Chapter 16 - The Vanished Mermaid (Part 9)

“The fog was so thick later on, you couldn’t see anyone beyond a meter away. But strangely, there was hardly any fog around the hotel,” Via lamented the death of Xia Lang, though he seemed relatively unaffected, as deaths were common in the instance.

Out of the corner of his eye, Via noticed Guan Cheng standing beside him, looking utterly devastated. Guan Cheng, ruffling his fluffy curls, unexpectedly offered some consolation, “Well, there’s no use for a corpse anyway. Once a person is dead, all that’s left is a pile of rotting flesh. If you want to see him again, just visit his personal space.”

Upon learning of Xia Lang’s death, Guan Cheng couldn’t let go and wanted to return, hoping at least to prevent Xia Lang’s body from being devoured by the monster. However, he was ultimately persuaded to leave by Via and another.

“This instance is strange, surviving one more day is a gain,” commented Li Qi Feng as he approached after registering. He sat across from the magician, “At least it makes the act of him pushing you away not a total waste.”

Guan Cheng gasped heavily, at a loss for words. Xia Lang was just a high school student, barely of age, and now he was dead. Guilt welled up inside Guan Cheng.

He looked up at the doll on top of the magic hat. Under the overhead light, the doll’s eyes were shadowed, making it hard to discern its emotions.

Filled with regret, Guan Cheng locked eyes with the doll, wanting to offer some words of comfort to Luo Yiran, but the doll spoke first.

“It’s okay,” the doll smiled.

Guan Cheng’s hands trembled violently, unable to believe the doll could still smile.

The doll pointed to its eyes, “He promised me, he wouldn’t die where I couldn’t see him.”

“He’s not breathing anymore, bro,” Via rolled his eyes, thinking it was the doll’s way of comforting itself, then added, “Whatever makes you feel better, I guess.”

“It’s not what I feel,” Luo Yiran tilted his head, “It’s a fact. He needed me to watch him.”

“Even if he was about to die the next second, he would hold his breath until he could die in front of me.”

Those were Xia Lang’s own words.

At that time, Xia Lang, covered in wounds and blood, had come to him without hesitation, utterly determined, and said those words.

Luo Yiran’s gentle smile returned, “He could do it.”

Because for Xia Lang, the Grim Reaper had to wait his turn.

As he finished speaking, the air fell silent, only broken by the magician’s sarcastic laughter.

After a tense few seconds, Li Qi Feng changed the subject, looking directly into the eyes of the doll, “Shall we collaborate?”

The doll didn’t respond.

Via started to say something, but Li Qi Feng stopped him.

The doll, lost in thought, looked down at the magician, contemplating everything that had happened since entering the instance. Finally, he looked up at Li Qi Feng, “Which task did you choose?”

“Task two, kill the mermaid,” Li Qi Feng and Via exchanged glances, then Via spoke up, “Collaboration requires basic trust, and since it’s our proposal, we offer our trust first.”

Luo Yiran put his finger to his lips, a lock of hair almost touching his eyelashes, but the doll felt nothing. “I know why you’re seeking collaboration,” he said.

Luo Yiran moved his finger up to his ear, “You lack pearls but need information about them.”

Li Qi Feng nodded openly, revealing his bargaining chip, “People in Water City keep tight-lipped, you probably haven’t dug up much, but we know something. Plus, we can tell you an extra secret.”

“Deal,” the doll quickly agreed, adding, “If the secret is that the mermaid in the water tank during the day is a fake, then don’t bother, I’ve figured that out.”

“…”

The two fell silent, the doll raised an eyebrow, “Really? That was it?”

Li Qi Feng, looking a bit helpless, asked, “How did you know?”

“We’ve had a close encounter with a mermaid once,” the doll lightly shook its head, revealing a bit of forehead, “It’s easy to spot the unnatural aspects on him.”

Via clapped his hands, quickly changing the subject, “Alright, alright, skip that! We learned from a shop owner…”

The doll smiled, “If it’s valuable enough, I’ll tell you a secret.”

Li Qi Feng thought for a moment, then nodded.

Just then, Guan Cheng stood up, his remaining few bags making a clinking sound as he moved.

The doll glanced at the semi-transparent bags-seemingly filled with drinks.

Guan Cheng, with a complex look at the trio, suddenly felt that only he and Xia Lang were normal. He suppressed a strange anger, “I’m going upstairs.”

