Doomsday Wonderland Vol. 12: New Game Launch [Complete]

1429: The Witch Who Hexes Others Will Eventually Be Hexed by Another

Looking at it from the bright side, pants were meant to be put on and taken off, right?

Lin Sanjiu comforted herself. As she was about to unbuckle her combat pants, she glanced at Advaita. Chen Hanwu had already discreetly moved to the other side, burying his head under the cashier's counter; meanwhile, Advaita still looked at her calmly, showing no intention of turning away.

"Are you going to watch me undress?" Lin Sanjiu said.

"Yes," Advaita said matter-of-factly.

Fine. Lin Sanjiu wasn't naive enough to think that Advaita would let her use a cloth as a cover or let her go to the restroom. Though the mall, now a post-apocalyptic game arena, still had functional facilities such as restrooms and security rooms, Advaita wouldn't let her use them.

To top it off, Advaita added, "What's the problem with me watching you undress? It'd be inappropriate the other way around."

"What do you mean by that?" Lin Sanjiu glared at her. She unbuckled her belt and unbuttoned her pants, kicking them off once they were down. "The shopping list is still inside. I didn't take it out."

Advaita picked up the pants with two fingers and checked the shopping list in the right pocket before seeming satisfied. The grand prize probably prepared a hundred pairs of the same combat pants for Lin Sanjiu. She took out another pair and, within twenty seconds, looked presentable again.

She tightened her belt and scanned the area – Caster had cleverly vanished from sight.

"Alright, let's go!" Advaita said to Chen Hanwu, who peeked his head from behind the cashier counter. "We've wasted too much time."

All three simultaneously dashed into the aisles between the shelves. The volunteer wasn't exaggerating; Lin Sanjiu looked up and noticed all the shelf numbers were mixed up. She initially thought her assigned shelves would be B1-B5, possibly adjacent to each other, representing a small order amidst the chaos. Now she realized how naive that thought was. D9 was next to A1, H12 followed by B7... there was no pattern.

Caster's nod meant that was Silvan's intention. But why did Silvan want her to agree to such stringent conditions? What should she do next?

"What should we do next?" Chen Hanwu's question to Advaita echoed Lin Sanjiu's thoughts.

While Advaita moved, she was as light-footed as a feather in the wind; Lin Sanjiu was certain she was holding back, or she could probably reach the other end of the mall in a blink. At Chen's question, Advaita let out a soft chuckle and said calmly, "The strategy of this game is simple: gather your items while preventing opponents from getting theirs. Our opponents had a head start. We won't be able to stop them in time, but they can easily stop us."

Chen Hanwu immediately looked anxious. "What do we do?"

"All they need to do is send one person to block our way."

Almost the instant these words left Advaita's mouth, the floor seemed to transform into roaring waves, tossing the three high into the air. Lin Sanjiu was caught off guard, and by the time she reacted, rows of shelves were beneath her feet. The shelves stood steady, but the aisles seemed to break free from gravity, rising like a torrential downpour.

A blond figure slowly emerged between the tall waves made of countless shattered bricks and cement.

"Spread out!" Advaita yelled, stabilizing herself mid-air as if pinned to the atmosphere. "Each of you go and search. Lin Sanjiu, head east!"

She intended to keep Lin Sanjiu and Silvan as far apart as possible.

While in freefall, Lin Sanjiu pushed off a nearby shelf with her foot, causing most of the items piled on top to scatter like flower petals on the ground. The aisles erupted like a volcano, shaking the entire mall with dust everywhere. She dared not land in the aisles – even if Silvan was the attacker, she couldn't take the risk. Clearly, Silvan's attack was unrestrained, knowing Lin Sanjiu could defend herself.

"I'm off then!" Lin Sanjiu shouted, glancing at Silvan before rushing towards the east. He didn't spare her a glance, seemingly forgetting her existence. His blond hair fluttered in the upsurge of debris, looking like a deity slowly rising from the ground.

Looking back, she saw Chen Hanwu's silhouette dashing in a different direction. Advaita remained in place, seemingly ready to confront Silvan head-on. Even if she was an enemy, Lin Sanjiu couldn't help but admire her courage.

Regaining focus, Lin Sanjiu ran swiftly, scanning between the shelves.

Advaita had a thorough plan, but unfortunately, she didn't realize that she didn't need to meet Silvan in private.

With hundreds of shelves in the mall, the thirty designated for the six players seemed like droplets in a river. As she went on, she maxed out her [Higher Consciousness Scan], incorporating all the shelves within its range, but she didn't spot any from B1 to B5.

From behind, where Silvan and Advaita were confronting each other, a sudden sound broke out — as subtle as the soft cracking of skin yet amplified by some unnatural force that resonated directly into one's ears. As the sound echoed, Lin Sanjiu suddenly felt like all her skin was about to burst open. She couldn't help but let out a soft cry of pain, her legs giving way beneath her, almost causing her to fall.

A bony hand suddenly reached out from behind a shelf, grabbing the back of her clothes.

"Here," Caster said in a slightly hoarse voice just as Lin Sanjiu was about to retaliate. She quickly composed herself, panting heavily, and again realized that her skin hadn't torn; she was still intact.

Whose attack was that? Even from such a distance, the residual impact was so intense.

"Do you remember me?" Caster suddenly leaned closer to her. The little gold pieces on the dyed cloth wrapped around her head jingled as she moved. "Silvan can't speak, so he asked me to be his voice and relay his message to you."

Lin Sanjiu nodded, her thoughts inadvertently drifting to the Artist. Both were Special Items, almost indistinguishable from real humans, yet their differences were as vast as between individuals.

"He has a plan for the future that will guide both of you to the outcomes you desire. The answer lies within the text in your own hands. Victory resides in what you believe is not the truth," Caster said with a stern face.

Lin Sanjiu was taken aback.

"Do... do you alway shave to speak in such a cryptic manner?"