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[Current Dungeon: Haunted Town]
Natsuki's vision returned, and he found himself standing in a gloomy, dark alley. He looked around, confirmed there was no danger, and then leisurely opened his game panel, but the next second, he raised his eyebrows.
"Hmm?"
"Haunted Town?"
Distant memories suddenly came alive.
Natsuki fell into thought.
If he remembered correctly, around the million-word mark, he had encountered a dungeon also called "Haunted Town." Yesterday, in Yukinoshita's sisters' apartment, Yukino read the future diary and said she would encounter a familiar scene... Could it really be the dungeon he had cleared before?
It wasn't impossible.
After the Strange Tales Management Bureau was established, a file was created for each player, mainly detailing the types of dungeons the player had cleared.
The probability of a player encountering the same dungeon was low, but not non-existent.
Natsuki remembered the file content he had read before: if a player entered a dungeon they had previously cleared, it was actually a double-edged sword. The advantage was naturally familiarity; the hidden rules, insidious traps, and so on, of the dungeon would be completely clear, eliminating the need for cautious exploration and deciphering.
The disadvantage was equally obvious.
Players in the dungeon would inevitably have to deal with various entities within the dungeon, and it was possible that they would become targets of hatred from the start, being chased and hunted down.
"I shouldn't have any enemies, right?"
Natsuki thought carefully.
Unfortunately, too much time had passed, and he couldn't recall clearly for a while.
"I won't think about it anymore."
"Leaving aside whether it's a dungeon I've cleared before, even if it is, so much time has passed that it probably has completely forgotten about me."
He reined in his thoughts.
Natsuki continued to check the main quest.
[Main Quest: You are a foreigner who came to the town for a vacation, but you were caught in an unknown mysterious game. Unfortunately, you lost your memory before entering the town and only found a note in your pocket...]
Natsuki extended his right hand and fumbled in his pocket, quickly finding a note.
He unfolded it.
There was only one line of crooked handwriting on it:
[Your Identity: Sunny and Cheerful Big Boy]
Natsuki: "..."
What was with this strange identity?
It was a horror dungeon, yet it wanted him to be sunny and cheerful, it was too contradictory!
[Main Quest: Win the mysterious game]
"Tsk~"
Natsuki lightly clicked his tongue.
As expected of a mysterious game, he didn't know what the game content was, and his identity was also a mess. It was indeed very mysterious.
He continued to look down.
Below were the side quests that could be challenged in the current dungeon.
[Side Quest: Town Gourmet. You have tasted ten different types of town delicacies and survived safely]
[Side Quest: Friends Everywhere. You have achieved friendly relations with at least five town residents]
[Side Quest: Map Unlocked. Your exploration rate of the town exceeds ninety percent before the dungeon is cleared]
[Other side quests are locked, please trigger them yourself]
Natsuki closed the game notification, then lightly flicked his finger, transmitting a message to Chika via the red string.
Before long, Chika responded, indicating that it was quite safe at the moment and there was no need to worry.
"Since that's the case, there's no need to instantly teleport there using the fated person's ability…"
Natsuki stepped out of the dark alley:
"I'll just walk over there directly, and check if it's the 'Haunted Town' I cleared before."
It's worth mentioning that the red string initially could only transfer limited information by flicking fingers, but as Natsuki and Chika's intimate relationship continued to upgrade, especially after their zero-distance contact, the red string's hidden attribute, "A Thousand Miles of Marriage Tied by a Single Thread," was unlocked, allowing them to clearly sense each other's location.
Natsuki walked in the direction Chika was in, guided by the red string.
Although there were streetlights on the road, the light was dim and eerie, and the road was deserted, with only Natsuki's footsteps audible, making it even more chilling.
A moment later.
A figure under a streetlight ahead caught Natsuki's attention.
It was a being standing under the streetlight, head bowed, wearing an oversized trench coat, and judging by her figure and long black hair, she appeared to be a woman.
Natsuki's expression couldn't help but turn strange, and he murmured:
"I'm meeting an acquaintance so soon?"
Natsuki pondered for a moment, took out a mask, put it on, and then continued to walk forward.
After approaching within two meters of the woman under the streetlight, she suddenly looked up, wearing a mask, with crimson eyes and sickly pale skin exposed, and directly blocked Natsuki's path, tilting her head and saying:
"Am I beautiful?"
Identity confirmed.
