My Iyashikei Game

When the phone in the living room rang, the couple stopped moving. The corridor became quiet. The players retreated. Love Cigarette was so scared that he almost fell.

“Finally, a breather.” The three players moved down the stairs.

“Where are you going?” Han Fei grabbed Love Cigarette’s shoulder. “It’s a dead-end whether you go up or down. If we want to leave, we have to go from this way.”

“This way?” Love Cigarette looked around and saw the corridor window.

“Alright. Let’s go home.” Han Fei’s tone slowly changed. His usual silence and coolness disappeared. His expression softened, and he became happier. No matter how tired he was, he would never complain to his family. He was a grown man now. He wanted to be someone his parents could be proud of.

In a few minutes, Han Fei morphed into a different person. He returned to the third floor and looked at the rusted door. The blood leaked out of the door. If the blood were allowed to spread, the blood would corrupt the entire building, and the players would have nowhere to run. However, Han Fei didn’t mind the blood and curse. His eyes only had the happiness of coming home. Han Fei knocked on the door. He remembered the scene when the middle-aged man first opened the door. The anticipation was real, and he didn’t want to disappoint him.

“Mom, Dad, I’m home.” Han Fei didn’t use Cursed Words, but he did have a voice that was kissed by the devil.

The bones scratched the ground. Even if he had become a monster, the middle-aged man still ran to open the door at first notice. He had been waiting for too long. The bulging eyes were bloodshot. The bloated face had bones piercing out of it. His organs were shattered as if he had fallen from a great height. Whenever he moved, blood would spill everywhere.

The middle-aged woman walked out of the kitchen too. Her body bent, and she held a sharp knife. Her mouth constantly moved like she was mumbling.

The room had completely mutated. Many things had rotted.

The players behind Han Fei subconsciously closed their mouths. Just the sight of the couple scared them deeply. Han Fei walked into the room like everything was normal.

Han Fei was highly alert when he first came here, but when he returned, he treated this place like his own home. Bai Xian also tried to act normally, but he couldn’t do it as perfectly as Han Fei.

Han Fei was very glad to see his parents. He shared the things he met at work with the middle-aged man and then gave the woman a hug. In the past, he was not good at expressing himself. He didn’t want to have any regret.

The middle-aged couple seemed to be reminded of something. They didn’t attack Han Fei. The mother entered the kitchen. The father stumbled with his broken body to retrieve a plate of fruits filled with bugs.

“My colleagues have nowhere to go during the new year, so I invited them here. I hope it’s fine.” Han Fei accepted the plate and placed it on the coffee table. The players entered the room nervously. They sat on the couch and were tensed all over.

“It’s a new year, so we shall leave the bad things in the past.” Han Fei held the father’s hand as he helped to serve the food. Then, he rolled up his sleeves and walked to the kitchen. He wanted to help the mother with the cooking but was rejected. The woman complained about how bad of a cook her son was and kept chasing him out. She actually wanted Han Fei to rest. Han Fei knew that. He stayed in the kitchen and shared his work stories with his parents. He wanted to spend as much time as possible with his parents because they had been waiting for a long time for him.

It was very peaceful inside the kitchen, but the living room was covered in darkness. The four remaining players stuck together and didn’t dare to move. They lowered their heads and didn’t dare to meet the middle-aged man’s eyes. They sat on the blood-stained sofa and were served rotten food. It was not that they had no appetite. It was already amazing that they hadn’t vomited.

“Is that guy crazy?” Love Cigarette glanced towards the kitchen. Han Fei appeared to flourish in the dark more than in the light. “How come it feels like he has been living here for a while already?”

Every second was a torment. Eventually, Han Fei came out of the kitchen with the last dish.

“It’s time to eat.”

The group sat around the dining table. No one moved. However, Han Fei seemed to have endless topics. He kept talking to the couple.

To the other players’ shock, the mutated couple liked to listen to Han Fei. They weren’t hostile. They listened quietly and looked at Han Fei with love. Even if they were monsters, they were still waiting for someone to come home. Their mutated faces and scary presence couldn’t change the simple fact that they really loved their child.

It was the eve of the lunar new year. The clock hand on the wall moved. It was about midnight.

Han Fei slowed down. There was a reunion, so there was also a departure. He could feel the mutation in the room weakened.

