Chapter 125: A Reluctant Visit to the Haunted Mine

“Ha? A haunted house? No way I’m going!”

Despite her reluctance, Menglinna had no choice but to obey Nanaya.

“To ensure everyone’s safety, please hand over your weapons. We’ll return them when you leave.”

The manager of the haunted house had clearly been burned by adventurers before. Seeing their combat belts, he demanded they surrender their weapons.

Menglinna clicked her tongue in annoyance but complied.

“Enjoy your trip through the mine!”

With that, the two were ushered into the entrance.

The haunted house was themed around an underground mine. At the entrance stood rows of minecarts, and a staff member waved them over to sit in one.

“One last reminder: the ghosts inside are all staff in costume. Please don’t use violence against them!”

The staff member fastened their seatbelts, repeated the warning, then signaled for the cart to start.

“Have fun.”

A jolt ran through them as the cart slowly moved forward.

It was a haunted house, so naturally the lights were dim. Facing the long, dark tunnel ahead, Menglinna unconsciously inched closer to Nanaya.

Nanaya’s face showed no expression, but her mind was already wandering.

Today’s excuse about an adventure was just a pretext. She really just wanted to hang out with Menglinna. Seeing the other girl cling to her out of fear, Nanaya thought to herself that even just bringing her out like this would be fine.

But since it was a haunted house, things wouldn’t stay quiet. As soon as they entered the mine, something crawled up around them.

“Waaah!”

In the dim light, Menglinna felt something hard touch her arm and screamed in fright.

Nanaya, much calmer, also noticed the strange sensation. Unlike the panicking Menglinna, she saw what it was: a tree branch.

The branch was covered in vines that happened to touch the pattern on Nanaya’s hand. Perhaps because of the heat, the vine retreated on its own.

Nanaya didn’t pay it much mind. She patted Menglinna’s back. “It’s just some branches and vines!”

Seeing Nanaya so composed, Menglinna calmed down as if infected by her demeanor. Then she saw the vines by her hand.

“Isn’t the point of a haunted house to scream?” Menglinna mumbled, blushing. “Even if you’re not scared, won’t the staff feel discouraged if you don’t make any noise?”

Nanaya could only smile at this bizarre justification. “Alright, alright. You’re the sweetest.”

“Are you treating me like a child?!”

“I’m telling the truth!”

“Yeah, right!”

The staff were used to this. They held off while the two bickered, but once the argument stopped, they resumed their scares.

A bloodied miner’s corpse suddenly appeared beside the track, grabbing the edge of the cart as if to climb in. Ahead, vampire bats swooped toward their faces.

Though the scares were clichéd, Menglinna was an easy target.

Nanaya wasn’t afraid. For her, the thrill of the haunted house paled in comparison to the reactions of the older girl beside her.

Had she been lying earlier when she said that?

Thinking back to Menglinna’s flustered face and silly excuses, Nanaya couldn’t help but smile.

Good thing the lights were dim, and the staff in costumes distracted Menglinna. If she caught Nanaya smiling, she’d surely start an argument.

Menglinna was always childish at times like this. It was adorable.

Feeling the warmth of Menglinna’s arm wrapped around her own, Nanaya thought to herself.

The first half was over. There seemed to be a rest period in the middle. No staff appeared to scare them, but the sudden silence and darkness made Menglinna uneasy.

Not fully composed yet, Menglinna couldn’t help but strike up a conversation. “Hey, you didn’t seem scared at all back there?”

Nanaya was about to say it was all fake, but after a moment’s thought, she changed her answer. “Actually, I was too scared to speak.”

“Oh, really?”

“Of course.”

“Hey!”

Sensing the conversation heading in a bad direction, Nanaya decided to change the subject. “It’s pitch black here. Do you think we’re still moving?”

The mention of the haunted house made Menglinna lose the courage she’d just mustered. Her tone drooped. “Probably. The wheels are still turning.”

“Don’t worry. I have a way to check.”

Nanaya raised a finger, and a small flame flickered at its tip.

This was the power granted by the Flame Evil God. She could produce fire without a staff, though it was only good for light.

Menglinna, of course, didn’t know that. She gasped at the flame. “You snuck a holy seal in?”

“No,” Nanaya shook her head. “It’s just a little ability of mine.”

Let Menglinna speculate. She’d probably chalk it up to the system anyway.

By the flame’s light, they could see their surroundings. The cart was still moving, but the area was filled with vines, making it somewhat eerie.

“Strange… why is it so overgrown here?”

Menglinna started to say something, but suddenly the vines moved, flipping their cart over.

“What’s happening?!”

The two tumbled together, ending up pinned beneath the cart.

“Alert! Alert! Anomaly on track B. Please remain calm. Staff will arrive shortly for rescue. Protect yourselves!”

A loudspeaker broadcast the message. Even under the cart, they could hear it.

In the moment the cart flipped, Menglinna had grabbed Nanaya. Now they were pressed together under the metal. Nanaya opened her eyes and felt her arm resting on something soft.

