I Became the Protagonist of a Crime Novel Chapter 6

That evening, I was awakened by my alarm.

The last ray of sunlight was blocked by distant high-rises, and the sky gradually darkened.

The usually bustling apartment complex was now deserted, eerily quiet. Tonight was destined to be an unusual night...

I stretched, grabbed a can of iced Coke, opened my tablet to check the surveillance while munching on duck neck and collarbones, preparing to officially face off against the killer.

"Ding—"

A text message popped up.

Boyfriend Ethan: "Lily, guess where I am?" [Image]

I clicked on the image. It was a photo of the entrance to my building.

Boyfriend Ethan: "I'm at your place! Let's have a couples' night together! Come greet me!"

...

I hesitated for a moment and chose to play dead without responding.

It wasn't that I was heartless, but I had reasonable suspicion that the protagonist's boyfriend was a ghost, not human.

If he hadn't held her back, the protagonist would have successfully escaped long ago.

In the original novel, the protagonist Lily trusted her boyfriend completely. When Ethan was caught by the psycho killer several times and nearly lost his life, she risked everything to save him again and again.

When she pulled Ethan into hiding in the small loft, thinking they were about to escape disaster, "By the moonlight, Lily was horrified to discover that although she and Ethan were leaning against each other, there was only one shadow on the ground—hers... Goosebumps covered Lily's body. Before she could scream, an icy hand climbed up her neck, slowly tightening, tightening..."

The novel stopped there. Lily's ultimate fate was unknown.

So this time, I decided to be selfish to the end and never let anyone in.

Boyfriend Ethan: [Image]

"Lily, did your building change property managers? He looks terrifying—just scared the hell out of me."

The photo showed a middle-aged man wearing a property manager's uniform, locking the building entrance with an iron chain.

I clicked to enlarge the image. The glass on the door reflected his face.

Half his face was covered in hideous scars, one eye was fake, and he was glaring viciously at my boyfriend. It was indeed quite creepy.

This wasn't our property manager. I'd seen him a few days ago—a very young, handsome guy named Jack.

It seemed the killer had disguised himself as the property manager to infiltrate the building.

Boyfriend Ethan: "The hallway is pitch black. I'm a little scared."

"By the way, why is he locking the entrance? I told him your apartment number, and only then did he agree to let me in. He was looking at me so creepily too. What an attitude! I told him you'd file a complaint!"

I watched coldly as Ethan complained. He was really good at attracting hatred toward me.

Boyfriend Ethan: "Something's not right, Lily. A young guy came and said he's the property manager, asking who this old guy is. This person is suspicious. Do you know him?"

"...Oh no, they're fighting."

"Ahhhhhh, Lily, that ugly freak stabbed the manager with a knife. There's a strong smell of blood in the hallway. He's not going to stab me too, is he? I'm so scared. Come out and save me!"

"Lily, are you home? Quick, open the door and let me in!"

Messages suddenly popped up one after another. Ethan's figure appeared in my surveillance footage, running toward my apartment at full speed.

"Ah—"

In the video, Ethan's hand had just touched my front door when he was violently repelled.

I saw smoke rising from the talisman stuck on the door—he really wasn't human.

Boyfriend Ethan: "Lily, what did you put on your door?"

I propped my chin on my hand and replied. Since he wasn't human, I couldn't be blamed for not honoring our past relationship.

"Ghost-repelling talismans."

Boyfriend Ethan: "Why would you put those up for no reason?"

"To ward off ghosts and evil spirits."

Boyfriend Ethan: "Since when do you believe in this nonsense? Lily, just open the door for me. That maniac is about to catch up!"

"No."

Boyfriend Ethan: "? Why not? Lily, you're my girlfriend. How can you bear to abandon me?"

"Not anymore."

"What do you mean? You're breaking up with me?"

"Yes. Everyone go back to their own homes. Take care."

"Lily, stop joking. This really isn't the time. The killer is about to come up."

"I'm not joking. You better run for your life."

"How can you be so heartless? You don't even care if you watch me get killed?"

"Yep, what does it have to do with me?"

In the surveillance footage, Ethan stared resentfully at my door, his figure slowly fading and gradually disappearing from the camera.

"Ahhhhh—Help!" Jack's screams began echoing through the hallway. Slowly, the screams stopped, replaced by a "bzzzz—" sound. That was a chainsaw.

A young life was just gone like that. I felt sorry for him but was powerless to help.

People in the residents' group chat started talking:

501: "What's that noise? So creepy. @PropertyManager, go check it out."

202: "So annoying. It's rest time. Please have some consideration and don't disturb others!"

302: "@PropertyManager, you're usually so diligent about collecting fees. Why no response when we @ you?"

The conversation gradually shifted from noise complaints to a property management criticism session.

PropertyManager: [Image] "Are you looking for him? Too bad, he can't come anymore."

The image showed Jack's bloody corpse, eyes wide open, limbs severed and rearranged in a twisted, grotesque posture.

Without a doubt, the psycho killer was now using Jack's phone to send messages.

The chat went quiet for a moment, then exploded with activity.

202: "Damn! Is it April Fools' Day? That effect is too realistic. Scared the hell out of me."

501: "This... doesn't look fake... I'm about to throw up my dinner."

302: "Is this a prank or real? I'm calling the police."

401: "Bad luck! @PropertyManager, this joke isn't funny at all. I'm filing a complaint!"

PropertyManager: "The commotion just now was a bit loud. Sorry, everyone. First time dismembering someone—no experience. I've decided to apologize to you in person. 202, 302, 401, 501, please wait at home. See you soon."

Just then, the property manager sent another message:

"Oh, right, dear 601, your friend just said he'd file a complaint against me? Then let's start with you."

The 601 resident he mentioned was me.