Chapter : 83

Mia was very worried: "Xiao Ai... did something happen?"

Xiao Ai turned her head slightly, not letting Mia see the fear on her face. She tried to remain calm, "It's really nothing. They need me over there for something. You help Jenny apply some medicine first, I'll be back soon."

Xiao Ai got up, her hand opening the door was trembling slightly. She took a deep breath, suppressed the panic in her heart, and stepped out.

She didn't know why a guest would choose her. Among all the 'Pels', her looks were the most ordinary, her mouth wasn't sweet, and her personality wasn't likable. Although she was the oldest among the children, basically no guests would choose her.

Originally, Xiao Ai wasn't so afraid of this kind of thing. The people who came here were all regulars. She had already learned many ways to deal with guests from the older 'Manls' and was able to live well in Mandiper, even earning extra tips to take out for Nika and the others to support their younger brothers and sisters.

But ever since Mandiper announced it would host the 'Midas Touch' competition, more and more guests came to Mandiper, and the situation for both 'Manls' and 'Pels' became difficult.

Nana was the prettiest among them, and was unsurprisingly taken a fancy to. She originally thought she could temporarily escape by fooling the guest in the same way as before, but unexpectedly Nana instead...

Frightened by Nana's situation, Jenny's time was also bought by a guest from the high-stakes area today. Jenny refused the guest, but was beaten into this state by Mandiper's black-robed people...

Mandiper had a rule for 'Manls' and 'Pels': under no circumstances could they refuse a guest who paid to buy their time. It was because Jenny was too scared by Nana's incident that she touched upon the rule, ending up with a body full of injuries.

Xiao Ai now felt the same fear and dread, but she had no choice. Jenny had already demonstrated to them in advance what a miserable end awaited a 'Pel' who had thoughts of resistance.

In comparison, going to the guest's side actually offered a glimmer of hope. If she could meet a kind guest, maybe she could even get enough tips from them to have someone take it out for Nika and the others to buy medicine to treat Jenny...

From receiving the news to making the decision, it only took a few seconds, but the time Xiao Ai took on the way to the guest's side was twice as slow as usual.

The guests who come to Mandiper... would there really be any kind guests?

And how could a kind guest buy a 'Pel's' time?

No matter how much Xiao Ai dragged her feet, the gate of the primary area still appeared before her eyes.

She closed her eyes, but her neatly trimmed, rounded nails dug deeply into her palm, leaving several crescent-shaped marks tinged with blood.

She reached out and aimed her bracelet at the sensor of the primary area's gate.

"Beep—"

The employee passage of the primary area opened.

Xiao Ai gently pushed open that unknown door.

***

Yan Yunqing found a corner.

If nothing else, the buffet set up in the corners of this Mandiper was surprisingly delicious. As far as the eye could see, it was a dazzling array of high-grade ingredients. A single meal of this outside would probably cost several hundred Gold Coins.

It's just that very few of the guests who came here would actually go to the corner to taste these delicious meals. After all, no one who could come here was poor. With their assets, it wasn't difficult to eat some high-grade ingredients.

Besides that, it was probably that apart from Yan Yunqing, the other guests all seemed to have a look of being consumed by gambling.

While gnawing on a small lamb chop, Yan Yunqing sized up this dazzling and decadent casino. From the moment he entered, he always felt that something was not right with this bustling casino, but after a closer look, he couldn't find anything amiss.

The guests at every table were more or less the same. There were quite a few who became rich overnight and those who lost their family fortunes overnight, and many who were consumed by gambling, but very few were dragged away by the black-robed people.

And Yan Yunqing glanced at his own status bar and confirmed that there were no debuffs present. He could only attribute this feeling of wrongness to the fact that he felt there was something wrong with this place from the very beginning, and it was just a preconceived notion that made him feel like everything was off.

Rocco was stuffed with a plate of small cakes by Yan Yunqing and sat on the sofa, eating while observing the surroundings. He was originally looking for Xiao Ai, but after his gaze touched upon a machine similar to a slot machine closest to them, his eyes couldn't seem to move away.

Yan Yunqing didn't mind it at first. After all, the machine was flashy. When three identical patterns lined up, it would emit a burst of cheerful music and then spit out a pile of Gold Coins. It was normal for a child to be interested in this kind of thing.

