The hallway beyond the entrance looked exactly like what Arjun imagined the end of his life would look like.
Dark.
Dusty.
And filled with poor decisions.
The beam of Aisha’s flashlight cut through the darkness, illuminating peeling paint and abandoned medical equipment scattered across the floor.
The air smelled of rust, mold, and something else.
Something older.
Something that didn’t belong.
Arjun remained standing in the doorway.
The outside world was still visible behind him.
Sunlight.
Fresh air.
Civilization.
He had never appreciated civilization this much.
Aisha looked back.
“Are you coming?”
“No.”
She blinked.
“No?”
“I’ve thought about it.”
“And?”
“I’ve decided that I enjoy being alive.”
She sighed.
“You’re really not going to help me investigate a potentially dangerous abandoned building?”
“That’s exactly why I’m not going to help you investigate a potentially dangerous abandoned building.”
The system exploded.
⚠️ HOST COWARDICE DETECTED ⚠️
Psychological Analysis:
Host is attempting to abandon the Fox Princess.
Probability of Success:
0%
Probability of Death After Abandoning the Fox Princess:
100%
Arjun’s eye twitched.
“How does that even work?”
The Fox Princess may become upset.
“That’s your explanation?”
Yes.
For some reason, that answer terrified him more than the red eye.
Aisha crossed her arms.
“Fine.”
She turned around.
“I’ll go alone.”
Arjun stared.
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because that’s dangerous.”
She smiled.
“I thought you wanted to stay alive.”
“I do.”
“Then?”
Arjun opened his mouth.
Then he closed it.
Because he didn’t have an answer.
Or rather, he had one.
He just didn’t like it.
With a long, suffering sigh, he stepped into the building.
The moment both of them crossed the entrance, the door slammed shut.
BANG.
The sound echoed through the corridor.
Arjun jumped.
Aisha spun around.
The flashlight beam danced wildly across the walls.
For three seconds, neither of them moved.
Then Arjun slowly turned toward the door.
“Please tell me you did that.”
“I didn’t.”
Wonderful.
The system activated.
🚨 DEMON TERRITORY CONFIRMED 🚨
Entrance Seal Activated.
Retreat Option:
Unavailable.
Recommended Action:
Do not die.
“That’s not a strategy!”
It is an objective.
Arjun resisted the urge to scream.
Aisha tested the door.It didn’t move.
Nothing.
“Locked?” she asked.
“Looks that way.”
“How?”
“Haunted architecture?”
To his surprise, she laughed.
Actually laughed.
Inside a potentially supernatural building.
Arjun was beginning to suspect that Aisha Kapoor was either incredibly brave or completely insane.
Possibly both.
They continued deeper into the hospital.
The hallway stretched far longer than it should have.
Arjun had visited this building once, years ago, when retrieving old records.
He distinctly remembered the corridor ending after twenty meters.
They had already walked fifty.
The walls were lined with faded photographs.
Pictures of veterinarians.
Animals.
Staff members.
At least, that’s what they should have been.
The faces in the photographs were scratched out.
Every single one.
Aisha stopped.
“Did someone vandalize these?”
Arjun looked.
His stomach dropped.
“No.”
“What?”
“They weren’t like that before.”
Silence.
Then the system screamed.
☠️ HOSTILE PRESENCE DETECTED ☠️
Threat Classification:
Unknown
Threat Level:
Increasing
Recommendation:
Pretend not to notice.
For once, Arjun agreed.
“Let’s keep moving.”
Aisha nodded.
They walked faster.
The air became colder.
The silence became heavier.
Then they heard footsteps.
Not theirs.
Someone else’s.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Arjun froze.
Aisha froze.
The footsteps stopped.
Very slowly, Arjun turned around.
Nothing.
The hallway behind them was empty.
“Did you hear that?” Aisha whispered.
“Unfortunately.”
The footsteps began again.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
This time they were closer.
Much closer.
Arjun grabbed Aisha’s arm.
“Run.”
She didn’t argue.
They sprinted.
The flashlight beam shook violently as they raced down the corridor.
The footsteps followed.
Not faster.
Not slower.
Just following.
Always the same distance behind.
Arjun had never run this fast in his life.
Years of avoiding exercise had not prepared him for this.
“How far is the exit?” Aisha asked.
“We passed it ten minutes ago!”
“What?”
“I know!”
The corridor suddenly ended.
They stopped.
Not because they wanted to.
Because there was nowhere else to go.
Covered in chains.
Covered in symbols.
Covered in what looked disturbingly like claw marks.
The footsteps stopped.
Arjun turned around.
The hallway was empty.
Again.
Neither of them spoke.
Then Aisha raised her flashlight.
The beam illuminated something written above the door.
Not in English.
Not in Hindi.
In a language Arjun had never seen before.
Yet somehow, he understood it.
The words appeared in his mind as clearly as if someone had whispered them.
DO NOT BREAK THE SEAL.
The system detonated.
🚨 DISCOVERY CONFIRMED 🚨
Location Identified:
The First Demon Seal
Status:
Critically Unstable
Estimated Remaining Integrity:
3%
Arjun blinked.
Then blinked again.
“Three percent?”
Correct.
“Is that bad?”
The system was silent for two entire seconds.
That had never happened before.
When it finally responded, the text appeared in bright crimson.
☠️ EXTREMELY BAD ☠️
For the first time since obtaining the system, Arjun genuinely considered fainting.
Aisha stepped toward the door.
“Wait,” he said.
She stopped.
“What?”
“You can read that?”
She frowned.
“No.”
Arjun’s blood ran cold.
“What?”
“I can’t read it.”
She looked at him carefully.
“But judging by your face, you can.”
The world became very quiet.
Because she was right.
He could read it.
And he had absolutely no idea why.
The chains on the door suddenly rattled.
Once.
Twice.
Then they began shaking violently.
The temperature dropped.
A deep voice echoed from behind the door.
A voice so old and so inhuman that Arjun felt it in his bones.
“Who…”
The chains rattled harder.
“…has awakened…”
The walls trembled.
Dust rained from the ceiling.
Aisha stepped backward.
For the first time since entering the building, she looked afraid.
The voice laughed.
A horrible, broken sound.
“…the Keeper?”
Arjun’s heart stopped.
The system didn’t scream.
It didn’t panic.
For the first time since activating, it became perfectly silent.
Then a single notification appeared.
⚠️ SYSTEM ALERT ⚠️
Identity Confirmation Complete.
Title Acquired:
THE KEEPER OF THE FAKE DEMON REALM
Arjun stared at the words.
Then the chains broke.
One by one.
To Be Continue….