The path was very quiet, with some low white street lamps around.
The dim lights flickered on and off, slightly dazzling.
They illuminated the outlines of the old trees around like silhouettes, the thick roots of the trees gripping the earth like giant eagle claws.
In the deep night, the old buildings crouched like giant black beasts, not emitting a single light.
The walls of the buildings were covered with cracks like spiderwebs, sharp vines tangled together, weaving into nets, even winding and coiling down to the ground.
The Writer walked on and off, as if strolling leisurely in a courtyard.
His gaze was calm, occasionally glancing around before withdrawing his line of sight, seeming to just casually observe his future work environment.
Xiao Gui'an looked at the surroundings while his mind wandered.
Being a teacher was something he was doing for the first time, with no experience. Even in a Horror Game World instance, he absolutely couldn't do something that would mislead students!
They all seemed quite gentle.
Teaching content well in class, assigning homework, packing up and leaving after class—aside from some who loved slacking off or some who loved dragging classes out, there didn't seem to be any major flaws.
Slacking off wasn't the main issue; the key was absolutely no class overtime!
An excellent teacher needed to have this awareness, and also homework! It absolutely couldn't be assigned too much.
Even if students didn't complete it, they should be treated with a tolerant attitude.
Okay, decided! He absolutely would become the teacher he most yearned for during his own student days!
After considering his positioning, Xiao Gui'an began thinking about how to clear this instance.
Xu Zisheng was a player, and those who swallowed the 'Admission Tickets' were also players.
The 'Arena' that the man in the suit had mentioned was this huge orphanage.
It seemed the rules of this place were indeed incomplete, and had been altered and tampered with.
Otherwise, Xu Zisheng wouldn't have entered in his real body due to the curse mark, and the Yellow-haired Youth clearly wasn't eighteen yet either.
Everything happening here didn't conform to the complete rules of the Horror Game World.
As for why it was referred to as an 'Arena,' Xiao Gui'an had some understanding of his own.
As players, they didn't know how many people like themselves were here, nor how much malice the beings beside them harbored.
Under circumstances where they couldn't expose their identities, communication was undoubtedly very difficult.
Even if they knew the other was also a player, it didn't necessarily mean they could stand on the same front line.
To survive, they had to perform better, using whatever means necessary to become that so-called best child, only then might they win a slim chance of survival.
The original young ghosts here, because they were orphans, their thinking was likely much more mature than their actual age.
What if this place was just a facade, a harsh upbringing institution that was extremely strict just to get children adopted?
That would only be worse.
What had the former orphans done to show good behavior, meet requirements, and compete for the title of good child?
In any case, they wouldn't be easy to deal with.
And what about the players who entered? They almost all had near-adult thinking, more self-centered.
In such an instance involving their own life and death, the things they could do were unimaginable.
Who cares if your true identity is player or ghost? Since you can't expose yourself, just treat everyone as competitors, as stepping stones for your own survival.
Looked at this way, wasn't the orphanage just an arena filled with silent slaughter?
"Who's there in front? Stop—" A voice that was hard to distinguish as male or female came from behind, hoarse like withered branches and dead leaves, extremely easy to make people uncomfortable.
[Here it comes, here it comes!] Xiao Gui'an's spirits lifted.
The Writer's footsteps paused, he slowly turned around, and lifted his eyes to look.
Not far away in the corridor, a thin, upright figure stood there, seemingly holding a girl's hand.
It was a woman wearing professional attire, her face thin and pale, her eyes revealing only coldness and sharpness, appearing very mean-spirited, currently staring unfavorably at the Writer who didn't fit the orphanage's atmosphere.
The little girl beside her rolled her eyes around, not knowing what she was thinking.
When she saw the Writer looking over, her gaze slightly dulled, and she immediately hugged the shabby doll in her arms tightly.
"Hello, I'm the new teacher, just arrived tonight, and was looking for someone to ask for directions."
The Writer walked over unhurriedly, his fingers flipping as that thin Transfer Order appeared in his hand again.
Under the dim light, all outlines became blurred, several black birds lightly flew up.
The elegant young man stood tall under the corridor, looking up at the mean-faced woman, yet not giving a feeling of weakness.
Geographically, the Writer was standing at a lower position.
But his composed ease and the careless air he inadvertently revealed made people feel he stood higher, looking down on everything like a superior.
"Xiao Qing, bring it over." The woman said.
The girl holding the doll timidly approached, her outstretched fingertips trembling slightly, she carefully stood on tiptoe to take the Transfer Order from the Writer's hand, and respectfully handed it to the woman.
The woman took it and examined it carefully, only reacting after a long while, her gaze sharpening as she almost interrogated, "I didn't hear about any new teacher coming."
"Perhaps the notification hasn't come down yet? Sometimes relevant departments are like this."
Facing the full of doubt questioning, the Writer just smiled gently, explaining seemingly reasonably and logically.
"......"
The woman eventually returned the Transfer Order to the Writer, seeming somewhat moved, though she still looked mean-spirited.
"Come on, I'll take you to the student cafeteria—"