[Current Fear Points: 0]
[Inventory: Rusty Crowbar, Butcher's Apron, Smartphone]
The Phantom Doctor stood at the end of the hallway, his blank, faceless head tilted towards Ryan. He raised a pale finger, pointing straight at Room 304—Sarah's room.
It was a threat. A silent promise: "If you interfere, she dies."
Ryan's eyes turned cold. The protective brotherly instinct flared up, suppressing any lingering hesitation.
"You point that finger at her again," Ryan whispered, grabbing his backpack, "and I'll break it off."
The Doctor didn't respond. He stepped backward into the open elevator.
The metal doors slid shut, cutting off the visual connection.
Ryan sprinted down the hallway.
"Excuse me! Emergency!" he shouted, dodging a confused nurse pushing a medicine cart.
He reached the elevator bank just as the numbers above the door started to change.
3... 2... 1... G... B1...
The light stopped at B2.
"The Morgue," Ryan muttered. "Of course. It's always the Morgue."
He pressed the button for the second elevator repeatedly. Come on. Come on.
[System Warning: Host has 0 Fear Points.]
[Warning: Entering a 'Dungeon Area' without resources is not recommended.]
[Suggestion: Farm 'Trash Mobs' to gain points.]
"Thanks for the tip, Captain Obvious," Ryan grumbled.
He looked around. The hospital hallway seemed normal to the naked eye. But with his Passive Ghost Eye, he could see the overlay of the spirit world.
Faint, grey shadows crawled on the ceiling. In the waiting area, a spectral patient in a wheelchair was repeatedly smashing his head against the wall, but no sound came out.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Ryan walked over to the spectral patient.
"Hey," Ryan said, tapping the ghost on the shoulder.
The ghost stopped. Half of his head was caved in. He looked at Ryan with hollow eyes.
"It... hurts..."
"I know," Ryan said sympathetically. Then he raised his fist. "But this will hurt less."
POW!
A solid right hook, empowered by his Strength (8) stat.
Because Ryan had the 'Ghost Touch' skill, his fist connected solidly with the spirit's jaw.
The ghost didn't even scream. He just dissipated into grey smoke, looking relieved to be put out of his misery.
[Ding! Purified Low-Level Wandering Spirit.]
[Fear Points: +20]
"Twenty points," Ryan sighed. "Better than nothing."
He needed ammo. If he ran into that Phantom Doctor, he needed to buy the [Exorcism Pistol] (500 Points).
Ding!
The second elevator finally arrived. The doors opened.
It was empty.
Ryan stepped inside and pressed B2.
The doors closed. The elevator began to descend.
Hummmmm...
The music in the elevator was an annoying jazz tune. Ryan tapped his foot impatiently.
Suddenly, the elevator jolted.
The lights flickered.
The floor indicator showed: 4.
Ryan frowned. "The 4th Floor? I didn't press 4."
In many Asian cultures, the number 4 represents death. Hospitals usually skipped this floor button. But here it was.
The doors slid open slowly.
Standing there was not a hallway, but pitch-black darkness. The air that rushed in smelled of formaldehyde and rotting flowers.
A woman in an old-fashioned Nurse's uniform stood in the darkness, facing away from the elevator. She was holding a tray of surgical tools.
She stepped backward into the elevator.
Ryan moved to the corner, gripping the handle of his crowbar inside his backpack.
The doors closed.
The elevator didn't move.
For a full minute, neither of them spoke. The Nurse stood perfectly still in the center of the elevator.
Then, slowly... crrack... her neck twisted 180 degrees.
She smiled. Her mouth was stitched shut, but the stitches had ripped open at the corners, creating a Glasgow smile.
"Do... I... look... pretty?" she asked, her voice gurgling with blood.
This was a classic trap.
If you say "No", she kills you for insulting her.
If you say "Yes", she slices your mouth to make you look like her.
Ryan looked at her. He looked at his phone. He looked at her again.
He sighed loudly, rolling his eyes.
"Honey," Ryan said, sounding like a disappointed fashion critic. "That uniform is so 1950s. And the stitching? Uneven. Who did your surgery? A blind butcher?"
The Nurse Ghost froze. The malicious aura around her faltered.
She was expecting screams. She was expecting terror. She wasn't expecting a fashion critique.
"I... I..." she stammered.
"And your posture," Ryan continued, poking her shoulder. "Stand up straight! You represent the hospital! Slouching ghosts are bad for business."
[System Notification: The Nurse Ghost is self-conscious. +50 Fear Points.]
"YOU ARE RUDE!" the Nurse shrieked, raising a rusty scalpel.
"And you are evicted," Ryan replied.
He pulled out the Rusty Crowbar.
In the small confines of the elevator, a crowbar was a deadly weapon.
CLANG!
He swung it sideways, hitting the scalpel out of her hand.
Before she could react, Ryan kicked her into the corner of the elevator.
"Stay down!"
He pressed the crowbar against her throat. The 'Anti-Spirit' properties of the crowbar sizzled against her skin.
"Wait! Wait!" the Nurse pleaded, shrinking back. "Don't purge me! I'm just an intern!"
Ryan paused.
"An intern?" He narrowed his eyes. "Who is the Doctor downstairs? The faceless one."
The Nurse trembled. "Dr. Smiles... he... he is the Head Surgeon. He is building something. Down in the Morgue."
"Building what?"
"A body," she whispered. "A perfect vessel for the Lord."
Ryan's blood ran cold. Vessel for the Lord.
The 'Collector' (Lord No. 7) was trying to enter the human world permanently. And he was using the hospital morgue as his factory.
"Thanks for the info," Ryan said.
[System Option: Capture or Purify?]
Ryan looked at his points. 70 Points total. He needed more.
"Sorry, Intern. I need the experience."
Thwack!
He finished the job efficiently. The nurse dissolved into blue particles.
[Ding! Purified Level 2 Nurse Spirit.]
[Fear Points: +80]
[Total Points: 150]
"Still not enough for the pistol," Ryan muttered.
Ding!
The elevator arrived at B2.
The doors opened.
This time, there was no darkness.
The Morgue was brightly lit with cold, clinical fluorescent lights.
But it wasn't quiet.
Whirrrrrr...
The sound of bone saws echoed through the corridor.
And lining the walls were glass tanks. Inside the tanks weren't just dead bodies.
They were parts. Arms, legs, heads... all floating in green liquid, twitching as if they were alive.
Ryan stepped out of the elevator.
The Butcher's Apron appeared around his waist (he equipped it for defense). He held the crowbar tight.
[System Quest Triggered: The Surgeon's Hobby.]
[Objective: Stop the Surgery.]
[Reward: Unlock 'Shop Level 2'.]
"Stop the surgery?" Ryan whispered.
At the end of the long corridor, a set of double doors pushed open.
Two massive, stitched-together monstrosities (Frankenstein-style guards) stepped out.
And behind them stood Dr. Smiles, sharpening a long, silver blade.
He didn't have a face, but Ryan swore he could feel the doctor grinning.
"Ah..." a voice echoed in Ryan's head. "The donor has arrived."
Ryan cracked his neck. He checked his viewer count.
[Viewers: 1,200]
"Hey chat," Ryan whispered to his phone. "Welcome to the unboxing video of the century. Today, we're going to find out what's inside a Faceless Doctor."
He raised the crowbar.
"Let's practice medicine."