The evening in Crescent Town was unusually quiet.
Despite the dim lights illuminating the streets, there was not a single person to be seen.
“My house is just up ahead, though it might be a bit run-down,” Bulanni, the little girl, walked in front and said with a giggle.
“Please don’t mind it, big brother.”
“It’s fine.”
Duya’s gaze scanned the streets of Crescent Town, and soon, his eyes landed on an inn not far away.
On the second floor of the inn, the window of one room was boarded up with planks.
Could this be the same inn where Bubble Shadow appeared before?
Realizing this, Duya pulled out his phone and opened the main quest.
It still displayed “Proceed to Room 204.”
Aside from this main quest, a side quest had appeared.
“Task 1: Repair the light in Bulanni’s home.”
“Note: Repair tools have been sent to your inventory. Please check them.”
Like the previous task, the description was simple to the point of being vague, and it was impossible to tell if there was any real significance to it.
The previous main quest was easy to understand, as it confirmed Bubble Shadow was in Room 204.
But what was this light-repairing task about?
The information in the quest log left Duya completely baffled.
Fortunately, at that moment, a message popped up.
It was from Ye Xiao.
“We are using instruments to observe your area. Intelligence shows that Bubble Shadow is indeed in Crescent Town,”
“Following the system quests of this game is likely the best way to find traces of Bubble Shadow,”
“But there is one thing I must warn you about. This Crescent Town seems a bit off,”
“Especially late at night,”
“You had best find a safe place to hide.”
Looking at this message, Duya fell into deep thought.
It was clear that the situation here was just as he had suspected; it was not that simple.
However, his top priority was still to get Bulanni back to her home.
I just wonder if her house is safe…
As Duya’s thoughts drifted, Bulanni’s voice rang out again.
The little one tugged at Duya’s clothes.
“Big brother, we’re here,”
“It’s so late, though, I don’t know if Grandpa is asleep yet.”
As she spoke, Bulanni took out a key and opened the old, wooden door.
The hallway before them was piled with trash and debris, and the red paint on the walls was peeling off in large chunks, revealing the brown wooden planks underneath.
There were many children’s scribbles on the exterior walls, though it was unclear who had drawn them.
The building clearly featured Renaissance-style architecture, yet for some reason, it gave off a modern sense of dissonance.
Once inside, the scent of rotting wood and dampness became even more intense.
When the door closed, the moonlight was completely shut out, leaving only deep and eerie darkness.
Duya took out his phone to illuminate the area in front of him.
“Wow… is that a magic device?”
“Something like that.”
Bulanni’s voice remained soft and sweet.
She didn’t seem afraid of the environment, only offering a shy smile.
“Big brother, you must be a noble. I’m really sorry to have you stay in such a broken-down house.”
“I am not a noble.”
Duya asked indifferently.
“Is there a light in this house?”
Since the side quest had told him to repair the light, there had to be one here.
Upon hearing Duya’s words, Bulanni continued.
“There is one, but it’s broken. We don’t have the money to fix it.”
By the end of her sentence, Bulanni could not help but lower her head.
She was naturally introverted and shy, but she did not regret bringing Duya home.
“I’ll fix it for you. It’s just a light bulb; it shouldn’t be too hard.”
“Really?!”
Upon hearing that Duya could fix the light, Bulanni displayed an expression of pure admiration.
“Big brother, you really are a good person!”
Duya had always scoffed at things like “good person cards,” but for a cute little girl like Bulanni, he chose to accept it gracefully.
After entering the living room, Bulanni lit an oil lamp on the table, but its weak flame could not dispel the darkness in the room.
“Big brother, I’m going to take a bath. The light is on the table; I’ll leave it to you…”
With that, Bulanni left the living room, heading off somewhere.
Duya looked at the bulb on the table, lost in thought.
It was an old tungsten bulb; the filament inside had snapped.
Replacing it should do the trick; it was not too difficult.
Using the tools provided by the system, Duya disassembled the bulb, replaced the filament, and plugged it back into the socket.
The moment he flicked the switch, warm light illuminated the pitch-black living room.
[Quest 1 Completed]
The system quest was now finished, and a new one refreshed.
“Task 2: Survive the night.”
The tasks given by this game remained as concise as ever, even leaving one feeling clueless.
But regardless, judging by the gloomy atmosphere of this house, this side quest was definitely not going to be that simple.
Duya sat on a chair.
He could vaguely hear the sound of Bulanni bathing, along with her pleasant humming.
The little one seemed to be singing a song; while he couldn’t hear the lyrics clearly, it was undeniably a nice tune.
Sitting in the warm light while listening to the humming from the bathroom, Duya felt his heart inexplicably relax for a moment.
If I ever have kids in the future, maybe it would be a happy scene like this…
Provided we move to a place that isn’t so haunted.
But then again, Bulanni had mentioned her grandfather was here.
Yet, since he had arrived, he hadn’t seen the old man once.
Even more importantly, Bulanni had been missing for half the day; why was her grandfather not worried at all?
Did he go into the mountains with a search party and hadn’t returned yet?
If that were the case, he should have run into the search party on his way back…
Or did he pass them by?
No… when he was coming back, Bulanni had said her grandfather might already be asleep.
Thinking of this, Duya’s gaze slowly drifted toward the bedroom in the depths of the living room.
What is in the bedroom?
Is it a person, or is it…
Reason told him he should stay where he was and not walk around aimlessly.
But looking at the quest on the system screen, Duya felt that something was off.
He stood up and quietly walked toward the bedroom.
The closer he got to the bedroom, the more intense the smell of decay became.
Moreover, the air began to carry a hint of the scent of mushrooms.
Standing before the bedroom door, Duya took a deep breath.
He wasn’t sure what he would see if he opened it.
It could be a corpse, or perhaps some unspeakable monster.
He had seen similar scenes in horror movies many times.
But watching a movie and experiencing it firsthand were two entirely different things.
He held his breath, kept his movements as light as possible, and then pushed the bedroom door open, inch by inch.