MMPS Ch. 38

Chapter 38: Speedrun

Yu An took the USB drive without hesitation: “I’m fine with it. The question is whether the streamer in charge with drawing traffic will be willing to play this.”

Zhao Ran smiled faintly, his tone relaxed: “He doesn’t have a choice. He’s already been… assigned to cooperate. I’ve sent people to ensure his safety.”

At that very moment, a knock echoed against Huang Qi’s front door.

Outside, a man and a woman stood in matching uniforms, their attire bearing the insignia of the Underground Metro Emergency Order Unit. The woman, Xiao An, whose silk scarf added a soft touch to her sharp uniform, offered a slight bow: “Good day, Mr. Huang, we’re here on behalf of Mr. Zhao to ensure your safety. Here are our credentials.”

The man beside her,  Xiao Qi, remained stoic. Without a word, he handed over a USB drive, his tone leaving no room for argument. “Play this next.”

Huang Qi’s gaze dropped to the label on the USB, and his stomach tightened. Grey Crow: Toy House. It was the new game his company had been tirelessly promoting for release. The same game that had nearly ruined him—physically and mentally. He’d sworn never to touch it again. Yet, here it was, back in his hands, inescapable.

This wasn’t just a game. He knew that much. Players reported strange occurrences: the sound of knocking at their doors, voices when there should have been silence. When he’d asked the company’s developers, they brushed it off—not a bug, they said. But his colleagues whispered otherwise, calling the game cursed. Huang Qi didn’t need rumors; he had experienced its malevolence firsthand.

His voice wavered as he clutched the USB: “Can you really protect me? If something dangerous happens while I’m streaming, I’ll shut it down immediately. You can’t force me to keep playing, can you?”

Xiao An’s smile was light but carried an undercurrent of confidence. She waved a dismissive hand: “Of course. If anything unusual happens, you’re free to leave. Leave us to handle the rest. Our job is to ensure nothing harms you. That’s the duty of the Underground Metro Emergency Order Unit. Rest assured.”

With palpable hesitation, Huang Qi accepted the USB and returned to his setup. Once he confirmed the two operatives had stationed themselves in the blind spots of his camera, he put on his brightest smile for the audience.

“Hey, viewers! I’m back!” His voice brimmed with forced enthusiasm. “Look what I just got—an exclusive preview of Grey Crow: Toy House, the latest game from my company. It’s set to launch soon, and rumor has it there are new scenes. Lucky for you, I’m an insider, so we get to try it first!”

The chat exploded with excitement. Grey Crow’s previous demo had left a strong impression. Set in a plague-stricken village within a Euro-fantasy world, the game’s intricate details and innovative mechanics had captivated players. Many called it a masterpiece in the making. Yet, for reasons unknown, the demo had been pulled from circulation. Speculation about its return had fueled anticipation ever since.

Huang Qi continued, pitching to his audience with all the energy he could muster: “I’ve played the Plague Village level before, but I’m sure some of you haven’t seen it yet. Let’s start fresh with a new save. Plus, today we have Coal Black joining us for co-op! He’s more of a technical player, so if you want to see his perspective, check out the link below.”

From his peripheral vision, Huang Qi noticed the two operatives standing silently in the corner, their eyes fixed on him. He didn’t dare slack off. Following company directives, he funneled traffic toward Coal Black’s stream, all the while covertly sending tips to the other streamer via his phone.

“Engage with the audience.” he typed. “Read questions from the chat and respond. Talk more! The aloof persona doesn’t work long-term!”

Coal Black’s reply was succinct: “Got it.”

Back in the command room, Zhao Ran observed the unfolding situation with a faint smile. He had deployed both the group’s good luck charm and their strongest fighter to safeguard Huang Qi. It was a clear indication of how dangerous this Aberrant was—far more formidable than the goat-headed man from the county hospital or the surgeon from the beauty clinic.

