Chapter 23
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Having the Same Name as the Demon Lord of the Abyss
Hearing the priest’s voice, Ye Zun raised his head to look at the doorway, blinked, then faintly smiled helplessly, “If you don’t dry your hair, you will catch a cold.”
Lin remained standing by the door, his pupils calm and restrained, watching him. “I was thinking that you have been waiting for a while, so it’s okay, it will dry quickly by itself.”
Ye Zun had already climbed out of the bed and picked up the big towel he had used to wipe his own hair. “You can read the diary and I will dry it for you. My skills are very good, I definitely won’t make you feel uncomfortable.”
“Then I will trouble you.” Lin smiled mildly, then sat on the sofa chair beside the bed in compliance with the offer. He put on a pair of plain glasses* and began to view the diary Ye Zun had flipped open just before.
[T/N: 平光眼镜 not sure what lenses/type of glasses this is]
Ye Zun stood to his side and carefully dried his hair bit by bit.
“It’s indeed like what you said, very unusual.”
During the day, Ye Zun had already mentioned the situation in the diary to him.
Ye Zun: “Right? It’s really weird. Other than the rough writing dating the entry at a certain month and day, there’s no dated year, and nothing about feelings or whatever happened. Everything is written in a style that has nothing to do in a diary.”
Lin slowly turned the pages. “En, just writing about cherry blossoms and rain took up three whole pages.”
To be honest, the writing really was pretty good. Even if Ye Zun fell asleep last night, he admitted that the writing was not very boring.
Lin’s voice was low and quiet, saying, “It’s not all useless information, it’s more like it’s hiding a password that only the other person knows, there’s several obscure metaphors.”
Ye Zun glanced over curiously. “Which part are you talking about?”
He became sleepy very quickly last night and wasn’t entirely sober, so he didn’t particularly notice any metaphors in the passages.
Lin adjusted his glasses. “Like this sentence, the writing in the beginning is only about cherry blossoms, but the style suddenly changes—”
【 …before I make the decision to completely end things, the deity from another world, will they really come? 】
Ye Zun’s movements paused. “Putting it like that, it really does seem like its hiding a code of some kind.”
If it is talking about a secret love, there is no clear reference.
If it is talking about some kind of religion, it still doesn’t seem to have reached that extent yet.
“Don’t be anxious, since it is a code, it won’t appear only once.” Lin calmly turned the page back.
The diary was incoherent, with the dates for the next entry being written far apart from one another.
“I will try to read it. You can listen, see if there are any parts that are out of sorts.”
The entry that Lin turned to was finally not written prose, but instead fanfiction of some anime characters. He had to say, the subject matters in Nogawa Kaoru’s diary were really rich.
The writing was as obscure and depressing as all those pages before. It was from the perspective of the younger brother, with large passages focusing on his psychology. Because of the pain he experienced after his big brother killed their entire family, he insisted on seeking revenge on the big brother, and after he successfully took his revenge, he was caught in the hopeless numbing despair.
【 …in the dark, thick bloody nightmare that haunted him, who did that crying voice belong to? He finally knew. On the reflection of himself in the pool of blood, there was no expression on his face. The one who was crying was not him, but his big brother who he killed. But he began to remember that he never had a big brother. The person he killed was another one of ’himself’, and it was ‘himself’ who had killed everyone. 】
Ye Zun frowned suddenly. “Wait, this part is wrong.”
“En?” Lin’s eyes moved away from the page, slightly raising his head to look at Ye Zun beside him. “How is it wrong?”
Ye Zun nodded. “The original source of this fanfiction, I’ve watched a few episodes of the show, and I also understand the general setting and direction of the plot. The elder brother killed the entire family, and he was killed in-turn by his younger brother in his revenge, this is all correct. But the younger brother in the show really did have an older brother, not like what is written in the diary, where the murderer big brother and the revengeful little brother are part of one person whose spirit has been split.”
Lin calmly said, “For fanfiction to not conform to the original story’s setting, it is generally nothing out of the ordinary. But when it comes to pieces of writing, they are usually created to express the writer’s emotions, not something made for no reason.”
Ye Zun was a little distracted. “Then why? Why did Nogawa Kaoru write this in the diary? Why would someone want to write something like this?”
Taking up five pages of the diary, the psychology of murder and vengance between the lines was extremely depressing.
Looking back on it, Shen Yuan also read up to this passage last night but because of the landscape prose in the previous paragraphs, he had already started to feel sleepy early on and didn’t realise anything was wrong.
He thought of that strange and terrifying nightmare last night.
Ye Zun: “If you read further back, it should be a long script for a play.”
“En, I’ve seen it.” Lin looked down at the pages attentively. The speed he flipped the pages was not considered slow and he finished reading the script in a steady and calm tone, rationally concluding, “In terms of plays, this one isn’t eligible. The plot is broken in many parts, the characters are completely talking to themselves, and the dialogue is illogical.”
Ye Zun let out a sigh. “In the diary, are there really no clues of any recorded anomalies?”
Lin paused. “Of course there is.”
Ye Zun breathing hitched up faintly and he listened carefully to what he said.
“If it was you, under what circumstances would you write such a thing in your diary? Do not forget, you are Nogawa Kaoru now, and maybe you are experiencing what Nogawa Kaoru had experienced. I think it might be helpful to substitute yourself in this situation, it may allow you to understand what the diary really wants to convey.”
Ye Zun calmed his heart and dried the man’s hair while slowly contemplating.
The dates in the diary were jotted down intermittently and the style of the passages were irregular, indicating that the owner had no habit of keeping a diary at all.
A person who did not have the habit of keeping a diary suddenly started writing in a diary one day. It must be because they needed somewhere to vent*, they needed to write it out, which was why they picked up a pen.
[T/N: 排遣: to dispel negative thoughts]
However, why only write about unimportant scenery instead? Also, there was the existence of metaphors that read like some kind of code.
Unless——
“Could it be that, Nogawa Kaoru knew that someone would read his diary, but he didn’t want the other party to find out what he was thinking, so he wrote it like this on purpose? Is this a fake diary?”
Lin’s eyes were gentle, with a thin layer of praise. “That makes a lot of sense.”
This discovery lifted Ye Zun’s spirit a little and they flipped through the other diaries.
Unfortunately, although there are quite a few notebooks, these diaries were not written in their entirety. The one with the most content was the one that Ye Zun asked Shen Yuan to read last night.
Others were only three or two pages, or only half a page, and one of the books was just full of messy words and phrases, not even forming sentences.
The words and phrases were also of little value, because they came in oxymoronic pairs.
Hypocrisy, righteousness, decisiveness, cowardice…stuff like that.
From those full sentences, some were poems that were difficult to understand, some were the same scenic prose, like he was writing at random; if he didn’t feel like writing anymore halfway through, he would stop right there. The foreword did not match the afterword.
Ye Zun laid on the bed in disappointment, staring at the ceiling above his head. “We still haven’t found any definite or useful clues.”
It was already the third night, and this was what he had encountered in the instance so far: footsteps in the middle of the night, the noise of someone chewing on raw meat in the bottom bunk, the woman saying the man is dead, the man saying the woman is missing, but the truth is that they are all lying and no one is dead.
Waking up in the middle of the night, the thirteen-or fourteen year old girl in the bedroom was eating her own arm, but Shen Yuan said that there was only one girl in the family.
The house had some kind of problem, after living in it for two nights, his hair grew longer, but he doesn’t know what it means for the time being.
There was also the second year Class 1, where every student was a ghost.
——Has Nogawa Kaoru also experienced these? Why did he write a diary like this? Who would read his diary? Who is he guarding against? Who did those footsteps walking around the house every night belong to?
It was already the third night, and the time limit given by the game will be halfway over by tomorrow. If he cannot find the answers to these questions, did he need to run far away before the seventh night? Will running away help?
Thinking about this, he drowsily blinked.
“Are you sleepy? Then you should go to sleep first ba, maybe there will be a new discovery when you wake up tomorrow.” Lin was still sitting, eyes cast down at him, his low voice making people feel at ease.
