CHAPTER 06

After Kwon Taehyun left, I climbed the stairs alone. I strained my ears just in case, but there was no sound at all—not even the usual traces of life.

It was when I was climbing to the second floor.

Creeeeak—.

“…?”

The second-floor corridor was dark, and the trees blocked even the glow of the streetlights.

Creeeak, creeak.

“……”

I quickened my pace. Whatever it was, meeting it at this hour would be a bad idea. Fortunately, nothing happened until I reached the third floor.

Room 302 felt less like a university dorm and more like an old hospital ward. Still, it wasn’t anything too out of the ordinary.

A single iron-framed bed, a desk and chair, a wardrobe. Behind the desk, the window was covered with thick blackout curtains.

Thankfully, there was a small bathroom attached, so I managed to wash up a bit.

“Well… I survived the day, at least.”

Maybe it was because the tension had finally broken, but the moment I sat down on the bed, exhaustion hit me so hard my vision spun.

Unable to resist the temptation, I lay my head on the pillow and my eyelids grew unbearably heavy.

“The rules… I should read them…”

But I couldn’t focus on anything anymore.

Too many things had happened in a single day. And starting tomorrow, there would be even more.

I would have to act like Amelie, search for an escape route… and if that didn’t work, find the missing people the loan sharks had commissioned.

Either way, my parents’ debt was still waiting for me in the real world.

That thought pressed down on me with the weight of reality I had almost forgotten. Right. That was my life. A university student—what an absurd joke.

And then I fell asleep almost like I’d blacked out.

A cold sensation woke me up.

“Oh, you’re awake.”

Clack. I frowned against the blinding light.

Malo stood by the bedside, looking down at me upside down, wearing a surgical mask.

“…Professor?”

“You shouldn’t fall asleep during class.”

Only then did I notice what he was holding in his right hand.

A scalpel.

“Um, what are you…?”

Before I could even speak, Malo grabbed my right arm.

The feel of latex gloves was unfamiliar against my skin.

“Student, are you left-handed?”

“Ah… ugh…”

My lips wouldn’t move properly. Seeing that, Malo lowered his sterilization mask beneath his chin. He was smiling. Sharp fangs were visible between his red lips.

“Let’s observe your muscle movement today.”

No— I tried to scream, but no sound came out.

No, no, no!

The moment the cold blade touched the inside of my elbow—

“NO!!”

I woke up on the bed.

“Hah… what the—”

My whole body was soaked in cold sweat.

I gasped and looked around. It was the dorm room from last night. I must have fallen asleep without even turning off the light.

“What a terrible dream…”

Just then—

Bang, bang, bang.

Someone—no, something—was violently knocking on the wooden door. I instinctively held my breath.

I quickly glanced at the wall clock. 7 a.m. Not exactly a morning wake-up call. Who would be banging on a door like that at this hour?

Bang.

Bang.

Bang!

I looked around. No place to hide. No weapon. But I had one thing I could rely on.

I had been assigned the “role” of Amelie by the Citadel, and Room 302 of the girls’ dorm was an officially recognized Amelie room.

As long as I didn’t break the rules, I wouldn’t be replaced. In other words, this room was a relative safe zone.

After a moment of hesitation, I got up and approached the door. The corridor beyond was silent. I pressed my ear against the wood.

Was that the sound of my hair rustling? Or breathing?

Or maybe…

BANG!

“Eek.”

I covered my mouth.

And then, a low laugh came from the other side of the door. A man’s laugh. A young man’s.

Followed by footsteps. Click, click—walking down the corridor, toward the stairs.

“……”

I should open it… right?

There was no other choice. I couldn’t stay locked in forever, and there was no guard office to call.

I slowly opened the door. After confirming the hallway was empty, I looked behind it.

A yellow sticky note was attached right at eye level.

“…?”

Carefully, I peeled it off.

E2A4N700#**

A code?

I turned it over, but that was all there was. I shoved it into my pocket and closed the door.

And then I realized something important.

Gurgle.

I hadn’t eaten in almost 30 hours. My stomach had shrunk from being held by the loan sharks, but still—I couldn’t think or search properly like this.

I decided to check the room first. There probably wasn’t any food, but maybe something useful for survival was hidden.

The first thing that caught my eye was the dorm rules on the wall. I skimmed them quickly.

And when I reached rule number 3, chills ran down my entire body.

Dormitory Rules – Guanglun Comprehensive University

1. Please observe dorm entry times.
   Lights are turned off for the entire dorm after 10 p.m. Do not enter between midnight and 6 a.m.

(Note: It’s safer to assume lights go off at 9 p.m. The supervisor gets sensitive from that time.)
If you don’t properly explain why you’re late, you won’t even get your key back. Nobody wants to be kicked outside in the middle of the night.

2. No outsiders are allowed inside the dorm.
   Only under valid reasons may you accompany someone to the first-floor lobby. Report to the supervisor first and obtain permission.
3. Do not create noise or disturbance after lights-out.
   This is a shared living space. Please be considerate.

(Note: This includes normal living sounds. After 9 p.m., stay completely silent. No showers. Don’t even flush the toilet.)
And under no circumstances look up at the bathroom ceiling.
If you see it, you won’t be able to stop yourself from screaming.

The handwritten notes beneath the rules were clearly left by a previous Amelie.

I had entered this room around 8:50 p.m. yesterday. If I had been even slightly later, I would have ended up showering after lights-out.

My eyes naturally drifted toward the bathroom.

“……”

Don’t think about it.

Whatever is in there, as long as I don’t look at the ceiling, it’s fine. I can just pretend it’s a giant cockroach stuck up there. Right. Like the shower rooms in that cult dormitory.

I sat at the desk and opened the small metal drawers one by one.

The first drawer was normal: a stapler, scissors, stationery.

The second was more colorful: a pink handheld mirror, glitter stickers, translucent scrunchies.

Probably the same person who stuck a cat on the phone.

The third drawer was full of unknown medicines.

Some vials were almost empty; others contained thick red liquid. The pill bottles had small instruction labels—I decided to read them later.

In the last drawer were notebooks tied together with string. The knot was so tight I couldn’t undo it by hand.

I cut it with scissors and spread the notebooks out on the desk.

Among the normal student notebooks, there was one very old-looking diary.

I opened the first page.

Neat handwriting.

“One thing is certain: I am not the first Amelie.

Nor the second, nor the third.

If you’re reading this, then you’re the new Amelie.

Only one Amelie can exist in the Citadel at a time, so I must have escaped—or ‘retired.’

I desperately hope it’s the former, but as with everything in the Citadel, I likely had no choice.

Still, I believe I can at least make small changes, so I will record what I’ve learned in this diary.

No one knows how much time has passed in between, so do not fully trust what is written here.

Do not read it strictly in order—take what you need, and add or correct what you can.

Because you never know when or where you might be repaid for it.”