I’m A Little White Flower In An Escape Game ☆ 6

Arc 1: 《Mermaid Village》 Ch2-ch14

"Let's go," Gu San said, agreeing with Ruan Bai's decision.

They ascended towards the mountaintop, determined to investigate the central temple. The village lay far below, and a barely visible path led the way. Ruan Bai was intrigued by the multitude of footprints on the trail, all considerably larger than the average woman.

'Were there any strangers here last night?' she wondered, her curiosity piqued. Turning to Gu San, she asked if any young men resided in the village, as she had not seen any since arriving the previous day.

"No," Gu San replied briskly, having made inquiries earlier that morning. "I've asked around and discovered that Qin Yu and the others have no idea about the temple. Although they may be feigning ignorance." He paused momentarily and continued, "The village consists only of the elderly and children. Moreover, only boys, no girls."

Ruan Bai sensed that something was amiss. She glanced back at the village, observing the barren fields and the absence of livestock, with scarcely any chickens, ducks, or fish. No one was tending the land, and self-sufficiency seemed impossible. How did the villagers survive? What did they eat?

It dawned on her that the village must have some external support. The large footprints they had encountered earlier hinted that the village had contact with the outside world.

Lost in thought, they arrived at the Taoist temple's entrance, a stark contrast to the dilapidated houses below. The temple's design was exquisite, out of place in the Mermaid Village. The steps and walls were immaculate. The entrance was adorned with a display of fresh fruits.

As they entered, they were greeted by a statue of a benevolent female deity with a fishtail. The statue's round, unblinking eyes were reminiscent of the woman they had met the previous night. Her long, puckered mouth gave her an eerie appearance. Ruan Bai and Gu San scoured the temple, hoping to find some answers, but the temple was small and lacked anything beyond the statue.

Ruan Bai couldn't shake the sense that something was amiss. Wasn't the ringing she heard last night coming from this temple? But where was the source of the sound? Her eyes landed on the statue before her. She remembered that figures like these didn't have to be solid, did they?

Meanwhile, Gu San was stationed outside the temple, his attention focused elsewhere. Without hesitation, Ruan Bai shed her guise of a delicate lady and rolled up her sleeves, scrambling up to the side of the statue. She tapped the surface and confirmed it was indeed hollow before embracing the statue tightly.

'System,' she began, 'Do I still need to pretend to be a pure and innocent lady when no one's around?'

[As long as your actions aren't indecent, it should be adequate,] the system replied with a hint of uncertainty. [However, host, what do you plan to do? Since last night, you haven't taken your role as the 'white lotus' seriously. If you ruin your character, your evaluation level will decrease.]

Ruan Bai thought, 'Who would have the energy to keep up appearances of purity when death looms?' Though she was at a loss for words, she smiled sweetly and said, 'I'm just moving something.'

She exerted all her strength with a deep breath and budged the statue.

Ruan Bai had always been remarkably strong, not to mention the statue turned out to be lighter than it appeared. She quickly moved it aside, revealing a black box hidden beneath the pedestal.

With a curious tilt of her head, Ruan Bai lifted the lid, revealing a blood-red bell that emitted a pungent odour. The bell lay nestled among a pile of talismans. A dim light illuminated the ominous sight of blood trickling down the bell's dark-red surface.

The ringing from last night must have been related to this bell!

Ruan Bai reached for the bell, but her heart sank when she realized it weighed a ton, despite its small size. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't lift or move it an inch. Panic set in as she struggled.

Yet, despite her difficulty, Ruan Bai found herself drawn inexplicably to the bell as if an invisible force held her tight.

In her frenzy, Ruan Bai brushed her fingertips against the edge of the black wooden box, causing her fingers to sting. A drop of blood fell onto the bell. Suddenly, Ruan Bai fell into a daze as a fleeting light emanated from the bell.

As Ruan Bai lifted the bell, she marvelled at its sudden weightlessness. Simultaneously, a notification from the system confirmed her achievement: [Congratulations, host, for obtaining the mission item, 'Mermaid Bell'!]

"A mission item?" Ruan Bai exclaimed in delight.

Unlike the point items that could be exchanged in the system store, mission items were mainly used to promote the task's progress. She had encountered mission items before in her past missions, each with a vital role in progressing through the world. The male lead's mother's relics or the dolls he gifted her in their youth had paved the way for her success. The Mermaid Bell may prove to be just as useful.

However, as she turned to leave the pedestal, the statue of the mermaid's mother underwent a dramatic transformation. The once-smiling face had vanished. The mouth opened wide, revealing a terrifying set of razor-sharp teeth. Once peaceful, the eyes now glared at Ruan Bai with malice and anger.

The scene was both haunting and unsettling.

Gu San's voice broke the eerie silence outside the temple, saying, "Bai Ruan Ruan, hurry! There are people outside!"

Ruan Bai quickly pocketed the bell and fled with Gu San, taking a less-travelled path off the main route to avoid potential danger. As they descended the mountain, they spotted two strangers loitering near the temple. The pair appeared to be scanning the area for something or someone, but they didn't bother to glance inside the temple.

Ruan Bai quickly realized her suspicions were confirmed that these were not players and suspected that they were other people hiding within the mermaid village. Now the question of how long they could conceal the bell's disappearance hung in the air. Ruan Bai clutched it tightly in her pocket, cautiously descending the mountain with Gu San.

