Mutual Redemption with the Villainous Boss [Infinite] - Chapter 2

Without hesitation, Zhu Ci turned on her heels and ran, sprinting frantically toward the outskirts of the town.

As she ran, she shouted warnings to the people along the road. She no longer dared to dial the emergency number; her only option was to escape the town first to seek help.

Just as she reached top speed, a motorcycle swerved and blocked her path.

“Running so fast, aren’t you afraid of tripping? Young lady, where are you heading in such a hurry?” The man wore a motorcycle helmet, but the voice was unmistakably Uncle Wang’s.

“Uncle Wang, quick! Tell everyone in town to run! My house… my house…” Zhu Ci was panting so hard she couldn’t catch her breath to finish her sentence.

“Catch your breath, don’t worry,” Uncle Wang said, revving the engine. He looked at her and said, “Come on, get on. I’ll give you a lift wherever you’re going. We can talk slowly on the way.”

She began to relax. Finding someone familiar eased her intense anxiety. Just as she was about to hop on, a thought suddenly flashed through her mind, and a cold sweat instantly drenched her body.

“Uncle Wang, weren’t you going to pick up Auntie Liu to go grocery shopping? How are you back so soon?” Zhu Ci stepped back inconspicuously.

In the past, Uncle Wang and Auntie Liu always quarreled over Mahjong. Both had fiery tempers and would usually argue for half a day before letting it go.

Yet today, he was back so quickly.

“Ah, your Auntie Liu,” Uncle Wang tilted his head as if trying to remember something. “Your Auntie Liu is at home. Let’s go, we’ll head out first, she’ll be along in a bit.”

Despite the scorching heat, Uncle Wang had not taken off his motorcycle helmet, even though sweat was pouring down his neck.

“Uncle Wang, there seems to be something inside your helmet.”

“What?”

“Uncle Wang” looked confused. He tapped the helmet, then pulled hard, and the helmet came off.

“There’s nothing there?”

Indeed, there was nothing.

There was no head either.

The surrounding pedestrians slowly began to close in, more and more of them gathering as if the entire town was assembling to trap Zhu Ci in the center.

“Player, congratulations! You have earned the achievement: The Consequences of Skipping the Tutorial.”

Zhu Ci rolled her eyes. “Is that actually a real achievement?”

“Of course not, I made it up because you refused to read it.” Xiao Chuang was tired from flying up and down and settled on top of Zhu Ci’s head, exhaling softly.

“Uncle Wang,” holding the helmet, walked backward toward her. Seeing the circle tightening, she looked up at the sky. It was as clear and bright as usual, with a few white clouds drifting by.

“If I say I want to read it now, is there still hope?”

Xiao Chuang wagged a finger. “Too late! The novice tips were only for just now. Besides, didn’t you escape on your own, Player?”

“However, since you’ve had a change of heart,” Xiao Chuang ignored the crowd and flew in front of her eyes, “a Newbie Care Package is a must. After all, I am the most advanced and excellent Intelligent Companion.”

“Please receive your Newbie Item Drop.”

A flash of white light erupted, and a metal bracer shaped like a sleeve-guard was fastened to Zhu Ci’s arm. The icons in front of her began to shake, and suddenly the icon on the left lit up. It expanded before her, its transparent interface not obstructing her vision.

Only the first slot in the first row had something sitting in it.

“Congratulations, Player Zhu Ci, on binding the Item Card Slot. Although I’d love to continue the explanation,” Xiao Chuang looked at the shrinking circle, “they are attacking! Quick, touch it to use it!”

Someone behind her tried to grab her shoulder; she ducked and touched the screen with her left hand.

“Ding! Congratulations, Player Zhu Ci, has obtained R-Card: Watermelon Knife.”

The screen on the bracer flashed, displaying the letter R, and in the first slot of the second row, the image of a knife lit up.

The next second, a knife appeared in her hand, possessing a thin, sharp blade.

It wasn’t very long or heavy; it felt ergonomic and easy to swing.

“Initial items are always weapons. Even though you only pulled an R-Card, it’s your first time—a 30% probability, so it’s not bad,” Xiao Chuang comforted her, perched on her shoulder. “Kill them!”

“Uncle Wang” twisted his upper body 180 degrees backward, his feet still facing away, and rushed toward her with a screech.

The people nearby had distorted faces and let out similar cries. The ground began to bulge and ripple again, and a massive wail echoed from the distance.

Without a doubt, that monster was catching up.

Driven by desperation, Zhu Ci swung the watermelon knife at the space in front of her.

She closed her eyes in fear.

The expected physical impact didn’t happen. She opened her eyes to find only a pile of powder scattered on the ground. The screaming around her continued, but “Uncle Wang” was gone.

“Did you think this was just an ordinary knife? No, no, no, this is an RM-Exclusive Weapon,” Xiao Chuang said proudly. “Low-level RMs like this turn to ash upon contact. The stronger the weapon, the more powerful it is.”

“RM is the collective term for these monsters. It’s covered in the tutorial—you can study it yourself later.”

The surrounding RMs seemed frightened, and the circle widened. Zhu Ci raised her knife, pointed it in one direction, cut through the encirclement, and sprinted out.

Ashes continued to scatter like falling snow, silver-white and drifting, landing on Zhu Ci’s shoulders and hair.

The wailing behind her persisted. she ran with the greatest speed of her life, never stopping, gasping for air.

