12: Schoolwide Spotlight: The Mysterious Coffin

That hand was pale and slender, with nails so black and glossy it looked as if they'd been painted. It reached out slowly—slowly but steadily—gripping the edge of the coffin, as if the next second, someone might sit up from inside.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhh!" Li Min screamed, leaping up and hiding behind me.

"Hey, hey, hey! Wake up! Wake up, you guys!" Sen Leian shouted.

At that moment, Li Min and I were asleep at our desks in the classroom.

"When did you bring that black coffin in here? I didn't even see them arrive! So you two were contacted first, huh?" Sen Leian said, sounding annoyed.

Li Min and I looked at each other, then turned to stare at the black coffin.

"Am I dreaming?" Li Min mumbled, dazed.

"Have you seen that coffin before?" I asked, surprised.

We exchanged a look—both of us realizing we had the exact same dream.

"Ahhhhhh!" We screamed in unison.

Sen Leian jumped back, startled. "What is wrong with you two? If you're done, go home already!"

Li Min and I stammered, too afraid to speak the truth. That coffin… was terrifying! The three of us quickly gathered our things and headed home.

Just as we reached the school gates, the security guard said, "Kids, be careful on your way home. There was a car accident at the intersection nearby. One of our students got hit. What was his name again… Jiang something?"

"Jiang Jianshen," I whispered.

"Yeah! That's it! Jiang Jianshen, a second-year. Such a good kid," the guard said with a sigh.

Li Min and I looked at each other, goosebumps rising all over. We were terrified. In the dream, it was Jiang Jianshen who carried the coffin. But now that we were awake… the coffin was here. And Jiang Jianshen… was at the accident scene!

We didn't dare to think further and quickly called a cab home. The air around us felt suddenly colder.

But waiting for us tomorrow… was the Summer Festival. The big event where every class would battle it out for glory! There were no official rankings, but each class would secretly compete to see who could win the most shopping coupons.

The next morning, the "50th Anniversary Summer Festival" officially began!

By 4:30 AM, our classmates were already in the classroom. Despite the early hour, everyone looked full of energy and excitement.

"I didn't sleep at all! I'm so hyped!" Wu Kaixi said eagerly.

"I'm dead tired. Only slept two hours," Sen Leian yawned.

"I couldn't sleep either… Yesterday, that… coffin thing with Jiang Jianshen—what was that about?" Li Min spoke with deep eye bags, looking exhausted.

"Hahaha! Li Min, you don't even need special effects makeup—your dark circles and pale face are perfect!" laughed Li Lin from the lighting crew.

"Did you guys hear about the accident at the intersection last night?" Wu Kaixi asked nervously.

"Our tutoring group chat blew up! Jiang Jianshen was in the same cram class as me," Qian Xiaoxun added quickly.

"What happened to him in the end?" Sen Leian asked.

"They say… he didn't make it," Qian Xiaoxun sighed.

Our class observed a minute of silence. Jiang Jianshen was a mischievous guy, always drawing attention. Nearly everyone at school knew him.

Suddenly, there was clapping outside the classroom. Clap, clap, clap!

"Alright! Ready to go, Class 25?" our homeroom teacher called out.

The SFX makeup team immediately pulled out their supplies—red blood packs, paint palettes, eyeliner, ghost-white foundation…

"Whoa! What is all this?" the classmates gasped.

Then the team revealed even more: iron nails, fake eyeballs, sewing kits, half-face mannequins, long rubber tongues, iron wire, fake bugs, fake spiders…

"So gross!" the classmates grimaced.

Designer Wu Kaixi grinned like a devil, "Ogres! Let's begin!"

"Such dedication! If only you worked this hard at studying," the teacher quipped.

"Teacher, don't kill the vibe! Out you go—your turn's coming up soon," Sen Leian said, ushering the teacher out.

Class 25's doors slammed shut. But as other classes walked by, eerie screams and sinister laughter kept leaking out.

"Hey, did you hear? They really brought in a coffin last night!" a passing student said.

"Seriously? That's intense! I'm getting excited! Did you buy your coupons yet?" Students chatted excitedly.

We were busy all the way until nearly 6:00. Even though we were well-prepared, when it came time to launch the event, it was still chaotic.

The red blood gel was meant to be used for a few bloody drip effects, but when they opened the bag—splat! The artist and classmate's faces turned entirely red.

