Chapter 353: Chapter 353: Two Keys

Translator: 549690339

“No need,” replied Yu Yaqing coldly, continuing her search for the key.

Without leaving, the Gardener slowly approached her.

“Stop!” Yu Yaqing turned abruptly, pointing an iron sword at the Gardener, “Stay where you are! Speak up! What are you trying to do?!”

“You seem to be very repulsive towards men,” the Gardener raised his hands, gesturing he meant no harm, “Please believe me, I won’t harm you. I only want to help you escape…”

“I don’t need your help,” she retorted coldly, “I can save myself! You’re just a game NPC! How can you save others? It seems to me you’re just trying to manipulate the situation to please your Duke master!”

She looked at the Gardener with utter disgust, venting her anger, “I will not trust you! You, the Duke, the Inspector and this damned game are all the same, all loathsome! You all want to enslave us!”

The Gardener looked at her.

After a while, he calmly started, “There’s no need for you to be angry. As you mentioned, I am just an NPC. I am here to give you a clue.”

Yu Yaqing frowned, “What clue?”

“The key,” the Gardener said, “There’s more than one. They can be real, or they can be fake.”

Yu Yaqing’s face changed color…

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Everyone will receive clues, and everyone’s clues are different.”

Looking at her, the Gardener said, “Your clue is that only one key is real – you can choose to share this clue, but I must remind you, your companions may not share their clues with you.”

Startled, Yu Yaqing blanked out, lost in thoughts for a moment.

Without her noticing, the Gardener slowly moved closer to her.

He looked frail, only up close could one realize that he was a man after all, taller and stronger than women… He towered over Yu Yaqing, blocking the light before her, then bent down to whisper in her ear:

“The fewer people who complete the level, the richer the rewards. The survivors can inherit the rewards of the deceased players. If there’s only one bride left, she can receive seven times the original reward.

Of course… I believe that more than any reward, you would like to save your companions. But your companions…

Do you think they would share the real key with you, if they found it?”

Yu Yaqing pressed her lips together, saying nothing.

The Gardener sighed sadly, “Are you really going to make the same mistake twice? … Back then, you were imprisoned in a cellar along with a group of girls. In order to escape, you deceived your master into giving you a hairpin, planning to work the lock with the metal from the hairpin. But…

Your plan failed.

Because you were too kind, you wanted to take everyone with you. They betrayed you, just because you were the master’s favorite!

Living in confinement wore down their will, and petty jealousy added to their stupidity! They were the informants! They were the traitors! They relied too much on men and lost their own personalities, betraying their comrades, depriving you of your chance to escape, and getting you beaten as punishment! …”

“Stop it!!!”

Yu Yaqing roared.

She grabbed the Gardener by his collar.

“Why do you know all this?!”

“I don’t know…” The Gardener looked calmly into her eyes, “The moment I met you, this information just entered my brain. Maybe it’s all part of the game setup, a test for you.”

Yu Yaqing furiously shoved him away.

Barely visible, a smile played at the corner of the Gardener’s lips. Thrust backward, he crashed into a display cabinet behind him.

Clang!

A small, intricate box fell from the top of the cabinet, the lid flung open!

Releasing the key that was once hidden inside!

Yu Yaqing was startled into silence.

After a while, she bent down to pick it up, examining the key in her hand.

The Gardener’s smile widened, “Congratulations, the key you found is real.”