The smell of alcohol failed to mask the original bloody stench of the food.
On the contrary, with the addition of alcohol, the murky broth became even more bizarre in flavor.
Under the watchful eyes of all, Jiang Che obediently plopped himself down onto the seat.
The viewers watching the stream couldn't help but furrow their brows, for the table was nearly all covered in bloodstains gone black with age—the blood had oxidized and turned dark.
The thick pool of blood accumulated atop the table hadn't solidified due to its heaviness—just running a finger through it would drag out sticky threads.
The same went for the tabletop too; the solid wood had changed color, tainted by all that blood.
Sinister, dark, bloodthirsty, oppressive, evil spirits, savagery…
All these elements were twisted together like a braid, impossible to separate, with only Jiang Che and everything here utterly out of place with one another.
The viewers watching the stream averted their gazes and took deep breaths—only by looking away from the screen did the air feel fresher.
None of them were actually present, but they all felt as though they could smell the nauseating, gag-inducing odor at the scene.
The stench seemed to seep through the screen, worming its way into everyone's nostrils.
There are over ten thousand haunted dungeons, endless blood and slaughter, endless darkness and fear…
The evil spirits thoroughly enjoyed the thrill of toying with their prey, but forcing someone to eat a meal at the table like this was something unprecedented.
From the moment Jiang Che opened the door and called out 'Mom, Dad,' the situation had changed.
The evil spirits had never played house before, and now they were reveling in this novel style of "family roleplay," just waiting for Jiang Che to break—and for his life to end.
The Butcher placed a bowl of murky, meaty broth down in front of Jiang Che.
As he leaned close to Jiang Che, everyone finally noticed: the mask atop the Butcher's head was sewn together from multiple skull caps, completely covering his entire head save for his eyes and nose—the natural cracks in the skulls clearly visible.
He set down the bowl and walked toward the kitchen.
"Thank you, Dad." Jiang Che politely picked up the bowl in front of him, not at all bothered by the strange shape of those chopsticks.
Hearing that title, the Butcher paused for a moment as he turned, then kept walking. "As long as you like it."
Maybe it was just the viewers' imagination, but it seemed like there wasn't a hint of menace in his words.
A surge of warmth rushed through Jiang Che's heart—how could he not like a meal cooked by his own family?
These past years in the asylum, he'd eaten everything there was to eat.
For those patients whose families didn't pay for them, they were never treated like normal people,
Or, rather, never treated as if they had normal intelligence.
But often, someone would come by to check whether their hearts, livers, kidneys, and eyes were healthy.
The best thing the hospital staff did was to care deeply about their physical health.
"Once you're done eating, Mom will patch up your clothes for you." Beside the table, the Blood Nurse's lips twisted into a smile; her cracked mouth nearly split to her ear.
"Okay!" Jiang Che raised his bowl and began to eat in earnest.
From the moment he picked up his bowl and started eating, the attention of both the stream's audience and the two evil spirits converged on him.
The stream, with Jiang Che as main POV, had hit tens of millions of viewers.
Everyone had already given Jiang Che's stream a new nickname: "Haunted Family Roleplay." They were all waiting for the moment when he finally puked.
[Is this lunatic really dumb, or just faking it?]
[Aren't a lot of mentally ill people actually of normal intelligence? Just kind of obsessive, right?]
[I'm about to puke watching this, but he eats like it's delicious?]
[Can you really eat that?!]
[Why don't you try it next time?]
...
After downing a whole bowl, Jiang Che let out a hearty burp. He raised his now-empty bowl high: "Dad! Another bowl!"
The Butcher, who had been watching Jiang Che eat, was dumbfounded. At first, sure, he was only thinking about playing house.
The thrill of hunting and slaughter bored him now; he preferred more subtle torments.
But this person in front of him—this was different. He thought it'd be the same old human tricks, same human ways to survive, the usual acts and desperation.
But no, this one was different!
This child's eyes held no fear. When he called him "Dad" and got a response, he looked happier than anyone else had ever been. When he served him food, the kid's eyes went pink and he looked about ready to cry.
He was actually moved?!
Upon realizing what that emotion meant, the Butcher himself was spooked.
Evil spirits like him grew stronger by feeding on human fear—as long as there was a hint of fear in their vicinity, they could sense it instantly.
But this time, it was different. He didn't sense any familiar flavor coming from this human.
If other people's bloodshot eyes meant terror and fear,
Then this child's bloodshot eyes came from being moved, from happiness, from joy…
All these were emotions he, as an evil spirit, had never experienced before. For the first time, he could taste what happiness felt like.
It was a kind of emotion that did nothing for the growth of an evil spirit—but there was an unfamiliar fragrance in it, something the haunted world had never known.
He got up, taking the empty bowl from Jiang Che and heading for the kitchen. As he walked, he asked, "How did you get by all these years?"
The hand filling up soup paused just briefly, for the moment he asked about Jiang Che's past, he caught a whiff of sadness, suffering, and pain.
"I've been great these years!" Jiang Che took the bowl and slurped down the soup.
But within the Butcher and Blood Nurse's range of perception, his emotions were now turbulent and complex—after a flash of pain and despair, Jiang Che sneaked a glance at the two, then threw it all behind him. "It was just a bit tough, that's all. But now I'm home."
Jiang Che wanted to play tough, but then realized he no longer needed to pretend to be strong.
The Butcher fell silent. The original taste of suffering in his emotions used to be their favorite, but now it just felt irritating.
"Are you full? If not, I'll get you more." The Butcher sat down on the other side of the table, already forgetting that the food he'd prepared was anything but fit for humans.
"I'm full!" Jiang Che nodded vigorously.
"In a bit, your mom will get a room ready upstairs for you. You go up and rest first." The Butcher threw a look at the Blood Nurse.
The Nurse nodded and went upstairs.
She, too, had sensed Jiang Che's shifting emotions earlier. In fact, from the very beginning—when Jiang Che put the necklace on her—she had felt the sincerity in his eyes.
Blood Slaughter's food had always tasted terrible, yet the kid ate every last bite?
At that thought, she froze. She wasn't brute-forced like Blood Slaughter—she immediately realized their food wasn't suitable for humans.
And yet, the kid had still eaten it all with happiness?
She'd have to remind Blood Slaughter later: tonight, they absolutely had to serve something normal for dinner.
Every time a dungeon begins, humans always have to survive here for three days. Most bring rations to get by.
Tonight, they'd have to make sure to prepare something normal for the kid.
But as she thought this, her hands unconsciously paused from tidying the room. She couldn't help but laugh softly.
What the hell?
She and Blood Slaughter had actually ended up raising a human as their son?