Please charm this NPC

That night, Ran Wenyu had a nightmare.Of course, in the dream, he did not see the great indescribable existence, but dreamed of his high school biology teacher.

The middle-aged female teacher is holding a pointer, standing on the podium and talking, and the blackboard is full of symbols like a bible.Ran Wenyu sat below, holding the notebook and taking notes like the wind, but he didn't know what he had recorded.

Arterial valves, platelets, neurons, connective tissue... All kinds of nouns filled his brain, making Ran Wenyu feel that his head was about to explode in a second.He is eager to memorize all the knowledge, because the college entrance examination will start tomorrow, but the more anxious he is, the more chaotic he will be. He forgets all kinds of concepts, and the despair, regret and fear of "definitely failing the exam" are simply overwhelming. Even more frightening than confronting a terrifying god.

So, until struggling to wake up from this painful dream, Ran Wenyu, who was sitting on the bed, could still feel the shock, and his whole body was in a daze.

[Need a SANCHECK? 】KP's considerate inquiry.

Ran Wenyu twitched the corner of his mouth: "No need, thank you."

After wiping his face, Ran Wenyu turned over and got out of bed, and after washing his face with cold water, he managed to recover a bit, but his whole body still looked sluggish, with two patches of bluish black under his eyes.

Seeing that it was getting late, Ran Wenyu quickly tidied up his appearance and opened the door.And the door on the opposite side also opened at the same time, and Augustus walked out from the door after tidying up.

"Morning~" Ran Wenyu yawned, and greeted him casually.

Augustus responded with a greeting, then frowned: "Did something happen last night? Your mental state looks a bit bad."

"Something did happen." Ran Wenyu looked around at the empty corridor, but didn't say much, "This is not a place to talk. I'll tell you after I have breakfast and go to the study." While talking , he took two steps and walked side by side with Augustus, "As for the mental state... well, it's because I had a nightmare."

"What nightmare?" Augustus asked cautiously.

"...I dreamed that I was back on the eve of the college entrance examination, and then found that I didn't understand anything." Ran Wenyu sighed deeply.

Augustus: ? ? ? ? ? ?

Looking at the bewildered foreign friend, Ran Wenyu shook his head enviously: "Forget it, you don't understand that kind of pain."

Augustus: "……………………"

Chatting casually along the way, the two went downstairs and came to the restaurant. Asham was already sitting at the dining table. Seeing Ran Wenyu who was sluggish, he showed a bit of pity: "What's wrong? What I said yesterday, Does it make you feel very embarrassed?"

"...not at all." Ran Wenyu showed a smile so complicated that even he didn't know what his emotions were, "My mind is just a little messy and I think a little too much, so I have some insomnia."

Arthur's voice was soft: "You don't need to push yourself too much, you still have a long time to think about it, so relax."

"Okay, thank you." Ran Wenyu nodded and sat in his seat.And Asham also ended the short exchange and continued to enjoy his own breakfast.

The dining table was quiet again, and Augustus sat across from Ran Wenyu, with a somewhat shocked expression on his expression.Through observation, he was able to find that the doctor named Asham was gentle and approachable on the surface, but he was arrogant and indifferent in his bones.He didn't seem to care about everything that happened in the manor, it was as quiet as an extremely exquisite and luxurious setting board.

Ever since he came to Prost Manor and met Arthur, Augustus hadn't spoken to him.Every time he makes eye contact with the other party and tries to develop a topic, he always senses a subtle rejection, and clearly perceives that the other party does not want to communicate with him.

However, it was such a cold and mysterious NPC who somehow intersected with Ran Wenyu. This really made Augustus scratching his heart and curiously, wanting to know how his little friend did it.

So, taking advantage of other people not noticing, Augustus gave Ran Wenyu a look: When did you hook up with this Dr. Asham?

Ran Wenyu returned him a calm smile.

In this way, just after breakfast, the two of them couldn't wait to get into the study.

Without waiting for Augustus to ask again, Ran Wenyu told about the encounter with Asham when he was walking last night.

Because he was worried that he would miss some important clues, he racked his brains to recall and express every detail as clearly as possible.After he babbled a lot, the study fell into a quiet silence.

Augustus pinched his chin, drooping his eyes in thought. Ran Wenyu waited for a long time but didn't get his response. He couldn't help poking his arm: "How is it? Can you guess what Arthur wants? What are you doing?"

Augustus shook his head regretfully: "I'm afraid that I don't know as much about this Dr. Asham as you, who have had real contact with him, so I really don't know his purpose."

