I'll also work hard to conquer the dungeon today.

Chapter 655, Section 2.5, Chapter 0: The House of Silk and the Dollhouse

"Is this the fairytale kingdom's famous doll town? It doesn't seem quite like what I imagined," the woman said thoughtfully, scanning the streets.

The central fountain had been destroyed not long ago and was now just a ruin. The gloomy sky gave off an unsettling feeling, and there was hardly anyone else on the street except for them.

“How desolate…” The woman’s gaze suddenly fell on the ruins of the fountain not far away, where a man with messy, wine-red hair whose face was obscured lay, with several bottles of wine lying beside him.

A look of disgust flashed across the woman's eyes. "Ugh~ There's a drunk here. How filthy."

The man beside him scolded, "Shut up. We're here to explore the dungeon, not to comment on the town's environment."

"I just don't like it," the woman muttered to herself, and reluctantly followed.

“Found it, the House of Silk…this is it!” The woman, holding the map in both hands, turned around and said to her companion.

"Then, let's go," said the man in the middle.

The girl in the green hoodie with her hair in three braids frowned and said worriedly, "I hope nothing will happen. I heard that quite a few players have died in this dungeon."

The woman holding the map reassured him, "Don't worry, we have a walkthrough, we'll definitely be able to beat it."

The woman snorted coldly and said disdainfully, "If you're scared and don't want to go, then just wait for us to come out at the door."

The girl hesitated and said, "I think it's better to be cautious. The strategy guide may not be completely correct, otherwise..." How come no one has cleared this dungeon yet?
"Aren't you annoying, Xie Yiyi? You've been nagging on and on. If you don't want to come with us, just say so. I knew I shouldn't have brought you." The woman said angrily, her face tense.

"How am I being long-winded? I'm just reminding you," Xie Yiyi said stubbornly, her brows furrowed.

"Alright, you stay here. We're leaving. Don't worry about her." The woman gave her a cold glance and urged the others to enter the shop.

Xie Yiyi pursed her pink lips, but ultimately didn't muster the courage to follow.

The wooden door was pushed open and the copper bell rang.

The group went inside and were greeted by a puppeteer standing behind a wooden counter, just as described in the legends.

Exaggerated white powder covered her entire face, yet even so, the scars were still clearly visible, patched up like patches, with no patch of skin intact. At first glance, it was terrifying, like a living, breathing Frankenstein's monster straight out of a horror movie.

The puppeteer slightly raised his eyes, staring at them with his murky, azure eyes, a strange smile on his face. This sent a chill down the spines of the four of them, as if they were being watched by something dangerous.

The surrounding wooden shelves were filled with all sorts of exquisitely crafted dolls, some lying down, some sitting, some standing, all posing in various graceful postures. However, the sheer number of them was enough to make one's scalp tingle.

Whether it was just their imagination or not, the four of them felt that the puppets were watching them. Even though there was nothing there, they had a feeling of being constantly watched, which made them really want to open the door and escape from here immediately.

"Welcome to the House of Silk," the puppeteer, Joan, said with a light laugh. The woman flinched, as if an invisible hand had gripped her throat, rendering her completely speechless.

The woman holding the map gently patted the woman's stiff hand and comforted her, "Don't be nervous, we have a guide, just follow the guide."

Foreword to the Guide: [The Silk House dungeon is a rare dungeon with multiple irreversible Bad Ending (BE) storylines that create a chain of pitfalls. According to my investigation, the number of deaths in this dungeon has reached hundreds of thousands, with 60% of those deaths occurring at the first entrance after being questioned. But don't worry, thanks to everyone's efforts, the guide is finally here.]
Walkthrough: [First, upon entering, you will be asked by the puppeteer to show your ticket.]
"Dear customers, please show your tickets." The puppeteer tapped twice on the wooden counter with his withered fingers and said slowly.

[Tickets? Do you have tickets? How could you possibly have tickets? In fact, you wouldn't even have realized tickets existed before he spoke. So, based on your subsequent behavior, there are two possibilities: 1. You ask about tickets; 2. You ignore the puppeteer and continue walking forward.]
[Generally speaking, a normal person would choose to 'firstly ask about the tickets.' After all, unless someone is extremely shameless, no one would feel guilty and want to buy tickets when asked for them; this is normal psychology. If you are asked to show your tickets when you don't have them, a normal person would ask about the tickets and want to buy them.]
[However... please be mindful of your surroundings. You're not in an amusement park, scenic area, or exhibition hall—places that require tickets. The 'Silk House' you've entered is just a shop; there's no reason you should have to pay for a ticket to buy anything. The moment you ask a question here, a Bad Ending will immediately trigger, turning you into a puppeteer, and escape is impossible—meaning this ending is guaranteed.]
[Therefore, you must choose 'Second, ignore the puppeteer and keep walking forward'. Of course, this doesn't mean you should walk aimlessly, but rather pretend to look at the merchandise and dolls on the shelf while walking forward until you see a doll with its eyes closed.]
[Upon seeing the puppet with its eyes closed, immediately point at it and inquire about its price, thus initiating a series of quests within the dungeon. Once the puppeteer answers, congratulations, you've officially begun your dungeon raid.]
[The time limit from when the puppeteer asks for your ticket to when the puppeteer speaks to the closed-eyed puppet is 360 seconds. This means you have 6 minutes to find it among hundreds of puppets, which will severely test your eyesight. Since the closed-eyed puppet's position changes each time, you'll have to rely on your own efforts.]
"Hurry up and find it, the countdown is starting," the woman with the map urged in a low voice.

The puppeteer watched the subtle actions of the group with a strange smile on his face. He didn't speak but waited quietly for something.

His fingers tapped rhythmically on the table, 'thump' 'thump' 'thump', as if counting down.

The four paced anxiously in front of the shelf, listening to the rhythmic knocking sound, their anxiety and panic growing.

The 'thump' sound stopped abruptly at a certain moment.

The four of them froze, turning back shakily to look at the puppeteer who was watching them with a light smile.

"Have you found it?" The puppeteer's laughter broke the silence, eerie yet tinged with a hint of dread.

"Then... please stay and be my puppet..." As soon as the words were spoken, everyone heard the sound of something crawling in their ears.

Then they watched as spiders of all sizes crawled out from behind the puppets, densely packed everywhere, constantly approaching them.

"Ah ah ah ah ah!"

"No, no, no! Ahhhhhh, help me! I don't want to!"

"It's fake! It's all fake! It's not 360 seconds at all! I've been fooled!"

"let me go……"

The screams stopped abruptly at a certain moment, and then silence returned, as if the farce had never happened.

The Silk House instance has officially begun, and this time we tried a different start.

I'm so glad to see Miss Lily again.

The House of Silk will be released simultaneously with the Lust chapter!
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(End of this chapter)