180 cm), yet taller than most girls (think 150 cm)—seamlessly blending into the darkness. She slowly lifted her head. A hooded sweatshirt and an N985 mask concealed her face entirely. In her hand, she gripped a wallpaper cutter, her eyes glinting with dangerous red light.

The clock ticked… tick… tock…
as if counting down someone’s final moments.

Click.
She extended the blade. Its sharp tip gleamed with icy menace. Beneath the mask, a cruel, chilling smile spread across her face. Her eyes—wild, chaotic—burned deeper red, nearly forming three tomoe-like rings.

She crouched low, creeping forward…  
stopping exactly one meter before It.

With a snarl, she raised the weapon, trembling violently as she aimed it toward…

toward…

toward the door—sealed shut with endless layers of cardboard and packing tape—and suddenly collapsed into heart-wrenching sobs. 😭😭

Snap! She retracted the blade in one swift motion.  
Then, flinging herself onto the floor, she wailed and rolled desperately:

“I don’t wanna go outside!!! 😭😭😭”  
“I don’t wanna go out… sniffle… 🥺😭”  
“There are no good guys out there! Everyone’s a demon! 👿 All I see are old ladies 👵🏻—NO HAO JIAN AT ALL! 😭 I wanna stay home… 😭”  
“Cough cough cough—wahhhhh… 🥲”

Huaxin ripped off her N985 mask 😷 and blew her nose hard 🤧. From beneath the oversized hood, her teary, glistening eyes looked utterly pitiful.

Huaxin’s Little Tip 😋:  
(Bowl = dropped due to clumsy hands;  
Red liquid = spicy oil from instant noodles;  
“Cruel smile” = actually super cute;  
“Grimacing face” = adorably confused;  
“Red eyes” = just mutated, okay?)

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

A few minutes later, her wails softened into quiet sniffles.

She pulled out her phone, checked the time, wiped her tears, and silently dragged herself upright.

11:30 AM.

It was Thursday—the first of the two mandatory school days each week. She’d spent the past three days in intense “training.” Today was D-Day: time to test her results.

Thinking back to yesterday… Huaxin flushed red with silent rage. 😡

She had been overjoyed after successfully manipulating that guy into sending her 50 Q coins—it kept her smiling for hours.

But then… an obvious problem hit her like a brick:  
How do you turn Q coins into real money for non-game expenses? 🤔

The answer? She’d tearfully spent it all on a one-month *Wuthering Waves* membership. 😭😭

Next time, she swore, she’d absolutely drain that shrimp-headed simp—who’d cheekily changed his contact name to “Hubby Shui” (unbearable!)—to recoup her losses!!

(Of course, her nickname for him remained: “My #1 Online Good Son.”)

Then her gaze drifted downward… to her chest.

…

🐻 Big?
Nope. 🈚

Impossible! 😡

But there was something far more urgent.

Her Accounting class started at 1:00 PM—less than two hours away! 😱

You can do it… Huaxin… you can.
Haha, it’s just going outside… (sweating bullets) 🤠
Surely no one’s actually scared to leave the house, right? (pure self-hypnosis)

She pulled out another N985 mask and fastened it firmly. Staring at the sealed door like it was an ancient curse, she once again raised her wallpaper knife—the blade glinting with ominous intent.

And then…

…she remembered a story. 😋

“Going outside” was actually a myth born in ancient times.  

Back then, Zeus had stayed cooped up on Mount Olympus for 500 years straight. One day, after finishing Black Myth: Wukong on his Neural Core PC 🖥️, he was marveling at its craftsmanship when he suddenly realized: “Wait… 1 + 1 = 2?!” ☝️🤓  

He summoned Prometheus to discuss whether the legendary “Three Yin Fire” was really made from six herbs: Rehmannia, Cornus, Chinese Yam, Alisma, Moutan Bark, and Poria.  

Then came the big question: Who’s stronger—Sun Wukong or Apollo?  

Prometheus, offended, grabbed the Ruyi Jingu Bang, stole fire from Apollo’s chariot, and flew east to challenge the “Heaven-Mandated One,” determined to defend Northern divine honor. 😡  

Mid-journey, he realized he had no money for a visa—so he traded dried rations with a passerby named Wang Xiaoming for 268 yuan and kept going.  

But when he arrived… shock!  
The guy was in an 8 a.m. class?!  
Is this even still Earth?! 😨  

He checked the date: July 16th.  
Ah… Wukong hasn’t even been born yet!  
Haha! 😃

“Haha…” Huaxin let out a dry chuckle, lost in her absurd daydream. 😃

Wait… what was she even thinking about? 🤯  
Haha?

She snapped back to reality—and froze.

12:00 PM.

Half an hour just vanished?! 😭😭😭  
How?!

What do I do what do I do what do I do— 👊🏻👊🏻👊🏻 😨

This wasn’t like those rare, one-time-or-deal-with-it moments—like during college entrance exams or New Year’s hospital visits—when she could hypnotize herself with:  
“If I just go out THIS ONCE… I never have to again!” 😇

But this?  
Twice a week?
Into classrooms teeming with strangers, unknown dangers, hostile stares, suffocating air…?

A cold shiver ran down her spine. That long-buried dread resurfaced—memories threatening to replay in her mind.

Her eyes welled up again. Panic tightened her chest.

Buzzzz.

Her phone vibrated—a new message.

Huaxin shook her head violently (extreme sensitivity activated!), flinging all dark thoughts away.

Phew… She took a deep, trembling breath 🥺 and picked up her phone.

Yunzi (Class Rep Xia Yan):  
“Huaxin, do you live in Jin Di Xiang Shan?”  

“Sorry—I didn’t mean to intrude, but since you didn’t reply earlier, I checked your enrollment form. It lists your residential complex, but not the exact unit number. I’m currently at the main gate. If you don’t mind… would you like to head to campus together? ☺️”  

(Followed by an adorable “Hakimi” cat sticker.)
(Note: Hakimi = cat.)

W-wait…
Is this… a GOOD person?! (Instant alert mode)

She immediately double-checked:  
Yes, he’s the one the advisor introduced me to.  
No red flags… (Confused face)

But… does someone this nice actually exist in the real world? 🧐  
He even came to PICK ME UP?!

Unless…

Her hand darted to her pitch-black backpack. She unzipped it—revealing a hammer 🔨 inside.

If things went south…  
She’d save herself.

Taking one last deep breath, she choked back tears and began slicing through the taped-up door with her wallpaper knife.

“I’ll f\*\*\*ing stab you, stab you, STAB YOU… 🥺  
Why do you make me go out?! Why?!  
Are you all brain-dead or what?! 😭🤧”