Entering the house, Yue Yiyue poured a cup of warm water and set it in front of Gu Nanqiu.
Though she seemed to need it more herself.
The victim who’d received the threatening love letter sat irritably on the sofa, muttering over and over that it was too disgusting and too dirty.
She occasionally glanced at her phone, waiting for a reply from Property Management.
Meanwhile, Yue Yiyue, who had just gone through this ordeal, sat on the opposite sofa. She stared awkwardly at the glass of water on the table, her mind a chaotic mess as strange noises occasionally echoed in her ears.
She felt unusually anxious, even tempted to bang her head against the wall.
When she saw that Cake, Yue Yiyue could confirm that the plot had officially entered Act Two. Due to some twist of fate, the monster had fallen for Gu Nanqiu.
So, along with Box Head, it wanted to take Gu Nanqiu to Chaos.
But previously, in Box Head’s plot, she had been the one chased.
It must have happened during those few days she was missing—something on Gu Nanqiu’s side that Gu Nanqiu hadn’t told her about.
That explained everything.
That said, Gu Nanqiu’s appeal was as strong as ever.
“Yiyue, I saw something so disgusting, I’m so annoyed. You have to make it up to me.” Gu Nanqiu pouted pitifully and curled up into a ball, trying to make her 173 cm frame look less imposing. “I checked your class schedule. You’re free Wednesday and Thursday afternoons. Come to class with me. In return, I’ll accompany you on Mondays and Tuesdays when I have no classes. That Wednesday class is a filler class anyway; I’ll skip it to go with you.”
Hearing this, Yue Yiyue fell silent for a moment. She suddenly thought of the Boss and her same-sex lover.
“……” With that in mind, Yue Yiyue handed over a piece of shiny foil-wrapped candy. “You have full schedules on Mondays and Tuesdays. That Wednesday class is a filler class, but the teacher still takes attendance. How about I accompany you on those two days when I have no classes, Wednesday and Thursday?”
“Yay!” Gu Nanqiu pounced joyfully and rubbed against Yue Yiyue as usual. “That class is really boring, but if you’re with me, I believe it will definitely be fun!”
Yue Yiyue just smiled and patted Gu Nanqiu’s head.
A hint of worry and confusion about the future lingered in her eyes.
Another strange sound rang in her ears……
At that moment, Yue Yiyue felt exceptionally insignificant.
She was like someone thrown into ice-cold water, constantly sinking, sinking, sinking……
She should go to the hospital, Yue Yiyue thought.
————
Early the next morning, Yue Yiyue took a cab to the psychological hospital recommended by the police station.
This time, she did not go with Gu Nanqiu. When she left, she only told Gu Nanqiu that she had something to do and asked her to wait at home.
She absolutely must not go out carelessly.
Gu Nanqiu said nothing more, just that she would cook and wait at home.
After thanking the driver, Yue Yiyue looked up at the gleaming sign of Hope Affiliated No. 1 Hospital. It looked quite good.
The hospital seemed to have some history. The aged building bore traces of time in its cracks, and there were murals on the walls that had faded, leaving only scattered specks of blue. One could barely make out that they depicted the sea.
Massive trees lined both sides, ivy climbing the walls amid a strong smell of disinfectant.
Although it was a holiday, there were still quite a few people coming for treatment.
Most held settlement receipts, their brows relaxed and faces beaming as they walked out.
Occasionally, people said, “It was a false alarm after all.”
Or earnest prayers thanking the great god for granting rebirth to the faithful.
Yue Yiyue watched those people and sincerely felt happy for them.
“Hello, Ms. Yue Yiyue. Please take the elevator from over there to the twelfth floor, which leads to the psychological consultation room. The doctor you scheduled with today had to take leave, so we’ve arranged another excellent doctor in their place.” The nurse at the reception desk smiled kindly and pointed out the way for Yue Yiyue.
“Thank you.” Yue Yiyue fake-smiled at the nurse. She turned her head, took out her phone from her pocket, and pretended to answer a call as she walked toward the exit. “Yes, that’s right, I’m here. What? Very urgent? Okay, okay, I’ll come right now…….”
