Chapter 719: The Collapse Begins
But what did I know back then?
After seeing Brother Guyu and Sister Siwei, I told them about the plan that the "Executioner" sister had given me. If we could kill all the "participants" for two rounds, then we would have one last glimmer of hope for liberation. This might have been my final chance to free myself before I truly became the "Happy Prince."
But they told me it wasn't realistic. There were now thousands of family members in our clan, and there were only three of us. Among those thousands, there were even a large number of "Fragrant Ones" suited for combat and self-preservation. Even if the three of us were all holding machine guns, it wouldn't be guaranteed we could kill them all. Let alone do it for two consecutive rounds. Let alone the fact that we didn't have machine guns.
They said that this kind of reshuffling—killing everyone in one fell swoop—was probably something not even an Earth-level "Zodiac" could accomplish.
According to Brother Guyu's classification, the three of us were all support-type "Fragrances." Forget about killing people; if a real fight broke out, even escaping would be a problem. Those people were all alive. Although they didn't seem to have much will of their own right now, when their lives were on the line, they absolutely wouldn't just let themselves be slaughtered.
So, the last path offered by the "Executioner" sister was also blocked.
I really did become the "Happy Prince."
Sister Siwei said she was willing to be the Swallow, and Brother Guyu would be the sword I held in my hand. Although Brother Guyu couldn't truly fight battles for me like a real sword, his very existence was a deterrent.
Many years passed. We ran ourselves ragged for this family, helping everyone I could see as much as possible. Though none of us knew how to get out, I only hoped my family members could be happy.
My family members still habitually participated in "Human-level" games, but we had stopped collecting everyone's "Jade." Everyone kept the "Jade" they earned themselves and could store it in the various lockers in the office building. Since there were many rooms and many "participants," Brother Guyu arranged for ten people to share one locker. These ten people supervised each other. Since embezzling "Jade" would be punished by the family rules, no one dared take that risk.
I always remembered the "Happy Prince" my sister told me about, and I always remembered Xu Jiahua's "Big Brother." Those two people were the models I aspired to be.
I also often recalled that shocking smell from years ago. It had been about four years by then. Life began to grow tedious. One day, I suddenly noticed that the newspaper and the dagger my sister had folded for me were starting to yellow.
Unknowingly, I had been here for eight years. I felt my sanity beginning to slip. Only after I figured out many things did I truly feel how ridiculous this place was.
What kind of "prison" was this, anyway?
Gathering a group of people together and then leaving them to fend for themselves—was this a "prison"? Even if it really was a "prison," I should have been released long ago. Why had no one come to set me free?
How much longer did I have to stay in this "prison"?
Why did everyone have to rack their brains just to obtain "Fragrance," yet I could smell it the moment I arrived?
I never had to work as hard as others to gain this rare ability. In all of "Jade City," I had never seen anyone else whose ability could identify "Fragrance."
This was probably how my life would always be. I had entered a fairy tale. In this world, I was the beloved "hero," leading my subjects through a life of misery and suffering. After ten days, I could return to the real world and see my parents and teachers, who never needed me.
Was this life really normal? Were there other people like me in the whole world?
I felt like I was truly going insane. Was the path I chose really the right one?
Once, to play the part of the "Happy Prince" in my mind, I tried not eating anything for ten straight days, giving all my food to my subjects. I ended up starving to death on the sixth day.
But I still didn't regret it. I also still couldn't regain the sanity I was about to lose. After all, I would never lose my memories. Even if I died in the interview room, the result would be the same.
About nine years later, a small incident occurred in our "family." At first, I didn't pay it any mind, but when I thought back later, it was probably the fuse that led to the final disaster.
But then again, even without that fuse, wouldn't our "family" have collapsed anyway?
One evening, a team that was keen on participating in various games cheerfully went down to the basement of the office building and opened their assigned locker.
The locker they were about to fill with 57,600 pieces of "Jade" was empty. Exactly the same thing that had happened to Uncle Wan many years ago.
When word reached me, I didn't have time to inform Brother Guyu and Sister Siwei. I immediately went to check the situation. I thought I could calm everyone down like last time, but the moment I entered the basement, someone grabbed me by the collar.
"Damn it!" the man shouted. "Where is our 'Jade'?! Why is it gone again?!"
The sight of him startled me. I never imagined I would one day be grabbed by the collar and lifted off the ground. My crown fell to the floor at that moment, rolling helplessly.
A large crowd surrounded us, but no one stepped in to stop him.
"I... how would I know?" I said, my voice trembling. "Calm down first. I'm here to solve the problem..."
"Do we even need to solve it?!" the man yelled. "Isn't it obvious?! You're just like Wan Cai! You've been coveting our 'Jade'!!"
"How is that possible?!" I shouted, trying to break free from his grip, but my body was still that of a child, I didn't have that much strength. "I've been doing everything I can to help you all collect 'Jade'! Why would I embezzle it now?! Not just me, no one in this family would..."
Before I could finish, I suddenly froze.
Was I overlooking something?
Could it really be that no one here would hide that 'Jade'?
"Why aren't you talking now?" the man snarled. "We trusted you so much, and you actually believed you were a 'hero'?! You're just a useless little..."
Before he could finish, his eyes suddenly bulged. At that very moment, I clearly saw a transparent hole pierce through his chest.
The hand gripping me slowly loosened. He turned his head in disbelief, and I craned my neck to look. Brother Guyu was holding a transparent object that he had thrust into the man's chest.
He had arrived from somewhere, just in time to save me.
The man didn't have time to say another word before he slowly collapsed to the ground. His teammates were all frozen in shock.
"Have you grown a pair of bear's guts and leopard's hearts?" Brother Guyu asked. "Who gave you permission to grab the hero by the collar and interrogate him?"
It seemed Sister Siwei was right. He was my sword.