Zhou Huai withdrew his thoughts and scanned the list of nurous instance dungeons, finally settling on an inconspicuous door.
【Instance Dungeon: Undead Castle (LV50), Suggested Players: 50】
He spoke plainly, "This one."
The Second Lieutenant froze for a mont, then hesitantly reminded him, "Sir, this instance dungeon requires a team of fifty people to open. Are you... alone?"
Zhou Huai did not answer, rely handing over the black Command Token that Zhao Qingcang had given him.
The mont the Second Lieutenant saw the Command Token, his pupils shrank abruptly, and the hesitation on his face instantly turned into absolute respect and ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ obedience.
He received the token with both hands and bowed respectfully.
"Understood, Sir!"
"I will imdiately activate the highest-authority single-player mode for you!"
The Second Lieutenant quickly walked to the control panel in front of the door and inserted the Command Token into the slot.
"Beep—Authority confird. Marshal Zhao Qingcang's Command Token."
"Mode switching... Single-player Challenge Mode activated."
The control panel emitted a cold, synthesized electronic voice.
The energy vortex, which had been slowly rotating in the center of the giant circular door, suddenly accelerated.
Zhou Huai nodded at the Second Lieutenant, considering it a thank you.
Afterward, he didn't linger, controlling Gandalf to walk straight toward the massive door radiating an ominous aura.
He stepped inside.
Space twisted, and light and shadow shifted.
The scene before him was instantly swallowed by endless darkness.
Having placed Gandalf inside the instance dungeon.
The rest was left for the smart core ai to handle.
The current Zhou Huai was exceptionally busy and truly had no ti to experience the military's instance dungeon scene.
His consciousness shifted again.
Tokyo City, Takamagahara District.
The night was inky black, and the residual light of the neon signs was blocked outside by thick curtains.
Caesar sat cross-legged on a black leather sofa, his eyes slightly closed.
Data streams scrolled across the screen like a waterfall.
【Gained Experience 90】
【Gained Experience 115】
【Gained Experience 88】
...
Currently, the number of Alien Parasites scattered throughout Tokyo City had surpassed the six thousand mark.
This was a terrifying number.
It ant that, at this very mont, over six thousand Professionals in Sakura Country were tirelessly serving as Zhou Huai's "workers."
They sweated and struggled against Exotic Beasts in various instance dungeons, and fought desperately against monsters in the wild.
Yet, one-tenth of the fruits of their hard labor silently flowed into Caesar's experience bar.
Many a little makes a mickle; gathering grains of sand to build a pagoda.
The experience bar in the backend, representing the Rank, was skyrocketing at a heart-stopping pace.
Less than half a bar remained until Rank 23.
At this rate, Caesar might level up again after tonight.
This kind of "AFK leveling" satisfaction was truly captivating.
At the sa ti.
A strange atmosphere was quietly spreading throughout the major leveling areas surrounding Tokyo City.
"Baka! What's going on?"
A Warrior who had just slain an Ironclad Rhinoceros looked at the settlent panel, frowning and spitting with annoyance.
"What's wrong, Kenta-kun?" asked his teammate, wiping his Staff nearby.
"The experience points are wrong."
The Warrior scratched his head, full of suspicion: "I've killed this Ironclad Rhinoceros before; it clearly gave 1000 experience points. Why is it only 900 today?"
The teammate was startled upon hearing this, then checked his own panel, and his expression turned strange.
"Huh? It seems you're right."
"The proficiency gain from my Fireball Spell just now also slowed down."
The two looked at each other.
This subtle difference would be hard to notice imdiately unless one was a veteran particularly sensitive to data.
But once discovered, the sense of incongruity lingered.
"Did the instance dungeon glitch?"
"Or did... the officials secretly change the drop rate and experience multiplier?"
The Warrior grew angrier the more he thought about it, cursing indignantly: "These damned capitalists! They even deduct this little bit of experience! We paid hefty entrance fees!"
"Exactly! It must be those guys sitting in air-conditioned offices pulling strings, trying to make us buy more Double Experience Cards. They have no sha!"
Similar complaints rose and fell across every corner of Tokyo City.