Hunched on a swivel chair, Yu An hugged his knees: “So Huang Qi gets two bodyguards. What about me?”

Zhao Ran sat cross-legged on the bed, propping his head up with a hand, his smile teasing: “I’m all you’ve got left. You’ll have to make do.”

Yu An rested his chin on his knees, his long lashes casting delicate shadows as he glanced up: “That’s acceptable. You’ll do.”

As if on cue, his phone buzzed incessantly. He glanced at the message, then wordlessly booted up Grey Crow: Toy House. Selecting the co-op mode, he sighed.

“What did he say?” Zhao Ran asked.

“He wants me to interact more with the audience—read their questions and answer them.”

“Think of it like answering questions in class. Don’t overthink it.”

“Oh.”

Yu An stared at the screen, building his resolve. Then, with evident effort, he turned on his microphone and spoke in a flat, mechanical tone:

“Why don’t you show your face on stream? Because I’m ugly.”

“How old are you? Born in ’99.”

“Do you game full-time? No, it’s an assignment from my boss.”

“Why? Because my boss is stingy. He wants one person to do the work of three. I’ve tried to quit, but my superior keeps gaslighting me, pretending not to care—Mm!”

A hand clamped over his mouth.

Kao Pu covered his mouth as Zhao Ran leaned in, gesturing wildly. “Focus! Talk about the game! Pretend you’re teaching me how to play.”

Yu An was merely socially anxious, not quiet by nature. When he ignored the fact that the audience beyond the screen was made up of real, living people, all that remained by his side was Zhao Ran and the flickering words on the screen.

Elsewhere, Huang Qi had entered the co-op lobby, and the character selection screen appeared. Three options: the Pumpkin-Headed Warrior, the Fierce Witch, and the Potion Master.

Huang Qi narrated for his audience: “The Fierce Witch is the strongest by far—a combat mage. Her staff can cast spells and bash enemies. High damage, very beginner-friendly. If you’re cornered, just swing your way out.”

“The Potion Master? More of a support role. He gathers materials to craft potions, but he’s pretty useless in solo mode—or maybe I just don’t know how to play him properly.”

“And the Pumpkin-Headed Warrior? Super hard to use. Very skill-dependent. He has a special weapon, the Noble Musket, but bullets are incredibly scarce. After two shots, you have to reload, and while it deals massive damage, the aim has to be perfect. Miss, and it’s wasted.”

Without hesitation, Coal Black chose the Pumpkin-Headed Warrior.

Huang Qi laughed nervously: “You like a challenge, huh? Have you played this level before?”

Coal Black replied truthfully: “Yeah, but I just speedran it. Didn’t explore much or watch the cutscenes.”

Every gamer has their own style. Some savor the exploration, collecting every achievement and hidden treasure. Others revel in the rush of beating the game as quickly as possible. Yu An was the latter, always looking for glitches to exploit.

“Perfect. Let’s follow the main storyline together.” Huang Qi suggested. “I’ve never tried co-op before, so the difficulty will probably scale up.” He selected the Fierce Witch, and the game began.

The co-op opening animation differed from the single-player version. The Fierce Witch strode confidently forward, her staff resting on her shoulder. Dangling from the end, hooked by the collar of his shirt, was the Pumpkin-Headed Warrior, his slouched figure bouncing helplessly with each step.

The two characters awakened in the darkened village. It wasn’t hard to see why the Fierce Witch was considered the easier option—she started with a gem-encrusted staff. The Pumpkin-Headed Warrior, by contrast, arrived empty-handed, forced to scavenge for weapons.

Yu An picked up a [Worn Hatchet], a placeholder weapon to fend off enemies until he found his Noble Musket.

The game’s true allure lay in its exploration. Victory didn’t hinge on finding your designated weapon. Players could pour effort into upgrading a humble hatchet, imbuing it with enough power to cut a boss’s health in half with a single swing.

