Chapter 55 (2/2)

This building’s water drainage system was probably updated before its closure. Chen Ge looked up at the piping and concluded, The classrooms on the first and second floor showed obvious signs of usage, but the classrooms on the third floor seem to have been abandoned even before the closure.

The tables and chairs were piled on top of each other, and there was not one piece of chalk left on the lectern. Some of the classrooms even had locks on them.

Ghost haunting? Murder? Hidden security concern?

There could be many different reasons for the sealing of the place, and Chen Ge could not pinpoint which one it was. He exited the classroom and headed up the fourth floor.

When he took the first step, Chen Ge turned back to see whether the wooden chair was following him or not.

It wasn’t.

When he reached the landing between the third and fourth floor, there was a rope tied across the two banisters of the stair that blocked his way. There was a wooden board hanging on it. Similar to the one at the front door, it said ‘NO ENTRY’.

Naturally, Chen Ge was not deterred by the wooden sign. He picked it up and put it to the side before bending down to scurry under the rope.

As he reached the fourth floor, Chen Ge noticed with his first glance that a faded room sign was hanging on the door of the room right opposite from him.

The dance studio!

After such a long search at the Activities Center, he had finally located the venue where the red dancing shoes had the highest chance of appearing. The layout of the fourth floor was different from the other floors in the sense that instead of individual classroom, the walls had been knocked out to form a large studio.

After tearing down the seals and prying open the lock, Chen Ge pushed open the door to the dance studio that had been left unused for many years. The place appeared to have been forgotten by time; things seemed to be how they were several years ago.

The slick floor was filled with a thin coat of dust, and the room was suffused with a weird smell. The closest description Chen Ge had for the smell was heavy deodorant that had gone off after being trapped in an enclosed room for years.

Chen Ge walked into the studio, sticking close to the wall. The studio was at a professional level; the wooden floor was waxed to accommodate the dance practice, and the walls were equipped with acoustic boards and panels to prevent the noise from disturbing the other classrooms.

This is the first time I’ve seen such a large dance studio.

Chen Ge used his camera to zoom in on the various angles of the room. The walls were mounted with bars that one usually saw in ballet classes. The bars’ height was adjustable, and underneath them were a row of low seats that students could use for rest.

On the other end of the room were six floor-length mirrors that were perfectly joined together. Each mirror was about one meter wide and two meters tall.

I’d almost forgotten that mirrors are a necessary fixture inside a dance studio.

Looking at the row of mirrors, Chen Ge sucked in a cold breath. He then noticed, situated right at the middle of the mirrors, three wooden chairs.

Three at once?

Chen Ge bit on his lips before walking over to the chairs, his every action reflected in the mirror.

Facing his own reflection in the mirror amid an empty dance studio at midnight, Chen Ge felt increasingly unsettled.

Resisting the urge to break the mirrors, he toppled the three chairs to their sides, and like the chair he had found earlier, all of them had a girl’s name written underneath them.

Including the chair at the girl’s dormitory, I’ve stumbled across five chairs already. If every single one of them represents a girl, then this means I’m dealing with the spirits of five girls. So, the question is, what has really happened to them?