“En.” Ye Zun rubbed his eyes and obediently laid back into the blanket.
The bed was big and the blanket was also big and thin, so the two people naturally shared one.
Unlike what he expected, he didn’t feel nervous or uncomfortable at all. Because he hasn’t slept well these past few nights, suddenly being placed in the relaxing environment beside the priest, Ye Zun practically shut his eyes the second he touched the pillow.
But he still forced them open for just a short moment, saying to Lin as the man covered him with the blanket, “Goodnight, Lin.”
Lin placed his fingers on his head, slowly kneading, and replied in a deep, faint voice, “Goodnight.”
……
Even in his sleep, those obscure words floated around his body, like an endless Möbius ring made from a strip of paper, twisting around and around without stopping.
【 To kiss, what does it feel like…just tear me apart…almost out of breath…wake up every day… 】
【 Tear me apart…what can I do…end…unwilling… 】
【 If you don’t intend to…save me…kill…let me kill… 】
——Like, like, something incomplete.
There was nothing but pitch-black in front of Ye Zun’s eyes. He hesitated and fumbled around to untie the thing that was covering his eyes. The thing covering his eyes was like cloth, like a torn strip of paper from the diary, but a piece of paper this long wasn’t possible.
“Tear…oh, right…”
Looking at the diaries scattered in the darkness, Ye Zun suddenly had a flash of inspiration:
——I see now, there is a problem with the order of the text and chapter pages. The diary is incomplete. When combined, each book is actually just fragments of pages. The written words are mismatched, what’s why I don’t understand anything.
“I need to go back to the bedroom and find the most vital book that was hidden, so all the diaries can be completely pieced together.”
He did not know how he came to this conclusion, but anyhow, this was the conclusion he came to and what he firmly believed in his heart.
This is how people are like in their dreams.
He stood in the small, dark living room, searching for his bedroom.
When he felt around and walked up to the bedroom door in the dark, he suddenly heard footsteps.
Tap, tap, tap!
Ye Zun immediately stopped in place, his fingers freezing in the position of a hand just about to curl around a doorknob, not daring to move.
Cold sweat dripped.
——Where is the sound coming from? The living room behind me?
His heart was jumping faster and faster, and before he lost control, he heard the sound again.
——No, it’s coming from inside this bedroom. The ghost isn’t in the living room, but in Nogawa Kaoru’s room!
He let out a sigh of relief.
——Wait, the window in Nogawa Kaoru’s room can see outside into the living room, if the curtains are not drawn properly…
He carefully looked at the left side and found that there was indeed a corner where the curtain was not properly shut.
However, he didn’t dare to look inside at all. A pitch-black darkness, what if he sees something like…a pair of eyes, a face…
——But, even if I don’t look myself, won’t the thing inside look outside?
——That’s right, I should’ve ran away. I need to get out of here and find Lin!
At this time, he vaguely remembered that he should be at Lin’s side right now. When did he return back here?
Has he not gone to Lin’s place yet, or has he already gone and come back?
——Am I dreaming?
This single thought flashed by.
Even if this was a dream, it was impossible for him to just stand in place and do nothing. After all, the ghost is right past that door, and it will open the door and appear in front of him at any time.
He carefully moved around in the dark living room, looking for the main door for him to escape.
——But where exactly is the exit? Why can’t I remember?
He carefully opened his eyes wide, looking from door to door and over the walls. The surrounding rooms became familiar yet strange.
This one was to the master bedroom, this one to the kitchen, this one to the bathroom, this was the small room next to the master bedroom, there wasn’t a door here, this one is to the storage room…
What to do, he can’t find the main door that is the exit.
The layout and structure of the rooms were far too complicated and strange.
——Anyhow, let’s move away from Nogawa Kaoru’s room first.
With that in mind, he tried to walk as far away as possible.
The living room should be very small, but no matter how far he walked, he seemed to still be in the living room.
Yi, he found a space between a crevice.
Was this the reason why the layout of the rooms are so weird? Because there is actually a hidden storage space for old items?
It was found just in time for him to hide, but if he was discovered, this area was a dead end so it would be hard for him to escape.
He remembered again that he was here to find the missing diary that held all of the crucial information he needed.
——Why do I need to run away? If the ghost leaves Nogawa Kaoru’s room, I will have a chance to go in and take it.
——But, how do I know where that diary is?
No matter. He felt that since the thing is in the bedroom, as long as he goes in, he will definitely see it.
He cautiously closed the door of the old storage room and vigilantly watched the living room outside.
It was at this time that he heard a quiet, enduring, painful whimper.
Ye Zun immediately turned his head back and saw a seven-or-eight year old girl in the cramped and cluttered storage room. The little girl was like a worn-out doll, placed together with a pile of debris and set in a difficult and unnatural posture. At first glance, she almost blended in with those items.
“What are you doing here?” Ye Zun was taken aback.
The little girl looked antiquated all over. Her small face was dirty, and her expression was as quiet as a doll. She whispered very quietly, “Are you the ghost here to eat me?”
Ye Zun froze for a moment. “I’m not.”
“Oh. I’m not doing anything, just hiding here.” The little girl did not look afraid, nor as if she cared. She was embedded in the pile of debris in an awkward posture, looking like she belonged in harmony with the other rubbish.
After she finished speaking, she stopped paying attention to Ye Zun. Keeping her eyes open and quietly remaining motionless, she endured everything for a while as if she were in the desert, trying to maintain the moisture in her body. She didn’t even blink once.
Speaking of eyes, Ye Zun looked at her strangely, noticing that her left forehead that was hidden under the shadows of her bangs seemed to be bleeding, the eyelashes on her left eye were stained with blood, and it looked like her left eyeball was gone. The only right eye that could be seen did not have the crystal clarity that belonged to a child, but soulless eyes like glass beads covered with dust.
“Your forehead…are you injured? Let me help you stop the bleeding ba.”
“It’s okay, don’t worry, I’ll just stay like this.” The little girl calmly rejected Ye Zun’s attempt to help.
“However, you’re bleeding a lot. In this position, the dirt will make your wound infected if you press on it…”
“It doesn’t matter, after the sun rises, it will heal on its own. Even if it is cured at night, it will rip open again.”
Although she had no emotional fluctuations showing in her expression, her face was slightly pale, with cold sweat oozing out. A weak sound overflowed from her mouth from time to time, and she was obviously not as painless as the front she put up, but rather, she was enduring to an insane degree.
The debris crammed above and below her body squeezed her, leaving her with no room to move. It seemed that even breathing was difficult, and there was no way to leave the pile of rubbish by herself.
If it weren’t for her ability to speak so calmly, she was almost like a doll or a corpse that was dumped in a garbage heap.
“At least let me help you clean up the things around you ba. At least give yourself a little more room to rest.”
Ye Zun carefully removed some of the debris that was pressing on her, not completely taking it away from her, but just rearranging into a shelter-like space, so that if the child wanted to continue to hide it would still be very convenient.
Actually, the look of being buried in random piles of debris before did not seem to hide her at all.
If not, Ye Zun wouldn’t have been able to spot her just by glancing over.
Under Ye Zun’s handiwork, although she was still among the piled up items, the little girl could indeed move around the space a little, at least enough for her to sit up properly.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. But why are you hiding here, and how did you get the wound on your forehead?”
The little girl calmly lowered her voice and said, “Something scary has come into the house. I don’t want to be eaten, so I am hiding here.”
Ye Zun thought of the footsteps in Nogawa Kaoru’s house. Did the ‘something scary’ refer to that?
“But always hiding is also not the solution ba. Haven’t you thought about running away?”
“There are more scary things like this outside. As long as I hide until sunlight, I can keep on living. If I leave this place, there’s not even a place to hide.”
Ye Zun couldn’t say anything.
“Don’t worry. Most of the time, that thing will only come out to eat people when it gets dark. As long as there’s sunlight, it’s okay.” The little girl seemed to be used to it, showing no fear and being very rational.
Ye Zun frowned and looked at her blood-stained left eye. “This, was it eaten?”
