I'm Not A Drama God

Chapter 9: Dad, I'm hungry · “Maybe that ‘Calamity’ was just too weak… and one swing of the axe was enough to kill it for good,” Li Xiuchun suggested, offering another possibility. · Chen Tan didn’t answer. He stared at the figure in the pool of blood for a long while before turning to grab a kitchen knife from the counter. · “What are you doing?” · “Cutting his chest open to see if the heart is still there,” Chen Tan said, his voice raspy. “At the very least, I need to know… if I killed a monster, or if I killed the salvation God gave us.” · He knelt beside Chen Ling’s corpse and began the grim task of slicing open the chest with the blade. Beside him, Li Xiuchun turned pale; she spun around, rushed into the kitchen, and began to retch violently. · A few minutes later, Chen Tan slowly stood up. · “Well?” Li Xiuchun asked. · “Empty.” Chen Tan looked at the hollow interior of the chest cavity and seemed to let out a sigh of relief. “He has no heart.” · “No heart? Then how was he…” · “I don’t know.” · Chen Tan paused. “Whatever it was… it’s dead now.” · “What about the body?” · “Hide it in the cellar. There are Law Enforcers everywhere outside; we can’t move it out of here.” · Chen Tan shoved the living room table aside and pried open the heavy wooden planks on the floor, revealing a dark, cramped underground space. · In an era without refrigerators, relying on the natural insulation of a cellar to store food was the best option. He was about to toss Chen Ling inside when he caught sight of the gruesome, jagged wound on the boy's neck and hesitated. · “Go get A-Yan’s opera costume,” Chen Tan said. “No matter what this thing is, it’s still A-Ling’s skin… We don’t have a coffin for a burial, so at least let him wear something decent.” · At the mention of the costume, Li Xiuchun trembled slightly. · “But last night… that’s what he was wearing when he came back…” · “It’s just a piece of clothing.” Chen Tan started to argue, but remembering the horrific scene of Chen Ling’s return the previous night, he didn't push it. “Fine, forget it. Let’s just leave it.” · Chen Tan dumped Chen Ling’s body into the cellar, replaced the wooden planks, and slid the table back over them. It was finally over. · Li Xiuchun began cleaning the bloodstains from the floor. Though the sight made her stomach churn, she pinched her nose and forced herself to continue. · Knock, knock, knock— · A sudden, urgent pounding at the door echoed through the house. · Li Xiuchun’s heart skipped a beat. she snapped her head toward Chen Tan. · “Is someone here?” · “Ignore it. Pretend no one’s home.” · Li Xiuchun nodded. The two of them held their breath in the living room, the heavy thuds against the door the only sound in the silence. · But the knocking showed no sign of stopping. Instead, it grew more forceful. Then, a deep voice drifted in from outside: · “Law Enforcers! Open up immediately!” · At the mention of the Law Enforcers, both of them turned deathly pale. After a moment of hesitation, Chen Tan gave Li Xiuchun a look, quickly threw on a jacket, and headed for the door, his buttons misaligned. · Creeeeeak— · The door opened a crack. · Chen Tan slipped outside, pulling the door shut behind him. “Officers, is there something I can help you with?” · A light drizzle fell from the gloomy sky. Two figures in black and red uniforms stood outside, their expressions grim. · “We’ve been knocking for a while. Why didn’t you open up?” · “I was sleeping. It took a moment to get dressed,” he said with a sheepish smile. · The two Law Enforcers glanced at his haphazardly buttoned jacket, and their expressions softened slightly. “Is this Chen Ling’s residence?” · “…Yes.” · “Where is he?” · “He went out this morning and hasn't come back yet.” · “When he returns, give him this notice.” One of the Law Enforcers pulled a document from his coat. “Districts Two and Three are under total lockdown. All preparatory candidates who passed the Written Examination are being mobilized for emergency duty. He is on the list. · “He needs to report to the District Three Law Enforcer Headquarters tomorrow morning at seven sharp. Failure to show up will be considered a forfeiture of his position.” · Chen Tan’s heart hammered against his ribs, but he kept his face neutral as he took the notice and nodded. · “Understood. I’ll make sure he gets it.” · The two Law Enforcers turned and left. Chen Tan let out a silent breath of relief. · He pushed the door open and stepped back inside. · Skritch— Skritch— · The moment he entered, a piercing sound of metal grinding against metal hit his ears. It sounded like sharp fingernails raking across a chalkboard, making Chen Tan’s skin crawl instantly. · Li Xiuchun was huddled in the corner, her entire body shaking uncontrollably. · When she saw Chen Tan return, her eyes, bordering on a total breakdown, finally lifted. She slowly raised a hand and pointed toward the kitchen… · There, in the kitchen, a figure in brilliant vermillion stood with its back to them, head bowed, as if chewing on something. · The sight of that back made Chen Tan’s mind go blank. · It was a youth whose neck had been nearly severed, yet the crimson flesh was knitting itself back together at a visible speed. He held a kitchen knife in his left hand and a blood-stained axe in his right, shoving them both toward his mouth… · Sensing Chen Tan’s return, the figure draped in the Crimson Opera Robe slowly turned around. · It was Chen Ling. The heartless, nearly decapitated Chen Ling. · His cheeks bulged slightly as he forcefully chewed on the remnants of metal and wood. His dilated pupils looked like those of a beast—eerie and chilling. · “Dad.” · A voice rasped from behind the robe. “I’m hungry…” · Chen Ling had a dream. · It was a cloudy afternoon. · Just like any other day, he had finished his workout at the suburban training grounds and pushed open the front door, drenched in sweat. · It wasn't his birthday, yet a cream cake sat on the dining table… Orange candlelight flickered in the dim living room, and two figures sat by the table, their eyes rimmed with red. · A cream cake cost 200 copper coins—an expense their family could never normally afford. · He was confused. He asked what the occasion was. · His parents told him that today was the day his younger brother, A-Yan, was finally going for his surgery. · He was overjoyed. His brother’s congenital heart disease had been the nightmare haunting their family. To save him, his parents and Chen Ling had spent years begging for help, but every clinic had turned them away. · A few days ago, his parents said they had found a hospital in District Two and sent his brother there, confident they could cure him. · Hearing the good news, he happily finished the cake. But soon, his consciousness began to fade. He slumped onto the table, his last vision being his mother, Li Xiuchun, covering her mouth and weeping bitterly. · “I’m sorry… I’m so sorry,” he heard his father whisper. “A-Yan needs a heart… You’d be willing, wouldn't you?” · He opened his mouth as if to answer, but finally succumbed to the darkness. · Then, he felt himself being stuffed into a bag. Rain pattered against the surface for a long time before he was finally lifted onto a table. · He felt his chest being sliced open, and something being taken from within. · After that, someone dressed him in a garment and moved him through the heavy rain. Thick soil gradually buried his body, and everything around him fell into a silent, dark void… · In the darkness, Chen Ling’s eyes snapped open. · Spotlights flickered on overhead, illuminating the Crimson-clothed figure lying in the center of the stage. After a moment of disorientation, Chen Ling pushed himself up, swaying as he stood. · “Damn it… How am I back here again?” · Chen Ling’s face was pale. His gaze instinctively drifted to the screen in the center of the stage, and his pupils suddenly contracted. · 【Audience Expectation Value +1】 · 【Audience Expectation Value +1】 · 【Current Expectation Value: 67%】 · 【Loss of Actor Connection Detected. Performance Interruption.】 · 【Audience Expectation Value -50】 · 【Current Expectation Value: 17%】 · 【Warning! Warning!】 · 【The Audience is beginning to intervene in the Performance!】 · [END]