chapter 13
Cheng Miao noticed the girl opposite staring at her after accepting a loaf of bread the size of an adult’s palm. Hoping to eat in peace, Cheng Miao offered her the egg.
“Who wants your egg? Who would care about something like that?”
The girl lifted her chin arrogantly and refused it, yet her eyes remained fixed on Cheng Miao’s chicken leg.
Understood. Her Highness wanted meat. Unfortunately for her, guilt trips had little effect on Cheng Miao.
“By that logic, little girl, shouldn’t the Game let you clear it automatically because you’re young? Why are you still sitting here eating bread?” Cheng Miao smiled sweetly and took a leisurely bite of the chicken leg.
“You!” The girl’s expression abruptly darkened, and one eyelid twitched twice. She shot to her feet and hurled the bread at Cheng Miao without thinking.
The instant it left her hand, her face grew even uglier.
Damn it! I forgot this isn’t my family’s estate. It’s the Game.
Cheng Miao watched the loaf graze past her and land on the floor. She shrugged, turned away, and continued enjoying her chicken leg.
“Young lady, this is a place where the slightest mistake can kill you. Most people won’t take care of you just because you’re young.” A chubby middle-aged man leaned over from nearby and struck up a conversation. “Would you like my bread? I’ll give you half.”
When Cheng Miao showed no intention of retaliating, the girl’s taut shoulders relaxed slightly.
She did not even glance at the man. Her eyes remained dark and hostile as she stared at Cheng Miao’s back, never noticing that the man’s gaze on her was slowly deepening as well.
The Intermediate Dormitory remained brightly lit at all times. People nearby might be eating or sleeping one moment, then disappear from the air the next.
At first, Cheng Miao was startled. Then she realized their time had come, and they had entered a Game.
Because of survivorship bias, she had not initially understood how low the success rate for clearing instances really was. Only after careful observation did she notice that the occupancy count posted on the wall kept falling and never rose.
For most people, those who could swiftly accept reality and throw themselves into the Game were always a small minority, either extraordinarily strong-willed or blessed with exceptional luck.
Cheng Miao spent most of the remaining time coaxing information from the cockroach brothers.
She did not enjoy dealing with two cockroaches, but precisely because of their appearance, talking to them somehow felt less troublesome than talking to people.
Ah Zhang was livelier and answered every question. Ah Lang rarely spoke, and whenever he did, he recited the professional phrases of an excellent service worker.
“Is Cockroach Dormitory the only Dormitory?” Cheng Miao could not tell which was the elder brother and which the younger, so she simply looked at both. Whichever answered would be the elder.
“Of course not! There are countless Dormitories: Rat Dormitory, Mosquito Dormitory, and so on. But when it comes to service and facilities, our Cockroach Dormitory is unquestionably the best.”
“Can players form teams?” That was the question Cheng Miao cared about most. Team play and solo play demanded entirely different approaches.
She found it extremely difficult to trust others, especially now that life and death were at stake. Deep down, however, Cheng Miao still hoped to find a few true friends. Struggling alone between life and death was too difficult.
Ah Zhang withheld nothing and explained everything. “Players can form teams, but not at a low-tier Inn like a Dormitory. Team functions unlock only once you reach an Inn above the Dormitory tier. The Front Desk will explain it then.”
“But if there are many Inns at the same tier, how can teammates ensure they enter the same one?” Cheng Miao heard activity outside. A player might have just finished a Game.
“You can choose when you advance to the next Inn.” With a new guest arriving, Ah Zhang had no time to continue. He and his brother wobbled out through the door.
Cheng Miao waited for a while. The door never opened. All she heard were bloodcurdling screams.
She lowered her eyes and slowly returned to her bed.
“You’re not even afraid of those two monsters. Maybe you’re abnormal too.” The girl in the opposite bed wore a smile, but her eyes were icy.
She knew she had been in the wrong that morning, but once her temper flared, she could not control it. Her words turned mocking and passive-aggressive.
Cheng Miao was already in a foul mood. The girl chose the worst possible moment to provoke her, and Cheng Miao’s expression darkened like a gathering storm.
She walked over, seized the girl by the collar, and looked coldly down at her. “Listen. I don’t care how rich your family is. If your parents were too busy to teach you basic respect and manners by this age, I don’t mind doing it for them.”
Cheng Miao bent closer and enunciated every word. “No one here owes you consideration or help. If someone doesn’t drag you down as a sacrifice, you should thank them for having decent morals. If you want to survive and eat meat, then take the Games seriously and clear them properly.”
“And what you just said was a personal attack. I believe you owe me an apology.”
Damn it, didn’t she seem perfectly good-tempered this morning?
The girl’s face flushed scarlet beneath Cheng Miao’s grip. She struggled, realized she was no match, and immediately grew furious with herself for feeling afraid. Pressing her lips together, she made her refusal clear through silence.
Cheng Miao smiled like a child-eating witch and pressed one hand to the girl’s shoulder. “I doubt your parents have ever even raised their voices at you. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have grown this crooked.”
Rolling up her sleeves, Cheng Miao continued smiling. “There was a little girl in my last instance. Tsk, tsk. Poor thing. She was around your age, and flowers were practically growing from her bones.”
The girl stretched toward her bed, but Cheng Miao’s long arm easily caught her collar again.
“Y-you wouldn’t dare touch me. Violence isn’t allowed in the common room.” She had never suffered humiliation like this in her life.
Cheng Miao gave her a sinister smile without answering. To an observer, her expression said, You’re far too naive if you believe nonsense like that.
The girl’s face remained gloomy, but tears filled her catlike eyes. She resembled a kitten baring tiny claws while trembling inside.
Not one person nearby spoke on her behalf. Even the cockroach brothers hovered to one side and watched the entertainment.
Their failure to intervene convinced both the girl and the onlookers that Cheng Miao possessed both the power and confidence to use violence. Everyone grew apprehensive.
“S-sorry,” the girl squeezed out in a voice as faint as a mosquito.
A smart person knows when to yield. Just you wait!
“What? Louder. I didn’t hear you.” Cheng Miao dropped the threatening smile and regarded her without expression.
Under that utterly emotionless gaze, the girl pressed her lips together. “I said I’m sorry!”
“Good.” Satisfied, Cheng Miao dusted off her hands and returned to her bed, ignoring the girl struggling not to cry behind her.
Expressionless, the girl wiped away involuntary tears.
Very well. You’ve successfully caught my attention.
“Hey, young lady, don’t cry. That woman is an adult. She shouldn’t be picking on a child… What’s your name?” Judging by the voice, it was the man who had spoken to her the day before.
“None of your business. You’re no good either.” The girl showed no courtesy whatsoever to someone she considered weaker.
Cheng Miao lay on her bed, ignored the commotion outside, and carefully examined her circumstances.
The Survival Inn did not operate like a typical unlimited-flow world, where people entered a Game directly from reality and returned to their lives after clearing it.
Instead, the Survival Inn had established a separate space. Players were completely severed from reality and lived within the Inn’s world.
Why? If they had merely been unlucky enough to be chosen, why would the Game expend so much effort building rooms and recruiting Front Desk attendants? Outside the instances, it had achieved something close to fairness, impartiality, and transparency.
Moreover, judging by Cheng Miao’s limited experience with advancement, the Intermediate Dormitory was vastly better than the Basic Dormitory. The Game truly did provide increasingly comfortable living spaces to successful players. As long as someone had money, it could seemingly satisfy almost every need.
What purpose did the Survival Inn serve?