Surviving the System Tasks in the Mental Health Facility

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A terrifying sanatorium within a Horror Game, housing all sorts of patients.??

A charred, festering hand reached towards me. I slapped it away. Can't we talk properly? Must you resort to groping?

A gaunt young man plucked out his eyeball, preparing to use it as a ping pong ball. I picked it up and said, "Not a bad ball. Want me to play with you?"

A beautiful girl tore at her scalp, I smiled and started combing her hair. "Lily, your hair is so smooth and shiny. No need to cover it in blood."

"They" all saw me as the boss... because I was the Director here.

This horror game randomly plucked ordinary people into its clutches, broadcasting their struggles live for viewers.

This was my first horror dungeon. I never expected to land inside a decrepit sanatorium.

Lines of chat scrolled across the unseen live stream:

[Holy hell! That dungeon again?! ]

[ Didn't everyone died last time? ]

[ Not just last time! No one's ever survived it! They shut it down because the wipe rate was too high! ]

Unaware of the chatter, I stared down at my ID badge C Director, Harmony Meadows Sanatorium.

[ A newbie? Pretty handsome, too bad. ]

[Director... tsk tsk.isn't that the role that always dies first? ]

[ Best case, he completes two tasks. Never seen one last longer. ]

As the chat buzzed, a pop-up appeared on screen: How many minutes will the Director survive?

Whenever a newbie enters a horror game dungeon, these betting pop-ups appeared, boosting viewer engagement... and gambling opportunities.

Usually, they asked if the newbie would survive. My dungeon, my role... were clearly special. The system wasn't even pretending I had a chance, just counting down my life expectancy.

Welcome to Harmony Meadows Sanatorium~

A cold, electronic voice chimed, its slightly lilting tone tinged with mischief, as if anticipating something with morbid curiosity. "Our mission is to heal every patient with love~"

"Wholeheartedly, diligently, devotedly...

As if mist had cleared, my vision sharpened.

When I could finally see clearly, I found myself in a recreation area.

Director! Director, help! A man was sprinting wildly, eyes wide with terror, bloodshot orbs bulging as if ready to pop out.

Director? That meant me, right?

Running? Hiding from something?

I was still dazed, trying to grasp the situation, when the system "helpfully" chimed in.

[ Task One: Demon Tag. ]

[ A thrilling game! You play the Guardian, ensuring people are safe from the demon. ]

[ Game Time: 30 minutes. ]

[ Hint: Failure = Death. ]

My heart sank like a stone. I was just an ordinary office worker. Where would I have encountered demons? Let alone know how to deal with them!

Cold sweat beaded on my forehead as I scanned the chaotic scene.

People were fleeing C men, women, old, young. They seemed to be the sanatorium's patients.

The "demon" chasing them, however, wasn't the monstrous fiend I'd imagined.

He was a middle-aged man with dark skin, wearing a slightly twisted, predatory grin. Otherwise, he looked normal.

"So, I need to stop him," I muttered to myself, then charged forward. Anything was better than waiting to die.

Thanks to regular exercise, I was in decent shape and quickly reached the center of the action.

Heart pounding, I approached the man... but he made no move to attack. Instead, he dodged away.

The demon can't hurt the Guardian?

This thought flashed through my mind and was confirmed when I rushed at him again.

Relief washed over me. This game might be playable after all.

Just needed to intercept him whenever he tried to grab someone.

Meanwhile, in the live stream.

[ Whoa, this newbie's got guts! ]

[ Past 'Directors' were either too cautious or scared witless, wasting time figuring out the rules... then failing. ]

[ Tell me about it! I've even seen some who just waited to die!]

[ Chasing it down? Doesn't he know everything here is a demon? ]

[ LOL, a demon pretending to be human, and a human chasing the demon? ]

...

Thanks to decent stamina, I kept moving across the field.

I thought I could just hold out until the end. But, unable to catch anyone, the "Demon" grew increasingly agitated.

His face turned redder, his skin darkened and cracked, showing signs of charring, with crimson flesh visible in the fissures.

Seeing this horrifying transformation, I knew something was wrong. No wonder none of these "patients" were even winded after all this running.

New chat erupted:

[ Ha! He's pissed now! ]

[ That's him! The one who beat several 'Directors' to death! ]

[ It's a game, sure, but it's a horror dungeon. Nothing's ever simple! ]

[ I still remember how the last Directors died... mangled, unrecognizable... ugh... ]

[ Worse than you've seen! Even dismembered, the patients stitch the pieces back... like trophies. ]

Time wasn't up. The game continued.

Despite the dread, I had to play my role.

I charged the man again, blocking his path.

Suddenly, he twisted at the waist with a sickening crack, rotating a full 180 degrees, swinging a backhand fist straight at my head.

The force of the punch made it hard to keep my eyes open, and my heart tightened instantly. Instinct made me duck and dodge. The man's fist grazed my scalpa burning pain.

But the rules said the demon couldn't hurt the Guardian!

So rules don't matter? Then I'll play dirty too.

Physically, ten of me wouldn't beat him.

I had no choice but to gamble. As he swung again, I threw up a hand. "Stop!"

He froze, genuinely halted. I scowled. "You broke the rules. Now you get to be the exhausted Guardian."

He stood dumbfounded. I was already sprinting towards the fleeing "patients."

Only then did he react, the bulging black veins on his skin receding as he shouted at me, "Stop! Don't hurt them!"

[ Wait, what? ]

[ This move... I'm speechless. ]

[ Previous bosses who cleared this used special items to subdue him. This newbie changes the game with words? Is this the real strategy? Impressive... ]

It wasn't just a blind gamble. I'd observed.

They called me Director. My role held authority.

Even if the man broke the game rules out of anger, he couldn't ignore my authority as Director.

That's why, using his violation as a premise, I could demand a role swap...