Turning to the bottom layer, Drest touched a soft, high-quality baby pajama, the stitching so fine it was almost on par with the wood elves'.
Perhaps it was because this was the best pajama set that the attendant put it on the baby next to the skin.
Clearly, this garment did not originate from his world.
This is... his rival? The vampire lord narrowed his eyes.
He looked up at the baby's little hat, the bat-ear hat with vampire-themed patterns that he was closest to.
Perhaps because Inya was wearing it, Alos could clearly feel that the connection between him and the baby seemed to have become stronger today.
Could it be... that it really works?
Despite his doubts, the vampire honestly pulled out the entire outfit that included the bat-ear hat.
-
That evening, Inia returned to her space, having eaten and taken some food with her.
As she absorbed Noah's dark power during this period, the space expanded slightly, but it was clear that the increase in area was becoming less and less.
Just as Chu Wang finished tidying up his space, Bao Bao returned carrying two large packages.
"Wow!" Upon seeing Chu Wang,
Inya happily babbled in baby talk, clearly enjoying her dream journey.
It's just a tiny baby and two huge packages placed together, giving the impression that the baby is working hard to earn money to support the family.
Chu Wang chuckled, held the baby in his arms, and together they rummaged through the supplies sent by the vampire lord.
Despite being at a disadvantage in terms of time, as a Western fantasy world, Drest's greatest strength lies in the sheer number of items with attributes that can be used as props or equipment. In contrast, while the items created in Noah's world are of high quality, they are all ordinary objects.
From another perspective, Inia's caretakers seem to complement each other in terms of strength.
In the following days, the baby did not go out at night to play with other bosses, but returned to its own world to slowly digest the power.
Chu Wang stayed with her every night, observing the entire room. He was certain the Star House hadn't grown any larger in the past few days; where had the power the baby had absorbed gone? Perhaps the Star House was gaining new functions, just not yet manifesting.
Two days later, when Chu Wang entered the space again in his dream, he didn't see Inia. The boy wasn't too surprised; calculating the time, the baby had absorbed enough, and it was time to go out and play.
However, what he didn't know was that Alos, who finally mustered up the energy to make an appointment with Inia, Noah, who was stuck at the deadline, and Drest, who pinned his hopes on equipment, all came up empty-handed.
The exact same message box popped up in front of them.
The owner has gone out to play. Please come back tomorrow!
In the dream, the baby propped himself up and looked at the unfamiliar surroundings as usual.
Chapter 27 027 Nightmare Mother
Tiny morning stars scattered across the sky, and the pale blue horizon was covered by pink clouds, creating a dreamlike scene.
The leaves of the trees in the forest were emerald green and translucent, almost like the texture of gemstones; the whole world was indescribably beautiful.
Just then, hurried footsteps came from the jungle.
Huang Bin pushed aside the leaf that was half his height in front of him, panting heavily, and ran forward without daring to stop for a moment.
Faster, faster!
Once he leaves the boss's skill range and reaches the edge of the dungeon, he can use an item to leave this world...
Although the "Emergency Exit" item would make all the points he had worked so hard to accumulate over the past six months go to waste, nothing was more important than his life.
As he ran forward, Huang Bin opened the operating system to check how long it would take him to reach the edge of the instance.
Upon looking at it, he panicked—five minutes ago, the system showed that he was 5,000 meters away from the nearest edge. How come after running for so long, he is still 5,000 meters away from the edge of the instance?
Did he get lost in a maze? But he clearly used a navigation item!
Distracted for a moment, Huang Bin tripped over a long tree root, lost his balance, and fell. The man clutched his chest, collapsed on the grass in agony, and didn't get up for a long time.
Just then, a misty haze, like steam, flashed across the dreamy blue and pink sky, as if transparent wings were passing by.
Huang Bin felt a sharp pain in his ribs. He raised his head, covered in sweat, and suddenly froze.
Suddenly, a pair of butterfly wings, adorned with colorful clouds, appeared in the sky before us. They were enormous and beautiful, almost obscuring the sun.
As they drew nearer, the wings transformed into fluttering sleeves, and a pair of slender, fair hands emerged from the sleeves, gently caressing the man's terrified face.
That woman was so beautiful she could make you lose your mind. Her long hair, as blue as the sky, cascaded down her shoulders to the ground. A faint, misty sadness and compassion lingered between her brows, and her gaze toward him was filled with a motherly tenderness and divinity.
"Why did my child leave without saying goodbye?"
The woman's voice was ethereal; for a moment, it seemed as if the entire forest was speaking together.
She gently touched Huang Bin's forehead with her fingers and said softly, "It's dangerous outside the house, you should go back."
No, no! Who is your child?
Huang Bin was trembling all over; he couldn't forget what had happened in the past few days.
The [Cradle of the Forest] is only a C-rank dungeon, which is only in the second tier in terms of classification. This kind of dungeon is updated relatively quickly, so it is normal that there are no previous players exploring or supplementing the dungeon information.
According to the dungeon description, this should be a world that appears to be a beautiful fairytale forest on the surface, but in reality hides all kinds of murderous and bloodthirsty plants. All you need to do is kill the monsters and find the boss's lair based on your previous experience.
Huang Bin and several other familiar players formed a five-person team. Upon entering the dungeon, they found some plants that would attack them. They cleared away the plant monsters along the way, unknowingly being led into the deepest part of the forest.
Deep in the forest, instead of the stereotypical image of thorny thickets and dark woods, there is a beautiful land with crystal-clear rivers, lush green lawns, and giant, umbrella-shaped mushrooms.
Those mushrooms were taller than skyscrapers, and as transparent as crystals. The sunlight and the colors of the sky and clouds refracted through the crystal mushrooms, creating a beautiful glow.
Along the edge of the mushroom cap, layers of pearl-like white clusters hang, resembling a beaded curtain swaying in the wind when viewed from afar.
Later, Huang Bin realized that those white clumps were all white silk cocoons, each containing a human whose life or death was unknown.
This instance is not a world mainly composed of mutated plants. Huang Bin didn't know whether it was a system error or the boss's ability—she had secretly modified her own world and used it as bait to keep all the players who came here!
The dungeon master seemed to possess the ability to lull people into a deep sleep. Huang Bin watched as his companions behind him suddenly closed their eyes one after another, drifting off to sleep with blissful expressions. The woman gently stroked their hair, wrapped it around them, and placed them atop the mushroom-shaped umbrella.
As for the faint starry sky above, well, he watched with his own eyes as some withered silk cocoons turned into light in the woman's hands, flew into the 'sky,' and became a new star.
Huang Bin escaped the calamity because he still had a piece of mental protection equipment he had acquired before. Players like them wear whatever they have, even if it's not suitable for the dungeon, and unexpectedly, it actually saved his life.
Even when facing the boss, a woman of unparalleled beauty, he couldn't help but tremble. He felt his consciousness fading, and the durability of his equipment was decreasing at an alarming rate.
Perhaps facing imminent death, the unwilling man roared, "You bitch, who is your child? How can you kill your own child like this? I saw what you did, all that pretense—"
The woman's fingers left his face, and her once sorrowful and gentle eyes had become cold and lifeless. The oppressive aura of the dungeon master chilled Huang Bin's blood, and the remaining curses stuck in his throat, unable to be uttered.
"If you're not my child, then you're a villain who's here to harm children." Her voice was icy. "In that case, become nourishment for this world."
Just before she was about to make her move, the woman suddenly stopped. She looked up, and as if she had heard something, her pupils constricted sharply.
The next second, she disappeared from Huang Bin's sight.
Huang Bin breathed a sigh of relief, looking at his companion who seemed to be having a wonderful dream. If he had to choose a way to die, dying happily in a dream would be better than being torn apart by a monster or watching himself die.
