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A gloomy, dark room.
A Grandma with a face full of wrinkles.
A Little Red Riding Hood who disappeared for no reason.
And eerie chewing sounds.
"…Wolf Grandma?!"
Tsubame-senpai forcibly suppressed her instinctual urge to eat, nervously covering her mouth with both hands.
Although a wolf speaking was incredible, this was, after all, a game instance and a fairy tale kingdom, so Wolf Grandma could truly exist.
Amamiya Natsuki's voice was calm, and he said in a deep voice:
"I said, let there be light."
The next second.
A brilliant light instantly pierced the darkness, illuminating the room.
"Eh? Eh?"
Koyasu Tsubame looked over in shock.
Light actually appeared! This must be a legendary super skill!
But upon closer inspection, Koyasu Tsubame was instantly speechless.
The light didn't appear out of thin air; it came from Amamiya Natsuki's right hand, or more precisely, a light bulb on his right hand.
Needless to say, this thing was clearly a game item.
"Grandma, the thing in your hand isn't very filling."
Amamiya Natsuki held the light bulb and looked at Grandma.
Upon closer inspection, there wasn't even a stove in the house, only stones piled on the ground and a dark earthenware pot. The conditions were quite simple and primitive.
The old lady was squatting in front of the earthenware pot. Her face was still a human face, not a wolf's mouth, and the food in her hand was not a bloody finger, but a tightly packed ball of snow.
After seeing what was in Grandma's hand, Tsubame-senpai felt a surge of guilt.
(It's snow, I thought it was…)
(She gave the only food in the house to me and Natsuki, and then secretly hid here to eat snow, and I even suspected her of being a wolf grandma. That's so wrong!)
"Do you two want some too?"
Grandma grinned, handing over the snow ball in her hand.
"We won't eat." Tsubame-senpai quickly shook her head, "Grandma, you…"
Halfway through her sentence, Koyasu Tsubame pursed her pink lips again. After all, that thing was snow, not food.
"There's still food outside, you should go out and eat."
"No need to be polite, there's still a lot of snow." Grandma shook her head, her voice hoarse, "You two eat more so you'll have strength and can last longer."
"What do you mean?"
Tsubame-senpai suddenly felt a chill.
"It probably means we're like Paimon, emergency food." Amamiya Natsuki said, walking to the corner, extending his right hand, and lifting a teary-eyed little girl.
It was Little Red Riding Hood, who had just disappeared.
This little girl was tied with ropes, her mouth stuffed with a dirty towel, pathetic, weak, and helpless.
Amamiya Natsuki reached out and pulled the towel from the little girl's mouth. Little Red Riding Hood coughed twice and cried out aggrievedly:
"G-Grandma wants to eat us!"
"So hungry, so hungry…" Grandma wiped the corner of her mouth, slowly stood up, her fingers like hooks, her voice hoarse, "Little Red Riding Hood brought two foods, Grandma is very happy."
"He's Sir Hero, not food!"
After the elementary schooler shouted, she nervously looked up, anxiously saying, "Grandma wasn't like this before, Sir Hero, quickly remove the mushroom from Grandma's head, and Grandma will return to normal."
"Leave it to me."
Amamiya Natsuki handed the lighting tool to the Senpai, then stepped towards Grandma.
He had bullied the little girl Hanako in Haunted Town before, but he had never beaten an old person.
After today, the achievement of punching little girls and kicking old ladies would be accomplished.
"Young man, don't overdo it…"
Grandma spoke in a sinister voice, taking out a rusty, pointed knife from under her clothes.
Goodness, she even hid a knife under her skirt!
Looking at the rusty, pointed knife, Amamiya Natsuki suddenly suspected that the knife might be the most valuable item in the house.
"One knife cannot decide the outcome."
Amamiya Natsuki was fearless. The next second, a knife appeared in his left hand and another in his right, their blades glinting coldly under the light. He said earnestly:
"Two knives are needed."
"…"
Seeing the two knives in Amamiya Natsuki's hands, Grandma's steps clearly paused, and a hint of hesitation appeared on her face. Clearly, although her temperament had changed greatly under the influence of the mushroom, her basic intelligence was not affected.
"Now's the time."
Amamiya Natsuki's eyes narrowed. He seized the moment of Grandma's hesitation and charged out fiercely.
The house was not large to begin with, and the distance between the two was only a few meters. Amamiya Natsuki's physical fitness was very high now. When he suddenly burst forth, he was like lightning, arriving in front of Grandma in the blink of an eye.
"I'll eat you!"
Grandma held the knife in her right hand, her eyes fierce, and stabbed downwards.
