Chapter Six: The Drifting Bottle and the Five (Additional Chapter 200)

The days of peaceful life passed swiftly, and before she knew it, another day had come to an end. After exchanging goodnights, Joanna—so petite and delicate—was easily lifted by Liu Mengchao, who gently placed her on the bed to the sound of her giggles.

A faint beep sounded, unusually piercing in the quiet night. Liu Mengchao glanced worriedly at Joanna, who was fast asleep. Only when he saw her mouth slightly open, breathing softly and snoring ever so gently, did he let out a sigh of relief. It would be troublesome if she woke up. Glancing at the digital clock, Liu Mengchao saw that it was already midnight.

Tick.

The clock advanced by another second—another day had begun. Since meeting Joanna, to his first mission in the Lord God's Space, to his first killing—only now did a wave of nausea belatedly surge through Liu Mengchao's chest.

He clamped a hand over his mouth, shook his head, and fought off the discomfort that came from taking a life.

A familiar chime rang out—the sound of a QQ notification. Liu Mengchao looked at his long-unused QQ account and sighed, the meaning lost even to himself. When his parents were still alive, he had loved logging into chat programs like this, as they opened a wider world to him.

But his parents were gone. Liu Mengchao could no longer find it in himself to chat enthusiastically with strangers online as he once had.

"Executor..." Bai Ya's voice suddenly sounded beside him.

Her petite frame was clad in a thin nightgown, and her pink ponytail, now let down, cascaded over her shoulders. She looked like a lost sprite, smiling gently at her beloved.

"Bai Ya..." Liu Mengchao frowned slightly. "Won't this keep Anna from resting?"

"Please don't worry, Executor. Anna is already deeply asleep. Using her body now won't bring her any extra burden. But you—it's so late, and you're still at the computer. Are you sure you're all right? Matters concerning the Lord God's game can wait until tomorrow."

"No need. I promised Joanna I’d play hide-and-seek with her tomorrow."

With practiced ease, Liu Mengchao opened his QQ mailbox and deleted all the emails. Aside from store promotions and a few invitations from social networks, there was nothing else.

"I’ve found a way." As he spoke, his fingers clattered swiftly across the keyboard.

Do you want to know the meaning of life? Do you want to truly live?

Click. Send.

"Executor, what are you doing?"

"As long as someone agrees, that's all it takes, right?" Liu Mengchao grinned slyly. "Have you ever heard of 'Terror Infinity'?"

"I have. It's said to be another Lord God system, hiring online novelists to write a story. But in the end, the novelist broke free of its control, colluded with people in the Lord God Space, and even caused a rebellion inside. That's why the new position of the Lord God's Executor was introduced."

Interlacing his fingers, Liu Mengchao bowed his head, rubbing his lips over his index finger as he spoke slowly. "So in the novel, the ten-day interval between missions—is that a rule of the Lord God's world?"

"Yes. If it goes beyond ten days, the Lord God's Space jackpot drops drastically—about ten thousand points per day. So, finding new players and maintaining a certain number of participants is the long-term strategy for the Lord God's game, Executor."

Liu Mengchao was about to reply when a QQ notification sounded again.

"Your Drift Bottle has received a reply."

You must be out of your mind from reading 'Terror Infinity', idiot!

"Not a very friendly response, it seems." Liu Mengchao chuckled, deleting the Drift Bottle message. "If someone agrees, are they transported to the Lord God Space immediately?"

"Not exactly. It's based on the ten-day deadline. When the time is up, a list appears for you to select participants. The longer the delay in the real world, the greater the cost of memory modification once they're brought into the Lord God Space."

"Understood!" Liu Mengchao snapped his fingers and shut down his computer.

"Executor, you still haven't told me how you plan to recruit participants for the Lord God's game."

"My method?" Liu Mengchao lifted Bai Ya—her face a picture of surprise—and set her on the bed. "It's Tencent’s Drift Bottle, an anonymous communication tool. All right, it's time to sleep. Any other questions can wait for next time."

But...

Bai Ya's words caught in her throat. For some reason, her cheeks flushed and she softly closed her eyes.

So warm. So good.

Those were her final thoughts.

Ten days later.

Liu Mengchao's computer was still playing the anime "School Days."

"Executor, the time has come. According to the statistics, four people replied affirmatively—two men, two women. Their names are—"

"Put your shoes on first, or Anna will catch a cold in a minute."

Instead of answering directly, Liu Mengchao pointed at her feet.

Her delicate feet were bare, unconcerned on the cold tiles.

"But..." Bai Ya muttered, but under Liu Mengchao's gaze, she reluctantly put on the cotton slippers he had prepared for her.

Little bear slippers.

"Bai Ya, you and Anna are complete opposites. Anna refuses to ever take her shoes off, while you never want to wear any."

Leaning back in his chair, Liu Mengchao closed his eyes. "Let's begin... the Lord God's Game, Bai Ya!"

A sudden white light flashed before his eyes, followed by an excited shout.

"Brother, brother, good luck!"

Yes—even if it’s only for you, Anna!

――――――――――――――

In a world of white mist, the great pool representing the jackpot finally showed a hint of color. About a teacup’s worth of water gathered at the center.

Aside from the multicolored points at the pool’s center, Liu Mengchao noticed a patch of black soil beneath his feet.

"Why is there a patch of black soil here?"

"Executor, every time you open a new world, a corresponding patch of soil appears in the empty Lord God's Space. Each grain of black soil is a world."

"A world in a flower, a universe in a leaf..." Liu Mengchao crouched down. "So this is the world of 'School Days.'"

"Yes. Now, I will begin transporting you."

As Bai Ya's voice faded, the familiar system panel appeared before Liu Mengchao.

"Reporting system status:

Current Lord God's Game participants: 4
Due to the Lord God’s coma, the Executor is acting in the Lord God's stead.
Jackpot: 10,000 reward points
Available world: School Days.
Interaction detected with a character in the School Days world. Entry fee halved. Current cost: 5,000.
Would you like to proceed?"

"Proceed!"

"Remaining jackpot: 5,000 reward points.
Optional: Carry over an item from the previous game world.
Fruit knife.
Upgradeable: Tang Dao (may be carried, concealed, and invisible).
Cost: 1,000 reward points.
Available skill: Sword Draw Technique—the highest-level martial skill in School Days.
Description: The pinnacle of sword-drawing skill attainable by a human. In the instant of drawing the blade, one can slice a falling droplet of water in two.
Cost: 1,000 reward points.
Would you like to enable?"

"Enable!"

As Liu Mengchao gave the command, the white light gradually faded.

He steadied himself and found he was at the very place where School Days began—a train car in motion, the same one where he killed the vagrant.

"One... two... three... four..."

Two men and two women lay unconscious on the floor.

"Four players..." Liu Mengchao checked the Tang Dao fastened at his waist, which now lay beside him in the train car. "Counting me, shouldn't there be five of us?"

As if in answer to his musings, a girl with black hair—her face previously motionless—now revealed a rare, expectant smile.

"Ding...

Countdown: twenty seconds remaining. Executor, please prepare to announce the mission."

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Ah, I heard today is Little New Year's Eve—wishing all my readers an early Happy New Year. I can keep writing~ Please recommend and bookmark—I can do laundry, I can cook, and I can warm the bed too!