His day’s gains were meager, and with Xia Lang gone, he was merely a stranger to the doll. Li Qi Feng and Via might have intervened to collaborate with Luo Yiran, a favor he noted, but it had nothing to do with him otherwise.

Li Qi Feng watched Luo Yiran.

The doll continued fiddling with his fingers, “Don’t bother.”

Via grimaced, “You’re really cold-blooded…”

“Via,” Li Qi Feng interrupted, “Focus on the matter at hand.”

Via shrugged, glanced casually at the magician, then began, “That shop owner told us, in four days, Water City will be submerged.”

The doll stopped twirling his fingers.

“Exciting, isn’t it? Choosing task one means there’s no way out,” Via stared intensely at the doll, “Ranran, you didn’t choose task one, did you?”

Li Qi Feng slapped Via on the head, “Sorry, this kid has always been impolite.”

He pulled out a cigarette pack from his trench coat and shook it at the doll.

The doll was indifferent, “Whatever, I don’t mind.”

Via struggled free from Li Qi Feng, fumbled with his hair, then pulled out a lighter to light Li Qi Feng’s cigarette.

Li Qi Feng’s mind was also racing. He took a deep drag, then continued, “She only planned to reveal the easily discoverable information, until I threatened her. Then she mentioned something else.”

The doll looked up.

The smoke blurred Li Qi Feng’s face, making him seem more somber, “It’s related to the mermaid.”

“Decades ago, Water City was submerged once. After that, various legends about mermaids began to spread, and then twenty years ago, a mermaid appeared. He is Idia.”

“If we could tell something was off with the mermaid in the water tank, then the real Idia is likely being protected, and what’s shown is just a stand-in.”

The doll curiously voiced, “You believe there are mermaids in Water City?”

Li Qi Feng flicked his cigarette ash, “If surviving five days in task one is a dead end, then task two, killing the mermaid, must be a viable and executable task.”

The doll hummed a bit longer, “Go on.”

“In Water City, many children under eighteen secretly go to see the mermaid,” Li Qi Feng leaned back slightly, “So I asked the shop owner’s child what they do with the mermaid.”

“But it’s strange, that child, besides confirming that they indeed saw a mermaid, wouldn’t say anything else, far more stubborn than their mother.”

“Only a few things are certain,” Via summed up, “The mermaid really exists, but not the one in the water tank during the day; Water City will be submerged in four days, those who chose task one are out of luck; and lastly, why children under eighteen want to see the mermaid seems crucial.”

The doll paused, “So you don’t have answers.”

“No! But at least you have a direction now!” Via justified vehemently, “We went through a lot to pry this out of their mouths, telling you now at least saves you a good half a day, right?”

The doll’s gaze conveyed a hint of disdain.

Via looked at Li Qi Feng, then spread his hands, “Alright, let’s add something.”

“There’s a prison not far from this hotel, where residents who tried to harm the mermaid are detained. They might know something,” Via pointed outside, “And players who receive a pearl during the day turn into a kind of monster at night, their legs transform into fish tails, their heads tilt back, and their necks split open-it’s really grotesque.”

“Players who didn’t receive a pearl get attacked by these transformed monsters,” the doll continued Via’s explanation.

“Right, and that’s it,” Via spread his hands again.

The doll blinked rapidly, processing the information, then suddenly spoke, “The moon.”

“What?”

“Those who received pearls might not be forbidden from going out at night, just from looking at the moon,” Luo Yiran explained, “The pearl affects the holder’s mood, making everything around them seem more annoying and irritating.”

“Plus, this pearl also talks,” Luo Yiran revealed with a slight smile, “It told me during the day that there are many secrets in Water City at night, told me to look up at night, and now it’s telling me to hurry back to my room.”

All suggestions leading towards death. Via’s expression became serious.

“Its voice isn’t right, and many times it can make people daze and unconsciously obey, especially with its influence on emotions, making it easy for people to fall into its trap,” Luo Yiran ran a hand through his hair, casually sharing his thoughts, “Like right now, I really feel like just setting this hotel on fire, it’s very annoying.”

“…”

Via looked at him as if he were a pyromaniac, “Are you a fire freak? Why do you think about burning everything?”

Li Qi Feng coughed lightly, his gaze indicating the direction of the front desk, “They can hear you.”

