Chapter 35

Leia was on the verge of a mental breakdown. She'd imagined today's gathering as a cozy meetup in a serene cafe, sipping coffee while catching up. Naturally, Noelle, who probably didn't even know how to order coffee, would embarrass herself, giving Leia the perfect chance to subtly undermine her and shine.

But reality had thrown her plans out the window. The escape room? The worst part? Noelle seemed genuinely excited about this ridiculous escape room.

Unwilling to be outdone, Leia plastered on a bright smile and chimed in, "An escape room! I've always wanted to try one, but my family thought it was too intense for me."

"Really?" Connor raised a brow, intrigued. "Leia, you like escape rooms? You seem so calm and quiet, I wouldn't have pegged you as a fan."

Leia blinked, feigning a bashful yet playful demeanor. "I love exciting games like this! I'm just not very fit, so don't be mad if I slow you down during the escape."

"No problem. I'll stick with you and protect you," Connor offered gallantly.

"Thank you." Leia flashed him a sweet smile before glancing expectantly at Harley. "Harley, let's do our best together!"

Harley spared her a brief glance. "Noelle and I will be moving quickly; we can't afford to linger on each floor. You and Connor can catch up at your own pace."

Leia's smile faltered. "What's the point of playing this stupid game if I can't be with Harley?"

Connor, sensing the tension, laughed and teased Harley, "Hey, before you went abroad, didn't you get knocked out on the tenth floor in this game? Planning to clear all fifteen this time?"

"Of course," Harley smirked coolly. "How many people have completed it since I've been gone?"

"Not many, probably fewer than five. But last year, some genius cleared it in 37 minutes, setting the fastest record ever."

"Not even an hour?" Harley raised a brow, genuinely impressed. He glanced at Noelle, his expression turning competitive. "Noelle, we'll have to step it up."

"Pfft," Noelle scoffed, glancing up at the towering building. "Fifteen floors? I'll break that record in 30 minutes."

"Whoa, Noelle's amazing!" Connor cheered, clearly entertained.

Leia rolled her eyes internally. "She's all talk."

Nearby, other participants overheard Noelle's bold claim. "Did you hear that? That girl says she'll clear it in 30 minutes!"

"Hah! Anyone can talk big. Look at those skinny arms and legs! She'll be lucky to make it past five floors."

"Generous. I'm betting she barely clears three."

A gamabot echoed through the air. "Participants, please gather at your respective entrances. When the signal gun fires again, the escape begins!"

The crowd dispersed to their designated starting points. Each floor of the Escape Game is filled with obstacles, and ruthless butchers appear out of nowhere. Once a fugitive wears a tracker, they're eliminated from the game. The difficulty increases with each floor, and the main challenge lies in dealing with the butchers. Regular staff members played the butchers on the lower floors, but as the floors climbed higher, the actors portraying the butchers became more formidable. These roles were often taken by tough guys, retired special forces soldiers, and hulking strongmen. Escaping from their grasp was no easy feat.

At the sound of the second gunshot, the host announced, "Escape begins now!"

The participants surged toward the staircases like a tidal wave. Leia barely had time to react before she was nearly knocked over by the rushing crowd.

"Careful!" Connor steadied her just in time.

"Thanks," Leia said, breathless, before scanning the throng. "Where's Harley? They're already way ahead. What… Noelle's so fast?"

Before Leia could fully process Connor's words, a burst of confetti erupted nearby. The host's excited voice boomed through the speakers: "First floor clearance! Time: 12 seconds and 54 milliseconds!"

"What the hell! That's insane! Who did that?"

"Some tiny girl. She slipped past the butcher before he could react!"

"Must've been a fluke."

The murmurs of the crowd were constant and buzzing. Connor, however, smiled confidently and said, "It's definitely Noelle."

"No way," Leia, who had climbed the stairs with Connor, retorted in disbelief.

Connor raised an eyebrow at Leia and said, "There's nothing impossible about it. Your sister is incredible, more than you could ever imagine."

Leia couldn't help but think Connor was losing his mind. Earlier, when he greeted Noelle, she didn't even recognize him, yet here he was acting as if he knew her well. It was all too fake.

Breaking through the first floor was easy enough. As Connor and Leia made it to the second floor, the fireworks went off again. The host excitedly announced, "The first person to break through the fifth floor has emerged, in 3 minutes and 46 seconds!"

"No way! We just got to the second floor, and someone's already made it to…" People around them started to murmur in surprise.

"Unbelievable! That's… were the butchers even doing anything! Just watching someone pass through has to be demoralizing. I heard the person's really skilled; none of the butchers on the lower floors were even a match."

By the time they hit the tenth floor, the number of people breaking through dwindled. With fewer contestants, the butchers were able to focus their efforts more and catch them one by one.

Leia, being physically inept, was already winded by the time they reached the second floor. Normally, she would have taken the elevator or escalator, but climbing the stairs had her panting by the second floor. If it weren't for Connor, she'd have probably quit at the first floor.

As she huffed her way up to the third floor, the host's excited voice rang out again. "The first person to break through the tenth floor has emerged, in 8 minutes and 17 seconds!"

"Oh my God. 8 minutes and 17 seconds? Is that even human? There's something fishy going on. There has to be. Even without interference, it's hard to believe someone could make it up ten floors in eight minutes. Who's this incredible person?"

"I heard from the advanced team it's a little girl..."

"No way. Noelle's absolutely killing it."

As Noelle kept breaking records, the chatter around them never stopped. Leia, annoyed, couldn't understand why people were making such a big deal. So what if she set a new record? Everyone was acting like it was the end of the world.

As Leia was stewing in her thoughts, a large, dark figure wearing a leather headpiece suddenly charged in front of her, carrying a rusted, massive axe on his back—exactly like the terrifying butcher from the game.

Leia screamed in fright. "Oh my God! The butcher's here! Run!"

The crowd scattered in all directions.

Connor shouted, "Leia, run!"

But Leia's legs were too weak to move. She couldn't even manage to flee, let alone run. Connor tried to save her, but he was grabbed by the butcher too. Both of them were quickly tagged with the tracker and eliminated from the game.

Just then, the host's triumphant voice echoed from the top floor. "Congratulations to our first winner! The total time: 15 minutes and 2 seconds, setting a new record for the fastest escape since the game began."

Leia could only feel numb. This ridiculous world needed to end, and fast, Leia thought.