Yu Sheng quickly shook his head, pushing aside the chaotic thoughts cluttering his mind.
Whether this was a special consciousness space or truly his “dream,” the real question now was why Xiao Xiao appeared here.
Naturally, Yu Sheng recalled the two others who had shown up here before: Little Red Riding Hood and Foxy.
If he had to count, Irene should also be included—though the little doll had entered using her own Dream Entry ability.
Could it be… due to a blood connection?
Xiao Xiao stood nearby, blinking curiously at him, her small face tinged with confusion.
Yu Sheng reached out to pat her head gently. He had no idea how to explain this place to a six-year-old, so he opted not to explain at all. “You’re dreaming,” he said simply.
“Uncle, are you soone I dread up?” she asked, tilting her head with curiosity.
Yu Sheng froze for a mont, then reluctantly nodded. “…Yes, you dread .”
“Can you turn into X Rider?” The little girl’s eyes sparkled with excitent.
Yu Sheng was caught off guard. “…No, I can’t.”
Xiao Xiao thought for a mont. “Then turn into UltrXman.”
He couldn’t help but laugh. Squatting down to et her gaze, he explained solemnly, “Even in dreams, there are things we can’t do…”
“Oh.” She gave a small nod, finally letting go of her wild imagination.
But a few seconds later, she asked, “What about Rainbow LittlX?”
“…No,” Yu Sheng interrupted with a sigh.
“Okay, no transforming then,” she conceded, sitting down on the ground. She plucked a few blades of grass and began tying them into small knots.
Yu Sheng couldn’t help but recall Little Red Riding Hood’s complaints about this place feeling dull. He crouched beside Xiao Xiao. “Does it feel a bit boring here?”
The little girl nodded but imdiately shook her head firmly. “There are no wolves here,” she whispered. “It feels better than other dreams.”
Yu Sheng froze at her words, his mind suddenly thoughtful.
Just as he was about to say sothing more, faint noises reached his ears. It took him a mont to realize they ca from the real world.
“I have to go now,” he told Xiao Xiao after a quick deliberation. “You’ll probably stay here a little longer. When nap ti is over, your teacher will wake you. Don’t be scared; this place is safe.”
The girl blinked and waved her little hand politely. “Goodbye, Uncle.”
Yu Sheng released his ntal control, allowing his consciousness to fall away from the “dream” and back to reality.
…
He jolted awake, imdiately overwheld by a heavy pressure on his chest, arms, and legs. As he blinked his eyes open, he saw the culprits—three identical Irenes sprawled across him. One was draped over his chest, while the others pinned his arms and a leg.
Even with their identical appearances, he instantly recognized the one sprawled across his chest—it was the Rebar Irene.
“Get off ! You’re going to crush to death!” Yu Sheng grumbled, struggling to shove the dolls away like a man fending off koalas. By the ti he freed himself, he felt half his body had gone numb, as if he’d truly been squashed and had only just revived.
His phone buzzed incessantly on the nightstand. He reached over, groaning, and checked the screen—Little Red Riding Hood was calling.
Ignoring the half-awake complaints of the three Irenes, Yu Sheng answered the call. “Hello?”
Little Red Riding Hood wasted no ti getting to the point. Her words, however, caught him completely off guard. “Do you rember our operation at the Museum?”
Yu Sheng blinked, surprised. He’d been preoccupied with Xiao Xiao’s appearance in his dream and assud her call was about sothing unusual at the Orphanage. Instead, she brought up the Museum incident. It took him a mont to respond. “Yeah, I rember.”
“Do you also rember how the ‘paynt’ for that mission never arrived?”
Now that she ntioned it, Yu Sheng recalled. “Oh! Yeah, I almost forgot about that. The paynt’s still missing… Did sothing happen? Did you go ask for it? Were they refusing to pay?”
As he spoke, he found the abrupt shift in topics unsettling. Recent conversations with Little Red Riding Hood revolved around Fairy Tale Organization matters—like the Black Forest or Big Bad Wolves. Jumping back to the Museum event felt jarring.
But what she said next made his discomfort vanish entirely.
“My client is dead.”
“…What?!” Yu Sheng exclaid.
“Since I hadn’t received any paynt from the Association of Strange Objects, I tried to contact the client. None of the contact thods worked,” she explained. “So, I reached out to so connections within the Association. That’s when I learned the client had an ‘accident’ and passed away a few days ago.”
Yu Sheng stayed silent, but an unmistakable sense of unease crept in.
After a mont of thought, he asked, “Wait, what about the commission for the Weeping One Statue?”
“I thought of that too,” Little Red Riding Hood replied gravely. “The Association is a well-established organization with proper protocols. Even if a client dies, they have systems to ensure payouts and follow-ups. But when I checked their records, I found nothing. The commission for the statue doesn’t exist.”
“…It was deleted?” Yu Sheng’s voice lowered.
“Possibly. Either the commission was fake from the start, or soone removed it recently.”
Yu Sheng’s brows furrowed deeply as the implications sank in.
…
The Museum operation had seed concluded—a closed chapter, despite the chaos of cult sacrifices and Angel Cultist involvent that followed. But now, this unresolved thread was back, unraveling with hints of conspiracy.
If the commission had been fake, it could have been a rogue Association mber trying to pocket the Museum’s exhibits for personal gain. But if the commission had been legitimate and later erased, the situation grew far more complex.
“This feels off,” Little Red Riding Hood admitted through the phone. “And since your share of the paynt is tied up in this, I thought I’d let you know… Sorry for dragging you into this.”
“Don’t worry about that,” Yu Sheng cut in. “What’s your next move? You’re not letting this slide, are you?”
“…No. I need to find out how my client died,” she said after a pause. “I’ve worked with him for years. He was the one who introduced to the Association and even helped the previous Little Red Riding Hood. I can’t believe he’d pull a stunt like this for profit. His death is suspicious—it feels like…”
“Like soone silenced him?” Yu Sheng finished for her.
“…Yes.”
“Let’s talk in person,” he suggested. “Should I co to you, or will you co here?”
Caught off guard, Little Red Riding Hood stamred, “Oh, no, you don’t need to trouble yourself. I just wanted to inform you—”
“Too late! You’ve piqued my curiosity,” Yu Sheng interrupted. “Besides, this is too shady. Even a child laborer’s wages got stolen!”
“…Shut up.” She was silent, clearly struggling for a coback but failing.
…
As the call ended, Yu Sheng sighed, lowering the phone. When he looked up, three Irenes were sitting neatly on the bed, staring at him intently.
“Another problem?” they chid in unison, drawing out their words.
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Yu Sheng rolled his eyes, pointing at the middle doll. “You! No more sleeping on my bed.”
“…Why?”
“Why? Because you nearly crushed ! With your Rebar Body and stone core, you’ve squashed from 167 centiters to 60. I’m worried you’ll crack the bed with one jump. Get down!”
Before he could say more, the middle Irene’s red eyes glead as she lunged at him with a loud growl.
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