[The current live session has ended]
[Please choose: Continue Regular Simulation / Free Simulation?]
As it turned out, Silas now understood perfectly.
Just because an "Important Choice" appeared didn't mean a death-loop was inevitable.
It likely... just influenced specific events within the current plotline.
[You have selected Regular Simulation]
He had already emptied himself inside that woman; there was no lingering lust for her ass in his eyes.
He only wanted to get out and see what the hell was going on in the outside world.
Kill the boss early, finish the job early.
No matter how realistic the game was, once he returned to reality, life was still a mess. He was still just a stable hand.
He really couldn't afford to get addicted to a game.
[You shamelessly vented your desires with the woman from the brothel, your sounds fully heard by the others.]
[As you expected, when you went downstairs, Fiona, the leader, no longer sought you out for conversation.]
[Some women whispered about how you actually chose that kind of woman, while others still tried to hook up with you.]
[You no longer responded to any woman's flirtatious hints.]
[You simply found Fiona and told her you planned to follow the knights' trail to explore the outside.]
[She thanked you again for the supplies and warned you... that your woman was not a good person.]
[Fiona said if you ever became useless, that woman would kick you away without hesitation.]
[You didn't care in the slightest.]
[That night, you trained your woman ruthlessly. Knowing you were leaving, she first tried to lure you into staying with her breasts and ass.]
[Seeing she couldn't change your mind, she served you with everything she had while begging for private food and resources.]
Sigh.
Fiona wasn't wrong.
Regardless of whether she was born in a brothel or was just a natural bitch.
The reason she flattered Silas was because she saw him as a provider.
[You realized your relationship with her was purely a transaction of interests. You felt a bit impatient.]
[You became more aggressive than before, grabbing the back of her head and forcing her into a deep throat.]
[You didn't care if she was trembling; you just kept going until you were satisfied.]
[...]
[The next day, you gave her some private resources. Before leaving, you also gave Fiona a carriage full of supplies.]
[Fiona was shocked. The women who were whispering about you yesterday now looked at you with nothing but burning passion.]
[You could see your woman had some complaints about your generosity to others, but she only dared to pout and beg for better things.]
[This time, you ignored her.]
[Fiona tried one last time to persuade you, believing there was no need to risk your life.]
[When you insisted on going out, she handed you a finely crafted short sword.]
[...]
[On the third day, you left their small refuge and followed the main road out of town.]
[...]
Between the journey and the time spent there, five or six days had passed.
Must hurry to see what the situation is outside, then head back to the convent.
[On the fourth day, you saw the half-eaten corpses of knights on the road.]
[They were gnawed down to bone and shattered armor. You noticed most of them died face-down, like deserters.]
It seemed more than one person had tried to flee back. Compared to the guy who died at the refuge, these were unluckier—at least he wasn't chewed down to the bone.
[On the fifth day, you left the town area and entered a new main road.]
[You noticed your vision becoming blurred; you couldn't see very far. There was a hazy, thin mist.]
[...]
[On the eighth day, the mist grew thicker. Occasionally, you stepped on bones of unknown origin.]
[You realized it wasn't just knights; many others wanted to leave too.]
[But they were all attacked by something and died on the road, within the mist.]
Receiving the visual feedback from the text, Silas frowned.
This could already be described as a field of corpses.
Moreover, some of the corpses were originally walking dead, yet they had been eaten too.
That proved... there must be monsters different from the walking dead. If he went further, would he die too?
[On the tenth day, you walked a long distance, long since losing sight of the original town.]
[The mist completely blocked your vision. You constantly heard some terrifying, massive entity moving in the fog.]
[The ground would tremble slightly because of it.]
[You gripped the short sword tightly, still feeling uncertain.]
[...]
[Night. You found a decaying wooden hut to sleep in. Inside was a female corpse.]
[You felt her chest; it was very hard. Instead of relieving your fear, it made you more uneasy.]
[You thought of the bones on the road, then thought of Sister Rose, who had been waiting for you for at least half a month.]
[You felt you had done enough this time. Exhausted, you decided...]
[Important Choice Triggered]
[Option 1: Stay here and spend the night with the female corpse.]
[Option 2: Set off immediately and head back to check on Sister Rose.]
[Enter Free Simulation]
Another choice triggered?
Silas stared at the semi-transparent text box.
After thinking for a long time, he still chose the first one.
He had come this far; Sister Rose had already waited ten-plus days, a little longer wouldn't hurt.
Waiting might reveal some key information.
"..."
As the choice was finalized.
The weight of the short sword in Silas's hand became clear. The feel of the female corpse's breast in his right hand... was indeed hard.
What kind of psychological help could this thing give? It's just creepy!
Why did the choice have to happen while he was in a room with a female corpse?
