Chapter 197 Naughty Vivian 11

Chapter 197 Naughty Vivian 11

Before the third piece of music began, Qin Fei and Brown had already smoothly blended into the crowd.

Like a drop of water slipping into the sea, no matter how eagerly the prince looked, he couldn't find his beloved wife.

The third dance was a gentle and elegant waltz. Qin Fei and Brown used the cover of their dance steps to move closer to the west staircase.

Once the music ended, the two immediately dashed upstairs.

At this moment, the castle was bustling with people. The second floor had an entire circle of viewing corridors that clearly overlooked the first-floor dance floor, so the number of NPCs gathered on the second floor was not less than those on the first.

Qin Fei ran swiftly while holding up the hem of his elaborate dress, which did not hinder his steps. Brown chased closely behind him.

Their strange and impolite actions drew many side glances from the NPCs.

Seeing an NPC frowning and approaching to stop them, Qin Fei's eyes darted around, and he reached out, grabbing Brown's ear with lightning speed.

He demanded, "Tell me! Which young lady were you secretly looking at in the dance floor?"

Qin Fei wasn't worried that Brown wouldn't react because he held his ear tightly.

Brown's ear burned with pain, leaving him unable to utter a word, only groaning, "Ouch, ouch."

The other nobles watching from a distance: "..."

So it was just a couple having an argument; it would be better not to interfere.

Speaking of which, this gentleman is really ungrateful. With such a beautiful wife at home, he still has the nerve to look at other women... tsk, tsk!

Many nobles thought sourly.

Having fooled the crowd, Qin Fei and Brown's eyes shone brightly as they began searching the second floor for the figure of the black-veiled old woman like searchlights.

Brown, while walking, said worriedly, "In fairy tales, someone dressed in black often gives off an unpleasant impression."

It easily brings to mind dangerous characters like evil stepmothers or wicked witches.

Qin Fei squinted his eyes, his gaze sweeping over the entire viewing corridor in an instant: "Rather than that, worry about what we'll do if we can't find her."

Tonight's ball would feature ten pieces of music, and they had already passed three-tenths of the way.

Their survival time was slipping away mercilessly.

"There's no one in the viewing corridor; let's check the back," Qin Fei said.

Behind the viewing corridor on the second floor were reception and rest rooms.

As a selection ball hosted by the prince, tonight's event was attended exclusively by nobles from their own country and even royalty from other countries.

For this reason, all 44 rooms on the second floor had been converted into rest areas.

Qin Fei pushed open the doors of the rest rooms one by one, saying to Brown, "The ball has just started, and according to etiquette, nobles won't choose to rest in the rest rooms now."

Therefore, any door that couldn't be opened was a prime suspect.

"Understood," Brown didn't think there was anything wrong with being ordered around by Qin Fei.

Working together, they searched quickly. Soon, Brown turned around, "There's no one in these rooms... hmm?"

He rubbed his eyes and looked towards the end of the corridor.

A black figure seemed to have flashed past, but when he approached, he saw nothing but an empty hallway.

"What's wrong?" Qin Fei had also finished checking his side.

Unfortunately, he found nothing either.

The two turned and headed towards the corner.

"Nothing," Brown shook his head, "I thought I saw someone walk by, maybe I was just seeing things."

As he spoke, he reached for the doorknob in front of him.

Suddenly, a slender, fair hand extended from the side and tightly gripped his wrist.

Brown was startled and turned to look at Qin Fei, "What's wrong?"

Qin Fei frowned slightly, "Step back."

This door felt off.

After Brown mentioned seeing someone pass by, Qin Fei's observation of the corridor became even more meticulous.

And indeed, he noticed something unusual.

A beautiful noblewoman, completely disregarding her decorum, crouched down and touched the corner of the wall next to the door.

There was a trace of dust.

White dust.

Qin Fei pinched it between his fingers and concluded, "It seems to be chalk dust."

"Chalk dust?!" Brown's eyes widened instantly.

How could something like this appear in the palace corridor?