To be honest, as a freak who used to be out of place in the outside world, he was unlike his companions who entered the Refining Realm Space because they died of illness or were on the verge of death in an accident. All he thought about all day was earning enough points to return to the real world and see his family and friends.
He wouldn't have teamed up with them if they weren't technically useful and indecisive. Just like how he was able to run this long was because those fools voluntarily stayed behind, refusing to abandon each other.
For Huang Bin, the happiest moment was when he couldn't resist killing someone and was about to be sentenced, he received an invitation from the Refining Realm Space. From then on, he was like a fish out of water, escaping for good. He really loved this dog-eat-dog infinite space; it was perfect for him.
What would he dream about? If I had to pick his happiest dream, it would be to be someone important, like an emperor or king...
Huang Bin's beautiful dream collapsed when he touched the metal railing.
What's going on? Wasn't he supposed to have a sweet dream? How did he end up back in prison? How— As his equipment's durability reached zero, the man was completely lost in the dream, forgetting everything outside of it.
Huang Bin's legs trembled as he shoved his way toward the execution ground.
Bang bang bang—
After several gunshots, the man suddenly opened his eyes.
He was sitting in his car, with the murder weapon he had prepared on the passenger seat.
"What bad luck."
Huang Bin breathed a sigh of relief. He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. Just then, the victim he had been following for half a month came out of the apartment and got into the car in front.
I can't think too much
The man immediately drove after them.
This country is sparsely populated; once you leave the city, there are vast expanses of uninhabited farms and land.
As planned, he pretended to lose control of his car and grazed the other person's taillight. The other person, new to the country and unaccustomed to the treacherous nature of their new home, would likely walk over, bewildered, to see what had happened.
And then he could take out what he had prepared... wait? Why would the other person take out a huge chainsaw from the trunk?!
How did his seemingly harmless little rabbit turn into a chainsaw-wielding serial killer?!
What followed seemed like history repeating itself, only the perpetrator and victim had switched places. Amidst the pervasive blood, the man died in agony, twisted and contorted in his nightmares time and time again.
...
Inya climbed curiously through the jungle. Everything here was beautiful and dreamlike, and she couldn't help but be attracted by the flowers and plants.
Holding onto the tree trunk, the baby walked forward unsteadily, her little hands unable to resist touching the leaves that were taller than her.
The emerald green leaves, refracting a translucent light as they swayed, captivated the baby's attention. She played with them until she could no longer stand and finally sat down.
Inia was a little hungry, and her powers sensed that there should be something to eat nearby, but she couldn't find the source—this was the first time.
Thanks to the baby-exclusive equipment from the Vampire Castle, Inia's energy was greatly enhanced. She sat for a while, then crawled forward again, and even turned her back to herself and successfully climbed down a tree root that was a step high.
After crawling and walking through the undulating forest for more than ten minutes, the baby finally got tired.
She sat on the ground, her little hands restlessly grabbing a long blade of grass. After playing with it for a while, she habitually put it in her mouth.
The baby is at the age where she loves to put everything in her mouth, and she uses this method to explore the world around her.
Although there is a trace amount of dark power in the grass that can be absorbed, it is so little that it is almost undetectable. On the contrary, the taste of this grass is completely opposite to its appearance—it looks beautiful and clean, but it tastes bitter.
Inia loosened her grip, and the blade of grass bearing the teeth marks fell to the ground.
The baby's mouth pursed, and she began to cry. Since she became conscious, she had never suffered so much; her little mouth was so upset it looked like a USB port from crying.
"Wow, brother..."
The flowers and plants around the baby swayed as soon as the baby finished crying.
The next second, she was in a warm and refreshing embrace.
The baby froze, even forgetting to cry, his big, wet eyes meeting the woman's beautiful, radiant golden eyes, as bright as the rising sun.
The woman picked up Inya, her arms trembling, and stared at the tiny baby in disbelief.
"My child, my child...where do you come from?"
Her voice was melodious and beautiful, filled with suppressed ecstasy and trembling. Facing the speechless Inya, she gently pressed her forehead against the baby's forehead.
At a sufficient distance, the baby subconsciously inhaled the negative pollutants overflowing from her body.
A rainbow of colorful candies rained down on her, some sweet, some tart, and some chocolate-flavored, making it hard for the baby to try them all.
At the same time, they exchanged names through the newly established link.
The baby received the name of a woman as beautiful as the sky and the stream; her name is Lulena.
As usual, the boss's name sparked a little firework in Inia's mind, which made the baby laugh.
Lulena stared at her blankly for a long time before she smiled, but her eyes welled up with tears.
A light, drizzling rain fell from the blue and pink sky.
She gently hugged the baby, softly murmuring the child's name in her arms. It was as if they were not meeting for the first time, but rather a long-awaited reunion.
...
Lulena is a boss who is very similar to Inia.
Her birth came first, and then this instance world appeared.
The world where Lulena once lived has vanished. She was initially born in the nightmares of mothers, and later gradually became the embodiment of the obsessions of all mothers who lost their children. At first, she only circulated in supernatural stories and rumors, until finally she gradually gained real life.
Unconsciously, she created a world based on dreams and was determined to protect her mother's 'children'.
All people in the world are children of a mother.
Lulena feared that her children would be harmed or even lose their lives again, and she hoped that they could fall into a peaceful and eternal sleep under her protection.
She will present them with the most beautiful dreams in the world, and what they dream about is a projection of their own inner selves.
Players will remain in a dream world of ideals and perfect fulfillment. Good people are content with this happiness, and even ordinary people will try their best to maintain order, be good, and cherish their lives. But bad people will follow the darkness in their hearts and destroy everything. They know what the morality they choose to abandon represents, and thus they fall into nightmares.
A person who dies three times in a dream will also die in real life.
Lulena did love her child, but some people don't deserve a mother's love.
Chapter 28-028 The First Boss to Visit Baby Space...
A gentle breeze and light rain fell, and sunlight streamed through the lush green forest.
Lulena's fair and slender arms embraced Inia tightly, letting her draw strength from her neck.
In fact, as a 'demon' born from nightmares, Lulena is different from other bosses. What is a heavy burden and a negative pollution that affects judgment and emotions to others is actually part of her core power.
Only later, as she became the embodiment of her obsession, no longer a mere nightmare, did she gradually grow powerful enough to create her own 'dreams'. Negative emotions also seemed to become a part of her, but the love she felt for her children suppressed the surging sadness, anger, and fear.
Nevertheless, these emotions were not entirely harmless to her.
Lulena is the embodiment of mothers' obsessions and negative emotions. Although she has transformed from a mother into a powerful boss, these emotions still affect her, making her feel like a wandering ghost in a dream, unconsciously running towards one 'child' after another.
Even now, the beautiful nightmare mother is still more obsessed with her own desires, with very little of her humanity remaining.
So when the baby gets close to draw power, Lulena experiences what it feels like for an ordinary person to have their blood sucked by a vampire, which damages her body and weakens her.
Instead of stopping the baby, she gently stroked Inya's hair and pressed her cheek against Inya's soft, warm face.
Lulena breathed softly. There was always a huge, empty hole in her heart. No matter how many children she took good care of and let them have eternal happiness in their dreams, she could not fill the missing piece in her heart. She always became sad and lost very quickly.
But when I held Inya in my arms, the ripples in my heart were soothed.
For the first time, she experienced a sense of peace.
Encouraged by her caregiver, Inia devoured a hearty meal of rainbow candies until her belly was bulging. She even managed to stuff in two more candies, and the whole baby smelled sweet.
She looked up and saw the newly updated caregiver with her eyes closed, her eyelashes fluttering slightly, and the baby raising its little hand to touch her cheek.
Lulena opened her eyes and stared blankly at the baby.
Back when that world still existed, perhaps she was born from nightmares. Even if she transformed into a beautiful and dreamlike form, many children would still subconsciously feel afraid. Over time, Lulena stopped appearing in her true form and simply hid aside to send children sweet dreams.
