Entering the internet café, Yao Ye scoped out his surroundings. The space was expansive; spread over two floors and hosting dozens of computers densely arranged on each floor. The compact setup prevented Yao Ye from seeing how many seats were occupied.
The crowd within seemed large, though.
Checking the contents of his wallet, Yao Ye found himself with 300 yuan, pondering over how many nights he could afford in this digital haven.
“There’s a discount tonight. 30 yuan for eight hours,” droned the clerk from behind the service desk. With a gaunt appearance and glasses that seemed to magnify his hollow eyes, he resembled a ghost more than a man.
Yao Ye was startled by the steep overnight rate.
“Can it be any cheaper?” Yao Ye inquired, swallowing his pride as he haggled with the clerk.
His finances were limited, and spending 30 yuan for a mere night in an internet café seemed excessive, especially considering the nearby motel charged only 40 yuan or so for accommodation.
“That’s the price for the air-conditioned areas. If you want to sleep outside and don’t mind the lack of air conditioning, it’s 15 yuan for the night. Your choice,” the clerk said without looking up from his screen, clicking away, indifferent to Yao Ye’s dilemma.
Feeling the chill on his cheeks, Yao Ye glanced at the machines facing the entrance and decided to opt for the air-conditioned booth.
Without proper clothing and the cold biting at him, sleeping in the main hall seemed a surefire way to fall ill, which would only lead to further expenses.
After paying, the clerk, unconcerned with Yao Ye’s lack of identification, simply handed over a membership card and gestured towards the corridor leading to the booths.
Holding a thin slip of paper with his membership number and password, Yao Ye made his way through the dimly lit hallway.
The clerk, catching a brief look at Yao Ye, thought he saw a dark figure trailing behind the slender young man but found nothing upon a second glance.
The short black-haired man was still trudging timidly, eventually disappearing deep into the corridor.
His eyes were probably playing tricks on him.
Shaking off the eerie feeling, the clerk returned to his gaming, wiping the sweat from his brow.
Outside, the altered sign of the internet café, now ominously misspelled as “Corpses’ Internet Cafe”, failed to draw attention from the passersby, though it seemed to excite a certain unseen element within the city.
Words have their own power, and sometimes, an unfortunate naming can attract undesirable energies.
Crackle…
As the sign flickered ominously, the atmosphere around the internet café grew increasingly sinister.
Reaching his booth, Yao Ye furrowed his brow.
The room was cramped, the wooden door showing signs of wear, and the once blue wallpaper was marred with graffiti. Only the computer and its accompanying gaming chair seemed remotely new.
Confronted with this reality, Yao Ye’s frustration boiled over.
Fucking hell, I paid such a high price for this. I thought it’d be some amazing room, but they gave me this crap?!
In a small city like Yuxun City, having such a price for an overnight stay at an internet cafe was completely unreasonable.
These fuckers! They’re all picking on me!
Cursing the clerk under his breath, Yao Ye lashed out at the wall in anger.
“They’re all bullying me… all of them…”
Yao Ye bit down on his own finger hard, his expression filled with resentment.
A black shadow, affectionately clinging to Yao Ye’s neck, embraced its beloved with satisfaction, tenderly kissing the finger Yao Ye had bitten until it bled.
Yao Ye found his finger chillingly cold.
He felt oddly uncomfortable, his mood cooling down as he released the finger from his mouth. His fingers were already wounded, some even crusted with dried blood.
“Forget it, let’s just get through the night,” Yao Ye thought, too drained to argue with the internet cafe manager. He was willing to take the loss, as long as he could rest.
The private booth offered a separate space from the main hall, complete with its own ventilation and central air conditioning, making it quite comfortable—the one aspect Yao Ye was thoroughly pleased with.
Yao Ye turned on the computer, playing the popular Counter-Strike game, but soon tiredness overcame him, and he fell asleep, subject to the curses of his teammates in the game.
However, the sleeping Yao Ye was unconcerned.
Tick-tock, tick-tock—
The clock on the hallway wall struck twelve.
“Heehee, gege~”
A playful, seductive female voice came from the hallway. The half-asleep Yao Ye’s eyelashes fluttered as he found the voice rather charming.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Gege, is this really okay?”
“Lbk mbeiv la cba yf, vjgilcu? Tbe’gf atf wbra yfjealoei ulgi P’nf fnfg rffc. Lftf, tbk jybea P ajxf sbe tbwf ab wffa ws qjgfcar abwbggbk? Zs ojwlis lr nfgs kfjiats; P’ii agfja sbe gluta!”
Ktf fjufg wjif nblmf, fzmlafv jcv ygfjatifrr, rbecvfv ilxf j sbecu wjc lc tlr akfcalfr.