“No.” The little girl said calmly, “I ate it myself.”
Cold sweat beaded all over Ye Zun. his dry throat couldn’t help swallowing once: “……”
“Sorry for scaring you, but I’m too hungry. If I don’t eat, I’ll die.”
“But, can’t you eat anything else?” Although he understood what the other party was saying, Ye Zun still felt that something was wrong.
“It didn’t eat much at first, just a few drops of blood and a bit of meat was fine, but after eating, it will become infected, and if it doesn’t eat people, it will starve to death. After eating, it will return to normal at sunlight. Before, it was surviving off Mama’s blood, but it can’t eat Mama forever, and there’s something else eating Mama as well. If they keep eating like this, Mama won’t be able to recover when it’s sunlight. So I wanted to try eating myself first.”
Ye Zun didn’t understand her all that much. “In this case, wouldn’t the whole body be eaten up slowly? What will happen after you are eaten until nothing is left?”
The little girl didn’t mind, and said calmly, “If you are eaten until nothing is left, and are too late in waiting for the sun to come up, you will become a part of that thing, or die completely ba. I don’t know.”
Ye Zun frowned and looked at her. “Then, what about dad? What about the rest of the family? Is there no one who you can turn to, someone who will help you find a way to drive away that scary thing?”
The little girl lowered her eyes for the first time, the corners of her mouth turning down sadly, showing a poor emotion, while her pale small face was still expressionless. “Baba has probably already been eaten by that thing. That’s why that scary thing came into the house. Gege let me hide here and then disappeared. I don’t know where he is, or if he was eaten too. Maybe Mama went to find Gege…”
“So are you the only one left at home now?” Ye Zun looked at her with pity. “If you stay here forever, the ending you will have is definitely getting eaten completely. Outside, not everything are like these ghost things. In any case, try to escape outside and have a look yourself ba.”
The little girl looked at him with her only intact right eye, flatly saying, “Are you really not going to eat me? My meat might be delicious; that thing always eats me first every night. It will only eat others if it can’t find me.”
Ye Zun dripped cold sweat. “I don’t eat people. Don’t always say stuff like this; it’s not just me, most people don’t eat people.”
“Really? But where that thing came from, if it doesn’t eat people, in the end, it will be eaten whole itself. Although I hide every time, it always finds me. If you don’t want to eat me, just leave this place and find somewhere else to hide ba. If you catch its eyes, you’ll be eaten too.”
Ye Zun’s eyes leaked a hint of disgust and anger. “I’m not afraid of that kind of ghost that only dares to eat women and children, and I definitely won’t become like it.”
He tightly gripped the Buddha statue in his pocket, only wanting to smash that damn thing’s head off.
Once a person is angry, the control that fear has over them becomes minimal.
“You should escape with me ba! Leave this house, and let’s go outside.”
For the first time, a light appeared in the little girl’s eyes that had always been dim. She slowly poked out of the hidden shelter, cautiously looking at Ye Zun with her only intact right eye. “Are you the deity who came to save me?”
Ye Zun imitated the priest’s mannerisms, earnestly looking at her with soft eyes. “Although I am not a deity, I will try my best to save you.”
The little girl’s small face that has always been too calm and numb showed a small smile, which was sad and pitiful. She carefully pulled the hem of Ye Zun’s clothes, like a spiderweb clinging to the last piece of driftwood. SHe said in a quiet voice that could not conceal her uncontrollable trembling, “Has God finally come to save me? Thank you, Gege. I’m actually, very scared, I’ve always been very scared, but I don’t dare to be…”
“It’s normal to be scared, but when you’re afraid that you can’t solve the problem, the only solution is to face your fear. When Gege was little, this was what my grandma told me.”
——Even if I say that, what can such a young child do when faced with this level of fear?
——However, the ghost will not stop just because the other party is a child. If there is no adult to rely on, in the end, she can only try to face it herself.
Ye Zun shook his head, throwing away the self-doubt that was unconsciously contradicting himself in his mind.
With nothing available around him, he thought for a second before tearing a few blank pages from the back of the old diary, helping to apply pressure to the little girl’s bleeding wound on her forehead and rubbing the back of her head. “Remember to stay behind me. If you are in danger, you must run as quickly as you can and hide yourself like you are doing now. You are still young, so something like facing your fear, let the adults do first.”
“En.” The little girl nodded vigorously, the only right eye that was exposed was pure and innocent, full of trust in Ye Zun.
“We can definitely get out of here.” Ye Zun touched her head again and made a shushing gesture. After she hid herself, he carefully opened a gap at the door to look at the sounds and movements in the living room.
He had to take this child out of this terrifying house while the ghost was unprepared. As for the incomplete diary, he’ll pick it up next time.
Anger was anger, but he hadn’t lost his mind. The Buddha statue in the palm of the hand was only so big. If he followed this delusion and smashed this on the head of the ghost, he was afraid the Buddha statue would be the one to shatter first.
Ye Zun put the Buddha statue back in his pocket, carefully observing the surroundings of the living room to make sure there was no threat while walking cautiously towards the kitchen.
Then, he grabbed a boning knife*.
[T/N: short, narrow blade for removing meat from bones]
Just as he was about to come out, Ye Zun suddenly heard the tip-tapping of footsteps.
This time, it was in the living room.
——Not good, that thing came out of Nogawa Kaoru’s room!
[T/N: not really story focused so i didn’t translate the author’s note. Here it is if you wanna read it:]
The author has something to say:
Gugu has already hit the street. I want to send red envelopes to you little angels, but I can’t get 50 comments? In deep contemplation~
Sure enough, because of the emotional interaction that accounted for 50% of the early stage, does it seem that the rhythm of the plot has slowed down?
Next time, I will write a no-CP story that focuses on the flow of the plot, with pure emotions only, let’s see~
Please report us if you find any errors so we can fix it asap!
Having the Same Name as the Demon Lord of the Abyss
Hearing the priest’s voice, Ye Zun raised his head to look at the doorway, blinked, then faintly smiled helplessly, “If you don’t dry your hair, you will catch a cold.”
Lin remained standing by the door, his pupils calm and restrained, watching him. “I was thinking that you have been waiting for a while, so it’s okay, it will dry quickly by itself.”
Ye Zun had already climbed out of the bed and picked up the big towel he had used to wipe his own hair. “You can read the diary and I will dry it for you. My skills are very good, I definitely won’t make you feel uncomfortable.”
“Then I will trouble you.” Lin smiled mildly, then sat on the sofa chair beside the bed in compliance with the offer. He put on a pair of plain glasses* and began to view the diary Ye Zun had flipped open just before.
[T/N: 平光眼镜 not sure what lenses/type of glasses this is]
Ye Zun stood to his side and carefully dried his hair bit by bit.
“It’s indeed like what you said, very unusual.”
During the day, Ye Zun had already mentioned the situation in the diary to him.
Ye Zun: “Right? It’s really weird. Other than the rough writing dating the entry at a certain month and day, there’s no dated year, and nothing about feelings or whatever happened. Everything is written in a style that has nothing to do in a diary.”
Lin slowly turned the pages. “En, just writing about cherry blossoms and rain took up three whole pages.”
To be honest, the writing really was pretty good. Even if Ye Zun fell asleep last night, he admitted that the writing was not very boring.
Lin’s voice was low and quiet, saying, “It’s not all useless information, it’s more like it’s hiding a password that only the other person knows, there’s several obscure metaphors.”
Ye Zun glanced over curiously. “Which part are you talking about?”
He became sleepy very quickly last night and wasn’t entirely sober, so he didn’t particularly notice any metaphors in the passages.
Lin adjusted his glasses. “Like this sentence, the writing in the beginning is only about cherry blossoms, but the style suddenly changes—”
【 …before I make the decision to completely end things, the deity from another world, will they really come? 】
Ye Zun’s movements paused. “Putting it like that, it really does seem like its hiding a code of some kind.”
If it is talking about a secret love, there is no clear reference.
If it is talking about some kind of religion, it still doesn’t seem to have reached that extent yet.