Lulena hadn't seen a baby in so long, and yet she showed no aversion to her at all, even becoming affectionate with her little one on their first meeting.
This blissful dizziness enveloped the woman. It was only natural for her baby to eat when it was hungry, even if Inia was a boss who drained her life force as food, she would accept it willingly.
She had assumed it was part of her own source of power, so she was prepared that Inia absorbing her negative energy might affect her. But—how could it be?
None of the effects Lulena had anticipated occurred; she did not feel herself becoming weak.
On the contrary, the ever-present whispers of worry in her ear vanished, and the sorrow and melancholy that had shrouded her for years seemed to have been blown away by the wind, allowing sunlight to pierce through the clouds and shine forth.
It settled in her heart.
Lulena felt a sense of sudden awakening, as if all the plugs blocking her ears, eyes, and nose had been removed. For the first time, she heard the leaves of plants in the world she had created swaying gently with a caress, felt the tender light of the sun, smelled the fresh scent of the forest, and smelled the warm, sun-like fragrance emanating from her baby.
For the first time, the world is so clear.
She looked down at Inya in her arms. The baby, completely unaware of what she was doing, was resting her little head on her shoulder, looking sleepy. Noticing the adult's gaze, she looked up, revealing a happy smile, her tiny baby teeth peeking out.
Lulena gently kissed her forehead and chuckled softly.
"Thank you, Nia." The ethereal voice held a hint of laughter for the first time. "Would you like to try flying?"
In a sense, this was the first truly beautiful dream Inia had ever had. She had no dreams when she was younger, and later nights became dream journeys.
Now, Lulena carried her into the sky, the woman's long blue hair seemed to blend into the blue sky, her sleeves were the clouds in the sky, and her golden eyes became the warm sunlight.
Inia flew through the sky; the clouds smelled creamy, the blue sky smelled fruity, and a gentle breeze ruffled the baby's curly hair. Because it tickled, she couldn't help but giggle.
Seeing the thick, white clouds, perhaps because their shape reminded the baby of her favorite slide, she reached out her hand with a "whoosh" sound. And in the next second, the clouds really did turn into a slide!
The baby had a lot of fun in the sky all night.
As it ended, Lulena appeared from the sky, reached out and hugged Inya, and together they looked down at the world below the clouds.
Lulena stretched out her finger, as if turning a page in a book, and the lush green forest below, with its fairytale-like charm, had unknowingly changed its appearance.
Those meal tickets... cough, nurturers, who can be found by Inia's power and intuition will not only be the most delicious and nutritious big bosses, but also some of the most powerful dungeon masters.
The same goes for Lulena. Her world is not limited to this jungle. In fact, as a powerful boss who can control dreams and even transform them into worlds, she can create hundreds or thousands of worlds at the same time if she wants.
The woman's core world has never even been explored in its instances.
Perhaps because she was born of nightmares, Lulena possesses exceptional abilities in areas such as penetration and perception. When the dungeon descended, she sensed the changes in the world almost instantly.
Despite being unable to resist the dungeon's constraints, Lulena also deciphered the dungeon's system and integrated her own power into it, silently altering its perceptions and judgments.
She initially acted solely out of a strong desire to see and protect her child, yet she still managed to understand the connection between dungeons, systems, secret realms, and players.
In order to see more 'children' and protect these poor children who are trapped in danger and can only fight each other, Lulena created a series of low- to mid-level dungeons of C and D rank, making the system mistakenly believe that they were real and independent worlds, and thus sending players to them.
Once all the players have fallen asleep in the safe territory she has left behind, Lulena will shut down the world, leaving only the dream cocoon to protect the players, allowing the dungeon to refresh and then reappear in the dungeon pool after a while with a new description.
Of course, although Lulena wants to protect all the children, villains like Huang Bin, whose inhuman nature can manifest in dreams, can trigger Nightmare Mother's sense of crisis that her children are in danger.
To her, the only things in the world besides children are heretical enemies who want to destroy beauty.
Barring unforeseen circumstances, these players trapped in their dream cocoons will live for decades, happily spending their lives in their dreams until both their dream and real bodies grow old, finally passing away surrounded by family and friends, or in contentment after achieving great success.
Players who are determined to harm others in the dream will, in turn, be plagued by nightmares until they die three times in the dream and become nourishment for the dream world.
After they die, the Nightmare Mother will forgive them for everything and grant them eternal peace.
Those malicious players probably don't want this kind of forgiveness, but what can you do when the dead have no voice? Sigh...
In the past, Lulena would have put the baby to sleep and given her sweet dreams, but she didn't do that this time.
To her, the players were far too weak, and she was genuinely worried about their ability to protect themselves. Only by keeping them within her territory could she safeguard them.
But Baby is different. She is also the master of the dungeon. Although she is very young, the power aura on Baby is very strong. She is equal to Nightmare Mother.
Lulena takes the baby to the real world where her core resides.
It was a giant silver tree rooted in darkness, shimmering with a faint light, its countless branches intertwined and covered with blooming flowers, each one a dream world.
Lulena embraced Inya and merged into the tree trunk. The originally black world resembled a shimmering surface of water, as if the woman had shed her gorgeous and dreamlike outer garment, leaving it outside the tree.
As the colors spread, the dark world transformed into a beautiful sky and earth.
This tree is the core of Lulena. The baby blinked and found herself in an unfamiliar environment. It was like an enlarged version of a tree hole. The whole room was spherical, and the all-wood furniture gave it a fairytale feel. It was very cute.A pinkish-purple glow flowed in the crucible on the wooden table. Inia gazed curiously at the shimmering water until the woman stroked the top of her head.
"This is the new world I'm working on." Even though the baby didn't understand, Lulena explained, "I can create many worlds, but the scope and duration can't last too long. I will collect the world fragments and turn them into something new."
Inia looked up at Lulena. Shedding that dreamlike exterior, in her own world, the woman was an ordinary person with long flaxen hair and brown eyes.
Seeing the baby blinking at her, Lulena gave a helpless smile.
"These worlds are also made up of a part of me, so there's not much left for myself," she said gently. "Which image does Nia prefer? Does she prefer something more dreamlike, or something more realistic?"
Her hand gently stroked Inia's hair, and in such close contact, Lulena could feel some of the baby's most genuine emotional reactions.
This was also her secret to being able to adjust children's dreams at any time, ensuring they always had sweet dreams. After all, every child is different, and adjusting these subtle differences is essential.
When Inia gets a little older, if she has a favorite character, Lulena wouldn't mind transform herself for her.
But the emotions emanating from the baby stunned Lulena.
From the moment they met, Inia liked her very much, and even though her appearance has changed, the baby's affection for her remains unchanged.
It's like... her appearance only surprises and intrigues the baby, but doesn't affect anything. There won't be a preference between them, because Inia loves her for who she is, nothing more.
Such a simple and straightforward love left Lulena speechless for a long time.
Although the adult touching her hair suddenly stopped, the baby turned her head and rubbed her hand against the adult's.
Lulena couldn't help but hug her tightly.
To be able to show such sunny love and kindness to someone you've just met, there must be a very capable older child protecting this little baby.
Only children whose own lives are filled with happiness and joy, and whose hearts are overflowing with love, will generously share the same happiness with others.
That's great, this way she can worry less about the baby.
"The other children have done their best, so I should do something for you too." Lulena's voice was gentle as she gently pressed her forehead against Inya's again and closed her eyes.
The bosses have made different progress in establishing the mental link, and although they each have their own methods, probably none of them are as proficient in it as Lulena.
For a ruthless person who can control everyone's dreams and even reverse-engineer the system, the thread connecting Inia is as smooth as a bridge.
Inia grants all the permissions to her linkers, but no one has ever gone any further.
Lulena immediately checked all the permissions.