At the last moment, Han Fei picked up the glass of alcohol and asked the middle-aged couple, “Mom, Dad, I have a stupid question for you.”

The middle-aged couple looked at him. Han Fei’s gaze turned complicated. “If one day I become a ghost, will you still love me?”

Before the couple could answer, the players were stunned first. The humans asked the ghosts if they still would still love him if he became a host.

What kind of situation was this?

Time passed by. The middle-aged couple remembered something. Their faces were reflected in the metallic cutlery. Sometime later, the pair of couple nodded slightly. No matter what their child became, they would always love him.

“For me, my answer to this question is similar to yours.” Han Fei stood up and took out the article about the son’s death from under the coffee table. The wrinkled paper was stained with blood. He placed the article before the couple. “Thank you for waiting for me to come home, but it’s time for me to go. You have to take care of yourselves.”

The middle-aged man gripped the paper until his bones pierced out of his skin. The middle-aged woman held Han Fei’s hand and shook her head as if she didn’t want him to go. Their consciousness fought with nightmares. The lights flickered on and off. Lights seemed to have a special meaning in the nightmare. When the lights went out, the mutation started; When the couple wanted to regain their consciousness, the lights flickered again.

The couple was in deep pain. Their wounds deepened. The nightmare tortured their souls. Han Fei used healing persona and hugged the couple. In the end, the light in the living room came back on. The blood disappeared. The place was warm and bright. No matter where you go, there’s always a light on for you at home.

The mutation was interrupted. The couple found their anchor. The nightmare weaved from their memories started to disperse. The couple looked at the door. Their figures wavered. All their wishes became dreams and entered Han Fei’s body. The clock struck midnight, and the new year had arrived.

…

Opening their eyes, Han Fei and the other four players reappeared inside the hospital. They left the nightmare at the same time. After breaking the third layer, the dream dust on Han Fei’s body was eaten by the tattoo. Other people could rechallenge the nightmare even if they had cleared it, but once Han Fei cleared the nightmare, it would disappear.

Han Fei felt his body changing. “This nightmare becomes my power after I’ve healed it. Mad Laughter is also trying to look for Dream’s weakness through these nightmares.”

“Boss! Thank you for your help!” Love Cigarette bowed. “I can’t repay you. Why don’t I join your guild? I do anything for you.”

“Your intention is so clear.” Hao Xue shook his head. A casual person from the first guild easily beat all of them. Their understanding of the game was not on the same level.

“Han Fei, are you interested in joining us? The merchant union is willing to pay you a lot!” Ah Qi realized that Han Fei was a treasure.

Han Fei ignored them and turned to Bai Xian. “Brother Bai, are you done resting?”

“Huh?” Before Bai Xian could react, Han Fei dragged him forward. Familiar vertigo returned. The grey mist dispersed. Darkness swallowed them, and they appeared at a construction site. Two unfinished buildings were covered in tin sheets. The ground was filled with holes. A rank sewer smell came from the holes.

“The third layer is an apartment building. The fourth layer is two buildings. The size of the nightmare is getting bigger.” Han Fei studied his surroundings. Bai Xian was still stunned. Two minutes ago, he had just left a nightmare, but now he was in another!

“Fourth layer?” Bai Xian shivered. “How urgent are you?”

“Didn’t I ask you haven’t you rested?”

“That was two minutes ago! Even primary school students had 10 minutes to pee!” Bai Xian cried.

“You two look like you have a good relationship. Are you free players?” A chilling voice said. Three players in dark clothes looked at Han Fei and Bai Xian. “The three of us are from Absolute Truth. The fourth layer is very dangerous. If possible, I hope we can stay away from each other so you wouldn’t be our burden.”

The man who spoke was tall. His name was on his clothes, Internet Addict. The meaning in his words was clear.

Absolute Truth was cleared the fourth layer before. Plus, Absolute Truth had many high-level players. Some of them had even gone through training in the cryptic world. Therefore, they came up with several tactical groups quickly.

Han Fei understood this. One was the most afraid of encountering a dead weight in a game like this.

“That’s exactly what I want.” Han Fei smiled. He led Bai Xian to the building on the left. The three Absolute Truth members went to the building on the right.

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