The situation seemed to be deteriorating rapidly. If the ghost were observant enough, it would surely detect the hollow space beneath the floor.
Charles sprang into action, hastily moving a ladder from a nearby pile of junk and positioning it underneath him. Climbing atop the ladder, he used his back to press firmly against the entrance's floor.
Linda and Matthew, seeing what Charles intended, cautiously approached and braced him with all their strength.
The acoustic difference between a hollow and solid floor was significant enough to raise suspicions; a hollow thud would give them away.
For now, the ghost was only suspecting, not confirming the existence of a hidden chamber below. If they played their cards right, they could entirely avoid its scrutiny.
Sure enough, a moment later, knocks echoed against Charles's back.
The ghost was persistent, and its force shook him despite the floor buffer, causing his body to tremble.
Gritting his teeth, Charles steadied himself, refusing to slacken his stance.
After some probing, the ghost seemed satisfied and moved to tap elsewhere.
Just as Linda began to relax her guard, Charles urgently gestured to them. Linda and Matthew once again anchored Charles's legs with all their might.
And, as anticipated, the ghost returned, stomping forcefully enough to send quivers through Linda and Matthew.
Ultimately, the ghost seemed convinced that nothing was amiss. It ceased its investigation and left the storage room for other pursuits.
Linda collapsed onto the ground, her body limp with relief.
"See, I told you, the storage room is no longer safe," Matthew commented.
"If we're to survive this cursed cycle, we either need to find another sanctuary or... break the curse itself," he added.
Charles glanced at him dismissively, offering no reply.
However, Linda's eyes sparkled at Matthew's words, as if suddenly infused with a glimmer of hope.
"Break the curse?"
"Do you know how to break the curse?"
Matthew fell silent for a long moment.
"I know the way, but it's extremely difficult to execute. I can't do it alone; I need help."
"We can help you!" Linda quickly chimed in.
Matthew looked hesitant, his gaze shifting between them before finally nodding. "Fine, I'll trust you this once. We're on a dead-end road anyway; might as well take a gamble."
"After our previous research and investigations, I can now confirm that the recurring curse of this school originated from a student," he continued.
At his words, Linda spontaneously blurted out, "Leopold?"
Matthew looked at them with surprised eyes. "You know?"
Charles replied, "Not much, just that Leopold's mother died at this school..."
Matthew sighed and rubbed his forehead. "That's correct."
"The story is rather lengthy," he began. "Leopold was raised in a single-parent household; his mother brought him up on her own. But Leopold was quite the achiever—his grades were always excellent, earning him a substantial scholarship."
"This school should've been a turning point in his life, a place that could change his destiny. But then, something unforeseen happened..."
"In Leopold's class, there was a girl named Lily who was academically brilliant and stunningly beautiful. She was Leopold's desk mate, and over time, he fell head over heels for her," Matthew continued. "In fact, Lily reciprocated those feelings to some degree, and they became very close friends."
"But then, a transfer student named Benjamin arrived in their class. His father was a real estate tycoon. Even though his grades were abysmal, he liked Lily, too. He used his influence to have the teacher switch his seat with Leopold's."
"As a result, Leopold could only watch helplessly as Benjamin took his place next to Lily. Aware of his own humble background, Leopold endured this shift in silence, harboring his feelings like a flame smothered beneath ash."
"But Leopold could no longer contain his anger when he accidentally saw Benjamin reach his hand into Lily's clothes and fondle her breasts."
"He arranged to meet with a few of his close male classmates, and on a dark night, they wore masks and dragged Benjamin into a thicket to give him a severe beating," Matthew continued.
"Although they wore masks, the act was still captured by the school's surveillance cameras. As a result, Leopold was expelled."
"Afterward, Leopold's mother came to the school. She met with Leopold's teacher and, sobbing, knelt in his office, begging him not to expel her son.
However, the nature of the incident was too grave, leaving no room for second chances. In the heat of emotion, Leopold's mother had a conflict with the teacher.
In a terrible turn of events, the teacher accidentally pushed her out of a window. Leopold's mother died instantly; her head cracked open, her brains spilling onto the ground..."
"You can probably guess what happened next. Though Leopold's mother was dead, the news was hushed up. No one knew about the chain of horrors that had unfolded within these school walls," Matthew said, his voice tinged with bitterness.
"Justice was never served for Leopold. Several days later, he returned to the school, gun in hand. He shot and killed his teacher and Benjamin, then fled over the school's walls and disappeared without a trace."
Matthew paused, lowered his voice even further. "That's the story everyone knows. But the truth is, Leopold never left. He died here, in the underground garage of Area A. His grudge was so deep it cast a curse upon the whole school. Our mission is to destroy his corpse."
"Only by destroying his corpse can we possibly put an end to the curse. Fortunately, when we first entered the school for our investigation, we brought with us a powerful weapon. However, it was lost in a well marked 'Sewage' when we were ambushed by the evil spirit of Leopold."
"The weapon has identity recognition, but it won't take too much time to activate. As long as you can distract the evil spirit of Leopold, I can quickly get that weapon up and running and destroy Leopold's corpse."
Linda inquired, "How long will it take?"
"About four minutes," Matthew responded.
Linda glanced at Charles, her eyes questioning.
Charles reached out his hand and shook it with Matthew. "When do we take action?"
Matthew pondered, "It's too late for tonight. Come back here tomorrow night, and I'll lead you to the underground garage in Area A."
Charles queried, "Can we take a look at the underground garage beforehand?"
"Almost forgot, you're not familiar with the layout of the school. It's a good idea to go and take a look," Matthew quickly responded.
After agreeing, the three waited for about five hours in the storage room until the fog outside had dissipated. Charles then led Linda out to survey the layout of the school.
During daytime classes, they took their seats according to the list, and because they chose the correct ones, all was well.
However, several classmates who sat in the wrong seats were immediately decapitated. In a bizarre twist, the severed heads and bodies promptly vanished.
At dinner in the cafeteria, Charles shoveled food into his mouth while casting glances at Linda's shapely thigh. "Your thigh-high stockings are quite something. May I borrow them?" he inquired.
Preoccupied with the night's upcoming endeavor, Linda had little appetite. She looked at Charles with surprise. "What do you need my stockings for? If you like them, I'll give them to you once we get out of here alive—but not now."
"No, I need them now," Charles insisted.
"For what?" Linda asked, her eyes widening.
"To kill someone," Charles replied.
"Kill who?" Linda was stunned.
"Matthew," Charles answered.