The second morning came slowly. Gray light seeped through the clouds. The village was quiet, but the silence was heavy. People sat in small groups, eating what little food they had left. Some stared at the stone platform. Others stared at the ground.
Shen sat with Jiang and Lin near the well. He chewed a piece of dried meat. His jaw moved slowly. His eyes stayed on the platform.
Lin had not slept well. Dark circles hung under her eyes. She kept looking at the other teams, counting them.
"Twelve of us left," she said. "Four teams. Three people each."
"Not counting the old man and the children," Jiang said.
"They don't count."
Shen finished his meat. "Today's dish will come at noon. We need to see who eats first."
"The girl said green," Lin said. "But she also said green lies."
Jiang frowned. "She's confused. Or the door made her confused."
"Or she's lying," Shen said. "We watch first."
Near the platform, a large man with a thick beard and scarred arms stood with his group. Two men and a woman. The woman was young, thin, with hollow cheeks. The two men looked tough, but their eyes were tired.
The large man spoke loud enough for everyone to hear. "We can't all hide. Someone has to eat today. I say we draw lots."
A woman from another team shook her head. "Drawing lots is fair."
"Fair?" The large man laughed. "Nothing here is fair. But it's better than watching the clock run out."
The old man on the platform hadn't moved. He stood like a statue, his bell in his hand. The children were nowhere to be seen.
Shen stood up. "Let's move closer."
They walked to the edge of the crowd. The large man glanced at them, then looked away.
"You," he said, pointing at the thin woman in his group. "You eat first."
The woman's face went white. "Me? Why me?"
"Because you're the weakest. That's the rule."
"There's no rule."
"There is now."
The two men in his group looked at the ground. They didn't speak.
The woman looked around for help. No one met her eyes. She looked at Shen. Shen didn't move.
Her shoulders dropped. She walked to the platform.
The old man rang his bell. A large clay bowl appeared on the stone. Inside was thick green porridge. Bits of green leaves floated on top. The smell was sharp, like grass and dirt.
The woman picked up a ladle. Her hand shook. She looked back at her team. The large man nodded.
"Drink it," he said.
She closed her eyes and swallowed a spoonful.
For a moment, nothing happened. Then she grabbed her throat. Her face turned red, then purple. She fell to her knees. Black foam bubbled from her mouth. Her body jerked twice. Then she lay still. A man from the crowd vomited. Another backed away, crossing himself. The large man's face was stone, but his hands were clenched.
"Green is poison," someone whispered.
The old man spoke. "One person must eat. If no one eats, everyone dies. The door will choose."
The large man's face hardened. "Then let it choose."
The air grew cold. Shen felt his mark pulse. Around him, others touched their palms or chests. Lights flickered on different bodies.
A beam of light fell on Lin.
She froze. Her hand went to her sword.
"No," she whispered.
The large man laughed. "The door chose. Drink."
Lin looked at Shen. Her eyes were wide. Her lips moved, but no sound came out.
Shen stepped forward. "I'll take her place."
The old man tilted his head. "The door does not accept replacements. But if someone else drinks first and survives, the chosen one is freed."
Shen looked at the green porridge. Then at Lin. "I'll drink."
Lin grabbed his sleeve. "Don't. You saw what happened."
"I have the buff."
"Twenty percent is not safe."
"It's better than zero."
Jiang stepped between them. "She's right. We don't know if the buff works on this poison."
"We'll find out."
Shen pulled his sleeve free and walked to the platform. He picked up the ladle. The porridge smelled bitter, like burned herbs. His mark was hot against his palm.
He scooped a small amount. Lifted it to his lips. Drank.
The liquid hit his tongue like fire. Sharp. Bitter. His throat closed. His stomach twisted. He felt the poison spreading — cold in his veins, then burning. His vision blurred. He heard Jiang shout his name, but the sound was distant.
His mark flared. Heat shot through his arm, his chest, his head. The pain stopped. The burning faded. His vision cleared.
He was still standing.
The old man nodded. "The dish is accepted. The chosen one is freed. Day two is complete."
