Chapter 71: Statue
The Green Shade Hotel was a considerable distance from the University of Victoria, located in the Rustu area in the southwestern part of the West District. Public carriages couldn't reach it directly, as the route passed through a region with volatile weather prone to extreme conditions like thunderstorms, hurricanes, and even acid rain.
For ordinary people, the usual way to get there was a mode of transport called the Mine Subway.
A long time ago, Daklan had been a large mining area. The ancient Farik people had dug a crisscrossing network of tunnels beneath the city. Mining was later prohibited, likely due to the need to seal away an evil god. The Kingdom of Bryston continued this ban, but with the advancement of technology, some of the existing tunnels were converted into the Mine Subway about fifteen years ago—a remarkable feat of engineering.
There was an entrance to the Mine Subway in a nearby block, one that was faithfully restored from the game. Marked with clear icons of a staircase and a train, it was easy to spot.
The subway operated until 9 p.m., and the fare wasn't expensive. A dedicated ticket seller charged 5 Winnies for a one-way trip and 9 for a round trip, with no distance limit. The only drawback was the scarcity of stations and the complete lack of seats. Passengers had to stand for the entire journey, which wasn't very friendly to frail ladies or the elderly.
Very advanced, but with room for improvement... was the fair evaluation from Zhou Ning, the time traveler.
The journey was smooth, and after just over twenty minutes, Zhou Ning arrived at the subway station in the Rustu District.
As a part of Daklan where foreigners congregated, the Rustu District didn't have the best security. One of its main thoroughfares, Cohen Avenue, was even known as "Murderer's Avenue." As Zhou Ning stepped out of the subway car, his Observation Haki immediately picked up on five or six malicious stares. However, the moment they saw him casually tossing a revolver in his hand, they vanished.
The Green Shade Hotel was located at No. 227, at the southern end of Cohen Avenue—right at the entrance to Murderer's Avenue. Zhou Ning encountered no trouble and arrived at the hotel's doorstep without incident.
Just as in the game, the Green Shade Hotel was a three-story building facing the street. Zhou Ning adjusted the brim of his hat and walked inside.
The reception counter was right by the door, and the person behind it was the same fifty-something northern woman from the game. She had distinctly northern features, a rough appearance, and a build that was even larger than Zhou Ning's.
"A room," Zhou Ning said in a low voice, approaching the counter.
The receptionist didn't even look up as she casually pushed a registration booklet across the counter toward him.
"Register first. Big room is 4 Roshens a night, small room is 2. If you don't mind sharing, it's only 5 Winnies. Of course, if you share, you'll have to watch your wallet and your ass."
Zhou Ning was taken aback. I don't remember her being this blunt in my past life.
"I'll take a large room. On the third floor, please."
Zhou Ning pulled four Roshens from his pocket, piled them on the counter, and took the registration book. He scribbled a random name, then casually flipped through a few pages. In the entry for Room 304, he saw the name Elvi Belle—likely Elvis's pseudonym.
"Room 306. Check-out is noon tomorrow," the woman said, sweeping the coins into her hand and sliding a key across to him.
Zhou Ning made his way up the narrow, dark staircase to the third floor. The corridor ran east to west, with ten rooms in total. Room 304 was on the south side, directly opposite his room, 306.
Moving lightly, his footsteps nearly silent, Zhou Ning crept up to the door of Room 304 and listened intently.
Since his class change to Roaming Gunner and officially becoming a super professional, Zhou Ning's senses had been significantly enhanced. Combined with his Observation Haki, he could clearly perceive that there was no movement or breathing inside Room 304. It was empty.
After a moment's hesitation, he took Elvis's key from his pocket, inserted it into the lock, and gently turned. The door clicked open, and Zhou Ning couldn't help but let out a quiet sigh of relief.
The window was open, but the room was still hot, easily over thirty degrees Celsius. It was a standard hotel room with a bed, a wardrobe, a desk, a small sofa, a dressing mirror, and a gas stove on the table.
