Bai Liu could hear the crisp clatter of marble striking the door, and the handle rattled twice.
Though the door was locked, the mermaid wax statue outside twisted the handle with such force that it groaned and splintered, the metal threatening to snap at any moment.
It was clearly trying to get in. Its dead-white eyes swept the room, searching for Bai Liu. Seemingly finding no one, it appeared to leave, the handle falling still, the corridor outside falling into a hush, as if the creature had truly gone.
But Bai Liu held his breath. He remembered that when the statue moved, it made a heavy, dragging sound—without it, something was wrong.
The mermaid wax statue hadn't left. Most likely, it was still lurking just outside his door.
It was baiting him, trying to lure him out. Bai Liu realized this, and glanced sideways—just in time to see the peephole, which had returned to the color of the carpet, suddenly bulge white again, as if an eye were pressed to it.
It was still there.
After a while, the thing seemed unwilling to give up. The handle was suddenly wrenched, twisting into a jagged, broken shape, barely hanging on.
The mermaid wax statue was about to break in.
Some of the more soft-hearted viewers in front of Bai Liu's screen had already closed their eyes, unable to watch.
"A shame to lose such a promising player…"
"Siren Town is just too brutal for a starter instance. It's not a beginner's difficulty at all—it's a slaughterhouse."
Bai Liu's mind raced, his breathing slowing.
The game had made it clear: these monsters had weaknesses, and players could exploit them to escape. The solution was to find what limited the statue's movement.
Bai Liu closed his eyes, replaying every detail of the night.
Every game has a solution. A game with no solution is trash. After years of designing horror games, Bai Liu was certain there had to be a clue to the mermaid wax statue's weakness.
What was it…?
He calmly reviewed every encounter with the statues.
The first was at the fountain outside, when Jelf cried out that the statue had moved. Its movement was silent, merely turning to follow the car, not looking at them, but at the water.
The second was in the hotel lobby—dozens of statues, all staring, but unmoving.
The third was in his room. Except for the giant mirror-holding statue, all the others stared at him. After he fell asleep, they began to move; the mirror statue moved fastest. But when he woke, they all froze.
But clearly, simply being awake wasn't enough to stop the statue—one was about to break in.
There had to be something on him, something that could limit the statue's movement. Not something in the room or hotel—those hadn't stopped the statue from leaving Jelf's room.
What was it?
Mirror… water… sleep… direct gaze!
Bai Liu understood.
He sprang up, flung open the door, and locked eyes with the mermaid wax statue.
It was so close its face was nearly pressed to his, one hand still on the handle, its pupil-less eyes peering through the peephole—right at the spot where Bai Liu had been hiding.
No wonder it was so determined to get in—it must have seen him crouched behind the door.
Its movement halted. Its tail brushed Bai Liu's toes, but at the very threshold, it froze.
Bai Liu exhaled in relief. He was right—the statue's weakness was direct human eye contact.
The audience before his screen was stunned.
"Holy shit! How did he figure that out? He didn't even hesitate when he opened the door!"
"Most new players would never think of that. Even if they did, they'd be too scared to open the door—just staring through the peephole isn't enough. At that range, the statue can still break in."
"God, when he locked eyes with the statue, I got chills!"
"What's his name? This rookie is incredible…"
The crowd swelled around Bai Liu's screen.
[168 people are watching Bai Liu's mini-screen. Achievement unlocked: 'Hundred-Viewer Debut'.]
[102 likes, 143 bookmarks, 3 viewers have tipped Bai Liu, earning him 3 points.]
On screen, Bai Liu remained calm and composed, as if nothing remarkable had happened.
Deducing that "direct human gaze" immobilized the statue was, in fact, simple.
After he fell asleep, the statues moved; when he woke, they froze. The only difference was that his eyes were open—so human sight must be the key.
But there was a trap: looking at the statue through a mirror or peephole only partially restricted its movement. Only direct eye contact could stop it completely.
Even with direct gaze, two statues could still move: the fountain statue outside, and the mirror-holding statue in his room.
The fountain statue looked at the water, so people only saw it through the water's reflection—limiting, but not stopping, its movement. That's why it could still turn slowly.
The mirror statue moved fastest, because the gaze was indirect, through the mirror.
The statue at his door, seen through the peephole, could still move. If he'd only watched through the peephole, it would have broken in and, once he was pinned, he'd lose the ability to look at it—game over.
But few players would have the nerve to open the door and stare the monster down.
Most would panic, even if they guessed the answer. Only someone as desperate as Bai Liu, who valued money over life, could remain so cool, even without absolute certainty.
["Siren Town Monster Compendium" updated.]
[Monster Name: Mermaid Wax Statue (Chrysalis State), Talisman Statue (Cocoon State)]
[Weakness: Direct Human Gaze (1/3)]
[Attack Method: Hatching]
The statue's eyes drooped, head tilting slightly, lips curving in a faint smile, tail graceful, body immaculate—a strange, secret beauty and divinity in its stillness.
Once frozen, its predatory aura vanished, leaving only a work of art, silent in the midnight halls of a foreign land.
[Player Bai Liu has received 3 points from viewer tips, unlocking the in-game shop.]
[Insufficient points to purchase any items. Please keep trying!]
So the points came from viewer tips, and the shop sold everything from daily necessities to weapons—even bizarre items like "Pristine Heart" and "Love-at-First-Sight Potion," all at exorbitant prices.
Now he understood: [Points can buy you anything you desire.]
Bai Liu closed the shop and stared at the immobilized statue.
It wouldn't move now, but he couldn't spend the whole night in a staring contest. And after this, he had a new respect for its destructive power.
He eyed the nearly broken door handle.
From the behavior of the statues in his room, it seemed they relied on sight to locate him. If covered, they couldn't find him, even in the same room. They had no hearing or smell—otherwise, they'd have found him by his breath, or broken out of the bathroom and wardrobe with ease.
…What a nuisance. With so many, they were a real liability.
Bai Liu narrowed his eyes, a wicked thought forming—now that he had a motionless statue at his mercy, could he experiment? Test its weaknesses—fire, blunt force, see if it could be destroyed…
[Warning: If you attack this monster directly and fail to destroy it, it will hold a permanent grudge and relentlessly pursue you, lowering your survival rate.]
Bai Liu stroked his chin, a harmless dimple appearing as he smiled.
"If I attack it, it'll hate me and seek revenge… But if something happens to it by accident, that's not my fault."
He wrapped the statue in a sheet, tied it tightly, and placed it at the top of the hotel stairs.
With its head covered, the statue would wander blindly, and Bai Liu hoped it would tumble down the steps.
He wouldn't risk attacking it directly—if he failed, he'd be in trouble. But with so many statues, he needed to know if they could be destroyed.
He watched from his room as the statue, blinded by the sheet, began to move, eventually tumbling down the stairs with a crash.
Bai Liu looked down from above, dusting off his hands, a little disappointed to see the statue unscathed, merely curled up at the bottom, not a crack on its marble surface.
…So, physical attacks were useless.
Unbeknownst to him, his villainous antics left the viewers in stunned silence.
"Is this guy really a rookie? Wrapping the statue in a sheet and tossing it down the stairs… Was he a kidnapper before this? Or a terrorist?"
"I was just worried for him, but now I feel sorry for the statue. It's so pitiful, tail in the air…"
"Does he even see himself as a player?!"
"Everyone else is just trying to survive the monsters—he's trying to wipe them out…"
Author's note:
The "direct gaze" mechanic is inspired by "Red Light, Green Light" and SCP-173.
This instance draws inspiration from Lovecraft's "The Shadow Over Innsmouth."