18:59.
The four members of Group B stepped through the hidden passage.
The moment Lillian entered, the door behind them slammed shut.
BANG!
Chloe jumped and immediately grabbed Lillian’s arm.
“Please tell me that was supposed to happen.”
Lillian glanced over her shoulder.
“It probably was.”
“Probably?” Chloe’s eyes widened.
“That’s not a very comforting answer!”
Ethan Wu laughed under his breath.
“It’s an escape room.
What did you expect?
A welcome party?”
Chloe frowned.
“Actually, yes.
Maybe some snacks too.”
Nina rolled her eyes.
“Can we focus?”
The hidden passage was narrow and dimly lit.
Small lights along the floor flickered on one after another as the four celebrities moved forward.
The walls were covered with strange markings.
There were numbers, letters, small drawings, and symbols that looked like pieces from the puzzles they had already solved.
The passage itself was beautiful despite its mysterious atmosphere.
Dark wooden panels covered the walls, while thin golden lights ran along the edges of the floor and ceiling.
Small glass panels had been built into certain sections of the walls, revealing gears and mechanical parts moving quietly behind them.
It looked less like an ordinary escape room and more like a secret passage inside an expensive old mansion.
The cameras followed closely behind them.
Millions of viewers were watching the live broadcast.
@DramaWatcher88: This escape room is INSANE.
Look at the set!
@ChloeBubbles: Chloe holding Lillian like her life depends on it 😂
@LilyMoon: Group B actually looks like they’re having fun.
@SerenaForever: Group A is going to destroy them.
Serena + three handsome men?
Easy win.
@NoFilterQueen: Why is Serena just standing there?
😭
@SerenaHater99: Because she’s cute, not because she’s smart.
Don’t expect her to solve anything.
@BlakeFanGirl: You people are so obsessed with hating Serena.
@TruthSeeker22: She’s C-list just like Lillian.
Why are you acting like she’s some genius actress?
The comments moved so quickly that they were almost impossible to read.
Group B
After walking for nearly a minute, the four celebrities reached a circular room.
In the center stood a large metal table.
On it were twelve cards, arranged in three rows.
Each card had a number on one side and a symbol on the other.
Beside the table was a digital screen.
A question appeared.
«Three numbers are correct.
Two numbers are in the wrong position.
The remaining numbers do not belong.
Find the three-number code.»
Chloe stared at it.
“That’s it?”
Lillian glanced at her.
“You sound confident.”
“No,” Chloe admitted.
“I’m hoping you are.”
Ethan walked toward the table.
“There are twelve cards.
We just need to find the right three.”
Nina picked up one of the cards.
“How?”
Ethan studied the screen.
“Trial and error.”
Lillian shook her head.
“No.”
Everyone looked at her.
She pointed toward the wall.
“There’s another clue.”
A small sentence had been engraved beneath the screen.
ONLY THOSE WHO LOOK BACKWARD WILL FIND THE ANSWER.
Chloe tilted her head.
“Look backward?”
Lillian walked toward the entrance.
She looked at the floor.
Then the ceiling.
Then the walls.
Nothing seemed unusual.
She slowly turned around.
Her eyes narrowed.
“The symbols.”
Nina frowned.
“What about them?”
“The symbols we saw in the first room.”
Lillian pointed toward three cards.
“The moon, crown, and eye.”
Chloe immediately picked up the moon card.
“This one?”
“Wait.”
Lillian stopped her.
“Don’t move them yet.”
She crouched beside the table.
There were tiny scratches on the floor.
Three lines.
One beneath the left side.
One beneath the middle.
One beneath the right.
Lillian looked at the cards again.
Then she smiled.
“I knew it.”
Ethan raised an eyebrow.
“Knew what?”
“The first room wasn’t giving us four symbols randomly.”
She picked up the cards one by one.
“Moon.
Crown.
Eye.
Key.”
She placed them in order.
Chloe nodded slowly.
“Seven, nine, one and three.”
“Exactly.”
Lillian pointed at the twelve cards.
“And these aren’t twelve random numbers.
They’re arranged according to the same pattern.”
Nina stepped closer.
Her expression became more serious.
“Wait…”
Lillian smiled.
“You see it now?”
Nina didn’t answer.
Ethan began examining the cards.
“Seven, nine, one, three…”
Lillian watched him for a moment.
“You’re looking at the numbers.
Look at the symbols.”
Ethan glanced at her.
“You really enjoy giving instructions, don’t you?”
“Only when people need them.”
Chloe burst out laughing.
“Ouch.”
The audience exploded.
@LaughingLily: Lillian just told an A-list actor to focus 😭
@EthanWuFan: Why is she talking to him like that?
😂
@LilyMoon: Because he’s distracting himself!
@DramaQueen88: Chloe laughing is killing me.
@PrettyWatcher: Wait, why does Group B actually feel so comfortable together?
@SerenaForever: They’re wasting time.
Group A is going to win.
Group A
Across the villa, Group A had reached a completely different room.
The beautiful library-like chamber was filled with tall wooden bookshelves, antique clocks, glass cabinets, and hundreds of books arranged in perfect rows.
A large board covered in letters stood in the center.
Lucas was trying to arrange several wooden blocks.
Marcus was studying a riddle.
Daniel quietly examined the room.
Serena stood beside them, looking at the board with a slightly confused expression.
“Do you understand this?” she asked softly.
Marcus looked up.
“Not yet.”
Serena pouted.
“I don’t understand it either.”
Lucas immediately turned toward her.
“Don’t worry.
We’ll figure it out.”
Serena smiled sweetly.
“Thank you.”
The live comments immediately split.
@LucasQueen: Lucas protecting Serena already 😭
@MarcusFan: These boys are surrounding her like she’s a princess.
