Chapter 146: Already a Toy

“Fifty yuan spent just like that…”

Lu Xin felt a faint pang of regret. In his opinion, giving a few coins would have sufficed.

But this time, all supplies, including the Alliance Currency and gold they brought, had been prepared by the Guard Bureau and the Special Clean-up Department, all in the same denomination — fifty yuan notes. When it came to spending a little money to ask someone for information, the smallest denomination Lu Xin could offer was this. After all, he hadn’t brought any Canned Food, and giving away gold would have been even more painful.

Still, getting information for only fifty yuan was quite a bargain.

Besides, it could be reimbursed.

So, Lu Xin let the girl take the money and waited quietly for her answer.

But the girl merely took the money, clutched it in her hand, and continued looking at him with a blissful smile.

She simply wouldn’t answer.

“If you don’t want to say, forget it…”

Lu Xin didn’t want to force such a hardworking and optimistic girl. He shook his head and prepared to take his money back.

However, when he pinched the corner of the fifty-yuan note and tried to pull it away, he found it unexpectedly tight.

The girl clutched the fifty yuan and didn’t let go.

“If you won’t answer, you should give the money back.”

Lu Xin looked at the girl, reasoning with her, and continued pulling the fifty-yuan note outward.

But the girl held on very tightly, showing no intention of releasing it.

Lu Xin insisted on getting it back; the girl insisted on keeping it.

Lu Xin was getting a bit angry, yet he dared not pull too hard, afraid he might tear the bill.

However, Little Sister had already jumped down at this point. She helped Lu Xin by prying open the girl’s fingers one by one.

Finally, the fifty-yuan note, intact though somewhat crumpled, was back in Lu Xin’s hand.

The girl still wore a blissful smile on her face, though this smile now seemed somewhat peculiar.

“Since you won’t tell me, I’ll find it myself!”

Lu Xin tucked away the bill, shouldered his backpack, and slowly walked into the Small Town.

As he entered the town, the people in the fields, including that girl, continued to watch him silently.

…

The Small Town looked quite large, easily accommodating tens of thousands of people.

There were no street lamps in the town; the light was very dim, forcing him to rely on the glow of the Crimson Moon in the sky to see.

The architecture of the town was rather peculiar; the houses were built very neatly but also very densely packed.

Each building was just a small, square box shape with one door and two windows.

It looked somewhat like a fairy-tale style, yet simpler than that.

Such houses, row upon row, block upon block, were connected together and stretched far into the distance.

Touching them with a finger revealed that the whitewash brushed onto these houses was still slightly damp; he wondered if it had been applied recently.

Behind the small town lay a low hill. Faintly visible on the hill, seeming to stand within the darkness, were a few Villas, perhaps remnants from before the Cataclysm. Most were obscured by various green plants covering the hill.

Seen from a distance, they gave off a somewhat dilapidated feeling.

All the houses in this small town were built at the foot of the mountain. It was unclear if they completely encircled the hill.

…

After watching for a while, Lu Xin instinctively averted his gaze.

Such orderly things should normally be pleasing to look at.

But seeing too many of them, piled so densely together, gradually induced a stifling feeling.

The entire town was devoid of the faintest sound.

Lu Xin slowly looked around at the houses here, then moved a bit closer towards one of them.

He wanted to enter one and see what was inside.

Through a window, he could only see darkness inside; he could just barely make out what seemed to be a very simple layout.

After a moment’s thought, Lu Xin decided to push open a door and walk straight in to see.

However, just as he was about to grasp the doorknob, he withdrew his hand. He suddenly had a feeling.

If he opened this door and went inside, something bad might happen immediately.

But if he didn’t go in and look, how would he find the person he was looking for?

Could Qin Ran and the others be inside one of these houses?

“Crack…”

Just as Lu Xin was pondering slowly, a faint noise came from behind him.

In the quiet atmosphere, this noise sounded unusually distinct.

Lu Xin spun around sharply and discovered Mother standing beneath the crimson moonlight.

She was smiling softly as she placed the Scissors back into her shoulder bag.

