I Think I’m a Horror Game Villain - Chapter 91

Schedule: Monday and Friday

Chapter 91

“Excuse me for a moment.” Pulse, having removed his white gloves, placed a hand on my forehead. “You seem to have a bit of a fever.”

“A fever?”

Now that he mentioned it, my forehead did feel warmer than usual.

“When you’re unwell, it can be difficult to distinguish between dreams and reality. I’ll bring you some tea and fever medicine to help you relax.”

“Yes…”

The conversation through the door, the chilling sounds and the female ghost’s screams, the horrific scene I witnessed with my own eyes… Could all of that have been merely a fever dream, a confusion between reality and illusion?

‘No way.’

After Pulse left to fetch the medicine, I hesitantly ran my hand across the floor again, hoping to find even the smallest trace of evidence that what I experienced wasn’t a dream or a hallucination.

“Oh? What’s this…?”

Something red lay nestled in the crack beneath the door. A long, curly strand of hair, the color of blood.

As I picked it up, a red smear stained my fingers.

‘It smells of iron.’

Faintly, the same coppery scent from earlier wafted up. If my suspicions were correct, this liquid on the hair strand was—

‘It has to be. This is blood.’

I hid the hair under the covers before Pulse returned. I didn’t know why, but I felt I shouldn’t let him know I’d found it. Soon, Pulse returned with warm tea and medicine.

“Thank you, Butler. I feel a bit better now. Just like you said, I think the fever made me mistake a dream for reality.”

“I’m glad you’re feeling better. Please don’t hesitate to call me if anything else arises.”

“Yes, I will.”

“Then, I wish you a peaceful night.”

With a final nod, Pulse left the room.

I retrieved the hair from beneath the covers. This must be the hair of the female ghost who begged me to open the door in the hallway. I didn’t understand how such a large amount of blood could disappear in less than a minute. But one thing was certain: ‘This place isn’t safe.’

The third floor had been so peaceful compared to the others that I’d momentarily forgotten. This was a haunted mansion, and the butler was also a ghost.

‘I can’t stay here forever. I need to stay alert until I achieve the true ending and escape this mansion completely.’

***

I had a dream.

“Because Heyna, I like you.”
A dream where someone confessed their heartfelt feelings to me. His shy, blushing confession, for some reason, filled me with a deep ache.

“Even if you really are the villain behind all this…”

“I’ll still be on your side, Heyna.”

A kind person who believed in me without reason. A dependable person who promised to always be on my side. I couldn’t remember his face, his voice. Desperate to grasp the fading traces of him, I reached out.

“Don’t go…!”

But my outstretched hand couldn’t reach him, and I awoke from the dream.

“It… was a dream. When did I fall asleep?”

I must have drifted off after looking at the red hair and thinking about how unsafe this place was. My eyes were damp.

A hollow ache, like I’d lost something precious, settled in my chest, and I stared blankly ahead for a while. I tried to recall the faceless person from my dream, but nothing came to mind.

I sat up. The tea I drank before bed had me needing to use the restroom.

‘Why isn’t there a bathroom in the room?’

I grumbled, checking the time. It was 4 a.m., two hours until free movement was allowed.

‘I can’t wait that long.’

I recalled the rules from the guidebook I’d half-memorized.

1. Hallway access is prohibited from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. If you must leave your room, be sure to carry the lantern provided in each room.

11. Earplugs are provided in each room. Wearing earplugs while in the hallway will allow for safer movement.

I grabbed the lantern and earplugs and slipped out of the room. Let’s see, where was the restroom…?

I searched my hazy, medicine-addled memory.

‘It was at the end of the left hallway, I think.’

I vaguely remembered reading that the room at the end of the right hallway was off-limits.

Lantern in hand, I slowly made my way down the hall. Just as I’d glimpsed from my room earlier, the hallway was pitch black, without a single light. My nerves were on edge, convinced that if I turned around, I’d meet the gaze of something following me.