As she spoke, Yue Yiyue hurried toward the exit.
It was not that Yue Yiyue was sick.
But without her showing a medical card or giving any information, they’d inexplicably called her name and switched her doctor.
Anyone would find this outrageous.
Damn it, had she unknowingly entered some strange place again?
Moreover, she was clearly running toward the exit, but the distance to it grew farther and farther.
The noisy voices of the people around her sounded muffled, as if separated by a layer of bubbles. No matter what, Yue Yiyue could not hear clearly, and even her cries for help went unnoticed.
The colors before her eyes grew bluer and bluer, just like the mural she had glimpsed at the entrance.
The surrounding crowd grew more distant.
Her vision also blurred more and more.
Damn it, damn it.
What the hell was going on?
She should not have come out behind Gu Nanqiu’s back.
There was no such scene in the plot.
To conserve energy, Yue Yiyue stopped running.
The moment she stopped, the surroundings immediately began spinning and constantly reorganizing.
The glass windows stretched and twisted.
Until all sunlight was blocked out.
Finally, it became a coffin-like corridor.
Endless blackness stretched behind her.
An orange-toned door lay ahead, making it glaringly clear she had only one choice.
Open it.
She could only open it.
Yue Yiyue carefully pressed her ear to the door, trying to listen for sounds inside.
Perhaps that way she could know what was waiting for her inside.
Unfortunately, whether because the door was too well soundproofed or because there was no sound inside to begin with, Yue Yiyue heard nothing.
She stood at the door hesitating for a long time.
She took out her phone and, as expected, there was no signal.
But Yue Yiyue still drafted a text message briefly explaining her situation and set it to auto-send.
In case Gu Nanqiu received it, there would be no need to worry too much about her. Maybe she could even find a place to collect her body.
After doing all this, Yue Yiyue stood in place, took a deep breath, and pushed open the orange door in front of her.
————
An ergonomic chair faced a sturdy solid wood desk, topped with a pot of flowers she didn’t recognize.
And sitting there was someone she had met before.
The Coroner rested her crossed hands on the desk and casually looked up at Yue Yiyue.
Seeing that it was the Coroner, Yue Yiyue felt somewhat bewildered. She looked back, but the orange door had already vanished.
No way back.
Fine.
She walked to the room’s only sofa and sat down.
The Coroner wore a pair of light-colored gold-rimmed glasses today and a white coat.
Yue Yiyue saw the nameplate clipped to her chest: Hope Affiliated No. 1 Hospital, Psychology Department — Coroner.
“You’re quite interesting.”
These were the Coroner’s first words.
Followed by: “Aren’t you curious why I’m here? Or rather, don’t you find it strange?”
“You came to find me for something, but I don’t like this method. I hope next time you can use a friendlier approach.” Yue Yiyue voiced her true thoughts.
This elicited a playful arc at the corner of the Coroner’s mouth. “But your panicked escape just now was amusing. I hadn’t planned to tease you.”
But since she came alone, the Coroner certainly would not miss this opportunity.
After all, chances to truly scare the Little Lunatic Yue Yiyue were rare.
This time, as usual, it had failed.
“Alright, per your needs, I’ll provide you with psychological counseling. Do you need hot water or a blanket?”
“Or do you need me to say sorry, that I shouldn’t tease you like this?”
“No need, thank you.” Yue Yiyue did not think the Coroner was so kind-hearted, but she did want to know what the Coroner was here for, so she put on an attentive listening expression. At least, she would not let the other think she was annoyed.
“Patient, Yue Yiyue, age 21, female, from the Orphanage in K Province. As a child, she was nearly adopted twice but returned at the last moment due to certain reasons, so she lacks a sense of security. She has long played the role of the older sister and very much craves being relied upon. She hopes to mature and grow into a fully independent adult.”
The Coroner looked at the thin two pages in her hand. Yue Yiyue’s life story was simple. Ignoring those days in the Game where they fought to the point of having to team up, she only had studying and part-time work.