"You actually have no close combat skills, do you?"
Amamiya Natsuki complained inwardly.
At such a close distance, using this attack method clearly gave the opponent an opportunity to get close.
Speaking of which, most of the things encountered in the instance were vengeful spirits and monsters, so close combat skills were actually not needed at all.
Without the slightest hesitation, Amamiya Natsuki grabbed Grandma's wrist. He found that the old hag struggled with unexpected strength, so he decisively acted, using a standard over-the-shoulder throw to take her down directly.
"Senpai, come and help me hold her down, I'll remove the mushroom."
Amamiya Natsuki looked up and shouted.
"Coming."
Koyasu Tsubame quickly nodded and ran over, with Little Red Riding Hood following to help.
The two, one after the other, clumsily held down the grandmother's body.
Amamiya Natsuki then took off the hat on the grandmother's head. As expected, there was a mushroom underneath, grayish-white in color, different from the mushroom on Little Red Riding Hood's head.
He reached out and touched it, and the game quickly provided an item appraisal.
Item: Voracious mushroom
Description: This is a peculiar mushroom that grows on the head, causing the host to develop an intense desire to eat, and also affecting those nearby.
Warning: Requires special abilities to remove. Forcibly removing it will result in the host's death.
Note: This is a blessing for anorexic patients.
The dark chef badge on Amamiya Natsuki's body had not been taken off. The method for removing the mushroom in front of him quickly appeared in his mind. He then realized that different mushrooms required different removal methods, but fortunately, the conditions he had at hand still met the requirements.
A moment later.
The mushroom on the little girl grandmother's head was finally removed.
The grandmother, who had been struggling the entire time, suddenly stopped moving, only heavy breathing remaining.
"You can let her go."
Amamiya Natsuki looked at the mushroom in his hand. As expected, it had a food ingredient tag and could be taken out of the instance.
"Phew…"
Koyasu Tsubame breathed a sigh of relief, raised her right hand, and wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand.
If she had been alone, she might have already become the grandmother's reserve food.
"Grandma, are you alright?"
Little Red Riding Hood anxiously helped the old lady up.
"I'm fine. Thank you, Sir Hero."
The old grandmother thanked him tremblingly. She clearly remembered what had just happened. Now that the mushroom's mental influence was gone, she had calmed down completely.
Amamiya Natsuki waved his hand and got straight to the point, saying,
"Old lady, I have a few questions for you."
When in an instance, what is most important?
Information.
Of course, it's information.
It's not a combat-type instance, so the player's individual combat power requirements are not high. Information and intelligence are the top priority.
The reason Amamiya Natsuki agreed to Little Red Riding Hood and came to find her grandmother was partly because it was on the way, and partly to gather information.
If there was no benefit, even if Tsubame-senpai asked him, he would not agree to come.
The grandmother was clearly well-traveled and knew much more than Little Red Riding Hood. After a short rest, she began to answer Amamiya Natsuki's various questions.
"The forest isn't big. If you walk in the direction you mentioned, you can see a village…"
"There's an old castle in the forest. I heard a princess is sleeping inside."
"A sleeping princess…" Koyasu Tsubame blinked, "Sleeping Beauty?"
The grandmother continued,
"If you walk east, you can enter a valley where a family of dwarves lives."
Amamiya Natsuki said,
"Are there seven dwarves?"
"The Sir Hero knows too?" The grandmother was very surprised.
Seven dwarves and Snow White, right?
Not only do I know, but billions of people worldwide know!
"You continue." Amamiya Natsuki waved his hand, "Since there are dwarves, is there also a Magic Mirror?"
"That's right, if you go further past the village, you'll reach the castle. The queen lives in the castle, and it's said that the queen possesses a Magic Mirror…"
The grandmother then mentioned several other characters, all from familiar fairy tales.
Amamiya Natsuki listened to the stories while taking out paper and pen, quickly drawing a map and marking it accordingly.
"Done."
Amamiya Natsuki unfolded the map.
"It feels a bit small." Tsubame-senpai leaned closer, curiously looking at the map.
According to Little Red Riding Hood's grandmother's description, the entire fairy tale kingdom was actually pitifully small.
A forest, a castle, two small villages, a valley, and beyond the forest was the boundless sea.
Of course, the main quest of the instance only lasts for forty-eight hours, so the area players have the energy to explore is limited. A larger world would actually be meaningless.
"Last question." Amamiya Natsuki said in a deep voice, "Do you know about the nightmare seed?"
"Sorry, I haven't heard of it."
Little Red Riding Hood's grandmother's tone was confused, clearly unaware.
"As expected, she doesn't know."
