The Ringtone

Translator: CinderTL

Taking a deep breath, Jiang Cheng's expression softened considerably. He glanced at the phone by his side and said, "The timing is off." He explained, "From the moment he hung up the phone to the time he knocked on the door, less than seven minutes had passed."

"His voice sounded urgent, but his breathing was steady. He didn't run here, at least not up the stairs."

"Moreover, they just lost a teammate, so no matter how urgent the situation, he wouldn't dare to take the elevator alone. The distance between the two buildings..." Jiang Cheng looked up at Fatty and asked, "Did he fly here?"

"So, the person who called earlier was a ghost?" Fatty swallowed hard, suddenly feeling uneasy.

Jiang Cheng thought for a moment and replied, "Not necessarily."

Fatty looked into the Doctor's eyes, and after a while, he seemed to grasp the Doctor's train of thought. He continued based on his understanding, "So, Doctor, you're saying that the person who called earlier might not have been a ghost, but the real Banana Wolf. However, the ghost intercepted the call, knew Banana Wolf was coming, and so impersonated him to reach us first."

Jiang Cheng remained silent for a long time, not speaking.

Fatty saw a flicker of light in the Doctor's eyes, and for a moment, he had the illusion that the Doctor wasn't human but a highly intelligent robot created by future technology.

He was as precise as a machine, cunning, and shameless. Whether it was a human or a ghost, deceiving him even once was extremely difficult.

"I think something really happened to Banana Wolf," Jiang Cheng said.

"Is Yu Lan dead too?" Fatty blinked and asked. After what the Doctor said, he wasn't sure whom to believe anymore.

"I don't know," Jiang Cheng looked out the window. "But I think it's been too quiet for too long. It's time for some commotion."

"What should we do now?"

Jiang Cheng walked around the room, finding nothing unusual, then casually poured himself a glass of water. After gulping it down, his complexion improved.

After a period of silence, the hallway echoed with faint footsteps, as if the person was being very cautious.

A soft knock was heard, but it wasn't on their door; it seemed to be a distance away.

Fatty immediately realized someone was knocking on the door of room 610, the Doctor's room.

Then, the faint footsteps moved to their door, and the knocking resumed, "Knock, knock, knock."

A moment later, a very soft voice was heard, "Mr. Jiang." The voice sounded slightly breathless, as if the person had just been through some strenuous activity, like running up the stairs.

"Are you there?"

It was Banana Wolf's voice.

Hearing Banana Wolf's voice again, Fatty felt extremely uneasy. He looked at the Doctor, not daring to make a sound.

The choice was left to the Doctor.

"Mr. Jiang," Banana Wolf outside the door sounded anxious. "Mr. Jiang, can you hear me?"

After about ten seconds, Banana Wolf seemed to give up on them. The footsteps started to leave, and then, upon reaching the stairwell, began descending.

Fatty suddenly felt regret; it seemed this Banana Wolf was the real one.

"Doctor," Fatty exhaled and said, "I think this Banana Wolf is the real one. Otherwise, he wouldn't have left so decisively."

After all, Banana Wolf didn't know them before, so leaving immediately after finding no one in his room was the most logical choice.

The previous imposter had been too persistent.

Seeing that the Doctor didn't speak, Fatty continued to persuade, "Doctor, maybe we should leave. This place is too strange."

"The other teammates might have returned. Talking to them might give us some clues. Honestly, Doctor, this scenario feels really weird to me."

Just thinking about encountering three ghosts on the first night made Fatty feel extremely uneasy, and now it was unclear whether a ghost had infiltrated them.

That was the most terrifying part.

A wolf outside the sheep pen isn't scary; a wolf disguised as a sheep and mixed into the pen is truly terrifying.

Jiang Cheng thought for a moment and seemed to agree with Fatty. He nodded and said, "Alright."

Fatty moved to the door, peering through the peephole for a while.

Outside was eerily quiet, not even a breeze. The door opposite had a rental notice quietly pasted on it.

Just as Fatty placed his hand on the handle, about to press down,

Jiang Cheng grabbed him again.

Looking into the Doctor's eyes, Fatty felt he was overthinking, which wasn't a good sign.

Following the Doctor, Fatty hesitated for a moment before asking softly, "Doctor," he whispered, "Did you think of something else?"

Jiang Cheng didn't answer. He first glanced at the door, then silently picked up the phone and began dialing. Fatty blinked beside him.

Upon seeing the number the Doctor dialed, Fatty's expression turned peculiar.

Just as the Doctor pressed the last number and made the call, a ringtone suddenly sounded.

A phone ringtone.

Fatty's eyes twitched, and he immediately looked toward the door.

The ringtone was right behind the door!

At a slightly lower position.

That was the blind spot of the peephole.

In an instant, Fatty's hair stood on end. He didn't have the courage to walk over and look through the peephole again, fearing he might see something that would stop his heart.

Like a grinning, disheveled ghost, or just a simple bloody eye.

Either one would be too much.

Fatty immediately turned to look at the Doctor, only to find him holding the phone, staring at the door, his complexion not much better than Fatty's.

The ghost... hadn't left at all. The footsteps that left earlier, the sound of running down the stairs, were all a trick.

All a diversion!

The Banana Wolf who had come earlier, and the one hiding outside the door now... both were ghosts!

Fatty had no doubt that as soon as the door opened, his life would be over.

And he might even drag the Doctor down with him.

What suffocated Fatty even more was that after a few rings, the call was actually answered.

Jiang Cheng also seemed unprepared for this, his hand holding the receiver trembling slightly. Fatty saw it clearly, but a moment later, Jiang Cheng still brought the phone to his ear.

No one spoke.

Neither side.

There was only a whooshing sound in the receiver, like the suppressed gasps of an old, broken bellows. Fatty instinctively thought of the old, leaky windboxes.

Then, after hearing something, Jiang Cheng "clicked" and put down the phone. Fatty saw sweat beginning to bead on his forehead.

Slowly, the sweat gathered into a stream, sliding down his cheek.

"Doctor," Fatty asked, "What did you hear?"

In Fatty's memory, the Doctor rarely lost his composure like this. Even when face to face with a ghost disguised as a teammate, he could maintain his calm.

Sometimes, he even found a way to turn the tables.

But this time...

"Do-Doctor," Fatty couldn't hold back, feeling that the Doctor's current state was very wrong. Could it be that he opened his eyes, and the ghost had some means to attack through the phone?

(End of the Chapter)

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