Lin Ye collected his thoughts and walked straight to the sofa in the hotel room.
"You should also rest, but don't sleep."
Tonight, he had to stay up late.
Lin Ye sat down and laid back. His body muscles relaxed slightly, and he felt a sense of relief.
During the time stop, his "violent output" and the "carrying and pulling of people" drained his physical strength and energy, and it also came at a cost.
"After this is over, I have to train this body better."
He had been chosen by the "Strange game." Unless he completed it, there was no way out of it.
The body was his capital, so it had to be exercised. Even with his ability to stop time, he couldn't afford to slack off.
"Lin Ye..."
Suddenly, Hoshino Ai sat cross-legged on the bed. She lifted her long black and purple hair and turned to face Lin Ye, gazing at him quietly.
"What is it?"
"How about... I give you a massage? You must be so tired, and a massage would help you relax!"
This was one of the few things she could think of doing for Lin Ye.
"As an idol, you know how to give massages?"
"No," Hoshino Ai shook her head. "But as an idol, I can learn. And besides, a massage isn't that hard."
She blinked her starry eyes, waiting for Lin Ye's response.
Accept? Or reject?
What else was there to say?
"I think I'm the only one who can be massaged by the popular idol, Ms. Hoshino Ai."
Lin Ye walked straight to the big bed without refusing, lying down on it and exposing his back defenselessly.
Hoshino Ai smiled even more brightly. She sat on Lin Ye's back and placed her ten fingers on his shoulders, pressing them slowly and firmly.
"How's the strength?"
"Well enough."
"Then I'll try harder."
"Can."
"How about... I step on it with my foot?"
Lin Ye: ???
"Aren't there fans who really like being stepped on by their idols?"
Hoshino Ai's face turned a little red, but her eyes stayed fixed on Lin Ye's profile.
"Unfortunately, I didn't wear black stockings."
You're trying to seduce me, aren't you?
"Mai must be look great in black stockings."
Hoshino Ai: ???
She was not happy and felt aggrieved. She even subconsciously slapped Lin Ye's back hard.
"Mai would definitely not be so rude. She'd be very gentle with me. I miss Mai for three seconds."
Hoshino Ai was sulking.
"Mai Sakurajima wouldn't give you a massage like I do!"
"Mai is so gentle and beautiful—how could she do something like a massage?"
"I am also very gentle and beautiful."
Lin Ye immediately turned to look at Kuroda Hikari.
"Kuroda-san, is she very gentle and beautiful?"
The issue of death!
Kuroda Hikari didn't dare to answer.
"My stomach... hurts so much... I... fainted."
She simply lay down on the bed, closed her eyes, and pretended to be asleep.
Hoshino Ai almost laughed out loud.
"You see, Kuroda-san must think I'm very gentle and kind, that's why she's acting like this."
"It seems Kuroda-san's eyesight is a little bad."
"Woo, can I bite you?"
"Where do you want to bite?"
"Woo, Lin Ye, you're bullying me."
Ten minutes later, Hoshino Ai couldn't hold on any longer, so Lin Ye let her rest on the side. Kuroda Hikari, seemingly wanting to repay Lin Ye for saving her life, provide also a ten-minute massage.
Lin Ye enjoyed twenty minutes of relaxation.
It was something the girl was willing to do, so there was no reason for him to refuse.
The world was so dangerous—why couldn't he enjoy himself?
Everything seemed to have calmed down, as if there would be no danger in the future.
The time finally reached one in the morning.
There were still five hours until six in the morning.
The night was long and difficult to endure. Normally, time could pass by with sleep, but now, they could only wait in agony for time to pass.
Lin Ye also felt quite bored—it was hard to kill time.
His gaze once again fell on Hoshino Ai, and he saw her yawning with her hands outstretched, sleepily.
But it was this action that made Lin Ye's awakened brain much clearer.
"Hoshino."
The sudden voice made Hoshino Ai open her eyes clearly, now less confused.
"What's wrong, Lin Ye? Did you hear some strange noises again?"
"The infection has worsened."
"Um?"
One minute later, the three of them confirmed the situation.
Without exception, the degree of infection in all three had worsened. Judging by the color of the black and gray patches, their infection was definitely much worse now than an hour ago.
