The man continued walking ahead of them, the old lantern in his hand swinging gently with every step.
"Our elder has been waiting for all of you," he said slowly. "Especially regarding the investigation. We truly hope something changes this time."
The word investigation immediately caught everyone's attention.
A thin man wearing glasses frowned and stepped forward cautiously.
"What investigation?" he asked. "What exactly happened in this village?"
The villager became quiet for a moment.
Only footsteps echoed through the narrow road.
Then he sighed deeply.
"There are children missing from our village," he said in a tired voice. "Many of them."
The group instantly stiffened.
"We searched the forests. The river. Every house." His grip tightened around the lantern handle. "But we found nothing."
His eyes looked strangely hollow under the dim light.
"It was as if they disappeared into thin air."
A cold silence spread through the group.
One of the girls unconsciously grabbed her friend's arm tighter.
The man with glasses adjusted them nervously before asking again, "Didn't you report this to the police?"
"We did."
The villager nodded slowly.
"Investigators came several times. They questioned everyone and searched the village thoroughly. But no clues were ever found."
A bitter smile appeared on his face.
"Still… we haven't given up hope. That's why we asked for help again."
He raised the lantern slightly and pointed toward the road ahead.
"Please come with me. The elder is waiting."
Nobody moved immediately.
The village felt too strange.
The deeper they walked, the more unnatural everything became.
The houses were old and crooked, their wooden walls covered with age and mold. The windows remained shut tightly, but somehow it felt as though someone was silently staring at them from behind every curtain.
Even the air smelled damp and cold.
The man in the brown jacket finally spoke.
"What's your name, sir?"
The villager turned slightly.
"My name is David."
Now that everyone looked carefully, David's appearance felt unsettling in a way that was difficult to explain.
He was unusually tall, tall enough that most people had to tilt their heads slightly when speaking to him. His arms and legs looked too long for his body, and his face remained strangely expressionless even while talking.
Under the weak lantern light, his eyes seemed darker than normal.
Too dark.
As though there was no reflection inside them at all.
Most of the newcomers instinctively avoided looking at him directly.
Only the man in the brown jacket seemed completely calm.
The others still looked frightened and confused, like ordinary people suddenly thrown into a nightmare they could not understand.
But no matter how afraid they were—
there was no way to leave now.
David turned around and continued walking.
The group silently followed behind him.
After several minutes, the man with glasses stepped closer to the brown-jacketed man and forced out an awkward smile.
"Hi. My name is Riju."
He hesitated briefly before asking, "What's yours?"
The man glanced at him calmly.
"Sian."
His answer was short and direct.
Then Sian slowed his steps slightly and looked at the group.
"Listen carefully," he said.
Everyone immediately became quiet.
"My name is Sian. I'm from Krisht City." He paused for a moment. "And this isn't my first game."
Shock spread across several faces instantly.
"This is my third instance."
Someone inhaled sharply.
"You're serious?" another person asked nervously.
Sian ignored the interruption.
"Don't panic," he continued calmly. "Since this is your first instance, the difficulty should be relatively low compared to higher-level games."
"H-Higher level?" one girl whispered.
Sian nodded.
"The longer you survive, the harder the games become."
The atmosphere instantly became heavier.
Some people's faces turned pale.
Others looked like they still wanted to deny reality.
But deep down, everyone understood something terrible.
This place was real.
And death here was real too.
Sian looked at them quietly.
"For now, focus on surviving. Don't act recklessly. If any of you run into trouble later, you can come find me."
He shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Any questions?"
Nobody answered.
Even the burly yellow-haired man remained silent.
Finally, someone muttered weakly, "No…"
"Good."
Sian nodded once.
"Then let's introduce ourselves properly. It'll make coordination easier later."
A middle-aged man stepped forward first.
"My name is James," he said calmly. "I used to work as an engineer."
Then the burly man stepped forward with heavy footsteps.
"Kiupa."
He spoke only one word before stepping back impatiently.
One after another, everyone introduced themselves.
The atmosphere gradually relaxed slightly, though fear still lingered beneath every conversation.
Then suddenly—
someone yawned softly.
The sound immediately drew everyone's attention.
A young woman stood slightly apart from the others.
She looked completely relaxed, as though she had been quietly observing everyone the entire time instead of worrying about dying.
Fair skin.Long black hair.
Sharp eyes framed by delicate lashes.
A small mole rested near the corner of her lips, making her face strangely memorable.
Even under the dim lantern light, she was beautiful enough to make people stare unconsciously.
A spiky-haired young man immediately brightened and hurried toward her.
"Hey, beautiful," he said with an excited grin. "What's your name?"
The young woman looked at him lazily.
"Misha."
Astha answered casually.
The name came naturally, almost like a memory belonging to this body rather than himself.
From the nearby group of girls, one of them quietly narrowed her eyes.
A small flicker of jealousy crossed her face after seeing how quickly everyone's attention shifted toward Misha.
Before anyone could continue speaking—
a cold voice suddenly came from behind them.
"Yug."
Everyone turned instinctively.
A tall man stood near the back of the group.
He had sharp features, broad shoulders, and long legs that made his already imposing figure seem even taller. He wore a perfectly fitted black business suit, completely out of place in the middle of the old village.
Yet somehow—
he looked like someone who naturally belonged wherever people gathered.
Calm.Confident.Untouchable.
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Then someone suddenly widened their eyes in shock.
"Wait…"
The man stared at him carefully.
"Are you from Beijing? Mr. Yug Calavaston?"
Yug looked at him indifferently.
"Yes."
A wave of whispers instantly spread through the group.
"No way…"
"It's really him?"
"What is someone like him doing here?"
Even Sian glanced at Yug for an extra second before looking away.
But Yug himself showed no interest in conversation.
"Alright," David suddenly said from the front. "We've arrived."
The group stopped walking.
Ahead of them stood the largest house in the village.
Around it were dozens of smaller houses scattered in silence, perhaps sixty or seventy in total. Most of them were covered in thick vines and dark moss, as though nature had slowly begun swallowing the village whole.
Only one house looked untouched.
The Elder's house.
It stood in the center of a wide stone courtyard.
Old lanterns hung near the entrance, flickering weakly in the darkness.
The place should have felt welcoming.
Instead, it felt suffocating.
Like something inside was quietly waiting for them to enter.
David walked toward the wooden door and knocked heavily.
Knock.
Knock.
Knock.
"Elder," he called respectfully.
For several seconds, nothing happened.
The group exchanged uneasy glances.
Then—
Creeeak.
The wooden door slowly opened inward by itself.
A wave of freezing air drifted out from the darkness inside the house.
At that moment, every person standing outside instinctively stopped breathing.
David stepped aside slowly.
"Please," he said softly.
"Come inside."