Chapter 45: Orphan Resentment (Part 5)

But on second thought, who would be willing to eat in their place even if they did have the idea? They hadn’t guessed wrong; these two women were a team. That said, it wasn’t easy for someone to take risks for their teammates, and they envied that.

Xiao Muyu wanted to stop Shen Qingqiu from taking her meat, but the other woman didn’t give her a chance. She put down her spoon and held Xiao Muyu’s hand, whispering, “There’s no need for both of us to suffer. We have to eat anyway. I’d rather take the risk myself, so if something goes wrong, you can still figure out a way to save me. It won’t do if both of us are incapacitated.”

Xiao Muyu knew Shen Qingqiu was right but still looked conflicted. She couldn’t help but say, “Wouldn’t it be the same if I ate the meat?”

Shen Qingqiu looked at her and suddenly smiled. “It’s not. With your sensitive nose, it might be harder for you to stomach this, while I’m not that picky. Besides, whatever kind of meat this is, I’ve probably eaten worse, so it doesn’t bother me. And right now, I’m technically an invalid,” she added, pointing to her injured right hand. “I need you to protect me either way, Muyu.”

With that, she picked up the spoon again and finished off the rest. As she ate, she couldn’t help noticing the taste seemed familiar. Out of consideration, however, she decided not to mention it.

Meanwhile, the others were trying to gaslight themselves as they started to clean off their plates. The chicken legs did taste decent, but the meat in the dish had a strange flavor—sour and tangy—that left a lingering rancid smell, making it hard to stomach. They grimaced, their dread growing the more they ate.

Xiao Muyu kept watching Shen Qingqiu. By chance, she noticed Zhang Yangfeng reaching over to take Yang Rui’s plate. He swapped it with his own empty one and quietly continued eating.

Yang Rui looked like she wanted to say something but ultimately pursed her lips and stayed silent. Xiao Muyu guessed she must have a similar expression on her own face.

Zhang Yangfeng moved quickly. The others were too busy struggling with the meat on their plates to notice his actions.

Xiao Muyu suddenly recalled what had happened in the lobby earlier.

Zhang Yangfeng’s sudden retreat when the doll appeared might not have been coincidental. Perhaps he ended up in front of Yang Rui to protect her. If that were the case, Zhang Yangfeng and Yang Rui could be another team.

Xiao Muyu sorted through the clues she had gathered so far. Glancing at the clock on the wall, she noticed it was already 6:39. At that moment, a sudden noise from the kitchen broke the silence. It sounded as if someone had started moving around in there.

The group turned their heads just in time to see a middle-aged woman coming from the kitchen door. She wore a yellowed white hat and an apron tied around her waist.

Under everyone’s collective gaze, the sallow-faced woman with cloudy eyes walked over step by step without expression. She moved almost like she had impaired legs or like a puppet controlled—stiff and mechanical. Each step had a uniform rhythm and spacing.

She followed a straight line toward Xiao Muyu, seated at the outermost edge, before finally raising her head from its downward gaze. Her dull eyes landed on the plate in front of Xiao Muyu. Her voice was as flat and cold as her expression as she asked: “Have you finished?”

Shen Qingqiu checked the time. It was 6:40.

Xiao Muyu murmured a response, inching back slightly. Her gaze swept over the auntie’s face, then down to her apron. The leather apron was so filthy that she could no longer discern its original color. But beyond that, Xiao Muyu noticed meat and bone bits, along with blood splatters dotting it. Her eyes then trailed down to the woman’s right wrist, where she also spotted blood and residue. Judging by the patterns, these splatters must have come from hacking at meat with a cleaver.

When the woman leaned close to collect the plate, Xiao Muyu took a subtle sniff before holding her breath. She caught the smell of cooking fumes on her, confirming she had been in the kitchen. But there was a stench mixed in—the unmistakable rancidity of old, spoiled grease. What alarmed Xiao Muyu most was that the stench on this woman was far heavier than what she had detected from the meat.

After collecting Xiao Muyu’s plate, the woman moved to Shen Qingqiu. She repeated the same question in the same tone: “Have you finished?”

Shen Qingqiu had also noted the grime and stains on the woman’s apron. Controlling her revulsion with effort, she replied coldly, “Yes.”

The woman took the rest of the plates with the same monotone question. Her odd behavior left oppressive dread forming in the players’ minds. Their hair stood on ends as they listened to her.