Front Desk: “…”

“Don’t mind it, I’m just thinking,” Luo Yiran apologized with a smile to the front desk, then continued, “From the current situation, nothing the pearl says should be done. And I just said I can’t look at the moon because the transformed monsters are all looking up, and the pearl, when I didn’t go out, also told me to look up. At that time, I was by the window, and looking up, all I could see was the sky and the moon.”

Tonight, the moon was very bright, completely obscuring the stars.

“It’s very likely, and it also explains why those monsters are always looking up. Maybe the moon is their source of movement,” Via clapped his hands, then furrowed his brow, “So it telling you to go back to your room now isn’t it implying that the room is dangerous?”

“Just don’t go back,” Via said before anyone else could.

As soon as he finished speaking, the front desk twitched her face, “After ten o’clock, no one is allowed to walk in the hotel lobby or hallways.”

Via turned to look at her, his expression smug, “You say don’t move, and I’ll just stop moving?”

Front Desk coldly: “You can try.”

Via wisely turned his head back, “Looks like staying in the room might be dangerous too.”

The doll continued twirling his fingers, “Then are you going back?”

“Going back,” Li Qi Feng said, “Compared to that, it’s best not to do things that have been explicitly denied. It’s likely more terrifying outside the room than inside.”

The doll nodded, then said, “I’ll tell you more about the pearl later.”

“Okay,” Li Qi Feng stood up.

Via bounced up, his expression eager as he moved closer to the doll, “Can you tell us the secret?”

The doll also showed anticipation, looking at the facial features of Li Qi Feng and Via, “Of course.”

Via blinked in confusion.

Luo Yiran smiled as he said, “The Vanished Mermaid is a live broadcast instance.”

“…”

“???”

As the doll spoke, most of the people in Central Square, who were mostly watching Li Qi Feng and Via’s display panel, were shocked. The voices of doubt and ridicule that had been constant since Li Qi Feng and Via sought collaboration with Luo Yiran ceased when the doll revealed this.

“…Did any player in the live broadcast instance guess the game was being streamed before?”

“One particularly ‘lucky’ participant had been in six live broadcast instances, then during the seventh game, halfway through, he guessed it… But this Luo Yiran, it’s his first time in a live broadcast instance, right?!”

“Not only is it his first time participating, but he’s also a newbie. This is only his second instance.”

“Holy shit, he should’ve just learned about the concept of live broadcast instances, right? How did he figure it out?”

“Hahaha, don’t you think Li Qi Feng and the kid’s expressions are even funnier hahaha!”

The discussion continued, and the girl who had been holding the cross earlier also whispered in shock, “So impressive!”

Shamate, with slender legs crossed, noted, “Indeed impressive.” But someone must have hinted to him, otherwise, he couldn’t have known out of nowhere…

At that moment, Shamate suddenly recalled the silent, lip-reading conversation between the doll and the puppet during the mermaid parade earlier in the day.

It seemed that the doll knew then.

“However,” a person sitting above Shamate and the girl suddenly spoke, “This Luo Yiran, a special species, seems a bit too naive. Whatever Li Qi Feng and the other guy say, he believes.”

“After all, he’s still a newbie, and his guard is down. Probably everything he just said is all the information he has; he spilled everything.”

The girl listened, bewildered, and couldn’t help but laugh, turning to Shamate, whispering, “If they see Luo Yiran’s room later, they’ll be shocked, right?”

Most of these people were viewers of Li Qi Feng and Via’s display panel, having just seen the doll through them, naturally unaware of what had happened to the doll before.

Shamate chuckled, “Some newbies really don’t seem like newbies.” In the “World Human,” those who adapt quickly should not be underestimated.

The girl rubbed her hands together, murmuring in anticipation, “The little doll should hurry back to his room, someone is waiting for him~”

Shamate shivered, “Girl, don’t use a tone that sounds like you’re about to abduct someone.”

The girl blushed, then stammered, “I’m just a bit excited…” Before she could finish, her peripheral vision caught the doll suddenly manipulating the magician to stand up, her surprise evident, “Is he going back to his room?”

Luo Yiran, of course, was unaware of the anticipation for his return to his room. His maneuvering of the magician to stand wasn’t intended for returning to his room.

The front desk watched as the puppet approached, the refined doll on its hat politely inquiring, “Hello, do you have any pure cotton pajamas?”

Front Desk: “?”

Luo Yiran blinked, “You don’t have them?”