The pair wandered through the village, shrouded in heavy nightfall. Most houses were locked, their windows barred. Yet outside, vicious guard dogs prowled. Step too close, and they’d lunge, jaws snapping with feral intensity.

The first enemy appeared, a lone [Mad Dog], snarling and rabid, its matted fur clinging to a skeletal frame. Its bloodshot eyes locked onto Yu An as if sensing fresh prey. This was but a tutorial in aggression, crafted to familiarize a new player in the environemnt. 

Initially, only one appeared, but after a short while, five suddenly pounced, transforming the tranquil setting into chaos. Yu An, gripping his machete, struck just as the first Mad Dog leaped forward, the blade slicing through the air with a sharp whistle. The creature crashed to the ground, only to rise again, relentless in its pursuit. With a blend of skill and instinct, Yu An retreated, landing two more decisive strikes before the Mad Dog finally collapsed, defeated.

In stark contrast, Huang Qi’s witch wielded her staff with ease, dispatching a Mad Dog with a single swing, a testament to her overwhelming damage output. 

As Yu An collected a [Mad Dog Tooth] which could be affixed to his hatchet to boost its attack power by three points, he noticed a gathering of villagers not far away. They stood shoulder to shoulder in a circle, their faces etched with concern, engaged in a hushed discussion that felt almost conspiratorial.

“What a strange person.” one whispered, casting a wary glance. 

“We can’t let him in.” Another added. 

“He seems to have an infectious disease. If we allow him entry, we might all fall ill.” 

Their furtive glances led Yu An’s eyes to the wooden fence, where a gaunt beggar clung desperately to the slats. His sunken eyes and pallid complexion evoked a sense of dread, as he occasionally twitched like a zombie on the brink of transformation. Even the most oblivious observer could sense that something was profoundly wrong.

Huang Qi, having traversed the main storyline, knew the dark turn this encounter would take. Soon, a saintly NPC would emerge, urging the villagers to let the beggar inside. Once granted entry, the beggar would succumb to illness, transforming into the first elite monster players faced in this eerie setting: the [Sick Traveler]. For inexperienced players, this encounter was a nightmare; once the beggar lost half his health, he would roll on the ground and unleash a terrifying roar, summoning all the nearby Mad Dogs to join the fray. Players had to navigate this chaos, battling the beggar while remaining vigilant for lurking threats. Many novices panicked, succumbing to fear and dying multiple times before they found success.

True to form, a righteous youth stepped forward from the crowd, his voice earnest yet naive. “He’s just a poor passerby; if we take him in, our compassion will surely bring us good fortune.” 

Just as the villagers appeared swayed, a pumpkin-headed warrior leaped into the scene, swinging his hatchet without hesitation, striking the righteous youth down in an instant. The youth collapsed, lifeless, in a pool of blood. The fence remained closed, and the elite monster—the [Sick Traveler]—did not trigger.

The comments erupted with question marks, a chorus of confusion and disbelief. 

“This game is brilliantly crafted.” Yu An mused, a smirk creeping across his face. “Characters like this in movies always made me want to strike them down.” 

Huang Qi, equally astonished, wondered if such actions were even possible. 

The audience buzzed with commentary, someone noting: “That righteous youth is the son of Priest Iman. If you kill him here, the mini-boss Priest Iman will go berserk later, becoming nearly impossible to defeat.”

Yet, after the righteous youth’s demise, he dropped an unexpected item—a noble musket, the exclusive weapon of the pumpkin-headed warrior. 

“This gun should only be found near the charred corpse at the altar.” Yu An murmured, picking up the musket, which came with two rounds and four spare bullets. 

The audience erupted in panic on the screen: “Don’t pick up the gun!! If you do, you’ll have to fight Priest Iman!”

Amid the chaos, the villagers scattered in terror. Suddenly, all exits for the players were blocked by wooden spikes, sealing their escape. The ground illuminated with a seven-pointed star glyph, and from the light emerged an elderly woman cloaked in a black priestess gown, her eyes obscured by a dark cloth.