With such a familiar opening line, who else could it be but Kuchisake-onna!
It really seemed to be the 'Haunted Town' he had cleared before. Thinking of meeting his former 'guests,' Natsuki couldn't help but smile.
"What are you laughing at?"
Kuchisake-onna's voice was cold, and she reached into her trench coat, pulling out an exaggerated and terrifying pair of scissors, stained with dark blood, looking exceptionally dangerous.
"I'm sorry." Natsuki bowed in apology, then spoke nonsense with a straight face, "I have a rare neurological syndrome. When I get nervous, I can't help but laugh, just like Mr. Joker in Gotham City. It's a purely physiological reaction."
Kuchisake-onna: "…"
A few seconds of silence.
Kuchisake-onna slowly raised her scissors, took half a step forward, and asked again in a hoarse, low voice:
"Am I beautiful?"
Natsuki rubbed his face, suppressed his smile, and said:
"I'm sorry, I have prosopagnosia and can't tell if you're beautiful, but just by looking at your figure, you are undoubtedly a beauty."
Kuchisake-onna tilted her head, reached up to remove the mask from her face, revealing a torn face with flesh and blood exposed, and said in a cold voice:
"Am I still beautiful now?"
"…"
Unlike Kuchisake-onna's expected reaction, this guy wandering the streets in the middle of the night neither panicked and ran away nor blustered and prepared to fight. Instead, he raised his hand, took off the mask on his face, and smiled:
"Kuchisake-onna, do you recognize me?"
"You…"
Her gaze fell on Natsuki's face, and Kuchisake-onna slightly opened her mouth and widened her eyes, a crimson tongue slipping out.
It must be said, the scene was indeed a bit horrifying and chilling.
When wearing the mask, just looking at her eyebrows and bone structure, Kuchisake-onna was actually quite good, but after her tongue slipped out, she could no longer be associated with beauty.
"You're that human who makes delicious food?"
Kuchisake-onna thought for a moment and finally recalled Natsuki's identity.
The last time he cleared the instance, Natsuki worked in a restaurant in the town and had conquered many people with his Dark Cuisine. Because it had been so long since they parted, Kuchisake-onna still had a deep impression. If it were anyone else, they would probably have forgotten completely.
Natsuki sighed and said:
"Kuchisake-onna still remembers me, which makes me happy, but forgetting my name makes me quite sad."
Click!
The giant scissors in Kuchisake-onna's hand clicked open and closed, suddenly snapping towards Natsuki.
Natsuki retreated half a step like lightning, raising his hands and saying:
"Kuchisake-onna, we are friends. Isn't it too much to attack a friend?"
Kuchisake-onna curled her tongue, retracting the exposed tongue, then put her mask back on and said expressionlessly:
"You are human. I won't be friends with humans."
"Friendship can transcend species and gender." Natsuki said earnestly, "As long as both parties are happy when they get along, then they are friends… Kuchisake-onna, you were actually very happy when you ate Dark Cuisine back then, weren't you?"
"Happy…"
A hint of confusion flashed in Kuchisake-onna's eyes, "That was a long time ago. I've forgotten how it felt."
Natsuki immediately said:
"Then, Miss Kuchisake-onna, would you like to be able to eat Dark Cuisine every day from now on?"
Kuchisake-onna tilted her head and looked over, her voice low as she asked:
"What do you want to do?"
Natsuki spoke nonsense with a straight face:
"I recently opened an entertainment company specializing in urban legend idols. As long as Kuchisake-onna is willing to sign a contract and work for me, I will prepare Dark Cuisine for you every day from now on."
Before the last instance, Natsuki wasn't enthusiastic about recruiting employees because it wasn't very meaningful.
But ever since unlocking the complete form of [Domain Expansion], allowing him to borrow the strength of his subordinates, Natsuki wanted to make the company bigger and stronger, striving to reach the pinnacle of his life.
Kuchisake-onna was ruthless and spoke little. Although he didn't know what the rules were, more was better. After all, it was just a matter of opening his mouth, and coupled with the existing emotional foundation between them, she was clearly the most suitable candidate for an employee.
"Impossible."
The next second, Kuchisake-onna's tone became icy, and she decisively refused, her voice hoarse as she said:
"Humans are all liars."
"Nothing they say can be believed."
Hey, hey, you're completely biased and prejudiced. There are even white crows in the world, so how can all humans be liars!
