Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 147

Once Wu Nianrou finished doing her makeup, Wu Ren headed downstairs with her.

Having just come out of the game, Wu Ren felt a bit out of sorts. After all, he had gone from the colorful world of Blue Harbor City back to the darkness of the real world and couldn’t immediately adjust.

But he’d been home for a while now, and after twenty years of living blind and being very familiar with this place, he easily found his cane at the doorway. Once the two of them went out, Wu Nianrou no longer had to guide him; he could make his own way down the stairs.

By this time, Wu Nianrou was wearing a wig and a dress, with her makeup exquisitely done. Stepping outside, they were greeted by the neighbors.

“You two siblings going out again?”

“Look how close the Wu siblings are! Not like my two—they fight every single day!”

“Young Nianrou, you’re getting married soon, right? Congratulations!”

“I bet Wu Ren can’t bear to let you go!”

……

This was an old residential complex, and the two had lived here for many years. Unlike a lot of younger folks who didn’t even know their neighbors’ names, Wu Ren and Wu Nianrou were quite familiar with most of the older residents here, greeting them warmly.

Wu Ren said, “Uncle Liu, hearing your voice, you’re even healthier than before!”

Wu Nianrou said, “Auntie Zhang, you look thinner now! One of these days, I want to come do square dancing with you.”

Exchanging greetings along the way, they left the complex and walked down a well-known side street to a restaurant they both liked.

When they were little, it was just a simple roadside eatery.

Over more than a decade, as they grew up, it transformed into a grand restaurant, yet the owner was still the same person, as honest as ever. Every time he saw these longtime customers, the brother and sister, he gave them the best discount.

“The private room you two always take isn’t available this time. Is it okay if we switch you to another one?”

That was how the owner greeted them.

“Wang Ge, you’re treating us like strangers,” Wu Ren said with a laugh.

The owner asked, “The same as usual?”

“The same as usual!” said Wu Ren. Then, leaning on his cane with one hand and linking arms with Wu Nianrou with the other, he entered a smaller private room.

As usual, the food arrived quickly, and soon the table was filled with dishes.

Wu Ren’s blindness made eating a bit inconvenient, so Wu Nianrou naturally peeled shrimp for him. Her manner was entirely habitual, as if she’d been doing it for him all her life.

Each time she placed a freshly peeled shrimp into Wu Ren’s bowl, she would glance at him, eyes alight, as though gazing upon a cherished idol.

Now that she understood her true situation, Wu Nianrou felt only deeper despair.

And the more despair she felt, the more complicated her expression grew when she looked at Wu Ren.

“Brother—”

Wu Nianrou suddenly spoke up just as Wu Ren had a bite of shrimp.

“What is it?” Wu Ren asked.

“I…” Wu Nianrou let out a sigh. “Something has happened to me recently, and I don’t know how to explain it to you. I…”

Hearing this, Wu Ren’s expression grew serious. “Did he bully you?”

It took Wu Nianrou a moment to realize he was referring to her “fiancé”.

She smiled. “No. It’s just… lately I’ve ended up in a strange game.”

The moment he heard this, Wu Ren shot to his feet, accidentally knocking over his bowl. “What did you say?”

Wu Nianrou quickly helped him sit back down, and as she tidied the fallen bowl and chopsticks, she said, “You know how I’ve been working overtime, living in the apartment near my company, hardly coming home to see you. Because of that, I’ve been worried about you. That day, in my apartment, I was thinking I should come back here to check on you… when all of a sudden, a very strange watch appeared on my nightstand.”

She paused, then looked at Wu Ren’s left wrist. “Brother, even though our watches look really different, you… wouldn’t also happen to—”

Wu Ren groped in the air until he found her hand, then gripped it tightly. Frowning with concern, he asked, “Tell me exactly what’s going on.”

“I picked it up and heard a voice asking me—did I want a wish granted? A wish? Of course I did. I want your eyesight restored.

“Brother, you’re always urging me to get married, but if I do, who’ll take care of you? I can’t bring myself to leave you alone. So I…”

Wu Nianrou hesitated, then asked, “From the look on your face, and the fact that you have a watch too, I’m guessing you’ve known about this game for a while?”

After a long silence, Wu Ren let out a heavy sigh.

He buried his face in his hands, looking infinitely remorseful. “I wanted you to have a normal life… not be influenced by me. That’s why I didn’t tell you. But I never expected you’d end up in that game too. You… ah, if only I’d told you sooner, warned you never to get involved! It’s too dangerous!”

“It’s okay. I’ve had decent luck.” Wu Nianrou held his hand. “Once I got into the game, I met someone pretty powerful and stuck with him. Whenever we entered harder instances, we never went for hidden achievements—just cleared them fast to grind experience.”

That startled Wu Ren. “Your level’s already pretty high?”

“Yes, I’m about to reach S-level,” Wu Nianrou said. “I’ve done over twenty instances, and I’m finally close. It hasn’t been easy… Oh, I specialize in long-range attacks. My logic is, if I fight from a distance, I can still run away if things go badly. See? Your sister’s as clever as ever.

