Chapter 670: The World Tree

The neighboring country's princess, are you talking about me? Should I go along with this rabbit gentleman's performance? I feel so embarrassed. Thoughts flash through my mind, Ao Daili lifts her skirt slightly, and, with great propriety, bows and says:

"Your Majesty the King, greetings. This is my first time here, many things are unfamiliar to me; may I ask you about the rules of this place?"

In front of her, the rabbit dressed as a king seemed immensely gratified by vanity; the joy in its bright red eyes could not be concealed. After two seconds it composed itself, gave a light cough, and said to those behind:

As the king spoke, a rabbit behind him, wearing a white shirt, brown vest, a beret, and holding paper and pen, hurried forward.

Under Ao Daili's curious gaze, it reached into its empty chest and produced a thumb‑thick, palm‑sized notebook, handing it to Ao Daili.

"This," Ao Daili said in surprise as she took it.

She didn't quite understand how the other could conjure something out of thin air; upon first entering here, she had discovered that her extraordinary abilities were nullified, leaving only the basic observational skills and instincts of a "spectator".

"Each identity possesses its own unique ability. As a secretary, I can directly turn the information I have mastered into a book and produce it. I am the king of the Carrot Kingdom, able to rule and command every creature within the kingdom."

"So that's how it is, I understand now, thank you, rabbit—no, Mr. King."

Ao Daili, thoughtful, nodded in thanks to the rabbit king before her. She suddenly grew curious about her own identity. The king can command every creature in the kingdom; what about the princess? Can she command only certain creatures within limits? By the way, I still don't know which country's princess I am.

As the thought flickered, the identity card belonging to her materialized on its own. Ao Daili, surprised, reached out and took it, carefully reading the fine print beneath the card: Princess of the North Forest, who fled the palace due to an accident, noble and elegant, naturally possessing the magic to summon wind and snow and to create frost.

That description is so brief; I always feel there are many stories behind it waiting to be uncovered. Is it meant for the participant to explore their own identity? No wonder Mr. World describes it as an immersive stage play—the environment and atmosphere here truly draw one in.

"Mr. White Tower" might be a very talented writer; this world clearly hides many stories. I'll wait a bit longer—if no other members of the Tarot Society arrive soon, I'll explore the world beyond this plaza on my own. Hmm, perhaps together with Mr. Rabbit—no, Rabbit King. I wonder if the Carrot Kingdom plants carrots everywhere?

As her thoughts drifted, Ao Daili saw two more figures appear in the center of the plaza, their forms simple wooden dolls stitched from gray‑white wood.

They resembled unfinished models from a doll shop—did I also first appear in this strange form? I think I subconsciously ignored examining myself just now; does this plaza have such a psychological cue? Ao Daili suddenly felt her gaze blur, and upon looking again, beside the two doll models in the center stood an elderly man with white‑gray beard.

He wore a cream‑colored classical robe, a hood atop his head, and held a wooden staff, resembling a venerable hermit or a learned sage.

Lei Keton's figure silently materialized beside him, and in a somewhat helpless tone he said,

"Do not arbitrarily add bugs to my world; fixing them is a hassle."

"Heh, I've already been very restrained; if it were A Meng, he would have already stolen the characteristic that uses you as a cornerstone."

"Alright, I'll go check out this stage‑play‑like world; perhaps I can help you spot some rule inconsistencies."

The elder in the cream robe chuckled twice, and as his words faded, he leisurely stepped forward, his figure flickering twice before vanishing from the sight of everyone in the plaza.

Among the two newly appeared doll models, the one on the right voiced a question:

"Why can He still use his own extraordinary ability?"

"Because it is He, not he."

Lei Keton gave a brief explanation, tapped the air twice in front of him, and brilliant starlight swept over the two new doll models, instantly transforming them into a wandering poet holding a harp and a magician in a long coat and tall hat.

Ao Daili stepped closer, curiously observing the transformed wandering poet and the chilled magician, guessing their identities in her mind.

Lei Keton's voice rang out at the right moment, offering a brief introduction:

"This is Miss Justice; the other two are World and Star."

The 'Star' Leonard, now in the guise of a wandering poet, gave a slight nod to 'Justice' Ao Daili, then surveyed the surroundings and asked:

"What lies beyond the plaza? Everything around is a gray haze, nothing can be seen."

