Doll Survival Game

…

Youshun Town was considered a relatively bustling little town. However, no matter how lively a town might be, living on its very outskirts could only feel desolate.

The Luo Family resided at the farthest edge of Youshun Town.

Many had advised Luo Jun to move closer to the center, especially since there was a child in the house attending school. After all, it took over half an hour for an adult to walk from their home to the elementary school.

After enduring a year of such nagging, Luo Jun finally gave in. He bought a bicycle for Luo Yiran, who had just started second grade-riding a bike would surely be faster, right?

The well-meaning advisors: “…”

Luo Yiran didn’t mind at all. Riding a bike home meant he didn’t have to greet people along the way.

However, on the very first day of second grade, as he rode his bike back home, he spotted a crow at the entrance of his house. It wasn’t the sight of the crow itself that surprised him but rather its awkward movements. The bird wobbled unsteadily along the power line, as if it had just hatched and hadn’t yet learned how to control its body.

Luo Yiran watched as the crow made its way to the rounded top of the utility pole, where it finally steadied itself.

“Ran, what are you looking at?” A woman’s voice suddenly called out from behind him. Across the street, a neighbor noticed the boy standing at his door, pushing his bike and wearing a blue schoolbag, but not going inside. She called out curiously.

Luo Yiran turned his head.

At about seven years old, his face was fair and slightly chubby, his eyes round with a gentle downward tilt at the corners. When he smiled faintly, he looked soft and endearing.

He pointed at the utility pole. “There’s a crow.”

The woman blinked in surprise and followed his gaze. Sure enough, perched on the pole was a crow with striking red eyes.

She froze for a moment-crows had red eyes?

Pulling her gaze back, she looked at Luo Yiran again, only to be met with his sweet smile. “Big sister, I’m going inside to do my homework now.”

The woman immediately smiled back. “Alright, finish it quickly so you can come out and play.”

Luo Yiran nodded with a smile and then stepped into the house. Just before closing the door, he glanced at the crow again out of the corner of his eye. For some reason, he felt like the crow was observing him.

How strange.

“Ranran, you’re back?”

A slightly hoarse voice came from inside the house. An old man with graying hair poked his head out, smiling warmly as he asked, “So, did you make any friends today?”

Luo Yiran: “…”

He silently dropped his schoolbag and repeated the words he had said countless times before: “I don’t want to go to school.”

Luo Jun paused for a moment, then turned off the stove and came out holding a spatula. “And why not this time?”

“It’s still not a good fit,” Luo Yiran replied, looking up with his round eyes fixed on Luo Jun. To be honest, there wasn’t much emotion in his gaze, but his soft features made him seem anything but unapproachable.

Luo Jun couldn’t help but laugh. He patted Luo Yiran’s head and pinched his chubby cheeks. “Just focus on growing up and doing well in school.”

“And make a friend.”

At first, Luo Jun had hoped Luo Yiran would make lots of friends, but by now, he’d lowered his expectations to just one.

Luo Yiran didn’t resist, though his hair was instantly left in a messy tangle.

Luo Jun returned to the kitchen, satisfied, and called out loudly, “Do you like spicy food?”

Luo Yiran replied in a flat, emotionless tone, “Yes.”

Hearing this, Luo Jun tossed a generous handful of chili peppers into the pan. After coughing twice from the spice, he threw in another handful, only to be choked again. Still undeterred, he tried to strike up a conversation. “So, really no friends yet?”

Luo Yiran paused, then glanced toward the kitchen. “No, but recently, I’ve been spending a bit more time with another kid.”

It was rare for Luo Yiran to mention anyone, so Luo Jun immediately grew excited. “That’s a friend! You should invite them over to play sometime!”

Luo Jun coughed a few more times after speaking.

The sound of his coughing was different this time, prompting Luo Yiran to tilt his head slightly. “Are you sick?”

“Not at all,” Luo Jun waved dismissively, his tone carefree. “Why don’t you tell me more about your friend?”

