Liu Xing helplessly discovered how unreliable his teammates truly were. Chen Ling was a chatterbox, Bai Hecheng was a dramatic figure who loved to add drama to his own drama. Wang Siyi seemed like a loner, and it was unclear whether he would participate in teamwork. As for Wang Qi, while not as erratic as the other three, Liu Xing could tell he had a short temper and might, provoked by Bai Hecheng, do something out of the ordinary.
In short, the future looked bleak.
Complaints aside, the story had to continue. Liu Xing felt it was time to "get to know" Bai Hecheng and the others.
Liu Xing feigned surprise as he looked at Bai Hecheng and the other two. "Oh, did your car have trouble too? My friend and I also had a flat tire when we drove here."
Wang Qi was about to speak when Bai Hecheng spoke up, "So that taxi at the town entrance is yours! I was wondering who had such a lack of public courtesy, parking their car right there, blocking most of the way and making it difficult for us to park."
Liu Xing was furious. Not only was Bai Hecheng a dramatic actor, but he probably also had the taunting skill.
Chen Ling rubbed his head awkwardly and said helplessly, "I parked the car there. I was reversing back to Manchester when all four tires blew simultaneously, so I had to park there."
Wang Qi nodded and was about to say something when Bai Hecheng spoke up again, "I see. You guys are really unlucky, but that was an accident. Ours was a man-made disaster. Wang Qi actually forgot to refuel. Isn't that stupid?"
Liu Xing noticed that Wang Qi's fists were clenched, and veins bulged in his forehead. He was clearly irritated by Bai Hecheng. However, Wang Qi remembered that he was still playing a Cthulhu game, and he couldn't just attack his teammates without thinking, lest there be any accidents.
Liu Xing felt that if this were the real world, Wang Qi would definitely beat Bai Hecheng up...
As for Wang Siyi, he remained unconcerned, quietly eating his breakfast.
At this moment, the tavern owner came over with another breakfast and placed it in front of Bai Hecheng. "Is your car out of gas? When Old John comes back, I'll have him fill it up for you. But you'll have to pay for the gas first."
Liu Xing was about to take out his wallet to help pay for the gas, but Bai Hecheng casually pulled out a wallet and a card. "Boss, can you use a credit card?"
The situation was extremely awkward.
You have to remember that in a small English town like Eins, Liu Xing and Chen Ling had walked almost half the town looking for an auto repair shop and didn't even see a bank teller. Liu Xing didn't think this tavern would accept credit cards.
Bai Hecheng, as if realizing something, put his bank card back into his wallet, pulled out his phone, and said, "Boss, can you use Alipay?"
...
The scene was extremely awkward.
Liu Xing, feeling both amused and embarrassed, pulled another hundred pounds from his wallet and handed it to the bartender, "Boss, could you please fill up their car's tank?"
The bartender took the money, nodded, then glanced at Baihecheng, sighed inexplicably, and left.
Liu Xing felt that the bartender had taken Baihecheng for a fool...
As for Baihecheng, he continued to complain, "What a shabby place! Not only can't you pay with credit cards, but they can't even accept Alipay. This place is truly desolate and barren."
Everyone present, including Wang Siyi, who had been eating in silence, looked at Baihecheng speechlessly. After a few glances, they all came to the same conclusion: if anyone was going to die in this mission, Baihecheng would be the first to go.
Since Liu Xing had struck up a conversation with Bai Hecheng and the other two, he took Chen Ling to share a table with them, chatting about random things and sharing some secrets.
Unfortunately, after some probing, Liu Xing discovered that none of the Bai Hecheng members were in the same club as him. However, he was fortunate in one respect: Wang Qi and Bai Hecheng's skill builds both leaned towards combat. Wang Qi was a student at a sports school and had studied wrestling for over a decade, while Bai Hecheng was a philosophy student. However, Bai Hecheng's taunting skills, which had always offended others and even led to conflicts, led him to self-study martial arts and Muay Thai.
Like Liu Xing, Wang Siyi was a support-type player, but he leaned more towards exploration, as he was a journalist, working in Hong Kong.
With the addition of Chen Ling, a veteran, Liu Xing felt this team was pretty well-formed. Three frontline soldiers would handle combat, a reporter would gather intelligence, and he would restore his teammates' health and SAN. With steady progress, they should be able to...
Well, Liu Xing didn't think his teammates would be so steady, because he suspected Baihe City might taunt the mythical creatures beforehand...
Just then, the tavern owner presented five small plaques. "My dear friends, this is a passage to the castle. The owner gave it to me. If any tourists wish to visit the castle, please give it to them. I see you can't leave Ains Town today, so why not visit the castle? I'm sure the owner would be happy to let you stay overnight, as long as you're willing to share your experiences."
Liu Xing and the others took the plaques from the tavern owner and discovered they were decorated with an old seal!
Liu Xing frowned. If the castle's owner used the old seal as a passage, then Liu Xing could imagine that the castle's walls were likely engraved with the old seal as well. This would indicate that the owner had some knowledge of mythical creatures and was intentionally keeping them out.
Thus, Liu Xing felt that the castle's owner was most likely a magician or some other being, rather than the mythical creature he had initially assumed. After all, his first impression of the castle was that it was a lair for mythical creatures like vampires, werewolves, and ghouls.
But then again, sometimes humans can be even more difficult to deal with than mythical creatures!
After playing with the pass for a while, Bai Hecheng suddenly exclaimed excitedly, "I've never lived in an ancient castle in my life. Let's finish our meal and go explore the castle!"
For the first time, everyone agreed with Bai Hecheng's suggestion. After all, it was only 9:30 in the morning, and they estimated they would arrive at the castle before 11:00. So, after spending over twelve hours in the castle, it wasn't even midnight yet, and the danger level in the Cthulhu world skyrocketed after midnight.
So, everyone quickly finished their breakfast, and after unanimously declining Bai Hecheng's request to pack another breakfast, they headed for the castle, led by Wang Siyi.
As for why Wang Siyi was leading the way, it was because he possessed navigation skills. Simply put, Wang Siyi could find the shortest route to the castle and memorize it, making it much easier for Liu Xing and the others to leave, or rather, escape from Einstein Town.