Chapter 13: The Desolate Village Wedding [11]

◎ This is a Cage ◎

Su Man’s head was bowed. The moment the scarlet aura appeared, it was suppressed as if by something else, and it instantly receded. She twisted the skirt of her dress, pretending she didn’t know what had just happened, and for a long time, she didn’t answer Jiang Nan’s question. Su Man glanced at the still-sleeping Luo Ning, seemingly extremely wary, but perhaps with a hopeful heart, a hint of red flashed in her eyes.

The silence in the air was terrifying. A sense of danger rushed over, and countless unseen hands seemed to crawl from the darkness, ready to drag people into the abyss. These auras couldn’t harm Jiang Nan in the slightest. Her pale, slender hand propped up her chin. She tilted her head slightly, her light-colored eyes holding an unreadable emotion. The smile on her lips held no warmth whatsoever. She was as beautiful as a fragile white porcelain doll, and when she looked at someone, she exuded a subtle, oppressive aura that made it difficult to meet her gaze.

Jiang Nan spoke slowly, her voice cool and indifferent, as if giving a warning. “You should know that even in the real world, you can’t be sure if the people you play games with are trustworthy.”

Hearing this, Su Man was stunned. She slowly raised her head and met Jiang Nan’s eyes, which reflected her face with the black mask on. The black mask was like a thorn, mocking her cowardice. She had thought Jiang Nan was easy to manipulate, but now it seemed the other person had simply not shown her true edge. Knowing that Jiang Nan didn’t fully trust her, Su Man gave a self-deprecating smile. The feigned pitiful and cowardly expression on her face vanished instantly. She raised her hand and took off her mask, revealing the terrifying, disfigured lower half of her face.

Although Jiang Nan was prepared, she still froze for a moment at the sight. The half of her face that was burned was starkly contrasted with the other half’s fair and delicate skin.

Su Man saw Jiang Nan’s stunned look and her calm expression was instantly replaced by a twisted frenzy. With a manic expression, she grabbed at her own face as if she wanted to tear it off, laughing in a low, ghostly manner. “It’s horrible, isn’t it? Even I feel disgusted looking at it.”

Seeing that she was about to continue harming herself, Jiang Nan reached out and stopped her. She shook her head silently and said, “I am not scared. I just can’t imagine your pain back then.” For Jiang Nan, she could understand what it felt like to be treated as an outcast.

Su Man felt the warmth of the hand on hers. Her scarlet eyes abruptly looked at the person across from her, trying to find a hint of fear in those pure, beautiful eyes. But there was nothing there, just an unnerving calmness. She heard what Jiang Nan said and was surprised that she would say such a thing. Under the gaze of those beautiful eyes, she gradually calmed down and slowly lowered her hand. But then, she suddenly heard the other person speak again.

“You’re not Su Man, are you?” Jiang Nan’s voice was flat, as if stating a fact.

As soon as Jiang Nan finished speaking, she felt the hand she was holding stiffen. The surrounding temperature dropped drastically, making people shiver.

“Su Man” smiled. Her eyes were red like dripping bl00d, and combined with her disfigured face, she looked bizarre and horrifying. She propped up her chin nonchalantly and said with a smile, “You found out. When did you find out?” She thought she had never made a mistake, so how did Jiang Nan discover her true identity?

Jiang Nan released her hand, propped up her chin again, and calmly said, “Just now, when you tried to bewitch me.” Jiang Nan didn’t tell her that they were of the same kind.

“Su Man,” now exposed, showed no sign of panic. She put her mask back on, looked at Jiang Nan’s reaction, and with a hint of interest in her eyes, asked, “Then who do you think I am?”

Jiang Nan lowered her eyes, thought for a moment, and then said slowly, “One of the three bridesmaids.” From the beginning, everyone’s attention was on the headless ghost, believing that the ghost was the one who ruined the wedding. But in this illusion, there were three real victims, corresponding to the number of female players. The headless ghost was the one who was hit by a car after being dragged into the illusion. As for the rest, they didn’t know how they died.

“Su Man” didn’t deny Jiang Nan’s words. Instead, she laughed and said, “Her face was ruined by her ex-boyfriend. After she came in, she made a deal with me, wanting to make that person’s life a living hell.” So, Su Man didn’t wait for the system’s reward and made a deal with a ghost.

At her words, Jiang Nan seemed to have thought of something and asked, “Can you enter her original world?”

“Su Man” tilted her head and looked out the window. Outside, red silk streamers fluttered everywhere, as if mocking something. She spoke slowly, her voice tinged with a hint of desolation. “This place is far more powerful than you can imagine.”

Hearing this, Jiang Nan was silent for a moment. She lowered her eyes in thought, then stopped dwelling on the question and said, “What is your wish?”

