What Is Bella?

There were only two solutions for when a person ran into such a problem in the middle of nowhere: ignore the problem, as it was impossible to solve, or to rack one's brain and think hard for the solution.

Of course, Ye Ci was not one to give up. Even if the quest felt rigged, it didn't mean that Ye Ci would give up just like that.

Ye Ci would never give up without even trying to solve a problem. So, she dismounted from Ol' Four and circled the tombstone. Once she started searching, she was able to find a clue on a slab of stone that was covered by a thin layer of soil.

The tomb was old and badly eroded by the strong winds in the Mausoleum of Blades; it was impossible to tell how long the slab of stone had existed. However, that wasn't important. The most important thing now was for Ye Ci to find a small indentation that shared a similar shape with the badge.

If Ye Ci still couldn't figure out what must be done, she would end up doubting her own level of intelligence. The solution was so obvious that even an idiot could figure it out. When the main characters in a TV show had to think hard for a solution to a trivial problem such as this, one could say that the producers of the show were lowering the IQ level of the audience and challenging their patience at the same time. Oh, we seem to have strayed off topic, but I've wanted to say this for a long time: Please don't think of the readers and audience as idiots, alright? Can the producers and script writers out there please increase the quality of your work?

Oops, I seem to have strayed very far off topic.

Alright, let us continue with the story of Ye Ci.

Ye Ci immediately took the badge out of her inventory and placed it in the indentation. She then waited beside the tomb, staring at it without a hint of emotion. According to all her knowledge of drama and movies, something would be happening soon. A rock hiding a hidden cave somewhere might be moved away, revealing the labyrinth hidden within. There might even be flashes of lightning and thunder accompanied by strong winds and awesome sound effects, announcing the appearance of something extraordinary.

This won't happen in the game, will it? Ye Ci stared at the tombstone and waited… And waited…

One minute passed, and nothing happened.

Two minute passed, and nothing happened.

…

Five minutes passed, and nothing happened.

…

Ten minutes passed, and still nothing happened.

Ye Ci was enraged. You've got to be kidding me! Even if she hated the usual tropes employed in TV series and movies, weren't they better than nothing happening at all? Wouldn't it be less infuriating?

Flames of anger were burning in Ye Ci's heart. She stood up and stared emotionlessly at the tombstone. If she was a man she would've pulled down her pants, pointed her 'accessory' at the tombstone, and peed on it to vent her frustration. However, she was female, which meant that she didn't have that particular piece of 'equipment'. She stomped on the tombstone and growled in anger, "Oi, Bella, I don't care if you're dead or alive, or even if you're the f*cking tombstone itself! Get out now or I'll dig you out of the grave!"

However, the only response to Ye Ci's violent outburst were the strong winds in the Mausoleum of Blades.

The winds bellowing past Ye Ci's ears were like taunts to her, causing her anger to continue to boil. She knew that the developers had a tendency to play pranks on the players, but as someone who'd never experienced it first hand in the past, Ye Ci had thought nothing of it. Now, when it had finally happened to her, Ye Ci felt that all the developers should be drowned in a whisker basket, especially that guy named Wang Jiangnan.

Wang Jiangnan, who was immersed in his work, felt a sudden gust of chilly wind on his back. He shivered at the sudden coldness and knocked his cup down in the process. With a loud clang, the cup shattered. The sound went unnoticed in the Fate office as it was bustling with activity. The only person alerted to the sound was Wang Jiangnan's colleauge who was sitting right beside him. "What happened? Why are you shivering in this hot weather? Are you having a seizure or something?" Said the man as he stared at Wang Jiangnan.

Wang Jiangnan himself was puzzled as well; he wasn't feeling ill at all. He then shook his head and brushed the incident off. "It's nothing."

"Did somebody place a jinx on you?" Wang Jiangnan's colleague chuckled.

"No way! If I was jinxed, the lot of you would've already died God knows how many times!" Wang Jiangnan, of course, didn't believe such a theory. After a small talk, the two developers resumed their work.

It was a small episode in the office in the middle of a hot summer. The sun was at its highest peak, and cicadas chirped merrily. The sunlight was so brilliant that even the flowers in a person's heart would be in full bloom as they basked in the sunlight.

Ye Ci was a person who kept her word. Since she was being ignored by Bella, and unable to complete her quest, she immediately began digging up the grave. Filled with curiosity, Ol' Four watched Ye Ci before catching on to her intention. It immediately rushed up to Ye Ci in glee and began pawing at the earth with its large claws.

