vstars Chapter 71 He was like a wild beast guarding its food.
Chapter 71 He was like a wild beast guarding its food.
I'm not working overtime tonight because I know I can't eat the food served at the "Reunion" dinner.
But before (when he was playing), he only knew that after eating food, he would become extremely craving food and then be unable to do almost anything; he had no idea that while eating that food, a person's appearance could become so terrifying—
Xiao Dou had almost buried her entire face in the plate.
His chopsticks never stopped moving; as soon as food was picked up, it was immediately put into his mouth. Even when his cheeks were stuffed full of food and bulging out of shape, he did not slow down at all.
His lips were already glistening with oil, the greasy soup mixed with the white oil that seeped out as he chewed the fatty meat, overflowing from the corners of his mouth and hanging precariously on his chin with saliva; his lower lip was even stuck with bits of meat mixed with white fatty particles that had splattered out, trembling slightly with his chewing.
He ate voraciously, each swallow accompanied by a muffled "glug" and each chew by a soft "plop"; hot, almost transparent oil splattered out, splashing onto his nose, eyebrows, and the front of his shirt, and even landing directly on the decorative plaster on his chest.
The soup dripped down his chopsticks, his fingers glistening with oil, and thick grease squeezed out from between his fingers, leaving a small, sticky puddle on the table.
But Xiao Dou was completely unaware, or rather, he didn't care at all.
He stared intently at the remaining food on his plate, his eyes filled with nothing but a frenzy for the food, and every now and then he would let out a few chilling, rapid nasal sounds that represented satisfaction.
Tonight, even though I'm not working overtime, I feel a churning in my stomach and a rush of acid to my throat.
"Um, Xiao Dou..."
Even though I wasn't working overtime tonight, listening to the sticky chewing sounds, swallowing noises, and dripping oil, I struggled to suppress the nausea deep in my throat. I carefully took half a step forward and tentatively asked, "Why don't you leave some—"
Before he could finish speaking, his head, which was almost buried in the plate, suddenly jerked up.
Like a startled wild beast, upon hearing the announcement that there would be no overtime work tonight, Xiao Dou tensed up instantly, his back arching. With his greasy hands, he dragged the plate in front of him and, with a clumsy yet incredibly swift motion, quickly gathered the food from the plate to his chest, protecting it tightly. The movement was so forceful that the soup in the plate spilled out, leaving several sticky arcs on the table.
His eyes were filled with a primal and naked ferocity, bloodshot and brimming with the savagery of a wild beast guarding its prey; he stared intently at Tonight No Overtime, a low, muffled gurgling sound escaping his throat, as if warning Tonight No Overtime not to come near.
Tonight, without working overtime, his breath caught in his throat, and he dared not move for a moment. The words of comfort he had wanted to say were completely stuck in his throat. Tonight, without working overtime, he even felt that if he said another word, Xiao Dou might pounce on him and bite his throat off.
He could only watch helplessly as Xiao Dou quickly devoured the food Aunt Wang had brought for two, and as Xiao Dou scraped the last bit of soup off the plate with her fingers.
"Ah, that feels so good..."
After sucking the soup off his fingers, Xiao Dou smacked his lips in satisfaction and let out a burp. He sighed and leaned back in his chair.
His vacant gaze finally fell on Tonight No Overtime, who was standing to the side, and he seemed to remember something, suddenly slapping his forehead: "Oh no! Tonight No Overtime, I'm so sorry! The food in this game is so delicious, I was so engrossed in eating it that I completely forgot (to leave some food for you)!"
Looking at the plate where not a drop of soup was left, Xiao Dou's face was full of shame, embarrassment, and awkwardness: "Oh dear, this is really..."
I managed a weak smile tonight, even though I wasn't working overtime; my throat was so dry I couldn't make a sound.
Although Xiao Dou's facial expression and demeanor had returned to normal, his face and clothes still retained the disgusting sheen of oil from before. This oiliness made his "normality" all the more chilling.
I didn't even dare to ask Xiao Dou if she remembered what happened before, fearing that if she recalled it, she would turn back into that terrifying state.
"Alright, it's about time..."
Having eaten and drunk his fill, Xiao Dou stood up from his chair. He seemed oblivious to the fact that he hadn't been able to take a step back since he wasn't working overtime that night, and walked towards his bed. "It's getting dark. Let's not work overtime, let's get some rest and go to sleep..."
No overtime tonight: "..."
How is he supposed to sleep?!
After what happened, who would dare to sleep?!
……
Xu Zhang was also having trouble sleeping.
As the only high-ranking member of the team brought in to work on the technology, he had confirmed that the red-clad group did indeed possess some kind of mysterious technology.
Before entering the game, he had quickly glanced at a strategy guide related to "reunion" compiled by someone in the company. However, after entering the game, his mind went completely blank, and he couldn't remember anything.
However, despite confirming this, Xu Zhang felt no joy whatsoever—because their journey had been fraught with difficulties ever since they entered the game.
Forget about that mysterious technology they can't even begin to grasp; they haven't even succeeded in copying a few model data points! Either accidents happen, or all sorts of strange things happen in the house!
Xu Zhang was starting to regret taking on this mission.
He was tossing and turning on the bed, making a slight but unpleasant creaking sound with each movement.
"Squeak..."
"Squeak..."
"Sizzle—"
"Squeak..."
"Sizzle, sizzle—"
"squeak--"
wrong!
Xu Zhang, who was halfway through rolling over, suddenly stopped.
Besides the sound of him turning over, there seemed to be other sounds in the room.
After he stopped moving, the sizzling sound that had been mixed in with the creaking of the wooden bed became clear.
The sound... came from outside.
With his heart pounding, Xu Zhang identified the source of the sound. He carefully sat up in bed and reached out to nudge Xiao Fang, who was sleeping next to him.
Then, his hand pushed into empty air—
Xiao Fang's bed was empty.
It was not only empty, but also cold.
Before he knew it, Xiao Fang had already gotten out of bed.
Xu Zhang's heart skipped a beat.
When did Xiao Fang go out? Why didn't I hear a sound beforehand?! Did Xiao Fang make the noise outside?
"Xiao...Xiao Fang?" Xu Zhang asked tentatively, "Are you outside?"
The room was quiet; apart from the constant buzzing and crackling of electricity, there was no other sound.
"...Little Fang?"
Xu Zhang cursed inwardly. He swallowed hard, carefully got out of bed, and walked towards the direction from which the sound came.
"Xiao Fang, Xiao Fang, you're here—hiss!"
A faint light suddenly appeared in the pitch-black room, but after seeing the scene before him, Xu Zhang's words caught in his throat—