Let us shift our perspective to Dylan.
Leon rushed off to support the other players, leaving Dylan alone in place.
The surrounding silent, dark environment once again stirred up the fear in his heart.
He kept feeling like something was secretly watching him.
"This won't do, I need to go find the main group, I can't stay here. According to classic horror movie tropes, being alone always leads to something bad happening!"
Because he had been afraid of darkness and ghosts since childhood, terrified that he might one day encounter something supernatural, he had deliberately studied many horror movie tropes. He never expected they would come in handy now.
Thinking this, Dylan headed in the direction Leon had left.
But the fireworks in the night sky had long since dissipated. Without clear reference points, he could only move forward based on instinct.
After walking for some time, Dylan felt he might have taken the wrong path.
He had also seen the warning fireworks earlier and knew the launch site wasn't far from him.
If he hadn't gone the wrong way, he should have reunited with the main group by now.
But now, forget finding the main group, he couldn't even see another person.
Then it suddenly hit him—wasn't running around alone in horror movies also a surefire way to get into trouble?
"Oh no, how could I forget that trope? I should turn back immediately. Maybe Lord Leon has already finished the rescue and come back for me."
Dylan decided to retrace his steps. The first part went smoothly, as he still mostly recognized the way.
When he reached a fork in the road, he stopped.
"Damn it, which path did I take earlier? I can't quite remember!"
He lowered the torch in his hand, trying to identify the path he had come from.
"I think it was the left path, right? Yes! It was definitely the left!"
Dylan confidently took the left path.
But the further he walked, the more something felt off. He had no memory of this path at all.
Clearly, he had taken another wrong turn, and this time he was completely lost.
"This is just my luck. I should never have wandered off."
Dylan stood still, unsure what to do.
He considered logging off first and returning when it was daytime with better visibility.
But Leon had mentioned earlier that logging off would only return his consciousness to reality while his body remained in place.
Who knew what might happen overnight? He didn't want to log back in the next day only to have to pay Poké Dollars for a revival.
Should he set off the warning fireworks?
If Leon saw them, he would definitely come looking for him.
Dylan held the fireworks in his hand but hesitated before ultimately putting them away.
No, Leon had said warning fireworks were only for emergencies. If he used them just because he was lost, Leon's favorability would surely drop.
He would rather log off and leave his fate to chance than lose favorability points.
After all, dying just meant reviving with a few extra Poké Dollars, but raising favorability was much harder.
"Fine, I'll just log off and take my chances. Maybe nothing will happen by tomorrow."
Just as Dylan was about to log off, he suddenly spotted a stone tablet not far away.
Could it be a signpost?
Dylan's heart raced with excitement. If it really was a signpost, he could find his way back!
He quickly walked to the tablet and extended his torch to see what was carved on it.
"Ember Town Cemetery? So it's not a signpost. Got my hopes up for nothing."
Dylan shook his head regretfully.
Wait—cemetery?!
He suddenly raised his head, eyes widening in disbelief as he stared at the tablet.
"No... no way..."
Trembling, he raised the torch to illuminate the area behind the tablet. As the light spread, what appeared before him was a mountainside covered with countless tombstones!
"Holy shit!"
The sight made Dylan stumble backward in terror while screaming internally:
"Why the hell did I walk into a cemetery?!"
A cemetery at night was far too psychologically damaging for someone who had been afraid of ghosts since childhood.
"It's fine, it's fine. I just happened to wander into a cemetery. Besides, this isn't a horror game. There definitely won't be ghosts or anything like that. No need to scare myself."
Dylan kept reassuring himself, and his mood gradually stabilized.
Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly heard sobbing sounds coming from behind the tombstones.
"Wuu... wuu..."
The noise sent chills down Dylan's spine.
"That's not crying, it must just be the wind!"
He forced himself to stay calm.
"Huu..."
Dylan suddenly felt a cold breath on the back of his neck, as if someone had exhaled right behind him!
He shivered uncontrollably, desperately resisting the urge to turn around.
According to horror movie logic, turning around now would be the worst possible move!
He gripped the torch tightly—the faint light was his only source of security.
But then a gust of wind from nowhere extinguished the torch.
"Don't mess with me like this!"
Dylan was utterly terrified. Deep down, he knew there had been no wind tonight. The crying earlier couldn't have been the wind, and the torch had seemed deliberately blown out.
This series of bizarre events pushed his fear to the limit!
"This game isn't actually a horror game, is it?"
He recalled the game's description. It had only mentioned being a virtual reality game, never specifying the genre.
Meaning, it was entirely possible for the game to include supernatural elements!
"Giggle giggle~"
An eerie laugh came from behind him, accompanied by a faint, sweet fragrance.
Instinctively, he turned to look—first seeing a strange light, then a horrifying ghostly face!
"Holy shit!"
Dylan's mind went completely blank. His body staggered backward uncontrollably until he collided with something cold.
He turned his head stiffly, moving like a rusted robot.
"Wuu wuu..."
A woman in a red wedding dress was covering her face and weeping, the sound unbearably creepy.
Dylan felt his heart skip a beat.
"There really are ghosts?!"
Terrified, he turned and ran, setting off the warning fireworks as he fled.
"Lord Leon, save me!!"
Watching Dylan flee in panic, the two figures behind him exchanged amused glances before giving chase.
By the time Leon and the others arrived, they found Dylan running in circles through the cemetery like a headless chicken, howling like a madman.
And behind him were two strangely shaped Pokémon.
"That's... a Gastly and a Misdreavus? Since when were there Pokémon in the cemetery?"
Leon recognized the two Pokémon chasing Dylan.
Both were Ghost-types, which naturally preferred habitats like cemeteries, but no Pokémon had ever appeared here before.
Leon didn't dwell on it. The priority now was rescuing Dylan before the two Pokémon scared him into logging off.
"Poliwhirl, use Bubble Beam!"
He threw a Poké Ball, releasing Poliwhirl.
"Poli!"
Poliwhirl extended its hands and fired a stream of bubbles forward, forcing Gastly and Misdreavus to dodge.
Only then did Dylan notice Leon and the others. He scrambled over on all fours and clung to Leon's leg, crying out:
"My lord, you're finally here! This place really has ghosts!!"
(End of Chapter)