The Transdimensional Inn

A little truth

The voice in his head startled Noah, who had been lost in thought, standing in the valley as the cold wind numbed him. He froze—then stiffened further.

It wasn’t until Erin shouted at him for the second time that he jolted back to reality.

"Erin?" Noah blinked, casting wary glances around the eerie valley while inching cautiously toward the crumbling remains of an ancient temple, seeking temporary shelter. He tried to respond in his mind, "How did you... contact me? I mean, you’re speaking directly into my head..."

"Is that difficult?" Erin’s tone was filled with self-assurance. "I’m Alice’s doll, after all!"

Noah pondered this, struggling to connect the two ideas... So, does that mean all of Alice’s dolls can do this? Can they all speak into people’s minds?

"I’ve already been inside your dreams once, remember? It’s easy to find the way back," Erin added patiently, sensing his confusion. But then her tone shifted sharply, "Wait, where are you? I can’t sense you at all..."

Noah paused for a couple of seconds, glancing around the silent, dark valley. He had a strong feeling that some giant creature could suddenly appear from the shadows, accompanied by a dramatic and foreboding soundtrack. The thought sent a chill through him. "I may have... wandered too far, and it’s not exactly easy to get back..."

Erin was quiet for a moment, then her voice returned, bewildered, "Didn’t you say you were just stepping out to take out the trash? Did the garbage truck carry you off?!"

Noah couldn’t help but marvel at her imagination...

Yet, he had to admit that hearing her voice brought him a bit of solace—a small, fleeting sense of comfort amid the unnerving isolation. At the very least, it reassured him that his connection to the original world hadn’t been entirely severed. Since Erin could reach him, there must be a way back—though he had no idea how, or any reason to support that belief. He simply had to hold onto it.

But for now, his priority was ensuring his own safety.

The valley was eerily quiet. The only sound was the occasional gust of hollow wind. Yet, Noah couldn't shake the unsettling, oppressive feeling that something was watching him. A cold, empty, and ravenous gaze seemed to sweep over him again and again, making him feel exposed and uneasy.

Desperate for cover, he looked around, but the only potential refuge was the dilapidated temple ahead. The dense forest nearby felt even more sinister, as if venturing into its depths was an invitation to doom—a classic horror story setup he wanted no part of.

However, the temple wasn’t much better. It was another horror trope: enter the ruined temple, meet a monster. The difference was, in the forest, it might be a beast; in the temple, it could be something far worse.

Either way, both scenarios seemed to promise a dramatic, dangerous encounter.

With gritted teeth, Noah chose the lesser of two evils and headed toward the temple's barely intact corner.

As he walked, he kept communicating with Erin, explaining his situation—though there wasn’t much to explain, as he didn’t even know how he ended up here. All he had done was open a door…

After hearing his explanation, Erin fell silent for a long time before hesitantly speaking again, "It sounds like you’ve ended up in the ‘Otherworld’?"

Noah, now standing in the ruins of the temple, froze. "Otherworld? You’re calling this place the Otherworld? Do you know where I am?"

Erin’s voice sounded slightly confused, "Huh? There are many Otherworlds. How would I know which one you’ve fallen into?"

Noah furrowed his brow, realizing he had just learned something new about the supernatural. More importantly, he began to understand something crucial:

He might not have been transported to another world after all. Perhaps, what had happened to him was some sort of natural phenomenon—at least, one that Erin didn’t find particularly unusual.

While Noah was pondering this, Erin seemed to come to a realization and spoke in disbelief, "Wait, don’t tell me you’ve never heard of the Otherworld?"

Noah’s expression turned odd, "Should I have? Is this common knowledge or something?"

"It’s normal for regular people not to know about it since most will never encounter anything like this in their lives," Erin replied casually, before adding something that left Noah stunned, "But you shouldn’t be ignorant of it."

"Me? Why would I know about it? I’m just an ordinary guy..."

"…But you live in an Otherworld every day."

…

Shadows flickered through the night, and the hunters began to take shape. A snarling wolf leaped out of the darkness, bounding across the uneven rooftops of the old town before landing soundlessly in the deserted street, scanning its surroundings.

"Get back here!" came an irritated voice from the shadows between two old buildings.

The wolf shrank back, letting out a low whimper as it scurried into the shadows by the roadside.

A girl in a dark red coat and black skirt stood in the alley, running a hand over the wolf’s head as she gazed down the street.

It was a short street, with only a few dozen houses. The entire road was visible from one end to the other, and even without the wolf’s keen senses, she could easily assess the situation.

The girl frowned, and just then, her phone rang—a classic tune from an old TV show. She picked up before the song played too long. "It’s me. Yeah, I’m in the old town, over by Wutong Road."

A tired-sounding voice of an overworked man came from the other end, rambling on.

The girl, patient yet weary, listened for a while before replying, "I’ve arrived, but there’s nothing here—my wolf has already searched the entire street three times. There’s no trace of an Otherworld opening, and nothing seems to have come through."

There was silence on the other end for a few seconds before the voice replied, "But the surveillance team is certain—there was an Otherworld response at Wutong Road. There must have been a brief passageway..."

"I believe them," the girl said, a hint of exasperation in her voice, "Your team is professional, no doubt. But I trust my wolves too—maybe there was a passage, but it’s definitely gone now. Normally, an Otherworld connection wouldn’t cut off this quickly, so maybe someone else took care of it."

"Not many could sever an Otherworld connection so fast. We’ve records of all the known groups with that ability," the voice on the phone sounded weary, "But I haven’t received any communication from any of them tonight."

"Maybe it was the Hermit’s Guild," she mused, "They’re always so secretive..."

The girl’s casual remark was followed by more muttering on the other end of the line. She sighed and agreed, "Fine, fine. I know, they’re respected scholars. I’ll keep looking. This street only has sixty-five houses; another sweep won’t hurt…"

Finally hanging up, she glanced at her now-silent phone, then down at the many pairs of glowing eyes around her—the wolves waiting in the shadows. She sighed again.

"Still haven’t finished my homework... Being outsourced is the worst..."

...

Noah sat in the corner of the dilapidated temple, where the walls were somewhat intact, cold wind gusting through the gaps. He looked up at the broken roof and the murky, starless sky, trying to clear his mind, but failing.

Not long ago, he had learned the truth.

The one safe haven he had in the city—a place he had thought of as the most normal, secure spot—was, in fact, a bizarre anomaly known as an "Otherworld."

As Erin had explained, the so-called "Otherworlds" were realms that existed beyond normality, on the fringes of reason. While the world of ordinary people seemed like a solid, well-structured mountain, it was actually full of tiny holes leading to these irrational, chaotic dimensions.

Most people would never encounter these "holes" in their lifetimes, never glimpse the strange and surreal sights on the other side.

But for those who did, once they had seen even the faintest glow seeping through, there was no turning back.

—Yet, even for someone as well-versed in the supernatural as Erin, it was still a bit strange that anyone could live in an Otherworld for so long without realizing it…