Chapter 669: Check-In Rules
They planned to stay near the station, but there were no guesthouses in the immediate vicinity, and the shop owners were unwilling to rent them rooms, so they had to search along the side roads.
From a distance, they saw a man around thirty years old sitting in a courtyard. Wei Xian went over to ask if there were any rooms for rent. The man gave them a cold look, tossed aside the wooden carving in his hand, and turned to go inside without a word.
The group exchanged glances. Just then, a young woman with a thick braid walked out of the adjacent kitchen. She said apologetically, "My brother has a bad temper. Don't take it to heart. You're looking to rent a place? Our house isn't taking guests these few days. Go ask further ahead, or try the hotel at the end of the road."
With that, she also went inside, closing and locking the door.
Several households in a row were the same—either already shut up tight with no one answering their calls, or they hurriedly closed their doors upon seeing them, refusing to engage.
"The people here are very strange," Tian Kunwen said. "Aren't they supposed to be warm and hospitable?"
With no other choice, they continued forward. After a while, they came to another house. Before they could call out, the auntie who had ridden in the same carriage with them came out, enthusiastically waving at Fu Danhong. "Young lady, I have a room free at my place."
Behind her, a man stood in the doorway, patting a child to sleep with a lazy rhythm, his eyes shifting between Fu Danhong and Yi Pei.
Fu Danhong linked her arm through Wei Xian's. "I want to stay with my boyfriend."
The auntie waved her hand. "We only have single rooms. Only one person per room."
"How can that be? She doesn't want to be separated from her boyfriend." Fu Danhong put on a clingy act, then said regretfully, "Guess we'll have to find another place."
The auntie smiled. "One guest per household—that's the rule in our county town."
"What kind of crappy rule is that? I've never heard of such a thing!" You Jun boomed. "You want money, right? I'll pay you triple!"
The woman and man in the courtyard were clearly tempted, but after a moment, they still refused. The auntie said, "If you want to stay together, go to the hotel up ahead... That long-haired girl, you don't have a boyfriend, do you? You can stay here. I'll give you a discount."
Yi Pei didn't respond, turning her face away with a look of disgust.
Since this place was a no-go, they moved on to the next house.
But every household said the same thing: they could only accommodate one person at a time. If they wanted to stay together, they'd have to go to the hotel.
You Jun wanted to threaten the homeowners, but Wei Xian stopped him.
"This county town is very abnormal. If we offend the NPCs, we might not only fail to find clues but could also be misled by them," Wei Xian said. "There's no way we can just hide in a room and survive seven days safely."
"Maybe we should check out the hotel," Yi Pei suggested. "The people in this town have ill intentions toward us. I think staying together is safer."
Just then, Tian Kunwen gestured with his chin toward a house not far away. "That person went in."
He was referring to the black-shirted player who hadn't cooperated with them. He was also looking for a place to stay.
"A man of great skill and boldness," Wei Xian remarked. "I don't have the guts to act alone. Let's go to the hotel."
The group unanimously decided on the hotel. However, as they approached the entrance, they were hit by an unusually pungent odor that stung their eyes.
"Damn, is this chemical warfare?!" You Jun covered his mouth and nose, quickly backing away.
"Sorry, sorry! The hotel is being disinfected. The smell is a bit strong right now, but it'll fade soon." A manager wearing a gas mask came out. "Do you need rooms?"
The group hesitated, but Xu Huo had lost patience. He put on a protective mask, walked into the hotel, and requested a room.
The other players followed. They initially planned to squeeze into one room, but the manager said meaningfully, "One person per room, for everyone's good."
In the end, each person took a single room—three upstairs and three downstairs. Just as they were about to head up, two panicked people rushed down from the stairwell and slapped their room keys on the front desk. "Checkout!"
These two were also players. They glanced briefly at the keys in Xu Huo's group's hands, dropped the line "I advise you not to stay here," and left the hotel.
"Players who arrived earlier," Tian Kunwen and the others exchanged looks. Just then, another player emerged from the side, leaning against the wall as he watched the two retreating figures. "Two idiots. What's different about this town? At least the hotel is somewhat safe."
After speaking, he smiled at Xu Huo's group, then turned and went back to his room.
Wei Xian hurried after him. "Hey, friend! Let's chat!"
The man stopped. "I know what you want to ask, but I've only been here a day earlier. I don't know the specifics. One thing I'm sure of, though: staying in the hotel is definitely safer than staying in a guesthouse. Believe it or not."
Wei Xian took another step, wanting to ask more, but the man slammed the door shut as soon as he entered his room.
"What's going on?" Wei Xian returned. "Are they telling the truth or not?"
"Probably both are true," Tian Kunwen said. "Just based on their own experiences. But for now, it seems the hotel and guesthouses aren't much different. Let's stay without worry."
Their rooms were on the second and third floors. The hotel had no elevator, so they took the stairs. As they climbed, You Jun said, "Why are players entering the same instance at different times? Doesn't that create an information gap?"
"The instance difficulty has increased," Yi Pei said, walking slowly. "Not only is the instance itself dangerous, but players who entered earlier might give false information to later arrivals. In a survival instance, as long as not everyone dies together, the early arrivals can trick the later ones to shift the danger."
"The instance boss won't kill everyone outright. They have to follow the game rules."
"So that means we don't know how many players are in this town right now," Wei Xian shook his head. "Other players might even attack us."
It would be best to stay in groups for mutual protection.
"Three people is the safest. How about we form groups freely?" Fu Danhong suggested.
"You guys do what you want. I'll stay alone." Xu Huo spoke up, walking straight to the first room near the stairs.
"Shouldn't we discuss it more?" Wei Xian quickly said. "Staying together is better for looking out for each other. That was the point of cooperating."
Xu Huo had already opened the door. He paused and said, "The guesthouses require one-on-one stays, and the hotel also recommends one person per room. I don't know the reason, but splitting up spreads out the risk."
"Staying alone could also trigger danger," Yi Pei said.
"Both solo and group stays have risks." Xu Huo didn't believe that more people meant safety. The background indicated this city had religious customs. The woman who invited Fu Danhong was tempted by You Jun's offer of triple the price but still refused—this was likely tied to religious practices. Whether it was genuine faith or forced compliance, it at least showed that in this town, players staying alone was an explicit rule.
The game's rules weren't necessarily beneficial to players, but before judging the pros and cons, one had to consider who made the rules.