The others were waiting nervously for her inspection, so they might not have noticed. The sharp-eyed Xiao Muyu, however, did. This auntie wasn’t just mechanically asking questions. Her eyes darted whenever she bent down to collect a plate, as if she were carefully scrutinizing each one for leftover food. And the further down she went, her supposedly monotonous tone grew subtly more urgent, almost frustrated.

The others couldn’t nail what was wrong, but the mounting instinctual fear was so overwhelming it nearly suffocated them. Even their voices quivered as they answered, especially the two injured men. They had gone pale as ghosts and looked like they might break down any second.

When this cafeteria auntie with questionable humanity finally left, they sank back into their seats, exhaling in relief.

“The ghosts from previous instances at least tried to keep it subtle. But this one?” Huang Junfeng muttered under his breath, wiping the sweat from his face. “She just went straight for the scare tactic.”

“Is she really a ghost? Can ghost-cooked food even be edible?” Hou Liang’s face turned pale as he recalled something that made him feel queasy.

No one replied. Huang Junfeng thought of the stains on her apron, gagged a little, and spat. “Well, that ‘meat’ was awful—rotten and stinky. I just hope it wasn’t poisoned. If we end up dying from eating it, that’d be the worst luck.”

Without looking at him, Shen Qingqiu gave a faint, sarcastic smile, saying, “Maybe it’s ghost meat.”

Group: ……

“Don’t say things like that,” Hou Liang quickly replied, looking visibly rattled.

“Now that we’re all here, let’s do a quick round of introductions. Although we’re strangers, we share the same goal. And that is to clear this instance. So I hope we can work together and get everyone out safely.” This speaker was Zhang Yangfeng, whose steady gaze and upright demeanor seemed to inspire trust.

No one disagreed, and the group began to exchange names. Each had survived three instances already, meaning they were no novices. Zhang Yangfeng’s words held some weight, but seasoned players knew from personal experience the risks of putting too much trust in others. So he spoke prudently. After all, no virtuous people could ever survive in Skynet.

Among the eight, Xiao Muyu already knew four. The two injured men were Hou Liang, who had a broken leg, and Jia Wenlong, whose eye was bandaged. They both revealed that they couldn’t recall how they got hurt, much like Shen Qingqiu.

“Everything about this orphanage is weird. Let’s stay alert tonight, everyone. Those specific times that Director Qu mentioned seem important. We should avoid testing any limits. Knowing that system, we’ll be here for a while. We should survive the first night as long as we don’t make any major mistakes.”

The others nodded in agreement.

“Has anyone come across anything unusual? We need to share any findings to understand how to clear this instance.” Zhang Yangfeng glanced at Xiao Muyu, Shen Qingqiu, and the injured Jia Wenlong and Hou Liang. Since the rest of the group had been with him, he figured these four might have discovered something while they had been on their own.

Jia Wenlong and Hou Liang weren’t fools. They immediately clarified, “We lost consciousness as soon as we entered the instance. We have no idea what happened. And then we woke up here. The only person we saw was the director. Nothing seemed off during our time with her. What about you? Did you discover anything?”

Huang Junfeng took over the discussion. “Our knowledge is pretty limited, too. Nothing happened when we walked in. We only encountered that odd doorman, Old Sang. He didn’t talk much and had a strange look in his eyes when he watched us, but he didn’t do anything outrageous. The only unusual thing was that little girl named Ah Jiao, the one who kept smiling earlier. When we first entered the orphanage’s lobby, she suddenly ran in holding a doll, and her laughter gave me chills. Honestly, none of us even know when she came into the room.”

Zhang Yangfeng nodded in agreement. “That little girl is disturbing. And she grabbed Miss Xiao when she appeared, babbling ‘doll, pretty doll’, as she did earlier.” There was a hint of sympathy in his gaze as he looked at Xiao Muyu.

“Speaking of which, that doll makes my skin crawl. There must be something wrong with it,” Huang Junfeng nodded repeatedly. He admired the woman who had remained calm throughout the conversation. Although reticent, she was quite beautiful, and young men tend to feel protective of beauties like her. So he couldn’t help but remind her, “This is only my speculation, but you should be extra careful, Miss Xiao.”

Xiao Muyu glanced at him without responding. Finally, she said coolly, “Since it’s getting late, I’ll briefly share my observations. We all know this place is fishy, but what part? That’s what we need to look out for during this instance.”

