Chapter 17: Out of Place

The system's unique electronic mechanical voice echoed in his mind.
9527: [Sorry, participant information is confidential. Players within the Novice Trial Zone map are not authorized to access this data.]

…Confidential?

When Wen Nan first arrived at that four-person male dormitory—the respawn point on their map—he had clearly chosen the same strategy target as Fatty, Glasses, and the Jock.

If confidentiality was truly necessary, shouldn't the players have been separated and made their choices individually from the very moment they entered the respawn point?

To only now claim secrecy… there was definitely something fishy about this.

Was the system protecting certain special players?

Yu Shujun… was she really a game character disguised by a player?

If that were the case, then her strange behavior and bizarre attire would all make sense—

On such a hot day, she still wrapped herself in long-sleeved, long-legged school uniform, let her bangs cover most of her face, wore thick glasses, and with clumsy makeup rendered herself utterly unrecognizable—all for one purpose: to hide her true appearance.

But why would she want to blend in with the game characters?

If she was a player, wouldn't she, like Wen Nan, need to complete her main quest? By becoming the target Wen Nan had to pursue, wouldn’t fulfilling her own mission become much more complicated?

Wait a minute…

Wen Nan realized he’d overlooked an important point—

Was “she”… really a “she”?

From what Wen Nan knew, this was a romance game targeted at men. In theory, all the players should be male—or at least male in mind.

If so, then the player disguised as Yu Shujun…

Wen Nan’s thoughts spun wildly—

Although this batch of players entering the Novice Trial Zone was highly diverse, Wen Nan himself had absolutely no inclination in that direction. If the game merely transferred consciousness into the character’s body, he could barely tolerate a man playing a female avatar, biting the bullet and forging ahead. After all, the thought “if I turned into a woman, I’d definitely let my bros have some fun” had crossed his mind before.

However, this game clearly transported their original bodies directly into the map. Even if level and attribute changes caused physical alterations, it wouldn’t go so far as to change one’s gender.

In that case…

The possibility that Yu Shujun was actually a cross-dresser became exceedingly high!

Hiss.

Wen Nan’s heart clenched, and so did everything else.

He shuddered and shook his head forcefully.

If he encountered Yu Shujun again on the next main quest, he would definitely have to have a clear conversation with “her.”

It would be best if they could reach some kind of peaceful coexistence—a beautiful agreement: “She” could disguise herself as a game character for whatever reasons she had, and Wen Nan wouldn’t interfere. Similarly, “she” shouldn’t sabotage his strategy mission. At the end of the trial, “she” could simply max out her favorability and give Wen Nan a fake “five-star review,” and the whole matter would be settled.

After that, they’d go their separate ways, each minding their own business.

Just as Wen Nan made this decision, the system’s voice sounded again in his mind.

9527: [Main Quest 1 has ended. Please return to the respawn point within 15 minutes to initiate task settlement. If you exceed the allotted time window, you will forfeit the right to settlement for this round. Please be advised.]

As the urging words faded, Wen Nan rose and made his way toward the male dormitory.

…

Back at the dorm, a massive countdown flashed on the floating screen above—signaling the imminent task settlement.

At that moment, the room was deserted except for Wen Nan. He was the first to return.

Empty drink bottles still littered the floor, and the familiar, complex blend of foot odor and instant noodles hung in the air.

Wen Nan sank into the chair beneath his bunk, pulled up the [Community] interface from the system in his mind, and tried to check the player livestreams—only to discover that during settlement, the streams were automatically closed.

He was about to browse the [Store] when the dormitory door creaked open.

The Jock trudged in, each step heavy with exhaustion.

Though only a night had passed, the Jock seemed to have aged a lifetime. He’d left as a vibrant youth, but returned hunched and frail, like an old man at death’s door, clutching the wall as he staggered to his spot.

The moment he saw Wen Nan, he froze. “You… you quit midway?!”

Wen Nan shook his head. “The mission ended, so I came back.”

The Jock, doubting his ears or his memory, stammered, “Didn’t you… didn’t you pick five female… female characters at once?”

“Yes,” Wen Nan nodded honestly. “All five completed.”

The Jock stared at Wen Nan, wide-eyed. “Five? All? Completed?!”

How could that be! He himself had chosen only a neutral NPC and had nearly been forced to quit midway, yet Wen Nan had picked five female ghosts! How could he possibly succeed with all of them?

Even if he did, why…

The Jock eyed Wen Nan from head to toe, his gaze finally settling below Wen Nan’s waist. “Why… are you still so clean?!”

For a split second, Wen Nan suspected the other was questioning his masculinity. But Wen Nan considered himself self-disciplined and proper; surely, just after finishing the first task in the trial zone, things hadn’t advanced to the point of being “unclean,” had they?

He paused, then retorted, “You’re not clean?”

Before his words even faded, the dormitory door opened again, and another figure shuffled in.

Both Wen Nan and the Jock looked toward the entrance to see Fatty, hunched and holding his back, stumbling over to his spot.

He gripped his waist with one hand, and each step seemed to tug at something, making him grimace in pain and suck in air through his teeth.

The moment his hefty frame touched the chair, he sprang up as if scalded, then carefully perched on the very edge in an exaggeratedly delicate posture.

His gaze landed on Wen Nan, and his face filled with disbelief. “You… you quit midway?!”

Wen Nan replied, “…Mission ended, so I returned.”

Fatty asked, “Why… are you still so clean?”

Wen Nan: …

Here we go again.

He fired back, “You’re not clean either?”

Just then, Glasses entered the dorm, hunched, clutching the wall, wobbling to his spot, and adopting the same overly dainty posture on the edge of the chair.

As soon as he saw Wen Nan, his eyes widened in shock. “You—”

“—didn’t quit, and still clean,” Wen Nan interjected, now quick to respond.

In the dorm, the other three all looked at Wen Nan as if he were some kind of anomaly.

Wen Nan: …

He never imagined there would come a day when he’d feel out of place simply for being “not dirty enough”…