Spring Banquet (4)

The Days I Clear Escape Games Pretending to be an NPCCh38 - Spring Banquet (4)

All the monsters with an invitation card were invited. Not including the host, there were a total of twenty seats. Because he was the host's senior brother, he was seated at the first seat from the left. Sitting across from him was the peacock whom he scolded. The other party was currently teasing a black-feathered crested myna with wheat grains.

As soon as the big demon saw him, he turned his head away, "Humph." yV3itF

He's too much of a tsundere.

Everyone invited to the banquet had just all been seated. Even though the singing and dancing had not started, it was still very lively.

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The demons had drunk a lot of wine during the day so they now all reeked of alcohol. Whether they were drunk or not, every one of them acted without restraint, and some had even taken on their demonic form— it could be said that the hordes of demons were dancing wildly.

The design of the buildings and furniture here were from the Han and Tang Dynasties. The floor was covered in woven mats and they were seated on rattan cushions. The demons all sat casually— they were either sitting cross-legged or with one leg bent— none of them sat upright like Ren Yifei. yve 1l

However, his sitting posture did not arouse any suspicion.

As everyone knows, He Jun was a particular and meticulous person.

Ren Yifei's eyelids dropped halfway and his eyelashes cast a shadow on his face. Although he has the resume, there were still many details in areas that needed more attention.

The other players are not so troubled. They didn't have to pretend to be the original owner since it wouldn't matter if the NPCs recognised them. Even if the NPCs' teeth itches, they wouldn't be able to lay their hands on the players.

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Saman was in the same category as those players, he doesn't need to pretend to be the original owner since it wasn't his strong suit. However, he also wouldn't break the rules and make himself stand out.

As the winner of the duel, his position was at the very back, the last seat on the right. This position was also convenient for him to observe the performance of many demons sitting on the left.

He looked at all the demons one by one, from the white-clothed demon sitting in the first seat all the way to the other winner of a duel sitting across from him. Among the guests sitting on the left were the few lucky players who were given the roles of high-level demons.

Their disguise could be seen through at a glance. Unless they were Thousand Faces or have the ability to disguise themselves like the blind youth in the previous instance, most players were obvious to him. OQbYv9

The NPCs will interact with the players and once a player showed any obvious 'non-NPC' flaws, they will be ostracised by the group of NPCs. This assessment might be something about the role, or it might be about basic general knowledge.

The NPCs will not kill these unexposed players, however, they will do their best to torment and cause trouble for these players. Therefore, gaining the NPCs' goodwill was very important.

The more mistakes the player makes in the NPC's Q&A, the lower their favourability.

Saman tried to speak as little as possible to reduce any mistakes he might make. Most of the other players were like him, they would pretend to be drunk in order to refuse the NPCs' attempts to contact and approach them. bJ4zQ2

One player even plopped down directly on the square table, clearly saying: I'm drunk, please do not disturb.

There were many guests in the main hall, and there were even more players eagerly waiting in their own little rooms.

The maid's warning was by no means unwarranted. The players were not newcomers, they all have at least one R-rank card and have experienced a dozen or so games. Therefore, they know very well that sneaking out was definitely a violation of the rules and would likely end in them being on a serving plate.

But relatively speaking, the more restrictions there were, the more clues there would be. All the ways to make a lot of money were all through illegal means, that was the truth. 0nWOeo

These players who were stranded in their room were very hesitant. Should they preserve their own lives, or go further?

A player pondered for a moment in their room, thinking about all the dangers behind the riches and honour. But in the end, they went out of their room.

Chrysanthemum Garden.

Outside the room was a corridor, and outside the corridor was a small courtyard. During the day, this small courtyard is very lively, you could see birds flying and hear the breeze blowing through the branches. However, on nights like these, there were no sounds nor breezes in the small courtyard; there was only the silent moonlight.

There was no one outside. The maids who often walked around during the day were nowhere to be seen. UJWgYj

The player tiptoed and leaned against the side of the wall as they turned a corner and enter another corridor. This corridor was different to theirs; this one had rooms on both sides with the occupant's sign hanging on the door.

A hole was drilled through the wooden door to one of the rooms. The player accidentally met eyes with another player who was looking through the hole. Both of them were stunned.

"Hello?"

"En, hello."

Saying goodbye to this little accident, the player continued on their way while the one who had drilled the hole was still staring at them.

"Ah!" The player on the other side of the door exclaimed briefly before covering their mouth. Their eyes widened in utter horror. Right in front of them, the other player seemed to have crossed into some sort of space and a part of their body had disappeared!

The player who was still exploring the corridor was completely unaware of this anomaly.

