Prologue: Scarlet Welcome
The harsh sound of metal friction and the boundless darkness were the first feelings "Nameless" felt when he regained consciousness. He opened his eyes suddenly, and what he saw was not the white ceiling or the familiar bedroom as expected, but a suffocating claustrophobic space with a cold metallic sheen. The air was filled with a faint smell of rust mixed with disinfectant.
"Welcome to the 'Scarlet Chamber', participant number: nameless."
An electronically synthesized sound without any emotion, as if it had been precisely synthesized, sounded in his ears like the whisper of death.
"Current status: Survival. Survival countdown: 30:00:00."
"Task goal: Find and activate the 'safety protocol' of this room before the countdown ends. Failure penalty: irreversible termination."
Wuming calmed down instantly. Not out of fear, but an almost instinctive caution. He glanced around quickly. This is a cubic room of about ten square meters. The walls, ceiling and floor are all made of dark red alloy, which is cold and hard. In the center of the room, there was a strange-looking metal console, covered with complex circuits that shone with a faint blue light and a huge round button with a vague symbol engraved on it, like an eye.
There were no windows, no obvious vents, just a closed, heavy door that seemed to be made of metal. There were no handles or lockholes on the door, just a groove consistent with the style of the console, shaped like... A key? Or rather, a specific object?
