VIP Chapter 444 Interlude: Death Death Death (4k)
Shuna had assumed that someone like Daisianwei, who managed a large dungeon with hundreds of people, would be completely unaware of who was who among her subordinates.
But…
Not only did she accurately recall her name, but she also knew her surname.
“Good evening. Empress Daisianwei. I didn’t expect you to remember my name…”
“You BOSSes on Level 100 are integrated with the Death Hall, and you are the ‘elites’ of all dungeons in the world. If I can’t even remember that, what right do I have to be the Empress of the Death Hall here?”
Daisianwei explained slowly, leaning back in her chair.
“Elites?”
Of course, Shuna wasn’t particularly sensitive to the word “elite.”
What she was more sensitive to was the descriptor preceding the word.
…”All dungeons in the world,” since that qualifier was added, did Daisianwei mean that the Death Hall wasn’t the only place with native monsters from other dungeons?
“You seem to have only encountered ‘Qishi,’ so you wouldn’t know that within the Death Hall, there are many BOSSes who have been promoted from other dungeons… Hmm, some even have their Emperors from dungeons that have already been cleared brought back here to continue working.”
…There was such a thing?
Although Shuna had a strong desire to explore—after all, she still had the label of a God-Attuned—she restrained herself before meeting the true controller.
So, she hadn’t really left her current level much.
At least, not before being discovered as an “inside spy” sneaking in to gather intelligence.
“I understand. If Princess Daisianwei wishes for me to understand, I will interact more with those on other levels…”
After speaking, Shuna felt she had been too reserved, like a new employee trying to decipher their boss’s intentions.
“It’s fine. As the deepest ‘Death Hall’ publicly announced so far, we have plenty of time—”
Daisianwei waved her hand.
Before Shuna could ponder the deeper meaning behind her words, she looked up and saw…
In the air, familiars intimately associated with races like vampires, “little bats,” flapped their wings, holding a bottle of seemingly heavy “red wine” in their claws, descending like butterflies.
Daisianwei picked up a nearby glass, and without pouring it herself, a spectral attendant floating from behind the table touched the bottle’s cork.
The cork, as if assimilated by the spirit, transformed from a living entity capable of “life” into a “dead” object that liquids could penetrate.
Immediately, the spectral attendant raised the bottom of the bottle, filling both tall glasses with red wine.
“I want everyone who is integrated this deeply to truly savor the ‘beauty of death.’ Therefore, I wish to meet with every elite, understand their needs, and… share some of the Death Hall’s secrets and gain some secrets about themselves, to keep them here.”
Daisianwei swirled the crimson red wine, gazing at the ripples within the liquid, and spoke thus.
She did not hesitate to openly state the matter of “mutually revealing leverage.”
She also gestured to the other glass of red wine, nodding for Shuna to pick it up and toast with her.
“This is a good thing, Lord Daisianwei. It makes me feel like I chose the right person to follow in building the dungeon.”
Shuna, of course, was obedient to Daisianwei and walked towards the glass of red wine.
“Since you trust me, let’s toast, and then… tell me the story of your deceased lover.”
“…Okay.”
Shuna realized that “Qishi” being outside was truly reminding her of her “persona” within this dungeon.
Because…
Daisianwei knew.
Daisianwei was watching.
Daisianwei wanted to pry further.
*Bang.*
Shuna clinked glasses with her.
Just looking at Daisianwei’s eyes, Shuna always felt… she wasn’t anticipating tasting the red wine in the glass, but rather the impending…
Story of “death,” especially the death of someone she deeply loved.
Shuna didn’t think any further, draining the red wine in her glass in one gulp.
And then…
“Uh…?!”
As she drank, she felt a stickiness in her throat and a taste that was the opposite of the wine’s mellow aroma, piercing through her entire throat and teeth.
It was like being stabbed in the throat with a rusty iron rod that also scraped repeatedly against the back of her throat, making her want to vomit, yet she had to swallow all of this viscous liquid.
She suppressed the discomfort, opened her eyes, and looked at Daisianwei, who was smiling.
This was clearly…
The taste of blood.
Shuna’s expression was grim, but she still swallowed all the “red wine.” After swallowing, she awkwardly gulped down a few more times.
She thought that if Will found out about this embarrassing scene, he would likely mock her until next year.
However, she should have realized earlier; in the Death Hall, especially in front of Daisianwei herself, how could she possibly drink real wine? It was already generous of Daisianwei to mix it with blood.
It was Daisianwei’s mercy that it didn’t contain any poison that would absorb through the gastrointestinal system and cause sudden death through the respiratory system.
“Heh. This is the Death Hall’s special red wine. It seems a bit too strong for you.” After speaking, Daisianwei’s face shifted from enjoyment to admiration. “But, not bad, rookie. You can calmly swallow this kind of red wine in its entirety, without spitting or vomiting, and even maintain such a calm expression. Give yourself a round of applause, that’s excellent.”
“I… cough, cough cough…”
Shuna wanted to respond immediately, but her throat was so bothered by the sticky “red wine” that she couldn’t speak for a moment.
At this moment, she felt like her throat couldn’t open.
*Clap clap clap.*
Facing Shuna like this, Daisianwei’s applause rang out.
She seemed genuinely happy to see her subordinate suffering from drinking a glass full of blood.
“Don’t rush, take your time. After all, you still need to stay here to tell me a good death story that sustained you this far.”
Shuna swallowed again, trying to soothe her throat.
Even so, Daisianwei offered her no water or anything else, seeming to particularly enjoy watching her suffer.
But…
She hadn’t expected Daisianwei to be so curious about the story of “Will’s death.”
For Daisianwei, death was a “sweet” thing, a food that could be “savored” and “recalled,” like a supplement of energy for her.