“Don’t be anxious, since it is a code, it won’t appear only once.” Lin calmly turned the page back.
The diary was incoherent, with the dates for the next entry being written far apart from one another.
“I will try to read it. You can listen, see if there are any parts that are out of sorts.”
The entry that Lin turned to was finally not written prose, but instead fanfiction of some anime characters. He had to say, the subject matters in Nogawa Kaoru’s diary were really rich.
The writing was as obscure and depressing as all those pages before. It was from the perspective of the younger brother, with large passages focusing on his psychology. Because of the pain he experienced after his big brother killed their entire family, he insisted on seeking revenge on the big brother, and after he successfully took his revenge, he was caught in the hopeless numbing despair.
【 …in the dark, thick bloody nightmare that haunted him, who did that crying voice belong to? He finally knew. On the reflection of himself in the pool of blood, there was no expression on his face. The one who was crying was not him, but his big brother who he killed. But he began to remember that he never had a big brother. The person he killed was another one of ’himself’, and it was ‘himself’ who had killed everyone. 】
Ye Zun frowned suddenly. “Wait, this part is wrong.”
“En?” Lin’s eyes moved away from the page, slightly raising his head to look at Ye Zun beside him. “How is it wrong?”
Ye Zun nodded. “The original source of this fanfiction, I’ve watched a few episodes of the show, and I also understand the general setting and direction of the plot. The elder brother killed the entire family, and he was killed in-turn by his younger brother in his revenge, this is all correct. But the younger brother in the show really did have an older brother, not like what is written in the diary, where the murderer big brother and the revengeful little brother are part of one person whose spirit has been split.”
Lin calmly said, “For fanfiction to not conform to the original story’s setting, it is generally nothing out of the ordinary. But when it comes to pieces of writing, they are usually created to express the writer’s emotions, not something made for no reason.”
Ye Zun was a little distracted. “Then why? Why did Nogawa Kaoru write this in the diary? Why would someone want to write something like this?”
Taking up five pages of the diary, the psychology of murder and vengance between the lines was extremely depressing.
Looking back on it, Shen Yuan also read up to this passage last night but because of the landscape prose in the previous paragraphs, he had already started to feel sleepy early on and didn’t realise anything was wrong.
He thought of that strange and terrifying nightmare last night.
Ye Zun: “If you read further back, it should be a long script for a play.”
“En, I’ve seen it.” Lin looked down at the pages attentively. The speed he flipped the pages was not considered slow and he finished reading the script in a steady and calm tone, rationally concluding, “In terms of plays, this one isn’t eligible. The plot is broken in many parts, the characters are completely talking to themselves, and the dialogue is illogical.”
Ye Zun let out a sigh. “In the diary, are there really no clues of any recorded anomalies?”
Lin paused. “Of course there is.”
Ye Zun breathing hitched up faintly and he listened carefully to what he said.
“If it was you, under what circumstances would you write such a thing in your diary? Do not forget, you are Nogawa Kaoru now, and maybe you are experiencing what Nogawa Kaoru had experienced. I think it might be helpful to substitute yourself in this situation, it may allow you to understand what the diary really wants to convey.”
Ye Zun calmed his heart and dried the man’s hair while slowly contemplating.
The dates in the diary were jotted down intermittently and the style of the passages were irregular, indicating that the owner had no habit of keeping a diary at all.
A person who did not have the habit of keeping a diary suddenly started writing in a diary one day. It must be because they needed somewhere to vent*, they needed to write it out, which was why they picked up a pen.
[T/N: 排遣: to dispel negative thoughts]
However, why only write about unimportant scenery instead? Also, there was the existence of metaphors that read like some kind of code.
Unless——
“Could it be that, Nogawa Kaoru knew that someone would read his diary, but he didn’t want the other party to find out what he was thinking, so he wrote it like this on purpose? Is this a fake diary?”
Lin’s eyes were gentle, with a thin layer of praise. “That makes a lot of sense.”
This discovery lifted Ye Zun’s spirit a little and they flipped through the other diaries.
Unfortunately, although there are quite a few notebooks, these diaries were not written in their entirety. The one with the most content was the one that Ye Zun asked Shen Yuan to read last night.
Others were only three or two pages, or only half a page, and one of the books was just full of messy words and phrases, not even forming sentences.
The words and phrases were also of little value, because they came in oxymoronic pairs.
Hypocrisy, righteousness, decisiveness, cowardice…stuff like that.
From those full sentences, some were poems that were difficult to understand, some were the same scenic prose, like he was writing at random; if he didn’t feel like writing anymore halfway through, he would stop right there. The foreword did not match the afterword.
Ye Zun laid on the bed in disappointment, staring at the ceiling above his head. “We still haven’t found any definite or useful clues.”
It was already the third night, and this was what he had encountered in the instance so far: footsteps in the middle of the night, the noise of someone chewing on raw meat in the bottom bunk, the woman saying the man is dead, the man saying the woman is missing, but the truth is that they are all lying and no one is dead.
Waking up in the middle of the night, the thirteen-or fourteen year old girl in the bedroom was eating her own arm, but Shen Yuan said that there was only one girl in the family.
The house had some kind of problem, after living in it for two nights, his hair grew longer, but he doesn’t know what it means for the time being.
There was also the second year Class 1, where every student was a ghost.
——Has Nogawa Kaoru also experienced these? Why did he write a diary like this? Who would read his diary? Who is he guarding against? Who did those footsteps walking around the house every night belong to?
It was already the third night, and the time limit given by the game will be halfway over by tomorrow. If he cannot find the answers to these questions, did he need to run far away before the seventh night? Will running away help?
Thinking about this, he drowsily blinked.
“Are you sleepy? Then you should go to sleep first ba, maybe there will be a new discovery when you wake up tomorrow.” Lin was still sitting, eyes cast down at him, his low voice making people feel at ease.
“En.” Ye Zun rubbed his eyes and obediently laid back into the blanket.
The bed was big and the blanket was also big and thin, so the two people naturally shared one.
Unlike what he expected, he didn’t feel nervous or uncomfortable at all. Because he hasn’t slept well these past few nights, suddenly being placed in the relaxing environment beside the priest, Ye Zun practically shut his eyes the second he touched the pillow.
But he still forced them open for just a short moment, saying to Lin as the man covered him with the blanket, “Goodnight, Lin.”
Lin placed his fingers on his head, slowly kneading, and replied in a deep, faint voice, “Goodnight.”
……
Even in his sleep, those obscure words floated around his body, like an endless Möbius ring made from a strip of paper, twisting around and around without stopping.
【 To kiss, what does it feel like…just tear me apart…almost out of breath…wake up every day… 】
【 Tear me apart…what can I do…end…unwilling… 】
【 If you don’t intend to…save me…kill…let me kill… 】
——Like, like, something incomplete.
There was nothing but pitch-black in front of Ye Zun’s eyes. He hesitated and fumbled around to untie the thing that was covering his eyes. The thing covering his eyes was like cloth, like a torn strip of paper from the diary, but a piece of paper this long wasn’t possible.
“Tear…oh, right…”
Looking at the diaries scattered in the darkness, Ye Zun suddenly had a flash of inspiration:
——I see now, there is a problem with the order of the text and chapter pages. The diary is incomplete. When combined, each book is actually just fragments of pages. The written words are mismatched, what’s why I don’t understand anything.
“I need to go back to the bedroom and find the most vital book that was hidden, so all the diaries can be completely pieced together.”
He did not know how he came to this conclusion, but anyhow, this was the conclusion he came to and what he firmly believed in his heart.
This is how people are like in their dreams.
He stood in the small, dark living room, searching for his bedroom.
When he felt around and walked up to the bedroom door in the dark, he suddenly heard footsteps.
Tap, tap, tap!
Ye Zun immediately stopped in place, his fingers freezing in the position of a hand just about to curl around a doorknob, not daring to move.
Cold sweat dripped.
——Where is the sound coming from? The living room behind me?
His heart was jumping faster and faster, and before he lost control, he heard the sound again.