But just trying it was out of the question; this thing was addictive.

He poured himself a glass of juice and glanced over casually, pausing when he saw the [Shallow Hypnosis] debuff in Rocco's status bar.

Shallow Hypnosis?

Yan Yunqing frowned and carefully observed Rocco's expression, finding that his gaze was always focused on that machine. He had even stopped eating the small cake, watching with fascination as the machine operated under the gambler's hands.

Yan Yunqing suspected that if he didn't have any money, Rocco would have probably gone up to play by now.

He clicked his tongue and cursed under his breath: "I knew something was off here, there's definitely a problem."

Yan Yunqing reached out and covered Rocco's eyes. Rocco subconsciously wanted to struggle. Yan Yunqing softly chanted a Frost Spell, coating his other hand with a layer of frost, and pressed it directly onto Rocco's exposed nape.

Yan Yunqing said in a low voice: "Wake up."

Rocco was jolted by the sudden cold, shivering all over, and finally came back to his senses: "Brother?"

Yan Yunqing saw that the [Shallow Hypnosis] in Rocco's status bar had been physically interrupted by him, but he still didn't let go of the hand covering Rocco's eyes. He didn't say it out loud, but informed Rocco through the chat system.

[Ri'an (Private)]: Don't look, you were hypnotized. Do you remember what you were thinking just now?

Rocco was alarmed. He opened his mouth and then realized, quickly replying to Yan Yunqing in the same way.

[Rocco (Private)]: I was hypnotized? I don't know anything, I was just looking at that thing, I thought it was very interesting so I couldn't help but look a few more times.

[Rocco (Private)]: Then... then I thought the person operating that thing was so stupid. If it were me, I could definitely make that thing spit out Gold Coins.

Seemingly realizing that something was wrong with his own words, Rocco clenched his fingers.

[Rocco (Private)] That's not right, I've never had this much money on me before, and I wouldn't think of this. Instead of trying that thing, I should be thinking about how much money is in that person's money pouch, and whether I can try to steal it.

Yan Yunqing sighed: You were indeed hypnotized, but child, aren't you a bit too honest? You see a rich person and you think about whether to go up and steal from them? So you're the real phantom thief?

[Ri'an (Private)]: It's weird for me to keep covering your eyes. Do as I say next. When I let go of your eyes, you have to control yourself not to look at those machines again. Constantly tell yourself why you came here.

Rocco nodded imperceptibly, "Understood."

Yan Yunqing tried to slightly release his hand from Rocco's eyes, keeping an eye on his status bar. Seeing that the [Shallow Hypnosis] didn't appear again, Yan Yunqing slowly breathed a sigh of relief.

Rocco opened his eyes a little, controlling the direction of his gaze. It was best not to look towards the gambling tables, so he could only widen his eyes to survey the surrounding refreshments, and incidentally observe the attendants passing by.

Thank goodness, thank goodness. At least if he didn't look, the condition for this hypnosis wasn't so easily met.

Rocco's willpower was still relatively low, making him too easily influenced by these things. Someone with high willpower like Yan Yunqing wasn't afraid of this kind of subtle mental state skill at all.

But looking at it this way, these gamblers around who were consumed by gambling weren't entirely because of their own lack of self-control, but because this Mandiper was filled with things that could directly affect one's mind.

It's just that Yan Yunqing hadn't figured out what exactly this thing was for the time being.

"Brother!" Rocco suddenly called out to him.

Yan Yunqing came back to his senses, thinking Rocco was affected again and was about to repeat his old trick, but then he noticed a small, unconcealable excitement in Rocco's eyes.

[Rocco (Private)]: It's Xiao Ai!

Yan Yunqing followed the direction Rocco indicated and saw a girl of about thirteen or fourteen in a black and white uniform walking over slowly. She kept her head down, and the hair on both sides covered her face, so Yan Yunqing couldn't see her expression at the moment.

[Rocco (Private)]: That's Xiao Ai! Brother, let's go ask her questions now!

[Yan Yunqing (Private)]: Don't be hasty.

Rocco was very obedient. Although he was very excited to have found their target at this moment, he still suppressed the urge to jump up and reunite with Xiao Ai, sitting obediently on the sofa, but he really wasn't in the mood to eat that small cake anymore.

