He hadn't expected the NPC to be unable to see his subordinate.
That was just as well.
The fat security guard clutched his chest, staring at Zheng Xun with wide, horrified eyes.
Zheng Xun, the mischievous fellow, not only offered no explanation but added another remark.
"You can't see her? Then maybe I'm the only one who can."
"..."
The fat guard's eyes rolled back in fright, and he nearly passed out.
"All right, all right, I was just teasing you, bro."
Zheng Xun hurriedly caught him.
Only then did the guard recover his senses. "Little Zheng, y-you're making fun of me on your first day here!" he said reproachfully.
"Sorry, sorry. I didn't expect you to scare so easily, bro."
The two walked back to the security office one behind the other, the fat guard taking heavy steps and muttering to himself in front.
Behind him, Zheng Xun was still holding the little girl's hand.
He lowered his head, held a finger to his lips, and softly went, "Shh."
Little Red Riding Hood covered her mouth and nodded vigorously, her gaze vacant.
The guard pushed aside his tight jacket, revealing a large bunch of keys attached to his belt. He fiddled with them for a while, found one with a square head, and unlocked the security office door.
With a couple of electrical pops, the bulb hanging overhead flickered and cast a dim yellow light.
The fat guard introduced himself as Li. Guard Li took out two thick books and used them to cover the hole in the window, then drew the greasy curtains.
The cramped space finally looked like a room someone could live in.
He brought out two stools and set them beside a waist-high table, then coughed twice and told Zheng Xun to sit.
Zheng Xun obediently sat down, while Little Red Riding Hood stood close against him.
On his first simulation, Zheng Xun was in no hurry to hack through monsters and clear the dungeon. It would naturally be best to gather more clues, even if he died.
Missing clues could easily leave him stuck, something Zheng Xun had learned all too well over those thousand attempts.
Now that he could end the simulation at any time, he wanted to be more efficient and thoroughly investigate the dungeon in as few attempts as possible.
"L-Little Zheng, here's the duty r-roster. K-keep it safe."
Zheng Xun lowered his head and opened the notebook Old Li had given him.
Each day from Monday to Sunday was divided into morning, afternoon, and evening shifts, with one person assigned to the security office for each shift.
There had been around six or seven guards on duty in the previous months, but starting a month ago, only two names appeared in rotation.
Li Yuechu and Security Guard Feng.
Li Yuechu was clearly Old Li's name. Security Guard Feng was presumably surnamed Feng, but his given name wasn't shown. Zheng Xun didn't know whether the dungeon had deliberately done that.
By the latest week's schedule, there were still two names.
Li Yuechu and Security Guard Zheng.
Security Guard Zheng was Zheng Xun's identity in the dungeon.
"Bro, did Security Guard Feng quit?"
At the mention of Security Guard Feng, Old Li's expression soured.
"Oh! Little Zheng, th-this Old Feng is someone you c-can't m-mention at our school!"
"Oh." Zheng Xun nodded. "Then I won't mention him."
"Huh?"
He had said he wouldn't mention him, but Li Yuechu was the one who ended up uncomfortable.
Most security guards were talkative, and Zheng Xun's abrupt change of subject left Old Li practically itching all over.
"O-Old Feng was my p-previous coworker. Y-you're here to t-take over his shift."
Old Li said that Security Guard Feng had worked at No. 4 Middle School even longer than he had. Old Li himself had come later.
Zheng Xun asked where the previous guards had all gone.
Old Li's face suddenly turned grim. His eyes darted around uneasily, and he lowered his voice.
"Th-they all ran away, d-died. This middle school isn't p-peaceful. It's h-haunted by that thing!"
Zheng Xun frowned.
He was in the simulation, and to anyone outside, he appeared to be asleep.
A vehicle was traveling along the highway, carrying the Songbird group to the airport.
Cheng Jie couldn't sit still. He leaned toward Zheng Xun and poked him with a finger.
"Sleeping that soundly?"
He placed a finger beneath Zheng Xun's nose to check.
"He's still alive."
Xiao Jun didn't think much of it, assuming Zheng Xun had simply used up too much energy in the dungeon.
"Let him rest. We'll wake him when we get to the airport."
Then he turned to Su Hairong.
"What's the situation out there?"
Su Hairong had a pair of pink-and-gold-framed glasses perched on her nose. Her fingers tapped at the keyboard as she browsed forum posts and media reports.
"Reporters got photos of Zheng Xun getting into the car. Everyone out there now thinks there's a good chance he'll sign the contract. After all, no newcomer would turn down a silver+ contract."
But Zheng Xun had turned it down.
Xiao Jun also found that troublesome. Songbird needed Zheng Xun to clear the Huaiyin No. 4 Middle School dungeon, but it also hoped to recruit him into the guild and put him to work for them.
Zheng Xun's attitude, however, was clear: he had ideas of his own.
"Have publicity announce that Songbird and Zheng Xun are negotiating the contract details. It wouldn't be a bad thing if outsiders thought Zheng Xun was about to join Songbird. That way, the other guilds might give up on him too. As for Zheng Xun... keep him on our side for now, at least until he's cleared the Locust Sound dungeon. Once the people have been rescued, we'll hear what he wants. We still need to try; we can't let Zheng Xun go so easily."
Xiao Jun had a feeling that Zheng Xun's fame would explode a second time after he cleared the Locust Sound dungeon.
He had been vice president for two or three years and had developed his own experience in judging people.
Zheng Xun was no ordinary talent.
Given Songbird's own strength and standing, it was probably wishful thinking to expect to keep a genius like him permanently.
But having Zheng Xun work for Songbird for six months or a year to boost the guild's reputation would still be a very worthwhile deal.
Zheng Xun stirred in his sleep, showing signs of waking, and Xiao Jun signaled the other two to be quiet.
Zheng Xun opened his eyes a sliver, and the figures of the three across from him came into view.
"Awake?" Xiao Jun asked.
He seemed to still be caught in his dream. It took him a while to understand Xiao Jun's words, and he nodded slightly.
"Hairong."
Xiao Jun called Su Hairong's name, and she poured Zheng Xun a cup of hot tea.
Zheng Xun thanked her and took it, holding the disposable cup in both hands as he slowly sipped.
His mind was still on the conversation he had just had with Li Yuechu.
Old Li had said that three accidents had occurred at Huaiyin No. 4 Middle School within a month. A male teacher surnamed Xu, a security guard surnamed Feng, and a second-year female high school student surnamed Liang had come to grief one after another.
For a time, rumors spread throughout Huaiyin No. 4 Middle School, casting a gloomy atmosphere over the ordinary school.
As Old Li spoke, he took a thermos from under his feet.
He complained that the job was hard, that the school was about to close down, and that it was withholding their wages.
Zheng Xun watched Old Li pour without expression, from unscrewing the cap and pulling out the wooden stopper to tilting the thermos.
The sound from the thermos was somewhat coarse, unlike the sound of water.
Zheng Xun's eyes followed Old Li as he poured. He saw a thick, cloudy red liquid arc through the air and splash into the large enamel mug, along with chunks of unidentified flesh.
"D-drink up." A guileless smile appeared on Old Li's round face as he pushed the enamel mug toward Zheng Xun.