Enter the labyrinth.

Easy to think about. Impossibly hard to do.

She wasn’t as clever as Bai Youwei, wasn’t as careful as Zhu Shu, and now she’d lost the physical ability she’d once had. Could she really do it?

Could she survive inside the labyrinth?

…She had to live. She refused to become a useless cripple. Her hands needed to hold a blade — a sword — a whip. She needed to be there when her friends were in trouble, to help. She needed to save herself when she was in danger.

She refused to become a cripple.

She refused to be like this… this pitiful… not even able to dress herself, button her own clothes.

Tears fell.

Su Man raised her arm and scrubbed them away, breathed deep, and looked out at the heavy dark sky.

She made up her mind. She rose and packed her things.

In this world, everyone had their own road to walk.

…

From early morning, the sound of vehicles outside the complex never ceased.

Car after car gathered near the plaza. Supplies were being transported, people were being assembled, routes were being arranged — all of it proceeding with calm efficiency.

The registration desks, supply stations, and exchange counters that had always bustled with people were all suspended.

Everyone knew: the organization was evacuating.

Because in one more day, Game #21 would shift into the urban district — the base could no longer be held.

Faced with the journey ahead, many people felt lost. They had grown accustomed to entering games with regularity and order, and they suddenly found themselves terrified of the future.

What if they encountered a game on the road?

What if the new base had something like Game #21?

No…

No “what ifs.”

The answer was certain. They would *definitely* encounter games on the road — completely unfamiliar games!

Everyone was in a panic!

If just ten more people went — ten people! Ten people could preserve the stability of a base housing thousands! Why was no one going?! Why?!

Chu Huaijin posted a notice in the plaza.

It read: Game #21 still needed — *1 person.*

…

Storm clouds gathered. The afternoon was oppressive and muggy. Occasionally a breeze stirred, carrying a hidden coolness within the blazing heat that made you ache for rain to come and drive away the sweltering summer.

Shen Mo came back from outside, bringing a new wheelchair.

“The departure time has moved up. The first wave will be the supply team. We’ll stay until three in the afternoon and leave with the research team.”

“The weather doesn’t look great, though.” Bai Youwei glanced at the dark clouds outside. “There’s going to be a downpour.”

“Rain or not, there’s nothing to be done — people need to disperse and evacuate. If everyone stays packed together, that’s actually more dangerous.” He pushed the wheelchair over. “Try sitting in it.”

Bai Youwei propped herself up on her crutch and lowered into the wheelchair.

Not bad, she supposed. Passable.

Shen Mo asked: “Is it comfortable?”

She shifted around. “It’s all right. A bit hard, though.”

Shen Mo lifted her, set her on the sofa, then pulled a cushion from the couch, placed it in the new wheelchair, and readjusted the height settings.

He lifted her again. “Still hard?”

“Mm… not hard anymore.” She adjusted her posture awkwardly, frowning. “But the cushion and the wheelchair don’t match in color. It looks a bit ugly.”

Shen Mo: “…”

As difficult as ever to please.

He got to his feet. “The cushion is underneath — no one can see it. Ugly is fine.”

“No. Take it away.” Bai Youwei wore an expression of profound reluctance. “That thing is going to drag down my whole aesthetic.”

Shen Mo asked her helplessly: “Then what do you want?”

Bai Youwei gave the question genuine consideration. “…I took a collection of blankets from the Duke’s manor — they’re all piled in the little study of the dollhouse. Go find me one. I want handwoven. No floral prints. The color should preferably be navy blue — very deep, like the night sky, not the dull black kind, with a hint of mystery… and if it has a fringe, even better. Do you know what a fringe is? It’s the little dangling threads at the edge of the blanket… ah, do you know what I mean?”

Shen Mo’s brow furrowed harder with every word.

—