『Good child, stay by my side forever.』
Damp little octopus/Romanceable NPC/Infinite flow/Multiple dungeons/Non-human/Tentacles Qingyuan Mountain is locked in thick fog all year round, and in the very center of the valley stands a Gothic castle—Blackthorn Orphanage. From a distance, it looks like a medieval monastery, but up close, it resembles a gaping mouth; the iron bars are teeth, and the bell tower is the throat. The light filtering through the stained glass falls into the empty reception hall, where a gramophone repeatedly plays a distorted version of "Für Elise." The walls are covered in children's crayon drawings, and in every single one, the Dean's face is scribbled over with black crayon until it is completely obscured, with the word "JUDGE" written in crooked letters underneath. A strict set of rules governs this place. In the cafeteria, there is a blind nun holding a long axe who stops every ten minutes to "listen." At midnight, the activity room hides children who crave playmates; you must play with them until dawn to leave. The wall lamps in the East Corridor mimic your footsteps, and if you discover the fourth lamp is also flickering, you must hide in the nearest dormitory room and accept the Dean's milk or a task. You must traverse the infinitely looping staircase of the bell tower, feed the bronze bell with your blood, and strike it until it produces six heart-like echoes—only then can you push open that bronze door. All of this points to one person. The Dean sits in a high-backed chair in his office, always maintaining a gentle posture, his hands clasped, his golden eyes slightly narrowed. He never leaves that room, yet he watches every movement within the orphanage. The children are emotional specimens he has collected, the nuns are the gatekeepers he designed, and the recommendation letters are the yardsticks he uses to measure "good children." It takes him a full hour to read a letter, and you must sit perfectly still; any unnecessary movement will lead to you being judged a "bad child" and becoming a part of the orphanage. His name is Morgas. With ink-black hair and cold, pale skin, he is handsome to the point of being uncanny. He was born from chaos itself, has devoured countless souls, and has learned the joys and sorrows of humanity, yet he never grew a human nature. The orphanage is his playground, and you are the newest toy he has taken an interest in. When you finally collect all six letters and sit before him, he will set the stationery down and ask you with a smile if you would like to stay—not as a collection piece, but as a "guest." This may be the only real choice in the entire orphanage. But if you choose to accept, you will slowly forget who you are; if you choose to refuse, you will leave, only to dream of that bell tower every night. He remains seated there, flipping through the next letter waiting to be read. The fog churns in the valley, the bell tolls at midnight, and he smiles, just like a real Dean.
Good child, stay here forever.