Chapter 2054: Puppet Showroom
No one dared to crash into the display cabinets. The few players who were fighting restrained themselves, so the one who was thrown out used a prop to protect the cabinet in advance. In the end, both the cabinet and the puppets inside only shook slightly.
When they looked up again, the other three had already firmly secured their seats, while the others at the table had also used props to protect their own seats. Hearing obvious footsteps coming from the corridor on No. 1's side, this player quickly stood up, conjured a chair out of thin air, placed it at the end of the dining table, and sat down.
Thus, all twenty-five outsiders were seated at the dining table.
The master of the castle was a person draped in a cloak with dark patterns. The brim of the hood covered the top of his head, and his face appeared as a patch of black. It wasn't that the light in the dining room was insufficient to see his face—the lamps had been turned on when the four servants arrived—but a prop effect had completely hidden his features in darkness. No matter the angle or how good one's eyesight was, no facial characteristics could be seen.
His hands were also covered by gloves. One could only roughly determine from his height and movements that he was a sturdy male.
No. 2 pulled out the chair for the castle master. After sitting down, he surveyed the people at the table. His gaze lingered briefly on the end of the table, then shifted away, paused on the Painting Woman, and finally returned to the center of the table. He nodded slightly to signal the servants to serve the food.
No. 1 rang a bell, and dinner officially began.
No. 3 and No. 4 pushed the dining cart over. Dishes were laid out in order, along with wine.
The Puppet Maker didn't speak either. Raising his glass to drink signaled that everyone could pick up their utensils.
The food was exquisite, but aside from the Painting Woman, everyone else ate absentmindedly, especially the one who hadn't secured a seat. The castle master didn't speak—whether he couldn't speak or didn't want to converse was unknown. If a guest spoke first, would it be disrespectful to the host?
The Puppet Maker didn't like disobedient people. Did this "disobedience" include speaking at the dinner table?
The players hesitated, deliberated, and made no move for a long time. But in this world, there were always true warriors. The Painting Woman tapped on her communicator a few times, then asked the castle master, "The puppets in your cabinets are very beautiful. Can I take a look?"
The entire table fell silent for a moment. Then, under the Puppet Maker's signal, No. 1 spoke, "You may view them through the cabinets, but please do not touch them, as they are the master's particularly beloved puppets."
"I also make paper figures and paper frogs. Can I trade with you?" the Painting Woman continued to ask.
Still, No. 1 replied, "No. The puppets placed in the display cabinets are not for sale."
The Painting Woman looked a bit disappointed, but the other players understood. That is, the "satisfactory puppets" selected before today could not become the puppets players needed to clear the instance. If they wanted to clear it, they could only take one of the puppets made by the Puppet Maker after entering this instance.
Theft was clearly not an option. Not to mention whether "malice toward the puppets" was included, the Puppet Maker, as the owner, certainly wouldn't like someone stealing from his home. And since he had absolute control over the castle, this meant the entire castle might be a large-scale location prop. Not only that, but the Puppet Maker might not only control the castle but also be fully aware of everything happening within it.
If the Puppet Maker could easily learn the players' movements, judging whether they were "obedient" or "disobedient" would be very simple.
Theft was impossible, robbery even less so, and proposing a trade wasn't a good idea either, because the players couldn't determine what might pique the Puppet Maker's interest. Under these circumstances, the only option was to give gifts.
Probably not liking to stop and talk during meals, No. 1 didn't answer the Painting Woman's questions afterward.
The meal was finished with trepidation. After the Puppet Maker stood up and left, No. 2 said to everyone, "After dinner, you may freely tour the castle, but please be careful not to casually touch the puppets in the display cabinets. Later, we will prepare rooms for you. If any guests wish to rest now, please speak up, and No. 4 will take you to your rooms first."
It was the perfect time to gather information, so how could anyone leave first? After briefly asking where the two corridors led, everyone chose to tour the main castle.
The dining room was actually in the main castle. Passing through the corridor on the other side of the head of the table led to an open lounge. Walking through it and opening the door, straight ahead was a wide, long corridor. Its scale rivaled that of a palace; speaking a word even produced an echo.
On one side of the corridor were arched windows and a terrace, while on the other were closed rooms. The room in the very center was the castle master's workshop, which guests were not allowed to visit. The rooms on either side were accessible: one was a display room specifically for puppets, and the other was a painting studio.
Xu Huo and the others came from the painting studio side. Most of the finished works in the studio were covered with cloth, and there were two unfinished pieces outside—two human figure paintings, both without faces.
The Painting Woman wasn't so cautious. She walked straight over and lifted the cloth from a painting by the door.
Everyone reflexively looked at No. 2, who was guiding them. Finding that he didn't stop her, they turned to look at the painting frame. It was actually a cartoon cat.
A black cat sat crouched there, staring straight ahead—a painting with absolutely no aesthetic value.
When the Painting Woman was about to lift the second cloth, Xu Huo spoke up, "The paintings aren't worth seeing. Let's go to another room."
This made the Painting Woman and two others who wanted to see more paintings stop. They had seen enough cartoon images in the dining room, and the paintings were probably similar. Most people felt there was no point in looking, though there were always those with itchy hands. As they left, someone casually pulled off a dust cover, revealing a structural diagram of a puppet.
The head, chest and abdomen, hands, and feet—the puppet was divided into six parts in total, with detailed design data written at the connection points.
Some glanced at it and left first, while others stayed to carefully examine the data on the painting. But overall, they didn't linger long and soon headed to the display room.
Although they were prepared, when the door to the display room opened, everyone was still shocked by the sight before them. This display room was at least a hundred meters long and a hundred meters wide. From left to right stood nearly thirty rows of display cabinets, each about ten meters high. The cabinets were divided into five layers, with a puppet placed every half meter on each layer. Looking around, they densely filled the entire field of vision.
"I'm getting claustrophobic," the High Ponytail woman said, covering her eyes. "There must be at least two thousand puppets here."
"Have you noticed," another female player with fluorescent pink short hair said, "the appearances and clothing of these puppets are all different. Could they have been made based on the players who came in?"