Chapter 13: Reality

Chapter 13: Reality

◎"Through wind and rain."◎

On a bus heading towards Ruocheng’s city center, a pale-faced young man leaned his head against the window, his eyes tightly shut, breathing slightly rapid.

It was an old bus commuting between the countryside and the city. The ticket collector in the front had noticed his discomfort and quickly approached, shaking his shoulder, "Hey, hey! Young man... Wake up, are you feeling unwell?"

His eyelashes trembled, and his tightly shut eyes suddenly opened.

Simultaneously, the woman was startled by his amber-colored pupils, unsure if she had seen it wrong, but for a moment, she thought she saw countless purple-black plants swirling within his eyes...

"What's... what's wrong?" The young man grasped the handrail, sitting up straight, looking up at her dazedly.

"Um... are you sure you're okay? You were breathing heavily earlier, I thought..."

"I'm fine," he replied, "just had a nightmare... Thanks for waking me up."

The woman waved her hand as if to say it was nothing, scratching her head and walking away.

The bus was flanked by endless fields. The passengers were excitedly taking photos with their phones, while a few elderly men and women at the back were clapping and singing.

A pleasant return journey.

Shi Youqing lowered his head, calmly observing his hands.

Human hands.

It took him a while to pull himself out of those nightmarish memories. He opened his phone, trying to find the ride-hailing app he used before entering Chenggu Town.

...The app was gone, and instead, the record of payment to a private car driver that evening had somehow turned into a ticket purchase for a bus company – the very bus he was on.

The passengers in the back chatted about the fun experiences they had during their vacation in the countryside. Shi Youqing listened intently.

It turned out the place the bus had visited earlier was a popular tourist resort under Ruocheng, unrelated to Chenggu Town.

All traces of his journey to Chenggu Town had been erased.

Shi Youqing stared at the blue floating box before him, furrowing his brows.

If it weren't for this thing, he might have really believed it was all just a dream.

[Black World Level: The Secret of Chenggu Town]

[Game Progress: 100%]

[Collected Reward: 5 Black Chess Pieces]

[Would you like to review the level's backstory?]

He clicked "Yes."

Instantly, the images flooded his mind like a waterfall.

When it ended, Shi Youqing glanced at his watch; only three seconds had passed.

The backstory roughly matched his own conjectures.

Shi Youqing closed his eyes again, hands in his pockets, and this time his fingertips touched something.

Something smooth, cool, and round.

He pulled them out one by one – exactly five black chess pieces.

Playing Go with his mother, he was mostly the one with the black pieces, exchanging moves back and forth, feeling happy whether he lost or won, just being able to keep playing.

As he ran his fingers over the black chess pieces, the system’s mechanical voice echoed again:

“Both black and white chess pieces are key items for accessing the final level. Please keep them safely stored. They can be placed directly into the system's backpack. Once stored, they cannot be retrieved unless needed for the final clearance, but this ensures 100% safety of the pieces. Of course, players may also keep the chess pieces in the real world or carry them, though this poses a great risk of theft or deceit. However, if needed, the pieces could also be used to trade for valuable information or clues.”

Shi Youqing didn't hesitate: “Put all five black chess pieces into the system backpack.”

A dialog box appeared for confirmation.

He pressed "Confirm."

The five black chess pieces in his hand disappeared into thin air.

A new [Backpack] option appeared on the floating box, and upon clicking it, exactly five black chess pieces were displayed inside.

Shi Youqing unscrewed his thermos to take a sip of water, gazing out the window.

Unconsciously, his thoughts drifted to Jiang Xiaodou’s innocent face, the boy looking at him, asking, “Are you sure you want to find the truth?”

Shi Youqing continued to watch the receding landscape outside.

He knew he probably wasn't human, but what he was exactly, he had no idea.

Chenggu Town was a place that existed only in the game, yet his mother said it was their hometown.

...He should have died at the hands of those monsters, but when they surrounded him, they showed expressions of pain and fear, trying to leave, as if restrained by some invisible force...

It was chaotic, like a dream, but he knew it wasn’t a dream; it was a reality he had never touched before.

He seemed to have turned into something terrifying, yet he didn’t feel odd at the time, as if that was his true form.

And then... he woke up.

*

At 1:30 PM, the bus arrived at Ruocheng Bus Station.

Shi Youqing took a taxi home. Everything was as usual – a four-bedroom, two-living room house, clean and tidy. His mother's bedroom and study were still empty, with no sign of anyone's return.

He went to look for the newspapers he had previously organized, only to find his expression change upon seeing them.

Frantically, he spread out all the newspapers with missing person notices, but the spaces where his mother’s photo used to be were now filled with reader-submitted poems and jokes...

Continuing his search for the missing person notices he had printed but not yet posted, he found only blank A4 papers.

Opening the computer, all the posts and updates he had made searching for people... had all disappeared.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

Slowly turning his head, he almost ran to the door, but upon opening it, he was not greeted by his missing mother.

His neighbor, Mrs. Li, looked at him in astonishment, “Why are you breathing so heavily? Are you alright?”

“……”

"Youqing, have you been..."

"Auntie Li," he couldn't help but ask, "have you seen my mother return these last few days?"

"Huh?" The neighbor looked puzzled. "What are you talking about? Haven't you always lived alone?" Peering into the house, she added, "Your mom came to see you? You never mentioned your family before, I thought there was a conflict or something..."

"...Alone?"

