Magic High School.

However, when Li Ge turned her head again, she suddenly realized that the lantern-carrying monster was not chasing anyone else, but was chasing straight towards her.

Dude, why are you still chasing me, you son of a bitch!

He immediately began to wonder what he had done to trigger the headless monster's pursuit.

I didn't do anything! Why are they still chasing me?!

He frantically hid in an apartment building, and the lantern-carrying monster paused for a moment in front of the building before immediately entering.

The place is filled with the style and atmosphere of the last century. It's not as dirty and messy as I imagined; it seems like people have only recently moved out.

Li Ge was panting heavily; he needed time to think about what murder rule he had violated.

What makes me different from others? It can't be that I'm still wearing this clown mask, can it?

What kind of bizarre legacy did my parents leave me? It seems to have only caused side effects so far!

"Tap tap tap..." Footsteps echoed down the corridor, and the lantern-carrying monster seemed to have no intention of letting Li Ge go.

Every step felt like stepping on Li Ge's heartbeat.

Li Ge looked around the room. It seemed to be a family's study; books were still on the shelves, and there were unfinished letters on the table, as if the owner had just left. The dust wasn't thick, and there was a faint... musty smell in the air?

At that moment, a chaotic chuckle or whisper seemed to emanate from the clown mask, as if urging or guiding Li Ge. Then, the following option appeared before him.

[The region "Chernobog" has been anchored, and the designated comedic ability for this region is being randomly generated. Fat guy partner!]

Note: A reliable, chubby guy from Nagasaki Prefecture who firmly believes he has a PhD. How could any successful person be without an all-around capable chubby friend?

Just as Li Ge was still catching her breath, the clown mask suddenly displayed a series of prompts, and then a fat man appeared before her with a furious and ferocious expression, as if a king had descended from the sky.

"Ouch, my butt..." The fat man's face wasn't contorted with anger and rage, but rather with the pain of hitting the ground.

The moment Li Ge saw the fat man, his eyes widened, and he almost blurted out the name "Digging Well," because the fat man looked so much like his tech-savvy teammate from his favorite tokusatsu show in his childhood.

"Oh, Li Ge, I didn't expect you to be trapped here. Don't worry, I'll get you out of here." The fat man said very seriously, as if he knew Li Ge very well, but his face instantly put Li Ge at ease.

To put it bluntly, at least you have someone to take the fall for, right?

He hasn't figured out the clown mask's abilities yet, but it's an heirloom from his parents. According to his aunt, his parents seem to be incredibly powerful figures, so powerful that even now, Li Ge can still own property in the wealthy district and inherit a large sum of money. As for this clown mask, having it is better than not having it.

"You...know me?" Li Ge asked tentatively.

"Of course I know you! Aren't we old classmates?" The fat man looked around blankly. "Where is this? It looks like ruins... Wait, is there some noise outside?"

This ability allows him to summon "well-digging team members," and the team members seem to recognize him, displaying an overbearing sense of justice and a desire to rescue him, which immediately puts him at ease.

Li Ge immediately said, "Fatty, it seems like I've stepped into a horror movie, and there's a monster chasing me..."

"It's alright, I'm here now. I'll get you out of here in a bit." The fat man was still comforting Li Ge, then looked around at the surroundings and suddenly said, "This place seems to be in the style of the Soviet Union from the last century."

"The Soviet Union?" Li Ge calmed down instantly, then looked around. Indeed, the style and environment here were very similar to the Soviet Union, and even this abandoned city looked like it had stepped out of an old Soviet movie.

“We’ll split up and gather clues in this room,” Li Ge said. Although it’s messy, we can always find something here.

"Okay." The fat man started working without saying a word.

Footsteps echoed in the empty corridor, approaching from afar, each step feeling like a blow to the heart.

Li Ge and the fat man were practically crawling on the ground, frantically and silently searching through the dust and scraps of paper by the dim blue light. "Faster...faster..." Li Ge silently chanted in his mind as his hand touched a wet piece of paper.