Amamiya Natsuki's gaze was profound, but he wasn't disappointed.
If any random native could provide information about the nightmare seed, it would be too simple.
So far, players don't even know what the nightmare seed is.
"Tsubame-senpai, let's continue."
Putting away the map, Amamiya Natsuki stood up, ready to leave.
"Sir Hero, please wait a moment." The little girl's grandmother stood up tremblingly, reached out and stroked Little Red Riding Hood's head, "Little Red Riding Hood is very familiar with the forest. You can take Little Red Riding Hood with you and let her guide you."
A guide?
Amamiya Natsuki looked down at Little Red Riding Hood.
The little girl clung to her grandmother's arm, looking up timidly with her small face, and bravely said,
"The Sir Hero saved me and my grandmother. I can do anything."
"Using child labor is illegal, so…" Amamiya Natsuki pondered for two seconds, then smiled and said, "It's fine if there's no pay."
"Natsuki-kun, don't talk nonsense."
Tsubame-senpai glared at him playfully, also understanding the importance of a guide. After a slight hesitation, she didn't let Little Red Riding Hood stay, but instead discussed, "When we finish, how about we leave our clothes for Little Red Riding Hood?"
Hearing Tsubame-senpai's words, Little Red Riding Hood's eyes immediately lit up.
Amamiya Natsuki said casually, "Tsubame-senpai decides."
Clothes, though they are items, are not expensive. He can buy them anytime he wants.
"Then it's settled." Koyasu Tsubame pushed her bangs back, a bright smile appearing on her face, "Little Red Riding Hood, we're counting on you now."
Little Red Riding Hood clenched her small fists, extremely serious: "I will definitely guide you well."
Amamiya Natsuki sighed: "Having to work for money at such a young age. The fairy tale world is really not beautiful at all."
"…"
Amamiya Natsuki and Tsubame-senpai said goodbye to the grandmother, took Little Red Riding Hood, and walked out of the house.
It was still snowing.
The sky grew darker and gloomier.
"Come here."
Amamiya Natsuki looked at Little Red Riding Hood.
The little girl squirmed shyly, embarrassed to be carried, "Sir Hero, I can walk by myself."
Your mouth can walk, but your legs can't.
Amamiya Natsuki didn't waste words, he picked up the little girl in one swift motion, letting her sit in his arms, then looked at Koyasu Tsubame:
"Tsubame-senpai, want to join?"
"Of course not!"
Tsubame-senpai crossed her arms and walked forward.
She's not an little girl, how could she let him carry her!
"If you miss now, you won't have another chance later."
"I won't need it later either!"
"…"
The three walked into the wind and snow.
This Little Red Riding Hood was indeed very familiar with the forest. After all, she grew up in the forest and village since childhood, leading the two around several difficult places along the way.
"Follow this path straight ahead, and you'll reach the valley." Little Red Riding Hood held Amamiya Natsuki's neck, pointing forward with her other hand, "The dwarves live in there."
If there are dwarves, there's a good chance there's Snow White.
Amamiya Natsuki was actually very interested in this most famous fairy tale princess in the world, but it was in the opposite direction from where Fujiwara Chika was, so he could only temporarily give up the idea of going there and turned to say,
"Tsubame-senpai, make a mark on the tree."
"Leave it to me."
Koyasu Tsubame nodded and made a special mark on the tree.
The guide little girl might get lost, so along the way, the two had been making marks. The valley's location was special, leading to where the dwarves lived, so the mark naturally had to be special to avoid confusion, as they might need to come back.
"Snow White?"
Tsubame-senpai curiously looked towards the valley, asking, "I wonder if Snow White escaped… She must be super cute, right?"
Amamiya Natsuki said seriously,
"The super cute person is clearly far away, yet right before your eyes."
Tsubame-senpai's pretty face flushed, and she denied, "I'm not that cute."
"Tsubame-senpai, you misunderstood." Amamiya Natsuki said nonchalantly, "I was talking about Little Red Riding Hood."
"…"
Even the usually good-natured Tsubame-senpai couldn't help but want to bite someone at this moment.
They continued to walk forward.
Under Little Red Riding Hood's guidance, the two finally walked out of the forest, and a village appeared before them.
"We've arrived." Amamiya Natsuki held the person-finding compass, "Chika is in the village."
There were no streetlights in this era, and the village was quite dim, with hardly any candlelight visible. Every household had its doors tightly shut.
So even a fairy tale world, without convenient living conditions and abundant material resources, would still be unbearable for people.
join p atreon.com/KeyofStars and become a Sequence: 9 Reader for hundreds of additional chapters and over a dozen stories