Love NPC in Nightmare Game - Chapter 70

Chapter 70: Mirror World 3

Alvia felt that Zhou Zhou was acting very strange today. He seemed to be unusually clingy, and whenever Alvia wanted to let go of his hand, Zhou Zhou would tighten his grip before Alvia could do so.

“Al, don’t let go of my hand, okay? This mountain is too steep.”

This mountain was indeed very steep, and there were no signs of anyone else having walked here before. The wild grass grew abundantly, almost reaching up to their calves, making it difficult to walk.

However, only the beginning of the path was hard to walk on. They were now on a mountain road that had been driven on by vehicles before, with a flat and wide surface that even the elderly or children would not find difficult to walk on.

Alvia looked at Zhou Zhou’s face again. His porcelain-white face seemed to be glowing, without any flaws visible. His large, round eyes met Alvia’s gaze, and when he smiled, the corners of his eyes curved upwards slightly. His amber-colored pupils looked like melted honey, making it hard for Alvia to look away.

There was no issue with his appearance or figure, he was indeed identical to Zhou Zhou.

Alvia had suspicions in his heart, but he did not voice them directly. The fact that he had passed out in the instance itself was already suspicious. A top-level spiritual power should not have passed out due to a mere car accident. Moreover, the vehicle they were in had not crashed immediately after plunging off the cliff, and he had already lost consciousness during the fall. Therefore, this was likely part of the instance.

And the person beside him, who looked just like Zhou Zhou, was possibly also part of the instance. Because they were on a winding mountain road, and Zhou Zhou seemed to cling tightly to Alvia, their descent down the mountain was very slow.

After walking for a short distance, Alvia suddenly stopped. The Zhou Zhou beside him looked up at him in confusion and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“If we continue descending the mountain now, will we fail the instance? After all, the driver was heading up the mountain earlier, so the exit to clear the instance might be at the top.” Alvia looked up at the mountain peak as he pondered, but his peripheral vision remained focused on Zhou Zhou’s reaction.

“I don’t know. I’ll go wherever you go, just don’t leave me behind.” Zhou Zhou blinked his eyes and said pitifully.

His expression seemed too natural. It seemed that whether they went up or down the mountain, it didn’t matter.

“Let’s head down the mountain first.”

“Okay.”

The two of them walked down the mountain, but they didn’t encounter anyone else along the way, not even the driver or other players, it was as if they had all disappeared without a trace.

There was also another strange thing about this mountain: although they could hear the sound of the wind blowing through the grass, there were no sounds of insects or birds. Although this was a virtual world, the holographic world created by Zeus had a similarity of 99% to reality, especially when it came to natural scenery, where even the most minute details would be replicated.

The lush grass covered the entire mountain, and in such an environment, there should have been more insects and birds. Zeus would not have made a mistake in a place like this, which meant that this was part of the instance. Thinking about the name of the instance, Alvia suppressed his deep thoughts and calmly observed the surrounding scenery, trying to find more anomalies.

As they were nearing the bottom of the mountain, the sky gradually darkened. Zhou Zhou seemed to be a little afraid, changing from holding Alvia’s hand to hugging his arm. Alvia just glanced at him calmly and did not stop him.

“Al Al.”

“What is it?”

Zhou Zhou seemed a little embarrassed, blinking his large eyes and grinding the toe of one foot on the ground, as if he had a lot to say to Alvia.

Alvia was very patient and did not ask further, waiting for the other person to speak.

Finally, Zhou Zhou seemed to have mustered up his courage and shouted at Alvia, “I like you.”

Alvia frowned slightly, not understanding why this person, who looked exactly like Zhou Zhou, would suddenly… confess? He had already confirmed that this person was an impostor, or rather, from the moment he saw the other person, he had noticed that his actions and demeanor were off. However, since he was not clear about the specific situation, he had not exposed the truth.

Alvia did not say anything, only making a sound of acknowledgment, neither responding nor rejecting, intending to see what the other person would do.

Even in the dim light, the pair of glistening eyes remained bright. It seemed that the previous sentence had used up all of his courage. Zhou Zhou then asked softly, “Will you be my boyfriend?” After saying that, he seemed to be extremely shy, turning his face away and looking into the distance. His long eyelashes fluttered as he waited for Alvia’s answer.