However…
Was the story of Will—or rather, their story—truly worthy of the Empress of the Death Hall’s avid investigation?
“Okay. Princess Daisianwei… the story begins a long time ago…”
Then, with an expression as if she were savoring a grand feast, Shuna began to tell the story she had woven, a mix of half-truths and half-lies.
“In short, we met as pen pals…”
…
“Time and again, I experienced near-death situations with him, walked through dungeon after dungeon with him, and watched as emotions gradually appeared in his eyes compared to before…”
…
“I thought… I thought our story would truly begin from here, using this as a starting point and moving forward.”
…
“But that was… an unavoidable death in ‘fate,’ as he saw it.”
…
“Even knowing he was bound to die, he would face it—because that’s just who he was.”
…
“Of course, he failed. He didn’t overcome it, but rather turned into a handful of dust scattering in the sand. I didn’t even get to see him one last time.”
Shuna finished the story.
“I don’t think I could have saved him back then, because the Will who chose to face known death was the Will I fell in love with.”
“But… even so…”
“Even with a shred of hope, I want to see him again… see him alive. I want to do the things we couldn’t accomplish together.”
“That is precisely why I wanted to come to the Death Hall. To seek justice from the so-called ‘death of fate’ that took him away.”
She felt her heart beating calmly. More than anger, her formerly rapid but gradually quieting heartbeat felt more like a descent into sadness.
To make Daisianwei believe this story, she had been hypnotizing herself since arriving at the Death Hall, forcing herself to completely believe it.
To make herself feel sad.
Yet, just thinking about her loved one dying one day and not even having the chance to save him, feeling so powerless, allowed her to empathize with that feeling.
She wondered…
What kind of lives were the few of his close teammates who truly believed he had died living every day?
“…”
After listening, Daisianwei remained silent for a long time. She placed her cup on the table, and a spectral attendant poured her a glass of wine.
“A good death, a good story, and one I quite like… the emotions when facing death. I’ll toast you. As for you, if you don’t fancy this wine, feel free to do as you please~”
She said, and though her tone was still flippant as ever, she drained the red wine in her cup.
She didn’t pour Shuna more wine. As she said, she was toasting, and Shuna was free to do as she pleased.
“…”
Shuna found it embarrassing that Daisianwei had listened so attentively and even expressed her approval, given that she had spun so many lies to create this story.
Moreover, Daisianwei didn’t seem to suspect much, nor did she ask any questions.
She… really liked this story.
She really liked this…
Story of two kindred spirits meeting by fate, only to be forcibly separated by the inescapable “death of destiny”?
Was this her “death aesthetics”?
“However, Miss ‘Pourxin,’ it seems… you haven’t told me something about ‘death.'”
As she was still contemplating what the Empress of the Death Hall was planning and what she ultimately desired, Daisianwei seemed to see through something. She leaned closer to Shuna.
With her blood-red eyes, she stared intently at Shuna.
“Ah?”
At this moment, Shuna felt herself controlled.
Unable to move.
Had Daisianwei done something? This was her territory, after all. Here, could she control anyone she wished?
“Don’t be afraid. I just want to know a little about your origin, and about something you were supposed to experience death for…”
She spoke slowly.
“!”
Hearing Daisianwei’s words, Shuna felt a cold sweat prickle her scalp.
And what made her sweat even more…
Daisianwei reached out and, over her thin clothing, lightly tapped her chest, where she clearly possessed “that mark.”
She didn’t directly touch it, only tapped lightly.
The part of Shuna’s clothes, just like the cork earlier, transformed from a “living” state to a “dead” state, or rather, the meaning of covering was imbued with “death,” allowing Daisianwei to easily “see” what was beneath her clothes.
It was the mark of a God-Attuned.
A never-ending Mobius strip, with various incomprehensible characters written in the middle, completely illegible.
“Don’t worry, I don’t have a habit of bothering people. It’s just… your body is a dungeon monster, yet you yourself are a God-Attuned who wants to kill all the dungeon monsters and go deeper…”
Daisianwei licked her lips.
“Therefore, as long as you exist, you will constantly have the urge to kill yourself—yet you are alive with this deathly aura. Isn’t that more interesting than the story of your lover’s death you just told?”
Shuna saw her smile bloom at the corners of her mouth, nearly reaching her ears, revealing her fangs.
However, Shuna was terrified. What she feared wasn’t being controlled at this moment, but…
How did she know?!
How could she possibly know?!
Shuna had never shown the mark on her body to anyone except Will, and very few people knew that she was born in a dungeon.
More importantly…
Because of her dual identity as a God-Attuned and someone born in a dungeon, she had wanted to kill herself since birth—something even she herself had deduced after the fact with much speculation!
Daisianwei…
An Empress who came into being even later than her own birth…
Speaking of which, Shuna remembered the “symbol” she saw when she first came here.
No… it couldn’t be. She had “killed” the Emperor of that dungeon with her own hands back then! Otherwise, the meaning of Shuna’s survival here would be…
“Don’t be so surprised. Didn’t you want to know… the secret of the ‘death’ you’ve wanted since birth? Death and birth are inseparable twins. A person’s existence gains meaning precisely because they gradually move towards death from the moment of birth. If you truly don’t want to know, and it’s merely a coincidence…”
Daisianwei paused and snapped her fingers.
*Crack. Crackle.*
A bat flew past her side, but this time it didn’t place the red wine on the table. Instead, it bizarrely crashed onto the ground.
The red wine spilled on the ground, but began to spread along the grooves.
Then…
At Daisianwei’s feet, Shuna saw that mark again, the mark from her very beginning, the mark that made her raise her knife and want to kill herself…
A flower that looked like a wilting Lycoris radiata.
“Arriving, by such a coincidence, before the first person you killed. Then I think…”
“You’re a little too foolish.”