The grave wasn't deep. After a short while, a crude and simple looking coffin appeared. Before Ye Ci could think of her next move, Ol' Four stepped on the flimsy-looking coffin with one of its legs….

With a loud crack, the coffin shattered.

Ol' Four was excited. The sound was just like the snapping of twigs in the forest that it used to live in. For Ol' Four, it was a memory of home. It began to repeatedly pounce with delight, as if it was performing a dance.

Ye Ci was baffled by Ol' Four's excitement. However, she had no time to ponder on the matter as something bewildering was happening: Ol' Four was once again about to stomp down on the already shattered coffin.

"Ol' Four!" Although Ye Ci had already uncovered Bella's grave, she didn't mean to defile her corpse. Ol' Four's actions would lead right to that outcome!

"Guhh?" Ol' Four stopped in its tracks and stared at Ye Ci. There was a hint of dissatisfaction in its eyes, accusing Ye Ci of spoiling its fun.

"You can't do that; get back here!" Said Ye Ci sternly.

For Ol' Four, Ye Ci's admonishment wasn't much of a deterrent. It stared at Ye Ci while it continued to slowly extend its leg towards the coffin, and with another loud crack, he stepped onto the coffin.

"Ol' Four!" Ye Ci screamed at the top of her lungs. What if there was good loot in the coffin, and they were smashed by Ol' Four?

"Ahh! My face!" Another voice screamed out at the same time. It was the sharp, high-pitched voice of a female.

Where did that voice came from? Ol' Four was stunned at well. It stood motionless and sniffed at the shattered coffin with great curiosity.

Ye Ci stared silently at the coffin. She could've sworn that she saw one of the many pieces of the coffin move.

A woman in a white dress climbed out of the coffin under the watchful gaze of Ye Ci and Ol' Four. Judging by her semi transparent body, it was apparent that she wasn't human. The woman began crying as she climbed, "My face! My youthful, gorgeous face! How could you step on it! I don't want to live anymore! I don't want to live anymore!"

Ye Ci was dumbfounded by the sudden change of events. Just what the hell is going on?

She was alone in the deserted northern fringes in the Mausoleum of Blades, standing in front of a small tombstone, a shattered coffin, and a wailing woman…or rather, ghost. Just what the hell was going on here?

Am I in a horror movie? A detective movie? Or a movie about literature and art? Or is this a comedy?

Ye Ci was finally able to figure things out after a long moment. Ye Ci cleared her throat, and asked in the most serious voice she could muster, "Are you Bella?"

Perhaps due to the sheer size of Ol' Four, the ghost hadn't even noticed the presence of another being before Ye Ci spoke up. She turned around and stared at Ye Ci after hearing the voice, and spoke up after a moment of pause, "Where did you come from?"

Ye Ci was almost driven mad by the question. What do you mean by 'where did I come from?'?!

Ye Ci spent a huge amount of time and effort coaxing the ghost before she finally got the answer she wanted. She was indeed Bella, and was Andrei's trusted aid. She has been watching over his hidden treasure and had long passed away. As a sign of loyalty, her companions had buried her in this place and set up a camp not far away.

A sudden realization hit Ye Ci. The camp selling provisions and consumables to players was actually affiliated to the Doran Thieves Guild… Just what the heck is going on?

When Ye Ci handed the badge to Bella, she stared at the badge for a long time before speaking up in an embarrassed tone, "What is this?"

What is this?

Ye Ci had the urge to let out a shout of frustration. What the f*ck? Who designed this quest? Who the f*ck was the one who made this NPC? Why don't you just give me a knife so that I can kill myself with it?

Ye Ci inhaled deeply and spoke up after stabilizing her emotions, "Andrei wanted me to hand this to you."

"This is from Andrei?" Bella looked at the badge with distress written all over her face, and finally spoke up after a long pause, "Can you let me think about it for a few moments?"

Shit! Ye Ci's anger was so great that she was almost on fire. Why is this happening to me? I just wanted to receive my reward! Why do I have to do such a perverted quest? And this bitch right here wants me to give her time to think things over? It's not like you're trying to decide the fate of a nation or something!

Before she could shout out her frustrations, Ye Ci received a private message from Bai Mo. "Say, are you done with your Epic-tier quest?"

"If it could be completed so easily, it won't be an Epic-tier quest!" Ye Ci's voice was full of fury. She was like a barrel full of gunpowder, ready to explode with just the slightest of sparks.