Chapter 132
The player leader’s words sent a chill down Wen Xingxue’s spine.
He clenched his fists, closed his eyes, suppressing his anger, and, not wanting to hear any more, pushed past them and went to pay for his marshmallows.
In the complex garden.
Shen Wen, having wet a handkerchief with water from the outdoor tap, was cleaning Xing Nuo’s dirty face.
Xing Nuo tilted his head up, the cold water making him shiver, and, thinking about their destroyed home, tears welled up in his eyes and rolled down his cheeks.
“Little Crybaby.”
Shen Wen sighed, wiped away his tears, and pinched his cheek gently, forcing a smile.
“Daddy’s here. Even if our house is gone, we can just buy a new one.”
Xing Nuo, still sniffling, nodded, then, seeing Wen Xingxue approaching, his face brightened.
“Other Daddy! You back!”
He ran towards Wen Xingxue and hugged his leg.
Wen Xingxue picked him up, holding the bag of marshmallows, and dangled it in front of Xing Nuo.
“Look, what’s this?”
“Wow! Marshmallows!”
Xing Nuo’s face lit up, his spirits lifted by the sweet treat, even before taking a bite.
Shen Wen, walking over, was also handed a bag of marshmallows.
“Bought one for you too. Something sweet to calm your nerves.”
Shen Wen froze, looking at the pink and white marshmallows, speechless.
He wanted to ask why Wen Xingxue had bought him one, or that he wasn’t a child who needed sweets to calm down.
But he swallowed his words and, tearing open the bag, took a marshmallow and put it in his mouth. The sweetness did seem to soothe his frayed nerves.
Even the sight of Wen Xingxue’s usually gloomy face wasn’t as irritating as usual.
Xing Nuo struggled with the bag, and Wen Xingxue helped him open it.
He gave the first marshmallow to Other Daddy, then, seeing that Daddy was already eating his, popped one into his own mouth.
Xing Nuo, munching on the soft, sweet candy, his eyes sparkling, his curls bouncing happily, said:
“So good. Our family still together!”
Wen Xingxue’s eyes also softened, his expression unusually warm.
“Yes. As long as Xing Nuo is safe and happy.”
He then thought of the players and their callous disregard for human life, his face darkening.
Shen Wen, knowing him well, seeing Xing Nuo sharing his marshmallows with the other distraught residents of the complex, walked over and asked:
“What did you find out?”
Wen Xingxue looked up, his long hair obscuring his dark eyes, and was about to speak when Shen Wen interrupted him.
“Don’t try to hide it from me, Wen Xingxue. I might be overconfident, but I can tell what you’re thinking.”
Their bond, forged in years of animosity, was stronger than some marriages.
Wen Xingxue hesitated, then said:
“I just met the people who started the fire. Shen Wen, I think this world…it’s not real. It’s an illusion.”
Shen Wen nodded, not surprised, and sat down beside him.
“Makes sense. So? Do you want to kill them first, or escape this illusion?”
Wen Xingxue, his thoughts laid bare, looked up at Shen Wen, not surprised that he knew.
“I…I want both. But I’m also scared.”
He looked at Xing Nuo, who was sharing his marshmallows.
The little one’s curls were slightly singed, sticking up like a fluffy cloud, his eyes crinkling into a smile, two dimples appearing on his cheeks.
So sweet and innocent, yet also thoughtful and caring.
Just looking at him filled Wen Xingxue with a warmth and happiness that bubbled within him.
“I love Xing Nuo very much, Shen Wen. Why are we in this fake world? Could it be that in the real world…”
“Impossible!” Shen Wen interrupted him firmly. “Even if you died, Xing Nuo would be fine.”
Wen Xingxue nodded, accepting this.
“I also think, with your personality, you wouldn’t let anything happen to Xing Nuo. So, it’s either you or me. Perhaps we’re already dead?”
Why else would they be trapped in this fake world?
Sometimes, people lived in illusions to create a sense of nonexistent perfection.
Wen Xingxue had been pondering this on his way back, his heart aching at the thought that one of them might be dead.
He looked up, his eyes filled with a strange resolve. “If that’s true, I hope it’s me.”
Shen Wen was stunned, his light-colored eyes widening slightly. After a long moment, his voice hoarse, he asked:
“But…don’t you hate me? Want to kill me?”
Shouldn’t he be the one hoping Shen Wen was dead?
They had fought brutally before their recent truce, each blow intended to kill.
Wen Xingxue looked down, and after a long silence, said:
“I did hate you. But now…not so much. And I think Xing Nuo will be happy with you. You’re a good father to him.”