He was very cautious and walked without making a sound; his whole body was in a constant state of alert. hfjr04

The corridor was well lit with oil lamps glowing brightly on both sides. The player was able to clearly see the texture of the floor that he was stepping on; the floor was brown with reddish-brown lines.

After taking a few steps, the closed doors on both sides seemed to be covered in a layer of an invisible substance and slowly becoming obscure.

The reddish-brown lines on the floor bulged like tiny blood vessels while mucus the size of an ant seeps through it. The walls of the corridor began to twist.

The player jerked back but the rooms, walls and floors were the same. sCZD1P

They felt that something was off and took a closer inspection. After finding nothing, they gritted their teeth and slowly walked forward with one hand brushing against the wall.

A sweet scent...

Since the banquet was filled with oil lamps, the sweet aroma there has become very strong. When mixed together with the smell of burning incense, it became acrid.

However, the people at the banquet didn't notice anything. 6VSi9R

Everyone was drinking wine while Ren Yifei only wanted water, untainted water.

He didn't even drink tea.

Story translated by Chrysanthemum Garden.

The oil lamps were mixed with that kind of nauseating sweet fragrance, so who knows if there was something else mixed into the wine.

He became more and more vigilant. Except for water, he didn't consume anything else, not even the fresh fruits on the small square table. 3TwBuy

Fortunately, He Jun was exactly that type of person. If he had been switched with another character, one that was an unrestrained prodigal, Ren Yifei would have to grab a maid and teasingly feed them to avoid the fate of eating the food.

There were also a few players who shared similar concerns.

Looking around, there were three or four out of the twenty demons present who were not looking for maids to play and drink with. Each of them was very eye-catching.

And among the demons who did find maids to play with, there were two players. They were listening to the conversations at the banquet with their ears pricked up. y7jqfR

"He Jun seems to be lacking interest," The demon sitting on Ren Yifei's right was holding a glamorous female demon in one hand while holding a wine jar in the other, "Are these female demons not beautiful enough, or is the wine not strong enough?"

Ren Yifei held his water cup, "Are these female demons not beautiful enough? Is the wine not strong enough? Why are you looking at me?"

"Hahahaha," the big demon let go of the beauty in his hand and put down the wine, "I didn't expect you to respond to my joke."

Ren Yifei was startled and calmed himself by drinking water, "What should I be like?" kfJpIB

"You..." the big demon was about to say something but was interrupted by the peacock who downed his wine cup and sneered, "I haven't seen you in a hundred years yet He Jun has learned to talk with other people over wine? I thought that He Jun does not have anyone in his eyes."

"You haven't changed," Ren Yifei avoided the topic.

It seems the original owner should have been a little more arrogant and not tolerant towards any dirt in his eyes.

Ren Yifei adjusted his personality according to the newly added information. But in that case, wouldn't he have been a bit too excessive when fighting with these demons previously? 2kJFp0

Since he should've been more arrogant, his immediate action should not have been to fight back but to ignore and not respond. Even if he did respond and fought back, it should have been done in one sentence with as little said as possible.

Ren Yifei was very annoyed.

But it was not the time to have any regrets, a tougher battle was ahead. He hastily gathered himself and reduced the expression on his face even more.

While Ren Yifei's group was talking, the demons in other places were also talking and chatting in twos and threes. During that period of time, there were talks of territorial disputes and gossip about various demons. QRmx8s

The players all pricked up their ears to listen but it was to no avail. The demons merely touch on the subject before moving on to drinking and teasing the beauties. Each of them adopted a 'live every day as if it's your last' prodigal mentality.

"This banquet is really tacky, come, I'll add some colour," a big demon drunkenly stood up, picked up a wine gourd and patted it, "Go."

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The wine gourd lit up with a layer of golden streaks, and to everyone's amazement, cracks appeared on the wooden floor. Fluorescent green branches sprouted from the cracks and grew thicker, with extending beaches, vines, green leaves and flowers.

A petal flew down and landed in Ren Yifei's teacup, creating faint circular ripples on the surface of the water. UtF4hL

The room became a sea of green. Dark or light, bright or grey, all shades of green intertwine in front of their eyes. Amidst the green, white deers could be seen walking through it.

One walked in front of Ren Yifei and cried out.

"Immortal Lu, decades have passed, how come your taste is still like this? What is there to see in the forest, everyone is tired of seeing it," a female demon with antlers rolled up her sleeves and the green trees, red flowers and white deer flashed. They all then turned into specks of light and sank into the floor one after the other.