——No, it’s coming from inside this bedroom. The ghost isn’t in the living room, but in Nogawa Kaoru’s room!
He let out a sigh of relief.
——Wait, the window in Nogawa Kaoru’s room can see outside into the living room, if the curtains are not drawn properly…
He carefully looked at the left side and found that there was indeed a corner where the curtain was not properly shut.
However, he didn’t dare to look inside at all. A pitch-black darkness, what if he sees something like…a pair of eyes, a face…
——But, even if I don’t look myself, won’t the thing inside look outside?
——That’s right, I should’ve ran away. I need to get out of here and find Lin!
At this time, he vaguely remembered that he should be at Lin’s side right now. When did he return back here?
Has he not gone to Lin’s place yet, or has he already gone and come back?
——Am I dreaming?
This single thought flashed by.
Even if this was a dream, it was impossible for him to just stand in place and do nothing. After all, the ghost is right past that door, and it will open the door and appear in front of him at any time.
He carefully moved around in the dark living room, looking for the main door for him to escape.
——But where exactly is the exit? Why can’t I remember?
He carefully opened his eyes wide, looking from door to door and over the walls. The surrounding rooms became familiar yet strange.
This one was to the master bedroom, this one to the kitchen, this one to the bathroom, this was the small room next to the master bedroom, there wasn’t a door here, this one is to the storage room…
What to do, he can’t find the main door that is the exit.
The layout and structure of the rooms were far too complicated and strange.
——Anyhow, let’s move away from Nogawa Kaoru’s room first.
With that in mind, he tried to walk as far away as possible.
The living room should be very small, but no matter how far he walked, he seemed to still be in the living room.
Yi, he found a space between a crevice.
Was this the reason why the layout of the rooms are so weird? Because there is actually a hidden storage space for old items?
It was found just in time for him to hide, but if he was discovered, this area was a dead end so it would be hard for him to escape.
He remembered again that he was here to find the missing diary that held all of the crucial information he needed.
——Why do I need to run away? If the ghost leaves Nogawa Kaoru’s room, I will have a chance to go in and take it.
——But, how do I know where that diary is?
No matter. He felt that since the thing is in the bedroom, as long as he goes in, he will definitely see it.
He cautiously closed the door of the old storage room and vigilantly watched the living room outside.
It was at this time that he heard a quiet, enduring, painful whimper.
Ye Zun immediately turned his head back and saw a seven-or-eight year old girl in the cramped and cluttered storage room. The little girl was like a worn-out doll, placed together with a pile of debris and set in a difficult and unnatural posture. At first glance, she almost blended in with those items.
“What are you doing here?” Ye Zun was taken aback.
The little girl looked antiquated all over. Her small face was dirty, and her expression was as quiet as a doll. She whispered very quietly, “Are you the ghost here to eat me?”
Ye Zun froze for a moment. “I’m not.”
“Oh. I’m not doing anything, just hiding here.” The little girl did not look afraid, nor as if she cared. She was embedded in the pile of debris in an awkward posture, looking like she belonged in harmony with the other rubbish.
After she finished speaking, she stopped paying attention to Ye Zun. Keeping her eyes open and quietly remaining motionless, she endured everything for a while as if she were in the desert, trying to maintain the moisture in her body. She didn’t even blink once.
Speaking of eyes, Ye Zun looked at her strangely, noticing that her left forehead that was hidden under the shadows of her bangs seemed to be bleeding, the eyelashes on her left eye were stained with blood, and it looked like her left eyeball was gone. The only right eye that could be seen did not have the crystal clarity that belonged to a child, but soulless eyes like glass beads covered with dust.
“Your forehead…are you injured? Let me help you stop the bleeding ba.”
“It’s okay, don’t worry, I’ll just stay like this.” The little girl calmly rejected Ye Zun’s attempt to help.
“However, you’re bleeding a lot. In this position, the dirt will make your wound infected if you press on it…”
“It doesn’t matter, after the sun rises, it will heal on its own. Even if it is cured at night, it will rip open again.”
Although she had no emotional fluctuations showing in her expression, her face was slightly pale, with cold sweat oozing out. A weak sound overflowed from her mouth from time to time, and she was obviously not as painless as the front she put up, but rather, she was enduring to an insane degree.
The debris crammed above and below her body squeezed her, leaving her with no room to move. It seemed that even breathing was difficult, and there was no way to leave the pile of rubbish by herself.
If it weren’t for her ability to speak so calmly, she was almost like a doll or a corpse that was dumped in a garbage heap.
“At least let me help you clean up the things around you ba. At least give yourself a little more room to rest.”
Ye Zun carefully removed some of the debris that was pressing on her, not completely taking it away from her, but just rearranging into a shelter-like space, so that if the child wanted to continue to hide it would still be very convenient.
Actually, the look of being buried in random piles of debris before did not seem to hide her at all.
If not, Ye Zun wouldn’t have been able to spot her just by glancing over.
Under Ye Zun’s handiwork, although she was still among the piled up items, the little girl could indeed move around the space a little, at least enough for her to sit up properly.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. But why are you hiding here, and how did you get the wound on your forehead?”
The little girl calmly lowered her voice and said, “Something scary has come into the house. I don’t want to be eaten, so I am hiding here.”
Ye Zun thought of the footsteps in Nogawa Kaoru’s house. Did the ‘something scary’ refer to that?
“But always hiding is also not the solution ba. Haven’t you thought about running away?”
“There are more scary things like this outside. As long as I hide until sunlight, I can keep on living. If I leave this place, there’s not even a place to hide.”
Ye Zun couldn’t say anything.
“Don’t worry. Most of the time, that thing will only come out to eat people when it gets dark. As long as there’s sunlight, it’s okay.” The little girl seemed to be used to it, showing no fear and being very rational.
Ye Zun frowned and looked at her blood-stained left eye. “This, was it eaten?”
“No.” The little girl said calmly, “I ate it myself.”
Cold sweat beaded all over Ye Zun. his dry throat couldn’t help swallowing once: “……”
“Sorry for scaring you, but I’m too hungry. If I don’t eat, I’ll die.”
“But, can’t you eat anything else?” Although he understood what the other party was saying, Ye Zun still felt that something was wrong.
“It didn’t eat much at first, just a few drops of blood and a bit of meat was fine, but after eating, it will become infected, and if it doesn’t eat people, it will starve to death. After eating, it will return to normal at sunlight. Before, it was surviving off Mama’s blood, but it can’t eat Mama forever, and there’s something else eating Mama as well. If they keep eating like this, Mama won’t be able to recover when it’s sunlight. So I wanted to try eating myself first.”
Ye Zun didn’t understand her all that much. “In this case, wouldn’t the whole body be eaten up slowly? What will happen after you are eaten until nothing is left?”
The little girl didn’t mind, and said calmly, “If you are eaten until nothing is left, and are too late in waiting for the sun to come up, you will become a part of that thing, or die completely ba. I don’t know.”
Ye Zun frowned and looked at her. “Then, what about dad? What about the rest of the family? Is there no one who you can turn to, someone who will help you find a way to drive away that scary thing?”
The little girl lowered her eyes for the first time, the corners of her mouth turning down sadly, showing a poor emotion, while her pale small face was still expressionless. “Baba has probably already been eaten by that thing. That’s why that scary thing came into the house. Gege let me hide here and then disappeared. I don’t know where he is, or if he was eaten too. Maybe Mama went to find Gege…”
“So are you the only one left at home now?” Ye Zun looked at her with pity. “If you stay here forever, the ending you will have is definitely getting eaten completely. Outside, not everything are like these ghost things. In any case, try to escape outside and have a look yourself ba.”
The little girl looked at him with her only intact right eye, flatly saying, “Are you really not going to eat me? My meat might be delicious; that thing always eats me first every night. It will only eat others if it can’t find me.”
Ye Zun dripped cold sweat. “I don’t eat people. Don’t always say stuff like this; it’s not just me, most people don’t eat people.”
