[Escape Room] Summer Job

When Ren Yi came out of the clinic, he spotted Ren Man waiting quietly by the door.

"Bro, Doctor Lin agreed to tutor me in the sleep pod at night from now on."

"Mm."

Okay, I've reported it. Looks like my safety can be guaranteed.

Ren Yi stepped closer, suddenly feeling playful. "Bro, now you know my rule. To be fair, shouldn't you tell me one of yours?"

Ren Man thought for a moment and replied, "Dirty things must be cleaned."

Ren Yi: "?"

That... counted as a rule? His brother's immaculate desktop, the perpetually gleaming floors, and his ruthless suppression of any hint of sloppiness on Ren Yi's part flashed through his mind.

Got it. A rule-level obsession with cleanliness.

"So, Bro, you're the kind Doctor Lin called 'rule-triggered'?" Ren Yi pressed, unwilling to give up.

"Mm."

Unfortunately, no matter how Ren Yi asked, Ren Man kept repeating the same few words. In the end, Ren Yi gave up entirely.

Just then, Ren Yi suddenly remembered something.

Since his brother could provide his "food," then...

"Bro, let's take a walk around the residential complex before we go home. I haven't said hello to the uncles and aunties I know here since I awakened."

Over the following week, Ren Yi's summer vacation remained busy.

He spent his days getting used to his weird body and his nights on "coursework." It really was more tiring than school.

Then he received a message from Lu Zihan.

"Ban Deng’er, meet me at my uncle's shop tomorrow. Don't forget!"

Ren Yi quickly sent back a "Got it" sticker.

After surfing the internet nonstop for the past few days, Ren Yi had learned what this "summer job" really was.

"Bro, I'm going to an 'internship instance' with Lu Zihan tomorrow."

The escape room shop was just a cover. The so-called "internship instance" was a "cram school" for newly born weirds.

Having weird Younglings who might lose their Humanoid Form at any moment play ghosts really was a perfect fit for their skills.

When Ren Yi first learned this, a scene from a nature documentary he had watched in his previous life involuntarily came to mind: a lion caught a live antelope Youngling but, instead of eating it, tossed it to a lion cub to play with.

In fact, the participants in an internship instance might be in an even worse position than the antelope. After all, a lion might only want to eat its fill, while weirds wanted far more than that.

At eight the next morning, Ren Man dropped Ren Yi off at the mall right on time.

The Endless Game Hall's sign was tucked away in a corner, surrounded by a dazzling array of posters for escape rooms, murder mystery games, and board games. The light was bright and the colors vibrant, nothing like the sinister, terrifying "instance entrance" Ren Yi had imagined.

"Ban Deng’er, over here!"

As soon as Ren Yi entered, he heard Lu Zihan's robust shout.

He turned and saw Lu Zihan sitting in a chair beside a beautiful woman.

Lu Zihan looked much the same as he had at school a few days ago, but for some reason he seemed a little stiff. He sat bolt upright, looking as though he wanted to stand but didn't dare.

The beautiful woman had curly brown hair and wore a long black dress. When she saw Ren Yi, she immediately gave him a graceful smile.

"Hi, Zihan. Hello to you too, Aunt Lu," Ren Yi greeted them with unusual politeness.

The beautiful woman was Lu Zihan's mother, Lu Qing. In Ren Yi's memory, she was a woman with a commanding presence who had always taken good care of him.

"Xiao Yi, you're here. Did you come alone?" Lu Qing asked gently.

"Mm, my brother dropped me off downstairs and left," Ren Yi answered honestly.

"Your brother certainly trusts you." Lu Qing covered her mouth and laughed. "Come sit down. Your brother probably hasn't told you anything about instances, has he? I can explain them to you and Zihan together."

Ren Yi obediently sat down beside Lu Zihan, and the two of them sat bolt upright as they listened to Lu Qing's lecture.

"Instances are our hunting grounds."

"You've probably seen some explanations online. Our world was once destroyed."

Lu Qing spoke gently, but her words made the two boys straighten their backs slightly.

"Some powerful weirds rescued a portion of our kind from the ruins and managed to build the present 'Alliance World' to keep our race alive."

"However, this created world is unstable. Its rules are shattered, and its origin is incomplete. That's why we must gather energy from other worlds to continually repair our world and sustain the survival of the next generation, like you."

Seeing how nervous the two youngsters looked, Lu Qing broke into a smile. "Don't worry. If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up. You two don't need to concern yourselves with so much. Just know that we must work together to protect our world."

"I've gotten sidetracked. Let's get back to what you'll be facing." Lu Qing leaned forward slightly. "We need energy to repair and sustain this world. Where does the energy come from? We 'harvest' it from other worlds."

"The process begins with our world's rules or powerful weirds invading and anchoring the world's coordinates."

"Then the tug-of-war begins. The other world's will constantly rejects us, exposes our rules, establishes rules in its own side's favor, and grants 'talents' or 'items,' and so on."

"That's how instance rules relatively 'fair' to both sides are formed. And our task..."

She paused, her lips curving into a beautiful yet icy smile. "Is to crush their resistance and eliminate every participant."

"Once their resistance weakens to a certain point, that world will be designated a 'Pasture.' Whether we continue squeezing resources from it or have more powerful weirds carry out the final 'harvest' depends on decisions made at a higher level. You don't need to look into it."

"Today's instance uses Zihan's younger uncle's premises to connect to a Pasture World for you to practice."

"Remember, although a 'Pasture's' rules are generally unable to provide participants with direct help inside an instance, the instance still has a basic degree of fairness. Besides, the participants themselves must not be underestimated."

Lu Qing paused, then said meaningfully, "Don't underestimate humans."

Ren Yi and Lu Zihan listened intently. Just then, a somewhat haggard-looking middle-aged man emerged from the inner room. It was Lu Zihan's uncle, Lu Zi.

"Sis, it's about time. Let them go in. They'll understand the details once they've gone through the process."

"All right, go get ready." Still concerned, Lu Qing reminded them, "Be careful. Around seventy to eighty percent of internship instances are successfully cleared each time, so don't feel pressured."

Ren Yi and Lu Zihan took deep breaths and pushed open the door leading to the small dark room inside.