"Knock knock—"
As expected, a knock sounded in the quiet little room.
Yin Xiu turned to his side, wrapped himself in the blanket, ignored it, and continued to sleep.
Anyway, the new player will be accepted by the others soon, so he doesn't need a roommate.
"Knock knock knock—"
The knocking sounded again, soft and rhythmic, very steady, clearly indicating that the person outside had no intention of leaving.
Yin Xiu turned over and tried to close his eyes to sleep, but for some reason, the presence of the sounds of people and rain outside the window was far less noticeable than the figure outside the door.
The person didn't even speak, but simply knocked on the door, yet their gaze seemed to penetrate the door and fall directly on Yin Xiu.
He could sense that the person was standing at the doorway, looking at him without any obstruction or obstruction.
"Can you open the door?"
After a long silence, he finally spoke. It was a deep male voice, gentle in tone, and sounded harmless.
"Go to someone else's place, I don't need a roommate." Yin Xiu raised his voice in response. It was common for newcomers who hadn't yet been exposed to the old players' watering practices in the town to accidentally wander in.
The man outside the door chuckled softly, "The others sent me here."
Yin Xiu looked up. This was the first time a newcomer had been driven to his place by the other townspeople. It was quite novel.
"What did you do that they find offensive?"
"I went down into the lake and caught a fish to eat."
Yin Xiu immediately got out of bed, hurriedly went to the door, and pulled it open.
The night wind, carrying raindrops and dampness, blew into the dark room.
Standing outside the door was a man soaked to the bone; his black suit was completely drenched, and water droplets dripped from his hair. He was somewhat pale, but wore a smile, appearing handsome, refined, and quite elegant.
Whether it was the overly perfect curve of his pursed-lip smile or its abrupt appearance in the night, the man exuded an undeniable sinister aura.
"Are there really fish in the lake?" This was the first question Yin Xiu asked as soon as he opened the door.
"have."
The man nodded, and the moment he opened his mouth, Yin Xiu caught a glimpse of his teeth. Compared to normal human teeth, his looked somewhat sharp, and there was some unidentified red liquid remaining between his teeth.
"Are there really fish in the lake? I've been fishing for six years and haven't caught a single one." Yin Xiu stroked his chin thoughtfully, glancing at the man out of the corner of his eye.
It was raining outside, so it was normal to get wet, but this man was completely soaked, as if he had been standing in the rain for hours; the dampness was very intense.
"The fish tastes good." The man smiled slightly, "It's just that the squeaking is a bit shrill."
"So the fish in the lake can make sounds..." Yin Xiu began to suspect that what he was eating might not be fish, but something else entirely.
But he didn't press further. He simply took a step back, revealing the low threshold between them, and coldly raised his chin slightly. "It's cold outside. Come in and talk."
The man lowered his eyes, staring at the threshold on the ground without moving.
Town Rule Five: When it rains, new faces will appear in town. Those who can enter the house are newcomers, while those who cannot should be approached with caution.
The man's silence prompted Yin Xiu to probe further, "Aren't you coming in?"
He looked up, the smile on his lips widening. "May I come in?"
"Can."
Yin Xiu nodded, and the man slowly stepped over the threshold and entered Yin Xiu's home.
The moment he entered, the room seemed to grow colder, as if a chill had instantly filled the air, and even Yin Xiu couldn't help but shiver.
"It looks like you live alone." The man looked around the room, then turned to look at Yin Xiu, who was lost in thought, his eyes narrowing slightly. "They said I could choose a roommate in town. Can I stay with you?"
Yin Xiu's gaze lingered on the threshold for a few seconds before he looked away and slammed the door shut.
"I don't want a roommate, but there aren't any extra rooms in town. If no one else wants you, you'll have to stay with me." He pulled a rulebook from his drawer and handed it to the man. "Have any other people shown you the town's rulebook?"
The man shook his head.
"Then take a look. Remembering this will help you live a little longer." Yin Xiu wasn't very interested in taking care of this unexpected new roommate. After handing him the rule sheet, he turned around and went to lift the curtains to look outside.
Although the only rule in the town is that you cannot harm any conscious being, players who have stayed here for a while know that this harm can be either active or passive.
If he indirectly caused a man who had no one to take him in to die outside tonight by refusing to let a newcomer into his house, then he has broken the rules.
The other players obviously didn't reject him outright, but instead brought him to Yin Xiu's place. Even if this man died, it wouldn't bother them; only Yin Xiu would be in trouble.
The man took the rule sheet, a hint of doubt flashing across his face. He flipped through it several times, front and back, before setting it aside. He then turned his gaze to Yin Xiu, his unchanging smile revealing interest.
"You haven't asked my name yet."
"I don't want to know," Yin Xiu replied lazily, and after confirming that Ye Niangniang was no longer outside the door, he lowered the curtains.
The Night Goddess has already come tonight, so she probably won't come again, right?
He pondered for a moment, then turned and went back to the bedside.
"Don't you want to know?" the man persisted, standing still.
"I don't want to." Yin Xiu snapped the light off, turned around and went back to bed. Before going to sleep, he instructed, "There are other rooms in the house. Find a place to sleep yourself and don't come to my bed."
There were indeed other empty rooms in the house, but Yin Xiu lived alone and always slept in the living room.
In his mind, this man of unknown origin should have gone to another empty room to clean up and rest, so that he could safely spend his first night. But after Yin Xiu turned off the light, he didn't move.
He stood quietly in the darkness, staring intently at Yin Xiu on the bed. Apart from the intense gaze, he made almost no sound.
"Don't you really want to know my name?" After a few seconds of silence, his voice rang out again.
The only response he received was the silence inside the room; Yin Xiu showed no reaction whatsoever.
Why do you sleep with a knife? Are you afraid of me?
There was still no response from inside the house.
"Alright." The man chuckled lightly, a hint of indifference in his voice. He turned and walked to a chair inside the room, sitting down without bothering to clean himself or go to sleep. He simply sat quietly in the darkness and slowly said to Yin Xiu, "Goodnight."
The moment his light, airy voice rang out, Yin Xiu, who should have been on guard, became momentarily disoriented. His eyelids gradually grew heavy and began to droop uncontrollably until his eyes closed completely.
The sound of rain in the town became blurred in his ears. Yin Xiu was half asleep and half awake. He could even hear the players' hurried footsteps as they walked back into the house, but he couldn't break free of his consciousness.
There are other strange creatures in the town besides the Night Goddess, but they cannot enter the houses. They can only knock on the doors and windows of each player at night to lure them out, and then hunt and kill them in the process.
So what's sitting in his room now, staring at him?
Is he a newcomer?
Obviously not.
Is it a ghost story in the town?
It's unlikely, since even the Night Goddess wouldn't appear when it's raining, but he did, and even went inside.
Yin Xiu heard him get up from the chair, heard him step into the darkness and come to the bedside, and then squat down at the head of the bed.
Even if he couldn't see it, Yin Xiu could imagine the expression on his face at this moment. He must be smiling, a standard smile that was almost eerie, staring at Yin Xiu motionless in the darkness.
The prolonged silence and the undeniable presence of his gaze even made Yin Xiu feel unusually uneasy.
The rain stopped sometime ago, and the players all returned to their rooms. The control of the town at night once again returned to the monsters.
The man beside the bed finally seemed unable to restrain himself any longer and slowly reached out his hand to him.
Pat pat—
Suddenly, familiar footsteps echoed through the alley in the dead of night, crawling through puddles and slowly approaching Yin Xiu's door.
The massive body moved to the front of Yin Xiu's house, and the sound of knocking on the window rang out again in the night.
That night, the Empress returned.