Invitations, appointments, visits? What an interesting ability! Especially considering how young the person behind this power is; the baby's self-management skills are remarkably strong.
Invitations and appointments are currently grayed out; only visits appear to be an option.
It seems that the baby only has these three remote connection options at the moment, so... how about giving it a visit?
The next second after selecting "Visit" is like time.
The space seemed to shrink and then stretch, and in the blink of an eye, Lulena found herself in an unfamiliar space.
The room looked a bit cramped, with a huge baby play area taking up a large portion of it, and other furniture placed rather pitifully along the walls. Many children's clothes were neatly folded and placed on top of the cabinets.
Inside the room, Chu Wang, who had just finished cleaning, was sitting on the sofa, idly tossing a ball around.
The next second, he met the gaze of the unexpected guest.
The ball fell to the ground and rolled away with a thud.
Immediately afterwards, a message box belatedly lit up in front of Chu Wang.
[A guest has arrived. Please inform the administrator.]
Chu Wang: ...
What use are you?
Chapter 29 029 Why do you feel like you're not the boss...?
Chu Wang knew that the other bosses would eventually find a way to enter the baby space, it was just a matter of time, but he didn't expect it to happen so quickly.
He looked at the beautiful adult with long flaxen hair, and the boy's body stiffened, not knowing how to react for a moment.
Chu Wang had no experience interacting with normal adults. In fact, the groups represented by the words "Boss" and "adults" were imaginary enemies who occupied most of his life.
Now, the person combining the two words suddenly appeared in the safest and most relaxed space in his heart. This made Chu Wang not feel relaxed because of Luliana's friendliness. Instead, like an animal, his body subconsciously tensed up because a stranger had entered his nest, and he felt an uncontrollable vigilance and hostility.
"Wow! Brother!"
The carefree baby, cheerful on her own, reached out her hands to Chu Wang from Lulena's arms.
The boy's tense emotions snapped at that moment.
Perhaps it was a habit formed from spending time with the baby, but his mind went blank, while his body had already shifted from a tense, prepared state to an instinctive movement towards them, smoothly taking Inya from the woman's arms and holding her close.
The baby was greedy; she hugged Chu Wang's neck and then reached out her little hand to Lulena, only becoming happy when the woman squeezed her fingers.
Chu Wang belatedly realized that he was too close to the adult. He subconsciously took a step back, but under Lulena's tolerant and gentle gaze, he then realized a beat later that it might be impolite of him to do so.
Should I greet her first, apologize directly, or thank her for taking care of Inya? But someone who's a boss like the ruler of the world probably doesn't care about anyone except the baby, right? What's the best course of action...?
The boy, who had no social experience, was a little dazed when he heard the woman laugh helplessly.It turns out that the person who has been taking care of the baby is still a child herself."
Her voice was like a gentle breeze and soft rain, warm and pleasant to listen to.
Chu Wang retorted instinctively, "I'll be fifteen and an adult in a few months. I'm not a child."
Players who exchange children with the system in the Refinement Realm will generally have their children sent to participate in low-level dungeons to hone their skills and earn points when they reach the age of thirteen or fourteen.
According to Chu Wang, the system will raise the children in the orphanage until they are fifteen years old. If they are not bought by the age of fifteen, they will be automatically registered as players and will need to earn points to repay the orphanage's upbringing costs.
Therefore, he firmly believed that fifteen years old represented adulthood.
Moreover, he was the tallest among the children. After changing his voice, Chu Wang looked no different from a young man; only upon close observation of his facial features and eyes could one discern a trace of his childlike innocence.
Lulena did not argue with him about the definition of a child, nor did she approach him directly to show concern as she would with a baby. Although her heart was pounding at the thought of meeting another child and she was saddened by the marks of suffering on his body, the woman still managed to control herself.
Different approaches should be used to communicate with children of different personalities.
She looked at the boy who was holding the baby and looked tense, like a wolf cub trapped in a hunter's den, and said gently, "Excuse me, may I come in and sit for a while?"
Although the boss had already entered the space, she returned the initiative to Chu Wang and waited for his consent in a gentle and polite manner, which eased the boy's tension somewhat.
"…Please come in." He took a step back, his eyes scanning the messy space before looking at Lulena. "There's a lot of stuff here, you can sit on the sofa…please come in."
Having grown up in the treacherous environment of the thirty-sixth floor, the first thing Chu Wang learned was to feign composure. No matter how chaotic his mind was, he had to keep it to himself and not give others the impression that he was easy to bully.
Speak little, keep a blank expression on your face, and even if you are surrounded by five or six adults, stare at them indifferently as if you are not afraid of anything. Others will feel fear and retreat because they cannot control you.
This skill is very useful, and Chu Wang uses it in his daily life as well. When he's feeling uncertain with a lot of children, he has to pretend to be calm and composed. When the children see him acting confident, they feel reassured.
Over time, he had become accustomed to this way of disguising himself. Even now, it's the same. If it weren't for the slightly unnatural word order when speaking to the boss, Chu Wang would appear very calm and mature, and no one could guess the tense emotions he was experiencing.
Chu Wang handed the rabbit plush toy from the sofa to the baby, while he sat on the soft edge of the ball pit, keeping a distance of about two meters from Luliana.
"Nice to meet you. My name is Lulena, and as you know, I'm a dungeon boss." Her voice was gentle. "How much do you know about dungeons?"
Lulena's charisma is incredible. Her gaze is gentle and welcoming, giving you a sense of security as non-threatening as the afternoon sun. Listening to her speak, you unconsciously relax and become completely absorbed in her voice.
She didn't ask Chu Wang about his identity, but instead gave him the opportunity to understand her. Although her body was still tense, the boy's aura had clearly begun to relax.
"I know dungeons very well, Ms. Lulena," Chu Wang said, trying to sound polite. "I was once a player's child, but that was six years ago, so I remember the most powerful and dangerous dungeons above A rank. I wonder which one is your world?"
"My world is not in it."
Lulena gave a brief explanation of how she continuously created C and D level dungeons by exploiting system loopholes. The boy's expression grew increasingly shocked, his face clearly saying: "This works?!"
Players' understanding of the Refinement Realm system is similar to how humans perceive the world and the universe. The universe does not operate according to human will; this is a natural law. The system is similar; players will never feel that its framework can be broken.
Chu Wang was raised by players when he was young, and his way of thinking is very similar to that of players.
That's true in fact; so many powerful bosses in dungeons can't escape the dungeon's constraints, yet this ruthless person in front of him has turned the tables and manipulated the system at will...
Although the boy's posture remained respectful, Lulena keenly sensed that his breathing had changed again, returning to its previous somewhat tense state.
Compared to the carefree baby, this child is a truly qualified protector. Is he used to being wary of all the strangers around him?
Lulena smiled helplessly. "How should I address you?"
Chu Wang was taken aback, then realized that he hadn't introduced himself yet, and quickly said, "My name is Chu Wang."
"Chu Wang." Lulena murmured the name and smiled, "Is there anything related to Inia or this space that you can share with me? Today is the first time I've met the baby, and I'd like to learn more about her."
—What?! Lulena found a way to enter the baby space on their first meeting? What were those bosses doing before that?!
Chu Wang's assessment of the boss's strength rose another level.
Even if someone has grown to be almost as tall as an adult, if they were violently bullied by adults during childhood because of physical differences, the psychological trauma and sense of wariness they feel when facing people who are taller and stronger than themselves may be difficult to erase for the rest of their lives.
Chu Wang couldn't possibly be unwarranted about the bosses, even if Lulena in front of him seemed like a good person. He knew very well that Baby was also a world ruler, and while she was equal to the other bosses, that didn't mean he was too.
He secretly hoped to maintain a proper distance from the dungeon bosses; they only needed to be kind to the baby, while he and the bosses...It's best to keep the relationship at a nodding level.
