Chapter 58: Brother, cry if you want

Following the mechanical voice’s instructions, Zhou Mu headed for the upstairs bathroom of the villa. Outside, that eerie “Hehehe…” laughter made his heart leap into his throat.

Yesterday, he’d watched in horror as the newly turned “Madman,” Long-haired Man #1, dragged the Short-haired Man down to the first floor. The “Madman” title was well-earned: he tortured his victim until the man broke down sobbing, “Please… just kill me…”

The Madman’s face twisted into a look of pure, frenzied delight.

Tonight, Zhou Mu had slipped past the Madman to get into the second-floor bathroom. He kept one ear trained on the chilling laughter outside as he searched for the newest Demon clue.

He needed to confirm his own identity. The earlier Demon and Escapee clues had been too vague; he was desperate to reassure himself that he really was the Demon, that all his deductions these past days hadn’t been wrong.

After all, this was just a three-star dungeon—a dungeon so low-ranked that people from the Upper City wouldn’t even glance at it. If he still couldn’t figure out his role, or worse, had gotten it wrong…

Zhou Mu took out his phone. The livestream had only a handful of viewers, and the chat was pitifully sparse:

[ A three-star dungeon and you still don’t know your role? ]
[ What a boring stream. ]
[ Huh? I thought I was watching someone from the Upper City. Why’s this dungeon only three stars? This progress… The streamer must be weak. Are they really from the Upper City? ]

The words burned in his vision. Zhou Mu lowered his head.
So it wasn’t his brother’s fault—it was his own weakness that had made his brother abandon him.
He clenched his fists, a mix of frustration and defiance bubbling up.
He hadn’t forgotten why he was here: he wanted to reach Upper A District, stand in front of his brother, prove his worth, and make him regret leaving him behind.

With that thought driving him, Zhou Mu resumed searching for the Demon clue, scanning every corner of the bathroom. The place reeked—filthy and long-abandoned, water dripping from overhead pipes, each drop carrying a faintly metallic stench.
Zhou Mu gritted his teeth against the smell. He’d arrived only after the mechanical voice’s announcement, so he hadn’t seen the telltale red glow marking the new clue. That meant he didn’t know which object in the bathroom was the latest Demon hint.

Then, by chance, he glanced at the mirror.
The man staring back at him matched his expression and movements perfectly—except for one thing.
The reflection’s face was Sheng Kuo’s.

Zhou Mu froze, staring at his own reflection.
A soft chuckle slipped from his lips:
“Heh…”
Then louder:
“Ha.”
“Ha ha ha ha.”
“Hahahahahahaha.”
He was about to lose his mind.

Outside, the real Madman pushed the bathroom door open a crack, bloodshot eyes peering inside.
“Uhh… hehehe…”
Long-haired Man #1 recognized Zhou Mu instantly.
This was the person who had killed him.

***

When Lin Kuo reached the bathroom, someone was crouched inside. There were no windows, and the lack of light reduced the figure to a vague silhouette.
The Madman’s presence kept Lin Kuo from making a move. He pressed himself against the wall, cautiously peeking inside.
The moment his gaze fell on the figure, a soft giggle echoed in the darkness:
“Hehehe… hehe…”

Lin Kuo’s brow furrowed. The Madman was definitely here, but was Zhou Mu alive? He couldn’t tell.
He didn’t hesitate. Lin Kuo stepped forward, grabbed a fistful of the Madman’s hair, and yanked hard.
The hair was greasy, clumped, and stank of sweat and blood. His hand came away sticky with a mix of oil and gore, and nausea rose in his throat.
But the Madman’s attention was now on him.

The creature turned, locking its manic gaze on Lin Kuo.
Lin Kuo spun on his heel and bolted. The Madman, thrilled by the chase, released Zhou Mu and charged after him.

Freed from the crushing grip around his throat, Zhou Mu coughed violently, curling up on the floor as his body trembled from lack of oxygen. After several moments, he managed to pull himself upright with the help of the wall.
Dazed, he stumbled out of the bathroom—just in time to spot Pillow Girl peeking from a crack in the opposite doorway.

Instinct took over. Zhou Mu lunged at the door before she could close it, shoving his way inside.
Pillow Girl shrieked, panicked:
“Ahhh! Demon!”
The word pierced Zhou Mu’s mind, setting off sparks of chaos in his already shattered nerves.

When Lin Kuo finally shook off the Madman and made it back to the bathroom, he saw the door across the hall ajar. A chill crawled up his spine, but he pushed forward, entering the room.
The sight that greeted him: Pillow Girl, smothered to death with her own pillow.

At that moment, the mechanical voice announced:
“Violation detected. A second Madman will be released within twelve hours.”

“f*ck!” Lin Kuo cursed aloud, unable to hold it in.
He turned and stormed toward the villa’s kitchen.

Inside, the Short-haired Man’s remains lay scattered across the floor. A small fire still burned on the stove, a pot boiling over with crimson foam. Lin Kuo didn’t dare guess what was inside.
He grabbed a kitchen knife and left, determined to avoid the Madmen and find Zhou Mu.

The search felt endless. The villa was pitch-black, and several times he nearly ran straight into the Madman.
At dawn, the mechanical voice made another announcement:
“All Madmen have now been released. Escapees and the Demon, please check for updates.”

The difficulty had spiked sharply. Lin Kuo finally found Zhou Mu’s backpack in the eleventh room, a sign the boy was nearby.

