In Virtual Reality 75 ☆ The Library of Eternal Life (9/10)

The man's heart ceased to beat.
His senses erupted into a frenzy of uncontrollable sensations.
A deafening ring pierced his eardrums as his heart violently throbbed against his thin skin, threatening to burst through.

A decade ago, a game of survival occurred, where only a handful of the five hundred participants emerged alive.
Wang Jin Long, the mastermind behind the killings, took pride in his success.
He believed he had control of the entire situation and would emerge victorious if he stayed alive.
He never partook in the game but managed to manipulate it from behind the scenes.
However, one person ruined his perfect victory.
That bastard saved a boy.
Wang Jin Long loathed him for it.

But fear consumed him, knowing that the person who thwarted his plans was still out there, and he had no clue who he was.
The figure draped in a tattered black cloth remained shrouded in mystery, and Wang Jin Long didn't even know what he looked like.

On the phone, the voice on the other end emitted a sarcastic laugh that cut through Wang Jin Long's fragile heart like a sharp knife.
“Let me guess where you are?” The voice jeered.
“In the park? Mall? Or coffee shop?”

Wang Jin Long's pupils contracted, and his heart raced, threatening to tear his remaining reason apart.
How did he know? He quickly scanned the surroundings, but no surveillance cameras were in sight.
He thought he had found a blind spot in the coffee shop where he could relax, but the voice on the other end continued to taunt him.

“Are you scared?” The person in the black robe chuckled icily.
“So you also have moments of fear? Living by 'enduring humiliation and carrying a heavy load'? Using everything that can be used, no matter what, you can even use other people's pity without guilt.
For you, this is too simple.
Just like that time.”

Wang Jin Long tried to hypnotize himself, convincing himself not to be duped by the black robe.
He barely managed to calm down but remained silent on the phone.
The voice continued to speak.
Wang Jin Long listened, feeling fear and anger boiling within him.

“You only need to cry out and say 'save us!' and 'I don't want to die!' Ye Cheng Jing will willingly give up his own life.” Black Robe's response was a cruel mockery of his fear.
“Do you have no heart? Ah…I forgot.
How could a werewolf have a human heart? Hahaha.”

Despite the taunting, Wang Jin Long remained focused on the task at hand.
“You're not Black Robe,” he said firmly.
“Thy wouldn't say that many things.
Although there's a possibility of disguise, I still believe….” His voice trailed off as he recalled the fatal judge, the figure that had haunted him since that fateful day.
“Black Robe is a woman.
Unless they used the game's rewards to change their appearance features.” He softly said, “You're 'Silence', aren't you?”

The silence on the other end of the line was deafening.

“Listen, I'm sorry for that game,” Wang Jin Long continued, his voice thick with emotion.
“But the truth is not what you think.
Perhaps you were deceived by someone.
Officer Ye and I are good friends, and I don't deny that he saved me, but at that time, it wasn't just to save me.
The people who survived have great sins.
I bear the lives of the deceased, but I don't want to give up.” His voice trailed off as if struggling to contain his sobs.
“You can blame me, but our goal is the same.
Don't you want to return to that amusement park? Perhaps Officer Ye is still waiting for us to return.”

The line was silent for what felt like an eternity.

Thump, thump, thump…
Wang Jin Long's heart beat steadily, a metronome counting down the seconds until he would have his answer.

3, 2, 1—

“What do you want me to do?” The once mocking voice was now low and filled with sadness.

Wang Jin Long smiled to himself, relief washing over him like a wave.
“Good child,” he said gently.
“Are you in the library now?”

Silence replied with a simple “Um.”

“Tell me, how can I get there?”

“What…do you mean?”

The man spoke softly, his voice carrying a weighty realization.
“Have you not noticed?” he asked, his patience overflowing.
“The world you have lived in and the one I now inhabit are different.
You have always been living in the 'Shenanigans', never able to escape,” Wang Jin Long said with deep pity.

He had already deduced Silence's true identity.

“At the end of that amusement park, you passed out, didn't you? Cao Du?” he asked, waiting for a response.

“…
” Silence remained silent for an extended period; their response took too long for Wang Jin Long's liking.
He couldn't help but furrow his brow.
Perhaps he had been wrong?

But then, finally, Silence spoke.
“I didn't expect you to remember me,” they said with a complex mix of pain and anger in their voice.

Cao Du's voice was filled with bitterness and complexity, having grown up after being rescued by Ye Cheng Jing, only to become trapped in the 'Shenanigans'.

Wang Jin Long's lips curled slightly, his heart heavy with regret.

“What a pity,” he murmured.

“Wang, Jin, Long!!” Silence's voice came through the phone, filled with rage and fury.

“Cao Du,” Wang Jin Long responded, holding his chest and steadying his heart, his tone heavy with sorrow, “things are not as they seem.”

“What more could you possibly say?” Silence, who had been so calculating before, was now furious that their 'identity' had been revealed.
“You damn werewolf!!”