Therefore, Chu Wang would not talk about Inia and his life in the Thirty-Sixth Layer World, but he could share things related to this space with her.
"Inia eats ordinary human food, but she also needs another way to replenish herself. Perhaps you have already seen it, madam. I guess that's why the baby found you," Chu Wang said. "This is her world. It was originally a very small space, but as she grows and replenishes her power, the area of the space will also increase."
"But now the space has stopped growing. Perhaps it has acquired other functions, but I haven't discovered them yet."
"The baby unconsciously appointed me as the administrator of this world. I can cooperate with whatever you need to do."
After thinking for a moment, he added, "I'm not the boss. The baby used to live with me in the world of ordinary players, but I want her to come back here. I can't stay here for long. If you're willing to take care of her, I'll send the baby here."
This statement finally revealed some trust in the boy, even though he was still like a tightly closed shell, unwilling to reveal anything about himself. But in such a short time, it was already quite a lot of progress.
The baby looked up at the two people who were talking seriously. She would never interrupt others when they were focused on doing something.
After watching Chu Wang for a while, the bored baby wriggled around like a kitten and successfully got off his lap to the edge of the ball pit, where her attendant, who understood her heart, put her into the ball pit.
Chu Wang let the baby he had released swim in the ball pit. She was absolutely safe in her own space. He tested this for several nights before he felt comfortable letting her play by herself.
Nevertheless, Chu Wang's attention was still slightly diverted. He was originally facing Lulena, but because the baby was playing behind him, he couldn't help but turn his head slightly to the side.
In the eyes of the Nightmare Mother, this scene was incredibly adorable, like a little kitten playing carefree with a guard cat standing watch over it, looking serious and earnest, though its attention was actually focused on its younger sister.
I really want to hold both kittens in my arms and kiss and rub them, but compared to the kitten born in a loving environment and thus spreading love, the stray kitten needs to be treated with more care. Rushing to care for it will only cause it to have a stress reaction.
"Let's address these issues one by one," Lulena said with a smile. "First, let's talk about the space's functionality. As the administrator, are you able to see the baby's detailed information?"
"Yes, but I can only see basic information for a few seconds," Chu Wang said in a deep voice.
"If you wish, I can temporarily transfer my power to you to see if there are any new changes in the space," Lulena said gently. "Of course, it's fine if you don't do that. Inia's power revolves around protecting her, and I guess the space will change on its own when the time is right."
Chu Wang agreed without hesitation. Lulena sat down next to him and put her hand on the boy's arm.
At the same time, Chu Wang once again activated his spatial access. His power was almost instantly absorbed by the space, and the next second, the power of the dungeon master replenished the deficit.
Chu Wang's silver eyes gleamed as a spatial panel appeared before him.
[World-class (?)] Star House (Editable)
[Lord of the World: Inia (Infancy)]
[Administrator (1/1): Chu Wang] [Administrator privileges enabled]
[Visitor: Lulena]
Blacklist: None
[Check for detailed information]
The following sentence appeared only this time. With the support of Lulena's power, Chu Wang clicked on it, and then more energy was devoured by the Star House.
Current usable space: 60%
[Master's Room: Closed] (Open)
[Admin Room: Closed] (Open)
Available rooms: 4/4
[Number of guests: 0]
...The room? Could it be what he's thinking?
Chu Wang tried clicking the "Open" button next to the master's room, but couldn't. He then clicked the administrator's room.
The next second, the information bar popped him up.
The Star House once again drained most of his power. Although Lulena paid for it, the feeling of power entering his body and then being quickly drained was too uncomfortable, and Chu Wang felt dizzy.
Lulena supported him, and the space around him began to slowly recover, increasing by 1 point at a time.
Chu Wang heard the woman laugh.
"Look," she said, "it seems the power that was just drained was the room fee collected by the Star House."
Chu Wang looked up and saw that the originally square room now had a wooden door on one of the walls, allowing passage.
He was a little weak and obviously couldn't go over to check on him. Lulena was still supporting Chu Wang. She reached out and pushed open the door with a gentle force, like a breeze.
Inside, there appeared to be an empty room of about thirty square meters. The three pieces of furniture that Chu Wang had previously conjured up and placed in the living room were also automatically moved inside.
This is...his room?
Chu Wang felt a little unreal, and he murmured, "Are the worlds of other bosses like this too?"
Lulena shook her head. "This should be unusual."
It's rare for a baby's world to leave space for others. At least when Lulena was secretly browsing the system, she didn't think the other bosses were so generous.
She said in a deep voice, "Each boss has different abilities, mostly related to their own experiences and strengths. But no matter what, they all need a long time to mature."
"The baby is unique; her abilities emerge with her birth, and there are probably no precedents to follow. As for her strength… we can only explore it gradually as she grows up."
Lulena's expression was somewhat complicated. "I only guessed that the baby's ability would subconsciously protect her and take her will as the standard."Perhaps for a baby like this, all she wants is for everyone to be by her side, which is why she has developed such a generous ability to include everyone she cares about.
However, it is clear that Inia is still in the infancy stage where she cannot control her abilities, so in order to function normally on her own, the Star House evolves according to the baby's wishes, but the acceptance standards are very high.
It operates using the power absorbed by the baby, while the energy needed to open a new room is collected directly from the opener by the Star House, bypassing Inia.
It didn't even spare the boy that the baby trusted and loved. Chu Wang had a hard time even glancing at the spatial information, let alone contributing a large part of his strength to expand his own room.
Star House is asking for quite a lot; they're really shady.
Lulena chuckled and said, "I don't have that authority right now. It seems that opening the room requires not only ample power but also Inya's approval. I guess even she doesn't know what to do."
Chu Wang was about to say a few words of comfort when she shook her head.
"It's not a big deal. My power is special, which also prevents me from staying outside my own world for long. The baby is still so young. Maybe one day he will accidentally give me the authority. This is not something that needs comforting."
Lulena looked at him.
"Actually, I wanted to ask you something else," she said gently. "Chu Wang, why do you feel like you're not the boss?"
Chapter 30030 Who is this person?!
...ah?
What boss?
Chu Wang stared blankly at the woman in front of him, while Lulena smiled and looked back at him gently.
A beat too slow, he finally realized what she had asked. But the question was as absurd as asking a human, "How do you know you're not a rainbow unicorn with wings?"
But Lulena still looked like she was waiting for his answer, so Chu Wang had no choice but to bite the bullet and say, "Of course I can't be the boss, Miss Lulena. I am human, I am the child of a player, and I have lived in the Refining Realm since I was born."
"This cannot be considered evidence." The woman shook her head. "As I just said, according to the division of the Refinement Realm system that you are familiar with, high-level dungeon bosses are actually the masters of their own worlds. Apart from Inia, no one is born a king; they must accumulate power over a long first half of their lives."
"I've seen so many people, kids, even players. But you're special," she said. "You're probably a boss that's still in its infancy."
Chu Wang hesitated, feeling that he and Lulena couldn't possibly understand each other.
He said he was born of a human, not a rainbow unicorn. Lulena's claim that he would grow up to be a rainbow unicorn is a complete fallacy!
Just then, I heard the baby calling from behind me.
Without needing to think, Chu Wang's arms automatically scooped up the baby and held him.
When he was thinking, he habitually held Inya close, resting his chin on the top of her head. The baby instinctively tilted her head back, and Chu Wang gently pinched her little cheek.
Perhaps the scene was too adorable, for Lulena gasped, and before Chu Wang could look up in confusion, she withdrew her kind expression and returned to a gentle and polite one.
"Chu Wang, do you have any strange or special abilities?" she said. "If Inia subconsciously seeks out the dungeon master when she needs to replenish her nutrition, then it's unlikely that she would seek out an ordinary person when looking for a guardian."
Chu Wang: ...