If it were anyone else who saw this scene, an exceptionally handsome and graceful young man shyly confessing, whether they liked or knew him or not, their heart would have been moved. But Alvia was not like others. He looked at Zhou Zhou’s profile with no expression, and when faced with the other person’s straightforward confession, he kicked the ball away like a socially inept straight guy.

“No, I’m not willing.”

Zhou Zhou: QAQ

Zhou Zhou turned his head, looking as if he had expected this outcome all along. He pouted as if he was about to cry and said to Alvia, “You’ll regret this!”

Alvia still did not understand what the other person’s intentions were. His eyes narrowed slightly as he observed the other person. Although he did not show any impatience, the slightly revealed sharpness in his gaze caused the initially fierce Zhou Zhou to shrink back a little.

He let go of Alvia’s arm that he had been hugging and took a few steps back. Only then did he start making threats again: “If you’re not willing to be my boyfriend, I’ll find someone else. I’ll go find Qian Le, Heya, Eddie, Mo Lan!”

How did this impostor know the names of these people? Alvia was puzzled, but he casually asked a question: “Why not Xue Li and Ke Li?”

When Zhou Zhou heard Alvia’s question, there was a trace of smugness in his expression: “We’re already boyfriend and girlfriend.”

Alvia: “?”

“You and who?”

“Of course, it’s those two. Ke Li is my boyfriend, and Xue Li is my girlfriend.” After saying that, the tears in Zhou Zhou’s eyes disappeared, and he looked at Alvia proudly with his head raised. However, after a moment, he lowered his head again and said worriedly, “It’s just too few.”

Too few?

Alvia looked at Zhou Zhou. Although the other person was an impostor, since he knew the names of these people, it meant that “he” and Zhou Zhou had some connection, or perhaps he even knew some of Zhou Zhou’s private matters. Therefore, what he had just said was quite possibly true.

“Will you agree or not, will you agree or not?” A few steps away, Zhou Zhou seemed to have regained his courage and shouted at Alvia.

“If you agree, you’ll be the third one.” Zhou Zhou held up three fingers.

Alvia closed his eyes briefly, his ice-blue eyes staring at the person still holding up three fingers: “Where is Zhou Zhou?”

The other person blinked, looking a little confused, and said, “I am him.”

“You’re not Zhou Zhou.”

After Alvia said those words, the Zhou Zhou in front of him slowly blinked his eyes. Starting from his face, black cracks began to spread across his entire body. Finally, with a bang, he shattered.

In an instant, the grass was covered in fragments, one side reflecting various parts of Zhou Zhou’s body, and the other side a smooth mirror surface.

Alvia stepped forward and picked up a shard. The triangular shard had slightly sharp edges, and one side perfectly captured Zhou Zhou’s outstretched fingers. Looking at the mirror surface on the other side, which reflected his own face, Alvia’s expression became contemplative.

So this impostor was a person made of mirrors. What was “his” purpose?

To disturb their minds? To sow suspicion among companions? Or to mislead the players?

Putting down the mirror shard in his hand, Alvia surveyed the surroundings. He was currently at the foot of the mountain, and there were still no sounds of insects or birds around him. Therefore, there had been an issue with the place where he woke up.

When they had been driving up the mountain earlier, they hadn’t heard any sounds from outside either. He didn’t know if the sounds from the outside were blocked inside the vehicle or if there had been an issue from the moment they entered this mountain.

The wind blew through the grass, causing the tender grass to bend. Alvia stared at the grass for a while before raising his head to look towards the mountain peak.

He might need to go and check out the mountain peak.

The sky had already darkened, but it had no effect on Alvia whatsoever. In fact, without the impostor slowing him down, he was able to ascend the mountain even faster.

*

“Zhou Zhou, wake up.”

Zhou Zhou heard someone calling him, and he immediately sat up from the ground, his eyes clear as he looked at the other person: “I’m awake.”

His behavior of pretending to be a corpse left the person kneeling beside him speechless, and all they could say was: “You… were you really unconscious earlier?”