@SerenaForever: She deserves to be protected!
@TruthSeeker22: Protected from what?
A crossword puzzle?
😂
@SerenaHater99: She’s doing the cute helpless act again.
@DramaWatcher88: Serena hasn’t solved one thing yet.
@BlakeFanGirl: She’s not required to solve everything.
Let her enjoy the show.
Daniel suddenly noticed something.
“Wait.”
Everyone turned.
He pointed toward the floor.
“There are letters underneath the carpet.”
Lucas immediately moved over.
Marcus helped him lift one side.
Serena stepped backward to give them room.
Her heel landed on a small wooden tile.
CLICK.
Everyone froze.
A section of the bookshelf moved.
Serena’s eyes widened.
“Did I do that?”
Marcus stared.
“You stepped on it.”
Serena smiled.
“So I helped.”
Lucas laughed.
“You did.”
The comments immediately exploded.
@SerenaForever: SHE FOUND THE CLUE!
@NoFilterPlease: She literally stepped on it by accident 😭
@TruthSeeker22: Accidentally solving something still counts, I guess 😂
@SerenaHater99: Please stop calling her a genius.
She stepped on a tile.
@DramaWatcher88: I’m crying.
The boys are doing all the work and Serena just activated the room.
Marcus pulled out a small envelope from the opened shelf.
Inside was a sequence of letters.
Daniel studied it.
“This isn’t the answer.”
Lucas frowned.
“Then what is it?”
Daniel looked around the room.
“A direction.”
The four began searching again.
Serena stayed close to Lucas and Marcus.
“Don’t leave me behind.”
Marcus laughed.
“We won’t.”
The atmosphere looked completely different from Group B.
Group A had three strong male celebrities constantly checking the room while Serena stayed close, occasionally pointing things out or reacting cutely.
The viewers loved it.
Others found it irritating.
Back to Group B
Lillian placed three cards on the table.
Seven.
Nine.
One.
The digital screen flashed. Get faster updates on g.com.
INCORRECT.
Chloe groaned.
“We were so close!”
Lillian didn’t look discouraged.
Instead, she smiled.
“That’s exactly what the clue wanted us to do.”
Ethan looked confused.
“You deliberately entered the wrong code?”
“No.”
She pointed at the screen.
“Look at the response.”
The screen displayed:
ONE NUMBER IS CORRECT AND IN THE CORRECT POSITION.
Nina leaned forward.
“So the others aren’t correct.”
“Right.”
Lillian grabbed another card.
She began testing combinations.
Seven.
Three.
Nine.
INCORRECT.
The screen changed.
TWO NUMBERS ARE CORRECT BUT IN THE WRONG POSITIONS.
Chloe’s eyes widened.
“That’s different!”
Lillian nodded.
“Very.”
She quickly wrote the information down.
Ethan watched her calculations.
“You’re doing this mentally?”
“Mostly.”
“That’s insane.”
Lillian looked up.
“You say that like it’s an insult.”
“It wasn’t.”
For the first time, Ethan smiled at her without arrogance.
Lillian simply turned back to the puzzle.
“Good.”
Chloe leaned toward Nina.
“She doesn’t even care that he’s flirting.”
Nina whispered back, “Maybe she thinks he’s just talking.”
Chloe grinned.
“That’s even funnier.”
Nina’s lips twitched.
It was almost a smile.
Suddenly, a loud mechanical sound came from above them.
CLANK!
Everyone looked up.
A metal panel opened in the ceiling.
Nina took one step backward.
A heavy wooden mechanism dropped suddenly from above.
“Nina!”
Lillian moved before anyone else could react.
She grabbed Nina around the waist and pulled her sharply backward.
THUD!
The wooden mechanism crashed onto the exact spot where Nina had been standing.
Nina stared at it in shock.
For a second, she couldn’t speak.
Chloe covered her mouth.
“Oh my God!”
Ethan immediately stepped forward.
“Are you okay?”
Nina slowly nodded.
Lillian was still holding her arm.
“You’re not hurt?”
Nina looked at Lillian.
“No.”
Lillian released her.
“Good.”
Nina stared at the mechanism again.
Then she looked back at Lillian.
“You… saved me.”
Lillian shrugged.
“Obviously.”
“You didn’t even think.”
“There wasn’t time to think.”
Nina was silent.
For the first time since meeting Lillian, the hostility in her eyes disappeared.
She had spent the entire morning assuming Lillian was an arrogant actress who thought she was better than everyone else.
But Lillian had just thrown herself into danger without hesitation.
And she hadn’t even asked whether the cameras were recording.
Nina lowered her eyes.
“Thank you.”
Lillian smiled.
“You’re welcome.”
Chloe immediately wrapped an arm around both of them.
“See?
We’re becoming a family!”
Nina looked at her.
“We are not.”
Chloe grinned.
“Not yet.”
Even Ethan laughed.
The atmosphere suddenly became lighter.
The viewers noticed immediately.
@LilyMoon: DID LILLIAN JUST SAVE NINA?!
@DramaWatcher88: That was actually scary!
@NinaFans: Nina’s face after Lillian pulled her away 😭
@CDramaAddict: Okay, Nina is definitely changing her opinion.
@TruthSeeker22: I don’t even like Lillian but that was brave.
@LilyMoon: She didn’t hesitate at all.
@SerenaHater99: Meanwhile Group A is still trying to figure out their puzzle 😂
@SerenaForever: Leave Serena alone!
@TruthSeeker22: Nobody said she was bad.
We’re just watching the same broadcast 😂
Nina looked at Lillian again.
This time, there was no irritation in her expression.
There was something much closer to respect.
And Chloe has officially decided that Lillian is her family now.
Nina may deny it, but I saw that little change in her expression.
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