The two exchanged a glance and simultaneously thought of the fourth rule of the castle:

The castle was historic and structurally complex. "Please do not enter the non-existent door!"

A non-existent... door.

Brown looked at the door in front of him in disbelief.

When he clearly realized there was something wrong with this door and found the evidence—the chalk dust—what had previously appeared completely real and normal to him suddenly began to twist violently.

The color on the door faded, the shadows disappeared, and the four edges became crooked and warped.

The door handle that had protruded from the door shrank back into the plane as if flattened.

This so-called "door" turned out to be just a simple sketch drawn with white chalk on the brown wall.

Brown muttered, "No wonder it's a fairy tale world."

Even such an eerie situation looked like it was playing out in an animated film.

Qin Fei's eyes flickered slightly. "It's very likely that the person you just saw drew it."

That hurried figure was highly suspicious.

Subtle footsteps echoed from the corridor, then paused.

No one came over.

Brown lowered his voice. "Could it be that person has returned?"

Like a criminal who, after committing a crime, always returns to the scene to see if anyone fell for it.

Qin Fei put his index finger to his lips, signaling silence, while sending the ghost infant ahead to investigate and pretending to continue checking the doors along the way.

After walking halfway down the corridor, he suddenly sped up, dashing to the corner at the end of the corridor.

Sure enough, he wasn't too late.

In the blink of an eye, Qin Fei reached the end of the corridor. The person hiding around the corner quickly realized something was wrong, turned to run, but stumbled and rolled away.

He jumped up and tried to escape further, but upon looking down, he couldn't help but scream in horror.

"Aaaaaahhhhh—"

He saw the ghost infant!

The pale-faced dead child, with twisted limbs, peeling skin, and bulging eyes, would give anyone nightmares for ten days straight.

Almost scared him to death.

The ghost infant, deliberately showing its most terrifying appearance, wiped the blood from its face, glanced at the person disdainfully, vanished, and crawled back onto Qin Fei's shoulder.

The person on the ground had completely lost the will to run, mainly because he was too frightened to move.

Qin Fei approached with a smile.

As he got closer, he could see that the person lying on the ground was actually a little boy, no more than ten years old.

The boy wore a vest and shorts that didn't fit well, a hat on his head, and his skin color was very different from ordinary people, lacking any vibrant blood color, with faint patterns visible.

Like... wood.

The boy's affinity bar above his head confirmed Qin Fei's suspicions.

"Boy Pinocchio: Affinity 0% (A mischievous little boy, despite his innocent face, don't believe what he says!)"

Even without the affinity prompt, Qin Fei would have paid extra attention to Pinocchio, because the first rule of the castle ball urban legend was never to trust any named characters.

However...

Judging whether someone is lying is much easier with Pinocchio, almost as simple as eating or drinking water.

Pinocchio was clearly terrified, sweating profusely.

After all, he grew up in a fairy tale world, albeit a violent and bloody dark fairy tale, which was quite different from the traditional Chinese horror world of Shouyin Village.

The horror of dark fairy tales pales in comparison to real ghosts.

The ghost infant appropriately showed itself on Qin Fei's shoulder, causing Pinocchio to shudder again.

The elegantly dressed lady in front of him had an extremely beautiful face, smiling kindly at him. If it were a prince standing here, he might be completely captivated.

But in Pinocchio's eyes, Qin Fei was no different from a great demon.

Qin Fei squatted down, pinched Pinocchio's chin, and forced him to look directly at him.

"Don't be afraid, little boy."

"I'll only ask you a few questions and won't harm you."

Qin Fei spoke with skill, deepening his smile, his eyes unreadable.

He didn't look like someone who wouldn't harm others at all.

Instead, Pinocchio felt that if he displeased him, he would be killed instantly.

The child trembled even more.

"What's your name?" Qin Fei asked.

Pinocchio replied, "P-P-Pinocchio."

His round wooden nose, which resembled a small pillar, remained completely still, not moving an inch from its position.

Qin Fei: "What are you doing in the castle?"

Pinocchio: "I came to work."