He gently covered his heterochromatic eyes, and suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
Lulena's words were so logical and well-founded that he couldn't even refute them, and the more he thought about it, the more reasonable they seemed.
The players in the Refinement Realm are all ordinary people. They can increase their physical points through training to become stronger and more resilient. They can also use points to exchange for various items and equipment to arm themselves, but they can never have superpowers.
Only Chu Wang possesses this special ability; his eyes can see the information panels of everything. In the Refining Realm world, such power is truly heaven-defying, and it's hard to imagine what it will develop into after further upgrades.
"During my research, I discovered that the bosses who become dungeon masters all possess extraordinary power and an inner drive to change everything," Lulena's gentle voice rang out. "And you, Chu Wang?"
Chu Wang lowered his hand and remained silent for a long time.
"I did… have that thought," he said softly. "I was consumed by hatred, and I always wanted to take down the adult players, to make them feel the helplessness and suffering of children born into this world. But…"
But the baby's arrival unknowingly changed his mind, soothed the hatred in his heart, and gave him the confidence to continue living a good life.
What would the future have been like if Inia hadn't appeared? For Chu Wang, his only remaining obsession was probably raising the other children.
Perhaps as a way to compensate for his own actions, he hoped that other children could avoid the same tragedy. But the Thirty-Sixth Floor was too cruel, and no one knew if an accident might happen.
If all the children die, he'll probably go insane. For the rest of his life, he'll live for revenge against the Refining Realm and the players.
Thinking about it that way, he really does seem like a villain.
"It seems that Inia has changed you," Lulena smiled. "That's a good thing, my child. Living for hatred is too hard. I'm glad you have other options."
...
After that night, Chu Wang was still somewhat dazed when he woke up.
Since having Inya, he hadn't thought about the past for a long time. The surging darkness had long been dispelled by the baby's light.
"Mmm...brother..."
On the other side, Inya also woke up. She yawned and kept calling out to Chu Wang.
It's probably because the baby is starting to recognize people more lately. The probability of him calling out "brother" has increased dramatically. He'll call out a few times when he's not doing anything, and sometimes he'll keep saying "brother, brother" non-stop.Chu Wang used a handkerchief soaked in hot water to wipe the baby's face, and after cleaning her up, he held her in his arms. The faint melancholy he felt when he first woke up, recalling the past, gradually faded as he cared for the baby.
Compared to the warmth and comfort of a baby's space, the environment inside a shipping container is becoming increasingly harsh.
As the weather got colder, the children were all moved into the same shipping container, and the gaps were sealed with iron plates and thick cardboard cloth.
Inside the container, only the faint glow of the B-grade item, the Fluorescent Stone, provided illumination. It was dark and cold, which made people feel somewhat depressed.
Chu Wang has been searching for a new place to stay for the past few days, but with little success. The wilderness will become uninhabitable in a while, so they'd better move into a building.
But even in the most remote places, it's easy to run into people inside buildings. During the cold snap a few years ago, the children spent the winter crammed together with several other groups in an abandoned factory.
Because of Chu Wang's reputation for being arrogant and fearless, and because the children were mostly thin and small and didn't seem to have much to gain, they lived together peacefully for three months.
However, if they brought along a chubby baby, their group of children would be too conspicuous.
Chu Wang was outside all day and didn't even have time to go back and see the baby at noon.
Ice had begun to form in some dark corners, and the wind was getting colder and colder, stinging people's skin.
Chu Wang rubbed the thin layer of ice off his fingers, stood up, and walked towards home.
We can't wait any longer.
After dinner, in the dim light, Chu Wang looked at the other children.
"The weather will get colder and colder, and it's no longer safe for the baby to stay here."
The children looked at each other, and Charlie said, "Brother Chu, we all know. We will do everything we can to protect her."
"That's not what I wanted to say," Chu Wang said in a deep voice. "You are all my younger brothers and sisters, and I will always trust you. Do you trust me too?"
"Of course, Brother Chu, we definitely believe you."
"I trust Brother Chu the most in the world!"
"I believe whatever Brother Chu says!"
The three relatively young children immediately began chattering and expressing their loyalty.
The eldest, Lina, and Charlie exchanged a glance. Lina asked, "What happened?"
Chu Wang remained silent for a while.
"I…have a way to hide the baby," he said.
Next, Chu Wang claimed that Inya's spatial manipulation was his own ability. In front of everyone, he sent Inya back to the Star House and then brought her back.
The children stared in disbelief, mouths agape.
This was the first time Chu Wang had lied to everyone. His fists clenched, and the calm demeanor of the young man concealed the emotions in his heart.
He felt ashamed for deceiving his younger siblings who trusted him, but Chu Wang had to do it.
If all goes well, the children will grow up, and people's thinking will constantly change. Just like Chu Wang himself, who once hated the world he grew up in, is now willing to let go. No one knows what will happen in the future, nor whether their state of mind will change again.
If one day in the future, Inia's identity and abilities were to be exposed or reported to the Refining Realm Space, it would be far too dangerous, and he couldn't gamble on that possibility.
Suppressing his emotions, he said, "This space has many restrictions. After the binding is complete, only my baby and I can enter, and only three items can be stored inside. I can't let you witness it with your own eyes, but I guarantee that my baby will be safe inside."
"That's wonderful!" Xiao Shi said happily. "Now the baby is safe, and I don't have to worry about her anymore."
"Me too, I've been so worried these past few days that I haven't been able to sleep."
The children didn't think as deeply as Chu Wang, and they were all very happy about the news.
"This matter must not be known to outsiders," Chu Wang said very seriously. "Otherwise, both the baby and I will be in danger."
In this cruel world, the eldest brother and the youngest sister are the pillar and safe haven for the children, and the source of their greatest joy and warmth. It can be said that for everyone, Chu Wang and Inia are the most important people in their lives.
Upon hearing Chu Wang's words, the children immediately and solemnly swore to keep it a secret.
Chu Wang breathed a sigh of relief; he could finally send the baby back to her own world openly and legitimately.
He made a promise with the children that, for safety reasons, they would wait until the cold months were over before bringing the babies out to meet everyone.
On Inia's last night in the container, the children couldn't sleep and gathered around her, reluctant to let her go.
Every year during the harsh March weather, a number of people die, including adult players, let alone children. It's already incredible that two or three out of ten people can survive.
Although I really want to see my baby every day, it's so good that my baby can stay safely somewhere else.
Chu Wang draped clothes over his younger siblings and told them to go to sleep one by one.
Everyone reluctantly went to sleep, and the next morning, everyone had a good time absorbing the baby's essence before Chu Wang took her into the space.
Inside the Star House, Lulena was already waiting.
"My world is an extension of myself, so I can't leave for long periods of time. I can probably only free up four or five hours each day," Lulena said apologetically. "I'm sorry I can't help you much."
Chu Wang shook his head.
Lulena nodded; this was the only thing they could do for now.
She couldn't help but feel sorry for the child taking care of the baby; if it weren't for her appearance, Chu Wang's situation would only be more difficult.
I wonder what the other bosses are doing. Why don't they use such a simple visit function?
Just then, a panel popped up in front of Chu Wang and flashed twice.
[A guest is about to arrive. Please inform the administrator.]
"Huh?" Chu Wang was taken aback.
Perhaps because he and Lulena had absorbed a large amount of power last night, the Star House's warning came as an accurate and timely alert.
He said in a deep voice, "Others are coming."
The words had barely left his lips when light and shadow flickered in the ball pit of the Star House. Before the newcomer's figure even appeared, the baby, who had already sensed the aura of the newcomer's power, had already widened his eyes.
As the balls swayed, a long, dark green-black tail draped over the pool platform, encircling the baby on the slide in the center of the pool.
Chu Wang suddenly stood up, and on the other side, a pair of pale hands were already tightly holding Inya in their arms.
"Inya, Inya, Inya…"
The half-snake boy muttered to himself, burying his head in the baby's shoulder.