"Why is this happening..."
"What on earth is going on?"
Lin Ye couldn't figure it out. He was completely stumped.
Hoshino Ai couldn't find any clue either.
As for Kuroda Hikari, there was no need to mention her—she had been lying down the whole time. If it weren't for Lin Ye and Hoshino Ai, she would have become one of the corpses.
Lin Ye was deep in thought, recalling once again all the clues and information he had gathered.
"Our infection... is getting worse over time."
"The shower water might give us a clue about how infected others are."
"Among the six of us, Ichiro Tanaka and Kimimura Mihui from Room 304 were completely infected and turned into strange bodies. As expected, they were influenced by the moaning sound from 10 to 12 o'clock and did things they shouldn't have done, which turned them into monsters."
There had been moaning sounds in Rooms 306 and 307 that time, and Lin Ye didn't think Room 304 could be an exception.
"But we didn't come into contact with anything weird!"
Hoshino Ai racked her brains but couldn't think of anything other than this strange phenomenon known as shower water.
"There is one more thing we all came into contact with, and for a long time."
"What?"
The two women's eyes focused on Lin Ye.
Lin Ye stretched out his finger and pointed.
"This hotel... no, it should be the hotel room. We've been in contact with it the entire time."
"Is this room poisonous?"
If this was the reason, it would explain the worsening infection. But... how do they solve it?
Hoshino Ai and Kuroda Hikaru felt suffocated.
This was a complete dead end.
It's over! There's no solution at all. With their current level of infection, they would be covered in black spots and transformed into strange bodies in an hour or two at most.
They didn't want to become ugly monsters—not at all.
"Boom boom boom!"
There was a knock on the door.
But it wasn't the knock on the door of Room 306; it came from a room a little farther away.
"Room service."
"May I ask if the guest requires any sanitation services?"
Late at night, a housekeeping staff knocks on the door?
Are they sweeping up garbage or people?
Normally, room service is provided during the day and never at night. But Lin Ye remembered the phrase "clean up" that he had heard when passing by the receptionist. She had been reminding him. But was the female receptionist's reminder well-intentioned or malicious?
"Lin, Lin Ye," Hoshino Ai, sitting next to Lin Ye, gently shook her head and spoke cautiously, "I really think I heard the housekeeping service."
"I... I heard it too," Kuroda Hikari spoke up immediately. This confirmed that all three of them had heard it, and it wasn't just an individual auditory hallucination.
"Sizzle..." The sound of cleaning equipment rolling down the corridor.
"Boom boom boom…" The knock on the door sounded again.
"Room service. May I ask if the guest requires any sanitation services?" A middle-aged lady's voice echoed through the corridor.
After receiving no response from inside, she moved on, pushing the cleaning cart to the next room. There was another regular knock and inquiry. Closer... closer. The cleaning staff went from room to room.
Every sound struck Hoshino Ai and Kuroda Hikari's hearts. The two suppressed their inner tension, waiting for Lin Ye's decision.
"Kacha..." Suddenly, the sound of a door unlocking rang out. After the usual inquiries, the cleaning lady did not leave but instead opened the electronic lock of the room door.
"It's Room 304," Lin Ye muttered. The room next door. The female cleaner had entered room 304 and began cleaning.
"No, that shouldn't be," Hoshino Ai said, her brow furrowed. "Before we returned to the room, wasn't the corridor twisted and the order of the rooms all messed up?"
Lin Ye explained, "The reason the corridor was twisted was because we violated Rule 6, which attracted the receptionist from the lobby on the first floor. Now that the receptionist has left and we've returned to the room, the order of the rooms and the corridor has restored as expected."
Lin Ye stood up after speaking, signaling to the two of them with his eyes.
"You'll understand when you go out and take a look."
Kuroda Hikari's heart tightened. "The female cleaner was outside, and if we went out, they might run into them. Perhaps the female cleaner was pretending to be next door but was actually standing in front of their door."
"I... I think what Kuroda-san said makes some sense. Why don't we..." Hoshino Ai began, but then quickly changed her mind. "But I will always support all decisions made by Lin Ye."