"Yes, you moved in here alone with your luggage two years ago, saying you were recuperating from an illness... I heard you were hospitalized recently, and everyone was so worried about you. But you're too polite, not letting anyone help, always hiring caregivers. Since being discharged, you've been alone at home. Just a few days ago, I saw you with a backpack and thought it odd – you don't have to go to school, and with your health, why trouble yourself traveling during the holiday rush..."

“……”

Listening to Auntie Li, who used to be close to his mother, talk as if his mother never existed, Shi Youqing gripped the door handle tightly, struggling to stand upright.

After Auntie Li left, he called the police station where he had filed the missing person report. The unanimous response was... there was never a person named Shi Wen, let alone a missing person report.

...It sounded like a delusion of a schizophrenic.

But Shi Youqing was certain, his mother existed; she wasn’t fictitious or imaginary, she was real!

His first memory as a small child was his mother leading him down many paths.

It wasn't fake!

For instance, his mother's bedroom still had lots of women's clothes; his mother's studio was mainly used for photo post-processing, something he knew nothing about; and then...

Shi Youqing muttered to himself, continuing to search for evidence of his mother's existence, when the doorbell rang again amidst the chaos.

He ignored it, crawling into the huge wardrobe filled with clothes, trying to find a few strands of long hair... just to find them... just to find them...

The doorbell continued ringing, increasingly irritating.

Shi Youqing emerged from the wardrobe, his clothes and hair disheveled. He had no desire to tidy up, instead he went to the door with a grim face.

This time, a very tall man stood outside. Shi Youqing, about 1.78 meters tall, wasn’t considered short, but he had to look up slightly to face this man.

This person... must be close to 1.9 meters tall, right?

The man, pulling a suitcase and dressed in a crisp dark sports outfit, had neatly trimmed black hair, sharp features like a sculpture, and dark eyes that shifted away quickly upon seeing him. The sharpness in his eyes suddenly lost focus.

Inside the door, the young man's hair was disheveled, his beautiful eyes drooping, his gaze fixed on the visitor. "Who are you?" His voice was cold, slightly irritable.

"Hello," the man glanced at him again, his shadowy black eyes dropping, almost sheepishly, contrasting with his cold tone, "Ms. Shi Wen hired me recently to take care of you."

Shi Youqing's eyes widened.

The man produced a document: "This is the contract I signed with her..."

Without hesitation, Shi Youqing pulled him inside, then eagerly examined the contract.

The contract was signed on the same day Shi Youqing last played chess with his mother, with the work starting today. It mainly stipulated that the caretaker should provide adequate care and medical assistance when Shi Youqing was unwell...

He glanced at the signature of the other party: Bo Huai.

"Do you know where my mother is?" Lifting his eyelids, he grasped the man's arm firmly.

The man shook his head, his voice slightly hoarse: "After signing the contract, I haven’t seen her again."

Releasing his grip, Shi Youqing didn't show disappointment. He stared intently at Bo Huai, "Do you know? Everyone outside says my mother doesn’t exist."

As expected, a flicker of unusual emotion crossed the man’s eyes.

Shi Youqing managed a faint smile: "Now, it's impossible for both you and me to have schizophrenia, right?"

The man fell silent.

Shi Youqing: "Come outside with me to prove it..."

"Could it be because of that game?" the man said startlingly.

The air went still.

After a moment of surprise, Shi Youqing slowly calmed down: "Are you also a player from there?"

As he spoke, the answer already seemed clear.

Everything about the game, no matter how it's conveyed, must not be disclosed to the outside world – this was a mandatory requirement of the system for players. But in reality, players naturally could share everything about the game with each other.

If the man hadn't been in the game, he couldn't have made such a statement.

"Yes," the man said as if discussing a trivial matter, "I've only completed one level."

Shi Youqing asked, "Do players who die in the game get erased from reality?"

"No, on my way here, I saw a player who died in the game also die in a car accident. Everyone around him remembered him," Bo Huai's tone was even, "If you die in the game, you die in reality. But there is one situation where you might be forgotten by people in reality."

"...What?"

"Becoming an NPC."

"...How can a player become an NPC?"

"Not dead, but also unable to leave, it might happen like that."

“……”

After a long silence, Shi Youqing turned and went back to the bedroom.

Soon after, he emerged with a suitcase.

The man, who was squatting in the living room checking the electrical circuits, stood up at the sound and looked at him intently.

Shi Youqing said, "You can stay in the guest room on the left. Here's the spare key. I need to go to Jiang City."

"I'll come with you."

"No need, this is a personal matter of mine..."

"I'm supposed to take care of you, I've signed the contract," the man replied, his lips pressed tightly, "Through wind and rain."

"That clause isn't in the contract."

"Hmm, it's a verbal agreement."

“……”

That afternoon, both of them appeared at Ruocheng High-Speed Rail Station.

While collecting tickets, Shi Youqing glanced at the man's ID card.

Nineteen years old...

A year younger than him?!

The tall man, pulling two suitcases, moved at a steady pace. Despite doing nothing, he radiated an aura that seemed to warn others to keep their distance. Suddenly, he noticed the young man's mouth twitching slightly and immediately stopped, bending over to say, "Are you feeling unwell? If so, I can carry you to the ticket check."

“……”

[Author's Note]

The disappearance of the mother is not due to the attack. The reason will be revealed later in the story.

Thanks to the angel who launched two rockets: --Waiting for the Aurora--;

Thanks to the angels who irrigated with nutrient solution: Enjoying the World with You 28 bottles; Big Quilt 10 bottles;

"Thank you all for your support. I will continue to work hard!"