Chapter 553: [A Godless World] (21)
[That has to do with Ember’s peculiar constitution.]
[Usually, anyone he tries to protect ends up dying. The harder he tries to protect someone, the sooner that person dies.]
[No way... Someone like that really exists?]
[At first, everyone thought it was just a coincidence. But by the third dungeon, it became obvious.]
[So now he’s decided to treat everyone with the persona of a lone wolf. Who would’ve thought Adrian would show up?]
[Speaking of that, I really miss the Ember from the first dungeon. Back then, he was like a pure, untainted flower.]
[But I refuse to accept them parting like this! Ember said those things to Adrian, but maybe he’s actually hiding somewhere and crying!]
[I have to explain everything on Ember’s behalf!]
As soon as those words were spoken, a wave of viewers from Ember’s livestream flooded over to Adrian’s livestream.
Meanwhile, Adrian had already arrived at the emergency exit on the fourth floor.
Just then, the door to a room beside him suddenly opened. An arm stretched out, holding a slice of cake. The cherry perched on top was a vivid red, plump and inviting.
Inside the room was pitch-black, and the only thing visible was that outstretched hand.
Before the owner of the hand could say anything, Adrian’s eyes lit up as he asked, "Is this for me?"
The moment the words left his mouth, he took the cake without the slightest hesitation, leaving the hand hanging awkwardly in midair.
"Thanks!" Adrian scooped up a spoonful of cake, his eyes curving into crescents with delight. Just as he was about to pop the entire bite into his mouth, the owner of the hand suddenly spoke.
"There’s plenty more inside. Would you like to come in? We could have afternoon tea together..."
"Afternoon tea? What’s that?" Adrian couldn’t help asking. If it was just drinking tea, he wasn’t interested.
"There’s lots of food. We’re only waiting for you to complete the party."
Hearing that, Adrian paused as if to think it over—though he never actually stopped eating.
"Give me another slice of cake... No, make it a whole cake. A really big one. Then I’ll believe there’s actually food in there."
The owner of the hand froze for a moment, seemingly caught off guard by Adrian’s condition.
[...]
["No pain? No sadness? What on earth is Adrian doing?"]
["In a situation like this, the thing behind that door is ninety-nine percent likely to be a bunch of skin-stealing ghosts."]
["And Adrian is actually eating the food they gave him. I seriously have to hand it to him."]
["He’s even eating food from NPCs..."]
"Come inside. Come play with us..." the owner of the hand coaxed.
"No? Then I’m not going in."
With that, Adrian turned and walked away. Before leaving, he casually tossed the paper plate and plastic spoon back toward the outstretched hand, as if to say, Your stuff, you clean it up.
"Over here, over here~"
Before Adrian had gone very far, the soft voice called out again.
He turned around.
This time, it was a cake...
A huge cake.
A truly enormous cake.
The pristine white frosting resembled a princess’s pear-blossom gown, decorated with bright red strawberries, blueberries, and cherries. At the center was a glossy layer of vibrant orange glaze, releasing an irresistibly sweet aroma.
It was so big that Adrian actually began wondering whether he could open his mouth wide enough to take a bite.
And so, the moment Ember finally caught up, what he saw was Adrian reaching toward the room’s doorway.
Resting on the tray held by that outstretched hand was not a cake at all, but a writhing pile of severed hands, eagerly waiting to seize Adrian’s hand the moment it came within reach.
Ember: "..."
He didn’t even need to imagine what that tray looked like through Ember’s eyes.
Just as Adrian was about to happily grab his giant cake, a gust of wind suddenly swept past. The next instant, an iron club came crashing down.
Bang!
"Aaaaaah—!"
A shrill scream rang through the corridor as both the cake and the overly hospitable host dissolved into a cloud of smoke.
Adrian took a small step back and glared at Ember with a sullen expression.
Turning to look at him, Ember said coldly, "Go back."
Lifting his chin, Adrian replied, "I’m hungry."
Ember’s gaze fell on the cream still smeared across Adrian’s lips. After a brief silence, he said, "How about I carve off some of my own flesh for you to eat?"
"Sure."
To Ember’s surprise, Adrian actually nodded.
Without another word, Ember tossed the iron club back into his storage space and simply grabbed Adrian’s wrist, pulling him away.
Noticing that Adrian didn’t struggle at all, Ember lowered his eyes. After a long pause, he suddenly spoke.
"The moment I was born, my parents died. My grandparents took me in, but their business gradually fell apart. By the time I was five, they had also passed away, and I was sent to an orphanage."
His voice was low and steady.
"Anyone who gets close to me ends up suffering all kinds of misfortune. When I entered this place, I actually felt relieved. I thought... maybe my fate would finally change. But it didn’t. You’ve already heard it yourself. Across all three dungeons, I was the only survivor."
"Adrian," Ember said matter-of-factly, "if you stay with me like this, you’ll probably die too."
Adrian’s eyes immediately widened.
Under Ember’s solemn gaze, he slowly withdrew the hand Ember was holding, then carefully took two steps backward.
Ember: "..."
"If you know that," Adrian said while brushing himself off as though trying to dust away bad luck, "then why are you still sticking to me? I don’t want any of your bad luck rubbing off on me."
Ember couldn’t understand it.
This was exactly what he wanted—to push Adrian away.
Yet when Adrian actually showed such a decisive attitude without the slightest hesitation, an inexplicable ache welled up inside his chest.
"Haha, what’s with that face? I was just kidding."
Adrian suddenly burst into laughter and reached out to pat Ember on the shoulder.
Ember instinctively looked away. He caught Adrian’s hand and lowered it before saying in a deep voice,
"Don’t touch me."
With that, he turned and walked ahead.
Following behind him, Adrian chuckled.
"What’s wrong? Why aren’t you trying to chase me away anymore?"
"I’m afraid you’ll die even sooner if you’re on your own than if you stay with me."
"Hmph. Acting all tough." Adrian slung an arm over Ember’s shoulders and patted his own chest confidently. "Don’t worry, kid. I’ll protect you."
Ember lowered his gaze.
Because Adrian was shorter, he had to stand on his tiptoes just to drape an arm over Ember’s shoulders.
Ember watched those raised heels in silence and said nothing more.