The room's occupant had clearly left temporarily. The expensive gas stove was still on, its bill already indicating a charge of 36 Roshens. Even someone rich enough to own a mine couldn't afford that kind of waste.
After a quick scan of the room, Zhou Ning moved silently to the head of the bed, where he found a suitcase next to the dressing mirror. The suitcase was open, and resting on top was a small, antique-looking hand mirror.
The mirror itself seemed unremarkable, but the moment he looked at it, a prompt appeared on his panel:
Unknown Artifact [Damian's Ordinary Mirror]: This item allows you to freely enter and explore a mirrored world, but it also threatens to replace you with a ghost from within, leaving you forever lost. This item was crafted by the archmage Damian from the era of the Four Heroes, who vanished into the mirror after creating it through the study of ancient texts.
Effect 1: Allows free travel between the mirror world and the real world.
Effect 2: ????
This is it. Zhou Ning was delighted and carefully reached for the mirror.
The instant his fingers touched the glass, he felt a creepy sense of danger. A black shadow flickered across the surface, as if some monster inside was desperate to break free.
Just as I thought. All the unknown artifacts in Apocalypse have a dangerous, sinister side to them.
He didn't dwell on it. Averting his gaze, he tightened his grip on the mirror and transferred it into his inventory without hesitation. This was something that needed to be studied slowly, in a safe and private environment.
Next, Zhou Ning turned his attention to Elvis's suitcase. A quick search revealed that the top layer held some simple clothes. The second layer contained small amounts of cash, herbal powders, silver trinkets for making talismans, magic dust for casting spells, and other miscellaneous items.
There was a hidden compartment at the bottom. Inside were some scattered feathers and bones, along with something carefully wrapped in silk and scented with incense.
He carefully unwrapped the silk, revealing a palm-sized red statue.
It was a ferocious-looking deity. Countless tentacles grew from its shoulders and sides, each one carved with an eye—some open, some closed, clustered densely together. Two enormous goat horns sprouted from its head.
In the world of Apocalypse, goat horns were generally a symbol of evil gods. This made it clear: the statue was of Nyastra, the evil god worshiped by the Curse Cult.
At that moment, the lights in the room suddenly went out.
An instant later, a shuddering dread radiated from the statue, so potent it made his legs feel weak.
A series of prompts flooded his panel:
[You have attracted the attention of the evil god Nyastra. Spirit 41, Willpower 25. Judgment failed. Willpower -2.]
[You are being watched by the evil god Nyastra. Spirit 41, Willpower 25. Judgment failed. Willpower -3.]
[You have been tempted by the evil god Nyastra. Spirit 41, Willpower 25. Judgment failed. Willpower -4.]
In a flash, his Willpower of 25 points plummeted to single digits.
Horrified, Zhou Ning bit down hard on his lip. The sharp pain was just enough to break him free from the paralyzing stiffness. He hurriedly covered the statue with the silk again, and the overwhelming force—something he could neither resist nor face—vanished.
After wrapping the statue securely and placing it in his inventory, Zhou Ning finally allowed himself to breathe.
If my guess is right, this statue is another unknown artifact, one that contains a sliver of Nyastra's divinity. I was just a hair's breadth away from being completely overwhelmed.
Just then, his Observation Haki flared with an extremely ominous premonition, warning him of fatal danger approaching.
A moment later, he heard footsteps on the stairs, heading straight for the third floor.
Zhou Ning didn't dare linger. He retreated without a second thought, scrambling out the window onto the balcony. He shimmied down a water pipe, landed nimbly on his feet, and quickly moved away, taking cover at a street corner to look back.
The gas streetlamps were sparse here, and Zhou Ning was safely cloaked in the dim shadows. He saw the light in Room 304 flick back on. A figure appeared at the window, peering outside.
The man was about forty years old with a large beard and an unfamiliar face. He wore a blue coat, marking him as a nobleman—in this world, there was a strict rule that only nobles could wear colorful clothing.
Zhou Ning didn't risk staying any longer. He left Cohen Avenue, took the Mine Subway, and headed back to the East District of the city.
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