Chapter 4
Lin Ran, feeling his phone vibrate, looked down to see that his affection level had increased again, granting him a new reward item. At the same time, the game was undergoing a mandatory update and logout.
A free game with updates? And a global one at that? It seemed quite impressive.
Though he still didn’t understand the “Moon Goddess Halo,” recalling the emblem with a silhouette resembling Sootball, he decided to interpret it as a blessing from his cub. After all, the little creature was so small and cute, how could it possibly cause harm?
Impossible, absolutely impossible!
Just as Lin Ran was forced offline by the game update, A-Jie finished his calls and rushed back to the courtyard.
“Lin-zai, everyone said they miss you and… huh?” He paused mid-sentence, staring at Lin Ran.
Lin Ran noticed A-Jie’s strange look. Was there something on his face?
“No, Lin-zai, just now, you seemed to be glowing. It looked really beautiful.” A-Jie rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was seeing things from too much phone use. He always knew Lin Ran was handsome, but just now, there was an almost captivating magic to him.
Lin Ran touched his face, “But I’m not a lightbulb. How could I possibly glow?”
“That makes sense…” A-Jie conceded, convinced he had been mistaken.
That night, lying in bed, Lin Ran stared at the updating game app, his mind replaying the events of the past few days. Although he had finally gotten his first fluffy companion, Sootball, the game was undeniably strange. How could it allow him to feel the creature’s fur?
He tried searching for “Demon World game” online, hoping to find some information. The results were unremarkable. The encyclopedia described “Demon World” as an interactive game developed by a small, independent foreign game studio.
However, this small studio had somehow secured funding from the massive Morson Group, enabling them to promote the game globally. Even a university student like Lin Ran knew Morson Group as a large multinational corporation involved in various industries.
The game was indeed niche in his country. The comments section was sparse, with a few one-star reviews complaining about bugs and crashes. Fortunately, Lin Ran hadn’t encountered any such issues. Perhaps it was just a marginal investment project, not receiving much attention?
Remembering he had to wake up at 5 am to sell peaches, he decided to sleep early. Regardless of how strange the game was, Sootball’s presence had a genuinely heartwarming effect on him.
Thinking about these things, Lin Ran turned off his phone and drifted off to sleep.
Outside, the moon cast its gentle glow, illuminating the lush vegetation of the countryside.
Meanwhile, in a mansion across the ocean, the moonlight streamed through the tall arched windows. However, a warm, yellow stained-glass lamp illuminated the nursery. Sootball, logged out of the game, was curled up on a small velvet cushion.
The only difference from his in-game appearance was a child’s smartwatch on his “wrist.”
“Cheep?” Forced offline, Sootball opened his large, round eyes, still slightly disoriented. Once he confirmed his safety, he started sniffing his fur, trying to find the faint scent of peach shampoo. He could even recall the feeling of fingers gently combing and petting his head.
The unusual update and forced logout of “Demon World” had caused a stir among hidden demon communities worldwide.
[Shocked! First forced update in years. So, we were playing a beta version all along?! Seriously?] Some were in disbelief.
[Suspicious indeed. But I’m more curious if those elusive high-ranking demons were also logged out. That would be interesting. I know a few of them have quite influential real-world identities.] Others, with apparent connections, were more intrigued.
Of course, many were lamenting:
[Damn it! I finally got some vacation time, wanted to immerse myself in the game, and now it’s all ruined! I’m so upset!]
[Uh, consider yourself unlucky? But seriously, you sound so much like a wage slave. Is it normal for a demon to be so obsessed with work?]
The posts on the “Demon World” forum were refreshing at a dizzying pace, dozens per second. Usually silent or lurking members were all roused by the update.
At first glance, the tone of these posts seemed indistinguishable from ordinary humans, but there wasn’t a single human among them. This was a forum accessible only to those with demon blood.
This explained why many humans who accidentally downloaded the “Demon World” app couldn’t log in and experienced crashes. It was a demon-exclusive app.
