"To my dear son:
If you're reading this letter, it means you've entered the game, and the time has come for us to leave you.
Ever since we adopted you as a little boy, we knew this day would come. You were born to belong in the game. That's your home turf.
You don't need to look for us, either. Your dad is a pretty big deal. Nothing's going to happen to us.
Also, Dad found you a potential date, but Shang Yi vetoed it (T-T). We'll just have to leave it up to fate.
Dad also left you plenty of treasures. You'll have to discover them yourself, little by little.
Finally, keep working hard and growing stronger. Our family will definitely be reunited someday.
With love, Yin Rui and Shang Yi
(I only just found out that sly old fox Shang Yi found you a potential date, too!)"
Yin Chao couldn't muster any warm feelings after reading the letter.
He was only nineteen, a college freshman. Ever since his two parental figures learned he liked boys, they'd been worrying about his love life.
"Crunch."
"Crunch."
A strange noise came from the mahogany wardrobe in the room.
Yin Chao stood in front of it and opened the doors, expressionless.
A little girl with deathly pale skin and pitch-black eyes was crouching inside.
Holding a bag of plain potato chips, she calmly announced, "Ta-da~" as though welcoming a guest.
"Anna? What are you doing here?"
Yin Chao asked.
Anna had been his friend since childhood, though she was really more like family.
But she'd never dared go near Yin Rui before. Even Yin Rui's room had terrified her.
Now, though, she was hiding in Yin Rui and Shang Yi's bedroom wardrobe, eating chips.
"Lady Yin Rui left. I'm not scared. A little curious. Trying a different wardrobe to live in," Anna said, looking up at Yin Chao.
She spoke a little like a foreigner who'd only just started learning Chinese. With her high nose bridge and big eyes, she looked every bit the cute little girl.
Yin Chao had always thought Anna was a foreign ghost.
"Then do you know where they went?" he asked.
Anna shook her head and went back to grabbing chips and crunching away.
Yin Chao sighed. Seeing how much she enjoyed them, he casually snatched the bag and swaggered out of the bedroom.
Anna was left frozen on the spot, not quite able to process what had happened.
He had just reached the living room and sat down on the sofa when the doorbell rang.
"Boss, is this the place Nan told us about? We've been ringing forever, and no one's answering."
Outside the door, a tattoo-covered thug with dyed white hair spoke.
The man he called Boss leaned against the hallway wall, staring at the apartment number for a while before snapping impatiently, "Move. Let me."
He shoved aside the underlings blocking the doorway and kicked the door open.
Evening was falling, and the apartment was pitch-black inside.
The white-haired thug poked his head in, puzzled. "Maybe that kid isn't home?"
"Impossible. Nan's divine artifact pinpointed his location clear as day! This has to be it. Let's go in and look."
The moment they stepped inside, the ceiling light began to flicker.
"Heeheehee."
A girl's eerie laughter echoed through the room.
The thugs froze in terror, caught mid-step in the doorway. Not one of them moved forward.
Their boss finally broke the deadlock. "Don't be scared! This is the real world! Ghosts can't appear in the real world! That kid must be playing tricks on us!"
His shout reassured them, and they began moving toward the bedroom.
Just as the white-haired thug put his hand on the bedroom doorknob, the dark wooden door clicked open on its own.
An unnaturally long, slender hand with black nails reached out from the darkness. Even its fingertips were black. It was eeriness itself.
The black hand seized his wrist, leaving five bloody gouges.
That seemingly effortless grip dislocated his hand outright. He ran screaming for the exit, his injured hand flopping wildly.
"B-Boss, can a human really be that strong?"
One of the underlings stammered at him.
Before their boss could answer, the door began moving without a breeze, slowly swinging open.
A monster with loose, disheveled hair crawled out on all fours.
"Heeheehee~ heeheehee~"
The little girl's eerie, shrill laughter rang out.
They hurriedly backed away, only for the monster to scuttle toward them like a lizard spotting food.
Luckily, they were all players who'd seen their share of things. None of them found their legs too weak to run.
They fled Yin Chao's home in a flash.
Once everyone was gone, Yin Chao emerged from the darkness, and the living room lights immediately returned to normal.
Watching Anna crawl all over the walls, thoroughly enjoying herself, he praised her. "Nice work, Anna!"
At his voice, Anna jumped down from the ceiling and returned to her little-girl form. She stood in front of Yin Chao and held up two fingers.
"Two bags. Chips."
Yin Chao readily agreed. "Sure! Deal!"
"Now. Want them now."
Anna added.
Yin Chao took out his phone and checked the time. Eight o'clock-not too late. He decided to grant Anna this little wish.
"All right. Wait here at home."
To his surprise, Anna blocked his path. "I want to go. Take me."
She said.
Yin Chao was a little taken aback. Anna had never left the house in all the years he'd known her. He'd once asked Yin Rui about it, and she said Anna lacked the strength to move around anywhere outside their home.
Now she was suddenly asking to go out. Was it because Yin Rui and Shang Yi had left?
He was full of questions, but before he could ask, Anna grabbed his right index finger and sliced it with her nail.
A glistening bead of bright red blood welled up.
Anna smeared it onto the back of her hand, where it instantly vanished.
Then a winding, blood-red mark flashed across her forehead and disappeared.
Yin Chao watched the fluid sequence of movements in a daze until pain spread from his fingertip.
Only then did he yank his hand back with a grimace. "Damn it! You were just crawling around on the floor! Who knows how much dirt and bacteria are under your nails!"
Anna's already pitch-black eyes somehow grew even darker at his complaints.
"..."
Yin Chao looked at the spot where the mark on her forehead had vanished and asked, "What was that? Don't tell me it was some kind of contract?"
Anna nodded. "Don't you have the Myriad People Umbrella? The Myriad People Umbrella can make contracts with ghosts. You didn't know?"
Faced with Anna's dubious gaze, Yin Chao freely admitted, "Yep. I know absolutely nothing."
That earned him a pitch-black eye roll.
"The Myriad People Umbrella. Lady Yin Rui left it for you. It can make contracts with ghosts. Ghosts you contract will only obey your commands."
Yin Chao only half understood. "So, after we make a contract, you'll have enough strength, and I can take you outside?"
Anna nodded.
They walked to the entrance. Looking at the broken wooden door, Yin Chao suddenly remembered something.
He turned to stare at Anna, with her pale skin, pitch-black eyes, bare feet, and black dress. "Do you... want to change into something with a hood and cover your face?"
She'd scare passersby to death if she went out like this.
Realization dawned on Anna. She nodded and held out her right hand.
Black mist gradually rose from her hand until it enveloped her entire body.
The whole process took no more than ten seconds. Once the mist cleared, the figure standing before Yin Chao was no longer a terrifying ghost.
Instead, she was a girl in a vintage black puffball dress, knee-high socks, and little black leather shoes.
Her emerald-green eyes and golden curls were striking.
She looked like a doll displayed in a shop window.
[Ding. Ghost servant Anna, A-rank ghost, level 10 HP: 1,000, stamina: 500, mental power: 100, intelligence: 80. Specialized skills: Claw Wind, Flash Strike (awaiting further development...)] [Congratulations, player Yin Chao. Title acquired: Child of the Evil God (exclusive)]
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