So complained in the guild channel, and others posted questions on forums.
But the vast majority ultimately pointed the finger at the non-existent "greedy officials" or "instance dungeon chanism adjustnts."
After all.
Who could imagine that the missing 10% of experience points was actually "stolen" by tiny, microscopic Parasites invisible to the naked eye?
Moreover, this Parasitism was extrely covert, showing no negative status effects.
Even Advanced detectors in hospitals would struggle to find these small things clinging to the edge of the Sea of Spirit, unless specifically scanning the Soul level.
Zhou Huai listened to the occasional curses relayed through the Parasites in his mind, and a playful smile curved his lips.
Go ahead and curse.
The harder you curse, the more motivated you are.
As long as they don't discover the truth, he felt perfectly justified in using this free labor force.
Since he was fleecing Sakura Country, he felt no psychological burden whatsoever.
He even considered it a form of "alternative patriotic behavior."
After confirming the stable operation of the Parasite network, Zhou Huai slowly opened his eyes.
He stood up, adjusted his clothes, and walked toward the inner room.
That was the Quiet Room Nakamura Shin'ichirō had specially arranged for him.
It was also where Natsu Rinku was sleeping.
Pushing open the rustic wooden sliding door.
A faint scent of Sandalwood mixed with the unique fragrance of a young girl wafted over him.
The room was dimly lit, with only a floor lamp emitting a warm yellow glow.
The girl who had been lying on the Tatami Mat was now awake.
She wasn't screaming or running around.
She was just hugging her knees, curled up in the corner, watching the doorway warily like a frightened small animal.
Hearing the door open.
Natsu Rinku's body trembled violently, and her already pale small face instantly lost its last trace of color.
She raised her head.
Her large eyes were filled with terror, helplessness, and deep confusion.
"W-who are you?"
Her voice trembled, clearly on the verge of tears.
"W-why am I here?"
Zhou Huai did not answer imdiately.
He stood in the doorway, hands in his pockets, quietly observing the girl before him.
Her eyes were clear, filled with fear of the unknown.
There was no tyrannical or chilling aura.
It seed that the one currently controlling the body was Natsu Rinku's original Primary Personality.
The little girl who was only twelve years old but carried a heavy destiny.
Zhou Huai felt a slight surprise in his heart.
This girl's will to survive was even more tenacious than he had expected.
He knew that the "thing" inside her was not simple.
That level of ntal oppression would have likely caused an adult to suffer a ntal breakdown and completely beco a Puppet.
Yet, this little girl, after enduring such prolonged ntal tornt.
Was still able to regain control of her body.
This in itself was a miracle.
Or perhaps, her Soul resilience far surpassed that of ordinary people.
Zhou Huai didn't speak; he just stepped into the room and closed the door behind him.
As he approached, the fear in Natsu Rinku's eyes intensified, and her body desperately shrank backward until her spine was pressed tightly against the cold wall, with nowhere left to retreat.
"D-don't co closer..."
She grabbed a pillow nearby and held it in front of her, as if it were her only shield.
Zhou Huai stopped, standing two ters away from her.
With a thought.
The muscles and bones of his face began to undergo subtle displacent, and the texture of his skin instantly reorganized.
In the blink of an eye.
That unremarkable passerby face instantly transford into the appearance of Natsu Masahiro.
The man with dyed yellow hair and a rogue expression, yet Natsu Rinku's only "relative" in this world.
Seeing this familiar face.
Natsu Rinku froze.
Imdiately, the pillow in her hand slipped away.
She cautiously peered out and tentatively called out:
"B-Brother?"
Wearing Natsu Masahiro's face, Zhou Huai nodded with a calm expression.
He did not try to play the role of the hypocritical brother who showed concern; instead, he pulled over a chair and sat down opposite her.
Getting straight to the point.
"Do you know the situation with your body right now?"
Upon hearing this, the faint light that had just appeared in Natsu Rinku's eyes instantly dimd.
She lowered her head, gripping the hem of her clothes tightly with both hands, her knuckles turning white from the effort.
After a long silence.
She finally nodded gently, her voice faint as a mosquito's buzz:
"I know..."
"There's a big sister living... inside my body."
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