It's Not a Life Simulator, I Told You! Part 4

A strong hand grabbed his arm as he reached for the car door, his slender limb like a brittle twig in their grip.

"Don't be afraid, child."

A gentle voice sounded beside him. He shifted his gaze, meeting the slightly smiling eyes.

"We will protect you."

It sent a chill down his spine.

Chapter 4: Hiding Sin Beneath Shadow and Night

"Priest, you're getting careless these days, letting two children escape from you... Aren't they going to kick you out from upstairs?"

The police officer standing beside the Priest looked at Xi Wang, who was struggling in the police car not far away, and smiled indifferently. He took out a cigarette from his pocket and offered it to the Priest as a courtesy, asking if he wanted one.

"That child is mine now."

The Priest waved his hand, indicating he didn't smoke. He looked at Xi Wang, who could no longer resist and was being pulled out of the police car by other officers grabbing his wrists, and said with a light laugh.

"Is that so? Those greedy perverts were willing to leave him for you? How rare."

The police officer was indifferent. He had only asked out of politeness. He put the cigarette in his mouth, then took out a few more cigarettes and handed them to the colleagues following him. He then lit his cigarette with practiced ease and took a contented drag.

"But you're lucky today. Our nosy chief was sent home to rest by us... He was working overtime every day recently. If he were here, you'd really be in trouble. He's a stubborn mule."

"Is that so... It seems heaven is also looking out for us."

"Don't say 'us,' just 'you'."

The police officer waved his hand dismissively, seemingly uninterested.

"Heh heh..."

"Alright, stop laughing, it's disgusting..."

The police officer looked at Xi Wang, who was being held by his colleagues. He watched as Xi Wang went from struggling to giving up, and finally to a calm that was like despair. He then curled his lip and looked at the Priest.

"Hand it over, or we won't let him go."

"Of course, I won't mistreat you for your help this time."

The Priest seemed prepared. He brought the boy, who had been keeping his head down the entire time and didn't dare to look at Xi Wang, back into the church. When he came out again, he was carrying a briefcase.

"Woohoo~"

Several police officers suddenly let out cheerful whistles.

"It's cash this time, that's much more convenient~"

"There should be a good amount after splitting it."

"…………"

Xi Wang remained silent, only feeling a slight crack in his image of the "police officer who would definitely help him"...

No, they are different... Xi Wang's mind suddenly produced another thought, and he managed to mend the image that was about to shatter.

"It's quite a lot."

He skillfully took the briefcase, checked the full cash inside, and nodded in satisfaction before signaling his colleagues to let Xi Wang go.

"Of course, we won't mistreat you. After all... we still need your help to cover things up."

The Priest smiled as he took Xi Wang. He smiled even more with satisfaction when he noticed that Xi Wang's wrists were tied with ropes.

"I'll trouble you for the next period of time~ If you find any 'bad children' sneaking away, please bring them back so we can educate them properly~"

"Tch..."

The police officer curled his lip, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with the Priest's words, and simply signaled his colleagues to leave.

Until all the police cars were gone, none of the officers looked at Xi Wang again, nor did they look back.

Not a single one.

"...Alright, now it's time for our business. Don't you agree, 'Hope'?"

The Priest looked down, smiling, and gently patted Xi Wang's head as usual.

"…………"

"That's what I like most about you... You're obedient and can recognize your current situation well, not putting up any... pointless and boring resistance. You're much better than the children before."

The Priest said gently as he dragged Xi Wang towards the inner part of the church.

"It's precisely because of this that you're interesting. It's precisely because of this that I kept you from those guys."

He didn't head towards the resting area but towards the place further back, the one called the 'warehouse.'

He opened the locked door, revealing an almost sealed... 'warehouse.'

It was very dark, incredibly dark, feeling darker than the night outside. The only few windows were sealed shut with thick wooden boards and iron bars, with only faint cracks through which even moonlight had to squeeze itself in tightly.

"Ah... what a mess, I forgot this place hasn't been cleaned in a long time."

The Priest seemed a little troubled, but he didn't seem to care.

He simply brought Xi Wang inside, turned on the lights, revealing the slightly spacious interior.

The room contained only a rather shabby mattress, which seemed to have been unused for a long time, and had been gnawed at by rats from who-knows-where.

This didn't seem to be a [warehouse] at all...

Instead, it was a place that resembled a prison more than the ["Bad Child's Room"].

"I'm sorry, but from now on, this will be your room."

The Priest locked the door behind him, pushed Xi Wang onto the dilapidated mattress, and slowly, gently, untied the ropes binding Xi Wang's hands, bit by bit, as he spoke.