“You almost had something dirty on you just now,” Mother explained with a smile. Then, looking at the surrounding buildings, she added cheerfully, “Quite a lovely Small Town. The houses are well built, the Flower Field is nicely tended to, and above all, it’s peaceful and quiet. Compared to that chaotic Blackwater Town, this place feels almost like heaven…”

Lu Xin nodded. “Yes, the people are nice too. They’re very polite.”

“Exactly, exceedingly polite…” Mother agreed, her gaze shifting to the area behind Lu Xin.

Lu Xin turned his head and saw faint rustling sounds coming from the shadows beneath a nearby building.

Faint, indistinct black shapes seemed to be writhing there.

His eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, revealing that these were actually people. Men and women lurked in the shadows, glaring firmly in his direction. Each held a “weapon” – some clutched shovels, others iron hoes; a few gripped rolling pins or kitchen knives. They were all crouched within the deepest pockets of shadow, places untouched by the moonlight. Their eyes glinted with a faint, unsettling light.

…

“How did things suddenly turn like this?” Lu Xin murmured with surprise, glancing at Mother. “They were perfectly pleasant just a moment ago…”

“Not my fault!” Mother turned her head away, refusing to look at either the crowd or Lu Xin.

If Mother denies it… does that mean this change definitely was because of her? he wondered.

He recalled the precise moment: he’d heard the snip of scissors, then turned and saw Mother standing there.

Mother said he was in danger of becoming dirty.

So, something must have almost contaminated him… and Mother had snipped it away.

Was the hostility of these people triggered because Mother had cut off that thing that linked to them?

…

“Well, they don’t seem about to charge at us immediately,” Lu Xin assessed. He wasn’t one to provoke conflict. Though the townspeople radiated hostility, as long as they didn’t attack outright, he’d leave them be. Getting his thoughts back on track, he said seriously, “For us, finding Qin Ran is still the priority…”

His purpose for coming here was explicit: find Qin Ran.

Whatever was wrong with this place, it wasn’t his concern. If these people didn’t bother him, he wouldn’t disrupt their – however strange – happy existence either.

“So how do you plan to find him?” Mother’s smile, beneath the curved Crimson Moon, held an elusive quality.

“No clear leads right now…” Lu Xin scanned the dense forest of houses cramming the Small Town, frowning. “If Qin Ran truly came here, he must be hiding inside one of these rooms. But every room looks identical inside and out, impossible to see within… and these people refuse to speak… we even offered them money, still they said nothing… In that case… does it leave us no choice but to search every single door?”

He trailed off, falling silent for a moment.

Earlier, when he’d tried to open one of those doors, a primal sense of danger had flared within him.

And crucially, with so many rooms… searching them one-by-one would take forever.

Noticing Lu Xin’s serious expression, Mother smiled again. “I arrived a bit sooner than you two. While you siblings were… sorting things out with that girl, I was already exploring the town. From what I saw earlier… not every room was devoid of light…”

“We weren’t ‘sorting things out’, we were getting my money back,” Lu Xin interjected, his cheeks flushing slightly. Then, catching Mother’s earlier words: “A room… with a light?”

This Small Town held an almost absolute darkness. None of its buildings showed a single light from within.

Did that imply the residents here were accustomed to living in total darkness?

While Qin Ran and his companions – outsiders – might very well resort to artificial lighting indoors…

“Which one?” Lu Xin pressed, conviction hardening. This had to be it.

“Mm, didn’t quite catch it,” Mother replied delicately, her eyebrows knitting prettily as if confused. She gestured vaguely: “It was… that way, I think?”

Lu Xin followed her gesture towards the southeastern edge of the Small Town, a section tucked further back.

“Let’s go take a look,” he decided, adjusting the bag hanging over his shoulder. He turned and started walking decisively towards the cluster of buildings in that corner.

Behind him, more and more figures coalesced from the shadows. Weapon-clad, they pressed themselves against the walls, edging gradually after him.

Lu Xin found it strange. He cast a questioning glance at Little Sister. Faced with so many hostile figures, she wasn’t clamoring for her usual diversion.

Little Sister seemed to read his unspoken question. She scrunched her face dismissively. “They’re already Toys,” she said, her tone layered with disdain. “I don’t want things that have been played with!”