CH 30

(Black Cat and Plague)

Edited by Silver Wind 

Wu Jia laughed dryly. “Or, perhaps…”

Zhou Wenyan crossed his arms, lowering his eyes to gaze at the lady who had fallen to the ground.

The lady was wearing a plain dress along with an  apron, and she was of fair and clear complexion with a scattering of freckles that was characteristic of white people.

She looked exactly like an NPC, but Zhou Wenyan had noticed a slight anomaly. 

Wu Jia voiced his surprise: “Boss, what are you going to do?”

Before Zhou Wenyan had the time to act, he saw the lady open her eyes, panic apparent.

Seeing that, Zhou Wenyan clicked his tongue and withdrew his hand.

The lady who had fainted went by the name of Eliza.

She was a nun in training in the city and she only came to realise that the three people who had blocked her path were not bad people after she woke up. Thus, she gave them a bashful smile and said lowly, “I’m a little timid because the city hasn’t welcomed anyone in a long time…”

Wu Jia said, “We just arrived here and we would like to ask you a few questions with regards to the situation in the city.”

Eliza held onto the edges of her apron and said: “You may ask.” 

Wu Jia: “About the plague…”

Before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by Eliza. “The plague is gone; God has already expelled it.”

She was decisive in her words and softened her voice as soon as she finished the gesture: “May God bless you and I.”

Wu Jia glanced at Zhou Wenyan. 

However, Zhou Wenyan was completely out of the situation as he whispered something to Shen Dongqing.

Hence, Wu Jia had no choice but to continue asking on his own.

But it was evident that Eliza did not want to continue discussing the plague and he did not know what to ask either.

Tugging on the two corners of her skirt, Eliza half-knelt in a curtsy, “If you have nothing else to ask, I’ll be going first.” 

Then, Zhou Wenyan suddenly opened his mouth: “What about the people in the city?”

They had passed by a lot of houses in the city on their way here, but other than the players and Eliza, there was not a single shadow of another person in sight.

How could such a huge city possibly only have animals?

Eliza lowered her eyes to avoid Zhou Wenyan’s gaze. She sighed before explaining vaguely: “Before God arrived, there were many who died from the illness, and the people who managed to survive scarcely dared to leave their homes. Only when the Cathedral opens on Sundays do we come out together to pray.” 

“I still have business to attend to, I will be taking my leave first.”

Once she had said her piece, Eliza ran away without even looking back.

Unconsciously, Wu Jia wanted to give chase.

But Eliza was too familiar with the city’s streets and she disappeared, leaving not a trace of her shadow. 

Thus, Wu Jia could only give up on the idea of chasing after her and chose to follow the path she took instead.

He originally wanted to discuss with Zhou Wenyan what they should do since the NPC ran away but he only saw that the two of them were playing with a cat when he turned around.

Wu Jia: “……”

What was he being anxious about again? 

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Vtfc Gbcudlcu ragfamtfv bea tlr tjcv jcv aglfv ab wfbk ja la, “Zfbk~” 

Although the black cat revealed some human-like contempt on its face, it was still kind enough to make its way over by jumping down into Shen Dongqing’s arms in a lithe manner.

Shen Dongqing could not wait to stroke it.

It brought a different feeling compared to the werewolf from before; its fur was comfortable to the touch as he brushed through it.

The black cat felt comfortable as well because it turned its body around and let out a series of purrs from its throat. 

Meanwhile, Zhou Wenyan stood by the side, feeling inexplicably displeased.

He reached out to pinch the back of the black cat’s neck.

“It’s better to be careful,” Zhou Wenyan advised as he wore a serious expression.

Shen Dongqing gave him a confused look. “Ah?” 

Naturally, Zhou Wenyan would never admit that he was a little jealous of a cat and he could only say, “The city has a lot of animals and something is amiss…”

Before he completed his sentence, the cat that he was holding onto broke free from his hold and slinked off into the alley in a hurry.

Shen Dongqing: “That cat is different.”

Zhou Wenyan brushed his hands against one another. “What’s different about it?” 

“It’s hard to describe,” Shen Dongqing scrunched his brows together minutely, but he did not know how he should explain it. “It’s just different from the animals in the city.”

The next animal that was closest to them was a poodle.

It laid on the ground, completely still. Even when a person walked past it, it would not show any response and the same could be said for the rest of the animals in the city. 

Whereas the cat just now was much livelier.

Could the black cat be a clue?

It was then that Wu Jia walked over to them. As he spoke, frustration tinged his tone. “Eliza ran away, the trail for the clue is broken.”

“Not necessarily,” said Zhou Wenyan. 

Wu Jia asked, “Why do you say that?”

Zhou Wenyan eyed him. “Go to the Cathedral.”

Wu Jia: “You’re making a quick leap in logic there, could you please explain your thoughts?”

Coldly, Zhou Wenyan stated, “No.” 

Then, Shen Dongqing scratched his head and said: “Actually, I don’t quite get it either?”

He was not very good at this sort of decryption game.

They had asked the same question but when it came to Shen Dongqing, Zhou Wenyan immediately changed his face and explained it to him clearly, “Eliza is tempting us to go to the Cathedral. Previously, she deliberately stayed for us.”

Judging from the speed that Eliza ran away with just now and considering her understanding of Plague City, it should have been impossible to stop her had it not been intentional. 

Shen Dongqing nodded his head thoughtfully.

Wu Jia could not help shaking his head.

There was no way around this different treatment.

The Cathedral was located at the very heart of the City and its architecture was inconsistent with the other houses. Just from looking at its pointed roof, one could find their way there.

The Cathedral was exquisite in construction. Before it was a spouting fountain that had a statue of what looked like a cute little angel and it was surrounded by rows of flowers that effused the air in a sweet-smelling scent.

