The head steward led them into a clean, tidy side room. Eight sets of mourning clothes lay neatly arranged on the bed, and by now, Chu Qingjiu was utterly exhausted.
His face was deathly pale, his eyes shimmering with moisture, making him look pitifully Chu Chu.
Although the other players had no idea what illness Chu Qingjiu had, they still thought someone who looked half-dead after walking a few steps was far too much of a burden.
Fortunately, there was the rule that no one died on the first day. Otherwise, Chu Qingjiu would probably have been the first person singled out and slaughtered.
"Big brother, what illness do you have? You can't go on like this."
Qi Wu helped Chu Qingjiu into a chair in the room. Gazing at his breathtaking, godlike beauty, he could not help growing curious.
Especially those eyes of Chu Qingjiu's-his uncanny, seductive purple irises carried a faint hint of something inhuman.
After resting for a while, Chu Qingjiu coldly uttered two words. "...Heart trouble."
"So you have a heart condition. Did you bring your medicine? You might not even be able to get away if a ghost chases you," Qi Wu said, seemingly concerned.
"I won't die."
Although all ten of his Puppet Threads had been severed, that did not mean he could no longer control puppets. He had merely gone from controlling them at will to working under certain restrictions.
Besides, a Puppeteer's most important asset was not his Puppet Threads, but his hands.
As long as he still had his hands, he remained the renowned Puppeteer who could control any being within a dungeon.
Compared with his former freedom, however, he now had to meet an affection requirement and constantly take care not to be hampered by this frail, sickly body.
Although becoming a player had been the Person in Charge's demand, it was something he wanted as well.
It all went back to what happened after Qi Wu severed his Puppet Threads and left.
A long-haired man in Western formalwear and a golden half-mask sat on the magnificent Throne, his posture indolent and unconcerned.
Through the mask, his dazzling purple eyes were visible, as striking as beautiful violets in full bloom.
Slender Puppet Threads wound around his ten pale, delicate fingers, cutting red marks into his fingertips. Their decadent beauty made him all the more alluring.
Even the air seemed to grow suggestive.
His pale, thin lips were lightly pressed together, carrying an air of careless languor.
This dungeon was an instance dungeon, the most difficult in the entire game, and he casually controlled ten Dungeon Bosses to obstruct and slaughter the players attempting to clear it.
As for him, the renowned Puppeteer, all he needed to do was control everything from behind the scenes.
No player had ever discovered his presence, even though the dungeon's restrictions required giving the players plenty of clues to let them know that its ultimate boss was the Puppeteer.
They still could not find the Puppeteer's true location.
Only when a fierce arc of sword energy swept up from below the Throne, precisely severing the slender Puppet Threads wound around his fingers, did he turn a serious gaze on the brash youth below. A tearing pain ripped through the depths of his soul.
"Ah, it seems the renowned Puppeteer isn't all that impressive."
The youth grinned with unrestrained confidence, his amber eyes utterly clear and his face brimming with youthful vigor.
As the Puppet Threads snapped and fell, the ten smaller dungeons under the Puppeteer's control broke free. Scarlet blood seeped between his fingers.
"The hint you gave was 'the easiest place to overlook.' That meant the place where we first appeared."
As he spoke, the youth walked up toward the Throne. "Who would've thought the Puppeteer was hiding underground right beneath our starting point?"
The youth finally stopped on the step just below the Puppeteer's Throne. He looked at the elegant, opulent black-haired man seated above him, meeting those uncanny purple eyes through the golden half-mask.
The man had not moved an inch the entire time, as though he could not leave at all.
"Lord Puppeteer, could it be that you can't leave this Throne?"
Pleasure suffused the youth's handsome features-a sick, twisted pleasure.
"Why aren't you saying anything, Lord Puppeteer? Are you mute?"
As he spoke, he reached out to touch the Puppeteer's golden mask, only to be forced to withdraw his hand by the dungeon's restrictions.
"I look forward to our next meeting, Lord Puppeteer."
Soon after those words fell, the youth vanished from before the Puppeteer. He had cleared the dungeon and been teleported away.
The pain the Puppeteer had been suppressing finally found an outlet. He turned his head and spat out blood, his forehead covered in cold sweat.
The reason he had remained silent was that he did not want the youth to see him coughing up blood in such a wretched state. He had always been proud and dignified; even when injured, he could not let anyone see it.
[Puppeteer, this is your first failure.]
The Person in Charge's voice, impossible to distinguish as male or female, suddenly sounded from the void.
The Puppeteer wiped the blood from his lips with the back of his hand and replied coldly, "I am willing to accept punishment."
[Then you can obtain the energy needed to repair the dungeon by clearing other dungeons. Of course, you are still one of my favorite subordinates. I won't let you die easily.]
The Person in Charge's voice sounded somewhat pleased.
[After becoming a player, you will still be able to control puppets. Your system will explain the specifics. I look forward to your performance.]
With those words, the Person in Charge left.
Only the injured Puppeteer remained, reclining against the Throne with his eyes closed, resting as he waited for the system to appear.
[Honored Lord Puppeteer, I am your Personal System 01. After entering a dungeon, you will be able to see the affection that any player, NPC, or even Dungeon Boss has for you. As long as their affection reaches the qualifying threshold, you will have a chance to control them. Of course, because your original Puppet Threads have been lost, you can only choose to control one puppet until you recover them. Please choose carefully. For every lost Puppet Thread you find, you will be able to control one additional puppet. Recovered Puppet Threads can also lower the affection requirement, allowing you to take control directly. Affection can be gained through conversation or even physical contact. Of course, this is only theoretical. You will need to put it into practice yourself to determine how it works.]
"Heh." The Puppeteer gave a soft laugh. "What privilege? Aren't you just using me as a test subject?"
The dungeons seemed to be seeking new ways to play. Previously, players had struggled to survive because they had only themselves to rely on.
But at some point, items capable of countering Dungeon Bosses had begun appearing in the dungeons. The sword Qi Wu had used was this dungeon's item for dealing with the Puppeteer.
And now, this so-called control was more like a skill.
He was the first player to use a skill, which effectively meant he had entered an entirely new Closed Beta Version.
A privilege this great would certainly come with restrictions.
The Person in Charge seemed to be deliberately pushing the dungeons toward a new stage, and unfortunately, he, the Puppeteer, had made a mistake at precisely this moment. He could only become their guinea pig.
Still, he would soon be able to see Qi Wu and take revenge with his own hands.
After making his preparations, Chu Qingjiu was placed in the dungeon called "Hundred Ghosts Night Parade."
He did not want to control these players. If there was anyone he wanted to control, it would be Qi Wu, who was masquerading under the alias "Wu Qi."
Controlling Qi Wu and making him die, or controlling a Dungeon Boss to kill him-either would be quite satisfying.
Except...
Chu Qingjiu glanced at Qi Wu beside him, then quickly looked away, lowering his eyes to an empty patch of ground as though lost in a daze.
From the moment he met Qi Wu until now, Qi Wu's affection for him had remained at 0. It was far too strange that it had not fluctuated at all.
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