He could barely make out the writing on the piece of paper. After examining it closely, he suddenly exclaimed, "This seems to be Russian?"

At this moment, the fat man seemed to have found a clue and said, "Li Ge, here, I found this thing."

Li Ge quickly went over. It was the burned calendar. This fat guy was really going all out. He seemed to have finally found this clue from that pile of ashes where some weird stuff had been burned. Now the fat guy's hands and face were covered in ashes.

"Tap tap tap!" It seemed that the noise they made while searching for clues attracted the headless monster, and he quickened his pace, the light and shadow of his lantern following him closely.

"1986, Li Ge, the calendar is frozen at 1986," the fat man's voice came.

Li Ge was stunned for a moment. Then, all the clues connected: Soviet-style architecture, 1986, pollution levels, the monster with a shovel, the Watcher's label, the Russian text he had found, and the "Chernobyl" hint from the clown mask...

This headless monster didn't seem to actually kill; it was more like it was driving them away.

All the information seemed to connect here, and an idea instantly popped into Li Ge's mind.

"Li Ge, I looked at that piece of paper in your hand. The writing on it seems to be Russian for 'nuclear leak'?" the fat man said doubtfully.

"Fatty, you can speak Russian too?" Li Ge teased.

"I know a little, I'm a proper PhD," the fat man said immediately, making a fingertip universe gesture with his index finger and thumb.

Although Li Ge really wanted to retort to this, because the fat man thought he was a PhD and an old classmate of Li Ge, Li Ge had just failed the art exam and hadn't had a chance to retake it. There was at least a 7-year difference in their academic records, making the statement sound like a battle between the left and right hemispheres of the brain.

But the fat man didn't think there was a problem, while Li Ge didn't!

"Never mind, that's not important." Li Ge waved his hand. "What's important is that we're stuck in this godforsaken place and need to survive for three days or find the 'source of pollution.' Do you know 'Chernobyl'?"

“Chernoberg?” The fat man pondered for a moment. “Sounds like an Eastern European name… wait a minute.” He stood up and rummaged through the basement, quickly finding a half-finished map book in a rotten cabinet.

The fat man blew away the dust and opened the atlas. It was yellowed and damaged, but still legible.

“Found it!” The fat man pointed to one of the pages. “Look, the Chernobog region… this is a map from the last century.”

Although Li Ge really wanted to complain about why Fatty found so many clues in the same amount of time, was this the difference between him, a college student, and this "elite of the Victory Team"?

However, the Soviet Union, Chernobog, pollution levels, the headless lantern monster...

In Li Ge's mind, the clues began to piece together.

"And this too." The fat man picked up another tattered newspaper, dated April 1986.

A name exploded in Li Ge's mind like a thunderclap.

“Chernobyl…” he murmured.

"What benefit?" The fat man didn't hear clearly.

"The Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident, April 1986!" Li Ge's voice was urgent. "If this is the place, could the source of the contamination be..."

Nuclear radiation!

"Thud!" The monster's footsteps drew closer, as if stopping at the doorway.

The fat man immediately dropped the clue he was holding, and as if in a fit of rage, pulled out something that looked like a toy megaphone from his pocket, his face filled with tragic determination: "Li Ge, go out the window! I have a tool here that can be used against the enemy!"

"Bang!" The dilapidated door was kicked down violently by the headless monster. The fat man seemed to be rushing forward to block the monster, while shouting, "Run!"

The fat man then pulled out a string of comical yet shrill whistles from somewhere, and the monster's movements visibly faltered, as if it were caught in a daze.

Although they had only met for a few minutes, Li Ge was immediately moved.

However, he did not run away, because there was no need to run now.

Li Ge gradually understood everything.

Looking at the charging monster, Li Ge finally understood why the blood-stained uniform and badge looked so familiar.

