Chapter 23 "College Student" (Starting with a reverse V) You have switched to the main role...
After walking and walking, Jian Dieda finally stepped out of the script world. Just as his soul was about to escape the darkness, he heard a voice different from the small system suddenly appear.
[“Host, your first reincarnation mission has ended.”] The mechanical voice felt like a different kind of artificial intelligence.
"If you're not a idiot leader, then who are you?" Jian Dieda's hoarse voice sounded like he had been crying.
The much more aloof Second System said, "You can call me 'Narrator.' I am indeed not the system you first met. In our company, it is mainly responsible for pulling players into 'reincarnation,' while I arrange each 'reincarnation' of the players."
Why do the functions of these two systems sound so familiar?
Jian Dieda asked, "Your so-called company isn't really in the underworld, is it? You and Tongzi are like the messengers of death and Meng Po in the underworld?"
The aloof leader said, "I'm sorry, this involves classified information, I cannot disclose it."
Jane Dieda's aura turned cold at the mystery surrounding the game. He asked, "If I'm 'dead,' where do I go next? Am I still alive in reality?"
Cold and aloof system: ["Respected host, you did not die in reality. You only briefly entered the game for one night as a player. This system will safely send you home, but due to confidentiality clauses, would you be willing to drink the Meng Po soup to erase your emotional memories with the character?"]
Jane Dieda was silent for several seconds before saying, "...Yes." There's no point in keeping it any longer; all that's left is the heartache of never seeing any ending.
["Okay, beep, the little police officer's character memories have been moved to the recycle bin. This system will retain your memory fragments for the next five levels. 3, 2, 1, Player has logged out of the system. Welcome to log in again."]
The thick, dark fog descended once more.
The last thing System Number Two, who was cold to the core, left behind was this sentence.
...
Date: Wednesday, August 30, 2023
Location: City A
On a June or July night, the person who woke up in front of the computer convulsed a few times before regaining their normal memories from the time travel.
Well.
Broken and weary moans escaped from his thin lips.
Jane touched his forehead and looked around. He felt like his brain was a DVD rewinding. After the game crashed, he tried to re-enter, but then he lost his memory.
The light in front of him wasn't bright, but it suited his habit of staying up late to write, so the screenwriter's eyesight regarding the indoor environment had been restored.
At this moment, Jian Dieda saw the paused image of the female ghost on the computer screen and suddenly remembered his own bizarre experience of staying up all night.
Previously, he went to watch a horror movie to find material for his script, but was pulled away by the "stay-at-night system." Then he managed to escape by successfully completing the levels on his own. But why does he seem to have no memory of the specific characters in that game anymore?
Well, as long as I don't die suddenly.
The young screenwriter rubbed his temples with one hand, took out his phone and a cigarette, and lit a post-coital cigarette.
Lost in some meaningless thoughts, Jane closed her laptop and then drew back the curtains.
As the morning light, around six o'clock, streamed into the room, the full appearance of the house's owner was completely revealed.
At first glance, one can see that Jian Dieda has a face that would be considered a god-like figure in real life. His eyes are wise and simple, and his movements are neat and efficient.
Upon closer inspection, he was nearly 183 cm tall. Wearing a lead-colored fitted shirt and trousers, he was tall and thin, with a slim waist and long legs, making him incredibly handsome.
In addition, Jian Dieda, who has the mentality of a lonely old man, also has the temperament of a scholar and a sense of ascetic high intelligence.
He was only twenty-four years old.
Despite being an orphan, he could display a row of gleaming gold medal certificates for literary awards on his table, and the various published books on his bookshelf were all signed with his pen name.
[Blade Man]
An hour later, Jane Dieda's college junior and his book agent called, and their conversation further confirmed that Jane was working in the top-tier writing industry.
[Pangding]: "Senior! Are you there? Did you stay up all night watching horror movies again last night?!"
[Simplified]: "Yeah, the ghost marriage movie you recommended is so bad again. The female ghost is fake, and the ghosts are all people in disguise. It's boring."
[Pangding]: "[Picking nose] That's what Chinese horror is all about. The key is the ghost bride element, which is very appealing. You could incorporate it into your next work. There's a trend of domestic drama lately, so let's make a suspenseful horror story with two women and one man from the last century..."
Jian Dieda felt inexplicably irritable. He suddenly didn't want to see these words, and his heart felt like it had been stabbed through by a knife, leaving him feeling lost and bewildered.
Jane Dieda coldly refused, saying:
"I don't want to write."
"What?" the junior asked.
Jian Dieda: "I won't write about ghost brides, love crimes from the 1990s, or Chinese horror."
The junior was stunned: "But you risked going bald in your early twenties, staying up all night every day, and collecting materials for almost half a year..."
"It's only been half a year," Jian Dieda said, his feelings a mix of emotions. He then changed the subject, "Let's talk about something else. What do you want from me so early?"
Upon hearing this, the junior brother decisively gave up trying to provoke him and started telling him some good things about his senior brother.
"Oh, is that so, senior? Recently, a film and television company in the industry wants to adapt one of your detective novels. They're asking for four million for the rights. Do you have time to come over and have dinner with their representative?"
Little did she know that her flattery had backfired, and the screenwriter became even angrier. "Don't give me this useless nonsense. On the day we signed the contract, didn't I say that I would only publish books and not show my face? The identity behind this mysterious guise would never be revealed to anyone?"
Even through the screen, you could tell that my senior, this handsome guy, was in a bad mood today.
