After the Little Crybaby Enters the Nightmare Cycle

Mosaic School (26)

Guo Xian died last night.

He died very peacefully, just like Ni Rong of Room 202 on the night of the 25th. He had a serene expression and was lying on his pillow. It was as if he had fallen into a deep sleep and hadn’t woken up.

Guo Xian’s hands lay flat over his chest like he was praying. His stiff fingers held the paper bag that contained the regret medicine like he was holding onto the last straw of his life.

It was a pity that this straw didn’t allow him to survive.

“What happened? Didn’t Guo Xian change his age after taking the regret medicine? According to the school rule last night, he shouldn’t have died?” Guo Yaoyao was puzzled, but she was also relieved that her roommate Tong Yu had survived.

“Could it be that this rule is…the oldest person in terms of appearance?” Shu Yanfan wondered.

Tong Yu replied, “It is possible. Previously, we used women’s clothing to visually evade the rules and got through…”

Tang Yu looked at the middle-aged uncle lying serenely on the dormitory bed and she frowned. “However, Guo Xian’s method of death should be the same as Ni Rong’s. It belongs to the Christmas Eve sacrifice, not because last night’s rules were triggered.”

Based on the way the sleepwalkers who violated the rules died in the past, Guo Xian’s body probably would’ve turned into an old man overnight or he would’ve died of various old age diseases if he died because he was the ‘oldest.’ He wouldn’t have died so peacefully.

Tang Yu continued, “In addition, the school’s system interface doesn’t indicate our gender, only the age. I myself am a relatively special example…yet I am also classified as a girl. Therefore, I feel that gender can be visually judged while age must be determined by the system. It is unlikely that Guo Xian broke the school rule just because he looked the oldest.”

“Chi Nan, what do you think?” After the past few days, Tang Yu already had great trust in Chi Nan’s character and abilities.

Chi Nan replied, “It is as you think. Guo Xian died last night due to the random sacrifice.”

Tong Yu was confused. “Why? Even if he changed his age without authorization, the next oldest person should be me. Why was it a Christmas Eve?”

Chi Nan reconfirmed his system information. “It is probably due to the fact that the system failed to recognize my age, so this school rule couldn’t be determined from the beginning.”

All their inferences were just guesses. The morning class was the best opportunity to validate their inferences.

“Last night, Guo Xian of Room 205 ended his six days of studying at the boarding school in the most dignified and calm way. For his departure, I offer the most sincere blessings on behalf of all the students at the school…”

The female teacher stood on the podium and announced Guo Xian’s death in a pious and sad tone. It was almost exactly the same as when Ni Rong died.

“However, death is never the end. Their souls will stay in this boarding school forever, sending good luck and shelter to the students living here. I hope you won’t indulge in the sorrow of parting and can instead get useful information from their departure. This is very valuable for your future studies and life.”

The female teacher distributed the test paper to everyone as usual. “Last night’s situation was slightly different so today’s test has three questions. Two are mandatory questions and one is an additional question. Please judge carefully according to your own understanding.”

The questions on the paper were:

[What was the new school rule added yesterday?]

[What was the cause of Guo Xian’s death?]

[Additional question: What is the relationship between Guo Xian’s death and the new school rule?]

Chi Nan didn’t hesitate to write on the answer sheets that ‘The oldest student will be cleared by the school rules,’ ‘Guo Xian died due to the Christmas Eve sacrifice,’ and ‘The system couldn’t read the age of all the students, so the school rule couldn’t be applied. This resulted in the night becoming Christmas Eve and Guo Xian was randomly selected as the target of death.’

In less than half an hour, the female teacher finished reading the papers. “Today’s performance was very satisfactory. Five of the students answered every question correctly. These five students will get credits for the three questions. Congratulations.”

Chi Nan might’ve already stated his inferences before the morning class, but nearly half the sleepwalkers doubted his absurd theory. After all, no one could see another person’s boarding school system interface. Chi Nan said that the system couldn’t read his exact age, which sounded very unreliable.