No one was around.

Wu Jia ran up the stairs and tried to push open the door. 

“The door is locked.” He inspected the bulletin board that was at the side. “The Cathedral opens every Sunday. It seems like we’ve made a wasted trip considering how today is Friday.”

Seeing that he had returned without any success, Shen Dongqing asked: “Do you want to go in?”

Out of conditioned reflex, Wu Jia replied, “Of course, there might be clues inside.”

Shen Dongqing nodded his head: “Okay, let me do it.” 

Wu Jia: “Let you do what?”

Shen Dongqing walked to the front and tugged on the door lock without avail. Then, he took two steps back and kicked open the door with one foot.

Although he hadn’t done much after he entered the game, the number of doors he had kicked were not few. When it came to using his hands, no, using his feet, he was always steady, accurate and relentless.

There was just one bad point; the doors that he kicked usually ended up in sorry states. 

One of the large doors suffered from a loud bang before it was slowly pushed open.

Shen Dongqing retracted his hand: “Let’s go in.”

Wu Jia was very shocked.

Isn’t that too simple and rude? 

When the doors were fully opened, sunlight shone in and exposed the deified statue that was placed deep inside the Cathedral. Below it were rows of seats provided for the believers who came to pray.

The deified statue was placed in a position where the sun could not touch and was  shrouded in the darkness.

Head raised, Wu Jia looked at the statue until his neck was aching, but he could not fully perceive what the deified statue actually looked like. 

When he turned his head back, he saw Zhou Wenyan sauntering towards a bookshelf.

The bookshelf in the corner had several brochures.

On the page, poetry and lyrics that were praising and propagating the miracles that God could bring were inked onto it.

Zhou Wenyan turned it over. 

Sure enough, the content concerned the events surrounding the plague.

It was without a doubt that the city had suffered from a plague before and it had infected the entire city within the span of seven days.

Some people died silently in their homes, others watched healthy people suddenly fall to the ground as they were working, and there were some who were ridden with sores and pus all over their bodies… Everyday, there would be a large number of corpses and they did not even have the time to cremate the dead and could only leave them stinking and rotting outside on the open streets.

It was a plague that could not be remedied with medicine. 

Only a God could solve it.

Detecting the suffering that the city was going through,  God had descended and filled Plague City with hope flowers.

These hope flowers, brimming with their vitality, were planted everywhere and they drove out the pestilence, giving everyone a new leash of life.

Of course, no one knew whether the information written on the brochure was true or not. 

Wu Jia: “According to the information, the plague had long been expelled from the city.”

Zhou Wenyan questioned it, “Is that even possible?”

Wu Jia voiced his misgivings, “Fair point, there has never been an instance where this stupid and blasted game did not torture us.”

After walking around the Cathedral once, Sheng Dongqing picked up a brochure as well. He pointed at the hope flower that was drawn on it and said: “Isn’t this the flower in our rooms?” 

“Yes it is, child.”

The person who replied to him was not Zhou Wenyan or Wu Jia, but an old voice instead.

Accompanying his voice was a series of coughs and an old man dressed as an aged priest walked out from behind the statue.

This was the second NPC in the city. 

Wu Jia’s first reaction was to run out of the Cathedral in order to avoid triggering the death flag. However, when the priest had walked out, he was no longer worried.

After considering the age of the priest, it was more likely that he would be the victim instead of them.

Luckily, the priest had no intention to become the victim.

His expression was amicable as he looked at the three people who had broken into the Cathedral. He was very kind as he spoke to them: “Do you want to know what happened during the plague?” 

Zhou Wenyan: “Yes.”

The priest said: “Ke ke… The plague was brought by a black cat. Cats have always been the incarnation of witches and they almost ruined the entire city with the plague. Thousands of people died as result, and the city was filled with death and disease. Thankfully, God was compassionate and he blessed us with hope flowers which saved the entire city.”

“Thus, the Plague City attained its rebirth.”

After the priest finished telling his story, he walked up to them in faltering steps and took out a single hope flower from his sleeve: “May God bless you and I.” 

Zhou Wenyan received the hope flower.

The priest’s eyes were a little muddy as he stared at Zhou Wenyan and Sheng Dongqing. Hoarsely, he said, “The witch hasn’t disappeared yet, you ought to be careful. The black cat represents the plague, all of you should take heed…”

After they acquired some plausible news from the Cathedral, their small entourage said their farewells to the priest.

Then, when they were a distance away, the priest was still standing by the entrance as he continued to mutter: “Beware, beware…” 

It was capable of making people’s hair stand on its end when they heard it.

Rubbing his exposed arms, Wu Jia asked, “Do you believe what he said?”

Zhou Wenyan: “I don’t believe it.”

If there was a God, how could this game exist? 

Shen Dongqing thought about it and said earnestly: “Believe in science, anti-feudalism and non-superstition.”

Wu Jia: ???

Why did your style of painting change all of a sudden?

With a solemn expression, Zhou Wenyan applauded him. “That’s right.” 

Wu Jia could only join the crowd: “Well-said.”

Subsequently after, Wu Jia came back to his senses as he remembered something: “Wasn’t the animal you were touching just now a black cat? According to what the priest said, will something happen to you?”

Shen Dongqing: “Oh yeah. It was quite comfortable to hold it and its eyes were especially pretty too. Sadly, it ran away and it didn’t allow me to touch it more.”

Wu Jia felt powerless whenever he was faced with Shen Dongqing’s inability to grasp the main point. “Didn’t he say that the black cat represented the plague? Can you show some fear at least…” 

Shen Dongqing scratched his head: “I really don’t  know how to. Can you show me what it is like to be afraid, I can try to learn.”

Wu Jia replied to him with silence: ……