Of course, occasionally, the appearance of a certain someone brought her a bit of joy.
But of course, that could not be said.
“You self-reported recent experiences of Illusions and auditory hallucinations, along with troubles in interpersonal relationships.”
In that instant, Yue Yiyue realized the Coroner was not a person from the book’s world.
“Why do you have this information?” Yue Yiyue asked doubtfully. The Coroner would not mention this without reason.
Was it a reminder for her not to indulge here, that she should go back?
“These are all things you told me before.” The Coroner did not keep her in suspense and gave Yue Yiyue what could be called a kind smile.
“I owe you a favor, so I came to help you out.” The Coroner leaned back in her chair, her hand rhythmically tapping it. “You’ve always treated this as a novel, dutifully playing the cannon fodder role and trying to deviate from your original trajectory, but failing. Why not just follow the rules here and simply watch the show?”
“Is it because you love Gu Nanqiu that you’re unwilling?”
While still pondering what the Coroner meant, Yue Yiyue suddenly heard Gu Nanqiu’s name. She froze for a moment, then immediately denied it. “No, I don’t. I have no such feelings for her.”
Yue Yiyue subconsciously bit her finger, completely baffled why the other would say such a thing, but she still voiced her thoughts. “Would you fall in love with a character from a novel, knowing full well that once the plot ends, you’ll log off?”
The owner of that text message had said that after a certain time, she would return.
So she would not fall in love.
“Then what is everything you’re doing now?”
The Coroner’s words hit Yue Yiyue like a heavy blow, blatantly mocking all her past actions.
Even her recent words seemed pale and laughable.
How could she have no selfish motives?
According to Yue Yiyue’s plans, if she did not die in her junior year plot, she would cross-major to computer science.
After achieving financial independence and repaying her body’s mother’s debts, she would enter the same industry as Gu Nanqiu and join her company.
Then she could stand openly by Gu Nanqiu’s side, instead of being a ticking time bomb that could explode at any moment.
“You have no psychological issues. Apart from your nasty obsession and evasion of your true feelings, there’s nothing wrong with you.”
“Yue Yiyue, you’re not really eighteen. You can do far more here than you imagine, as long as you follow the rules.”
The Coroner’s words lingered in Yue Yiyue’s ears, like the snake tempting Eve to eat the poisoned apple.
True or false, she had to discern for herself.
“We’re the same kind, so I’m reminding you—your hands are strong and dexterous.”
“When you pick up an axe to chop those monsters, you never hesitate with excess emotion.”
“You said that even if you die, you’ll protect your Little Sister.”
“Yue Yiyue, you’ve never been weak. I hope next time I see you, you’re not in such a wretched state.”
Little Sister……
Deep in her mind, something struggled to break free but was firmly suppressed.
In an instant, Yue Yiyue’s head throbbed painfully, her face paling.
“Don’t recall the past. When the time comes, Mother will naturally let you remember. What you need now is to go through it—properly accompany Gu Nanqiu, accept her punishment, accompany her to return to &%￥”
“What exactly did we go through together?” Yue Yiyue felt her eyelids growing heavier, the figure in front of her blurring more and more. She struggled to stay awake, to ask more questions, but it was futile.
Finally, she saw only a ray of light.
A gentle light enveloped Yue Yiyue’s body.
Gu Nanqiu’s gentle voice sounded in her ears.
“Don’t think about anything.”
“Don’t worry about anything.”
“Yiyue, sleep well.”
The Coroner glanced at her watch, and Yue Yiyue’s SAN Value, which was below 40, finally began to rise steadily.
Ye Qiu leaned casually against the door, eyeing the Coroner with a headache. “Entrusting this matter to you really didn’t put my mind at ease.”
“But it’s still better than my baby, right? She still remembered that Yue Yiyue had killed off the entire batch of little snacks she raised and had nearly chopped me up.”
“It’s just that mentioning this matter will make you feel good again. After all, Yue Yiyue went crazy like this to fish you out from the endless punishment in Chaos.”
