622: 10.17 Curse In The Prison

10.17 Curse In The Prison

1Original plot, as its name implied, was the basic structure of the simulation. It was given to the transmigrator upon entering so as to aid their mission. Lu Yizhou had encountered hidden plots before so he was not too surprised to hear this news. On the contrary, he had an 'as it expected' manner. Only his lover was able to cause this kind of phenomenon.

Because Lu Yizhou was really curious about Pandora's real identity, he directly asked 666 to pour the plot into his mind. 

Back then, the plot abruptly stopped at the point where Christian and Percy got to the Z-level. 

Unlike Lu Yizhou, they were not able to hear Pandora's voice, so Pandora's hypnotic ability did not work on them. On that day, they encountered the mysterious bone skeletons in Z-level and realized that Pandora might not be what they had always been thinking about.

This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Percy and hence, he did not hesitate to break the padlock and barged into the cell, trying to see if the bone skeletons really had the power to grant someone's wish.

However, much to his disappointment, nothing magical happened. It was just the usual bone skeletons with no power whatsoever! How could it be?! 

Despair flooded Percy's heart. He had hung all his hope on Pandora and only the thought of revenge could sustain him in this abhorrent place. He had come this far and he only needed one more step to succeed! Just one more step! Alas, in the end, he ended up tripping and crashed back into the abyss. This kind of outcome, how could he be reconciled?! In a fit of anger, Percy went on a mad rampage and destroyed the fragile bone skeletons until nothing remained but dust.

Lu Yizhou: "..." The protagonist really knew how to court death.

After that, the protagonists went on their days as usual. Percy had a stubborn and unyielding temperament. After that bout of mental breakdown and a night of being comforted by his lover, he already recovered more or less. He could no longer rely on Pandora, and so he began to search for another way to exact his revenge.

However, something strange started to take place around him at that time.

It happened one day when he was doing his daily labor. He seemed to catch sight of an unfamiliar youth mingling amidst the crowd. He had extremely long hair and ghastly complexion that made him unlike a real living human. At first, Percy did not think much of it. He only assumed that the youth was a newcomer who had just been sent here. But then, accidents started to arise around the youth. 

Prisoners fought each other like rabid dogs, even to the extent of killing and mutilating. Their behavior was extremely strange and bizarre as if something or someone was controlling their minds. Even punishment by electrocuting could not deter them at all! This horrible act instantly took the prison by storm. As if infected by a strange virus, everyone began to behave strangely. Percy himself had a few close encounters with death. It was entirely thanks to Christian's protection that he could still maintain his life until this day.

"It's the youth!" Realization abruptly dawned on Percy one day. "It's him who has caused everything!"

He tried to warn the wardens, the staff, the other prisoners — everyone. Yet to his utter dismay, they did not believe in him, or to be exact, they did not acknowledge the youth's existence at all! Even when the youth was standing in front of them, everyone still acted like they saw no one! At first, Christian could still believe him and helped him search for the youth, but over time, he was also getting fed up with Percy's manic behavior. 

Everyone assumed that Percy had gone mad after going through a few bloody accidents. 

Percy was extremely terrified. Who was that person? How was it possible that Percy was the only one who could see him?! It couldn't be… was it really his own imagination?! Was it possible that the youth never existed in the first place?!!

Due to his extreme behavior, more often than not Percy was locked in a special cell where he could interact with no one. Days after days, the youth's appearance haunted him. He did not do anything. He merely stood in the corner of the cell while staring at him with a faint smile on his face. But that alone was enough to scare Percy to death! His mind started to become distorted. In the end, he also believed that… everyone was right. It was only his hallucination. It was him who was getting insane…

On the other hand, the accidents in the prison were getting more and more brutal. The number of deaths was staggering and it gradually affected the wardens and staff too. It was like a purgatory in hell had descended in Nightingale Prison, leaving nothing but blood and destruction on its wake. 

Percy had no idea how long he had been locked up when one day, Christian suddenly broke into the cell and dragged him out. "There's no time to explain." The man had a rare horrified look on his face. "We have to get out of here as soon as possible!"

By then, Percy's mind was already muddled and he could only follow after Christian in daze.

It was at that moment that the mysterious youth decided to act. Percy only felt a blankness in his memory and when he came back to his senses, he discovered that… he was holding a glass fragment in his hand so tight that it cut into his flesh. Percy stared at it blankly; he had no idea where this glass came from. As he followed the source of blood dripping from it, he found out that the tip of the sharp shard… was stabbed deeply into his lover's chest, penetrating where his heart was. 

Christian stared at him with disbelief, blood trickling down from the corner of his lips. "Percy… why…"

"N–No…" Percy shakily let go of the glass fragment and clutched his head. His eyes were bloodshot and manic. "It's not me! I didn't mean to kill you! It's not me…!" He snapped his head up to see the youth standing close by with a satisfied smile on his face. As if seeing his nemesis, Percy rushed forward and grabbed the youth, roaring in despair and grief. "Why?! Why is this happening?! Why are you doing this to me?!!"

This time, the youth answered him. It was also the first time Percy had ever heard his voice. It was melodious and very pleasant, yet right now it only sent chills down his spine.

"Aren't you the one who made the wish?"

Percy stared at him blankly. Then, a piece of memory floated to the forefront of his mind. Back on the Z-level, when he was madly stomping on the bone skeletons, he was also crying while cursing all the time. Percy did not actually register what he was saying back then; he was only venting his despair, after all. Yet right now, he actually recalled every single word with utter clarity. 

He was saying — "Die! Die! I want everyone to go to hell and die!!"

As soon as the realization dawned on him, Percy staggered backward and fell to the ground. Bitter tears streamed down his face. "No… I didn't." He shook his head again and again. "It's not my wish. I didn't mean to wish for that…"

"Too late," the youth said. "And now you shall pay for the price. Congratulations, you will be the only one to survive after this." After saying that, the youth turned to look out of the window and disappeared along with the break of dawn on the horizon. Now, he was free because Percy had taken his place.

This cycle would repeat, again and again, waiting until the next batch of criminals filled the prison to activate. This was the curse of Nightingale Prison.

.

Once again, Lu Yizhou was rendered speechless by the inconceivable truth hidden underneath Nightingale Prison. So in the end, Pandora was just another victim of the curse and was not the original creator at all? Then where did the curse come from??

Even though the recollection seemed long, actually only a few seconds had passed. Lu Yizhou raised his head to find that the youth had been studying him as well. 

Ten years ago, this person was most likely another version of Percy. He had made a wish, and that wish brought slaughter and tragedy upon the prison. His wish came true, but in exchange for that, he was trapped in this place for eternity.

Then, there came the most important question.

—If in the original plot, Percy was chosen to take the youth's place, then now… was it not Lu Yizhou's turn to be trapped in this prison and become the next Pandora?

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