Mono had never seen a spirit before.
However, after seeing this glitch with his own eyes, he gained some insight.
The black shadow had no facial features.
The details of its body were also unclear, like a blob of pitch-black ink.
"Hey~"
"Can you hear me?"
Mono tentatively spoke to it.
But when he spoke, the shadow still gave no response.
It just stood on the sand like a piece of wood.
It seemed to have no consciousness, having lost all signs of what is called life.
Mono continued to speak, attempting to wake the glitch.
But the black glitch before him did not move at all.
Just as Mono intended to step closer to take a look,
a gust of wind suddenly blew past.
Then,
*Poof~*
The black shadow of the glitch suddenly turned into a cloud of mist and completely vanished before him.
Mono was slightly stunned:
"Gone? Where did it go?"
While he was wondering, Little Six's slightly cold voice suddenly came from beside his ear.
"That person's... soul has... dissipated."
"It no longer... exists."
Mono turned around.
"You know what's going on?" he asked curiously.
Little Six nodded.
She had seen some things.
Things that ordinary people could hardly imagine.
She also understood the origin of these things.
What Little people surrounded by fear leave behind before death are these black souls.
"Hey, don't keep me in suspense. Why do these things exist?"
Mono asked again.
He was quite curious.
Hearing this, Sam's gaze suddenly became somewhat faint.
Afterward, she stared silently into the void for a long while before slowly speaking in a slightly cold tone:
"Inside everyone's body, there is an existence apart from the flesh... and that is... the Spirit."
"The flesh needs the Spirit to think, and to act."
"It is the vessel for the Spirit..."
"After the flesh dies, its Spirit will also slowly dissipate."
"But there are some unknown existences that, in order to create deformed monsters that shouldn't exist in this world..."
"The experimental materials are... Little people."
"They... capture Little people everywhere."
"Creating fear, spreading despair, enticing... twisting their Spirits..."
"Toying with them wantonly..."
"That's why... these black shadows were born."
"All glitches... when they were alive..."
As Sam spoke, she slowly reached out her hand, brushing over the spot where the black shadow had just been.
"They all lived... very..."
Mid-sentence, Mono suddenly felt the small hand he was holding tighten its grip again.
Sam seemed to be trending back toward that numb and soulless state.
"Hey, hey, Sam! Don't think so much, that's enough!"
Mono shouted hastily.
The shout brought her back to her senses.
Realizing her own tense state, Sam quickly let go of her tight grip.
"Sor... sorry, Mono."
A flash of panic flickered in the depths of her eyes.
She hadn't intended to squeeze so hard.
But whenever she thought of bad things, she would always fall into a state of tension.
It had already become a habit.
Mono rubbed his hand.
Although the squeeze was painful, he wasn't angry.
Mono patted Sam's shoulder.
"Alright, what are you apologizing for? Aren't we friends?"
"Besides, there's no need for you to be so nervous."
"The past is in the past."
"Don't think about those things anymore."
Mono could probably guess why Sam became like this when talking about the glitches.
After seeing too many cruel things, it's already considered good if one doesn't go mad.
She must be remembering some bad things...
Hearing the comfort, Sam relaxed a bit, but remained silent.
These memories were already deeply ingrained in her heart.
Forgetting them was already impossible.
Looking at the silent Sam, Mono couldn't help but speak up again:
"Look at me, I'm not afraid of anything. You've followed me for so long, can't you learn a thing or two from me?"
"As the saying goes, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Besides, if we really run into trouble, isn't there... still me?"
"I'll help you deal with it, so you don't need to be so worried."
Mono's goal was to hunt monsters, and the two goals were indeed not contradictory.
Hearing this, the still-distracted Sam slightly raised her head.
A flash of doubt crossed her eyes.
His strength clearly didn't compare to hers, so why... was he so confident?
And saying he would... help her deal with it?
Could he really stand against those existences?
Or was it because of ignorance? Was that why he said it?
"Hey, what are you looking at? You don't believe me?" Mono felt annoyed seeing her skeptical gaze.
"N... no..."
Sam suddenly lowered her head again, letting her bangs cover her eyes.
"Don't make that face, hey, I'm a man of my word. As long as you listen to me, I'll protect you."
Mono shouted again,
"You have to trust your big brother, I've got the skills."
Mono hated depression. Although this world was indeed depressing, it wasn't a valid reason to allow oneself to be gloomy.
Sam finally nodded slowly.
But she still didn't speak.
Seeing this, Mono curled his lip but didn't say anything more.
It seemed some experiences could only be understood by those who lived them; sometimes saying too much was useless, and he could only let her find her own way out.
He shook his head.
"Let's go." Mono set off again.
He planned to first find a place to stay within the city.
Sam obediently took his hand.
The two of them slowly approached the city.
The environment here was different from the game.
The game only gave players one path.
But the city in reality was incredibly vast and wide.
Mono wasn't sure where their current position was anymore.
Leaving the beach and walking a short distance, the first tall building appeared.
Looking up from the bottom, the way these buildings towered into the clouds was even more awe-inspiring.
Buildings were stacked layer upon layer, densely arranged in every direction; standing at the bottom, one couldn't see the end at a glance.
Every building was shrouded in a dismal white light.
It seemed to be moonlight, but it was somewhat eerie.
The streets were a vast, empty expanse without a single pedestrian.
It was late at night, so there really shouldn't be any pedestrians.
Several wires were strung haphazardly between the buildings, some having fallen to the ground, and some paper on the signboards fluttered in the wind from time to time, making flapping sounds.
The alleyways paved with bluestone on both sides extended into the distance, yet they emitted a faint stench.
It was the scent of rot.
At a glance, this city seemed completely unmaintained.