It looks a bit like a cat with its fur standing on end and a grumpy face.
It's kind of cute in a contrast, but his senior brother doesn't show any emotion when he gets angry, he's like a robot.
Based on past experience, the junior student thought that the withdrawn writer, Jian, had started experiencing creative anxiety again after staying up all night.
He hurriedly began to apologize: "Ahem, yes, senior, you are a low-key and socially awkward suspense novelist, but your fans are just so eager to know your true self. Who can blame them when you are so naturally talented? Besides, with your looks alone, if you were to show your face, wouldn't that change your 'knife-wielding protégé' persona, which is famous for ruthlessly killing your protagonists, and make those haters fall for you..."
Jane Dieda's heart was no longer calm: Who is this brat calling a knife spirit? I'm really angry.
...
When she was unhappy, the screenwriter slammed the door shut, cutting off all contact with the outside world once again.
The junior student cried and wailed, "Waaah, senior, you can refuse social engagements and then block me on WeChat, but don't make yourself faint at home again. Remember to order takeout for all three meals. Even if you don't want to talk to the delivery person, don't forget that you are a carbon-based life form..."
Jane Diedda: "..."
A few seconds later, the screenwriter accepted the kindness from his junior. Out of consideration for their past relationship, he asked an extra question: "Don't turn down the last script either. You need to make a living too. Why don't you ask that film company for me if I write a niche film with a campus setting, combining crime, feng shui, and horror elements? Would they want it?"
Junior: "Campus!! How many main characters are there? What aspect of feng shui is involved?"
“The five elements,” Jian Dieda pondered. “There should be two protagonists, two storylines. They are the most important people to each other and will go from enemies to a special relationship in the case.”
"What...two men...a crime-solving relationship..." The junior student misunderstood, "Senior, are you going to write pure romance novels?!"
Pure love? A pure love story? Jane nodded, agreeing with the other person's point of view: "There might be a romantic element." It will probably be arranged outside the main plot.
In an instant, the junior's thoughts began to diverge completely from Jian Dieda's. The junior didn't know that in Jian Dieda's eyes, this 'pure love' was not the same as that pure love. But the market for adaptations with two male leads was so huge, wouldn't the 'heartbreaker' reap both fame and fortune? Earning tens of millions a year?
So the two hit it off immediately, and Jian Dieda finally said to his junior, "Pang Ding, do you know any real estate agencies?"
"You want to move? Isn't that the last memory Professor Jian and Dr. Du left you?"
Jian Dieda couldn't bear to leave his parents' house. He had never wanted to move since he was a child, but he had another plan in mind: "No, I've been staying at home for too long. I want to find a partner to start a side business, open a... murder mystery game shop. Maybe it can stimulate my inspiration."
Junior: "Okay, I'll ask for you!"
From then on, Jian Dieda once again began to study behind closed doors. He wanted to find inspiration, but he was always missing a crucial element in his second campus script.
To make matters worse, the screenwriter, engrossed in creating the script, was working overtime all night. His memory-deprived brain hadn't paid attention to the time, and before he knew it, it was three in the morning. Suddenly, the handsome man with black-rimmed glasses felt his body, which had been feeling weak for days, sink again. After a strange darkness fell before his eyes, the voice in his head was the one he knew best—the little bald system.
"Ding! The new story 'College Student' has been sent to your mailbox. Please accept the new unfinished script! Enter the unfinished story that no one can write the ending for!"
"………………"
Jane was stunned.
Not again?
After becoming a police officer, do I have to go back to school?
Does this mean that every time he stays up late, he'll be repeatedly pulled in alone to suffer this torment?
The shameless dictator stepped forward to provide an answer:
"No, you have teammates now. Aren't you happy or surprised?"
Who's so unlucky? Jane Dieda didn't want to talk anymore.
Of course, it's those reckless night owls. The system uses the company's required qualities to attract the players who have cleared the level: "In view of your excellent performance last time, the company is now awarding you a police officer promotion card."
"If I'm not going to be a policeman, what will I become?" Apart from the fact that the outcome was good, Jian Dieda couldn't quite remember how he passed the test last time.
"You will be the presiding judge of the case."
"...Could you explain what a host is?"
"The one who sees the big picture, we'll call him DM for short," the system announced, bestowing upon the 'Junior Police Officer' the promotion to 'College Student' and granting him an exclusive cheat code. "Dear Host, quickly gather those night owls who don't want to sleep until 3 a.m., and solve cases with your bald head!"
-----------------------
Author's Note: The second university campus world begins!
Generally, infinite-play games emphasize the sense of terror brought by the dungeon locations.
However, the main theme of this story is a live-action murder mystery game, and the various 'roles' played by Jianzi are the actual titles of each episode.
Also, some commenters guessed correctly, haha! The "stay-up-all-nighter system" isn't some second-rate subsystem, but a legitimate organization! Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants between 2023-08-28 11:18:54 and 2023-08-30 23:00:49!
Thank you to the little angels who threw landmines: Buster, Shengyunzhouyu, Binge Eating Half-Awake Half-Sleepy, and Peace and Joy 1;
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Gusu Bujin Ni 86 bottles; Cha Xiaobai 72 bottles; Shezhaoren, Wuyan Yishang 50 bottles; Jintian Xishang, Zhenhe 20 bottles; Naicha Duojia Bing 15 bottles; Taichu 10 bottles; Ajianjian 8 bottles; Baimao Aishui Lanjuan, Fengdaiwo, Dajiangyoude 1 bottle;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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