Liu Xing had not forgotten to caution Isabella with a few parting words. "Miss Isabella, if possible, it would be best to keep our meeting a secret from others. After all, Butler Wayne had previously instructed us visitors not to casually venture to the second floor. My own curiosity got the better of me after wandering around the other areas, which is why I sneakily came up to see. So, I worry if Butler Wayne finds out about our meeting, he might forbid me from seeing you again."
Isabella quickly nodded in agreement, promising to keep their secret. However, as a condition of this exchange, Liu Xing must find another opportunity to come up and chat with her.
Liu Xing readily agreed, and after bidding Isabella farewell, he left her room.
At that moment, Liu Xing saw Bai Hecheng and the others on the first floor, waving at him to hurry down.
Without hesitation, Liu Xing took a leap from the second floor down to the first.
Given the modest height between the two floors and Liu Xing's impressive jumping ability—rated at 70—he didn't even need to check his leap; success was assumed, and thus he safely landed on the first floor.
As Liu Xing landed safely, Old Wayne entered the main building, expressing his confusion, "Uh, did I just hear a loud thud?"
Just as Bai Hecheng was about to speak, Wang Qi gave him a fierce glare, and he promptly shut his mouth. Then Chen Ling stepped forward with a smile, addressing Old Wayne, "Butler Wayne, you know how curious my friend here is, and he likes to play pranks. So, he downloaded some scary sound effects on his phone app. He just played one of a heavy object falling to give us a fright."
"Really?" Old Wayne asked, still somewhat skeptical.
"Would player Chen Ling choose to use a persuasion roll now, or opt for fast-talk?" KP004 chimed in at the right time.
Chen Ling quickly responded, "I'll go for a fast-talk."
Persuasion and fast-talk both serve to make the other party trust one's words, but they are applied in different scenarios; some situations specifically require persuasion.
Chen Ling, fast-talk, 46/70, success.
"Alright, then. While you're here at the Castle, try not to play such scary sound effects again. I do have a heart condition, you know." Old Wayne said with a chuckle, choosing to believe Chen Ling's words due to the successful fast-talk.
Chen Ling immediately went along with it, assuring Old Wayne in various ways that he would keep a close eye on Bai Hecheng and not give him the chance to cause trouble.
After Old Wayne had left, a disgruntled Bai Hecheng complained, "Hey, hey, hey, why are you all so quick to throw me under the bus without even asking for my opinion?"
Liu Xing and the others looked at Bai Hecheng with amused smiles. Wang Qi, with a clenched fist, said, "Oh, and do you have an opinion?"
Wang Qi, 1/99, persuasion (by force), great success.
Bai Hecheng immediately shrank back, smiling apologetically, "No objections, no objections at all. I am more than happy to take the blame if you all wish it so."
Having dealt with (suppressed) Bai Hecheng's dissent, Liu Xing and the others returned to the large room and approached KP004 to initiate the Private Room.
Liu Xing first placed the scroll of parchment he had obtained from the second-floor study room on the table. Then he said, "This is the parchment I found in the study room upstairs. You should be able to feel it too—this parchment exudes a very eerie presence. The moment I touched it, I felt a chill penetrate my body, reducing all my attribute values by ten points. Moreover, this debuff will persist for over two hours. Fortunately, my psychoanalysis was successful, and I didn't lose any SAN points."
"It's quite clear that this parchment could very well contain magical spells or perhaps a kind of sacrificial rite, a mythological artifact. So I decided to take it down, preemptively stripping the BOSS of an item of its gear. If it comes to a battle, the BOSS's combat strength should be significantly reduced."
After hearing Liu Xing's words, even Bai Hecheng looked at him with admiration in his eyes. After all, knowing full well the risk of losing SAN points, Liu Xing had resolutely brought back the parchment. What kind of noble spirit was that?
However, just at that moment, Bai Hecheng, seizing a time when others were not paying attention, swiftly grabbed the parchment and opened it without hesitation.
"Player Bai Hecheng, for opening the parchment, must now make an Inspiration check, a Will check, and a Luck check. The results of these three checks will have decisive impacts!" KP004 stepped forward decisively, speaking with evident excitement.
It was obvious that these checks would be perilous, which explained KP004's thrill at the prospect.
Bai Hecheng, Inspiration, 75/70, failure.
Bai Hecheng, Will, 42/70, success.
Bai Hecheng, Luck, 52/50, failure.
"At the moment Bai Hecheng opened the parchment, he felt a wave of cold sweep over his entire body, his limbs instantly frozen stiff. Therefore, all your attribute values will be halved, lasting ten hours."
"When Bai Hecheng recovered from the cold, he was captivated by the content inscribed on the parchment. It detailed a ritual of sacrifice to an Eldritch God. Because he encountered such an evil sacrificial rite, Bai Hecheng must make another Inspiration check, success would reduce 2 SAN points, failure would reduce by 1d6+3 SAN points."
Liu Xing watched as a visible chill appeared on Bai Hecheng's hand, swiftly enveloping his entire body. Even at a distance of about a meter away from Bai Hecheng, Liu Xing could feel a piercing coldness.
Bai Hecheng, Will, 82/70, failure.
SAN check, 1d6+3 = 5+3 = 8.
8 SAN points! When a player loses more than 5 SAN points at once, they fall into a state of temporary insanity. There are ten different symptoms of this madness, and the afflicted player will roll a dice to determine the specific symptom and another 1d10 time dice to decide how long this temporary insanity will last.
Bai Hecheng, Madness check, 2, psychosomatic disability (to be understood as a cognitive disorder, believing oneself to be blind, deaf, or to have lost sensation in a part of the body).
Bai Hecheng, Time check, 5.
"Due to a profound inner turmoil, Bai Hecheng lost 8 SAN points, succumbing to a state of temporary madness—psychosomatic disability, which will persist for five hours," kp said, barely containing his laughter.
[I <3 this chap]