“Everyone might still be disconcerted right now. I can’t be sure how many strange things are here, but that doll has to be haunted, so be careful. Also, three players were unconscious and injured when they came in, with varying injuries. I’m sure you don’t think that’s a coincidence. Just now, I noticed the boy named Xiao Han walking with an unusual gait. He seemed to have an issue with his leg, specifically his left leg.”

Everyone turned their gaze to Hou Liang. Among the injured three, he was the one with the broken leg.

“Could it just be… a coincidence?” Hou Liang swallowed hard, his expression tensing. Having something in common with NPCs was never a good thing.

However, Xiao Muyu’s following statement extinguished his flicker of hope.

“Other than the boy with the limp, haven’t you all noticed a child eating with their left hand?” Xiao Muyu didn’t want to connect it to Shen Qingqiu. But either the child was left-handed, or there was something wrong with their right hand. Regardless of which, it tied back to Shen Qingqiu, who now had to rely on her left hand for everything.

She had been paying close attention but hadn’t made eye contact with every child, so she wasn’t sure if any of them had issues with their eyesight. However, she would bet on it.

No one said a word after Xiao Muyu presented that question. Hou Liang and Jia Wenlong were especially mum.

After a long pause, Jia Wenlong spoke hoarsely, “Have you any idea what this connection means, Miss Xiao?”

Xiao Muyu shook her head; how could she be certain?

Meanwhile, Shen Qingqiu noticed Xiao Muyu kept glancing at her. Getting the message, she chimed in, “This is not necessarily a bad thing. The three of us couldn’t control being selected. Maybe getting chosen or not chosen is essentially the same thing.”

Shen Qingqiu’s words served as a wake-up call for Xiao Muyu. A dangerous setup had to have corresponding opportunities, or it would be too unfavorable for Shen Qingqiu and the others. Not to mention it would undermine the game’s fairness.

Concern often led to confusion, it seemed. Xiao Muyu hadn’t considered this layer at all. Suddenly, her expression stiffened, annoyance bubbling up beneath the surface.

What concern? She wasn’t worried about Shen Qingqiu.

They wanted to discuss more, but heavy footsteps interrupted them. Old Sang’s expressionless face appeared before everyone.

“It’s time to sleep.”

The eight snapped to attention and quickly got up. The chatterbox, Huang Junfeng, walked at the back with Liu Pei and complained, “Damn it, the way he said ‘it’s time to sleep’ makes it sound like we’re about to die.”

He kept his voice low, but Old Sang at the front stopped and turned to look at them. Cursing in his mind, Huang Junfeng quickly shut up, acting as if nothing happened.

However, Old Sang wasn’t there to reprimand those who spoke out of turn. He glanced at the group of eight and said gruffly, “Don’t wander off. Sleep when the lights are out.”

After that, he took up the front alone, leading them upstairs. At the top of the second-floor staircase, Old Sang pointed to the doors on the left and right. “These were originally supposed to be bathrooms, but they’re abandoned now. You can’t use them. If you need to wash up or use the bathroom, go to the third floor. The children’s dormitory is up there, so the second floor is temporarily empty. Each room has two beds. You can arrange your accommodations as you see fit.”

“Where do you and Director Qu stay?” Xiao Muyu asked.

Old Sang glanced at her and slowly replied, “I sleep on the first floor since I need to patrol at night. Director Qu and a few aunties stay on the third floor to care for the children.”

After that, he turned to look up at the third-floor stairway and added fleetingly, “They haven’t finished washing up yet. Pick your rooms and don’t disturb them. Wash up if you need to. Once you’re done, hurry to bed.”

He descended to the first floor with a hand on the stair railing.

The group exchanged uneasy glances, visibly hesitant. Once Old Sang had gone, Xiao Muyu looked at the ceiling above. Calmly, she spoke, “We’ll take the second room on the right.”

Her ‘we’ naturally referred to herself and Shen Qingqiu.

Yang Rui pressed her lips together. Among the eight players, there were only three women. If Shen Qingqiu and Xiao Muyu were to share a room, it would leave her alone in one. She glanced at Zhang Yangfeng. After a brief hesitation, he said, “You can share a room with me.”

Liu Pei, Huang Junfeng, Hou Liang, and Jia Wenlong turned to look at the other four in sync. It turned out the joke was on them.

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Author had something to say:

This instance goes perfectly with dinner. Xiao Shen has lost her sense of shame long ago. Haha.