Valena's Diary

"Look here, Steamed Bun!"

There's probably a secret room here!

Singo found a hidden door and easily pried open its old lock.

Steamed Bun complained, "You're a Fighter, it's one thing to notice, but you actually selected the 'Skillful Hands' option?"

Singo said righteously, "Professional masters need to learn to integrate and apply their knowledge. Isn't this exactly what's needed to deal with situations like this? Think about it, if it weren't for my skillful hands, wouldn't you be stuck here?"

"Tsk."

Steamed Bun dismissed this with disdain and remained skeptical about the previously mysteriously missing Gold Coin.

"Alright, enough nonsense. Just make sure that monster doesn't catch up with us."

Singo opened the hidden door and went into the narrow tunnel first, followed closely by Steamed Bun. There were constant rustling sounds coming from the tunnel, and finally they arrived at a dark secret room.

Singo skillfully pulled out a spare fluorite, illuminating his vision, and the scene before him suddenly opened up.

"This is..."

To their surprise, the secret room wasn't small; it was more than enough to accommodate the two of them. The floor was covered in a thick layer of dust, and cobwebs were everywhere in the corners, clearly indicating that it had been unused for many years.

The room was quite well-equipped, with a bed, blankets, and a desk. There were several quill pens and yellowed papers on the desk, and even childlike doodles on the walls, creating a surprisingly homey atmosphere.

Steamed Bun looked at the graffiti on the wall.

The designs were rather simple, but colorful, and clearly depicted a warm family with a man, a woman, and a little girl. The background was mostly a dark tower, some humans in black robes, and a terrifying dragon.

The chaotic strokes reveal the little girl's fear of those things.

"A child's bedroom."

"It's unimaginable that anyone would live in a place like this."

"Steamed Bun sighed."

"Steamed Bun! Look what I found!"

Singo opened the cabinet under the small desk, seemingly discovering something extraordinary inside.

"What is it? Let me see."

Steamed Bun leaned closer and saw a simple diary. It appeared to have been carefully preserved, but due to the passage of time, some pages were even rotten, and several pages had been roughly torn out. The cover bore the large characters. "Valena's Diary."

"Valena's Diary".

Steamed Bun's expression suddenly became complicated and uncertain. He seemed to have some terrible suspicion in his mind, which made him silent. He just carefully turned the pages of the book.

The handwriting inside is clumsy and childlike, full of childlike innocence.

"January 3rd, this is what my mother asked me to write. It's my first diary entry. My father, as usual, told me not to make a sound, otherwise those bad people from the Dragon Cult outside would capture me, and the terrible dragon would eat me up in one bite. I have been obedient."

"On January 4th, I stayed in my room without saying a word, and my dad said I was very good."

"On January 5th, still in my room, I found a cute animal today. My dad said it was a spider, and I invited it to eat black bread with me."

"On January 6th, my mother brought me a book called ' Beautiful Bird,' which tells the story of a family of birds. I really like it."

"On January 7th, I was reading in my room with a cute mouse keeping me company. I named him Tete, and as payment for keeping me company while I read, I let him chew on a page of the book."

"."

"On February 15th, my dad hadn't been home for a long time. I was so happy to see him. He told me that he would soon defeat those bad guys and rescue my mom and me from the tower. Our family will stay together like in the story."

"On February 16th, my dad talked to me a lot. He said he would definitely take me to see the outside world, and I was very happy."

"February 17th was spent in my room."

"On February 18th, I was in my room, and there was no food left. I was so hungry."

"On February 22, I ate Tete, but I was very sad."

"On February 23, my mother finally came back. She brought me food, but she cried a lot. She said that she had been chosen as a 'sacrifice' and might never come back. I hugged her for a long time."

"February 24th, it seems like Dad hasn't been back for a long time."

"On March 17th, my mom celebrated my twelfth birthday, and I was very happy. I asked her why my dad didn't come back, but she didn't answer. I could tell she was a little sad."

"On July 16th, I really want to see the outside world, and I want to have a friend."

"."

On December 27th, my mother hadn't come home for seven days, and I was very scared.

"December 30th. My father has been gone for a long time, about ten months if I remember correctly. Today he finally came back, but he told me that my mother died, and I cried."

"On January 20th, my dad told me that my mom's death was worthwhile and great. I didn't understand what he was saying, but I was very scared. He seemed like a different person. He used to love my mom very much."

"On January 21, I was shivering in my room."

"."

"On September 12, my dad told me that he had defeated the bad guys. I asked him if I could leave this place, but he didn't say anything."

"On September 13, I was taken out of my room, but my father still wouldn't let me leave the tower, which made me very angry. In my opinion, this tower is like a cage in a book, which is very restrictive."

"On September 14, a girl named Mary was brought to the tower. She was about my age and she was very scared. I hope to become friends with her."

"On September 15th, I stayed in the tower, but I still secretly came back here. It makes me feel very safe here. Here, I can think of my father, who loved my mother and me very much back then."

"On September 16th, there were strange noises in the tower, but Dad wouldn't tell me what they were, and Mary was very scared."

"On October 1st, the sound got louder and louder, and I was very scared."

"On September 16th, Dad was really different from before. I missed Mom and cried for a long time."

"I don't know when it happened, but my dad told me not to resist. His exact words were, 'We should welcome this noble evolution with a joyful attitude.' I don't understand what he was talking about, but he made me more and more scared."

"My dad is completely different from before. He would never have treated me like this before, he would never have. I'm so scared."

Mary said her father was a bad man.

"Dad won't let me see Mary. He said Mary did something wrong and should be punished. I will see her later."

"Dad said he was doing it all for my own good. He said that as long as I was obedient, I could go out. I think that makes sense."

"I will be obedient."

"On the first day, scales grew on my body, and it hurt so much."

"The next day, there were more scales."

"On the third day, thorns grew on my back, and it still hurt a lot, but my dad was very happy. He told me that I was about to succeed. Seeing my dad so happy made me happy too."

"On the fourth day, I felt like I had become a bad person. My dad fed me some meat and told me it was okay to eat, but I felt something was wrong. My nose is very sensitive now, and I think I can smell... Mary's scent."

"Day 11. Nothing has changed today. Dad said he was very disappointed in me and even called me an inferior species who failed his expectations. I cried a lot. I don't know what I did wrong."

"On the twelfth day, Dad said he had found a new method."

"On the fourteenth day, Dad replaced my hand with a new one. Although I was used to it, it still hurt a lot. But he told me not to cry, so I held back. I couldn't make Dad angry anymore."

"On the fifteenth day, I felt something was off."

"."

The following pages were roughly torn out.

I flipped the steamed Steamed Bun over to the bottom in one go and couldn't help but gasp.