"Please don't resent the police officers who brought you back. After all, our area isn't very wealthy, and they need to make a living."

"...Of course, I don't think you care about that right now. You're more concerned about why I seem to be so prepared, aren't you?"

With a hint of showing off, or perhaps some kind of wicked amusement, the Priest said with a smile.

"..."

"You seem to have guessed it... Such a clever child, I like that."

Seeing that Xi Wang didn't move, the Priest's smile widened.

"Just as you guessed, Wright and the others told me."

However, the Priest still spoke, as if out of wicked amusement, wanting to tear off the last fig leaf, using his usual gentle tone, as if never angered.

"You didn't mishear, it was [them]."

He even emphasized it.

"The moment you spoke of this plan, this idea, I already knew."

In other words, every move he made was seen by the Priest, and the so-called [companions] only came to help him at the Priest's behest.

That's why Wright volunteered so eagerly back then, and why that child looked so guilty.

"But, don't resent them either. They're very sad too... Many children are afraid of pain, so I promised them that as long as they cooperate with me, capture you, and lock you up, I won't touch them for a while. After all... I have a better target now~"

He put the thin rope that had bound Xi Wang into his pocket, reached out, and pinched his cheek, forcing him to look up at him.

His eyes were still as clear as a calm lake, which was precisely what the Priest liked the most – to break this calmness, to create ripples on the surface, and to paint it with the colors he desired.

"...So, will you keep your promise?"

But he only asked calmly, without any fluctuation, as if he hadn't been disturbed by the Priest's previous words.

"..."

This time, it was the Priest who fell silent. He didn't see any resentment or complaint in Xi Wang's eyes, only... calmness, as if he had accepted the current situation.

"I really hope you can remain this calm later... but I think you will, won't you?"

But soon, the Priest smiled again, still smiling gently, but his actions were not gentle – he squeezed Xi Wang's cheek hard, turning it to the side, and then slapped him hard from the opposite direction, leaving a bright red mark.

"After all, you are mine now."

It seemed the Priest wasn't as incapable of anger as he appeared.

"We have a very, very long time to spend together from now on."

The Priest got up and walked towards the door, not imposing any restrictions on Xi Wang, as if he wasn't worried about him escaping, or perhaps... he had other ideas?

"Oh, right."

When he reached the door, the Priest seemed to remember something, turned back to look at Xi Wang, who was still standing in place without any movement, a hint of disappointment flashed in his eyes, but he quickly revealed a smile, a smile that was clearly gentle, but in Xi Wang's eyes, it was exceptionally malicious.

"Keeping promises and such is impossible. [Breaking promises] is something adults like us do most often... Moreover, you don't have the right to negotiate with me, do you, [Xi Wang, the bad child who tried to escape and slander the benefactor who fed and housed you]?"

He smiled, then slammed the door shut with a bang, locked it, and turned off the power. Hearing the muffled thud from the other side of the door, he left with satisfaction.

"Ahhh... So, which [bad child] shall I punish today? Hmm... Let's go with Wright. After all, [betraying a friend] is not something a good child should do~"

The Priest chuckled softly, deliberately speaking loud enough for Xi Wang to hear through the door, before heading towards the "bad child's" house.

You must know, it wasn't even dawn yet~

[Because of your friend's betrayal, you were captured and locked in a place that resembled a prison even more by the Priest.]

[Although you guessed all of this, you don't resent your friend, because you know that for children, pain is often unacceptable. If they can push that pain onto others and avoid experiencing it themselves, they will surely do it. After all... it hurts so much, it really hurts so much.]

[You understand, and you vaguely guess that the Priest's actions will follow a certain rule he has set in his heart, so when he left, you obediently stayed in place, giving him no excuse to abuse you.]

[However, he has no intention of keeping his promise. Rather, the so-called promise never existed.]

[As long as he wants, he can always find a reason.]

[Not eating properly is being a bad child – even though he locked you in the warehouse for three whole days; not greeting properly is being a bad child – even though you were starving and on the verge of fainting at that time.]

[Being greedy is being a bad child – but you were really hungry then, and you didn't know if there would be food tomorrow; not sleeping properly is being a bad child – but the wax dripped on your body was hot, and the knife cutting your skin hurt.]

[Fire is hot when it touches your body, and a hot iron branding your body is also hot.]

[Needles are painful when they pierce your body, and forks are painful when they penetrate your skin.]

[You could see the increasingly undisguised greed in the Priest's eyes, that dirty, disgusting desire, but the Priest still didn't do "that thing," as if he was waiting, waiting for you to willingly submit to him.]