Xiao Ai followed the location indicated by her bracelet to the rest area of the primary area. She had just looked up, preparing to scan the area to find the guest who had bought her time, when she saw only two people sitting in the rest area.

One was a child who looked younger than her, dressed like a young noble master, and the other was a handsome man with short black hair and red eyes. He sat in a lazy posture, twirling a silver fork in his hand. Though it was a very simple action, Xiao Ai saw a confident and poised elegance in it.

Xiao Ai was stunned for a moment. She had never seen such a person in the primary area. His whole body exuded a noble aura that could not be refused, unlike the gamblers she had seen in the past. No matter how rational a person was, upon entering this hall, they would become frantic, with only countless chips and Gold Coins in their eyes.

She paused, and her heart surprisingly calmed down. Such a noble guest should not be too brutal. Perhaps her previous fantasy had come true, and she had really met a kind guest.

Xiao Ai walked forward and said softly, "Ri'an, Master."

Yan Yunqing nearly choked upon hearing this. Hearing this form of address, he almost thought Xiao Ai knew him. When the word 'Master' came out later, Yan Yunqing knew he had misunderstood.

This 'Ri'an' was just a simple greeting.

Indeed, this underground casino in Mandiper saw no sunlight, and there wasn't even a single clock in the entire hall. It was easy to get time confused while inside. At a time like this, it was naturally impossible to greet with 'good morning' or 'good evening'.

Thinking of this, Yan Yunqing keenly noticed the possible effects of having time confused, and couldn't help but be more wary of this Mandiper.

A person's energy in a day is limited and needs to be replenished through sleep. People who were already on a gambling high would have errors in their grasp of time. Coupled with the lack of a clock here to remind them, the gamblers kept placing bets, losing money, winning money...

In this process, their energy was constantly consumed. Gamblers who didn't realize they should rest would be in worse and worse shape, and their willpower would also decline, making them easily influenced by the bewitching things in this hall.

It was truly one link after another.

Yan Yunqing couldn't help but marvel.

He met Xiao Ai's gaze and beckoned to her, "Come here."

Xiao Ai obediently approached. Yan Yunqing pointed to Rocco beside him, "I didn't buy you for any other reason. My younger brother came in with me, he's always following me around and annoying me, so I bought someone to play with him."

Xiao Ai was taken aback. She glanced in the direction Yan Yunqing was pointing. This was the strangest request she had ever heard since entering Mandiper.

A guest would actually bring his younger brother into Mandiper, and even buy a 'Pel' to play with his brother?

The young noble master sitting next to the noble guest looked even younger than her. The things Xiao Ai had once feared were simply impossible to happen.

Realizing this, Xiao Ai let out a long sigh of relief. If that was the case, it would be wonderful.

But why did this young master look a little familiar?

Xiao Ai blinked, but didn't continue to stare impolitely. Instead, she lowered her head and obediently replied, "Yes, Master."

Yan Yunqing waved his hand, "Don't call me Master anymore, just call me brother like my younger brother does."

"Yes, brother." Xiao Ai was very obedient. Meeting such a friendly guest was even more unreal than her previous fantasy. She lowered her head and walked to the young master's side without looking sideways, bent down, and said softly in the voice she used to coax her younger siblings: "Hello, you can call me Ella. I will be accompanying you from now on."

Yan Yunqing gave Rocco a look. Rocco, who had long suppressed his excitement, immediately pulled Xiao Ai to sit down beside him. Taking advantage of his appearance as a child, Rocco directly leaned close to Xiao Ai's ear and whispered: "Xiao Ai!"

Xiao Ai was startled. This wasn't her name on the roster. The only ones who called her Xiao Ai were the children who entered Mandiper with her, and the partners from the children's group outside.

She suddenly raised her eyes, stared at the young boy who was so close, and after looking intently for two seconds, she moved her gaze away and quickly scanned the surroundings. After confirming that there were no black-robed guards nearby, she lowered her voice and asked with uncertainty: "Rocco? Is that you?"

Rocco was now a completely different person. His previously messy hair was now neat and well-behaved, and his torn, dirty, and old clothes had been replaced with expensive fabric that only a young noble master could afford. He sat there no different from a real young noble master. Even though his appearance hadn't changed, Xiao Ai didn't quite dare to recognize him.