“Hmph~ Gege, you’ve got bad intentions~ I won’t go home with you~”
The sound of rustling clothes followed, then came the girl’s coquettish panting. It sounded like they were locked in a passionate kiss.
Yao Ye opened his eyes, curious about the commotion coming from the booth next door.
Seriously? They’re going this far? Getting it on outside?
Yao Ye was surprised and a bit curious.
Despite having seen countless scenes online, he had never witnessed such a thing in real life.
“Huff~”
The wet sound of kissing penetrated the thin walls as Yao Ye listened with flushed cheeks and darting eyes, unsure of where to look.
It was… too thrilling.
In the next booth, the excitement of the young man suddenly halted. As if waking from a dream, he looked in horror at the creature he was embracing. His scream was cut short as his vocal cords were swiftly severed.
The creature was a monster with with unnaturally long limbs. She had long, black hair, and a body devoid of skin, its muscles exposed and bloody. Her arms and legs were so elongated they nearly measured a meter, forcing her to curl up inside the booth. She was in the embrace of the young man while her mouth continued emitting a delicate female voice.
Clearly, the seductive pants Yao Ye had heard were all from her.
Noticing that the young man had discovered her true form, the humanoid monster emitted an even gentler voice, as if she was simply a vulnerable human female, though only the rising and falling of her torso resembled that of a human woman—one with a notably voluptuous figure.
Holding the man’s flesh in her hands, she greedily devoured it, a sight of unspeakable horror.
The young man, faced with the monstrous creature before him, could no longer scream as blood gushed from his throat. He could only tremble in terror, desperately trying to crawl towards the door of the booth.
Bang!
Bang!!
Bang!!!
The wall of the adjacent booth trembled with loud noises.
Yao Ye, with a niggling curiosity, couldn’t resist pressing his ear against the wall to listen more closely.
The black shadow observed Yao Ye’s slightly indecent behavior, its icy black eyes narrowing slightly.
Does Ye’er… like that thing?
Next door, the woman with disproportionately long limbs opened her jaw wide, far beyond what is humanly possible, revealing a gaping maw.
Her face, devoid of skin and drenched in blood, had only a pair of bloody eyes that stood out starkly.
Crunch, crunch—
The sound of chewing filled the air as the long-haired woman contentedly licked every bone of the young man, savoring the sweet marrow.
“Why has it gone quiet?”
Yao Ye, pressing against the wall, could no longer hear any noise from the other side, and felt a mix of disappointment and confusion.
Unwilling to leave things at that, he inspected the wall and discovered a small hole. Excited once again, he thought, “Just a peek, I’ll only take a quick look.”
Nervously licking his lips, Yao Ye pressed his eye to the small hole in the wall.
Thunk—
A bloody chunk of flesh fell from the long-haired woman as she silently pressed against the wall, her bloody eyes blocking the hole, greedily spying on the other side.
Through the hole, Yao Ye saw only red.
“Ah… something’s blocking it… tch.”
Disappointed, Yao Ye moved away, guessing it might be something like red wallpaper.
“Pretty luxurious to have different wallpapers in each booth,” he thought, dejectedly slumping over the table, staring at the pale blue wallpaper of his own booth.
Knock, knock—
Someone knocked on the door of the booth.
Yao Ye was startled, not expecting anyone to knock on the door of an internet cafe booth at this time.
Peering through the peephole, he saw a beautiful woman.
“Gege, could you open the door for me?” she asked seductively.
Her voice sounded like the one from the next booth over.
Yao Ye tensed up, fearing they had discovered him eavesdropping.
“D-Do you need something?” he asked guiltily, afraid to open the door.
An invisible shadow tilted its head, ominously eyeing the door before covering Yao Ye’s eyes with its hand.
No one was allowed to covet his Ye’er… anything that sought to take him away… should disappear…
Hiss—
So cold.
A chill ran down Yao Ye’s spine as he touched his eyelids, feeling coolness.
“Um~ I have something I want to discuss with you, gege. Is that okay?” The woman’s voice was thick with implication, panting heavily, suggestively.
Yao Ye, inexperienced and easily swayed by such temptation, instinctively reached for the door handle.
But, as if by some divine intervention, he paused and looked through the peephole again.
Through the peephole, the blood-soaked face of a long-haired woman loomed close, a terrifying sight.
“AHHHH!!!”
Yao Ye stepped back in terror, his face stricken with fear.
Ghosts! It was a ghost!!!
The black shadow sweetly tightened its embrace around Yao Ye, who was huddled in the corner of the booth. Its dark pupils reflected the pale, beautiful face of its beloved.
His Ye’er was so adorable.
Outside, the long-haired woman was growing impatient. She extended her long tongue, licking her lips as she fiercely banged against the fragile door.
Bang!!!