Ran Wenyu sighed, but he had expected this, so it can't be called disappointment—after all, he and Atham had already met two modules, and this "friendship" must not be comparable to other people.

"Maybe...he really thinks that your character is a bit pitiful, and wants to help you?" Augustus guessed when he thought of the way Arthur stared at Ran Wenyu's back at dinner last night.

"It's impossible!" Ran Wenyu said firmly.

Augustus spread his hands: "Then you can only pretend to be a snake with him for the time being, just take it one step at a time. If he has any bad thoughts, he will show his feet sooner or later."

"I'm just worried that if he shows his feet, it will be too late." Ran Wenyu scratched his little curly hair, feeling hopeless.

Although he didn't discuss the reason with Augustus, Ran Wenyu felt a lot more at ease after ventilating with his little friend, so he put Athem's anomaly aside for the time being.

Obviously, they are still half-forced in the study room today, unable to come and go freely in a justifiable way—after all, their characters came to Prost Manor in order to obtain the succession of Baron Slanter, so after completing the baron arrangement You must do your best and go all out for the task, and it is impossible to run out and wander around halfway through the writing.

Once they behave abnormally and arouse the vigilance and suspicion of the NPC, it is definitely not a good thing for the investigation.

So, this morning, the two investigators went through the study again, hoping to find clues that they missed yesterday.But unfortunately, apart from the locked drawer that cannot be opened temporarily, there is nothing worthy of their attention in the study.

With nothing to do, they had no choice but to bite the bullet and opened the few books that they needed to read.

Last night, Robert Butler's spot check was successfully fooled by the two, but tonight, if there was a progress check, they would not be able to do the same.Since there is nothing to do now, Ran Wenyu and Augustus discussed it, and each chose a book to look through. At least they got a general idea, were prepared, and could say something when asked.

In addition to reading, Ran Wenyu also tried to poke a bucket of locked drawers with a wire from time to time, but unfortunately, until lunch time, the drawer remained motionless.

——Ran Wenyu felt that his good luck had probably been ruined by himself.

After reading philosophy books all morning, both of them felt a little dizzy.

Before leaving the study, Ran Wenyu moved closer to Augustus and lowered his voice: "I don't think we can continue spending time in the study."

"Yes." Augustus agreed, "We must find a way to be able to move freely in the mansion."

It's a pity that the two of them haven't thought of this method so far, so they can only suppress their own eagerness for the time being.

Since there was no urgent matter today, after lunch, Ran Wenyu did not continue to "work hard" in the study like yesterday, but returned to his room.He was not in good spirits all morning, and planned to take a nap to relieve fatigue.

Ran Wenyu was the first one to finish lunch, because he completely accepted his setting as an inferior person, let himself go completely, and no longer cared whether his etiquette was elegant when eating. Go back to your room and rest.

As for Augustus and Arthur, they were still so slow. They almost finished their lunch, stood up, and walked to the second floor.

Recalling what Ran Wenyu said in the morning, Augustus thought a little bit.He quickened his pace, walked to Arthur's side, and said, "Doctor Arthur."

Arsham didn't stop, but turned his head slightly to show his response.

Feeling Arthur's indifference, Augustus did not back down.He coughed lightly, and tentatively said, "Excuse me, how is the baron's health?"

Atham smiled, but his politeness was alienated: "The baron is still in good health and is already in the recovery period. It's just that he is too old, so the recovery is a bit slow, please don't worry."

"That's good." Augustus showed a relaxed smile, "Excuse me, what's wrong with the baron?"

"It's just a common problem of some old people." Athem replied, stopping suddenly.

Augustus was a little confused, and then stopped, and then saw Arthur slightly nodding at him: "Then, excuse me."

After speaking, Asham turned and left again, his movements were elegant but decisive, and he did not drag his feet.Augustus was bluffed by him for a while, subconsciously wanted to follow, but suddenly swept to the familiar door beside him.

——Well, it turned out that he had already walked to the door of his room.

It would be too deliberate to catch up again, and Augustus could also feel that the other party didn't seem to have any intention of intersecting with him.Augustus wasn't thick-skinned enough, so he could only touch his nose, give up angrily, and opened his own door instead.

——Obviously I met Asham at the same time, but why, I and Ran Wenyu were treated in two completely different ways in front of each other?Ran Wenyu didn't know why, and he was afraid of Asham, but he got a friendly (?) invitation from the other party, and he took the initiative to join him, but was rejected thousands of miles away.

——Could it be because of the face?