Those were Soviet military uniforms and medals from the Great Patriotic War.

Just as the monster was about to charge, Li Ge immediately shouted in broken Russian, "Comrade-in-arms!"

The headless monster suddenly stopped in front of the fat man, showing no intention of attacking. Instead, it silently took a step back, wiping the blood off its hands as if it were disgusted by its own filth.

It placed its cleaned hand on the now empty head, and with difficulty, using some unknown part of its mouth, uttered, "Dava...ri...shi..."

Chapter 3 Chernobyl

Radiation, pollution, a headless monster carrying a lantern...

Chernobyl, military uniforms, blood-stained Medals of Honor...

All the clues came together.

Li Ge admitted that there was an element of gambling involved, but at this moment, he made the right bet.

At the same time, he instantly understood why the headless man with the lantern was only chasing him and not anyone else.

Because it was truly a burst of his extraordinary wisdom that led him to flee towards the city of Chernobyl, while others either fled towards the wilderness or along the edge of the city, he alone charged straight towards Chernobyl.

The Lamplighter wasn't hunting him down; he was trying to stop him and drive him out of Chernobyl!

Images formed in his mind: after the accident, countless people went against the flow into the radiation zone, trying to control the disaster; many of them never came out again. If their obsession remained on this land, they would have become monsters guarding it...

“I’m gradually understanding everything.” Li Ge stood up, her eyes becoming firm. “Fatty, we may have misunderstood them.”

"misunderstanding?"

“They probably don’t want to kill us.” Li Ge looked towards the building entrance. “They’re driving us away from the danger zone. This is their home, and they’re protecting it, protecting outsiders, and keeping them away from the source of pollution.”

The fat man paused for a few seconds, then suddenly realized: "So this thing was chasing you because you showed any intention of going deeper into the ruins? And when we escaped into the building... it was still warning us?"

“Yes, he may have been a great warrior in life, but he did not die at the hands of Sitler, but on this land.” Li Ge looked at the medal for defending the country on his body and fell silent.

Fatty's way of thinking and his history are clearly from a different world than Li Ge's. Perhaps in Fatty's world, there was no Great Patriotic War or Chernobyl incident, so he always had some doubts about what Li Ge said.

He glanced at the futuristic-looking watch.

Current pollution level: 5%

Sure enough, once inside Chernobyl, the pollution levels rose significantly.

The lamplighter seemed to make a few more sounds with difficulty, but this left Li Ge completely baffled, since his Russian was utterly broken, and he only knew the words "Sukabr" and "Davarishi".

"Fatty, what is Comrade saying?" Li Ge continued to ask, since he was the only one here who didn't understand Russian.

“He said, danger... leave…” the fat man immediately replied.

"Fatty, just say we're brothers from the International Brigade, here to help."

After the fat man translated Li Ge's words, the lantern bearer stopped driving Li Ge away in the next instant. He even seemed to be bowing his head, whether out of shame or pain, if he still had a head.

In 1986, the Soviet Union still possessed the last glories and honors of this Slavic giant. This was the end of its period of strength. At this time, the Soviet people still believed that they were the saviors of the world, the heroes who would lead all mankind to break free from the control of capital, and the big brother of the world.

Despite the many problems that had been exposed, the Soviets at that time still believed they had the ability to overcome any difficulties, and they were not afraid of sacrifice. No matter how many sacrifices or difficulties there were, they believed they could grit their teeth and get through it.

However, when Li Ge pretended to be a member of the International Brigades, the lantern bearer fell silent, and Li Ge could even see a trace of shame in his headless body.

However, he did not refuse this kindness. He slowly raised the hand holding the lantern and placed it on his chest, near his heart, while his other hand, which was holding a shovel, gently lifted and pointed in a certain direction.

That direction leads into the depths of the city.

"It's the direction of the pollution source."

Li Ge and the fat man exchanged a glance.