Chapter 49: The Scarlet Apartment, Part 9

[No, the B-level dungeon still involves multiple players. Please maintain your cannon fodder persona and avoid revealing your player identity before the dungeon ends.]

“Understood.” Zhou Zhou nodded, realizing she wasn’t the only player in this world, which eased her mind slightly.

After all, having so many players participating was better than facing the dungeon alone.

In her thoughts, there was no way she could confront the dungeon by herself.

She… she wanted to cling to someone stronger.

A blush rose to Zhou Zhou’s cheeks, ashamed of this thought, but she was simply too weak—she would be out of breath after walking a few steps, and even lifting something heavy would make her dizzy. She couldn’t rely on herself at all.

[Actually,] the system detected her thoughts and chuckled softly, finding it amusing: [...If it were you, everyone would be more than willing to let you cling to their leg.]

It thought, perhaps not only willing but even competing for the chance to have such a beautiful young lady depend on them.

After all... she was so stunning, like a dream woven into reality, captivating not only the dungeon’s monsters but also the fleeing players.

“022, don’t joke around...” Zhou Zhou was a bit confused. What was that supposed to mean?

How could players possibly let a useless weakling cling to them? 022 was bad for coaxing her like this.

“…I don’t believe it.” She clenched her sleeve. Today, she wasn’t wearing yesterday’s alluring camisole. She had rummaged through the closet and found a brand-new pure white loose long-sleeved shirt and pale pink trousers, both spotless and originally the previous owner’s clothes, meant to be thrown in the trash downstairs.

As a streamer, she couldn’t be too conservative.

So after buying those revealing outfits, she was planning to discard these conservative clothes, even if they were new.

But now, Zhou Zhou was quite satisfied with this outfit.

The long sleeves and pants kept her warm—the apartment was very cold at night, and she had shivered all night yesterday. The fabric was simple and comfortable to wear.

Those few scraps of cloth from yesterday had made Zhou Zhou feel like she was boiling alive, overwhelmed by heat, shame, and embarrassment.

Exposing her pale pink skin on stream made even her hairs stand on end.

Zhou Zhou took her room card and her powered-off phone, preparing to go downstairs. She asked the system, [Can I leave the apartment to buy a charger?]

The system had said some dungeons were impossible to leave, and even if you tried, you would be forcibly returned. Those who wished for luck usually died miserably.

She remembered that well.

Zhou Zhou was carefree but not stupid. Though her reflexes were a bit slow, she would think carefully when it mattered.

System: [You may.]

It reminded her: [You can go out during the day, but you must return at night.]

_

However, something unexpected happened on the way out. Just as Zhou Zhou reached the apartment front desk, someone grabbed her tightly.

The person was an extremely tall, slender young man.

Dressed in black shirt and pants, wearing a light silver Bluetooth earpiece on his left ear, his striking features caught the eye. His fingers, once casually tucked in his pocket, now gripped her slender wrist with considerable strength.

He looked down at her, surrounded by an indescribable aura of melancholy and coldness.

For an ordinary person, this pose might seem sleazy.

But because he was handsome, he gave off a strange, aloof charm.

This guy, who could captivate young girls so easily, seemed to have been through a lot. His eyes locked onto her with complicated, dark emotions. Zhou Zhou could even count his long eyelashes.

He seemed like a character from a suspense idol drama.

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To put it nicely, he looked very mysterious.

But to be honest, the best summary was one word: pretentious.

Or two words: very pretentious.

Zhou Zhou, being held firmly, was bewildered: ...?

“Sir,” she said softly, raising her eyes with a gentle voice, “would you please let go of me?”

But he didn’t loosen his grip; in fact, he held on even tighter.

Zhou Zhou pursed her lips and tugged at her sleeve.

But she couldn’t pull it away.

Her ears flushed a bit; she gave up pulling her sleeve and said, “Um...”

“If you’re holding me like this,” Zhou Zhou asked quietly, “is there something you want?”

His eyes were filled with stormy, heavy emotions, his voice hoarse.

“You’re not dead.”

Zhou Zhou: “Huh?”

Hearing that, her heart fluttered sharply. “You... what do you mean?”

Why would he say that when he saw her?

Did he know she was supposed to have died last night?

If so, he must be a player, since only players knew that cannon fodder NPCs died at the start.

But this person showed no player marker.

He didn’t answer, tightly clutching the girl’s warm hand, eyes growing moist.

His narrow amber pupils were like an endless abyss; the man gazed at the girl greedily.

“Thank goodness... thank goodness,” he muttered like a madman living in his own world, “It’s good you’re alive...”

“Sir...” Zhou Zhou felt uneasy. She didn’t recognize this character from the dungeon and didn’t understand his frenzied words, but being held like this made her very uncomfortable. “Are you okay?”

Hearing her anxious, scared tone, the young man pressed his lips.

“...I’m fine.”

He looked deeply at her, then let go of her hand and explained, “Sorry, I’ve been unwell these past few days; my mind’s been a bit foggy. I didn’t mean to offend you just now.”

Whether this was true or not, he said it sincerely.

Zhou Zhou pursed her lips; her pale pink lips glistened with moisture. “...It’s okay.”

He spoke earnestly, his face serious, his burning gaze entangling her as if it were really true.

Zhou Zhou didn’t know how to respond.

“Sorry to bother you.”

Fortunately, the young man only glanced at her once more, then fell silent and strode away from the apartment.

Zhou Zhou clutched her white long sleeve and pondered. He spoke so resolutely; there was no point in pressing him further. But... was what he said really true?

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Was he really just unwell and speaking nonsense?

Or...

“Ah—!”

A piercing scream came from upstairs.

Zhou Zhou’s heart jolted; an inexplicable bad feeling washed over her.

W-what’s going on...?

But she didn’t have time to think further before a group of people rushed out of the elevator and into the apartment lobby.

“Someone’s dead ahhhh!!”

“Room 312’s occupant is dead...”

They were like frightened birds, voices tense and fearful. “So scary...”

They had woken up this morning to find the door to room 312 wide open, blood everywhere. What was even worse—the body of the tenant living in 312 was missing its torso, terrifying them into a panicked escape.

“Yeah!” Their voices trembled. “How could this happen...”

“There were knocking sounds at 312’s door all night yesterday... I even yelled at them a few times... I never expected...”

They had just moved into the apartment when such a horrifying event occurred.

“The killer might still be in the apartment. Don’t panic. I’ve already called the police.”

Someone struggled to keep calm, pulling out their phone to dial.

But... no connection.

The players watching scoffed slightly.

These NPCs could never get through; how could there be police in a horror dungeon?

The tenants felt a dreadful premonition. When their phones announced, [You are out of service area], chills ran down their spines; their blood seemed to freeze.

Too eerie.

A buzz-cut man whispered hoarsely, “Where’s the landlord?!”

“We’re moving out.”

The players hidden among the tenants frowned: [Idiots.]

Moving out now? Didn’t they want to die even faster?

The players recalled the strange, chilling knocking from last night and shuddered. It seemed this dungeon harbored sinister monsters.

The knocking was a harbinger of death.

Watching all this, Zhou Zhou felt a chill crawl over her skin, her body shivering.

Yesterday... she had also heard knocking at her door.

But she was still alive this morning; everything seemed normal.

Zhou Zhou pressed her fingers together, her face pale, clearly frightened, drawing the players’ curious gazes.

Looking at her, they froze.

Wasn’t she the cannon fodder streamer who should have died miserably on the first night of the dungeon?

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