Alain swiveled his head, a question forming on his lips, but stopped short. The young woman sat before him, head bowed, her breaths coming in increasingly ragged, heavy gasps. He couldn't read her expression, couldn't fathom what thoughts were swirling behind that curtain of dark hair.
Was I too blunt? The thought needled him. Alain was all too aware of his… professional mannerisms, which could, on occasion, be interpreted as a little… too forward.
A chill, almost tangible, seemed to settle over the room. It wasn't just his imagination; even the dust motes dancing in the sliver of light from the window seemed to skitter erratically, disturbed.
"Mita? Are you alright?" Alain's voice was soft, focused entirely on the girl before him.
The dark blue curtain of Mita's hair stirred, as though an unseen force were rippling through it. Her face was completely hidden, swallowed by shadow. Alain couldn't decipher her mood, a disconcerting feeling for a man used to reading people.
He reached out, his hand hovering hesitantly before settling into a gentle pat on her head – a gesture Mita usually relished.
"Don't touch me."
The words, sharp and cold, froze his hand in mid-air. "?" He wouldn't be discouraged so easily.
"How... could this be?"
A security system panel materialized before him, flashing an alarming message that Alain struggled to comprehend:
[Warning! Detected a sharp increase in virus strength]
The air around Mita was subtly unstable, the panel wasn't lying. Faint, inky tendrils of light flickered and intertwined around her, like restless shadows.
"Do I look good?"
Mita's voice was no longer the gentle murmur he was accustomed to. It was low, laced with a chilling undertone, like the sun obscured by a storm cloud.
"Do I look good with short hair?"
"???"
Alain's usually glib tongue felt tied in knots. How was he supposed to answer that? To say she didn't look good was… unthinkable.
But to agree, given the… charged atmosphere… would imply that her transformation was a direct result of his earlier compliment. A dangerous game, indeed.
"You look the most beautiful… right now." He chose his words carefully, a tightrope walker balancing between flattery and self-preservation.
"Heh… is that so?"
A cold laugh, devoid of any warmth, escaped Mita's lips. She slowly lifted her head, the shadows receding from her face. And there, etched on her delicate features, was the same mischievous, almost predatory smile he'd seen when they first met.
Her small, cute tiger teeth were bared, resembling the fangs of a vampire, revealing a glimpse of the raw, untamed self beneath the facade.
The act was over.
"A bad boy who only offers praise when he needs something…"
Then what am I supposed to say?! Alain mentally railed against the sheer, impossible difficulty of navigating this woman's capricious moods. One misstep, and he'd landed himself in this… predicament.
"Buzz…"
A distorted, almost unintelligible sound vibrated from Mita's lips, a low, unsettling hum that made the room feel like a tiny vessel caught in a raging tempest.
"You need some punishment."
Her mouth stretched into a wide, unnervingly cheerful grin, but Alain felt a shiver crawl down his spine. A chilling wind seemed to emanate from that smile.
Slowly, deliberately, she raised her hand, index finger and thumb touching lightly.
"Snap!"
The world dissolved into blackness. Alain's stomach lurched as his sense of balance evaporated.
He knew this feeling. This sickening, weightless freefall was intimately familiar. He'd experienced it during the transition between room versions.
The disorientation faded, and Alain blinked, finding himself seemingly back in the same living room. The layout was identical.
But the bright, cheerful light was gone, replaced by a flickering, anemic glow that only served to deepen the oppressive shadows clinging to the corners of the room.
Night had fallen.
"..."
A knot of unease tightened in Alain's chest. Ironically, the security system's usually pointless pop-up window offered a sliver of comfort.
[You have been moved]
No kidding… anyone with eyes could see that.
But there was something he needed to verify.
Suppressing a tremor of fear – he wasn't particularly fond of the dark – Alain checked his system panel.
Relief washed over him. His progress bar skills, Security Protection and Virus Scan, were both active. It was a small victory, but enough to steady his nerves.
His immediate priority was the closet. With Mita's playful facade dropped, perhaps the escape he'd been looking for was there.
Without further delay, Alain strode back to the bedroom door and pushed it gently. It swung inward, unlocked and surprisingly cooperative.
He peered inside. Like the living room, the bedroom was shrouded in darkness, save for the feeble glow of a desk lamp.
After a quick, cautious scan to ensure nothing… unpleasant was lurking, Alain entered, heading straight for the closet.
He stood before the closet doors, taking a deep breath. His gaze darted nervously around the room, hyper-vigilant for any sign of attack.
But even when his hand closed around the handle, there was no resistance.
"So well-behaved?" he muttered, a hint of suspicion in his voice.
He pulled the doors open.
Disappointment pricked him. Mita had, indeed, been toying with him.
The closet was empty of underwear. Instead, a heavy iron door stood before him, leading to… who knew where?
"That mischievous woman… playing with my curiosity!"
He'd wanted to see just how "childish" that so-called "childish" underwear really was…
"Oh well."
He strained his ears, listening for the knocking sound he'd heard during their card game.
"Knock, knock…"
There it was. The sound was definitely emanating from behind the iron door. Something was alive, and moving, inside.
But as he blinked, a line of black text materialized on the previously blank surface of the door.
[You opened it after all]
"..."
A shiver of genuine unease ran down his spine. He blinked again, and the text shifted.
[Want to play together?]
Isn't this supposed to be a love simulation world? Why add something like this?! And if you must, at least use pink text; it wouldn't be so creepy…
"Huff…"
He exhaled sharply, suppressing the urge to voice his complaints. He reached for the doorframe, attempting to pull it open.
But apart from a series of metallic clicks and groans, the door remained stubbornly sealed.
"Locked?"
Alain frowned, his frustration mounting. He searched the bedroom, but found nothing resembling a key.
By the way, the mischievous woman had lied.
The underwear was neatly tucked away in a small box under the bedside table!
Alain snatched a pair of briefs, thinking they might come in handy for teasing the now-unhinged Mita later.
But a second thought struck him. The act felt… a little too perverted, even for his "long-time wife." So, he found a scrap of paper and scribbled two words:
[IOU]
"Okay, that should do it."
He placed the note in the box and headed for the bedroom door, determined to explore the rest of the apartment for a way out of this… situation.
"Thump, thump! Shhh…"
Static crackled from the radio on the cabinet near the bathroom door.
"Slam!"
The sound of a door slamming echoed from the bathroom.
"Does it have to be like this…"
He'd never been a fan of horror games, but he knew instinctively that the radio was a clue.
He cautiously approached and switched it off, then turned his attention to the bathroom door.
"?"
The impenetrable darkness within gave him pause.
"Isn't there anything like a flashlight?"
A headache began to throb behind his eyes. Then, a flicker of light caught his peripheral vision – a gift from the heavens, perhaps.
It wasn't the dim, unsettling glow of the living room. This was a bright, clear light, promising genuine illumination.
And it was coming from the kitchen, the place he hadn't dared to venture since being force-fed those… pills.
_____
Hey there! I'm Wallnut-chan! 🌸 I'm translating this fanfic and restoring some +18 scenes that were cut from the original work—since explicit content isn't allowed in China. I went through everything carefully and reinserted the scenes while staying true to the story! Hope you enjoy it!
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