Chapter 2752: Night Eater
"If the killer is Mr. Wen, then he should be the greatest danger in this instance, but why does the instance players' mission seem completely unrelated to him?" the Gourmet asked, puzzled. "Based on the players' current behavior, their key to clearing the instance seems to lie with other players."
If the players were targeting Mr. Wen, then Xu Huo and his group's mission would likely be to protect Mr. Wen. But if the instance players' key to clearing wasn't related to Mr. Wen, then their side mission had a different nature entirely. This was a B-rank instance side mission—it couldn't possibly be about protecting the estate's property.
"It seems 'Hero's Dignity' means something different from what we understood," the Scholar said.
"Let's find someone to ask," Xu Huo suggested.
The guests from last night's banquet had stayed at the estate and would surely be wandering around during the day. The group was also in the garden pavilion when they spotted someone passing by in the distance. Xu Huo waved them over.
The two people who had failed their sneak attack last night and slunk back to their rooms came over with stiff expressions. "What is it?"
"We'd like to ask about the instance situation," Xu Huo said, gesturing for them to sit down. His tone was very gentle. "None of us are players in this instance, but we can't leave the estate for now. If your instance doesn't conflict with ours, we won't interfere with your clearance."
"And if there is a conflict?" the other person asked. He had nearly been killed last night, and now his look at Xu Huo held more anger than fear.
Xu Huo gave a slight smile. "Then it depends on your luck."
The two were furious but dared not speak out. They could only explain the basic situation of the instance.
Although it was unclear whether they were hiding more specific details, they generally made things clear.
This was an assassination instance. Every player could become an assassin. The conditions for the assassin identity to shift were unclear for now, but throughout the entire instance, there would always be one assassin. Killing that assassin was the clearance requirement.
Additionally, this instance had a time limit.
"Since there's only one assassin at a time, and it's a timed instance, the difficulty isn't just in finding the real assassin," the Gourmet said sharply. "No wonder players started killing each other last night."
Since there was only one assassin, rather than waiting for the role to fall on them, it was better to seize the initiative and kill other opponents. The fewer players remained, the easier it would be to identify the assassin. After all, only one person could clear the instance in the end.
"The assassin's mission is pretty simple," the Scholar said.
"Simple?" the first person said. "The assassin's target is the estate owner. Do you think killing him is easier than killing other players?"
Not to mention Lady Tihui and the butler, but even the sickly-looking Mr. Wen—who could guarantee he was as weak as he appeared? And he was very likely the instance holder as well.
In short, unless absolutely necessary, the clearing players would never challenge Mr. Wen.
After the two players left, the Botanist relaxed a bit. "Looks like our side mission is simple—protect Mr. Wen from the assassin."
"As long as no player tries to assassinate Mr. Wen, this instance has nothing to do with us."
The others remained silent.
This instance seemed far too biased toward the holder. Setting up a single assassin—under such conditions, who would still go after Mr. Wen? Since the assassin identity could transfer at any time, why not wait until it shifted to someone else before adjusting factions to clear?
"Are they not telling the whole truth?" the Photographer asked.
"Not necessarily," the Gourmet said. "One of the difficulties of a B-rank instance is information concealment. They might not even know everything themselves. They're just trying to eliminate opponents as quickly as possible to clear. After all, randomly picking opponents might still hit the right one—why not?"
Another key point was the four other players who had disappeared without a trace last night. If they had really been killed by Mr. Wen, at such a high frequency, the remaining players would be in grave danger. Clearing as soon as possible was the best strategy.
"We're in the estate too. Could we also become targets of Mr. Wen's attacks?" the Photographer added.
"It might not be Mr. Wen," Xu Huo said. "Lady Tihui and the butler are also possibilities."
This instance was somewhat similar to the original Rose Castle instance. The only difference was probably the power level. If the instance holder could also control the instance venue, hunting players would be far too easy.
"I'm not coming out at night anymore," the Photographer said in a strange tone.
"Better not to," Xu Huo glanced at him.
The Photographer frowned but said nothing. He pushed aside his teacup and left.
The remaining few also had their own thoughts and got up one after another to leave the garden.
Xu Huo knew what they were thinking. They wanted to take advantage of the other people in the estate being distracted by the instance players to try and obtain the souvenirs they needed. It was risky, but it was also an opportunity.
Having done so many instances, players had some understanding of game mechanics. Although every instance appeared fair on the surface, there were never fewer traps along the player's path to clearance. Sometimes, the game would even deliberately use such methods to wear players down.
But that didn't mean instances were absolutely biased toward the holder. In many instances, there were conditions for the instance boss to kill players. However, the estate instance was abnormal. The setup of a single assassin was practically helping the holder kill the clearing players.
After some thought, Xu Huo went to find Mr. Wen again.
"The master doesn't wish to see guests today," the butler said worriedly.
"Has his condition relapsed?" Xu Huo asked with concern.
The butler sighed slightly. "It's been like this for years. When there are too many people in the estate, he tends to fall ill. I'll pass along your kind intentions, but you probably won't be able to see him for the next couple of days."
Xu Huo offered a few words of comfort and then went to find Harry.
Harry had no psychological burdens and absolutely wouldn't wander around at night. After hearing that Mr. Wen wasn't receiving visitors, he said indifferently, "My cousin is in such poor health. It's normal for him to avoid guests for long periods. As a junior relative, I certainly won't disturb him. You shouldn't either."
"I heard from the butler that Mr. Wen gets sick when there are too many people in the estate. Why hold last night's banquet?" Xu Huo asked.
Harry laughed. "You don't understand. Necessary socializing in high society is required. My cousin had quite a say in the government when he was younger. Although he has no descendants, he has plenty of relatives and friends. It's normal to gather and have fun every once in a while."
"Do you know about the citizenship permissions in District 022? Generally, being able to enter any non-restricted area in the entire district is just B-rank permission. My cousin has A-rank permission. He can get into some key government offices just by saying the word..."
At this point, he made no effort to hide his thoughts. "If only my cousin's will had a share for me."
Don't let your cousin hear that.
Harry didn't care about Xu Huo's strange look at all. Instead, he said, "It's not like I'm going to kill or set fires for the inheritance. I just crave the favor of my elders. Besides, I take time every year to visit him. I give first. Whether he wants to leave me some inheritance depends on his mood. It's just a blood-relative interaction. When I get old, it'll be the same."
After listening to his peculiar theory about maintaining family relationships and obtaining inheritance, Xu Huo left before afternoon tea. As he came down from upstairs, a bloody smell wafted from the fourth-floor corridor. He turned and gently pushed open the corresponding door:
A grotesque, bloody scene assaulted his senses before the stronger stench of blood. He didn't know what had happened in this room last night, but at this moment, the carpet, walls, and even the ceiling were covered in dried blood. Some unidentifiable tissue was caught on the decorations, wedged into the corners of the cabinets...