I Play the Horror World as a Simulation Game

Returning home, Qin Nuo placed the bag of cold buns into the broken freezer. Although it couldn't cool anymore, at least it was sealed, keeping out rats and cockroaches.

He wanted to boil some water with the kettle, but seeing a yellowed sanitary pad inside, he threw it straight into the trash.

In the bathroom, he took a quick shower. The day's busyness left him reeking, his clothes stained with bits of flesh and blood.

After stripping off, he tossed his shorts into a basin, turned on the tap, and without laundry detergent, used dish soap instead, scrubbing with his feet.

Once done, Qin Nuo emerged from the bathroom, dripping wet, and grabbed some dry clothes from the security window.

After changing, the sky outside the balcony had turned completely dark. Watching the time, Qin Nuo tidied up the trash in his bedroom.

He took the trash out to the alley, where flies buzzed around piles of disgusting garbage.

Clapping his hands clean, he headed back. As he entered, the neighbor's door opened.

A thin, middle-aged woman with wet hair, wearing a dark purple cheongsam and red embroidered shoes, stepped out.

Qin Nuo didn't know what kind of relationship Qin Feng had with the neighbor, so he stopped and watched the woman.

Her reaction would give him the answer.

Seeing Qin Nuo, the woman smiled broadly, "Xiao Feng, going out so late? Where to?"

"Auntie made some bone soup, your parents aren't home, right? Come over and taste Auntie's cooking."

This was normal neighborly chatter, nothing strange about a friendly neighbor saying such things.

But from her mouth, besides warmth, there was an inexplicable intense emotion.

Her grin seemed stained with blood, a vivid horror!

Qin Nuo shivered instinctively, feeling like a small prey under a wolf's gaze, forcing a smile, "Maybe next time, Auntie."

With that, Qin Nuo quickly entered his house, slamming the door shut.

The woman licked her bright red lips, staring at the large red-brick house before returning inside.

...

"Her eyes looked like she wanted to eat me. If I went in, I might never come out."

"Building good relations with neighbors isn't bad, but in the Bloodstained Apartment instance, it feels like walking into a trap."

Back inside, Qin Nuo washed his hands in the bathroom, still covered in goosebumps.

As night fell, the house grew dim. The living room bulb had long been broken, leaving only faint light from outside to see by.

An old TV sat in the living room. Qin Nuo tried to turn it on, hoping its light would chase away some darkness and calm his nerves.

But after several attempts, it didn't work. Thinking it was a wiring issue, he opened the back to find the wires chewed through, a charred rat dead on the circuit board, emitting a foul stench.

Shaking his head, Qin Nuo closed the back and returned to his room.

Inside, he rummaged through drawers and wardrobes, hoping to find more about Qin Feng's family or the drama department kids.

After a fruitless search, he turned to the books. NPCs in horror games often kept notes, and finding Qin Feng's would be a boon.

But after a long search, he found only doodled textbooks, nothing worth examining.

"Finally, a character who doesn't like taking notes?" Qin Nuo put the messy books back, resigned, and took a chair to the balcony to sit and think.

He placed an oil lamp on the railing, fiddling with a crescent pendant, examining it closely.

"The crescent is made of bone," the Blood-Eyed Ghost suddenly spoke.

"Bone? Why didn't you say so earlier?" Qin Nuo asked.

"It didn't seem important, so I didn't mention it. But seeing you struggle to figure it out, I had to," the Blood-Eyed Ghost replied nonchalantly.

Qin Nuo was speechless.

"A bone-made gift, a horror gift... twisted love..."

"I remember when playing Liang Zisu, an invisible female teacher liked giving these too. Could there be a connection?" Qin Nuo murmured, squinting.

"The music box is linked to the first character, the crescent pendant to the second. Is there a hidden message here?"

Confusion and bizarre theories swirled in his mind, refusing to leave, furrowing Qin Nuo's brow.

Perhaps he'd spent too long in the Horror World. The dark, eerie environment always helped him focus and think.

He sat on the balcony, not noticing even when the lamp's wick went out.

Only when the old clock on the wall chimed did Qin Nuo pull his wandering thoughts back.

Relighting the wick, the lamp's glow revealed the clock's time.

"Past midnight, time to head to Black Crow Ghost School. Those cursed kids will definitely appear."

"I'm part of the drama department too, even if I dropped out. Studying and performing are separate; going back is just for the guild. Yes, that makes sense."

Qin Nuo found an excuse for himself.

But he still wondered why Dafu could go home while Tang Rou couldn't, and what about the other kids?

Was it the curse, or was the principal secretly manipulating things?

Qin Nuo put on his patched sneakers, ready to leave when there was a knock at the door.

Opening it, it wasn't an adult but Li Qianqian.

Her neatly combed hair was now a tangled mess, her face hidden beneath it, looking sorrowful.

But in front of Qin Feng, she quickly hid her emotions, noticing Qin Nuo's shoes, "Where are you going?"

Qin Nuo evaded, "Back to school, forgot something."

"What do your parents say about school? Are they really that heartless?" Li Qianqian referred to his dropping out.

"Some things I see clearly. Born in such a family, school is a luxury. Better to grow up early and leave this place."

Qin Nuo spoke calmly, wondering if his words were too mature for an eleven or twelve-year-old.

Fortunately, Li Qianqian showed no surprise, a slight smile on her face, "It's good you see it that way."

"Honestly, what you said reminds me of a teacher who once advised me."

Qin Nuo, unfazed, asked, "What's the teacher's name? Do I know them?"

"I don't know his name."

Li Qianqian shook her head, unable to hide her sorrow, biting her pale purple lips, "He disappeared suddenly, like he vanished into thin air."

"His room was untouched, even the parrot was left behind, as if he never existed..."