She didn’t stop until a stone tripped her, sending her tumbling to the ground.

She came to her senses and sat up, supporting herself with her hands. The sounds from behind were no longer audible. Unknowingly, she had run into the back mountains and reached the mid-slope.

She forced herself to take a deep breath to calm down.

“Xiao Chuang, right?” Zhu Ci addressed the perpetually cheerful little sprite. “You can tell me now. The Newbie Tutorial.”

“Ding-dong! Player Zhu Ci has opened the Newbie Tutorial. Simply put, this is a level-clearing game, and right now, we are in the Newbie Stage. The panel buttons in front of you are your game controls; you can touch them or open them by thought. This thing on your arm is your Item Card Slot. There are three rows in total, with three slots per row. This means you can only carry three items of each category at a time.

The first row is Thought, the second is Entity—like the knife you just used—and the third is Enchantment. Only the third row has limited uses and must be applied to your items to work. Be careful!”

“Player, you brought your own bag out of the first room, didn’t you?”

Zhu Ci looked down at her bag. It was one she had bought online during school; it only contained a few personal belongings: her ID, phone, student card, keys, and some other miscellaneous items.

“Don’t you find it curious? Everything else, including your suitcase, was covered in mold. Why wasn’t the bag?”

Seeing nothing special about it, she asked, “What about it?”

“Ta-da! Every player gets their personal belongings gifted at the start! You happened to be wearing it when you entered the game, so it was gifted to you. The things inside won’t be easily damaged and can even be repaired—even your phone still works. But this is limited to small items; for example, a player who was driving wouldn’t be gifted their car, and so on.”

Zhu Ci caught the main point: “So, can Enchantments be applied to this?”

“Player Zhu Ci has earned the achievement: Quick Learner! Indeed they can, as Enchantments also require conditions.” The green-clad sprite threw flower petals, celebrating happily. “Item cards can be found anywhere in the world. Whoever finds them owns them, but there is a risk of them being stolen in the world, so please guard your belongings.”

“That’s all for the intro. You’ll have to explore the rest yourself. Oh, one more thing I should mention.”

“Unless you obtain a Resurrection Card, death in the game is permanent. Please be careful.”

“I see. So there are other players in this world, right?” Zhu Ci sighed, standing up to look for clues.

“Of course. The entire world is in the game,” Xiao Chuang’s voice rang out from behind her, cold and sudden.

The whole world?

“Yes, the whole world,” Xiao Chuang smiled, just as before. That dark gaze seemed like it might have been an illusion to Zhu Ci. “Whoever escapes first will be the one to save everyone in the world.”

“Every country, every person—those who can move and those who can’t, the wise and the foolish, the terrified and the excited—they are all in this game. They are all in Genesis: Eerie Phobia. Wishing everyone a pleasant game.”

Zhu Ci looked back at it, her eyes devoid of expression. Xiao Chuang’s deep blue eyes met hers, and for a moment, neither spoke.

It was a sprite that could talk and move, but in reality, it was just an intelligent machine. There was no point in arguing with or questioning it.

If the whole world was in the game, what about her parents? Her brother? And where were the real Uncle Wang and the others?

The trees rustled slightly. Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting golden light and shadows across Zhu Ci’s face as if trying to splinter her into fragments.

The noise grew louder, shadows shifted, and the wind roared past, leaving only the sound of branches being crushed underfoot, moving from far to near.

It was the sound of footsteps, one after another, approaching.

Zhu Ci gripped her knife tightly, holding it across her chest and holding her breath, waiting for the person to approach.

“Not running, Player?” Xiao Chuang followed beside her, whispering the question.

Zhu Ci shook her head. The sound was very close. If it was a monster like the others, she wouldn’t be able to outrun it with her current strength.

Rustle. The leaves were pushed aside, and a person stepped out from the bushes.

Zhu Ci’s eyes widened.

She desperately wanted to rub her eyes but didn’t dare look away.

A person who looked exactly like her, wearing the same clothes, stood before her.

The person stood there silently, making no further move. They stared at each other, both seemingly lost in thought.

Zhu Ci had suffered too many shocks today. She swore that even if her entire family of four appeared before her now, she wouldn’t be surprised again. She gripped the hilt of the knife, not letting go, waiting for the “self” in front of her to make the next move.

The “self” didn’t move; it just stared at her. It stared for a long time until Zhu Ci’s arms were beginning to ache from holding the knife, yet it still just stood there.

Should she strike first?

Perhaps it was just a low-level RM like the townspeople, and the knife could turn it to ash.

But it showed no intention of attacking. it didn’t move, and it hadn’t turned into a terrifying monster.

Zhu Ci’s heart softened. This person looked exactly like her—or rather, it had taken on her face. How could she bring herself to strike?

She pressed the slot on her bracer, retracting the knife, and said, “Go away.”

“Player! Argh! What are you doing? That’s an RM! A mindless monster! How could it understand you? Whether they are low-rank or high-rank, they have no sympathy for humans!” Xiao Chuang was shocked by Zhu Ci’s actions, flying around frantically and buzzing in her ear.

The “self” across from her tilted its head when it saw her retract the knife.

Zhu Ci said to it, “Leave now. I’m giving you this one chance. Otherwise, I won’t be polite.”

It looked at her face and stood there for a while.

A moment later, it blushed.

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