"Then, good luck to all of you," the cold voice said.
Before anyone could react, the scene before them blurred.
The next moment, Nick found himself in a splendidly decorated hall, with all his classmates gone.
The enormous diamond chandelier, the red carpet-lined stairs, and the exquisite European-style ornaments all indicated that this was a high-end restaurant.
And it was not small; Nick's position was just in one corner, and the other students were probably somewhere else in the restaurant.
"Announcement: The restaurant will open in fifteen minutes. Please go to the storage room to find a suitable uniform for yourself." (Please dress neatly while working. Guests seeing sloppy waiters will affect the restaurant's reputation.)
"Warning: Without strong psychological resilience and sufficient ability, please do not enter the floors above the second floor of the restaurant."
"The guests there are difficult to serve, and if you don't serve them well, they will eat something other than the restaurant's food."
"Announcement: The restaurant prioritizes customer satisfaction, but inevitably encounters some unruly guests who tarnish the restaurant's reputation. Players may appropriately discipline them."
Discipline? Are you sure that's not asking for death?
In a horror game, the customers are likely ghosts. Protecting the restaurant's reputation isn't worth losing your life.
Under these circumstances, Nick's calmness wasn't due to strong psychological resilience but rather the result of extensive psychological counseling specifically for horror games.
Although the other students were scared, they should also be able to calm down and complete their tasks.
Fear equals death.
Only by behaving honestly and completing the work can they survive.
"The immersion is strong; I'm already a waiter!"
Nick murmured as he rushed towards the storage room at the back.
On the way, the surroundings were empty but very clean, as if they had just been swept. Upon reaching the storage room, he opened the door to be greeted by a stifling heat.
Inside was a mess of various items. Lifting up a panel, he found a tangled mass of hair, covered in blood, with a bloody scalp attached.
Suppressing his disgust, Nick retrieved a waiter's uniform from inside.
It was a standard restaurant suit.
The only downside was that it emitted a foul stench and was covered in large bloodstains!
"Wearing this for a day, I might throw up my stomach acid," he thought.
But there was no choice; he had to wear it. The restaurant's reputation was important.
"Open the information panel," Nick said after putting on the suit, enduring the sticky feeling.
Each player had their own information panel in the game, where they could check their tasks besides their own attributes.
Player: Nick.
Strength: 20.
Speed: 30.
Ghost Power: 0.
Ghosts: None.
Skills: Devil's Eye, Angel's Kiss, Analytical Eye.
Level: 1/10.
"Huh??" Aside from Ghost Power and Ghosts, why did he have Skills and Level? Nick was surprised. During his previous counseling sessions, no one else's panel seemed to have these two items. "Has the information panel been upgraded?"
Nick clicked on Devil's Eye to see the details.
Devil's Eye: By absorbing negative emotions from others, such as anger, you can receive random rewards. The size of the reward matches the intensity of the negative emotion. (Provided by the Newbie Gift Pack)
Angel's Kiss: By absorbing positive emotions from others, such as goodwill, you can receive random rewards. The size of the reward matches the intensity of the positive emotion. (Provided by the Newbie Gift Pack)
Analytical Eye: By concentrating your gaze, you can discern the intentions of ghosts and analyze the uses of ghostly objects. (Provided by the Newbie Gift Pack)
"So, by affecting a ghost's emotions, I can receive random rewards?"
Nick realized that this might be his unique advantage. These two skills felt like cheats in a horror game.
Without thinking too much, Nick turned and left the stifling storage room.
There were five minutes left.
On the corridor leading back to the hall, Nick saw someone. It was a classmate, the English class representative, Mary.
Nick was about to greet her, but when she saw him, she quickly turned her face away, looking nervous. She continued pushing a trolley forward, also dressed in a restaurant uniform.
"What does this mean?" Nick was confused. As Mary turned the corner, Nick suddenly noticed a faint black shadow following closely behind her.
"So soon, dealing with ghosts?" Despite the surprise, Nick didn't have the time to worry about others. He hurried back to the entrance of Restaurant No.3. Returning to the hall, he found two more people waiting.
"Jason, Ada?"
The man and woman looked surprised to see Nick.
"Looks like we've all been assigned to Hall No.3." "Are the other classmates also waiters?" Nick asked.
They were in Restaurant Room No.3, one of nine rooms, highlighting the restaurant's vast size.
Moreover, they were only responsible for the first-floor dining area.
"Not just that. The restaurant has positions like waiters, greeters, cashiers, cleaners, and chefs. These are the five most basic positions assigned to our entire class," explained Ada, hugging her shoulders and anxiously looking around while explaining to Nick.
Jason glanced at Nick but didn't speak, subtly stepping away from him. He felt that this clueless newbie would die soon, and it was best to distance himself to avoid getting dragged down.
"Ada, this foolish woman, thinks kindness will be rewarded? By explaining things to him, she's just setting herself up for trouble," Jason thought, without saying it aloud.
Silence is not only gold; it also keeps one out of trouble.
Ding-ding!!
The bell on the door rang, and the three of them immediately perked up.
It was time. Strange Tales Restaurant was now officially open!
The automatic glass doors opened, allowing a bone-chilling wind to invade from the dark night outside.
Nick and the other two were covered in goosebumps.
Outside, figures were faintly visible.
Eerie sounds filled their ears, making them shiver.
It was as if something was crawling on their shoulders, whispering and crying in their ears...
"The restaurant seems quite busy. There's already a line of customers outside just as we opened,"
Nick looked at those things, uneasily tugged at the corners of his mouth, and half-jokingly said.