“Really? But where that thing came from, if it doesn’t eat people, in the end, it will be eaten whole itself. Although I hide every time, it always finds me. If you don’t want to eat me, just leave this place and find somewhere else to hide ba. If you catch its eyes, you’ll be eaten too.”
Ye Zun’s eyes leaked a hint of disgust and anger. “I’m not afraid of that kind of ghost that only dares to eat women and children, and I definitely won’t become like it.”
He tightly gripped the Buddha statue in his pocket, only wanting to smash that damn thing’s head off.
Once a person is angry, the control that fear has over them becomes minimal.
“You should escape with me ba! Leave this house, and let’s go outside.”
For the first time, a light appeared in the little girl’s eyes that had always been dim. She slowly poked out of the hidden shelter, cautiously looking at Ye Zun with her only intact right eye. “Are you the deity who came to save me?”
Ye Zun imitated the priest’s mannerisms, earnestly looking at her with soft eyes. “Although I am not a deity, I will try my best to save you.”
The little girl’s small face that has always been too calm and numb showed a small smile, which was sad and pitiful. She carefully pulled the hem of Ye Zun’s clothes, like a spiderweb clinging to the last piece of driftwood. SHe said in a quiet voice that could not conceal her uncontrollable trembling, “Has God finally come to save me? Thank you, Gege. I’m actually, very scared, I’ve always been very scared, but I don’t dare to be…”
“It’s normal to be scared, but when you’re afraid that you can’t solve the problem, the only solution is to face your fear. When Gege was little, this was what my grandma told me.”
——Even if I say that, what can such a young child do when faced with this level of fear?
——However, the ghost will not stop just because the other party is a child. If there is no adult to rely on, in the end, she can only try to face it herself.
Ye Zun shook his head, throwing away the self-doubt that was unconsciously contradicting himself in his mind.
With nothing available around him, he thought for a second before tearing a few blank pages from the back of the old diary, helping to apply pressure to the little girl’s bleeding wound on her forehead and rubbing the back of her head. “Remember to stay behind me. If you are in danger, you must run as quickly as you can and hide yourself like you are doing now. You are still young, so something like facing your fear, let the adults do first.”
“En.” The little girl nodded vigorously, the only right eye that was exposed was pure and innocent, full of trust in Ye Zun.
“We can definitely get out of here.” Ye Zun touched her head again and made a shushing gesture. After she hid herself, he carefully opened a gap at the door to look at the sounds and movements in the living room.
He had to take this child out of this terrifying house while the ghost was unprepared. As for the incomplete diary, he’ll pick it up next time.
Anger was anger, but he hadn’t lost his mind. The Buddha statue in the palm of the hand was only so big. If he followed this delusion and smashed this on the head of the ghost, he was afraid the Buddha statue would be the one to shatter first.
Ye Zun put the Buddha statue back in his pocket, carefully observing the surroundings of the living room to make sure there was no threat while walking cautiously towards the kitchen.
Then, he grabbed a boning knife*.
[T/N: short, narrow blade for removing meat from bones]
Just as he was about to come out, Ye Zun suddenly heard the tip-tapping of footsteps.
This time, it was in the living room.
——Not good, that thing came out of Nogawa Kaoru’s room!
[T/N: not really story focused so i didn’t translate the author’s note. Here it is if you wanna read it:]
The author has something to say:
Gugu has already hit the street. I want to send red envelopes to you little angels, but I can’t get 50 comments? In deep contemplation~
Sure enough, because of the emotional interaction that accounted for 50% of the early stage, does it seem that the rhythm of the plot has slowed down?
Next time, I will write a no-CP story that focuses on the flow of the plot, with pure emotions only, let’s see~
Having the Same Name as the Demon Lord of the AbyssHearing the priest's voice, Ye Zun raised his head to look at the doorway, blinked, then faintly smiled helplessly, If you don't dry your hair, you will catch a cold.Lin remained standing by the door, his pupils calm and restrained, watching him. I was thinking that you have been waiting for a while, so it's okay, it will dry quickly by itself.Ye Zun had already climbed out of the bed and picked up the big towel he had used to wipe his own hair. You can read the diary and I will dry it for you. My skills are very good, I definitely won't make you feel uncomfortable.Then I will trouble you. Lin smiled mildly, then sat on the sofa chair beside the bed in compliance with the offer. He put on a pair of plain glasses* and began to view the diary Ye Zun had flipped open just before.T/N: not sure what lenses/type of glasses this isYe Zun stood to his side and carefully dried his hair bit by bit.It's indeed like what you said, very unusual.During the day, Ye Zun had already mentioned the situation in the diary to him.Ye Zun: Right? It's really weird. Other than the rough writing dating the entry at a certain month and day, there's no dated year, and nothing about feelings or whatever happened. Everything is written in a style that has nothing to do in a diary.Lin slowly turned the pages. En, just writing about cherry blossoms and rain took up three whole pages.To be honest, the writing really was pretty good. Even if Ye Zun fell asleep last night, he admitted that the writing was not very boring.Lin's voice was low and quiet, saying, It's not all useless information, it's more like it's hiding a password that only the other person knows, there's several obscure metaphors.Ye Zun glanced over curiously. Which part are you talking about?He became sleepy very quickly last night and wasn't entirely sober, so he didn't particularly notice any metaphors in the passages.Lin adjusted his glasses. Like this sentence, the writing in the beginning is only about cherry blossoms, but the style suddenly changes before I make the decision to completely end things, the deity from another world, will they really come? Ye Zun's movements paused. Putting it like that, it really does seem like its hiding a code of some kind.If it is talking about a secret love, there is no clear reference.If it is talking about some kind of religion, it still doesn't seem to have reached that extent yet.Don't be anxious, since it is a code, it won't appear only once. Lin calmly turned the page back.The diary was incoherent, with the dates for the next entry being written far apart from one another.I will try to read it. You can listen, see if there are any parts that are out of sorts.The entry that Lin turned to was finally not written prose, but instead fanfiction of some anime characters. He had to say, the subject matters in Nogawa Kaoru's diary were really rich.The writing was as obscure and depressing as all those pages before. It was from the perspective of the younger brother, with large passages focusing on his psychology. Because of the pain he experienced after his big brother killed their entire family, he insisted on seeking revenge on the big brother, and after he successfully took his revenge, he was caught in the hopeless numbing despair. in the dark, thick bloody nightmare that haunted him, who did that crying voice belong to? He finally knew. On the reflection of himself in the pool of blood, there was no expression on his face. The one who was crying was not him, but his big brother who he killed. But he began to remember that he never had a big brother. The person he killed was another one of 'himself', and it was himself' who had killed everyone. Ye Zun frowned suddenly. Wait, this part is wrong.En? Lin's eyes moved away from the page, slightly raising his head to look at Ye Zun beside him. How is it wrong?Ye Zun nodded. The original source of this fanfiction, I've watched a few episodes of the show, and I also understand the general setting and direction of the plot. The elder brother killed the entire family, and he was killed in-turn by his younger brother in his revenge, this is all correct. But the younger brother in the show really did have an older brother, not like what is written in the diary, where the murderer big brother and the revengeful little brother are part of one person whose spirit has been split.Lin calmly said, For fanfiction to not conform to the original story's setting, it is generally nothing out of the ordinary. But when it comes to pieces of writing, they are usually created to express the writer's emotions, not something made for no reason.Ye Zun was a little distracted. Then why? Why did Nogawa Kaoru write this in the diary? Why would someone want to write something like this?Taking up five pages of the diary, the psychology of murder and vengance between the lines was extremely depressing.Looking back on it, Shen Yuan also read up to this passage last night but because of the landscape prose in the previous paragraphs, he had already started to feel sleepy early on and didn't realise anything was wrong.He thought of that strange and terrifying nightmare last night.Ye Zun: If you read further back, it should be a long script for a play.En, I've seen it. Lin looked down at the pages attentively. The speed he flipped the pages was not considered slow and he finished reading the script in a steady and calm tone, rationally concluding, In terms of plays, this one isn't eligible. The plot is broken in many parts, the characters are completely talking