“Not a friend,” Luo Yiran corrected once again.

It was just that he had helped the kid once, and then the kid started following him everywhere, always watching him. Still, he couldn’t deny he was a bit curious about how that kid would turn out. If they turned out to be interesting…

“Make more friends, Ranran,” Luo Jun suddenly said with heartfelt sincerity. “Otherwise, you’ll never get to taste sweet, delicious cake.”

Luo Yiran sighed. “You’re over fifty. Stop being so childish.”

That shut Luo Jun up for a moment. He slapped the cutting board in the kitchen and retorted, “Aren’t you the one who loves sweets the most?” Besides, he wasn’t being childish-he was just teasing the kid, wasn’t he?

After all, Luo Yiran never acted like a child should in front of him.

Luo Yiran considered pointing out that he liked spicy food too, but he knew that would only lead to another round of pointless conversation. Instead, he said, “I’m going to my room to do homework.”

Of course, that was just an excuse. Luo Yiran always finished his homework at school. He went back to his room simply to avoid continuing this unproductive dialogue.

Pulling open the curtains, Luo Yiran looked out and once again saw the red-eyed crow perched on the power pole.

With nothing better to do, he decided to focus on observing this peculiar crow. After a while, the crow flapped its wings and, in its unsteady manner, flew toward him.

It landed right on his windowsill, its red eyes staring directly at him.

Something felt off.

Standing on tiptoe, Luo Yiran leaned against the window and noticed something around the crow’s neck-a small iron tag engraved with the number “2657.”

A number? Could this be a domesticated crow? But that seemed odd. Who would keep a crow as a pet?

Worried that the crow might fly inside, Luo Yiran reached out to pull the screen window shut. However, his arms were too short to reach, so he grabbed a stool to stand on. Just as he stepped onto it, he froze, his gaze dropping to the ground outside the window. “Xia Lang?”

Below, a boy with a worn-out backpack-its edges frayed to white-flinched slightly. His hair was a mess, as if he’d cut it himself, one side too long and the other too short.

Luo Yiran stared at him. “What are you doing crouching outside my window?”

The boy slowly lifted his head, revealing a delicate but somewhat sullen face.

Luo Yiran paused. He noticed the red handprint on the boy’s face and the faint traces of blood on his body.

A few hours earlier.

“Slap!”

A sharp slap landed on Xia Lang’s face, and his mind buzzed as he stumbled backward, collapsing onto the ground. Everything before his eyes seemed to spin wildly, and for a moment, he couldn’t tell if it was the hunger gnawing at him or the sheer pain that caused it.

A warm stream trickled from his nose, and his cheek pressed against the uneven ground. His vision blurred as he tried to focus on the figure beside him. Tall-so tall. Was his father really this towering?

Another heavy kick landed on his stomach. His father seemed to be shouting something, but Xia Lang couldn’t make out the words. It was likely the same old phrases-“burden,” “useless,” “raising you is worse than raising a dog.”

It hurt. Xia Lang closed his eyes in a daze, and then he felt his body lifted off the ground. After being carried a few steps, he was tossed into a confined space.

The sound of a door slamming shut echoed. Xia Lang struggled to open his eyes and found himself enveloped in darkness. Only a small window above let in a sliver of light, revealing the vibrant green world outside.

Locked up again.

Would Luo Yiran come this time?

Probably not. He was in class right now… Xia Lang wished he could go to school too. Even though his classmates didn’t like him, at least no one hit him there. And Ran-Ge… Ran-Ge was so kind.

Even if he seemed cold and a little intimidating.

Xia Lang didn’t cry. Slowly, he sat up-Ran-Ge would chase away the kids who bullied him.

He would bring him food. He would… often show up to stop his father from hitting him.

Ran-Ge was amazing.

Xia Lang curled up on the ground, clutching his aching stomach. His small body folded into itself-how could someone his age seem so grown-up?

…Wait, does God exist?

