The Midnight Ward

Midnight. I heard a faint meowing through the window. I was about to have a look when floating words appeared in front of me.

[Don't open the window! There isn't a cat outside! It's a serial killer!]

[I'm done. How could the side character be so dumb? I can already imagine how tragic her death will be.]

[Go and find the villain! He loves you so much! He will surely protect you!]

I quickly retracted my hand on the window latch…

Killer? What killer? What side character?

Were the floating words in front of me suggesting that a serial killer was hiding outside my window?

In the lounge, I looked at the words floating in front of me. I was half-convinced I was losing my mind.

I cautiously pulled the curtain open and looked out of the window through the dim moonlight.

Moonlight seeped in, spilling across the grounds below. The courtyard was vast and desolate, with not a soul in sight.

Something was very wrong.

This was no common hospital, but a high-end, luxurious one. The third ward, where I was, was for the more mentally fragile patients. For their protection, the lights would be kept on all night with security guards patrolling without fail.

The lounge was on the fourth floor. Through the glass window, I could see the entire layout of the courtyard. The entire place was smothered in darkness, with not a single patrolling guard in sight.

This was too eerie.

If there were a killer outside the window, the most probable place to conceal themselves would be the air-conditioning unit just beneath my window. They would be visible from downstairs.

I furrowed my brows and pressed the intercom button, summoning the guards. The only sounds that replied to me were the sound of static followed by a shrill tone.

Something was terribly wrong.

Right at that moment, a cat meowed outside, sending chills down my back. Upon a closer hearing, I realized that the meows had a constant rhythm. This was clearly a recording!

I wiped the cold sweat on my forehead and forced myself to calm down. Through the walls, I could hear a faint rustling sound of clothes outside the window. Someone had moved.

At that moment, I finally believed that the comments I just saw were true. There was someone trying to hurt me hiding outside the lounge.

I moved away from the window and returned inside, locking all doors and windows shut.

Then, I moved a huge drawer to the window, blocking it. I quickly called the cops.

At the same time, words started floating in front of me again.

[What? The side character didn't rescue the cat? I take back what I said about her being dumb.]

[Such astute observations, but I remembered that in the original story, she still died in the end. What a pity.]

[There's no choice. Her death is needed to stoke the conflict between the villain and hero.]

Cold dread coiled tightly in my chest.