It was only because Rocco called out Xiao Ai's name first that she confirmed Rocco's identity, but she still couldn't believe it.

Rocco's parents... Xiao Ai knew about them too. His parents were both mercenaries, but not a married couple, just a fleeting romance. Not long after giving birth to Rocco, his parents abandoned him. It was Jeff who picked him up.

Xiao Ai's gaze couldn't help but drift to Yan Yunqing sitting on the other side.

No matter what, Rocco couldn't possibly become the younger brother of such a noble guest!

Could she have mistaken him for someone else?

Just as Xiao Ai became suspicious, Rocco admitted it straightforwardly: "It's me. Can you take me and my brother to a place where we can rest? I want to have a chat with you."

Yan Yunqing had taught Rocco to say this. There were too many strange things in this hall, and Yan Yunqing really didn't feel at ease talking about their plan here. Although he had been paying attention to whether anyone was eavesdropping nearby, he was still worried that the walls had ears.

Xiao Ai quickly observed Rocco's expression, confirmed that Rocco was the Rocco she knew, and nodded gently, "Guest, if you need a quiet space to rest, Mandiper also provides rooms."

She lowered her head slightly, her cheeks flushed pink. Anyone who saw would think that Yan Yunqing must have said something to her.

"It's just that it requires a certain amount of Gold Coins to enter."

If Xiao Ai hadn't winked at him the moment she lowered her head, Yan Yunqing would have suspected that Xiao Ai, like that fox-eared boy, was trying to find ways to get money out of his pocket.

He was very straightforward: "Alright, it's just a little bit of money."

Seeing this, Xiao Ai didn't have too many worries. She directly operated the bracelet on her wrist. Yan Yunqing didn't understand how she did it. After a while, Xiao Ai nodded, "Please follow me."

Saying that, Xiao Ai got up and led Yan Yunqing and Rocco towards a screen. There were two black-robed people guarding it.

They showed no surprise at the combination of Xiao Ai, Yan Yunqing, and Rocco, and stood there guarding without looking sideways.

Xiao Ai raised her wrist and scanned the device in front of the door, saying to Yan Yunqing, "Guest, please present your bracelet here. I will now take you to the rest room you have reserved."

Yan Yunqing imitated Xiao Ai's action, raising his hand and placing it on the device. Rocco did the same. After all three had scanned, the device emitted a beep, and the door guarded by the two black-robed people slowly opened, revealing a magic compartment inside.

In other words, an elevator from another world.

Yan Yunqing walked in, and the black-robed people didn't react at all, still standing there stiffly.

The elevator door slowly closed, and the space fell into silence. Xiao Ai subconsciously glanced at Yan Yunqing, wondering what Rocco had brought this person here to find her for.

Could this be the way Nika thought of to rescue Nana?

Xiao Ai pursed her lips, retracted her gaze, and continued to stare at the tips of her shoes in silence.

Yan Yunqing could feel himself slowly descending. It wasn't long before the elevator door opened, revealing room after room behind it, with numbers marked on them, looking somewhat like a hotel.

Xiao Ai led them to a door and signaled for Yan Yunqing to open it with his bracelet. Yan Yunqing did as told, and with a swipe, the door opened, revealing a setup no different from a hotel inside.

The only difference was probably that the rooms here were more luxurious, but still not as exquisite and luxurious as the hotel opened by the Augreer family where he had stayed in the capital of Bartovita.

Xiao Ai gently closed the door and breathed a sigh of relief. Just as she was about to turn around and ask Rocco what he wanted to say, she was stopped by Yan Yunqing.

Yan Yunqing walked around the entire room, tossing [Appraise] everywhere, and after confirming that there were no eavesdropping devices in the entire room, he shook the bracelet in his hand at Xiao Ai and mouthed: Can this eavesdrop?

Xiao Ai understood and shook her head gently: "The guest's bracelet only has the function of positioning and scanning various passages."

Yan Yunqing confirmed that the [Appraise] he threw up showed the same thing Xiao Ai had said, and then he completely relaxed.

"Alright, we can talk now."

Rocco jumped up and grabbed Xiao Ai's hand, "Is Nana okay now? Why haven't you guys come out all this time? We all thought something happened to you!"