As they descended the mountain, the sun was already high in the sky, and hunger gnawed at Ruan Bai's stomach. All the villagers had already eaten, but Ruan Bai and Gu San had missed lunch due to their exploration of the mermaid village. As they approached the village, they noticed that everyone had congregated at the village chief's house, their voices hushed as they discussed something important.

Ruan Bai studied the villagers, noting their dull, lifeless expressions as if they had grown accustomed to death. However, as players walked past, she felt their envious and resentful stares from the villagers. One even locked eyes with her, baring their teeth with malice, causing Ruan Bai to feel momentarily uneasy.

Shaking off the unpleasant encounter, Ruan Bai and Gu San continued, encountering other players along the path.

However, they were too focused on finding clues to engage in conversation. Only the white-collar worker smiled warmly at Ruan Bai. The new player, Wang Wen Wen, followed her like a shadow. Ruan Bai acknowledged the woman's greeting with a half-hearted nod before quickly joining Gu San.

Upon reaching their temporary lodgings, they met Little Tiger, the only child in the house. Ruan Bai purchased several packs of instant noodles with two points from the system and boiled a pot for Gu San before preparing another for the young boy, who stood eagerly by her side.

"Thanks, sister!" he exclaimed gratefully, revealing a mouthful of eight gleaming teeth.

Ruan Bai smiled warmly at him, ruffling his hair affectionately. "It's nothing. If you're still hungry, feel free to have more."

Little Tiger nodded eagerly, slurping up the noodles with relish.

Ruan Bai had been a player for a long time and had learned to make herself more amiable and approachable to NPCs. With her naturally pleasing appearance, non-threatening demeanour, and being female, she was easier to connect with than the aloof Gu San.

Little Tiger slurped his noodles as Ruan Bai engaged him in conversation, her words flowing like a soothing balm about topics children would enjoy. As she spoke, she gifted him two boxes of instant noodles, a generous gesture that made Little Tiger feel at ease.

Gradually, he relaxed and affectionately called her "Sister Bai."

When Ruan Bai sensed the moment was right, she casually inquired about Little Tiger's family. "Do you have anyone else besides your grandmother?" she asked. Little Tiger replied promptly, "I have parents and an older sister. My parents visit my grandmother and me every month!"

"What about your sister?" Ruan Bai continued, curious. "I haven't seen any other girls in this village. Are you the only one with a sister?"

"No," Little Tiger replied hesitantly. "They all have sisters. Second Dog has three sisters. But my sister... she went to a faraway place. Grandma said Second Dog's sister can return, but my sister can't."

Ruan Bai was taken aback by this revelation. Second Dog's sister could return, but not Little Tiger's? What did that mean? Before she could ask further, Gu San's fake coughs interrupted their conversation. Looking up, Ruan Bai noticed Little Tiger's grandmother's silhouette outside. She swiftly changed the topic and started talking with Little Tiger about the latest popular children's animated TV show.

When Little Tiger's grandmother returned, she didn't suspect a thing and even expressed gratitude for the instant noodles. Ruan Bai chatted with her for a while, offering condolences to the deceased villagers before pretending to nap. Then, they retired to the guest room where they had slept before, ensuring they were alone.

Ruan Bai cast a furtive glance over her shoulder before addressing Gu San in a hushed tone. "Gu San, have you found any leads?"

Gu San pulled a pendant from his pocket and tossed it to Ruan Bai. "I found this outside the temple," he said.

While Ruan Bai was moving the Buddha statue, Gu San stayed outside the temple. He discovered some strands of women's hair in the soil and dug them up, unearthing the pendant. The back of the pendant bore an inscription that read 'Gift to my beloved mermaid girl'. Ruan Bai opened it and found a portrait of a young woman inside.

"Do you remember the woman we saw last night?" Gu San asked, crossing his arms. "She looks just like the woman in the pendant."

Ruan Bai scrutinized the portrait and confirmed that it was true. The woman's facial features matched the portrait in the pendant, and there was no possibility of a mistake. Was she a mermaid?

"In this village, besides the elderly, we have never seen any women," Gu San mused. "And judging from the age of the owner of this pendant, I speculate that those missing women are the 'mermaids' of the 'Mermaid Village.'"

Ruan Bai and Gu San arrived at the same conclusion.

On Ruan Bai's first day in the village, she was puzzled: why was a village surrounded by mountains and without water called "Mermaid Village"? Shouldn't mermaids live in the sea? Now, she suspected that some of the girls born in this village resembled the "mermaids" in the legend due to some genetic anomaly!

"Deformed individuals have 'uses' in many places," Ruan Bai observed. "The economic source of Mermaid Village is probably dependent on these 'mermaids.'" Little Tiger's parents, on the other hand, had been living outside the village, likely to deal with the 'mermaids,' sell them, and conceal the existence of Mermaid Village.

As for the women in the village, they were probably normal and capable of giving birth to deformed offspring. Once they could no longer have children, they were left behind to care for the next generation.

"But why aren't there any young girls here?" Ruan Bai pondered once again, realizing that something was amiss. "Little Tiger's sister cannot return, indicating that she is likely a mermaid and being taken away is normal, but if Second Dog's sister can return, they should be normal individuals. Why aren't they kept in the village?"

Moreover, talismanic wooden plaques hung under the eaves of the village, resentful mermaid statues, and suspicious adult men...

Undoubtedly, the secrets of Mermaid Village went beyond what they had discovered so far.

——— Translator's Notes ———

TN "Xiao-Hu" (小虎) means "Little Tiger" in Chinese. "Er-Gou" (二狗) means "Second Dog" in Chinese and is a common nickname in Chinese culture.

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