The nose still didn't move.

Work?

Qin Fei raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"You're afraid of me," Qin Fei stated with sudden certainty.

Pinocchio's eyes widened, and he waved his hands frantically. "No, no, no!"

Immediately after, the boy's nose suddenly extended by a significant length!

Qin Fei, who was prepared, quickly turned his head away.

The puppet's nose jabbed into the wall, causing Pinocchio to shed two wooden tears that rolled on the carpet like small marbles.

Qin Fei watched this scene with satisfaction.

Pinocchio's nose grows when he lies, just like in the original story; this aspect hasn't changed.

This means he indeed did not lie in answering those two questions.

That's interesting.

A grand ball was being held in the palace, and even the lowest-ranking attendants were dressed in exquisite and splendid attire.

However, the ragged clothes Pinocchio wore did not match the elegance of the palace at all.

"What kind of work do you do?" Qin Fei asked.

Pinocchio seemed reluctant to answer but, intimidated by the ghost infant's threats, reluctantly revealed the truth: "My job... is to paint doors in the corridors."

Brown, who was eavesdropping from behind, exclaimed: "?"

Brown couldn't believe it: "There's such a job in the palace?"

Who would do something like that?

But during the conversation, Pinocchio's nose gradually shrank back, without growing any longer.

He was indeed telling the truth.

Qin Fei had some suspicions forming in his mind.

As Brown mentioned earlier, in fairy tales, an old woman draped in black easily evokes thoughts of an evil witch.

And Pinocchio's job of painting doors in the corridors, attracting unsuspecting passersby, had a touch of magical intrigue.

"You're working for a witch," Qin Fei affirmed.

Pinocchio instinctively refuted: "No, I'm not!"

This time, he quickly covered his mouth and turned his head away, almost knocking over Brown, who was watching from the side.

Qin Fei patted the child's head sympathetically: "Don't struggle; it's useless."

The ghost infant appeared again, baring its fangs at Pinocchio.

Pinocchio felt like crying again, thinking how unlucky he was to encounter such a demon.

If only he had slacked off today instead of working hard!

There's a witch in the castle, and Qin Fei's keen sixth sense told him that the unknown event the system required players to investigate might be related to this.

"I know you're painting these fake doors to trick others."

Qin Fei said slowly and deliberately.

"What benefit does this bring you?"

Pinocchio's eyes darted around, but his wooden brain had limited intelligence, and he couldn't think of a way to avoid lying that wouldn't make his nose grow.

So he answered honestly: "I'm not sure. The old lady said it's for His Majesty the King."

This answer made sense; since the witch lived in the castle, she must have ties to the royal family.

"Specifically, what is she doing for the king?" Qin Fei continued to press.

Pinocchio: "His Majesty's health has some issues, and the old lady is helping to treat him."

"I don't know the specifics," Pinocchio said pitifully.

"Alright." Qin Fei sighed, deciding to let the child go. Pinocchio's nose had already told Qin Fei that there was no more information to be had from him, "Then tell me, where is the witch now?"

Pinocchio shook his head: "I don't know."

"The old lady lives in this castle, but she can go anywhere within it. I don't know where she is right now."

The prince's information was incorrect, and Qin Fei clicked his tongue, finding it troublesome.

The castle was enormous, with six floors, and they only had Qin Fei and Brown, plus maybe the ghost infant. Conducting a thorough search of the castle in such a short time was impossible.

However—

Qin Fei stared intently at Pinocchio in front of him.

Whether Pinocchio knew the answer he sought or not didn't matter much.

Suddenly, Qin Fei realized that he could take advantage of Pinocchio's trait to conduct some less-than-benevolent experiments.

Qin Fei placed both hands on Pinocchio's shoulders and said gently, "Listen carefully. I'm going to ask you some questions. You don't need to tell me the answers; just say 'yes' or 'no' randomly."

A human lie detector was too useful to ignore.

His soft tone made the boy shiver again. The dazed little puppet still hadn't figured out what this venomous beauty intended to do with him.