After taking the final step, Xerxes was met by an even deeper darkness. The air felt heavy and suffocating, and although he didn't want to admit it, his heart pounded in his chest. He was genuinely scared out of his wits. His trembling hands fumbled in his pants pocket, searching for the only source of comfort he had left. Pulling out an instant coffee sachet, he ripped off the tip and downed it in one big gulp. The bitter warmth shot through him like a jolt of energy.
With the caffeine beginning to kick in, Xerxes forced himself to look around. His eyes strained in the pitch-black corridor, barely making out the shape of the walls. It was as though the darkness had swallowed everything. Maybe his eyes were adjusting—or maybe it was the coffee—but he could somehow see better now.
It was a narrow corridor, leading to a single door at the end. Xerxes took a steadying breath, trying to calm his nerves, and approached it. He placed his hand on the doorknob and slowly turned it, every creak of the knob sending a ripple of tension through him. He braced himself for a jump scare, but the door creaked open to reveal... nothing.
An empty room.
Xerxes blinked, scanning the room in confusion. The emptiness felt worse than if something had been there. The room was plain, almost too perfect, with a wooden bed that had white sheets draped neatly over it, positioned against the wall beside a window. There was a wardrobe tucked into the corner and a round carpet placed in front of the bed. The moonlight from the window bathed the room in a cold, ghostly light. The walls were painted a strange shade of gold, but Xerxes hardly noticed. His mind was still reeling from the tension.
He headed straight for the wardrobe and began rifling through it, his hands shaking. Was it fear or the caffeine that made him so jittery? Maybe it was both. His body always seemed at odds with his mind, as if they were walking different paths. He sometimes wondered how he even made it this far.
After what felt like an eternity, Xerxes finally found a pair of white shoes. Without a second thought, he grabbed them and rushed downstairs.
When Xerxes appeared in the doorway, the tension in the room broke. Everyone who had been holding their breath let it out in a collective sigh of relief. He placed the shoes on Kai's feet, and they fit perfectly.
"Did you see anything strange up there?" Gerald asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Kai, walk around and see if there are any problems," Xerxes said, trying to shake off the lingering unease. He watched as Kai moved around the room in the shoes.
"There was nothing strange," Xerxes continued, looking over at the others. "It's just a bedroom upstairs."
"They're good!" Kai said in a much lighter tone, hopping around the place with newfound energy.
Seeing that Xerxes had returned unscathed lifted everyone's spirits. Confident, they decided to continue exploring the house. Everyone but Nova, who remained seated on the couch, looking like she was above it all. There were only two more doors left to check. One was on the left side of the living room. It opened to another bedroom with a double bed, a wardrobe, and a carpet, just like the room upstairs. It also had a window.
The last door, tucked under the stairs, opened to a tiny room with just a toilet and a basin.
"There's only one toilet in the whole house?" Nova peered over the armrest of the couch. His eyes widened in disbelief. Until that moment, the dungeon hadn't felt all that terrifying, but now, the idea of sharing a single toilet with everyone was enough to make him reconsider. "No way. That's kind of messed up."
"It looks clean, though," Xerxes remarked. But Nova was still frowning, clearly unsettled.
"You can just hold it in until we clear the dungeon," Kai suggested with a shrug.
Nova's mind raced, torn between his discomfort and the reality that dungeons could take days to clear. Would he really be able to last that long?
Unlike Nova, the others seemed content with the situation. A roof over their heads was enough to ease their concerns.
The kitchen had plenty of drinkable water, but there wasn't much to eat. So, they decided to sleep off the hunger. No one wanted to venture outside in the dark. Lucas had already dragged Savannah into the bedroom downstairs and locked the door behind them, eliminating one of the rooms.
"I'll sleep upstairs," Xerxes declared, eager to claim the last bedroom before anyone else did. But as he looked around, he realized no one seemed interested in taking it. In fact, they looked relieved to settle in the living room. Nova, however, remained determined.
"I also want to sleep upstairs," Nova said, following Xerxes's lead.
"Just sleep in the living room," Xerxes said, giving him a weary look.
Nova's expression was as deadpan as ever. Behind them, Gerald and Bailey had already claimed their respective couches, settling in for the night.
"The table's free," Kai said, stealing the words right out of Xerxes's mouth.
"Come on, don't be petty. The bed should be big enough for all of us. I'm already having a hard time here without my manager," Nova said with a grin, and before Xerxes could protest, he bolted upstairs.
Reluctantly, Xerxes and Kai followed, unable to leave Nova alone in his excitement. Nova entered the room with a burst of energy but froze when he saw the ugly golden walls. He frowned but didn't seem to mind much. Kai immediately flopped onto the bed, throwing off his shoes and claiming the only pillow.
Later that night:
"Stop moving, Nova!" Xerxes said, fed up with Nova's constant movements.
"Move over to the side a little—my shoulder is hanging in the air."
Nova, Kai, and Xerxes were squeezed into the bed, shoulder to shoulder, lying on their backs. But none of them were willing to sleep anywhere else.
"There's only the floor left to my side," Xerxes replied. He wasn't lying. There was no space left to move over to.
"Turn sideways. You'll have enough space to sleep then," Kai provided a solution.
"I like to sleep on my back," Nova said.
No one spoke after that.