I’m Really Scared
Chapter 51: NPC

Just as Gao Ye realized something was wrong, Worker Bee Six showed a triumphant smile.

Everyone was probing with their words. Gao Ye wanted to find Worker Bee Six's flaw, and Worker Bee Six wanted to induce her emotional fluctuation to trap her in an illusion! When Gao Ye recalled that scene due to Worker Bee Six's words, "Illusory Dream" immediately took over her consciousness.

Her vision was overlaid with another world, one of the consequences of her past mistake. An ordinary person, held hostage like her, didn't die but was confined to a wheelchair for life.

It was Gao Ye's deepest regret.

"Illusory Dream" magnified human emotions. As long as it stirred even a hint, it would drag you deeper until you couldn't escape.

"But... precisely because of regret, I must never repeat my mistakes."

Gao Ye only wavered for a moment before she snapped out of the illusion. She had been on guard from the start, knowing this was an illusion, allowing her to quickly break free. However, even though she woke up quickly, she was still distracted for a moment.

And that moment was all Worker Bee Six needed.

Gao Ye, snapping out of her daze, realized she might have to regret it once again... She gritted her teeth and drew her sword in an instant!

Worker Bee Six watched Gao Ye's broken, uncomposed expression. Her eyes, once filled with hope, now reflected despair.

Worker Bee Six grinned maliciously and pulled the trigger! "Bang!"

The gunshot rang out.

But it wasn't Worker Bee Six's gun.

Gao Ye froze mid-draw.

"Ugh... cough... you..."

Worker Bee Six looked down at the gaping hole in his chest, fire and blood blooming, turning his heart and surrounding organs to mush.

Guan Shan, who had somehow raised his gun, had clarity in his eyes.

Worker Bee Six staggered back, his vision darkening, his body trembling and weak. His gun fell to the ground.

"You... cough... how... you should still be in the illusion!"

Worker Bee Six was certain his illusion hadn't been broken, so he confidently held a C-level Esper hostage.

But the truth was, Guan Shan had shot him while still under the illusion!

Worker Bee Six fell to the ground, eyes wide with disbelief, mumbling, "How... impossible, the illusion's trigger was... love. How could he shoot?!"

Was his ability malfunctioning? No, it had never failed before!

In confusion, regret, pain, and bewilderment, Worker Bee Six slowly suffocated, struggling like a drowning fish without dignity.

——

The room instantly collapsed.

The TV, coffee table, takeout, warm indoor air, raindrops on the window—all disintegrated.

The girl falling backward vanished as well.

Shen Dinghua's smile and blood turned to fragments, scattering in an invisible wind.

Guan Shan's outstretched hand grasped nothing.

But before he could feel any sorrow, the world shifted back to the dark, twisted "Edge of Hell." The figure falling was not the girl but a thin, elongated humanoid monster with an octopus-like face.

The monster's limbs ended in long claws, its skin a dark green, wrapped in tattered black cloth. Its face featured two golden eyes and a multitude of tentacles instead of a mouth, resembling a human replaced by an octopus head.

"Gurgle..."

The monster, covered in Incendiary Agent from Guan Shan's Incendiary rounds, with its chest blown open, growled in pain in an incomprehensible language.

Guan Shan was stunned, still echoing Shen Dinghua's last words in his mind.

"I've always... wanted to kill her?"

Guan Shan found it absurd. How could he ever want to kill Shen Dinghua? In fact, if anyone tried to harm her, he'd be the first to fight!

This monster's skill level was lacking. The illusion was poorly constructed.

Ignoring the clipping textures, even the basic induction was flawed. Normally, it should make Xiao Shen act cute to make him hesitate, then the monster would attack.

But now, instead of making him hesitate, it actually helped him fight...

Guan Shan looked at the struggling monster, unable to help but mock it.

The monster's info appeared only now.

【[Heart Seeker] Mind Flayer (lv.9)】

【HP: 10/900】

【Description: When you realize you're dreaming, the dream ends.】

"Normally, the second elite monster should be stronger. Its HP is lower, meaning its abilities should be powerful, but it wasn't even a tenth as difficult as the first."

Guan Shan shook his head, thinking, "Must be Xiao Shen's blessing that messed with this monster's abilities."

The illusionary Shen Dinghua was very realistic. Otherwise, Guan Shan wouldn't have hesitated to break the illusion knowing it was an enemy.

Her actions matched Shen Dinghua's character well, almost convincing him it was real.

Had it not been for her last statement, he might have fallen.

Guan Shan rubbed his chin. "Maybe my memory of Xiao Shen is too strong, so even in the illusion, she helped me..."

As for wanting to kill Shen Dinghua, it was laughable. Guan Shan saw it as a joke.

The monster, bleeding out over time, finally died, leaving glowing drops and a hefty experience.

【EXP +2500】

"Indeed, more experience than the first monster, meaning it should have been harder... So, the illusion really malfunctioned."

Guan Shan nodded, affirming his guess and feeling lucky today.

He was about to loot the body when he heard a noise.

Guan Shan turned, flashlight beam revealing a girl jumping down from a human skin wall.

He instinctively gripped his gun, ready to shoot.

But... she wasn't a monster.

The simulator timely prompted.

【You encountered an NPC】

"?"

Guan Shan was baffled.

After playing for so long, you're telling me there are NPCs in this game?