As the front desk was about to respond, she suddenly felt a chill. Her gaze dropped, pausing on the magician’s bandaged face, then she smiled genuinely at the doll, “There are some in the room.”

Luo Yiran noticed the front desk’s gaze, replying, “The ones in the room aren’t my size.” After speaking, he looked down at the magician’s hat brim, “Don’t do anything unnecessary.”

The magician, unhappy, retorted, “You’re the one doing unnecessary things. I can provide any clothes you want, make them if we don’t have them. Why do you still need to ask others for clothes?”

Luo Yiran frowned, full of disdain.

The magician pleaded, “I swear I won’t make you women’s clothes again, so considering we’ll be together until your death, please grant me this small… wish.”

The front desk smiled and stepped back a few paces, then turned to look at the hotel entrance-acting to keep out of sight, out of mind.

Luo Yiran, tired of talking to the magician, snapped, “Shut up, who would stay with you until they die.”

The magician chuckled softly, “If you can’t clear ‘World Human,’ you’ll stay in the game forever.”

Luo Yiran paused.

“Ranran, do you actually like it here? Do you not really want to clear the game?” The magician spoke in a bizarre tone, as if singing a chant, “So you’ve never asked how to completely clear the game and leave this world as a World Human.”

The eerie tone was uncomfortable to hear, but what the doll found more annoying was the magician’s tone, which sounded almost like he was cajoling a child. He replied coldly, “None of your business.”

The magician laughed out loud, enjoying how Luo Yiran behaved differently in front of him compared to others.

“We’re going to be together for a long time, some things need to be adjusted.”

It seemed he would never give up the idea of dressing Luo Yiran up.

“Isn’t it better to negotiate these things rather than just doing as I wish?” the magician suggested cheerfully.

Hearing this, Luo Yiran automatically translated it in his mind-accepting the clothes the magician provided would prevent future forced cross-dressing in his personal space.

After a moment of silence, the doll spoke, “Fine.”

The magician’s smile widened, and the bandage on his cheek lifted, “Then let’s go back to our room.”

“No,” was the firm reply. The compromise was only about changing clothes; the doll still found the magician’s voice annoying. “Talk less.”

The magician: “…”

The front desk turned her head, “It’s almost ten now, sir. You can go back to your room to rest early.”

With the pajama issue settled, Luo Yiran had the magician fetch a cup of hot water. He didn’t need to drink, but he liked watching the steamy water gradually cool. He was about to sit back down when the front desk spoke up.

The doll, usually expressionless, turned his head and showed a slightly cute smile, “I’m waiting for the last person to come back.”

The front desk’s polite smile seemed carved onto her face. She bowed slightly, “He won’t be coming back.”

Luo Yiran showed no reaction, his expression unchanged, “Not coming back tonight, or not coming back ever?”

The front desk paused, silent.

Silence was also an answer. The doll’s smile grew, “Thank you, I’ll go back to my room soon.”

Turning around, the smile on the doll’s face disappeared. He silently manipulated the magician to lift the cup, then stared at the cooling water.

The magician deeply felt that lifting the cup was a foolish gesture, but considering he would soon be changing Luo Yiran into pajamas, he remained silent.

Once the water cooled, the doll had the magician head upstairs. He chose not to use the stairs but went straight into the elevator.

“Aren’t you afraid of the elevator malfunctioning?” the magician asked cheerfully.

“It won’t,” Luo Yiran replied offhand. Perhaps the elevator would only start having issues after ten.

“What kind of pajamas do you like?” the magician asked.

“Plain and loose-fitting,” Luo Yiran replied. It would be convenient if he needed to move around at night.

The magician nodded in agreement.

An eerie atmosphere pervaded between the doll and the puppet, appearing harmonious and friendly yet always hinting that at any second, they might draw knives on each other.

The magician loved this atmosphere; his good mood continued to rise until he was manipulated to open room 624, where it instantly dropped.

He looked around the room, his tone filled with disgust, “Young master, can you quickly throw these things out? They don’t deserve to share a room with you.”

The doll looked up.

In the room, two men were tied to chairs nailed to the floor, their mouths gagged tightly with cloth.

Above them, two buzzing electric saws hung by tattered ropes, the blades mere centimeters above their scalps, as if they were about to fall on their heads at any moment.

The doll glanced down at the two men tied to the chairs, their eyes wide with panic and despair. He showed one of his most commonly displayed gentle smiles and said softly, “I’m back.”