The veins on Chu Wang's forehead bulged out.
Who is this person?
Chapter 31 031 Are you the boss or am I...?
Alos has had a very difficult time lately.
Unable to bear the mental anguish, he once intentionally degenerated into a beast, stripping away and suppressing his humanity and emotions, leaving only his shell alive.
The arrival of the baby rescued him from this suffering, but Alos's self-destructive psychological problems were not resolved.
The more his humanity slowly returned, the more the boy felt inferior about his half-human, half-snake monster appearance.
When he realized he hadn't taken good care of the baby at all, the monstrous clumsiness brought Alos's self-loathing to its peak.
The boy hid in the shadows, feeling depressed and down for a long time. By the time he came to his senses, several days had passed.
He wanted to see Inya, but he also felt a sense of unease. He was afraid of exposing his clumsy and unattractive appearance to the baby, and even more afraid that he would fail to take good care of her again.
After hesitating for a long time, Alos did not reschedule with Inya, but instead opted for the most ordinary invitation. He knew that the baby had other people to care for her, and when he saw that his invitation had failed, he felt a sense of relief despite his disappointment.
Alos cleaned his and his baby's 'nest' on the rooftop all by himself, wiping and cleaning every piece of furniture so that the baby's hands would never get dirty again.
He spent every day in his room on the rooftop, and every night he would stare blankly at the stars. The dry and monotonous life made the boy miss his baby every moment, but he didn't have the courage to see her again.
This feeling of escapism and inner turmoil intensified with his longing for Inia. When Alos finally couldn't bear it any longer, even though he still felt timid and inferior, and still wanted to see the baby one more time—he discovered that he couldn't invite Inia to come.
During the month that Alos was in a slump, Inia was first taken away by Noah's time lock, which had a built-in cheat code, for eight or nine days. Then she went to the vampire's place and closed her doors to visitors for several days. Later, she met Lulena. Alos's appointment ability had long lost its original leading advantage.
The terrifying thought of never seeing her baby again instantly overwhelmed all of Alos's other damp and negative emotions.
In a state of extreme panic, the half-snake boy, who was already skilled in mental abilities, spent three days and nights finally unlocking the last function of the mental link: [Visit].
Upon arriving in this unfamiliar space, Alos, whose heart and eyes were filled with thoughts of his baby, forgot everything else the moment he saw her.
Inya, Inya, Inya...
During the month he spent alone, Alos had to constantly repeat this name in order to barely maintain his emotional composure.
Holding the warm baby in his arms, his hand resting against her tiny shoulder, the chill and loneliness that had always surrounded him finally faded away. The half-snake boy's breath trembled as he habitually whispered her name over and over again, with a morbid compulsion.
Although the little sun baby who shone on everyone couldn't remember who Alos was before he appeared because of his goldfish memory, Inia immediately recognized the boy upon seeing him. Far from being frightened, she greeted him warmly with baby talk.
She hugged Alos's neck and took a bite of him.
A rich rain of apple pudding swept over them, indicating that Alos had been surrounded by negative and dark emotions again during their separation.
The boy held onto Inya for a long time. On the two previous times they met, he had to hold the baby for a long time to calm himself down.
Standing to the side, Chu Wang endured it again and again, telling himself that this was the master of the dungeon. He barely managed to hold back for a few dozen seconds, then told himself once more that he couldn't be too rude to the baby's other 'family'.
Chu Wang had long been prepared for this. It had nothing to do with jealousy. He was about to become an adult, and he knew how to assess the situation. He was even prepared for those bosses to look down on him because of his ordinary human identity.
But—this half-snake, half-human creature has been holding the baby for way too long! And it's not even the proper way to hold a baby. Where did this guy come from?!
Chu Wang took a deep breath and said coldly, "Who are you?"
He could only utter three words; he was afraid that if he said another word, he would be unable to suppress the murderous intent in his heart and ask the question aloud.
It had been far too long since anyone had spoken to Alos. Even as he was lost in his own world, the sudden words snapped him back to reality. Alos backed away while clutching the baby, glancing warily at him.
Chu Wang could finally see the face of this strange snake-like man. He had pale skin, black hair with a dark green tinge that hung down beside his ears, and his gloomy, handsome vertical pupils cast a wary glance.
Judging from their faces alone, the two of them seemed to be about the same age.
Alos shielded the baby with his arms, hissing as his snake tail thrashed restlessly across the floor.
"Huh?" Inya blinked, looking curiously at her brothers who were on the verge of exchanging blows.
"Who are you?" Despite the fact that the other party was protecting his sister, Chu Wang still suppressed his anger and tried his best to be friendly, which could be considered as giving this boss a way out. "This is Inia's space. I am the brother who takes care of her on a daily basis, and I am also the administrator of this space."
The brother who took care of her?
If you sniff carefully, you can indeed smell the baby's own scent, and it's the strongest scent the baby has ever picked up.Alos's hostility gradually subsided, perhaps because he had behaved so poorly, leaving the baby dirty on both occasions. He was much more impressed by her clean and tidy appearance when she arrived. She had taken excellent care of the baby, while he had only caused chaos.
Alos quickly compared himself to Chu Wang with his tiny snake brain. The hostility had subsided, but the sense of crisis was growing stronger.
He hugged the baby tightly, turned his back to Chu Wang, and used his posture to express his determination to refuse to communicate and not return the baby. As a result, the moment he turned around, Alos and Lulena met eyes.
Despite the woman's kind smile, the half-snake boy, completely unaware of her presence, was terrified.
When he was researching the park, hundreds or even thousands of mutated animals were within his sensing range. Even just now, when Alos was mentally unstable and holding the baby, his subconscious sensed Chu Wang's presence in this room.
But before he turned around, he didn't realize there was someone next to him!
Being approached silently is deadly; it was almost an instinctive reaction for Alos. Before his brain could even issue a command, the snake tail had already subconsciously attacked Lulena.
The ocean balls were knocked around and sent flying everywhere, but Lulena easily deflected the boy's attack with a flick of her finger.
"Hush... my child, don't be afraid." Before Alos could react, the woman's ethereal voice rang out, "I also came because of Inia, we are the same kind of people."
Her voice, imbued with her own abilities, was like a gentle spring breeze and drizzle falling directly into the spiritual realm, bringing a soft and refreshing sensation.
Alos's mind, which had been clouded by fear, gradually calmed down, and even Chu Wang, who was in a bad mood, was somewhat soothed.
The half-snake boy glanced at Chu Wang, then at Lulena. He hadn't spoken a single word to anyone in decades; the current situation...
It's a bit scary; my brain, which I haven't used for too long, is also very stiff.
Another commotion erupted as the balls in the ocean splashed and spilled out of the pool. Alos, displaying the speed befitting a boss, vanished in a flash—then shrunk in size, grabbed Inya, and swiftly disappeared into the shadows beneath the pool slide, leaving only his tail sticking out.
Chu Wang: ...
Suddenly I realized how foolish I was to be so seriously angry just now.
"You..." He was about to say something, but Lulena shook her head.
Being able to soothe a child is a dream come true for a mother who suffers from nightmares.
She crouched outside the ball pit, her arms resting on the pit platform, chatting gently and patiently with Alos. Even though he didn't answer, she still carefully explained her identity, as well as the information about this space and Chu Wang.
Alos remained hidden in the shadows, not looking at her, but instead playing finger games with Inia with his head down.
Lulena's voice was gentle and slow, giving the boy time to think as she spoke. About fifteen minutes had passed by the time she finished her slow, deliberate introduction.
She glanced at the baby next to Alos. Based on what she had learned over the past two days, Inia could usually interact quietly with adults for about twenty minutes. However, the ball pit was far less comfortable than a sofa or a bed, so she figured the time was about right.