They believed in ‘seeing is believing.’

“In yesterday’s acting class, some students got the hint for the school rule on the 27th through wonderful interpretations. It is just regrettable that the age of one of the students in the class couldn’t be read. This resulted in the application of the school rule being hindered. Last night, all students perfectly abided by the school rules, so the night of the 27th was regarded as Christmas Eve.”

“The rules of Christmas Eve were made clear yesterday. The school will randomly select one student for the death sacrifice. Last night, Guo Xian of Room 205 received the honor of being the second person to be sacrificed. I am proud of him.”

The moment the female teacher finished speaking, the entire Classroom 103 fell into an eerie silence.

Everyone looked at Guo Xian’s fixed seat in the past with complicated expressions and inwardly sighed. In fact, the result would be the same regardless of whether Guo Xian took the regret medicine or not. If he hadn’t taken it, at least he would’ve been able to maintain the fresh appearance of a teenager rather than becoming a greasy uncle in the last moments of his life…

“Guo Xian must’ve never expected that after calculating everything, he’d finally die due to the rule of the random sacrifice.” Shu Yanfan’s tone no longer contained yesterday’s sarcasm. It was instead replaced by a faint sigh. “Perhaps it is the souls of the two boys in Room 208 looking for revenge on him. Didn’t the female teacher just say that their souls will forever stay at the boarding school?”

This was indeed the truth, but Shu Yanfan’s statement made the already uneasy people feel horrified.

Chi Nan thought about it. In this manner, 229’s act of giving the regret medicine to Guo Xian yesterday could be explained. It was because his struggle was useless and 229 was just admiring the ridiculous actions of a dying person’s last self-righteousness.

Tong Yu looked at Chi Nan. “Why can’t the system read your age? Can you tell us if it is convenient?”

Chi Nan was stunned for half a second. “System failure.”

“So what is your real age…?” Tong Yu asked tentatively.

Chi Nan answered, “19. After tonight, it will be 20.” He said this in place of the original body’s owner.

Tang Yu glanced at Chi Nan and didn’t say anything. She always felt that the other person must be hiding some information, but she intuitively felt that it was something she shouldn’t know.

She respected everyone’s secrets.

“Students, please be quiet.” The female teacher tapped on the blackboard behind her and the class fell silent. “I will give you a warning in advance. Today is special, so the school will organize a large dance party in the evening. The afternoon class is closely related to the procedure of the dance party. The rules and difficulty are closely related, so the students should take this class seriously.”

Everyone in the classroom became nervous when they saw the female teacher’s condescending and serious expression.

It would be the 29th after midnight tonight. Based on Chi Nan’s previous speculation, the 29th was the most critical time to clear the dream.

“Can I ask what the afternoon class is?” Chi Nan raised his hand and asked.

The female teacher looked over stiffly. “Divination class.”

***

During the lunch break, Chi Nan went to the doctor’s office as usual. The doctor had prepared fresh desserts and was waiting for him.

“Do you and Guo Xian have a good relationship?” the doctor propped his hands on the table and asked with a smirk.

Chi Nan looked up at him. “Can’t you see our every move?”

The doctor narrowed his eyes slightly. “Even with that being the case, I hope to get an answer from you.”

Chi Nan truthfully replied, “I’m not familiar with him.”

The doctor finally smiled. “That’s a pity.”

He paused before asking again, “Do you know why I agreed to give Guo Xian the regret medicine yesterday?”

Chi Nan looked into the doctor’s eyes. “You knew that it would be useless even if you gave it, so you wanted to use him for amusement?”

The doctor’s lips curled up. “No, I don’t care about anyone. His existence alone can’t interest me.”

“Oh, then why?”

“Can you guess?”

Chi Nan seriously said, “Your regret medicine is about to expire?”

The doctor: “……” He almost laughed.

