"Hehehe…" The clock had just passed midnight. The pile of meat pretending to be Nicole had just quieted down. Suddenly, the human-sized black bear on the sofa let out a bone-chilling child's laugh.
Its glowing red button eyes locked onto David. Its poorly stitched mouth opened and closed: "Big brother, I'm so bored. Let's play hide-and-seek... Are you hiding? I'll count to ten, then I'll come find you. One... Two..."
[Rule 9: If it asks to play hide-and-seek, you must agree.]
David's back was instantly drenched in cold sweat. He couldn't refuse. Refusal meant death! He had to find a place to hide. The living room was wide open. The kitchen rules were heavily polluted; it was a death zone.
"Three... Four..." The bear's voice grew sharper, accompanied by the sound of thick liquid dripping onto the wood floor.
David's eyes locked onto the bathroom at the end of the first-floor hallway. It was the only enclosed space with a door. He dashed toward it. Just as the bear counted to "Seven," he pushed the wooden door open, slipped inside, and locked it with a click.
However, when he turned around, his heart skipped a beat.
The air in the bathroom was ten times colder than outside. Written on the peeling wall in dark red lipstick was a brand new set of [Exclusive Bathroom Rules]!
[Local Domain Rules: Bathroom]Sub-Rule 1: Welcome to the place of cleansing. As long as you are in the bathroom, things outside cannot force the door open temporarily. Sub-Rule 2: You are the only one in the bathroom. If you hear the faucet dripping automatically, block it with your hand immediately until it stops. Sub-Rule 3: Your reflection is very lonely. When you stand in front of the mirror, you must keep looking into "your own" eyes. Never look away, until you leave.
David's pupils shrank. His brain spun into overdrive. Something was wrong! These local rules fatally clashed with the living room's [Rule 5: Between 2:00 AM and 3:00 AM, you must never look directly into the bathroom mirror.]
He quickly checked his cheap digital watch. The time read: 2:15 AM!
This was an extremely vicious logic deadlock! If he didn't look at the mirror, he would violate [Sub-Rule 3]. If he did look, he would violate the living room's [Rule 5]. Entering the bathroom at this exact time meant certain death no matter what he chose!
BANG! BANG! BANG! The bear smashed wildly against the bathroom door. The wood began to crack under the immense pressure.
"Big brother, I found you! Open the door!" The bear roared hatefully.
A rule deadlock in front, a monster breaking the door behind. David took a deep breath, a flash of absolute madness in his eyes.
"[Infinite Deduction], activate!"
[First Simulation: David chooses to close his eyes and ignore the mirror. Three seconds later, pale, bloated hands reach out from the glass, strangling him and dragging him into the mirror world. End.]
[Second Simulation: David chooses to stare dead into his reflection's eyes. Three seconds later, the "David" in the mirror smiles creepily. The real David's eyeballs instantly explode, bleeding to death. End.]
The severe brain pain almost brought David to his knees. Nosebleed dripped onto the dirty tiles. His mental power was dropping fast. "I can't look directly, but I can't look away entirely..." David forced himself to stay calm. He analyzed the core code of this killing system. "Line of sight... looking... What if I make 'it' think I am looking, but I don't actually trigger the taboo..."
Suddenly, David's eyes fell on a dusty glass rinsing cup next to the sink.
BANG—CRACK! A massive hole was smashed in the wooden door. A bear paw covered in black tentacles reached through.
David grabbed the glass cup, pointed the bottom of it at the mirror, and stared "at" the mirror through the thick, cylindrical glass!
Light refraction! Through the curved glass, the reflection he saw was severely distorted. He wasn't looking "directly" at himself, thus bypassing [Living Room Rule 5]. But his line of sight was indeed locked onto the mirror, tricking the judgment system of [Bathroom Rule 3]!
Bzzzt... The mirror buzzed with static electricity, as if the system was struggling to judge if David broke the rules. Two seconds later, the mirror calmed down. He successfully exploited a logic bug!