"Baby must be tired after being in the ball pit for so long," Lulena said gently. "You love her so much, you must not want her to be tired. How about letting her rest somewhere else for a while?"
Chu Wang was a little skeptical that this strange half-snake boy would cooperate. Even if he didn't seem to be very intelligent, Aros was still a boss who dominated a dungeon and was probably used to being in charge. His behavior just now had already shown his stubbornness.
Just as he knows Ms. Lulena is a good person but cannot trust her, as the dungeon master, his suspicions will probably only be greater.
As a result, Alos hesitated for only a few seconds before gently pushing the baby out.
Chu Wang: ?
So easily trusting others, are you the boss or am I?
Inya now has exceptionally high energy levels and loves to stay close to adults. She can enjoy playing with just a few balls.
When she was wheeled out, she was completely bewildered. Lulena picked her up, and the half-snake boy, who had been avoiding eye contact, now stared intently at them.
Lulena smiled and asked, "What's your name?"
The boy looked away as if he had been burned. After a while, he slowly spoke, his voice slightly hoarse from not using his vocal cords often.
"...Aros."
-
From that day on, Chu Wang was temporarily relieved of his worries.
Although Alos doesn't seem very bright, he can spend ten hours a day in the space taking care of the baby, while Lulena distributes her four hours evenly throughout the day, making sure to come and check on the baby every so often.
According to the information panel, guests without rooms can only stay for a maximum of ten hours per day, so Alos has a perfect attendance record.
Since being able to spend every day with her baby, Alos's emotions have become much more stable, and she is no longer as tense and sensitive as she was at the beginning.
Chu Wang also successfully faced off against the dungeon where Alos was located, the legendary A-rank dungeon [Cold-Blooded Mutation], which was said to be as dangerous as an S-rank dungeon.
However, this dungeon master was really giving Chu Wang a headache. If Alos were arrogant and domineering, that would be one thing, but Chu Wang could also conveniently attribute his discomfort with Alos's interactions with Inia to Alos and dislike him.
But the boy was like a mouse encountering a cat when he saw him, seemingly afraid of something, as if Chu Wang had bullied him.
As soon as he appeared, Alos instinctively shrank back, glancing at him from time to time as if he were on guard against something. But when Chu Wang looked over, he immediately turned his gaze away.
Baby's favorite person is still her number one personal attendant. Whenever she sees Chu Wang, she will happily crawl over to greet him, occasionally wobbling a few steps before finally collapsing into Chu Wang's arms.
Chu Wang originally thought that this stubborn and mentally unstable half-snake boy would become hostile to him because of Bao Bao's attitude..Unexpectedly, whenever he was with the baby, Alos would just hide a short distance away and watch them, without moving or saying a word.
A few days later, Chu Wang's initial anger turned into a faint silence.
Forget it, why is he arguing with someone who is mentally challenged?
Another evening passed, and Alos and the baby spent the whole day playing in the amusement park. When no one was around, he would secretly turn into a little snake and play on the slide.
Alos had already realized Chu Wang's position in the family from the baby's attitude. He was already very content with the ten hours of daylight and did not want to disrupt the current peaceful state of affairs.
The boy's wariness and tension towards Chu Wang stemmed from a complex psychology. If one had to make an analogy, Chu Wang was like someone else's outstanding child, almost omnipotent in taking care of the baby, unlike him, who was clumsy.
In his animalistic thought process, which is difficult for humans to understand, Chu Wang's status and strength are higher than his in the current family. At present, Alos cannot defeat Chu Wang by taking care of the baby, so he can only back down.
Just then, he noticed fluctuations in the space.
Alos placed the baby, whom he had protected all day, on the platform at the edge of the ball pit, waiting to hand him over to Chu Wang, while he himself retreated under the slide.
Perhaps because the ball pit is the only place to hide from snakes, he has hardly left it in the past few days.
Chu Wang appeared, looked at the boy hiding in the shadows, and sighed with a headache.
"Aren't you uncomfortable down here?" he asked.
Alos remained silent, as if he couldn't speak at all. Only his snake tail extended, pushing the baby, which was near the edge, further inside.
Chu Wang picked up Inya and said, "See you tomorrow."
As expected, there was no response, and the snake, having reached its time limit, was kicked out by the space.
Compared to the baby's warm and comfortable space, Alos felt increasingly uncomfortable being alone. He remained motionless, ignoring even the player invasions of his territory, simply lying there with his eyes open, waiting for the next day to arrive.
The moment the countdown reached zero, he immediately entered the Star Room.
Only Lulena is in the space, Chu Wang is not, so it's safe!
Picking up the baby, Alos stiffly waved to Lulena as a greeting. He was about to enter the ball pit when he suddenly stopped.
He saw a simple tent made of various colored fabrics patched together on the ground outside the ball pit. It was lined with thick cloth. Although the fabric was old, it was very clean and smelled reassuring.
Lulena laughed, "It seems this is a gift from Chu Wang. Now you don't have to hide under the slide anymore. Do you like it, Alos?"
Alos did not answer, but the tip of its tail began to thump the ground.
Chapter 32.032 Chu Wang's status in the family rose steadily...
Chu Wang discovered that Alos seemed to really like the new tent he had given him.
Although the half-snake boy still didn't greet him, Alos had never been able to avoid the bottom of the slide since he set up that tent; every time he saw him, he was inside the tent.
After Lulena, who was more familiar with Alos, brought small colored lights to decorate the inside and outside of the cloth tent, Chu Wang noticed that Alos seemed to be in a much better mood.
Judging from the half-snake boy's behavior in the space, Chu Wang felt no sense of danger from him as the master of the dungeon.
He had initially thought he wouldn't be able to get along with this boss who was the same age as him, since people with similar traits tend to have more intense competition, but... oh well.
Alos is clearly out of his mind, so Chu Wang gave up the idea of arguing with him.
Lulena laughed, "Is it because you're used to being the older brother? You seem to have gotten used to taking care of others."
...Besides his relationship with Alos gradually easing and stabilizing, Chu Wang eventually became familiar with Lulena, and the woman would occasionally make some intimate jokes with him.
"It has nothing to do with those things." Chu Wang lowered his head and patted the baby's head. "I help Nia manage the space, so of course I have to be responsible for everyone."
Lulena smiled without saying anything more.
Breaking the ice and truly getting closer to Chu Wang is very difficult, and the difficulty increases with the other person's age. To have made this progress in half a month is already a testament to Luliana's exceptional friendliness and the baby's goodwill.
As for the half-snake boy, Lulena could sense that Alos's soul age was not as old as he appeared on the surface. After checking his dungeon description, she roughly guessed the reason.
Alos lived in an orphanage until the age of eight and was bedridden with paralysis, so he likely received little education. Later, he was taken away by the research institute, even though his body had grown to ten...
He was five years old, and then another one spent decades in the research institute, but he probably only improved his attack power; his soul was still that of an immature child.
Only a child would possess the power to conquer the world, yet he hides alone underground in the park and refuses to come out.
Chu Wang was also eight years old when the incident occurred, and after several years of tempering, his willpower is even stronger than that of an adult. Lulena can't currently confide in him, but her relationship with Alos is progressing rapidly.
She tried to spend four hours in the space every day. At first, Alos played with the baby alone. Even when the baby came to her, he refused to go up to her, as if he was a little wary of her.
By now, Lulena is able to successfully take care of two children at once, playing games together while protecting the baby, and Lulena patiently and gently telling Alos all sorts of stories.
In just half a month, although Alos is still not talkative, he has already let her pat his head casually.
Although progress was rapid, Lulena felt a little like sighing.
What a silly little kid. He's been tormented by adults and harassed by players for so many years, but if you keep being nice to him for more than ten days, Alos will still cautiously come closer and show his soft side.
Chu Wang and Alos, two children with completely different personalities who have suffered greatly, are so pitiful that it's hard to tell which one is more heartbreaking.