Find the stairwell key in Silent Hill f and unlock the secret box. We’ll guide you through the middle school and solve every puzzle.
In the chapter “Shell of the Past” in Silent Hill f, Hinako enters the middle school together with Shu and Rinko. Your goal is to find the Key to the Mountains. While your friends barricade themselves in a classroom, you’ll have to explore the eerie school building. Here’s how to solve the first two puzzles — the stairwell key and the “Secret Box” in the middle school.
Finding the Stairwell Key in the Main Building 2F
Your first objective in the middle school is to track down the stairwell key for the second floor. You’ll get two important hints:
- In the storage room on the right-hand side of the hallway (one of the first open rooms), you’ll find a teacher’s diary on a shelf. It mentions that the vice principal lost his stairwell key.
- In the stairwell, a note on the bulletin board talks about the vice principal’s award-winning chrysanthemums planted in the school’s flowerbeds.
Solution: The key is hidden in the chrysanthemum bed in the courtyard. You can reach it through one of the open classroom windows — but watch out: the courtyard is crawling with monsters. Head all the way to the right. The key is in the second bed with the blue flowers.
The following image gallery shows the exact spot in the courtyard and marked on the map:
Optional: Important Items on the First Floor
- Through one of the open windows you’ll reach a save point, next to which lies an Origami of Rumors.
- On the east side of the courtyard, crawl into a small shed to find another Origami of Rumors.
- On the west side of the courtyard, you’ll find a sledgehammer by the chain-link fence and an Ema for tool upgrades beneath a small wooden structure.
Silent Hill f: Opening the Secret Box in the Classroom
On the 2nd floor, you’ll get locked inside your old classroom. To escape, you need to open the “Secret Box” sitting on one of the desks. The box is sealed with three symbol locks, and you’ll need to pick the correct combinations from a total of twelve images (front and back). In the same classroom, you’ll also find an Origami of Rumors on the back shelf.
Here’s what to do:
- First, read the letter in the “unopened envelope” lying right next to the box.
- In the last third of the letter, you’ll find clues that point to the correct images.
- Cover the images on the box that don’t match the clues from the letter and confirm — don’t forget to check the back side.
- If you choose correctly, you’ll receive another letter with hints for the next symbol puzzle.
Solution:
- 1st Symbol Puzzle: Select apple, cherries, orange, grapes, strawberry, pineapple.
- 2nd Symbol Puzzle: Select all images with books — one on the front, three on the back.
- 3rd Symbol Puzzle: Select all images showing the sakura tree and blossoms — two blossoms on the front, one tree on the back.
The gallery below shows the correct front and back combinations for each puzzle step by step:
Once you’ve opened the secret box, you’ll receive the 2F Classroom Generic Key. This lets you leave the room and unlock all other classrooms. Head first into the room on the west side of the same corridor and grab the Main Gate Key of the Old Wing from the teacher’s desk.