“I just don’t know what happens after S… The system’s been pushing me to hurry into the next instance. I have a feeling it’s dangerous, and I decided… I’d better tell you first. So if anything happens to me, at least you’d know. Right, Brother—what level are you?”

“I’m already S. Right now I’m exploring how to keep advancing. After S, you can take the Shepherd route—or other paths—but lots of people are confused and don’t know what comes next.”

Wu Ren continued, “Fortunately, I found a very dependable team. We’ve formed a legion to open up new territory in this game. It’s better than doing it alone. Once you reach S, I’ll bring you in!”

He went on, “I’m even the legion commander!”

Facing his little sister, Wu Ren couldn’t bring himself to say he was merely a figurehead. He still wanted to savor her admiration for a bit before telling her the truth.

Sure enough, Wu Nianrou’s eyes brimmed with admiration when she looked at him, though on closer inspection, a certain strange gleam seemed to lurk there.

Sadly, Wu Ren couldn’t see it.

He promptly asked, “When are you going into that next instance? In the next couple of days?”

“Yeah. My time limit’s almost up. I was waiting for that top-tier teammate of mine, but I haven’t been able to reach him lately…” Wu Nianrou frowned, her tone turning uneasy.

Wu Ren immediately said, “I’ll go with you. Which instance is it? I probably can’t access anything under S-rank, but if we form a master-disciple bond, there are some instances I can lead you through. I can check and see.”

Wu Nianrou opened her system panel. “Huh? Looks like we really can match a master and disciple. Let’s give it a shot?”

Wu Ren said, “Yes, let’s try. After we finish eating, I’ll help you clear that instance. I’m sure it’ll be fine. Once you clear it, you’ll be S. And I happen to have an entry ticket to Blue Harbor City. I can introduce you to my friends. Right, what’s the name of the instance?”

“Let me see… It’s called Pink Story,” Wu Nianrou replied.

After a moment, Wu Ren said, “Strange. I can’t find any information about it.”

Being blind in the real world, Wu Ren had a unique way of searching for info—by laying the palm of his right hand on his left wrist, letting him directly access the system interface in his mind.

Double-checking and still finding nothing, Wu Ren said, “It might be a specialized instance unlocked just for your particular skill set and personal traits, so we can’t see it on our end.

“Okay, so let’s become master and disciple, and you be party leader. Then pull me into it.

“Those specialized instances can be really tough, so it’s a good thing you told me in time. If you barged in alone and got matched with some unreliable teammates, the consequences could be disastrous.”

“Mm! With you around, Brother, I’m never worried!” Wu Nianrou smiled and started peeling another shrimp for him. “Eat first, or it’ll get cold.”

They finished their meal and hurried back to the residential complex so Wu Ren could help her clear the instance.

Midway, though, Wu Nianrou guided him in a different direction.

“What’s wrong, Nianrou?” Wu Ren asked.

“Before I leave… I want to visit our old school,” she answered.

Wu Ren was a few years older than Wu Nianrou, so ordinarily they wouldn’t have been in the same grade.

Plus, he should have attended a special school for people with disabilities.

But since Wu Nianrou wanted to take care of him, Wu Ren intentionally repeated a grade so they could attend high school together and graduate together.

In those circumstances, she had to put in far more effort than most, helping him navigate a normal school curriculum despite his blindness.

Fortunately, because of their family’s situation, the teachers were sympathetic and arranged for special accommodations for Wu Ren’s exams.

“Our school?” Wu Ren was slightly surprised. “I thought you didn’t like our alma mater.”

His expression turning serious and guilty, he added, “If it weren’t for me… you wouldn’t have had to deal with people’s ridicule.”

Wu Ren remembered perfectly how, because of him, Wu Nianrou was often mocked by classmates, leaving her friendless.

Among girls, going to the restroom in groups was common, yet nobody ever asked Wu Nianrou to join them. She was always alone, never befriending anyone.

Moreover, the things Wu Ren overheard people saying about his sister didn’t match the sister he knew at all.

Some said she was withdrawn, some said she was fierce, others said she was noisy, overbearing, outgoing, and lively…

Some even thought his sister had a mental illness.

In time, Wu Ren cut himself off from everyone else. As far as he was concerned, he and his sister only needed each other.

On their way to school, Wu Nianrou asked him, “Brother, back then, what did you think of me?”

Wu Ren answered, “I used to say, ‘Why should you care what they think? Aren’t the two of us getting by just fine?’ I really have no regrets in this life. My only regret is that I couldn’t be with you from the start.”

Wu Nianrou said nothing, just looked at him briefly and continued guiding him forward.

Moments later, they arrived at their old high school.

The second she stepped onto campus, Wu Nianrou said, “You’re right. I never did pay attention to anybody else. As long as the two of us siblings are happy, that’s enough. So… even if I didn’t get along with anybody else here, we still shared our high school years. Whenever I think of those days, it makes me happy.

“Mm… I was willing to come back to our alma mater, to revisit the past.”

At the end of that sentence, her voice sank a little.