The corpse wasn't even pretty. Her figure... well, her tits seemed fairly large.
As he squeezed, they seemed to gain some warmth and soften a bit.
Silas suddenly felt that his mental state wasn't quite like a normal person's anymore. Even as a "player," he was becoming quite inhuman.
The effect of his Spirit stat points was clearly felt now.
So what if he spent the night here? After a sleep, maybe tomorrow he could leave the mist zone and see the outside world. If there was one.
Just three more days. If he walked for three more days without finding any clues, he'd turn back immediately.
The "exhaustion" mentioned in the simulation wasn't a lie; Silas felt it the moment he entered. The aching in his legs, the fatigue.
Food had been hard to find in the areas he traveled these past two days; there was nothing to replenish his strength, let alone relieve his mental exhaustion.
But an Important Choice was triggered... was there really no monster?
He forced his eyes open, waiting for at least an hour. Finally, he couldn't help but lean against the wall and fall asleep.
Rumble...
Dazed, Silas felt the ground shaking. He instantly scrambled up and grabbed the short sword.
Crack—!
Something pierced through the wooden planks, reaching into the room. It looked like a tentacle, covered in suction-cup holes.
Squeltch!
Seeing the thing reach out, Silas didn't even think. He swung the sword down.
The effect was excellent.
He was amazed by his own speed and strength; he actually managed to chop it off cleanly.
If the monster in the mist was just this, he could kill it easily, right?
Whoosh!
But before Silas could celebrate, seven or eight similar tentacles instantly burst through the punctured planks.
They coiled around his body, binding him tightly.
"Gah..."
Blood began to flow from his nose and mouth due to the immense pressure; his internal organs were being crushed.
Worst of all, the suction cups on the tentacles released a pungent liquid that made his head swim.
Silas desperately clawed at the limp tentacles wrapped around him, which were secreting a thick black fluid. Then he saw something else...
Through the broken planks, a hook appeared, covered in barbs like a scorpion's tail.
Its size was many times larger than the tentacles holding him; it was practically as big as the hut itself.
Just one look at it, and all desire to fight vanished.
Splat!
That hook was astonishingly sharp. At least, Silas found it astonishing as his vision drifted through the air.
He watched his own headless body, stunned. He had only barely been brushed by it.
[You failed to leave the boundaries of the 'Eerie Town.' You encountered a mutated giant insect. You died.]
[This simulation has ended]
[You may use a charge to load from the current plot point, or restart the simulation.]
[Remaining Simulation Charges: 3 (Refreshes 6 times daily, or purchase one for 1000 Silver Coins)]
[Held Currency: 0 Gold, 0 Silver, 121 Copper]
[Current Task: Try to find more clues to help Sister Rose!]
[Reward: Stamina +1, Spirit +3]
In the stable.
Silas silently chewed on a piece of straw and rolled over. He watched the brown mare breathing carefree.
It wasn't that he was too scared to enter the game again.
In fact, Silas could clearly feel the power brought by his Spirit points. Even seeing his own headless corpse only left him slightly... startled.
Maybe a little bit of fear, but after lying here for thirty seconds, it was long gone.
Right now, he was just looking at the game's final summary.
"Failed to leave the boundaries of the 'Eerie Town'?"
That meant the whole world definitely wasn't like this.
The place he was in was a "disaster zone," and there was a normal world outside.
If he could take Sister Rose out, would that mean he could complete this stage of the game?
Insects?
He couldn't beat that kind of thing with his clumsy sword skills. Was there another way?
[You chose to load your save]
[Night. You found a decaying wooden hut to sleep in. Inside was a female corpse. You felt her chest; it was very hard. Instead of relieving your fear, it made you more uneasy. You thought of the bones on the road, then thought of Sister Rose, who had been waiting for you for at least half a month.]
[You felt you had done enough this time. Exhausted, you decided...]
[Important Choice Triggered]
[Option 1: Stay here and spend the night with the female corpse.]
[Option 2: Set off immediately and head back to check on Sister Rose.]
[Enter Free Simulation]
Forget it.
Even if he fought again, he probably couldn't win. He had no preparation. His body wasn't in peak condition; he was too tired.
No matter what, he had to go back once. He had been out for too long.
Sister Rose's mental state back at the convent must be reaching its limit. He should go back and tell her the good news first.
Tell her the outside world is likely normal, but they just need some preparation... like trying to find some insect repellent or something. Find a way to avoid fighting those monsters.
Besides, he had done a lot of work. After ten-plus days, she shouldn't be teasing him anymore, right?
The town actually had maid outfits. It was time to make her wear one.
[You chose Option 2]
However.
After making the choice, Silas realized a crucial problem.
He was back in the live experience.
The journey out was simulated. Was he now expected to walk for over ten days back to the convent?
Damn it, you can't screw a player over like this, can you?