"This plaza is a transfer hub that leads to various worlds within the World Tree, though currently only the Fairy Tale World is open." "Follow me; most of the staff here haven't started their shifts yet, so today I will be your guide."

As he spoke, Lei Keton already led the way, guiding Ao Daili, Ke Lai En, and Lun Na De toward the edge of the plaza.

The moment they stepped out of the plaza, the surrounding scenery seemed to stretch, becoming blurry and distorted.

In less than a second, the blur faded, and the surroundings turned into a small town under heavy snowfall, with roofs, lamp posts, and the ground all blanketed in white.

The town was at night; the streets were almost empty of pedestrians, only the dim yellow light leaking from the steamed glass windows of houses on either side.

"Achoo!"

Before they had taken more than a couple of steps, Leonard couldn't hold back a sneeze; the wandering poet's clothing seemed rather thin here.

Ao Daili curiously examined the visibly shrunken 'World' Ge Er Man Si Pa Luo and 'Star' Leonard, then glanced down at her own exposed shoulders and arms.

She could feel the temperature around her, yet her body didn't feel cold; she thought everyone felt the same. 'World' and 'Star' indeed looked very cold, so perhaps the fact that she couldn't feel the chill meant there was something wrong with her?

While she pondered, Lei Keton had already taken in everyone's reactions, chuckled lightly and said, "Although some rules differ, in the vast majority of cases your experience here is no different from reality—cold, heat, humidity, dryness, and so on."

"Then why do you two seem unaffected by it?"

Leonard looked at Lei Keton and Ao Daili and asked.

Beside him, Ke Lai En slipped both hands into his pockets, tugged his black long coat tighter, glanced twice at Ao Daili's attire, then hesitated:

"Because of our identities? We're a magician and a wandering poet, lacking any resistance to severe cold, whereas you are different."

"Miss Justice's outfit resembles an Ice Queen; as for A Er, a backstage programmer certainly wouldn't be affected by his own settings."

"What identities do they have?" Leonard asked, somewhat puzzled.

Ao Daili, somewhat uncertain, recalled the identity card she had just read and replied, "My card says I'm the Princess of the North Forest, possessing the magic to summon wind and snow and to command frost."

While they were talking, Lei Keton had arrived at the entrance of a restaurant, pushed open the heavy wooden door, and the warm air that greeted them gave Leonard and Ke Lai En a hint of warmth. They hurriedly followed Lei Keton into the restaurant.

Inside the restaurant, Ao Daili felt somewhat uncomfortable; she sensed that staying here too long would make her melt, whereas the snowy outdoors felt more comfortably icy.

The group sat at a window seat away from the fireplace; Leonard placed his harp on his lap, brought his frozen hand to his mouth, and continuously exhaled warm breath.

After a while, he finally felt his body gradually recover, giving him the energy to complain,

"Why can't I toss aside my harp and stay outside longer with it? My hand would probably become useless otherwise."

"Is the harp also part of a wandering poet's being?" Ke Lai En asked Lei Keton.

Lei Keton nodded, adding, "Normally you wouldn't obtain these occupation or status identity cards; they are a perk of the testing phase. I won't reclaim them later, and you can keep using the identity as long as you stay alive."

"Dying in the game doesn't truly kill you, but your identity card will be destroyed; thereafter you either swap for another identity card to continue playing or revert to the initial model state, losing interaction with this world."

"There are two ways to obtain an identity card: one is to purchase from the merchant at the initial plaza, though he hasn't started his shift yet; the other is to interact with the characters here, advancing the story, and upon meeting conditions you can earn an identity card or esoteric knowledge as rewards."

"What a strong scent," Ke Lai En couldn't help but comment, then asked, "If I'm not mistaken, buying an identity card requires spending extra spirit or something else?"

Lei Keton nodded, saying, "Spirituality, esoteric knowledge, items—any valuable thing can be used."

The excessive warmth inside the restaurant made Ao Daili disinterested in listening to her companions' chatter; feeling uneasy, she leaned against the nearby glass window, and the cold seeping in from outside cleared her drowsy mind.

(End of Chapter)