"Because it was discovered that we had sneaked out to ask Jeff for help before, we are all being strictly guarded now. Mandiper is temporarily not letting us out."

Xiao Ai shook her head gently and answered Rocco's question, "The other children are basically fine. I'm not sure about Nana's situation either, she hasn't been out for a long time. And Jenny..."

Xiao Ai's expression was tinged with sorrow: "She was scared because of Nana's matter and touched upon the rules. She was just punished and is now seriously injured. We don't have enough medicine either..."

Xiao Ai thought of something and also gripped Rocco's hand, "Is Jeff doing okay? What about the children outside? Did Nika have you come in to tell us something?"

Rocco looked at Yan Yunqing and recounted to Xiao Ai how they had met Yan Yunqing, how Yan Yunqing later saved Nika and Jeff, and the agreement between Nika and Yan Yunqing.

His logic was clear, without any redundant emotional narration, allowing Xiao Ai to understand what had happened at once.

She glanced at Yan Yunqing in surprise, completely unable to imagine that so many things had happened outside in just a few days.

But she also confirmed that this red-eyed man with black hair was the person Nika and Jeff had found to help them.

Xiao Ai would never question the decisions made by Nika and Jeff, because they were the backbone of this group of children.

"I understand." Xiao Ai nodded solemnly, "So, brother, you will help us rescue Nana and take us away from here. In exchange, we will teach you how to use skills at the gambling table to win, and cooperate with you when necessary, is that right?"

"That's right."

Xiao Ai was thoughtful, "These are all no problem. Since Nika and Jeff both chose to believe you, you must be a trustworthy person. There's no problem teaching you the skills, I can do it."

"But... about the cooperation, I still need to talk to the other children."

As 'Pels' of Mandiper, secretly helping guests win at gambling was something that, once discovered by Mandiper, would result in a fate worse than death for them.

Jenny was whipped black and blue just for refusing a guest. The consequences of being discovered participating in such a matter were self-evident—a life worse than death.

Xiao Ai had once learned a little secret from a 'Manl', and just some vague rumors made her shudder.

If there was a chance to leave this place and also rescue Nana, if it were just Xiao Ai, she would definitely agree.

But Xiao Ai was just a 'Pel' from the primary area, while Yan Yunqing's goal was to become the 'Midas Touch', which would inevitably require entering higher-level venues to win, and that would involve the other children.

Xiao Ai couldn't agree to this request on behalf of the other children.

Yan Yunqing could understand: "Alright, no matter what choice you make, I will get you out of here. Don't worry about that."

He wasn't stingy about giving Xiao Ai and the others a shot in the arm. After all, the reward for this quest was generous, and Yan Yunqing couldn't just watch these children continue to be mired in the swamp. He would naturally complete this series of quests.

Xiao Ai looked at Yan Yunqing deeply, pursed her lips, her hands clasped tightly together.

The person before her clearly knew how difficult it was to achieve his goal, yet he still promised to take them away from here...

Xiao Ai didn't know what she was thinking in her heart right now.

Yan Yunqing remembered the prompt from the system quest before. The NPC who was attacked was most likely the Jenny that Xiao Ai mentioned.

A little worried that something might happen to this Jenny, Yan Yunqing simply took out a few more Small Red Potions.

"You just said you were short on medicine, right? These potions can heal some external injuries. Take them back and see how they work."

When Rocco saw the familiar Small Red Potions, his eyes lit up and he nodded repeatedly: "Yes, this is what healed Jeff and Nika. Xiao Ai, didn't you say Jenny was injured? Brother's potion is very useful!"

Hearing this, Xiao Ai's gaze towards the Small Red Potions became much more fervent. It could heal Nika and Jeff... then the effect of this potion must also be able to heal Jenny, and Nana's side must also be short on medicine...

She didn't hesitate at all and directly accepted the Small Red Potions, assuring Yan Yunqing:

"Don't worry, I will teach you all those skills carefully. As for the matter of cooperation, I will also try my best to persuade the other children!"

Yan Yunqing noticed that after Xiao Ai finished speaking, a prompt from the game panel popped up in front of him.

【'Xiao Ai' imparts to you the skills [Strategy·Observation]

[Tactical Planning·Calculation][Application of Lies]...】

【Do you wish to spend 176 skill points to learn?】

Yan Yunqing did a tactical lean back, how much?