to themselves, and the dialogue is illogical.Ye Zun let out a sigh. In the diary, are there really no clues of any recorded anomalies?Lin paused. Of course there is.Ye Zun breathing hitched up faintly and he listened carefully to what he said.If it was you, under what circumstances would you write such a thing in your diary? Do not forget, you are Nogawa Kaoru now, and maybe you are experiencing what Nogawa Kaoru had experienced. I think it might be helpful to substitute yourself in this situation, it may allow you to understand what the diary really wants to convey.Ye Zun calmed his heart and dried the man's hair while slowly contemplating.The dates in the diary were jotted down intermittently and the style of the passages were irregular, indicating that the owner had no habit of keeping a diary at all.A person who did not have the habit of keeping a diary suddenly started writing in a diary one day. It must be because they needed somewhere to vent*, they needed to write it out, which was why they picked up a pen.T/N: : to dispel negative thoughtsHowever, why only write about unimportant scenery instead? Also, there was the existence of metaphors that read like some kind of code.UnlessCould it be that, Nogawa Kaoru knew that someone would read his diary, but he didn't want the other party to find out what he was thinking, so he wrote it like this on purpose? Is this a fake diary?Lin's eyes were gentle, with a thin layer of praise. That makes a lot of sense.This discovery lifted Ye Zun's spirit a little and they flipped through the other diaries.Unfortunately, although there are quite a few notebooks, these diaries were not written in their entirety. The one with the most content was the one that Ye Zun asked Shen Yuan to read last night.Others were only three or two pages, or only half a page, and one of the books was just full of messy words and phrases, not even forming sentences.The words and phrases were also of little value, because they came in oxymoronic pairs.Hypocrisy, righteousness, decisiveness, cowardicestuff like that.From those full sentences, some were poems that were difficult to understand, some were the same scenic prose, like he was writing at random; if he didn't feel like writing anymore halfway through, he would stop right there. The foreword did not match the afterword.Ye Zun laid on the bed in disappointment, staring at the ceiling above his head. We still haven't found any definite or useful clues.It was already the third night, and this was what he had encountered in the instance so far: footsteps in the middle of the night, the noise of someone chewing on raw meat in the bottom bunk, the woman saying the man is dead, the man saying the woman is missing, but the truth is that they are all lying and no one is dead.Waking up in the middle of the night, the thirteen-or fourteen year old girl in the bedroom was eating her own arm, but Shen Yuan said that there was only one girl in the family.The house had some kind of problem, after living in it for two nights, his hair grew longer, but he doesn't know what it means for the time being.There was also the second year Class 1, where every student was a ghost.Has Nogawa Kaoru also experienced these? Why did he write a diary like this? Who would read his diary? Who is he guarding against? Who did those footsteps walking around the house every night belong to?It was already the third night, and the time limit given by the game will be halfway over by tomorrow. If he cannot find the answers to these questions, did he need to run far away before the seventh night? Will running away help?Thinking about this, he drowsily blinked.Are you sleepy? Then you should go to sleep firstba, maybe there will be a new discovery when you wake up tomorrow. Lin was still sitting, eyes cast down at him, his low voice making people feel at ease.En. Ye Zun rubbed his eyes and obediently laid back into the blanket.The bed was big and the blanket was also big and thin, so the two people naturally shared one.Unlike what he expected, he didn't feel nervous or uncomfortable at all. Because he hasn't slept well these past few nights, suddenly being placed in the relaxing environment beside the priest, Ye Zun practically shut his eyes the second he touched the pillow.But he still forced them open for just a short moment, saying to Lin as the man covered him with the blanket, Goodnight, Lin.Lin placed his fingers on his head, slowly kneading, and replied in a deep, faint voice, Goodnight.Even in his sleep, those obscure words floated around his body, like an endless Mbius ring made from a strip of paper, twisting around and around without stopping. To kiss, what does it feel likejust tear me apartalmost out of breathwake up every day Tear me apartwhat can I doendunwilling If you don't intend tosave mekilllet me kill Like, like, something incomplete.There was nothing but pitch-black in front of Ye Zun's eyes. He hesitated and fumbled around to untie the thing that was covering his eyes. The thing covering his eyes was like cloth, like a torn strip of paper from the diary, but a piece of paper this long wasn't possible.Tearoh, rightLooking at the diaries scattered in the darkness, Ye Zun suddenly had a flash of inspiration:I see now, there is a problem with the order of the text and chapter pages. The diary is incomplete. When combined, each book is actually just fragments of pages. The written words are mismatched, what's why I don't understand anything.I need to go back to the bedroom and find the most vital book that was hidden, so all the diaries can be completely pieced together.He did not know how he came to this conclusion, but anyhow, this was the conclusion he came to and what he firmly believed in his heart.This is how people are like in their dreams.He stood in the small, dark living room, searching for his bedroom.When he felt around and walked up to the bedroom door in the dark, he suddenly heard footsteps.Tap, tap, tap!Ye Zun immediately stopped in place, his fingers freezing in the position of a hand just about to curl around a doorknob, not daring to move.Cold sweat dripped.Where is the sound coming from? The living room behind me?His heart was jumping faster and faster, and before he lost control, he heard the sound again.No, it's coming from inside this bedroom. The ghost isn't in the living room, but in Nogawa Kaoru's room!He let out a sigh of relief.Wait, the window in Nogawa Kaoru's room can see outside into the living room, if the curtains are not drawn properlyHe carefully looked at the left side and found that there was indeed a corner where the curtain was not properly shut.However, he didn't dare to look inside at all. A pitch-black darkness, what if he sees something likea pair of eyes, a faceBut, even if I don't look myself, won't the thing inside look outside?That's right, I should've ran away. I need to get out of here and find Lin!At this time, he vaguely remembered that he should be at Lin's side right now. When did he return back here?Has he not gone to Lin's place yet, or has he already gone and come back?Am I dreaming?This single thought flashed by.Even if this was a dream, it was impossible for him to just stand in place and do nothing. After all, the ghost is right past that door, and it will open the door and appear in front of him at any time.He carefully moved around in the dark living room, looking for the main door for him to escape.But where exactly is the exit? Why can't I remember?He carefully opened his eyes wide, looking from door to door and over the walls. The surrounding rooms became familiar yet strange.This one was to the master bedroom, this one to the kitchen, this one to the bathroom, this was the small room next to the master bedroom, there wasn't a door here, this one is to the storage roomWhat to do, he can't find the main door that is the exit.The layout and structure of the rooms were far too complicated and strange.Anyhow, let's move away from Nogawa Kaoru's room first.With that in mind, he tried to walk as far away as possible.The living room should be very small, but no matter how far he walked, he seemed to still be in the living room.Yi, he found a space between a crevice.Was this the reason why the layout of the rooms are so weird? Because there is actually a hidden storage space for old items?It was found just in time for him to hide, but if he was discovered, this area was a dead end so it would be hard for him to escape.He remembered again that he was here to find the missing diary that held all of the crucial information he needed.Why do I need to run away? If the ghost leaves Nogawa Kaoru's room, I will have a chance to go in and take it.But, how do I know where that diary is?No matter. He felt that since the thing is in the bedroom, as long as he goes in, he will definitely see it.He cautiously closed the door of the old storage room and vigilantly watched the living room outside.It was at this time that he heard a quiet, enduring, painful whimper.Ye Zun immediately turned his head back and saw a seven-or-eight year old girl in the cramped and cluttered storage room. The little girl was like a worn-out doll, placed together with a pile of debris and set in a difficult and unnatural posture. At first glance, she almost blended in with those items.What are you doing here? Ye Zun was taken aback.The little girl looked antiquated all over. Her small face was dirty, and her expression was as quiet as a doll. She whispered very quietly, Are you the ghost here to eat me?Ye Zun froze for a moment. I'm not.Oh. I'm not doing anything, just hiding here. The little girl did not look afraid, nor as if she cared. She was embedded in the pile of debris in an awkward posture, looking like she belonged in harmony with the other rubbish.After she finished