"Um..how many more people are here with us?"
His voice was uneven, as if regretting his question midway.
The girl raised an eyebrow.
"Sixteen when we include you, too."
"And... I assume that you... Don't know why we're here?"
The girl shot him a glance before nodding stiffly.
"Mhn. Unfortunately."
Milo glanced around his surroundings. A pretty old fashioned interior. The whole place was dark except for the one dining table which was illuminated by candles and chandeliers.
The girl sighed and stretched her arms as if she's been sitting at one place for a while now.
"So what now?" The Italian guy questioned their situation.
"Do we just... Stay here?"
The guy next to him shook his head.
"Of course, we don't."
"Then what? "
Before the other guy could reply, the man with the mustache cleared his throat for attention.
"Perhaps we could try introducing ourselves and getting familiar with each other."
The guy leaning against the wall stood straight and glared at the former man.
"Right. Because that's exactly what we need right now. We're trapped in a house with locked doors and windows that open up to practically nothing. What is this? A stupid tea party?"
The girl with the apple, her eyes rolled backwards before she let out a groan.
"So what is your grand plan, Luca? Stay trapped here without ever knowing just who the hell we're trapped with?"
Luca shot her a glare. His jaw clenched at the casual use of his name when he clearly refused the idea of their names being shared. The woman in a gown stepped forward. Her heel clicked on the wooden floor, catching their attention.
"Perhaps this gentleman is right. We should try to get familiar with each other first."
Her companion, nodded in agreement.
"That's right. I don't see why we shouldn't do that." He cleared his throat.
"My name is Ethan Brooks. Before I woke up here, I just remember going downstairs somewhere with the lights out... After that, I found myself here."
Milo shifted his weight from foot to foot, arms crossed while he felt an uncomfortable feeling in his gut.
"My name is Elizabeth James Norva." The woman in the gown began.
"Before waking up here, I only remember going to a garden when I heard a whistle. After that, nothing."
Everyone glanced at each other, not knowing who should go next. The girl with the apple exhaled.
"Then I guess, it's my turn. My name's Bridget Hawkwood."
She stood up from the chair and put her hands into her pockets.
"I don't have any fancy or supernatural stories like you guys. I went to sleep and woke up here. Simple as that."
The man with a mustache took one small step forward with a deliberate click of his exquisite boots.
"It seems to be my turn now. I'm called Felix Laurent. But please, just call me Mr. Laurent."
"Sure thing, Mr. Laurent." Bridget juggled with the apple in her hand.
The only person remaining at that moment was the young man with Luca. He climbed down the stairs and nodded at everyone.
"My name's Noah. Is it alright if I don't reveal my last name? "
"Oh, no, it's wonderful. We may call you Noah if that makes you comfortable."
The young man, Noah, nodded again in gratitude.
Just as they were done with their introductions, someone knocked on the door going to the basement, catching everyone's attention. It was a Chinese girl with short hair.
"Guys.... We found something."
The people present there glanced at each other. Milo opened his mouth to speak but then paused, looking away. In an unknown place with unknown people, it was better to observe more than to interact.
Elizabeth tilted her head slightly to the right.
"Is it good or bad?"
The Chinese girl shrugged.
"Depends on how you see it."
And so, everyone quietly followed the Chinese girl to the basement. Milo walked behind everyone. He felt a knot in the pit of his stomach. That wasn't a good sign.
"Everyone's here?"
A woman with dirty blonde hair asked in thick Russian accent. She was tall and leaning against a wall with her arms crossed. Her sharp hazel eyes darted out and examined the familiar and non-familiar faces.
Milo walked a few steps ahead to get a better view of every new face.
"What on earth..."
Bridget carefully approached the wall where the Russian girl was.
Their eyes widened while they gaped at the wall in shock mixed with a surge of fear.
"Yeah...this confirms that we're in a nightmare."
A guy spoke while spinning a chunk of old keys in his finger. He had different eye colors. One being blue and the other was black.
Milo's heart pounded against his chest as he took one more step forward.
On the wall, there was a blackboard next to that Russian girl. There, it was written in bold letters. Mr. Laurent tilted his head slightly and red out the context written there.
"The killer quest:
Rule no.1: the night is three hours long
Rule no.2: everyone goes into their designed rooms at night.
Rule no.3: two people are selected to go out at night, everyone else will go to sleep.
Rule no.4: you get to vote someone out the next day. No voting and a random person gets selected to death.
Rule no.5: voting time is one hour after breakfast.
Task: there's a killer hiding among you. Find them and live."
Milo's eyes widened slightly. A long silence stretched across the basement. No one moved. No one breathed.
Then the Russian woman pushed off the wall.
"So," she said, her accent curling around the word. "Who volunteers to die first?"
Milo glanced at the blackboard again as he muttered.
" No way...this can't be real."