“Su Man” was clearly stunned by her question. She seemed to remember something, and a surge of hatred filled her eyes. She gnashed her teeth, wanting to speak, but an unseen force was stopping her. She seemed to understand something, which deepened the hatred in her eyes. Finally, she shook her head and said apologetically, “I can’t tell you.”

Jiang Nan took in her expression and understood everything. She said, “I see.”

Since there were side quests, there was no reason for an NPC to be blocked by the will of the world. But since “Su Man,” as an NPC, couldn’t say it, it must have a conflict with the main quest. In the eyes of the will of the world, these players only needed to obediently complete the main quest to safely pass the beginner instance. In the illusion, the bridesmaids chose to die due to coercion and gossip, so they became vengeful spirits, blocking the players from completing the wedding. Their true purpose was just to scare the players away. However, because of the quest, the players had to stay, which meant the bridesmaids had to reappear and threaten the players to stop the wedding.

The bridesmaids in this instance were the ghosts by default, but the ones who truly killed the players were not them. The bride and groom of this wedding were the masterminds behind the players’ deaths.

At this thought, Jiang Nan’s expression changed, but she didn’t show any other emotions. “Su Man” saw her expression and seemed to have figured out the truth, and a complicated look flashed in her eyes. She got up, glanced at Luo Ning, who was still lying in bed, and hesitated for a moment before warning Jiang Nan, “Although I’m not your teammate, I’ll still remind you. She’s not a good person. Don’t try to leave the room tonight.”

“I know she’s not a good person,” Jiang Nan said flatly, but she didn’t agree to stay in the room tonight.

“Su Man” looked at her, said nothing more, and left. Her footsteps faded away, leaving Jiang Nan to look at Luo Ning with a look of scrutiny.

Unexpectedly, Luo Ning turned over at that moment and met Jiang Nan’s eyes. With a playful smile, she said, “Were you talking bad about me?” There was no daze in her eyes from just waking up, so she had been awake for a long time and had heard everything she and “Su Man” had said.

Jiang Nan didn’t speak. Luo Ning patted the empty space beside her, motioning for her to come over. As if she didn’t care about what they had just said about her, she said with a smile, “You haven’t rested all day either. Come and sleep.” Her words seemed to carry a strange magic, bewitching her and causing Jiang Nan’s defenses to crumble, making her subconsciously want to get closer.

The faint scent in the air made Jiang Nan suddenly alert. For some reason, the person in front of her suddenly began to overlap with the person in her memory. If Luo Ning was truly that person, why did she change her appearance? Was it just to get close to her? If Jiang Nan were to believe that Luo Ning was that person, she would sooner believe that she was never saved from that tall building.

“Are you scared of me?” Luo Ning’s eyes narrowed slightly, her emotions unreadable. “A little ghost’s words have made you see your teammate this way.”

Jiang Nan met the other person’s eyes, those enchanting and seductive eyes were like a swamp, almost pulling her in and trapping her. Jiang Nan looked away, pretending to look out the window. “What is your purpose for staying in the beginner instance?” Luo Ning was too mysterious. Even her every move subtly made her feel that she had some kind of connection to that person. This kind of beginner instance shouldn’t be able to trap a lunatic like her.

Luo Ning chuckled. The scrutiny in her eyes as she looked at Jiang Nan intensified. She spoke, her voice like a deep, elegant cello. “Me? I, of course, didn’t pass, so I can only stay in the beginner instance.”

Not getting the answer she wanted, Jiang Nan’s eyes darkened, but there was also a hint of relief. Luo Ning was not that person, and the person who approached her with a purpose was not that person. That person was her only salvation during her years of daze. Finding that person was her only purpose for entering the game. If even that person was deceiving her, then she would be nothing but a complete joke.

Luo Ning thought for a moment, then spoke again. Although the smile in her voice didn’t fade, for some reason, a hint of cruelty was added. “If you ask for my purpose, I only have one: freedom.”

“Freedom?” Jiang Nan whispered the word to herself, repeating it. This seemed like a particularly heavy word, making Jiang Nan’s heart beat faster.

Luo Ning got up and got off the bed. Before Jiang Nan could react, she walked behind her, grabbed her wrist, and let out a chuckle. “Little Jiang Nan probably doesn’t know that although this place can fulfill your wishes, it is also a cage woven from human desires. I want to get out, that is my freedom.” Her tone was light, but it concealed emotions that others didn’t know about. She wanted to leave this dirty game. The cool touch on her wrist felt like a snake coiling around it, making her scalp tingle.

Jiang Nan’s body trembled. She snapped out of her daze, not trying to figure out the meaning of her words. She wanted to break free from the other’s hand, but she was forcefully pulled away. She looked at the other person’s back, a momentary trance washing over her. Even though she constantly warned herself that this person was very dangerous…

…

【Let’s just say, let this sick, lying fraud chase his wife!!】