His thoughts wandered aimlessly, trying to distract himself from the pain. Probably not. If there were a deity, why wouldn’t they come to save him?

But it hurt so much!

If there was no deity, then maybe a demon could come… and save him. If demons existed, he would give them everything-anything-if only they would rescue him.

…

“Xia Lang.”

A soft, childlike voice called out from the small window. Xia Lang’s eyes widened as he stared at the sole source of light. He couldn’t make out the person’s face, but the voice was unmistakably familiar.

“Knew you’d be in there…” Luo Yiran tossed some food through the window. “Eat something… Still don’t want me to call someone this time?”

“No,” Xia Lang rasped.

Calling anyone was useless. Whoever came would leave, and then he’d be beaten again. It was a belief ingrained in him through countless repetitions of the same experience.

Luo Yiran paused, then refrained from calling for help. Instead, he dropped a bottle of water through the window.

Xia Lang crawled over, picked it up, and tore open the food packaging. He ate slowly, bit by bit-his mouth hurt too much.

“You didn’t show up for the first day of school,” Luo Yiran said, leaning against the small window. He fiddled with the leaves of a nearby bush. “The teacher asked me to look for you.” After all, they lived close to each other, separated only by a small hill. From the town to the village, it was a short distance.

Luo Yiran lived at the edge of the town, while Xia Lang lived at the edge of the village. Their homes were practically connected.

Xia Lang’s dark little room was half-underground. The greenery he saw through the window was merely the leaves of low shrubs, but he had never looked out from the outside. He had always assumed they were trees.

Now, as he watched Luo Yiran casually play with what he had always thought were the lofty “tree leaves,” Xia Lang felt a strange sensation.

“Ran-Ge, are you a deity?” The child’s voice was pure and innocent, his expression filled with hope.

Luo Yiran answered without hesitation, “No.”

Then he must be a demon.

Xia Lang smiled.

Luo Yiran passed a rope through the small window. “When you’re done eating, tie the trash to this and send it up.” Better to avoid getting caught and beaten again.

Xia Lang obediently tied the trash to the rope, but then something occurred to him. He grabbed the rope tightly, stopping it from being pulled up. He asked, “Ran-Ge, why do you help me?”

“No one else helps me. Why do you?”

Luo Yiran paused. He looked down through the small window at Xia Lang. It was too dark below to see clearly, but he remembered Xia Lang’s face-if this kid were cleaned up and smiled brightly, he could be quite likable.

Luo Yiran stood against the light, his round eyes still shining brightly, like he truly was a kind and gentle child. “I want to see what you’ll grow into.”

What would a child like this become? A lifeless corpse? A numb, broken adult? Or perhaps a flower blooming amidst the murky blood?

“Grow into what?” Xia Lang didn’t understand. He tilted his head and asked, “What kind of person would you like me to be?”

“Doesn’t matter.”

Though he looked like a child, at this moment, Luo Yiran had none of the innocence a child should have. He chuckled softly and said casually, “No matter what you become, I’ll like it.” Unless, of course, it turns out to be boring.

Xia Lang let go of the rope, watching as it carried the trash upward. A demon-what kind of version of him would a demon like?

“I’ll go back to school and get you excused for today. Tomorrow, I’ll come get you so we can go to class together.” Luo Yiran had come specifically during lunch to bring Xia Lang food. The path was long, and if he didn’t head back now, he’d be late for the afternoon session.

Being late wasn’t a big deal, but the teacher might tell Luo Jun, and then he’d have to endure a long lecture.

Xia Lang nodded. He waited until Luo Yiran had left before clutching his stomach and crouching down again-it hurt so much…

“Caw-”

A sharp, grating sound suddenly came from the small window. Xia Lang looked up-a crow with red eyes was perched there.

He’d been seeing this crow since yesterday. It didn’t fly much, nor did it call often.

Xia Lang stared at it, and then the crow let out another cry, its naturally unpleasant voice sounding even harsher this time. It was almost as if… it was warning him.

A crow, warning him.

But why?