speaking, she stopped paying attention to Ye Zun. Keeping her eyes open and quietly remaining motionless, she endured everything for a while as if she were in the desert, trying to maintain the moisture in her body. She didn't even blink once.Speaking of eyes, Ye Zun looked at her strangely, noticing that her left forehead that was hidden under the shadows of her bangs seemed to be bleeding, the eyelashes on her left eye were stained with blood, and it looked like her left eyeball was gone. The only right eye that could be seen did not have the crystal clarity that belonged to a child, but soulless eyes like glass beads covered with dust.Your foreheadare you injured? Let me help you stop the bleedingba.It's okay, don't worry, I'll just stay like this. The little girl calmly rejected Ye Zun's attempt to help.However, you're bleeding a lot. In this position, the dirt will make your wound infected if you press on itIt doesn't matter, after the sun rises, it will heal on its own. Even if it is cured at night, it will rip open again.Although she had no emotional fluctuations showing in her expression, her face was slightly pale, with cold sweat oozing out. A weak sound overflowed from her mouth from time to time, and she was obviously not as painless as the front she put up, but rather, she was enduring to an insane degree.The debris crammed above and below her body squeezed her, leaving her with no room to move. It seemed that even breathing was difficult, and there was no way to leave the pile of rubbish by herself.If it weren't for her ability to speak so calmly, she was almost like a doll or a corpse that was dumped in a garbage heap.At least let me help you clean up the things around youba. At least give yourself a little more room to rest.Ye Zun carefully removed some of the debris that was pressing on her, not completely taking it away from her, but just rearranging into a shelter-like space, so that if the child wanted to continue to hide it would still be very convenient.Actually, the look of being buried in random piles of debris before did not seem to hide her at all.If not, Ye Zun wouldn't have been able to spot her just by glancing over.Under Ye Zun's handiwork, although she was still among the piled up items, the little girl could indeed move around the space a little, at least enough for her to sit up properly.Thank you.You're welcome. But why are you hiding here, and how did you get the wound on your forehead?The little girl calmly lowered her voice and said, Something scary has come into the house. I don't want to be eaten, so I am hiding here.Ye Zun thought of the footsteps in Nogawa Kaoru's house. Did the something scary' refer to that?But always hiding is also not the solutionba. Haven't you thought about running away?There are more scary things like this outside. As long as I hide until sunlight, I can keep on living. If I leave this place, there's not even a place to hide.Ye Zun couldn't say anything.Don't worry. Most of the time, that thing will only come out to eat people when it gets dark. As long as there's sunlight, it's okay. The little girl seemed to be used to it, showing no fear and being very rational.Ye Zun frowned and looked at her blood-stained left eye. This, was it eaten?No. The little girl said calmly, I ate it myself.Cold sweat beaded all over Ye Zun. his dry throat couldn't help swallowing once: Sorry for scaring you, but I'm too hungry. If I don't eat, I'll die.But, can't you eat anything else? Although he understood what the other party was saying, Ye Zun still felt that something was wrong.It didn't eat much at first, just a few drops of blood and a bit of meat was fine, but after eating, it will become infected, and if it doesn't eat people, it will starve to death. After eating, it will return to normal at sunlight. Before, it was surviving off Mama's blood, but it can't eat Mama forever, and there's something else eating Mama as well. If they keep eating like this, Mama won't be able to recover when it's sunlight. So I wanted to try eating myself first.Ye Zun didn't understand her all that much. In this case, wouldn't the whole body be eaten up slowly? What will happen after you are eaten until nothing is left?The little girl didn't mind, and said calmly, If you are eaten until nothing is left, and are too late in waiting for the sun to come up, you will become a part of that thing, or die completelyba. I don't know.Ye Zun frowned and looked at her. Then, what about dad? What about the rest of the family? Is there no one who you can turn to, someone who will help you find a way to drive away that scary thing?The little girl lowered her eyes for the first time, the corners of her mouth turning down sadly, showing a poor emotion, while her pale small face was still expressionless. Baba has probably already been eaten by that thing. That's why that scary thing came into the house. Gege let me hide here and then disappeared. I don't know where he is, or if he was eaten too. Maybe Mama went to find GegeSo are you the only one left at home now? Ye Zun looked at her with pity. If you stay here forever, the ending you will have is definitely getting eaten completely. Outside, not everything are like these ghost things. In any case, try to escape outside and have a look yourselfba.The little girl looked at him with her only intact right eye, flatly saying, Are you really not going to eat me? My meat might be delicious; that thing always eats me first every night. It will only eat others if it can't find me.Ye Zun dripped cold sweat. I don't eat people. Don't always say stuff like this; it's not just me, most people don't eat people.Really? But where that thing came from, if it doesn't eat people, in the end, it will be eaten whole itself. Although I hide every time, it always finds me. If you don't want to eat me, just leave this place and find somewhere else to hideba. If you catch its eyes, you'll be eaten too.Ye Zun's eyes leaked a hint of disgust and anger. I'm not afraid of that kind of ghost that only dares to eat women and children, and I definitely won't become like it.He tightly gripped the Buddha statue in his pocket, only wanting to smash that damn thing's head off.Once a person is angry, the control that fear has over them becomes minimal.You should escape with meba!Leave this house, and let's go outside.For the first time, a light appeared in the little girl's eyes that had always been dim. She slowly poked out of the hidden shelter, cautiously looking at Ye Zun with her only intact right eye. Are you the deity who came to save me?Ye Zun imitated the priest's mannerisms, earnestly looking at her with soft eyes. Although I am not a deity, I will try my best to save you.The little girl's small face that has always been too calm and numb showed a small smile, which was sad and pitiful. She carefully pulled the hem of Ye Zun's clothes, like a spiderweb clinging to the last piece of driftwood. SHe said in a quiet voice that could not conceal her uncontrollable trembling, Has God finally come to save me? Thank you, Gege. I'm actually, very scared, I've always been very scared, but I don't dare to beIt's normal to be scared, but when you're afraid that you can't solve the problem, the only solution is to face your fear. When Gege was little, this was what my grandma told me.Even if I say that, what can such a young child do when faced with this level of fear?However, the ghost will not stop just because the other party is a child. If there is no adult to rely on, in the end, she can only try to face it herself.Ye Zun shook his head, throwing away the self-doubt that was unconsciously contradicting himself in his mind.With nothing available around him, he thought for a second before tearing a few blank pages from the back of the old diary, helping to apply pressure to the little girl's bleeding wound on her forehead and rubbing the back of her head. Remember to stay behind me. If you are in danger, you must run as quickly as you can and hide yourself like you are doing now. You are still young, so something like facing your fear, let the adults do first.En. The little girl nodded vigorously, the only right eye that was exposed was pure and innocent, full of trust in Ye Zun.We can definitely get out of here. Ye Zun touched her head again and made a shushing gesture. After she hid herself, he carefully opened a gap at the door to look at the sounds and movements in the living room.He had to take this child out of this terrifying house while the ghost was unprepared. As for the incomplete diary, he'll pick it up next time.Anger was anger, but he hadn't lost his mind. The Buddha statue in the palm of the hand was only so big. If he followed this delusion and smashed this on the head of the ghost, he was afraid the Buddha statue would be the one to shatter first.Ye Zun put the Buddha statue back in his pocket, carefully observing the surroundings of the living room to make sure there was no threat while walking cautiously towards the kitchen.Then, he grabbed a boning knife*.T/N: short, narrow blade for removing meat from bonesJust as he was about to come out, Ye Zun suddenly heard thetip-tappingof footsteps.This time, it was in the living room.Not good, that thing came out of Nogawa Kaoru's room!T/N: not really story focused so i didn't translate the author's note. Here it is if you wanna read it:The author has something to say:Gugu has already hit the street. I want to send red envelopes to you little angels, but I can't get 50 comments? In deep contemplation~Sure enough, because of the emotional interaction that accounted for 50% of the early stage, does it seem that the rhythm of the plot has slowed down?Next time, I will write a no-CP story that focuses on the flow of the plot, with pure emotions only, let's see~