Why did it seem like he was just sleeping there, with no trace of having been unconscious before?

Zhou Zhou thought seriously before answering: “I really did pass out earlier, but I heard someone calling me, so I woke up.”

Alright… then.

Alvia let out a snort of laughter and helped Zhou Zhou up.

“What is this place?” Zhou Zhou asked after standing up.

Alvia shook his head: “I don’t know. I also passed out earlier, and when I woke up, we were just lying here.”

“What about the others?”

“It’s just the two of us here. I haven’t seen anyone else.”

“What about the driver?”

“I didn’t see him.”

“What about the sheep?”

“…I didn’t see it either.”

Zhou Zhou wanted to continue asking, but he was interrupted by the other person. Alvia’s brow was furrowed, his blue eyes filled with infinite emotion, and then he cupped Zhou Zhou’s face with both hands.

Zhou Zhou’s cheeks were squeezed together, forcing his mouth into a duck-like shape: “???”

The two stood facing each other, the taller man cupping the young man’s face, saying deeply: “Why do you only care about others? Why don’t you ask about me?”

Zhou Zhou: “Wet off me firth.”

The man turned a deaf ear: “I know you like me too. It’s just the two of us here.”

After saying that, he held Zhou Zhou’s head in place and slowly leaned towards him, his gaze deep as he looked at Zhou Zhou’s duck-like mouth.

Zhou Zhou’s eyes were filled with surprise, and he tried his best to pull his head back, finally breaking free from the other person’s hold.

“What are you doing!” Zhou Zhou asked, a little displeased.

Alvia’s gaze was fixed on Zhou Zhou, the corner of his mouth curling up: “Don’t you like me? Since we like each other, we should do the things that couples do.”

The things that couples do?

As a dating game NPC, as soon as Zhou Zhou heard this topic, the displeasure he felt earlier was immediately forgotten, and he asked curiously: “What else can couples do?”

Alvia’s expression was languid, with a hint of mischief in his smile: “Like kissing, and…”

His gaze swept over Zhou Zhou’s body, but he did not continue.

Zhou Zhou was very curious about what was next, but in the meantime, he had another question: “What is kissing?”

“Huh?! You don’t know?” Alvia’s voice rose in surprise.

Zhou Zhou honestly shook his head.

Although he was a dating game NPC who appeared experienced and well-versed, in reality, as a dating game from an era of strict censorship, all games promoted green and anti-addiction values.

Especially for dating games, if there was anything that went against values, they wouldn’t even get a game license, so the storyline of Romance Academy was basically centered around the school campus. After the player confessed to an NPC, that main storyline would end.

At most, the player could attend classes, go to the lake, study in the library, etc. with the NPC they confessed to, very… healthy activities.

This game’s main selling points were its storyline, NPC character designs, and beautiful art style. However, during its peak popularity, many players used Romance Academy as a place to chat with gaming friends, finding scenic spots to gather in groups of three to five and discuss various topics of interest, something the original designers didn’t anticipate.

So Zhou Zhou didn’t know at all. He had always thought that as long as they confessed to each other, they could just stay together, play together, chat and do quests together, that was what he thought couples normally did.

Now he discovered that there were actually other things couples could do, and he immediately became highly interested.

Hmm, he needed to learn what kissing was, and the other things the other person hadn’t finished saying earlier, so he could practice them with his boyfriends and girlfriends later.

Seeing the other person’s eyes filled with a thirst for knowledge, Alvia looked up at the sky with some suspicion, not knowing if there was an issue with himself or the other person.

“Come here, I’ll teach you.”

Zhou Zhou had none of his earlier resistance left, walking towards the other person and nodding seriously: “Okay, teacher.”

Alvia was silent for a moment: “No need to call me teacher, just call me by my name.”

Zhou Zhou stopped in his tracks, looking at him in a bit of a dilemma: “But I don’t know your name? You look very similar to Al, but you’re not him. Teacher, what’s your name?”

As soon as the words left his mouth, the face of the “Alvia” in front of him was covered in black cracks, and then he shattered into pieces on the ground.

Zhou Zhou was horrified: “Teacher!!!”

He didn’t do anything, why did the teacher shatter?