Four Split Personalities

Yu Chen nodded slightly, and, through the misty spray of the fountain, looked at the people coming and going in the square, smiling faintly, "Motan, you... don’t seem to treat the people in the game as common NPCs, do you?"

"Indeed, I might have at one point, but after what happened in Misha County, who could still see them as just a set of cold data?"

Motan chuckled bitterly and shook his head, "In any case, what I’m trying to say is..."

"I know."

Yu Chen interrupted him softly, chuckling, "I’ll be careful."

"Uh..."

"Isn’t that what you mean?"

The girl stood and walked into the colorful mist, looking back at Motan with a wink, "So I’ll be careful."

Motan was stunned for a long time before he silently nodded his head.

And so, the topic was dropped. Motan didn’t further analyze the potential dangers of a ’player’ Saintess, and Yu Chen didn’t explain her seemingly abrupt previous response.

They simply smiled at each other, silently reassuring one another.

This unspoken understanding was somewhat subtle, even carrying a hint of ambiguity and charm. Perhaps they both vaguely sensed an unusual emotional change in the other, perhaps in that moment they both harbored some thoughts, whether right or wrong. But not until Motan turned his head away awkwardly when he noticed Yu Chen’s robe was about to get wet, did they utter a single word fitting the situation.

Then...

"Hey, I just thought of something."

Yu Chen, belatedly realizing her robe was clinging to her, scampered back like a startled rabbit, and while twirling a slender white finger around her hair, asked absentmindedly, "Motan, did you hide your player identity from me because of this?"

"Do you want to hear the truth or a lie?"

Motan, still a bit flustered from the previous moment, responded without thinking.

"Huh?"

The girl was taken aback for a moment, then touching her thin lower lip with her finger, pondered for a few seconds and replied with a smile, "Do you want to tell the truth or a lie?"

Motan, realizing he couldn’t take back what he said, gave himself a mental scolding and honestly answered, "If we’re speaking about the current situation, then a lie..."

Yu Chen’s gaze flickered imperceptibly, yet she asked with a cheerful smile, "So what’s the lie?"

"If players knew your identity, even unconsciously, they would speak of ’Her Highness the Saintess’ differently than when they treat you as an NPC. On that basis, anyone keen on investigating could quickly conclude that Morning Forgotten Language is also an ’Otherworlder.’ Since you haven’t given yourself away, and so far no NPC other than Xia Lian has suspected you, it’s naturally better to keep this ’absolute safety’ period as long as possible," Motan said, clearing his throat, speaking without much thought.

Yu Chen’s eyes fluttered closed in a rare manner, looking at Motan with an odd expression, "You’re telling me such a reasonable explanation is a lie?"

Motan nodded stiffly.

"Alright~"

Yu Chen pulled a face, and then rather non-sequentially brought up a matter from long ago, "Speaking of which, Motan, do you remember the conversation we had the first time we talked properly in the game?"

"You caught a monster that looked a lot like me."

Of course he remembered. Not to mention Motan’s memory was extraordinary (except for directions), even if he didn’t specifically work on it, he wouldn’t forget given how often he idly browsed through chat logs, and especially since that particular topic had plagued him until now. It was only due to the series of recent events that he hadn’t a chance to delve into the matter. Finally, things in Misha County were wrapped up, but then Yu Chen had collapsed.

"Yes, that’s right, I remember you were quite interested in it."

The girl chuckled, a bit sheepishly, "I promised I’d take you there as soon as we got back to the City of Light, but then I was forced into unconsciousness. So, today when I get back, I’ll ask Mr. Tero to help arrange a time with the little judiciary. Since that ’monster’ isn’t very dangerous, it’ll be easy to manage, and at the latest, by tomorrow afternoon, I could take you there."

The girl’s words were exactly what Motan had been pondering. In fact, he had already considered this matter when Yu Chen awoke. Ultimately, a long time ago, determining exactly what that creature, who bore a striking resemblance to him, was the primary focus of his rendezvous with Yu Chen in the game—the command role he took on in Misha County was an accident.

From the moment he first ’blacked out’ in the game, Motan, under any personality, developed an intense sense of crisis. Although the memories from the early part of his life had been completely sealed away, it was, after all, nothing but a form of wishful escapism. In this game that could materialize his ’illness’ and even trigger such a bizarre BUG as multiple personalities, the daily hours of lost time still filled him with fear and reminded him of certain things he thought he had forgotten...

With Motan’s intelligence, he naturally had his suspicions early on. After ruling out certain specific diseases and hardware issues with the Game Cabin, the answer had become crystal clear.

’That other self’... after it had fallen silent in reality, seemed to have found a niche in another world.

Although Motan had matured a lot since then, he still shivered at the moment the conclusion was reached and immediately started looking for all kinds of clues and evidence.

Whether it was searching the forums or preemptively investing in the largest intelligence organization of the Innocent Continent, the Cloud Traveler Inn, his goal was singular.

That was to drag out ’himself’... if he really existed, to pull that ’self’ out and then assess the situation.

He had even prepared himself to give up the game if the danger posed by that ’self’ exceeded expectations. No matter how much Motan loved The Realm of Innocence, he would abandon it without hesitation.

Among all the clues he had so far, the most concerning piece of intelligence—and the one with the greatest likelihood—was the ’monster’ captured in Saint Pure Lightning Town, who bore an extreme resemblance to him, mentioned by Yu Chen.

He had to verify the truth of this matter, and it took precedence over everything else!

Even if the outcome of the verification meant leaving this game, forsaking the world that had, for the first time in over two decades, allowed him to feel truly at ease.

When he came back to his senses, Yu Chen’s pretty face was already close at hand...

"Um, Motan, are you okay?"

The girl looked at him with worry, saying, "Your complexion suddenly turned pretty bad."

"I’m fine."

Motan forced his spirits up, and with a forced smile, shook his head, "I was just wondering what that monster, who looks so much like me, actually looks like. Ha, do you think it could be a white-haired rascal with blackened whites of his eyes, pale pupils, and who speaks with a synthetic tone? Its true identity being The Realm of Innocence’s garbage data aggregate, harboring anti-human sentiments, copying the appearance of a handsome guy at the moment of its birth, and now brewing a conspiracy capable of destroying the game world and turning all players into vegetables?"

He intentionally voiced an absurd yet plausible version of his worst-case scenario, subtly building a mental defense for Yu Chen, lest the girl start wild speculations upon seeing that the other really did look exactly like himself.

As expected, after hearing this, the girl immediately showed a mischievous smile, barely holding back her laughter as she vigorously nodded, "I believe, I believe~"

"Cut it out, your expression clearly reads ’has this idiot been hit in the back of the head by something heavy before logging on today?’"

"Pfft, hahaha~"

"Cough cough, so, tour guide, where’s our next stop?"

"The Central City District’s Steamed Fish Pot! It’s delicious, you’ll love it!"

"Uh..."

"?"

"Nothing, just wait and see how I eat steamed fish without spitting out a single grape skin!"

"Ew~ I don’t believe it, how can you possibly eat fish without spitting out..."

"Ah!"

"Hahaha~"

"Stop it!"

Chapter 508: The End