Shen stepped down. His legs were weak. Lin caught his arm. "You could have died."
"I didn't."
Jiang glared at him. "Next time, ask first."
The large man stared at Shen. His face was hard to read. "Lucky," he said.
He walked away with his group. The thin woman's body lay on the ground. No one moved it.
The crowd dispersed. Some went back to their corners. Others argued in low voices. A few glanced at Shen with something like respect. Others looked away quickly, as if afraid the door might choose them next.
Shen sat down against the well. Lin sat beside him. Jiang stood guard, her eyes scanning the village.
"You have a death wish," Lin said.
"No. I have a buff. Twenty percent chance to resist poison."
Lin blinked. "That's not safe."
"It's better than nothing."
Jiang sat down. "We need to find out more about tomorrow's dish. We can't rely on luck again."
Lin hugged her knees. "The girl said green. She was wrong. Or right? The poison killed her, but you survived."
"She said green lies," Shen said. "Maybe that's the truth. The dish was green, and it was poison. But I had the buff. The girl didn't know about the buff."
Jiang nodded slowly. "So her clues are based on the dish itself, not on what we bring."
"That's my guess."
From behind the well, a small figure peeked out. The girl. The one from the well. She had been watching from a gap between the stones. Her eyes were wide. Her face was pale. She crept forward, glancing around to make sure no one else was looking.
"For you," she whispered, handing Shen a dry leaf. "Tomorrow… yellow."
She ran away before anyone could ask more. Her bare feet slapped against the dirt. She disappeared behind a house.
Shen looked at the leaf. It was brown and brittle. No markings. He turned it over. Nothing.
"Yellow," Jiang said. "What does that mean?"
"I don't know."
Lin hugged her knees tighter. "Maybe it's the color of the dish."
"Or maybe it's a trap again," Jiang said.
"The first clue was half true. Green was poison, but I survived. Maybe yellow is different."
Shen put the leaf in his pocket. "We'll find out tomorrow."
The sun moved west. Shadows grew long. The village was quiet again. From somewhere, the sound of a woman crying drifted through the air. Someone was mourning the dead woman. Or maybe themselves.
Shen leaned his head back against the wall. The stone was cold. His mark was still warm. The taste of the green porridge lingered on his tongue. Bitter. He drank some water from his flask. The bitterness stayed.
Jiang checked her dagger. The blade still glowed faintly. She touched the edge. Still sharp.
"We have enough food for three more days," she said. "If we're careful."
"The door might take our supplies," Lin said. "I've heard stories."
"Then we hide them."
Shen opened his eyes. "No. If the door wants to take them, hiding won't help. We just eat what we need and save the rest."
Lin nodded. She pulled out her own small pouch. A few pieces of dried fruit. She counted them, then put the pouch back.
The sky turned orange. Then purple. Then dark.
The torches were lit. The children appeared again. They ran in circles around the platform, singing their strange song. The same high, hollow voices.
Shen watched them. "They're not children."
"I know," Jiang said.
"What are they?" Lin asked.
"Part of the door. Like the old man. They're here to watch. Maybe to judge."
The children stopped singing. One of them — the boy who had led them to the well — looked at Shen. He smiled. Then he turned and ran into the dark.
That night, Lin took first watch. She sat with her back to the well, her sword across her knees. She looked at Shen, who was already asleep.
She whispered, "You didn't have to do that."
He didn't hear her.
The torches flickered. The village was quiet. Somewhere, a chicken clucked. Then nothing.
Lin stayed awake, watching the shadows. The children had gone. The old man stood motionless on the platform. The body of the woman still lay where she had fallen. No one had touched it. No one would.
She thought about what Shen had done. He didn't know her. He had no reason to risk his life. But he did it anyway. Not for her, maybe. Because it was the right thing to do. Or because he didn't like bullies. She wasn't sure.
She looked at his sleeping face. Calm. Relaxed. His hand rested on his hook.
She looked away.
The hours passed. The moon rose. The village slept.