Chapter 2060: The Complete Puppet
A clattering sound came from the room with the fluorescent powder, though it was unclear whether she had knocked over any puppet ornaments. However, from the room opposite hers, a faint smell of blood silently wafted out—someone had been killed.
When Xu Huo walked out of the Painting Woman's room, the door to that room also opened at the same time. A long-coated man splattered with blood was pulling off his gloves as he stepped out. Their eyes met, and the long-coated man gave him a slight nod in greeting.
Xu Huo said nothing and returned to his own room.
Nothing else happened for the rest of the night. The next day, when he stepped out of his room, the sweet-faced girl from the room next door was leaning against the doorway waiting for him. Seeing him, she smiled and said, "Oh dear, I heard everything you two said last night."
At the B-rank player level, having some props that could bypass silencing items wasn't surprising.
"Is there a problem?" Xu Huo raised an eyebrow.
"I'm not here to threaten you," the sweet-faced girl continued. "We could cooperate, even if it's just to oppose the castle master."
Xu Huo stared at her steadily.
But the sweet-faced girl just smiled and said, "I don't believe you've never thought about killing the Puppet Maker."
Xu Huo walked toward the dining room. "Setting aside how difficult it would be to kill him, even if you could, how would you clear the instance?"
The sweet-faced girl said nonchalantly, "I don't believe the reward for clearing a B-rank instance could compare to killing a B-rank instance boss."
"You know the rewards aren't equal, so naturally the difficulty isn't equal either," Xu Huo said.
As if she hadn't heard him, the sweet-faced girl quickened her pace and walked ahead of him. "Think it over. Cooperating with me won't do you any harm."
She entered the dining room first, with Xu Huo two steps behind.
Most players had already entered the dining room ahead of him. The earliest to arrive, Zuo Yu, had discovered the first puppet—it belonged to a man with a scar on his forehead. Like the first puppet from yesterday, it was missing its head.
The three who died yesterday had already confirmed that whether the puppet was held by the player themselves, hidden in the luggage compartment, or in the castle master's hands, it didn't affect the outcome of death.
The scarred man picked up his puppet and glanced around at the others. "Who among you wants this puppet?"
Taking someone else's puppet might make you the next target. Although it was already the second day of the instance, the three deaths yesterday hadn't provided any clear clues, and the players didn't dare take the risk.
The scarred man wasn't really trying to give the puppet away either. He simply sat down in the first seat on the right side of the dining table, placing the headless puppet in front of him and staring at it intently.
After breakfast, some players went to the exhibition hall. Upon inspection, they found that no new puppets had been added.
"The two puppets the castle master retrieved yesterday weren't brought in." This left the players puzzled. The puppets placed in the exhibition hall should all belong to players who died in the instance. Logically, the puppets corresponding to those who died yesterday should also be placed there—otherwise, where did so many puppets in the display cabinets come from?
"Could it be that incomplete puppets aren't repaired?" someone suggested.
Yesterday, some had thought the instance task was to retrieve one's own puppet. But if incomplete puppets wouldn't appear in the display cabinets, that meant they wouldn't become "satisfactory" puppets for the castle master. Did this imply that if a puppet appeared incomplete from the start, it could never be repaired into a "satisfactory" puppet? If so, even if they stayed in the instance for half a month or a month, it would be hard to wait for a second batch of "satisfactory puppets"!
Retrieving one's own puppet was almost impossible. Would they have to steal someone else's?
"If it comes down to stealing, what's the difference from directly stealing a puppet from the display cabinet?" the long-coated man said.
That was true. If it were feasible, wouldn't stealing a puppet clear the instance?
"I wonder who the second puppet today will belong to?" the sweet-faced girl murmured.
Everyone knew what had happened in each room last night. The most likely candidates at the moment were the Painting Woman, the fluorescent powder girl who had knocked over the puppet ornaments, the long-coated man who had killed someone, and Xu Huo.
Although Xu Huo hadn't directly damaged anything in the castle, his conflict with the fluorescent powder girl had led to her breaking the puppet. Whether the castle master would hold him accountable was hard to say.
The group returned to the dining room, where some players were already pressing the scarred man about what he had done over the past two days.
The scarred man wasn't as easygoing as the Painting Woman. To anyone who asked, he only had one answer: "Aside from the tableware, food, bed, and bathroom, I haven't touched anything else."
Someone who liked to argue immediately pointed out his oversights—like chairs and door handles, which he absolutely couldn't have avoided touching, so they couldn't be excluded from "anything."
In another setting, this might have escalated into a fight, but the scarred man had no mind for it now. He just stared at his puppet.
Soon, the second puppet appeared. It was found in the fluorescent powder girl's room—her puppet.
Her puppet was missing both legs.
The fluorescent powder girl's venomous gaze shot straight at Xu Huo.
Xu Huo gave a faint smile. Once they were away from others, he lowered his voice and said something to her.
The fluorescent powder girl's expression paused, then she looked at him. "Are you sure?"
"It can't hurt to try," Xu Huo said. "You don't have any other options anyway."
The fluorescent powder girl laughed in anger, grinding her teeth. "Fine. If I get through this, I'll be sure to thank you properly!"
"You're welcome." Xu Huo turned and left.
Not long after, the third puppet of the day appeared. Unexpectedly, this time the puppet was complete, but it didn't belong to the most likely candidates—it belonged to the player named Zuo Yu.
The puppet appeared in the hallway leading from the dining room to the exhibition hall, so it was immediately spotted by several players in the dining room. Several of them instinctively lunged for it—a complete puppet had the highest chance of becoming a "satisfactory puppet." Whether to steal it to clear the instance or to prevent others from doing so, everyone wanted to grab it!
But just as various prop effects landed on the puppet, a small portal opened in the ground. The puppet dropped straight through, and in the next second, it appeared in the hands of Xu Huo, who had flashed into the dining room.
Zuo Yu, who had rushed over, widened his eyes at the sight. "Wait, wait! I can trade props or anything else I have with you. Whatever you want, just don't damage the puppet!"
If Xu Huo damaged the puppet, he might only end up with a corresponding incomplete puppet the next day, but Zuo Yu's fate would be sealed!
The long-coated man and the sweet-faced girl also arrived at the dining room. Seeing the puppet in Xu Huo's hands, they paused, then their expressions darkened.
But Xu Huo simply looked at the puppet, then walked over to Zuo Yu and handed it back to him. "The puppet is well-made."
Zuo Yu, stunned and hesitant, reached out. Only when he was sure Xu Huo really intended to give it back did he grab it, saying gratefully, "Thank you so much."
Xu Huo glanced back at the varied expressions in the dining room and added, "Keep it safe."