"Yes! That's the look I wanted!" Wu Kaixi pointed approvingly.

"Just add some rotten flesh effects and we're golden," he instructed.

Sen Leian and I were the overall coordinators, checking every detail to make sure everything ran smoothly. Our mission? Drive every student and teacher insane with excitement—and terror! Plus those little kids from outside the school too… Hehehehehe… (The whole class broke into mischievous, creepy laughter.)

I ran around helping the lighting team figure out where the red and yellow lights should go, offering SFX tips, climbing up to hang skeleton heads, carrying chairs, borrowing lab skeletons… I was drenched in sweat and panting like crazy.

Good thing I remembered to bring the light gray towel Chen Hao'an gave me. I'd stuffed it into my bag thinking I'd be sweating buckets today. After all, I still wanted to check out the other classes' events and charity sales!

While I was wiping my sweat with the towel and getting ready for makeup, Li Min noticed it. "New towel?"

"This? Sort of," I mumbled.

"Whoa, it's from Sweet Home brand!" Li Min inspected it closely.

Just then, the SFX crew started applying cracked lip makeup on me, so I couldn't talk clearly. Li Min didn't understand what I was trying to say.

7:00. The festival started at 8:00…

"You guys ready yet? Why's the door closed?" the homeroom teacher knocked at the door.

The door opened just a sliver. A red, bloody hand crept out and whispered slowly, "Three coupons per person… to enter… The Ogre's… Kitchen…"

The hand waved for the teacher to hand over coupons.

Teachers from other classes who happened to walk by got curious and came closer to watch.

Clap, clap, clap! Twelve coupons landed in the red hand. It took them and closed the door. Then it reached out again, gesturing come on, come on…, before retreating into the darkness. Inside, it was pitch black. Suddenly, a red flash lit up the gap, then vanished. Then a blue light flickered… and disappeared.

The door creaked open.

From the speakers came the eerie creaking of an ancient mansion's doors, sending chills down everyone's spine.

Outside stood our homeroom teacher, the math teacher, the science teacher from the next class, and the English teacher.

Sen Leian whispered to the nearby "devils": "Time for revenge. Let's make them pay!"

As the teachers stepped inside, the door suddenly slammed shut!

The room plunged into darkness. Only occasional flashes of red and blue light flickered, as if someone was watching from the shadows.

"Whoa, this is… really intense," the math teacher muttered, stepping back instinctively—but the door was shut tight.

"Was that door automatic?" the English teacher asked, touching it, visibly nervous.

We had… professional ethics. You pay the coupons, we don't let you out… hehehe.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to—The Ogre's Kitchen!" a deep voice boomed from the speakers, accompanied by a spooky soundtrack that made everyone's hair stand on end.

From the floor, white fog began to rise. A red spotlight revealed several bloodied "severed hands" that suddenly started crawling!

"Ahhh!" The science teacher jumped and grabbed the math teacher's arm.

"Let's go, teachers… You're already part of tonight's dinner!" The curtain flew open to reveal a "chef," wrapped in bandages, half his face mangled, holding a rusted butcher's knife with a twisted grin.

"This is getting… kind of scary," the homeroom teacher said, sweat running down his forehead.

"What's the next dish?" the "chef" asked ominously. Behind him, the clatter of pots and pans echoed. Suddenly, several "human legs" dropped from the ceiling, dripping "blood" under the red lights.

Then, a classmate dressed as a "mad ogre" darted out, narrowly missing the English teacher.

"Good grief! I nearly had a heart attack!" the English teacher clutched his chest, pale.

"Next task: Please search the kitchen for the 'secret seasoning,'" the speakers boomed again with a dark chuckle.

The teachers exchanged glances and reluctantly split up.

Hidden in the shadows, we watched them through the surveillance screens. Sen Leian was laughing so hard he was cramping. I couldn't help but grin too—it was so satisfying seeing these normally serious teachers panic like this!

"Next, they'll face… the 'Human Meat Freezer' and the 'Talking Corpse'," Wu Kaixi said over the walkie-talkie.

We were stationed at different scenes, ready to unleash new horrors the moment the teachers got close.

We scattered across different "stations" in the classroom, each hiding in our designated scene, just waiting for the teachers to approach—then we'd unleash our next-level scares, one after another.