For the first time, Augustus, who had always regarded himself as a tall, rich and handsome man, had deep doubts about himself.

Augustus was not used to lunch breaks, so he just took a short nap and went to the study, while Ran Wenyu slept for more than two hours before getting up refreshed.

Pushing open the door of the study, Ran Wenyu saw Augustus holding his head, flipping through a philosophy book bitterly, seeing him coming, he raised his hand to say hello—probably because he was acquainted, or The two depended on each other and shared joys and sorrows in the module. Augustus did not continue to deliberately maintain his image in front of Ran Wenyu, and his attitude was much more relaxed.

Ran Wenyu smiled back at him, went straight to the desk, and took out the wire.

KP: [Locksmith check: 30/18, successful. 】

As the saying goes, heaven pays off, Ran Wenyu's continuous efforts finally paid off, and the blind cat met a dead mouse.Ran Wenyu held up the wire, his eyes widened in disbelief, and he couldn't wait to open the drawer.

Augustus also quickly dropped the philosophy book in his hand and moved over.

There are not many things in the drawer, only a few notebooks and a small red velvet box.Augustus picked up the box, and Ran Wenyu also took out the notebook.

There was a brass key in the small box. Augustus observed its size, raised his eyebrows, and walked towards the secret door covered by the wallpaper.

There is no doubt that the key fits perfectly with the secret door lock.

Augustus was slightly disappointed.They have already opened the secret door, so the things in this drawer don't seem to be of great help to them.He turned around and walked back to the desk, looking at the notebook that Ran Wenyu had opened.

The notebook is covered with kraft paper, which looks very strong, but its appearance is extraordinarily simple, which is incompatible with the luxurious and noble decoration of the entire villa.Inside the notebook are page after page of sketches, each representing a country or a region, recording local customs, characteristic decorations, and even cultural relics and historic sites in the form of paintings, and next to the sketches are written in cursive fonts The time, place and simple situational description of the painting are recorded.

Ran Wenyu is no stranger to such notes.He once played a series of games called "Uncharted Seas", in which the protagonist Nathan Drake would carry such a notebook with him every time he went on an adventure. Every place in the mystery, will record what I saw and felt.

——Are notebooks and superb sketching skills the standard equipment for all adventurers?

Ran Wenyu can be sure that these notebooks are the adventure notes of Baron Slanter when he was young, recording his every journey and every step.I have to say that Baron Slanter's art skills are indeed very good. Although he is not as good as Nathan in the game, his brush strokes are extremely agile. With just a few strokes, he can outline a thing vividly.

From these notes, Ran Wenyu could feel how the young Baron Slanter sincerely loved his adventure. These records imagine a bright, courageous, enthusiastic and energetic young man.

However, compared to the old man who was paralyzed on the bed, grumpy and harsh, and dying when he first came to Prost Manor, Ran Wenyu couldn't help but sigh, sighing secretly that time is really a killing knife, the hero is late, the beauty Whiteheads, nothing can stand its ruthless carving.

After sighing, the two investigators began to work together, quickly flipped through all the notes, and recorded the route map of Baron Slant's travel.

According to the time of painting next to the sketch, they could see that the young Baron Slanter seemed to be tireless and had been running around all corners of the world, but his journey came to an abrupt end in the jungle of southeastern Mexico.

Judging from the rules of the notes, every journey of Baron Slanter has a beginning and an end, and he will also record his experience completely. Even if there is nothing worthy of his attention on the way home, he will write it at the end When did I return to Prost Manor.

However, this journey to the Mexican jungle did not end. It was only written that the expedition team went deep into the jungle and discovered a mysterious ruin, and then there was no more text.

This blank space is like an impassioned music ending abruptly at the climax, bringing people infinite reverie and heart palpitations.

"Sure enough, the problem was the last trip." Augustus took a deep breath, closed his notebook, and looked at Ran Wenyu.

"Yes, although this discovery does not help us much, it also confirms our previous conjecture." Ran Wenyu nodded, "We need to start with Baron Slant's trip to Mexico to find out what happened. .”

"According to the date in the notebook, the incident happened about 30 years ago. The steward Robert should be the person who knows the whole story best, but I'm afraid he is loyal to Baron Slanter and won't tell us anything." Augustus frowned.

"The servant Henry is probably in his 30s. I'm afraid he hadn't come to work at Prost Manor at that time, and the maid Lisa was only in her twenties, so it's even more impossible. Then the only person who can find out the news is..." Ran Wenyu Said slowly, he and Augustus looked at each other, and the two said the same name in unison, "Cook Emily!"