Kuroda Hikari opened her eyes wide in astonishment. She had thought Hoshino Ai would join her in persuading Lin Ye to give up the idea of going out! Didn't this make her seem like the only villain?
"Senior Lin Ye, you... you make the decision!" Kuroda Hikari said with a sigh.
"Put on your shoes and follow my instructions," Lin Ye said, his voice calm and decisive.
He had a guess about the infection rules of the love hotel, and all that was left was verification and a bit of luck. He glanced at the clock in the room. It was currently 01:15. Then, he looked back at the door.
The sound of cleaning came from next door.
"Rustle…"
"Huff, huff, huff…" The sound of a broom sweeping.
"Boom boom boom…" Suddenly, a heavy sound like chopping meat and bones filled the air.
Each sound caused Hoshino Ai and Kuroda Hikari's fragile hearts to race. The two women knew what was in Room 304, but they instinctively rejected the thought. They hoped they were overthinking.
"Let's go!" Lin Ye said, walking toward the door and opening it.
As soon as the door opened, the scene in the corridor came into view. Just as Lin Ye had said, the corridor had returned to normal.
The three of them stepped out of the room and looked next door at Room 304. The door was open, and they could hear the cleaning sounds more clearly from inside.
Hoshino Ai's gaze fell on Lin Ye's cheek, expecting him to use his superpowers to investigate and find out what was going on.
However, until the cleaning staff pushed the cart loaded with cleaning supplies to the door of the room, Hoshino Ai saw no indication that Lin Ye planned to use the time stop to enter and investigate.
Was she wrong?
The cart moved slowly.
"Oooh..." Hoshino Ai's eyes widened, and she immediately retracted her hand, which had been holding the corner of Lin Ye's clothes, and covered her mouth. She stared at the contents of the trash can in the cart with wide eyes.
"Gudong..." A loud gulp.
It was a corpse, with broken limbs and disintegrating body parts scattered in a black trash can. The blood-stained limbs were a mess, with bits of tender skin, as if telling a gruesome story. And at the top of the trash can was a spherical object with scattered black hair, still sitting quietly.
As the cart moved, the liquid blood-stained hair shifted, revealing eyes that had always been deathly gray.
The girl with chestnut twin ponytails nearly screamed the moment she saw it, but in an effort to stay rational, she closed her eyes tightly, gripping the corner of Lin Ye's clothes with both hands, her body shaking uncontrollably.
Only this way could she manage to suppress her fear.
At that moment, both women understood! The chopping sound they had heard earlier was the sound of the cleaning staff dismembering Kamimura Mihui's body!
The feeling of nausea and vomiting became unbearable, thanks to the strong smell of blood. Both women fought to suppress their urges to vomit.
At that moment, the cleaning staff pushed the cart out of Room 304. As the door closed behind them, Lin Ye paused time. He entered Room 304, quickly gathered information, and returned to his original position.
Hoshino Ai let out a sigh of relief. She believed Lin Ye must have found a clue to pass the level. There was no need to worry about the dangerous cleaning staff who had been dismembering human bodies.
As time resumed, the cleaning staff, their bodies stained with black and red liquid, closed the door of Room 304 and then looked up at Lin Ye and the others.
"Guest, are you leaving the hotel? Which room would you like cleaned?"
"Room 306 needs cleaning service, please help me," Lin Ye said calmly.
Seeing that Lin Ye was unharmed and calmly speaking with the hotel staff, Hoshino Ai and Kuroda Hikari were still worried. Hadn't they been told to ignore the non-existent hotel staff?
"I see," the cleaning staff responded, showing no signs of hostility.
It seemed almost comforting.
"By the way, Room 307 also needs to be cleaned."
Room 307 was the room where Sawanaga Taisuke and Kuroda Hikari were staying, though Taisuke was hiding alone in the room.
"Guest... you're not the guest of Room 307," the cleaning staff's words suddenly grew stiff.
Lin Ye patted Kuroda Hikari's waist, signaling her with his eyes to speak up.
"Room... 307 needs cleaning..." she gathered all her courage to say.
"I see." The cleaning staff nodded and pushed the cart into Room 306 to begin cleaning.
Five minutes later, the cleaning staff pushed the cart to the door of Room 307, the room where Taisuke was hiding.
She knock on the door.