The origin of the space connected to this app remained shrouded in mystery. No demon could explain its creation. However, one thing was certain: this strange space provided a crucial resting place for demons. Demons on the verge of losing control could revert to their original forms and gradually stabilize within its demon-infused environment. The in-app forum allowed demons scattered across the world to exchange vital information.
The game features were also interesting. Following the rules, maintaining the environment, or participating in interactions earned players various functional cards and points.
However, with the passage of time, apart from occasional forum activity, the interactive game features designed by the developers had become largely neglected. Powerful demon offspring often claimed territories within the game, which gradually became recognized as forbidden zones. It was unknown if this contributed to the dwindling demon energy.
Many demons feared the consequences of this “Demon World” losing its magic. Perhaps more demons would lose control, becoming beasts driven by unrestrained power, ultimately dealt with by the Abyss Committee.
Such incidents had been increasing lately, putting a strain on the Committee’s cleanup efforts. Occasionally, they even cooperated with humans to prevent catastrophic events.
Sootball, being young, hadn’t discovered the forum and was oblivious to all of this. He only knew he wanted to see “Him” again.
As Sootball sat on the cushion, blinking at his smartwatch, there was a knock on the door: “Master Nemo, you’re not asleep yet?”
The goatee-bearded old butler was surprised to see the light in the room. Sootball, called Nemo, immediately flew towards the butler who had raised him.
“Cheep, cheep cheep…” He blinked his large eyes, seemingly trying to communicate something urgently. This was a rare sight.
“Is your watch broken? It looks fine, just updating. When the timer reaches zero, you should be able to log in again.” The flattered butler carefully examined the latest model child’s smartwatch, confirming it wasn’t malfunctioning.
He had actually knocked for a different reason: “By the way, Master Nemo, look who’s back!”
As the butler spoke, Nemo’s parents, the Oni couple, usually assertive but now looking slightly nervous, stood at the doorway: “Nemo? Why are you still awake so late?”
They had thought they would only see their sleeping child upon their late-night return.
Unexpectedly, Nemo was awake. But the cub, as usual, just tilted its head, glanced at them with a “Cheep,” then, clutching his smartwatch, flew to the highest, most hidden corner of the room.
This left the Oni couple feeling awkward, though it wasn’t entirely unexpected. Since birth, Nemo had been much quieter than other cubs, but they had dismissed it as a personality trait.
By the time they realized there was a problem, it was too late. Nemo not only remained isolated, refusing to learn the common language, but his wings also developed with a significant defect. More critically, despite his strong lineage as a descendant of the Luna clan, his wings were weak, he was uncommunicative, and his talent remained dormant. This contradiction made him an outcast.
Cubs of equally powerful lineages found Nemo’s weakness and silence baffling. Those with lesser lineage but greater individual abilities saw him as an easy target, instinctively trying to bite him to steal his demonic energy.
Nemo endured the attacks without a sound, and by the time he was discovered, his broken bones had healed improperly, leaving a permanent mark. Even though the Oni couple had severely punished those responsible, it seemed they had missed the opportunity to fully mend the damage. Despite their attempts at communication and compensation, the little creature remained unresponsive, though not resistant.
Sometimes, the Oni couple had to admit that Nemo seemed to trust the butler more than them.
“Yorke… I feel like he doesn’t love us at all. He doesn’t even ask if we encountered any danger or if we’re tired from our trip,” Mrs. Oni sighed, looking dejectedly at her husband.
“Oni, every demon is different. Perhaps Nemo is just naturally solitary and doesn’t like to talk,” Yorke, the gentler of the two, tried to comfort his wife.
The goatee-bearded butler, listening from behind, wanted to say something but remained silent. Perhaps it was like Master Nemo’s piggy bank. If nothing was ever put in, what could be taken out?
Sootball, nestled in the corner, watched his parents leave. Only after they were long gone did he quietly turn to his smartwatch. His little tail swung like a pendulum, keeping time with the countdown on the watch.
Lin-zai?
“Cheep?” Repeating the syllables he had heard Jiang Jie call Lin Ran, Sootball tried to imitate the pronunciation for the first time, but unsurprisingly, failed.