"I smell a lie…" Kuchisake-onna sniffed, her eyes gradually turning red, and the dangerous aura around her quickly surged, "You're lying to me."
Natsuki: "…Is this your power?"
Being able to tell if someone is lying, she's practically a human lie detector.
"Alright, I was indeed lying to you."
Natsuki was silent for two seconds, then spoke slowly.
"I'm going to kill you…"
A surge of cold air emanated from Kuchisake-onna, and the giant scissors in her hand directly snapped towards Natsuki.
Although it was a physical attack, the speed was incredibly fast, even leaving a lingering afterimage in the air, which was probably one of Kuchisake-onna's killing rules.
Fortunately, Natsuki was no longer the small fry he once was. He avoided the attack with a quick sidestep and then said:
"I did lie, the idol company hasn't been successfully established yet, but my desire to recruit you to work for me is sincere and absolutely not false in the slightest."
"In fact, I've already recruited several employees. If you don't believe me, you can ask them—"
As Natsuki spoke, he summoned Hachishakusama, Sadako, Kumoko, Yuuko, and Yandere Kaguya.
Back in the Sin Park, Sadako was instrumental in recruiting Hachishakusama.
It proved that the Strange Tales from the game faction might be old acquaintances. If so, would Hachishakusama know Kuchisake-onna?
Natsuki was quite curious, so he directly summoned all his employees.
Seeing a group of people suddenly appear before her, Kuchisake-onna's attack abruptly paused.
"Eh?"
Hachishakusama looked around, her gaze quickly falling on Kuchisake-onna, and a look of interest appeared on her beautiful face, then she bent down to examine her carefully.
Natsuki stood beside her, watching Hachishakusama's actions, and a phrase instantly came to mind:
Earth-shattering.
Kaidan naturally wouldn't wear any underwear. When Hachishakusama bent down like that, it immediately created a surging, earth-shattering visual shock.
Indeed, humans have their limits. Even the most well-developed secretary Chika, standing in front of Hachishakusama, was still the difference between an adult and a child. The two simply couldn't compete on the same stage.
Natsuki cleared his throat twice and said:
"Madam, this is Kuchisake-onna, an old friend of mine. Do you know her?"
Hachishakusama observed for a moment, a pleasant smile appearing on her face, and pressing the hat on her head, she said:
"I don't know her, but she has the same kind of scent."
Of course they are of the same kind; you are all modern urban legends, and you even starred in a major series together!
Kuchisake-onna remained silent, not responding, clearly quite wary.
Natsuki continued:
"I just wanted to recruit Kuchisake-onna, but she has a strong prejudice against humans… Madam, can I trouble you?"
Hachishakusama smiled elegantly and said pleasantly:
"Leave it to me. Although the Theater is very comfortable, it can inevitably become a bit dull after a long time."
Natsuki nodded in thanks:
"Then I'll leave it to you, Madam."
"Is this an instance?" Yuuko looked up and said, "How many days has it been, and you're in an instance again? Where's Sayu?"
"This is a special situation. Sayu is still in reality and hasn't entered the instance…"
Natsuki briefly explained the situation, then pondered:
"It's also hard for everyone to always be cooped up in the employee dormitory, so I'll ask you to help gather information. If you can help recruit a few employees, that would be even better."
Since they were already here.
Since he had summoned Sadako and the others, he might as well make the most of them.
Being able to play a hundred demons at night was certainly better than doing everything himself.
"Tch." Yuuko pouted and said disdainfully, "You leave everything to us, while you have it easy."
Despite her disdain, Yuuko had no intention of returning to the employee dormitory. She genuinely wanted to wander around the instance and stretch her limbs.
Kumoko was equally excited, already having jumped onto the wall and happily crawling around:
"Recruiting employees, right? Leave it to me!"
Natsuki cautioned:
"Don't fight. It'll be troublesome if you get caught and have little spiders."
"Got it, you're annoying."
Kumoko replied as she disappeared into the night.
Immediately after, Natsuki felt his sleeve being gently tugged.
Turning his head, he saw Sadako had appeared behind him at some point, wearing a white dress, her black hair covering her face. Although he couldn't see any expression, Natsuki could clearly feel that Sadako's social anxiety had clearly flared up.
Sighing helplessly, Natsuki waved his hand, sending Sadako back to the employee dormitory.
It was indeed necessary to expand the employee team as quickly as possible.
The only truly reliable employee was Hachishakusama.