"Oooh—" With the sound of a whale from the deep ancient sea, a swarm of brightly coloured fish swam into the room. l32TOL

It was like being deep in the ocean. There were corals and seaweed growing from the sides, seahorses swaying in the currents and small fishes spitting out a string of bubbles as they swam through the coral.

Ren Yifei reached out and poked it, causing the bubble to burst. Then, a little fish swam over and circled his finger. It came up and gently bit his finger, however, he didn't feel anything.

"Woo—" The huge whale appeared with silver-blue specks of light. The huge awe-inspiring head swam in and slowly passed through the bodies of the all the demons present, and with a wag of its tail, it left.

Giant pink jellyfish, travelling sea turtles and sea creatures disguised as aquatic plants also swept past them one by one. T7WvVg

"No good," the big demon next to Ren Yifei spoke up, "This is neither the Fei Cui Palace of Immortal Lu nor the Jin Lin Hall of Lady Long, so it's naturally better to respect the host's house customs."

After they finished clapping their hands, the underwater scenery of the Crystal Dragon Palace also dissipated as specks of light. A group of veiled beauties holding pipa, flute, yueqin and other musical instruments walked in and sat down in the corner.

Two painting scrolls flew out from the big demon's sleeves. From these painting, beautiful maidens came out accompanied by bursts of blue smoke, the sound of transitional instruments and singing.

The beautiful dancers from the paintings circled around the guests, and the bells on their ankles make crisp sounds as they twist their bodies. zOflXH

They leaned against the guests gently and trace the guests' back with their long nails. Their charming gaze felt like silk and their bright red lips were like ripe fruits that exudes a sweet aroma.

The most beautiful and flamboyant dancer spotted Ren Yifei in the upper left at a glance. She bit the purple veil and winked as if she was attracted.

However, her actions were in vain as the other party continued to mind their own business and drink water; he didn't even glance at her.

The dancer stomped her foot, let go of the veil and spun around the others, twisting all the way to Ren Yifei. DXFumx

She undid her veil and used the lavender veil to cover his face. He suddenly felt a hazy fragrance wrapped around him.

Through the yarn, he could only see a twisting white waist that was as flexible as a snake and a small navel. Attached to it was a bright red gemstone that sharply contrasted with the pale skin, making it even more alluring.

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"Aiya, My Lord..."

The dancer's voice was delicate and charming. As if she couldn't stand still, she smiled as she snuggled up to him gently, but Ren Yifei just glanced at her indifferently. His eyes were tinged with a faint sense of disgust. They were like sharp swords that sliced through this deliberately created ambiguity. ObZm3V

The dancer was shocked by the look in his eyes and involuntarily took two steps back. The purple veil got caught on the hairpin of his jade crown, causing the jade crown to fall to the ground and break in half.

This incident drew everyone's attention.

Even though he lost his jade crown and his hair was scattered, Ren Yifei didn't look embarrassed.

The dancer knelt on the ground, silently waiting for the wrath of the big demon, but Ren Yifei didn't even look at her. He poured himself some water and took a sip, "Withdraw." tD2wLd

All the demons were stunned. When have they ever seen He Jun with such a dishevelled appearance?

Ebony-like hair that wraps around a face as white as snow. Thick eyelashes curving out along slightly slanted eyes and red lips that are stained with water, resembling rose petals stained with dewdrops. They are soft, sweet and fragrant— tempting everyone to take a bite.

"Beauty, beauty," the black feathered crested myna came over with a bouquet of flowers he got from who-knows-where.

Its real master, the big peacock demon, had a dark expression on his face and reached out to grab its wings. He pulled it back and stuffed it into his sleeve, "Your master is here." 0FjsYS

The dancer refused to leave. Her pair of watery eyes fervently stared at Ren Yifei and she once again approached him, "My Lord, let me tie up your hair."

He Jun was a flower on top of a tall mountain. It was unknown how many people had slept with him as an affirmation of their charm and military prowess but the dancer became restless. She thought that she was being spared, and thus, was somewhat special.

"Withdraw."

After all, he was a great demon, no one can force him if he was unwilling. The dancer bit the tassel on her jade necklace and turned back, taking one step at a time. Her eyes were mournful and full of hope that he would change his mind. 5Yg9BA

Unfortunately, the beauty met an iceberg and she had to retreat in disappointment.

The demon, who had previously thrown the picture scrolls, patted a wine jar, "You rejected such a beauty? Are you really going to cut off from every worldly affair?"

Ren Yifei was about to speak when a voice rang out from the door in one of the corners, "Senior brother is here?"

They were heard even before they made an appearance. HwYLeF

It was the host of this banquet.

T/N