“Eek!”
Bang!!
“Ahh! Ahhhh!”
Yao Ye, huddled in a ball in the corner, shivered uncontrollably. Each thud against the door elicited a scream from him. He made for a pitiful sight.
What in the world was happening? Why was it always him who encountered such misfortune?!
Crying breathlessly, Yao Ye called for help, “Sob… Help!!! Help, please!!! There’s a ghost here!!!”
If he had known there were so many ghosts outside, why would he have bothered escaping? Not only was he scared out of his wits, but he had suffered for it, too!
He thought it would have been better to die at Blank’s hands than at those of this hideous creature!
The mere memory of what he had seen made Yao Ye nauseous; he couldn’t comprehend how such an ugly ghost could exist in this world. Compared to her, Blank was practically an angel!
For the first time, Yao Ye found himself missing Blank. Being someone who valued beauty, if he truly had to die, he preferred it be at Blank’s hands rather than at those of this hideous ghost.
The black shadow tenderly kissed Yao Ye’s cheeks and tears, obsessed and insatiable.
After a moment, its chilling gaze shifted towards the door.
The terrified Ye’er was truly beautiful…
But, ultimately, the only one who was allowed to bully Ye’er was him…
Outside, the long-haired woman with the elongated limbs suddenly halted her movements, trembling uncontrollably as a fear from the depths of her soul nearly shattered her spirit.
Whoosh—
A draft, coming from nowhere, passed through the dim hallway. The woman’s rigid body moved, splitting into thousands of pieces, her blood and flesh scattering on the floor before gradually disappearing without a trace in the cold wind.
The noise outside suddenly ceased.
Yao Ye, curled up under the computer desk, took a long while before he cautiously crawled out, sobbing and hiccuping.
Had the thing outside left?
Yao Ye, still in shock, eyed the door from a distance, not daring to approach.
Click-clack, click-clack—
Suddenly, the crisp sound of keyboard typing echoed in the booth.
Yao Ye jolted, his complexion turning even paler.
That sound… was so familiar…
He jerkily turned his head like a rusted machine towards the computer screen beside him.
Tap—tap—
Small black characters appeared one by one on the notepad file that had suddenly opened.
Yao Ye, recognizing the all-too-familiar tone, felt his eyes well up with tears again.
—[Is Ye’er scared?]
—[So adorable.]
—[The space outside is filled with monsters like the one you just saw. I’m scared Ye’er might get hurt.]
Upon seeing this, Yao Ye trembled, shuffling even further away from the door.
Could it be that the entire internet café was filled with those ghostly creatures?
Was he doomed?
He didn’t want to die, he truly didn’t.
Yao Ye continued to cry and wipe his tears, his cheeks rubbed red by his own hands.
—[I love Ye’er so much, so I’ll help Ye’er. What about you, Ye’er? Will you be like before?]
Like… before?
Yao Ye shivered at the thought, recalling the times before their relationship had soured.
Back then, whenever he asked Blank for money, he would sweetly call him “husband” and shower him with endearments afterward.
But now, he had burned that bridge. Could Blank really have… fallen for the female persona he had been pretending to be?
Yao Ye glanced at the firmly shut door and then back at the computer screen. Gritting his teeth, he placed his hands on the keyboard, ready to type out a disgustingly sweet message like he used to.
However, to Yao Ye’s surprise, the keyboard was unresponsive, as if some eerie force had cut off its power. He couldn’t type a single word.
“What… What’s happening?!” Yao Ye panicked, breaking out in a cold sweat.
Why couldn’t he type anything? How was he supposed to act like he had before, then?
On the computer screen, the cursor blinked once and slowly typed out a line.
—[Want to say it? Ye’er~]
Several rose icons appeared on the white document page, strikingly conspicuous.
Say?
Yao Ye instantly understood Blank’s intention, his gaze dropping in uneasy shame.
What was more important, his life or his pride?
“…”
“Could you… could you help me? Husb… husband.”
Yao Ye stammered out the words, his face flushing bright red, overwhelmed by a sense of shame.
The clear and bright voice of a young man uttering words in the tone of a lovesick girl didn’t seem out of place. Instead, it carried an intriguing, heart-stirring ambiguity.
The atmosphere inside the booth became gentle.
—[Yes. Your husband’s here, Ye’er~]
The rose icons were as red as blood.
I wonder how Blank will end up helping him, is it just getting rid of the monsters outside?
Honestly, I’m impressed. Yao Ye is really… detestable at the start of every scenario, yet ML still loves him so much. That’s some serious dedication…
Thank you for the chapter~
I mean, you don’t really feel bad for him once all the craziness start? just sit back with some popcorn
I feel like the degree of craziness Yao Ye experiences is proportional to how detestable he’ll be 💀