Meanwhile, students from other classes lining up outside had already caught wind of our "haunted legend."

"I heard their class actually moved in a real coffin!"

"No way… Someone said they dreamed about that coffin last night."

"I'm kinda scared to go in now…"

I heard all of it. And the classmates—no, the demons—in our class only grinned darker, more wicked than ever… Hehehehe.

Li Min kept staring toward the storage room. She said she couldn't shake the feeling that someone was lying inside… still asleep.

I looked at her. The shadows under her eyes were darker today—so pale it didn't even look normal.

"Have you still not snapped out of it?" I whispered.

She paused, then said in a hushed voice, "Did you notice… the coffin we dreamed about yesterday, it's still sitting exactly where it was. But… did you see today's 'red hand'…?"

I froze. "You mean… that wasn't something the makeup team did?"

Li Min shook her head, her face going pale.

"I didn't tell anyone… but when I saw it move, I swear—the fingernails were black. Long. Just like…"

"The hand from our dream?" I interrupted her, breath catching.

"Yes," she said.

We looked at each other. That moment, all our laughter disappeared.

Back inside the escape room, the teachers had completed most of the challenges. They'd faced the "Human Meat Grinder," the "Talking Severed Head," and the "Bloody Pool Puzzle."

Just as they were about to unlock the final "exit"—

The classroom lights suddenly went out.

"Who turned off the lights?" the science teacher shouted.

"Students? Was this part of the setup?"

No one replied.

The moment the lights died, the classroom speakers began playing a low, eerie sound… crying.

It sounded like it came from inside the coffin. Like a baby. Or an ancient woman.

Then, over the loudspeakers, a voice echoed:

"Who… touched… my… coff…"

The message cut off abruptly, plunging the room into an icy silence.

"Was that part of the plan?" I whispered into the walkie-talkie to Wu Kaixi on the other end.

"No… That wasn't us."

We all froze.

Moments later, the sound of the final syllable—"ffin"—scratched through the classroom like fingernails clawing across a chalkboard.

"This… can't be…" Li Min murmured, unable to finish her sentence.

The next second, the storage room door at the back of the classroom—

Click.

It opened by itself.

We—the planners—rushed to the back instantly.

"Who opened it? Who touched the coffin?!" My voice was trembling.

We flipped the lights back on—and saw the black coffin…

Empty.

No one inside.

The lid was wide open, as if… no one had ever been there at all.

But on the floor, a thin trail—like something had been dragged—led toward the back door.

"Did anyone else see that red light just now…" Li Min whispered suddenly. "Like the one in our dream—coming from beneath the coffin…"

We all fell silent.

Then, the walkie-talkie crackled again.

"You guys, you need to see this!" It was Sen Leian's voice. "You have to see this right now!"

A few of the ogres rushed over. Sen Leian was standing there, staring gravely at the bulletin board.

Posted there was a black-and-white obituary.

[Jiang Jianshen – passed away last night in a car accident at the crossroad. Age: 15.]

"Why is this here?" I was stunned.

"Look at the date," Sen Leian pointed beneath the notice.

"Filed yesterday morning…"

"But last night… we dreamed of him… carrying the coffin."

And in that moment, we finally understood—it wasn't a dream.

Jiang Jianshen… had come to say goodbye.

He had really been in our classroom.

The hand. The coffin… It was all real.

"Was… his final stop… to attend our summer event?" Li Min asked softly. The shadows beneath her eyes darker than ever, like her emotions had been drained all night.

None of us spoke.

We simply stood among the crowd, staring at the obituary… at the flicker of red shadows beneath the classroom lights, as if something… or someone… still lingered.

Inside, the "Ogre's Kitchen" was still packed, filled with laughter and screams.

But behind the scenes, we all knew—

Some things… weren't part of our setup.

That black coffin still sat in the corner of the storage room,

as if waiting for someone to come back.

By now, the teachers had bolted out. The classroom door stood wide open. We looked out beyond it.

"AHHHHH!!!" A girl's terrified scream echoed from the third floor.

I slammed the classroom door shut immediately.

"A ghost!!" Another girl screamed from the third floor.

And inside our class, our little devils were doubled over with laughter.

"This… this time… hahahaha… we're famous!" Sen Leian roared with laughter.

"YES! The real fun's just getting started!" Wu Kaixi shouted, thrilled.