Shen Wen patiently played silly games with Xing Nuo, bought him cute clothes and hats, and read him bedtime stories in a gentle voice.
Things Wen Xingxue could never do.
“I’m not good with children. All I can do is housework. He won’t miss me.”
Shen Wen felt a pang of sadness, a tightness in his chest.
After a moment, he looked at the dust-filled sky and said softly:
“You’re not so bad yourself.”
Thoughtful and attentive, always noticing their moods, quiet but never argumentative, always taking charge, making them feel safe.
He sighed, stood up, crossed his arms, and looked at Wen Xingxue.
“That’s just your theory. I think there’s another reason why we’re in this fake world.”
Wen Xingxue was thinking from a human perspective, but Shen Wen, his thoughts always different, had another theory.
“What reason?”
“Perhaps we’re just here to fight.”
Wen Xingxue was silent for a moment, his brow furrowed as he looked at Shen Wen.
“Fight? We can’t fight in the real world?”
Why bother coming to this fake world just to fight?
Shen Wen smiled, his clear, glass-like eyes fixed on Wen Xingxue.
“Why not? I think that’s the most likely explanation.”
He wasn’t like Wen Xingxue, sentimental and seeking a perfect ending.
He believed that if you couldn’t defeat your enemy in the real world, you brought them to your home turf, where you had the advantage.
Wen Xingxue was about to reply when Xing Nuo, having shared his marshmallows, ran over and hugged Shen Wen’s leg.
“Daddy, so cold.”
He tucked his cold hands inside Wen Xingxue’s collar, making him shiver.
But he didn’t pull them away. He just hugged Xing Nuo and rubbed his cheeks.
“Cold?”
Shen Wen, seeing Xing Nuo’s hands, red and swollen like little steamed buns, sighed.
“I told you not to play with snow. Look at your hands.”
Xing Nuo giggled, snuggling closer to Wen Xingxue, burying his cold, red cheeks in his jacket.
Wen Xingxue opened his jacket, wrapping Xing Nuo in it.
“We can’t stay out here. Looks like it’s going to snow again. Let’s find a place to stay.”
Shen Wen nodded in agreement, although he didn’t feel the cold himself.
He thought about Wen Xingxue’s words, then looked at his own hands, which weren’t even slightly red, and paused, a strange feeling in his chest.
Xing Nuo, peeking out from Wen Xingxue’s jacket, seeing his dad stop, called out:
“Daddy, come on!”
Shen Wen hummed and followed, then, unable to resist, touched his chest.
No heartbeat.
He looked down, a strange sense of relief washing over him, then up at Xing Nuo, who was giggling in Wen Xingxue’s arms.
“We stay in hotel! Big Daddy, Daddy, and me!”
“Yay! First time…family twip!”
Wen Xingxue’s eyes were filled with affection as he pulled Xing Nuo closer, shielding him from the wind.
“I know.”
He then looked at Shen Wen, their gazes meeting briefly, then quickly looking away.
Wen Xingxue booked a family suite at a hotel.
Fortunately, he still had his debit card from his real-world job, enough to cover their stay for a while.
Xing Nuo, still excited, bounced on the bed, then, grabbing a pillow, rolled around, exclaiming how soft it was.
He looked up and saw Other Daddy making the bed, Daddy wiping the coffee table with a tissue.
Snow was falling outside, the wind howling, but inside, warm and cozy, with his two daddies, Xing Nuo felt completely safe and happy.
“Other Daddy, Daddy, I think…I’m happiest kid in the world.”
Shen Wen, giving up on cleaning the coffee table, tossed the tissue to Wen Xingxue and sat on the bed, pulling Xing Nuo closer, watching the snow fall outside.
“Really?” he said, smiling, the falling snow somehow making him feel the happiness Xing Nuo described.
Wen Xingxue, having quickly tidied up, knowing Shen Wen probably wasn’t used to hotel bedding, went out to buy disposable bedsheets and pillowcases.
As he was going downstairs, he saw the “players” he had met at the convenience store earlier.
He instinctively hid, holding his breath, expertly concealing his presence.
The players’ voices reached him:
“This is strange. Why is that C-level monster so hard to catch?”
“Let’s just find the clues and escape. Forget about killing the core monster.”
“Have you lost your mind?! Killing the monster doubles the points! And this is a rare opportunity! A new dungeon, the monster’s defenses are probably weak. We won’t get another chance like this!”
Wen Xingxue, hidden in the shadows, listened to their grumbling, and after a while, he heard them mention him.
“God Wen (Wen-shen) is acting strange. He’s not like his usual self.”
“Isn’t he the top-ranked player? A lone wolf? Why does he have a wife and kid in this dungeon? That’s weird!”