Sure enough, Zhou Mu appeared not long after. He didn’t even glance at Lin Kuo. He locked the door behind him, dropped to his knees, and began to write.
Lin Kuo approached silently. Zhou Mu showed no reaction.
Glancing at the notebook, Lin Kuo read the repeated line filling the page:
“Chen Ning, I’m sorry. Chen Ning, I’m sorry. Chen Ning, I’m sorry…”

Chen Ning—that was Pillow Girl’s name.
In fact, “Name + I’m sorry” was a pattern Lin Kuo had seen many times in Zhou Mu’s diary. Anyone Zhou Mu had harmed was recorded there—including Liu Yuanque, the bespectacled man Zhou Mu had killed himself.

Lin Kuo had been struggling to find a justification for killing him.
The reasoning was simple enough: if Zhou Mu lived, he would create even more Madmen.
Even so, he couldn’t deny this moment made it almost impossible to strike him down.

“You’ve become a murderer and still turned out like this,” Lin Kuo said, his tone sharp yet oddly gentle.
He tossed aside the knife.
Sitting on the bed, he asked casually:
“What’s your brother’s name?”

This broke Zhou Mu’s trance slightly.
“…Zhang Yi. He was our neighbor.”
“Oh,” Lin Kuo said softly. “So you’re not completely insane.”

Zhou Mu kept writing, filling another page before asking:
“Sheng Kuo—what’s your real name?”
“Planning to add me to the diary?” Lin Kuo asked dryly.

Zhou Mu chuckled.
“You think I didn’t know you hid in my wardrobe last night? If I’d wanted you dead, you wouldn’t have survived to watch me write all day.”

Lin Kuo froze.
Zhou Mu went on:
“I’m not useless. I used to be the smartest kid in my neighborhood—you know, one of those model children. I was proud… too proud. And the prouder you are, the harder you fall. That’s why I’m so close to losing it now.”

His gaze shifted to the knife Lin Kuo had thrown aside.
“You’re the Demon right now. Kill me and you’ll clear the dungeon.”
“I know,” Lin Kuo replied evenly.

Zhou Mu smiled bitterly.
“You won’t do it, huh? I used to be like that. That’s why my brother left me.”

Lin Kuo stayed silent.
Zhou Mu’s pen ran out of ink, and he stopped writing entirely.
“When you came to the bathroom, you weren’t trying to kill me—you were trying to save me, weren’t you?”

Lin Kuo’s annoyance flickered.
“Just nod,” Zhou Mu said softly. “I’ll make sure you clear this dungeon.”
Lin Kuo didn’t respond.

“You’ve only got two ways out,” Zhou Mu continued. “First, you kill me now. Second, wait for me to become the Demon and then enter the password. But the password’s locked, the Madmen are loose, and it’s dangerous.
“But I think if the Demon dies, the Escapee’s identity won’t rotate anymore. So I could let the Madman kill me… make things safer for you.”

“Just nod,” Zhou Mu said. “If you nod, I’ll do it. Consider it repayment for sparing me.”
Lin Kuo still wouldn’t nod.

“I can only survive this dungeon by killing you when I’m Demon,” Zhou Mu admitted. “I killed two NPCs myself. I don’t even know the password anymore. But you didn’t kill me when you had the chance. If I kill you now, what kind of person would that make me?”

Lin Kuo held his tongue, unwilling to trust him. His plan was simple: before midnight, throw Zhou Mu out of this room and let the Madman finish him.
Zhou Mu clearly knew his intentions.

They sat together in silence until nearly midnight.
Pushing his diary toward Lin Kuo, Zhou Mu said,
“If you ever meet Zhang Yi, give this to him for me.”

Then he stood, walked to the door, and placed his hand on the handle.
Before opening it, he turned and said,
“I don’t know your real name. I’ll just call you Brother.”

Lin Kuo’s fingers twitched.
“Brother,” Zhou Mu said, “thank you for not killing me.”
Lin Kuo’s lips pressed into a thin line.

After a moment, Zhou Mu added,
“Brother… could you hug me?”
He looked Lin Kuo straight in the eyes, voice trembling,
“I’m… scared… Brother, please… just hug me once?”

Lin Kuo clenched his fists. Outwardly calm, inside he was torn apart.
Part of him wanted to comfort Zhou Mu.
The other part couldn’t bring himself to trust him.

Before he could decide, the mechanical voice interrupted:
“Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! It’s 0:00. New Demon clue: Third-floor tearoom. Escapees, please investigate. Reminder: Two Madmen are active. Proceed with caution. Good luck!”

Lin Kuo’s expression hardened. He quickly stepped back.
So Zhou Mu had been stalling for time?

Zhou Mu watched his reaction and chuckled softly.
“…Brother, I’m leaving. Oh, one more thing—I thought about it. If killing NPCs as an Escapee leads to punishment, then entering the correct password as the Demon probably does too.
“Try re-entering the original password. See what happens.”

With that, Zhou Mu opened the door and stepped out, gently closing it behind him.

Lin Kuo stood frozen, his fingers trembling at his sides. A strange, indescribable feeling churned inside him.
He felt like he’d changed.
Changed—not into something better.

Lowering his eyes, he listened as the mechanical voice coldly declared Zhou Mu’s death.
“The Demon has died. Password lock reset. Only one attempt remains. Incorrect entry will result in permanent lock.”

Clutching Zhou Mu’s diary, Lin Kuo stepped out of the room.
At the villa’s front door, he entered the original password:
1-0-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1.

[ Beep-beep-beep — Password correct. ]
Click.

The door swung open.
Expressionless, Lin Kuo stepped outside.
There, standing at the threshold, was Sheng Wen.

In that moment, all the grief and exhaustion Lin Kuo had been holding back surged to the surface.
If only he had hugged Zhou Mu… if only he’d nodded once…
He turned his head sharply, biting his teeth together so hard it hurt, forcing back the tears.

Sheng Wen wrapped him in a firm embrace.
“I can’t see your face right now,” Sheng Wen murmured softly, “so if you need to cry, Brother… cry.”