In the year X023, on May 8 at 18:15, Lin Yi walked with Li Huiyuan down the hallway heading towards Class B Group 2.
Most of the incandescent lights in the campus had been turned on, the orange-yellow glow creating a domain that carved out a sanctuary. The world was filled with mist, continually seeping into the area below the lights. However, no matter how much the mist permeated, as soon as it entered the hallway, it visibly thinned at a rapid pace before finally dissipating.
But when they arrived at the "Teacher’s Office (Class B Group 2)," Lin Yi hesitated before saying in a deep voice, "Shouldn’t we first go and inform the class teacher of your situation?"
The class teacher would come to roll call before the classroom lockdown at 21:00, but that was still over two hours away.
Lin Yi believed that such matters must be reported in advance, to give the class teacher enough time to make some preparations or arrangements.
From his knowledge of Class Teacher-039, the class teacher had undergone rigorous training and the "Class Teacher’s Code" might have methods for dealing with various situations.
However, all of this would definitely be affected by time, and if the issue dragged out, then the problem could become serious.
Concerning her own safety, Li Huiyuan naturally did not object and nodded her head right away.
Thus, Lin Yi helped Li Huiyuan to the door of the Teacher’s Office and then stepped back a bit.
Li Huiyuan glanced at Lin Yi, and he gave her an encouraging small nod.
Taking a deep breath, Li Huiyuan knocked on the Teacher’s Office door.
About half a minute later, the voice of Class Teacher-040 came from inside: "Who is it?"
"Teacher, it’s me... Li Huiyuan. I lost my Student ID at noon, and you sent me to the Convenience Store to buy a Student Souvenir Coin," Li Huiyuan said somewhat nervously, one hand on the door, standing in a slightly awkward posture as if she could not put weight on her right foot.
There was a ’click’, and the peephole on the office door was slid open by Class Teacher-040 from the inside, a large eyeball peering through to observe the outside environment.
"Is Lin Yi with you?" Class Teacher-040 suddenly asked.
Lin Yi was taken aback, not expecting that Class Teacher-040 would remember him, and immediately nodded: "Yes, teacher, I’m here, my student number is X0230...."
"No need to tell me, staying is fine. Keep your Student ID safe when there’s fog; don’t reveal your real student number in abnormal conditions," Class Teacher-040 interrupted, "Okay, teacher."
"Are there any other people around?"
"..." Class Teacher-040 paused for a moment, "No one... okay, Li Huiyuan, you... wait, Lin Yi, do you need to excuse yourself from the next part of the conversation?"
Lin Yi instinctively narrowed his eyes because this statement was not expressing a definite request but was asking.
The tone had shifted from one of command to one of negotiation...
’Did Class Teacher-040 guess that I’m moving together with Li Huiyuan?’
It wasn’t hard to guess, but Lin Yi was surprised that Class Teacher-040 did not object to his involvement as a mere "Experience Student" in such a contaminated game.
’Did Class Teacher-039 leave some information about my High Sensitivity for her?’
Lin Yi speculated for a moment, but since Class Teacher-040 had put it that way, he could skip many unnecessary steps and shook his head: "No need to leave, teacher. I believe I have sufficient willpower to anchor myself."
He deliberately emphasized the words "willpower" and "anchor" to make Class Teacher-040 confident that he indeed had the backing of knowing some information.
Class Teacher-040 then inquired about Li Huiyuan’s encounter in the Convenience Store, and she recounted everything frankly, from the blue Pocket Chef of "Ru Zai" to the green Pocket Chef taking on the form of a humanoid spider, then the eerie Art Student inviting her to eat tomato meat sauce pasta, followed by the near-disastrous moment in the Cafeteria when she followed Lin Yi to find the Convenience Store, and entering inside...
And then the encounter with the mist flooding into the Convenience Store, the narrow escape from a life-threatening situation...
The entire process was thrilling and exciting, resembling an episode of Tomb Raider or Indiana Jones. The only regret and deficiency was not finding the Commemorative Coin, the treasure they were searching for.
While Li Huiyuan was reporting the "battle situation" to the class teacher, Lin Yi suddenly had a feeling and squinted his eyes, glancing sideways at the steps of the Teaching Building.
At this time, the Teaching Building was engulfed in mist, looking like a toy separated by a glass cover in the fog, with the domain created by the lights providing a safe, mist-free environment inside the glass cover. Outside the glass cover, however, the mist surged, and apart from wandering shadows, nothing else was visible, not even moonlight.
And yet, at this moment, something that resembled infinitely nearing the glass cover continued on unimpeded, ultimately penetrating the glass cover and stepping into the domain created by the light from the steps shrouded in mist...
A pure white, sculpted foot wearing a sneaker.
In an instant, Lin Yi’s pupils shook, and his hair stood on end as if struck by electricity, ready to shoot skyward.
The Human Sculpture had stepped onto the stairs!
"Don’t panic," said Class Teacher-040, who was listening to Li Huiyuan’s report and observing the situation outside the corridor through the peephole, in an incredibly level voice, "They are harmless under the light; leave them be."
Although Class Teacher-040 said this, Lin Yi was far from relaxed and instead chose to quietly move closer to the walls, ready to run with Li Huiyuan to Class B Group 2 at a moment’s notice.