The Haunted House’s Challenge

Darkness. Endless darkness.

Everywhere my gaze fell, a despair-inducing pitch-black consumed everything. Emptiness and bewilderment seemed to be the dominant tones of this oppressive darkness.

Occasionally, a lone beam of light would pierce through. As I cautiously stepped towards it, what followed was—

“Eek—!”

The utterly startled shriek, without a doubt, had burst from my sister’s lips, right beside me.

“Phew, phew,” Chen Si Yi stammered, patting her chest. “I-it’s not that I’m timid, you know.”

“It’s just that this haunted house is too bizarre,” she continued, her voice still shaky. “It’s completely different from any we’ve been to before, which is why I screamed…”

No, no, no. Even in the haunted houses we’d visited previously, you still screamed, little sister. It was just that the decibels of your current shriek were undeniably more pathetic than ever before.

However, despite my thoughts, after walking through this haunted house, even I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of fear.

This haunted house truly lived up to its advertisements; it was terrifyingly effective!

The eerie whispers emanating from the speakers, the subtle vibrations beneath our feet, and the dimly lit surroundings all contributed to an atmosphere of extreme dread.

The designer of this haunted house, in particular, was truly a genius. Every time we navigated another lightless corridor and our guard began to slightly lower, grotesque monsters with gaping maws and excessively bloody scenes would suddenly appear.

They caught us completely off guard, leaving us with no choice but to succumb to terrified screams.

During a brief lull after one scare, I quickly searched online. (Chen Si Yi had mercifully given me her phone when we left, claiming it was to prevent me from getting lost or kidnapped by bad guys.)

This haunted house, located on the top floor of a commercial building, had only recently opened in our city of Chengling. It was a global touring attraction, meaning it wouldn’t be staying in our second-tier city for long.

Apparently, operating under the principle of ‘not for profit, only for scares,’ the extravagant overseas-returned owner had rented the entire floor to construct the haunted house. Their aim was to make the city’s thrill-seekers truly regret their choices.

And it had to be said, the owner’s objective had been thoroughly achieved.

I was genuinely regretting it now. Despite having been brave since childhood, the terrifying and eerie atmosphere of this haunted house was beginning to exceed my psychological limits.

“Hey, Si Yi, how about we just turn back the way we came?”

According to online accounts from those who had experienced it, Chen Si Yi and I were currently only halfway through the haunted house. The most terrifying parts, however, lay in the latter half!

Brave victims described how, in the second half of the haunted house, staff members dressed in exceptionally bloody monster costumes would hide in dark corners, specifically waiting for lambs like us to walk into their traps!

Apparently, several burly men with Pikachu tattoos on their arms had been so frightened in the latter half that they foamed at the mouth and fainted!

I didn’t think I’d be scared to that extent. But if Chen Si Yi fainted, how would I, in my current state as a little girl, carry her home?

I should have brought Serena. Recalling her gloating expression when we left, I was filled with instant regret. I should have let Serena, a true demon, compete with these fake, shoddy ghosts in the haunted house to see who was more terrifying!

“Go back?”

Unexpectedly, upon hearing my suggestion, Chen Si Yi merely furrowed her brows. Her tone conveyed no joy; instead, it was filled with hesitation.

Hey, hey, hey, little sister, what’s wrong with you? The old you would have adopted my suggestion without a second thought.

“Yes, why don’t we go back now?” I kindly urged. “Otherwise, the further we go, the scarier it will get. And if you then…”

“If I what?” My words were cut short by Chen Si Yi.

“Do you think I’m scared?”

“No, no, no, I didn’t think that at all. I was just being kind…”

“I don’t need your kindness. I’m fine, completely fine.” Chen Si Yi pouted, her beautiful brows knitting together tightly.

“Don’t think I don’t know anything, Lin Yan. Aren’t you just trying to provoke me? Well, let me tell you, I’m not the same person I was as a child. You just watch me; haunted houses won’t scare me anymore!”

With that, without giving me any chance to dissuade her, Chen Si Yi stomped her foot and strode forward into the pitch-black section, leaving me dumbfounded in place, my face a picture of utter despondency.

“Hey, wait, Si Yi, this isn’t provocation! I’m genuinely thinking of your well-being this time!”

“I don’t need it!”

Chen Si Yi turned her head and glared at me fiercely.

“Today, I’m going to show you that I’m not the Chen Si Yi of my childhood anymore. Just you wait, Lin Yan!”

“Eh? W-what do you mean? Why are you suddenly so serious?” Chen Si Yi’s stubbornness left me quite puzzled, especially her repeated insistence that she wasn’t the child she used to be, which made me even more perplexed.

Yet, watching her unwavering steps forward, without a hint of hesitation, I couldn’t help but let the corners of my mouth curl into a small, relieved smile.

It seemed my little girl had truly grown up.

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