Her figure flickered unsettlingly, appearing and disappearing in the open space, sometimes drawing close to the players, sometimes retreating into the shadows, her voice a haunting whisper: “You killed him… and publicly exposed his secret. I have no choice but to let the flames of the altar interrogate your sins.” 

Exposed his secret? Was it the gun that fell out of the righteous youth?

The elderly woman accelerated her movements, teleporting with a speed that defied belief, barely lingering in one spot before vanishing. She reappeared behind Huang Qi’s witch, raising a pendant with a voice that trembled with age: “Repent, child.” 

A circle of seven-pointed star magic array manifested beneath the witch, flames surging from the light. Huang Qi’s heart raced as he maneuvered the witch to evade the impending attack, but the flames spread too widely. As he swung his staff to counter, he felt the searing heat, losing half his health in a single moment of carelessness.

If he had followed the narrative, Priest Iman would be a boss encountered in the mid to late game, when players had better weapons and more health, not like this—utterly defenseless against the onslaught. After activating the magic array, the elderly woman retreated to a distance, chanting a spell that caused the ground to tremble, spikes erupting violently where players tread.

Fortunately, Huang Qi’s reflexes were sharp; he leaped and dodged, narrowly avoiding the spikes’ deadly grasp. 

“Coal Black-ge, you’re really a pain! You just killed that guy’s son!” Huang Qi exclaimed, racing away from the spikes, dodging the elderly woman’s relentless attacks. He could only evade while searching for an opportunity to strike back. 

Meanwhile, Yu An was fully focused, observing the elderly woman’s attack patterns: “She only teleports along the fourteen intersection points of the seven-pointed star patterns on the ground, first clockwise, then counterclockwise. We can predict where she’ll appear next.”

“Even if I predict it, I can’t get close!” Huang Qi responded, frustration creeping into his voice. 

Bang!

Suddenly, a gunshot rang out. The elderly woman was struck in the forehead, her eyes rolling back as her hands dropped, momentarily stiffening. Yu An’s noble musket smoked ominously as he issued a terse command: “Smash her.”

“Alright, I’m going.” Huang Qi replied, maneuvering the witch closer, unleashing a flurry of strikes on the old woman. For a brief moment, she was frozen, but then she regained her ability to move, vanishing just as quickly as she appeared, and the spikes erupted once more.

Yu An remained calm. “I think I’ve got the hang of this; let’s finish this fast.” With that, another gunshot reverberated through the air. The moment the elderly woman teleported into view, a bullet struck her head, freezing her in place. Huang Qi synchronized with Yu An’s rhythm; as soon as the elderly woman was hit, he charged in, smashing her with the staff.

In the instant she stiffened and disappeared, Yu An had already reloaded, firing another bullet that kept her immobilized, preventing her from teleporting away. Six shots from the flintlock hit their mark without fail, perfectly timed to keep the elderly woman trapped, allowing Huang Qi’s witch to unleash a relentless barrage without needing to move.

With a final strike of the staff, Priest Iman’s eyes bled, her black robe igniting in flames, and she transformed into black smoke, absorbed by the seven-pointed star magic array on the ground. The light gradually faded, and a line of subtitles appeared on the screen—

Those who judge others with fire will ultimately be judged by fire.

Under Yu An’s masterful control, two characters that landed less than ten minutes ago managed to defeat the berserk mid-boss, Priest Iman. The bullet screen shifted from a sea of question marks to a frenzy of admiration and awe. Huang Qi watched the live stream’s popularity soar, realizing that the company would likely seize this moment to buy some exposure.

Yu An leaned back in his chair, resting his weary eyes. He could only use one eye, and staring at the screen for too long took its toll. 

Knock, knock.

Suddenly, a soft knock echoed through the room. It seemed someone was at the door…