“You have to give me a chance to explain,” Wang Jin Long pleaded.
“I admit, during that game, I was the werewolf.
But I didn't have to kill Officer Ye.
You see, as a 'human', you are still alive, meaning humans and werewolves can win together.
At that time, I wanted him to live.”

“But he died!” Silence's heart-wrenching screams pierced the air, causing Wang Jin Long's ears to sting.

It all felt a little strange to him.

Silence coughed and started to sob softly.

Wang Jin Long seized the opportunity to keep talking.
“It was someone else,” he said, trying to calm Silence down.
“Do you remember the black-robed person who never spoke during that game? That was the mastermind behind it all.
That black-robed person turned the ending into what it is now.
I have been looking for her for so many years.
Werewolves may not have hearts, but I do,” Wang Jin Long murmured softly.
“And it's beating hot.”

“…”

“We're the same, Cao Du, whether you believe it or not,” Wang Jin Long said, his eyes alight with determination.
“I want to return to Murphy's Playground.
I want to save Officer Ye.
He may not be dead! Tell me, Cao Du, have you ever gone back?”

Wang Jin Long pondered to himself.
It was impossible that Cao Du had returned.
If he had, Wang Jin Long would not have been able to sway him – Ye Cheng Jing was dead, dead beyond a shadow of a doubt.
Falling from a kilometre high, nothing was likely left but a mess of flesh.

“I can't go back,” Cao Du whispered.
“I can't find a way.”

But Wang Jin Long's lips twisted into a sly smile.
“It's all right,” he said confidently.
“I'm here with you.
If we work together, we can find our way back and save Officer Ye.”

The voice emanating from Cao Du's lips was soft, like a wounded creature licking its wounds alone.
But it was still clear, “Is he truly alive? Officer Ye?”

Wang Jin Long responded gently yet firmly, “Yes, Officer Ye is still alive.
He's waiting for us, and we will find him.”

**

Silence took the phone number and went away, their steps fading into the distance.
Zhang Rou Rou sat on the floor, watching them with an unassuming gaze, her mind racing with questions.
Though she strained her ears, she couldn't hear their conversation, only catching glimpses of the librarian's smile as she talked.

Zhang Rou Rou was unnerved by the librarian's behaviour; she had never seen them laugh so freely while covering the phone so other people wouldn't hear.
Curiosity gnawed at her, but she tried to focus on her book, unwilling to be seen as intrusive.
When Silence returned, her face was still lit with unexplainable joy.
Was there some history between the librarian and Mr Wang?

Lost in thought, Zhang Rou Rou remained seated and didn't turn the page of her book.

“Haven't finished reading yet?” the librarian asked, their face relaxed and contented.

Zhang Rou Rou nodded absently, her eyes fixed on the librarian's serene expression.
For some reason, she felt compelled to confess, “I'm a little scared.”

“Scared?” the librarian echoed, their voice dripping with amusement.

Zhang Rou Rou hesitated, struggling to find the words to explain her unease.
“This book…
it's written a lot like me.”

The librarian's laughter echoed through the quiet room.
“It's written about you.”

“What…?” Zhang Rou Rou couldn't believe her ears.

The librarian reached out their hand and pointed at the title.
“This book is called 'Zhang Xiao Hua's Amazing Adventure', and you are Zhang Xiao Hua.
This is your story.”

Zhang Rou Rou's face drained of colour, and she felt fear wash over her.
“But…”

She wasn't called Zhang Xiao Hua; she was called Zhang Rou Rou!

Zhang Rou Rou tried to swallow the words on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't resist the temptation to ask, “Why is my story here?”

The librarian savoured the question before responding, drawing out each syllable like a pianist playing a slow melody, “Yeah, why indeed~?”

Zhang Rou Rou couldn't help but notice the librarian's smile, a subtle curve that hinted at something more profound.
She stared into their eyes, mesmerized by the pure blackness of their pupils.
Was it her imagination, or did the whites of their eyes turn black for a fleeting moment? She rubbed her eyes, trying to dispel the illusion, but the librarian's eyes remained as distinct black and white as before.

Silence raised their hand to their face, moulding their features with unapologetic ease, “What's wrong? Is there something on my face?”

“N-nothing!” Zhang Rou Rou stammered.

The librarian let out a small chuckle, which seemed to come from deep within them.
“That's good,” they said, relieved.
“I thought my face had turned into someone else's.”

Zhang Rou Rou furrowed her brows, perplexed by the librarian's remark.
What did they mean by that?

“Well…
because I just confirmed some things,” the librarian rubbed their chin with a mixture of distress and joy.
“It turns out that there really are fools who think they can dig their own graves in this world.”

“Huh?” Zhang Rou Rou felt lost.

The librarian waved their hand dismissively, “Nothing, don't worry about it.
You just said, why this book exists…”

Zhang Rou Rou's thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the librarian's words.

“Because you almost got eaten by the library just now!” The librarian's voice was light and playful, like a bird's song on a sunny morning.
“The 'Eternal Life Library' is a living library.
People who are consumed by it become books here.” They leaned forward, their eyes sparkling with excitement.
“Can you guess how many books are here?”