Chapter 48 : Chapter 48
Chapter 48: The “Doctor’s” Way of Treating Illness
Night fell quietly.
It was exactly 11:30 PM. Thick clouds covered the sky. There were no stars tonight, and no moonlight either. The darkness was oppressive.
Today was Friday. Zhao Mingyue would have the weekend off starting tomorrow, so staying up a little late tonight would not affect anything. She set out shortly after returning home from work. After eating a simple dinner, she packed her tools.
A large backpack hung on her back. Inside were her Magic Staff, some food, and several bottles of mineral water.
If possible, she would have liked to dismantle the wind chime from the convenience store and bring it along. In a mission location, that thing would be a divine tool. As long as a ghost approached nearby, the wind chime would ring.
Unfortunately, it belonged to the convenience store.
And she was only a small employee.
“Sigh… this place is really hard to find.”
Although it was called the eastern suburb of the city, this place was practically the outskirts of the outskirts. There was no paved road. Weeds grew wildly along the path. Just beyond the surrounding fields and villages, yet this place felt strangely isolated, as if no one ever wanted to come here.
Standing on the dirt road, Zhao Mingyue held her bicycle with one hand and looked into the distance.
Within the dense darkness of the night, the outline of a school slowly appeared before her eyes.
In terms of atmosphere alone, Dongcheng No. 13 Middle School was far more terrifying than Sunshine Apartments.
At least Sunshine Apartments had residents nearby. People came and went, and Zhao Mingyue herself had once lived there.
But here at Dongcheng No. 13 Middle School, the nearest village was at least five kilometers away.
Because the place was not near a road, not even a single taxi could be seen.
“Big Sister Yu, we’re here. Should we go in?”
After riding her bicycle for more than forty minutes, Zhao Mingyue’s chest rose and fell slightly as she caught her breath. Sweat covered her forehead.
“Check the mission first,” Bai Yu replied.
“Okay.”
Hiding the bicycle in the weeds, Zhao Mingyue took out the black phone from her pocket.
【You have accepted the mission: Dongcheng No. 13 Middle School】
【Mission Requirement: Arrive at Dongcheng No. 13 Middle School before midnight and survive until dawn】
【Dongcheng No. 13 Middle School】
【Did you know? This place was once a privately run orphanage that housed as many as 103 children between the ages of three and twelve.】
【Some were disabled. Some had lost both parents. Some suffered from mental illness. If the reasons these children entered the orphanage were counted, there would be twelve categories in total. The most common, however, was the loss of both parents.】
【For the old director, who continued adopting orphans even after the age of sixty, people seemed to have nothing but praise. Therefore, many could not understand why he insisted on transforming the orphanage into a school.】
【Dead. They were all dead. That special class composed entirely of orphans.】
【Shh… do not speak. Do not make any sound. Hide well. Do not let her discover you. Otherwise, you will join us too.】
【Hehe… we found our little cutie. Why are you looking at me like that? Are you afraid? Come here. Yes, come a little closer. I have something I want to tell you.】
【Back then, I hid better than you.】
The mission description for Dongcheng No. 13 Middle School was extremely long.
Compared to Sunshine Apartments, which had only a single short line of explanation, this description was frighteningly detailed.
Zhao Mingyue read it several times, yet she still could not extract any truly useful information.
The only things she understood were that Dongcheng No. 13 Middle School had once been an orphanage before being converted into a school for some reason. The old director seemed to have been a good person. And a class composed entirely of orphans had been massacred.
As for the killer, it seemed that he had some sort of grudge against those orphans. His mental state was unstable, and after gaining power, he had returned for revenge.
“Do you understand it, Big Sister Yu?” Zhao Mingyue even held Miss Rabbit up in front of the phone so Bai Yu could see the screen clearly.
“There is something wrong with the ghost inside,” Bai Yu said.
“Something wrong? Care to elaborate?”
“You will know once we go inside.”
If she had to explain exactly what was wrong, Bai Yu could not say for certain.
The only thing she could confirm was that the old director was probably not a good person.
“Alright. Let me check the sub-tasks first.”
Zhao Mingyue scrolled down the screen.
【Task Content: The Headless Statue, The Smell of Meat in the Midnight Cafeteria, Under the Bed, The Eyes Behind the Door, The Eyes in the Bathroom Stall, The Red Dancing Shoes】
【Note: Only one of the following must be completed—Under the Bed or The Eyes in the Bathroom Stall】
After reading all the task information, Zhao Mingyue felt chills run down her spine.
Her main mission was simple—stay in the school until dawn.
But that alone would bring no benefits.
The true key lay in the “Sub-tasks” listed under the mission content.
Only by completing those sub-tasks could she receive additional rewards after the mission ended.
However, those sub-tasks were clearly not easy.
For example,
【The Smell of Meat in the Midnight Cafeteria】
The task description read:
【Requirement: Enter the cafeteria of Dongcheng No. 13 Middle School after midnight】
【Fragrant… so fragrant. Student, you must be hungry, right? With such delicious meat soup, are you sure you do not want a bowl? That is the taste of love.】
A cafeteria filled with the smell of meat at midnight…
What kind of meat was it?
And what kind of thing was cooking it?
Zhao Mingyue did not even dare to imagine.
She took several deep breaths.
Originally, she had been somewhat afraid. But after hugging the rabbit doll with both arms, most of that fear immediately dissipated.
The difference was obvious.
However, the courage brought by Miss Rabbit did not come from the doll itself.
It came from Bai Yu.
Yes—Bai Yu.
After hugging Miss Rabbit, Zhao Mingyue felt an inexplicable surge of courage that seemed to come from Bai Yu. Whenever terrifying thoughts appeared in her mind, another thought would automatically follow.
Bai Yu was right behind her.
There was nothing to fear.
Big Sister would handle everything.
That courage made Zhao Mingyue sigh inwardly.
Rather than courage…
It felt more like trust.
That little girl named Bai Sisi must have trusted her sister in exactly the same way.
At that moment, Bai Yu did not know what Zhao Mingyue was thinking.
Because just now, from her perspective, the black phone had displayed something new.
She was certain that Zhao Mingyue could not see these words.
【Mission: Fragile Girl】
【Your nickname is “Doctor.” Your method of treating patients is often to cut off their heads or pierce their throats and hearts.】
【Doctor, everyone has their own past and memories. Even the “lunatics” you speak of possess emotions. They simply do not easily reveal the fragile and gentle parts of their hearts.】
【Tonight, your mission is to help Number 652 recover her memories.】
【Mission Reward: ???】