[Blackening Value: 97%]
This number was like a poisoned needle, piercing right into Lynn’s eyeball.
The more innocent she acted, the more his scalp crawled.
The group set off again.
Mist-Hidden Village wasn’t large, and over the past few days, they had practically turned over every inch of the town.
Lynn was in the lead, holding an “Energy Detector” he had cobbled together from alchemy materials, pretending to guide the way.
The pointer on the detector just swung wildly based on the shaking of his wrist.
“The direction is south.”
Lynn pointed towards the Mining Ruin south of the town, feigning calm.
“We were just there yesterday.”
Vivian’s voice turned cold.
“There was nothing but bats and worthless ore.”
“Energy fluctuations can move!” Lynn blurted out in a moment of desperation.
“Maybe it wasn’t there yesterday, but it is today!”
Vivian’s brow furrowed into a knot.
She looked at Lynn, remaining silent for a good ten seconds.
That silence was more oppressive than any interrogation.
“Fine.”
She finally uttered just one word.
“One more time. If there are no results today…”
She didn’t finish, but the threat was clear.
The atmosphere in the group grew heavy.
Ignis had long lost interest in this tedious treasure hunt.
She spent the journey chasing butterflies or flicking pebbles by the roadside with her tail.
Alicia followed behind, holding the Holy Scripture, softly reciting scriptures under her breath as if nothing around her mattered.
Lilith stuck close to Lynn, chattering away about trivial childhood matters, acting like a carefree little sister.
But Lynn felt as if thorns were pricking his back.
He knew his lie was like a balloon being blown bigger and bigger, ready to pop and shatter at any moment.
They arrived at the Mining Ruin.
It was cold and damp, the air thick with the smell of rust and dust.
Vivian took the lead, drawing her Longsword and walking straight into the deepest mine shaft.
Her movements were decisive, without a hint of hesitation, clearly intending to verify Lynn’s claim in the most direct way possible.
Alicia stayed at the entrance; she disliked such filthy places and simply stood in the sunlight, waiting quietly.
Lynn breathed a sigh of relief.
What he feared most was Vivian’s direct questioning.
“Brother, let’s go look over there?”
Lilith tugged his sleeve, pointing to a small stream beside the ruins.
“Okay.”
Right now, Lynn just wanted to get as far away from that deadly mine shaft as possible.
The two of them went to the stream.
The water was clear, and the pebbles at the bottom were visible.
Lilith took off her shoes, stepping barefoot into the water, letting out a series of silvery laughs.
“Brother, look, fish!” she called out cheerfully.
Lynn stood on the bank, preoccupied.
He was thinking about what new excuse he could use to stall Vivian when she came out.
“Brother.”
Lilith suddenly stopped laughing.
She turned around, standing in the stream, looking up at Lynn.
Water droplets slid down her pale calves.
The sweet smile remained on her face.
“Are you looking for this?”
She opened her palm.
Lying quietly in it was an unremarkable Metal Fragment.
That fragment was the most crucial component of Lynn’s so-called “Energy Detector.”
The one he had secretly removed last night, planning to find an opportunity to discard today.
Lynn’s blood ran cold.
When did she…?
“Brother’s pocket has a hole.”
Lilith tilted her head, explaining.
“It fell out by itself this morning when I was mending your clothes.”
She was lying.
Lynn clearly remembered hiding this thing in the inner lining of his undershirt.
She had searched him. Without him knowing.
“Brother, is this little thing the clue to the so-called ‘Holy Artifacts’?”
Lilith’s voice was as soft as a breeze.
“But, it seems… there’s no energy fluctuation on it.”
She held the fragment up to her eyes, examining it closely.
The action was innocent, but her words were like needles dipped in poison.
Lynn couldn’t utter a word.
His mind went blank.
It’s over.
Exposed.
He looked at Lilith, and she looked back at him.
Those pure eyes now reflected Lynn’s own pale, desperate face.
“Brother, you’re lying, aren’t you?”
Lilith finally said it.
Her tone was calm, not an accusation, more like stating a fact she had known all along.
Lynn’s body swayed slightly.
He wanted to explain, to argue, but his throat felt stuffed with cotton, unable to make a sound.
Watching his panicked state, the smile on Lilith’s face grew even brighter.
She walked out of the water, step by step, until she stood right in front of Lynn.
She stood on her tiptoes, leaned close to Lynn’s ear, and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear:
“It’s okay, brother.”
“I’ll keep your secret for you.”
Lynn’s body froze.
“Sister Vivian is a very serious person. If she found out you’ve been lying to her for so long, she’d be very, very angry, right?”
“Sister Alicia too, she hates people who blaspheme the God the most. Calling a piece of scrap metal a ‘Holy Artifact’ is a serious crime, you know.”
Each of her words was like a small hammer, precisely striking Lynn’s most vulnerable nerves.
“But…”
She drew out the word, reaching out a finger to gently tap Lynn’s lips, “as long as brother behaves, I won’t say anything.”
Lynn stared at her.
Under the sunlight, the girl’s smile was innocent and radiant, like a child who had gotten her favorite toy.
And he was that toy.
“Brother,” Lilith pressed the Metal Fragment back into Lynn’s hand, then held his hand, folding his fingers one by one to tightly wrap around the fragment, “you don’t want them to know you’re a liar, do you?”
From the distance, footsteps echoed from the mine shaft.
Vivian was coming out.
Lynn’s heart pounded as if it wanted to leap out of his throat.
Lilith let go, took two steps back, and resumed her guise of the obedient little sister.
She blinked at Lynn, the curve of her lips full of playful amusement.
She had won.
From this moment on, Lynn was no longer her brother.
He was her puppet.
Lynn thought he had narrowly escaped disaster.
Back in the room at the Hot Spring Inn, the air was cold enough to freeze.
Lilith had released his hand, but the playful amusement in her smile unsettled him more than any threat.
The gazes of Vivian and Alicia fell upon him again, a silent scrutiny that was suffocating.
Just then, a flash of white light suddenly streaked across his vision.
[System Notification: Main Quest Refreshed.]
[New Quest: Explore the ‘Old World Remnants’.]
[Quest Description: Deep beneath Mist-Hidden Village, a power forgotten by time is awakening. It is the remnant of an old world’s civilization, and the key to breaking the current deadlock. Enter and explore the depths of the ruins.]
[Quest Reward: Blackening Value temporarily stabilizes.]
[Quest Penalty: Blackening Value for all characters skyrockets to 100%. Worldline converges, entering the ending ‘Yandere Apocalypse’.]
The blinding light temporarily obscured Lynn’s surroundings, but he could hear the sound of Vivian drawing her sword, the rustle of pages as Alicia flipped through her Holy Scripture, Lilith’s short gasp of surprise, and a low growl from Ignis.
The white light faded.
Lynn rubbed his eyes, his vision returning to normal.
The three in the room were also looking at him, their expressions puzzled.
They likely couldn’t see the system notifications.
“What was that?”
Vivian asked, her sword tip pointed at Lynn—or rather, at the ground in front of him, not his body.
“This fluctuation…”
Alicia closed her eyes, sensing something.
Her expression had changed.
Lilith’s smile had also vanished.
She stared at Lynn, her eyes probing.
Lynn’s mind raced.
He understood this was the game system helping him.
Under Lilith’s “blackmail,” his situation was unprecedentedly precarious.
This quest was undoubtedly a lifeline.
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