Wu Ren didn’t sense anything amiss, merely patted her on the shoulder with a smile. “I get it. You’re nervous about going into a difficult instance, right? Don’t worry, I’m here. There won’t be any problems. And if you ever want to come back, you can—any time. We’re already here now, so let’s walk around a bit… oh, the lotus flowers should be blooming by now, right?”

“Mm. Let’s go see the lotus pond. I’ll describe what I see for you,” Wu Nianrou said, voice growing quieter and quieter. “I always want to be my brother’s eyes.”

—But sadly, I can’t do it anymore.

……

Wu Ren was eight when he first met his “younger sister”.

His parents had divorced when he was small. He stayed with his father, while Ke Yuxiao stayed with his mother.

Wu Ren had never heard of Ke Yuxiao and always assumed he had a younger sister.

Even Wu Ren’s father believed all along that he had a daughter, not a son.

Unlike Wu Ren and his father, who knew nothing, Ke Yuxiao—who lived with his mother—knew the whole story.

His father’s family clung to feudal beliefs, placed extreme importance on having a male heir, and deeply discriminated in favor of sons over daughters.

Under those circumstances, even though Wu Ren’s mother gave birth to a boy, because he was blind and “defective,” he still failed to satisfy the Wu family’s expectations. She was forced to conceive again.

While pregnant with her second child, she and Wu Ren’s father were at odds more fiercely than ever.

At her wits’ end with all the family’s demands and restrictions, she was desperate for divorce.

Her husband’s family wouldn’t agree, claiming that because she was pregnant, they wouldn’t let her leave. So, out of frustration, she lied that the fetus was a girl. Ironically, that lie was what made them finally relent. Furious and disheartened, she walked away from the Wu family with that lie hanging in the air.

Wu Ren initially learned he had a younger sister he’d never met, so he wasn’t very attached to her.

As for Ke Yuxiao, he felt no bond with Wu Ren either.

Then came a pivotal moment when Ke Yuxiao’s mother fell seriously ill and needed money.

By then, the Wu family had basically forgotten about her and Ke Yuxiao and didn’t care at all.

But for some reason, Wu Ren’s grandmother, who might have secretly kept track of the existence of a “granddaughter” all this time, stated that if Wu Ren’s mother returned that granddaughter, she would be willing to pay for the medical treatment.

At that time, Ke Yuxiao was terrified.

He feared his mother would die, feared that he’d have no one left, feared that he would end up on the streets.

Because of what Wu Ren’s grandmother said, that divorced couple was about to meet again, and Ke Yuxiao would soon meet his older brother Wu Ren.

He was overwhelmed with anxiety—what could he do to meet their expectations?

If they realized his mother had lied, would they be enraged and leave?

According to his mom, his dad definitely wouldn’t love him… But his brother—he might have a shot with him, right? What kind of younger sister would he like? Probably a sweet, understanding, well-behaved little sister. Right—his brother was blind. He needed a sister who could take care of him…

If they found out he was a strange, ill-tempered boy, would they abandon him?

No! They can’t abandon me! They can’t learn Mom lied to them!!

If Mom dies… I’m still so young, and I’d be begging on the street!

What should I do…

After half a month of anxious insomnia, Ke Yuxiao discovered someone else inside his body.

—A gentle, well-behaved, thoughtful “little sister” who would certainly please his brother and devote herself to taking care of him, who regarded him as her entire world.

Her name was Wu Nianrou.

She was created by Ke Yuxiao to please Wu Ren and his father, to ensure this body wouldn’t starve on the streets.

Her personality was designed to be completely perfect.

Her mind was simple, and her world was small.

—All she wanted was to look after her brother.

She would spend her entire life taking good care of him.

That way, she would never be abandoned.

……

After leaving the school, Wu Ren took Wu Nianrou home.

They went into the living room, locked the door, sat together on the sofa, and then entered the game.

When Wu Ren opened his eyes, he saw a pink-tinted world.

The farther he walked, the more off everything seemed—there were many players coming and going, and… this wasn’t some special instance at all. It looked more like a semi-open instance!

Could it be some legion’s base?!

Wait… What’s that smell?!

He walked down a corridor and beheld rolling hills of peach blossoms.

Wu Ren’s eyes went wide in shock.

He hurriedly called for Wu Nianrou.

“Nianrou? Nianrou, where are you?!”

After a few tries, the person who appeared before him was, incredibly, Ke Yuxiao—who was part of the “Sword Qi & Xiao Heart” duo with Qi Liuxing.

“K—Ke Yuxiao? Wh-what’s going on?” Wu Ren looked him over. “Whoa! Looks like you’re into crossdressing? How come I never knew that before? Does Xiao Qi know you like dressing like this?”

In the next moment, though, Wu Ren heard that hauntingly familiar voice speak, soft and eerie.

“Brother, none of them care about you. Only I do. Only I worry about you and look after you. But now, I’m going to die. I can’t bear for you to suffer alone in this world. I have no choice…

“I’ll kill you. Then we can die together, okay?”

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The author has something to say:

I’d originally planned to write some more about Blue Harbor City, but I ran out of time.

My keyboard kept acting up, which was a headache. Ugh.

Also, each personality can actually be viewed independently.

For example, this Xiao is not that Xiao.

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