Once Upon a Time There Was a Silent Hill, and on the Hill Stood the Lanruo Temple

How did Number Four suddenly disappear?

When did he go missing?

Where did he go?

Why did it take until now for someone to notice?

Could it be that we've been discovered, and Number Four was silently taken out?

But who could possibly pull off something like that right under Shaun Severson, the Poison Fiend's nose, and take down such a skilled fighter without a trace?

A thousand thoughts raced through their minds. The three men in black were both nervous and shocked, their eyes darting around in panic. The cramped cabin and corridor suddenly seemed to change shape—the once straight hallway began to bend, the ordinary doors turned eerie. It felt like behind every half-open door, in the depths of that darkness, something was lurking, just waiting to make their hearts skip a beat.

Luckily, Shaun Severson kept his cool. He quickly steadied the group: "This ship's layout is complicated. Maybe Number Four just got lost. Let's head back and look for him. Move!"

Whoosh—the four of them sprang into action.

They dashed forward in complete silence.

They moved with agility, skill, and perfect teamwork.

They quickly checked each quiet cabin, dashed down narrow hallways, and even went up and down stairs, changing levels.

But suddenly, Shaun Severson, leading the way, stopped again. This time, sweat dotted his forehead and his gaze grew panicked—he’d somehow ended up in the same corridor as before! Same spot, same spooky vibe, nothing had changed at all!

But that’s impossible!

"S-Shaun, sir—" one of the men in black stammered, his voice trembling with fear. "N-Number Three... Number Three's gone too!"

"What!" Shaun’s heart skipped a beat. Sure enough, somehow, there was one less black-clad man. He lowered his voice, barking, "When did he disappear?"

"I-I don't know, he was just here!" Another black-clad man looked around in a panic. "Wait, when we turned that corner, he seemed to slip into a patch of darkness. I didn't see clearly, and then... he just never came back..."

"Where's that corner? Take me there, now!" Shaun gritted his teeth and spun around, rushing off.

He could hear his own heartbeat, thumping away—thump-thump, thump-thump—setting a frantic rhythm.

Something’s seriously wrong with this ship. After all that running around, not a single living soul in sight!

Where are the dancers? The crew? The girls? No matter how big this ship is, there's gotta be a limit—so why haven't we seen a single soul?

Is this a trap? Did Number Three and Number Four betray us and sneak off?

No, that can't be it. If it were a trap, we'd be surrounded by a horde of axe-wielding thugs by now, not stuck in this silent, creepy mess!

Honestly, the vibe here is like stepping straight into the underworld...

A million thoughts flashed through Shaun’s mind as he turned a corner—yep, this was exactly where Number Three vanished. Squeak—the sound of his shoe scraping against the floor echoed sharply. Shaun froze, shivering all over, as an indescribable fear washed over him.

Right in front of him—it was still the same corridor, still the same place!

"Why—why is this happening!" Shaun blurted out, still managing to think straight. "Is there some kind of maze set up by a master on this ship?"

"Shaun—Number Two's gone too..." The black-clad man's voice was on the verge of tears. "I was holding onto his sleeve, I swear, holding on tight, but then he just vanished!"

Yep, four men in black—down to just one again.

"This place is way too weird. We can't stay! Quick, let's go!" Shaun felt a massive, indescribable sense of danger—his hair was practically standing on end. Forgetting all about propriety, he grabbed the last black-clad guy's hand and bolted.

I'm done with this job!

I can't mess with the people on this ship—better to run than to fight!

The engine room is just up ahead—let's get out of here, now!

But then, something happened that made Shaun's scalp tingle—he kept running and running, only to end up in that same creepy corridor over and over. Like a trapped rat, he was stuck in a bizarre loop, no matter how hard he struggled, always winding up at the same spot. Again and again, the same sights, the same stretch of hallway, with some invisible, eerie presence lingering in the shadows.

"S-Shaun, sir... are we..." The black-clad man spoke up, his trembling voice echoing and amplifying his own fear: "Could we have run into... something unclean?"

"Nonsense!" Shaun snapped, lowering his voice in anger. He couldn't stand hearing talk like that—partly because he himself was starting to wonder, though he’d never admit it.

"But Shaun, in this situation, isn't it just like that—that ghost, ghost, ghost wall thing..." The man's words trailed off as his face suddenly went pale. He gripped Shaun's hand tightly, his palm slick with cold sweat, stammering, "Shaun, did you hear that? I—I heard a ghost talking..."

"There's no such thing as ghosts!" Shaun barked, half in rage, half in fear. "I'm the Poison Fiend—no ghost big or small would dare show up in front of me! Keep spouting nonsense and I'll tear you apart—" His voice cut off abruptly, and the bravado died just as suddenly. Because when Shaun looked down, he realized the hand he was supposed to be holding was gone.

"Just now..." Shaun was completely stunned. He looked around—nothing but the same claustrophobic corridor, no one else in sight.

"When... when did it happen..." He was all alone now, surrounded by darkness and silence. Fear and loneliness crashed over him. Even his own muttering sounded creepy, like it had mixed with something ominous. "How? I was holding his hand—how could this happen!!"

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He quickly pressed himself against the wall—the cold touch snapped him back to reality. After all, he was a seasoned thief. Time for some self-rescue. First, no matter what, he had to find a living person. As long as he could grab someone, he’d figure something out and maybe escape with his life!

"People? Where are the people? Where'd everybody go?" Shaun ran and searched, pushing open door after door, but there wasn’t a single sign of life. The strange ship seemed to stretch on forever—no matter how far he went, he couldn’t get out of this bizarre, ghostly maze.

Suddenly, he heard something.

It was voices—people talking!

He held his breath and listened closely. The voices sounded weird—definitely not something you’d expect to hear on a ship. It was like a whole crowd, men and women, old and young, whispering like a market in a small town. The sound drifted from far away, half-real, half-fake. Even focusing all his skill, Shaun could only catch scattered fragments.

[...Silent Hill outside the city...]

[...After dark... no one comes back...]

[...On the mountain, the Lanruo Temple... there are ghosts...]

[...Lanruo Temple... there are monsters... and ghosts...]