3 – vol.3 Vanilla Caramel
The last door could be opened.
This fact gave Wen Ruosui a glimmer of hope in her desperate situation, like finding a breach in a flood where she could temporarily take shelter. It also allowed her to breathe a momentary sigh of relief.
She rushed into the private room, closed the door, and locked it from the inside.
Her movements were seamless.
The room was unlit, pitch black, making it almost impossible to see anything.
Wen Ruosui leaned her back against the wall, breathing heavily. Her heart pounded uncontrollably from the intense exertion, taking a long time to calm down.
Outside the door, the hurried footsteps of the two men chasing her clattered noisily. Perhaps their failure to find her at the end of the corridor had made them anxious, as their footsteps grew increasingly erratic.
Wen Ruosui tensed up again.
She held her breath, not daring to make a sound, afraid of being discovered.
Fortunately, the door was locked from the inside, so they couldn’t enter.
She heard an impatient voice in the hallway outside ask, “Where is she?”
“…She’s gone.” As the words were spoken, the sound of someone forcefully twisting the doorknob followed.
But clearly, the door wouldn’t open.
It was likely the tall, thin man explaining, “Tonight… I heard from the bar attendant that there’s a special situation here. The VIP rooms on the second floor aren’t open.”
“Then where did she go?!” the lecherous man’s crude voice roared.
“I don’t know,” the tall, thin man’s voice grew anxious. “How did she just disappear? Bro, maybe she ran in the other direction.”
“That girl wouldn’t easily find the exit.”
“Forget it, let’s check over there.”
“Alright.”
The frantic and chaotic footsteps grew fainter. The two lecherous men had likely walked away, heading in the direction they assumed she had gone.
Only when the footsteps completely disappeared did Wen Ruosui let out a long sigh of relief, her shoulders, which had been tense all along, finally relaxing.
A narrow escape from death, she thought.
Thankfully, she had found this place in the end. Otherwise, she truly had no idea what might have happened.
But she couldn’t leave yet. If those two lecherous men returned, she would be discovered. She would have to wait and see if she could find someone to rescue her.
At this thought, Wen Ruosui began to feel uncomfortable.
Mostly, she felt cold.
Although the private room was dark and empty, for some reason, it seemed the air conditioning was on.
She wanted to turn on the lights to see if there was anything to keep her warm. Her clothes were soaked from the ice water, making her shiver uncontrollably.
The door wasn’t made of transparent glass, and the room had no windows.
So turning on the lights shouldn’t let any light leak out.
She wouldn’t be discovered.
Driven by this thought, Wen Ruosui turned around and carefully felt along the wall for the light switch. Fortunately, the switch was near the entrance and she quickly found it.
She pressed a button based on intuition.
Suddenly, the lights in the private room turned on, instantly illuminating the space.
Wen Ruosui looked around. Within her field of vision was a room with a strong nostalgic industrial style:
Under the warm-toned lighting, the space was furnished with a bar counter made of metal mechanical ornaments, rotating gear-shaped stools, a massive industrial clock, and retro kerosene lamps everywhere.
The wall behind the bar was covered with various old-fashioned glass bottles, slightly messy. But the most eye-catching feature was undoubtedly the enormous gear clock on the wall. In line with the industrial theme, the rolling gears had intricate textures and moved mechanically, supplementing the basic lighting with additional illumination.The light strips were built-in, so they didn’t appear glaring.
Wen Ruosui slowly scanned the room with her eyes open, inexplicably reminded of a term.
Steampunk.
Paired with the psychedelic electric atmosphere, various devices operated mechanically, the intense visual impact making her feel as though she had returned to the industrial era of the early twentieth century.
She stood dumbfounded beside the door, her gaze slowly sweeping over the disorienting layout of the private room, as if she were in a vast, magical world.
However, when her eyes moved to the far right corner, her entire body froze, and her pupils abruptly contracted—
There was someone here!
And it was a man!
The man was sitting on the only sofa in the corner, the sofa cast in a dim metallic hue by the lights, his figure almost hidden in the shadows, only a faint, blurry outline visible.
Wen Ruosui was startled by the man’s presence in the private room, her heart leaping into her throat.
She truly hadn’t expected anyone to be here.
She covered her mouth with her hand, barely managing to stifle a gasp. Her stimulated mind, upon discovering the man, completely shut down, unable to function.
In her muddled state, Wen Ruosui did something even she hadn’t anticipated.
She abruptly pressed the light switch.
Turning the lights off again.
The entire private room plunged back into darkness.
Those industrial-style mechanical components vanished from sight, and without light, everything was pitch black and invisible.
The private room was quiet.
All she could hear was her own heavy breathing and the renewed, rapid thumping of her heart.
But the man seemed motionless, sitting still in his spot.
Wen Ruosui couldn’t tell whether the man sharing the room with her was good or bad. She wanted to unlock the door and leave the private room, but the faint sound of footsteps outside made her hesitate.
Torn between choices, she finally decided to speak to the man:
“Sorry, sir, I’ve entered the wrong room.”
Her trembling syllables betrayed the panic in her heart.
But there was no response to her words. The man acted as if he couldn’t hear her, completely ignoring her.
The room was silent, without a trace of noise. Apart from her breathing and heartbeat, she couldn’t hear any other sounds.
Time passed, second by second.
Just as Wen Ruosui thought the man wouldn’t respond, he seemed to stir.
He appeared to stand up from his position, then kicked over a wine bottle on the sofa with a loud clatter, before taking step after step toward her.
Footsteps drew closer.
In the darkness, she sensed the man had already reached her side.
Standing less than half a meter away from her.
He carried a faint scent of pinewood, mixed with a hint of intoxicating alcohol, wafting to her nostrils.
The man’s presence so close sent shivers down Wen Ruosui’s spine.
The pores on her arms opened in her tense state, goosebumps rising, making her feel cold.
Her nerves completely on edge, she listened intently for the man’s movements:
His arm seemed to lift, reaching toward the spot where she had just turned off the lights. She didn’t know which switch he pressed, but he managed to turn on an incandescent lamp in the private room that she hadn’t used before.
The private room brightened again, shifting from darkness to light.
It was so bright it was almost blinding.
Under the bright light, she could clearly see his face.Pale, cold skin with a strikingly handsome face. His features were deep and refined—a high nose bridge, deeply set eyes, and narrow, slightly upturned eye corners.
His sharply defined jawline carried an air of severity, yet his lips were unusually red and full. Against the industrial-style backdrop, he resembled a mixed-blood vampire.
A face that could captivate the masses, possessing an otherworldly beauty.