“It is because you introduced him. There was no reason for me to not welcome him,” the doctor told Chi Nan half-truthfully.

“…Oh, thank you.” Then Chi Nan said, “I dreamed of you last night.”

The doctor’s face contained lazy interest. “Really? What did you dream about?”

Chi Nan looked into his eyes. “I dreamed that you became You Yu again, just like in the acting class.”

The doctor’s expression froze for a moment. Then he smiled and looked up. “So?”

Chi Nan shook his head before suddenly saying, “I feel that it suits you very well.”

The doctor’s expression finally changed slightly. Chi Nan caught the change in expression while quietly eating the pudding in his hand.

Then he wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes. “Thank you for the hospitality. I want to take a nap.”

Chi Nan had already thought of his birthday wish.

The divination class in the afternoon was held in Classroom 103. The female teacher had moved the desks and chairs to both sides of the classroom like the physiology class. A black silk blanket was laid down in the middle of the classroom, and tarot cards were placed in the center of the blanket.

The windows of the classroom were covered by thick blackout curtains and candles were lit in the four corners of the classroom. The light was dim.

“I believe all the students have already guessed that today’s form of divination is tarot cards.”

The female teacher had also changed her makeup. Her fingernails and lips were painted a bright red like she had just drank blood and it was creepy. “I already reminded you in the morning class that the results of the divination in the afternoon are related to the rules, difficulty, and procedure of tonight’s party. Please be sure to follow the guidance of your heart and complete the divination.”

Shu Yanfan whispered, “Oops, I only know the constellations. I know nothing about tarot divination…”

Tang Yu said, “I know more about numerology in metaphysics, and I only know the basic meaning of the tarot cards. I don’t know anything about divination skills.”

Their voices were very quiet, but they were still heard by the female teacher. Her eyes swept over stiffly. “Students, you don’t need to worry. This divination class is very simple and can be completed just by knowing the basic meaning of the tarot cards. We only need the 22 major arcana.”

Then her bright red lips cracked open. “Your luck is more important than divination skills or common sense.”

The sleepwalkers in the classroom inexplicably felt uneasy when hearing the word ‘luck.’ The air became thinner, as if the candles around the classroom had exhausted the oxygen. Everyone had difficulty breathing.

The female teacher drew 22 tarot cards and placed them on the black silk blanket. Her blood-red nails scratched the blanket and gave the illusion that they could leave deep bloody marks.

“We still have 10 students left. In order to ensure the fairness and impartiality of this divination, I will invite the 10 students to form a circle around these 22 tarot cards for the opening ceremony. Please note that during the opening ceremony, each student must make sure that they touch every card or it might affect your divination results.”

“Let’s get started.”

The female teacher stepped back and made room for the 10 sleepwalkers.

In accordance with the female teacher’s request, everyone knelt in a circle on the blanket and touched the cards. They seemed to be afraid of making a mistake, so they repeatedly touched them no less than 10 times before completing the opening ceremony.

After seeing that they were ready, the female teacher came over and gathered the 22 scattered tarot cards. She started to shuffle and cut the cards. No one dared to make a sound during the entire process, and the classroom was shrouded in a tense silence.

The female teacher fanned out 22 cards from left to right. “Next, I will select three students to draw cards.”

She raised her head, eyes still closed as she faced everyone. “Chi Nan, Tang Yu, and Tong Yu, the three of you will draw the cards today.”

Tang Yu and Tong Yu were both stunned, while Chi Nan walked toward the tarot cards without changing his expression.

The female teacher opened her eyes and stared at him firmly. “Please keep your heart at peace while drawing a card, and don’t get distracted.”

Chi Nan nodded. He intuitively drew a card and placed it face down on the blanket.

The female teacher reminded him, “Tarot is reversed, so please open your card by flipping it.”

Chi Nan turned the card over. The group silently gathered around to witness the first card. Then they saw the face of the card and inevitably looked a bit confused.

It was the positive ‘lovers’ card.

Proofreader: Kat