“Sorry!”

Nanaya tried to move her arm, but the space was too cramped. No matter how she shifted, she couldn’t avoid touching something.

*It’s too tight in here. I’ll have to lift the cart.*

“Forget that for now. We need to get out of here!”

Even though she didn’t know why the vines had attacked, the priority was safety.

As the stronger of the two, Nanaya naturally took the lead. “Bear with me. I’m going to push this cart off.”

“Wait,” Menglinna sensed something off. “Why do I need to bear with you if you’re just pushing the cart?”

But Nanaya didn’t give her time to question. She managed to slip her hand out sideways, accidentally brushing against Menglinna’s chest in the process. It was unavoidable.

Without support, Nanaya’s full weight pressed down on Menglinna. More specifically, it was like a screw aligning with its nut.

“Lift!”

Nanaya pushed upward with both hands and managed to flip the cart away.

They were free.

Standing up, they quickly assessed their surroundings.

Nanaya reignited the flame. The surrounding vines seemed alive, deliberately moving away from the fire.

“These things are alive,” Nanaya said, extending her hand. The vines shrank back. “They must have flipped our cart.”

“They?” Menglinna felt numb. “But there shouldn’t be monsters here, right?”

“Hard to say,” Nanaya observed the vines closely. “These aren’t ordinary plants.”

“So what do we do?”

In this unknown situation, Menglinna, usually the planner, felt helpless. Without weapons, she could only follow Nanaya.

Nanaya didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she pretended to examine the area while silently consulting the Flame Evil God.

The Flame Evil God quickly replied: [It seems there’s a monster living in the haunted house. Its body is these vines, and it feeds on fear. It might have been angered by you lighting the fire.]

Regret was pointless. Nanaya whispered, “What should we do?”

[There is a way,] the Flame Evil God said, a hint of resignation in its voice. [If you’re willing, I can further impart my power to you. It’ll only let you breathe fire a bit better, but that should be enough for this low-level creature.]

Nanaya hesitated for a moment, but the vines around them began to tighten their attack, as if realizing the fire hadn’t been extinguished. They started targeting the pair again.

Suddenly, a vine wrapped around Menglinna’s wrist. She struggled, but couldn’t break free from the tough plant.

Time was up. Nanaya said in her mind, [Then… I’ll trouble you?]

[Of course.]

As soon as the words were spoken, Nanaya felt a burning sensation on her side. The skin under her sleeve itched faintly.

*Probably just a side effect.*

With no time to dwell on it, Nanaya moved closer to Menglinna. Heeding the Flame Evil God’s prompt, she raised her right hand.

“Fire!”

Without any catalyst, a jet of flame shot from her palm.

The fire didn’t directly hit the vine gripping Menglinna, but the heat made the plant release her wrist and retreat.

But Nanaya wasn’t done. She increased the flame’s intensity. The once-tough vines dried up and caught fire.

The monster wasn’t strong. A continuous spray of fire was enough to deal with it. Menglinna remained silent, just staring at Nanaya.

After clearing the vines, Nanaya looked down at Menglinna with a smile. But the other girl’s expression was stern.

Why so serious?

Nanaya followed her gaze and saw that her sleeve had been burned away by the heat, revealing the Flame Evil God’s totem beneath.

Seeing Nanaya’s flustered look, Menglinna stepped closer and said softly, “Cover that up. We’ll talk when we get back.”

Nanaya had seen that serious expression on Menglinna’s face before, but it usually appeared only after she’d made a grave mistake.

Defeated, Nanaya obediently covered the totem and waited with Menglinna for the staff.

Their haunted house trip ended abruptly. The terrified staff compensated them and escorted them out. Predictably, the haunted house would likely close for renovations.

They walked back to the church in silence. This time, Menglinna took Nanaya’s hand and led her into her room.

The other nuns witnessed everything but wisely said nothing, given the look on Menglinna’s face.

Though Nanaya was an outsider, she had been deliberately avoiding Sister Jijige. Now, no one dared to provoke Menglinna, though they were curious what Nanaya had done to anger her.

Not noticing the others, Menglinna locked the door, checked it again, and only turned to Nanaya when she was sure no one could hear.

“When did you come into contact with this thing?”

With no one else in the room, Menglinna pulled up Nanaya’s sleeve, exposing the one-eyed totem.

Nanaya answered honestly. “After we defeated the Flame Giant that day.”

“I told you not to touch that thing. Why didn’t you listen?”

“It attached itself to me!” Nanaya quickly explained, not wanting to seem rebellious. “I didn’t seek it out.”

Menglinna didn’t dwell on that. She asked, “Then why didn’t you tell me? Did you think you could handle it on your own?”

Nanaya stayed silent, staring at her own feet.

📚 Also on NHV Novels

I Heard I’m the Villainous, Hated Character in a Pampered Novel?

BLDramaFantasy

Read Now →
Not interested