Julie dodged the gun barrel and, using a small grappling technique, pinned Wu Chang to the ground.
"Is this how you repay your savior?"
Wu Chang slapped the ground in surrender, "That's exactly how I helped Doctor Charles take off his uniform just now."
Julie released Wu Chang and said irritably, "That wasn't helping him break free from the uniform's control, it was just kicking him off a cliff."
Wu Chang retorted confidently, "You just say whether it came off or not."
The fight between Charles and Wu Chang shattered the sanatorium's nighttime silence, medical staff in the corridor moved toward the source of the noise as if following some directive.
Julie glanced at the approaching sleepwalkers, couldn't waste time arguing with Wu Chang, and dragged him into an empty room nearby.
She covered his mouth with one hand and raised her index finger to her lips with the other, making a "shush" gesture.
A few minutes later, the corridor returned to silence; the sleepwalkers dispersed, resuming their dreamwalking state of battling uniforms.
Julie leaned close to Wu Chang's ear and whispered, "It's against the sanatorium rules to wander outside at night."
"What's going on?" Wu Chang whispered back, mimicking Julie.
There were too many mysteries within Moonlight Sanatorium, and too few clues. Even though he had seen the grievances of some players, the intelligence he had was still pitifully little.
Now that a knowledgeable person had finally appeared, he couldn't let them go easily.
Like every NPC providing clues in a game, Julie began narrating everything happening within Moonlight Sanatorium very cooperatively.
The information Julie provided was similar to Wolf's, except it included two important pieces.
Firstly, about the Anderson family.
It's rumored that before the invention of the steam engine, when humanity's beliefs hadn't been overtaken by industry and technology, some lucky individuals favored by the gods could wield the power of mysticism.
The royal family once gathered these people together to form a Secret Magic Knight Order.
The ancestors of the Anderson family were the first—and last—leaders of the Secret Magic Knight Order.
Their accomplishments, which allowed the Anderson family to be enfeoffed to White Stone Territory, was that they led the Secret Magic Knight Order to seal an evil god named Leman, whom the Peaceful Sect worshiped as Leman.
Legend has it that Leman was a five-meter-tall evil god made entirely of gold.
After sealing Leman, the Secret Magic Knight Order melted its body into gold coins and sealed them away. These coins retained Leman's evil divine power, earning the name Cursed Gold.
The second piece is about the director of the Moonlight Sanatorium, Randy Anderson himself.
Randy was a thorough materialist, convinced that so-called mysticism was nothing more than trickery. Ironically, he possessed a mysticism talent comparable to his ancestors.
Under his intense will, the entire sanatorium was constructed into a massive magic technique.
Anyone entering the sanatorium would be assigned an identity, binding them within the technique.
The identities, in the form of uniforms, were categorized into two types: medical staff and patients. Once fused with an identity, it was impossible to break free and escape.
Those wandering in the corridors, battling uniforms in their sleepwalking state, were the evil god cultists who infiltrated Moonlight Sanatorium with the intent to obtain the Cursed Gold.
Even with the power bestowed by the evil god, they couldn't escape the technique.
At this point, Julie's tone grew serious.
"The technique within the sanatorium is like a forced role-playing game with brainwashing functions, eroding and modifying everyone's will, turning them into puppets named medical staff and patients."
"I was able to resist before, but lately, the technique's power is increasing. If this continues, I'll soon be unable to remain conscious, becoming assimilated by the technique. So I need your help to find a way to break free from it with me."
Wu Chang was worrying about how to proceed, when the NPC with hints came to find him proactively. Suppressing his excitement, he asked calmly:
"How can I help you?"
Julie said, "At this stage of development, only Director Randy has the ability to stop all this. I can use phase magic to help you bypass many obstacles and enter his office. What you need to do is persuade him to face reality, accept his magical talent, and end all this."
"Persuading the director, it obviously suits you more than me; why don't you go yourself?" Wu Chang asked with a frown.
As a sophisticated NPC, Julie should learn to clear the dungeon on her own, rather than relying on players for everything.
Julie replied helplessly, "As I mentioned before, once you fuse with your identity, you're restricted by the sanatorium's rules. I'm no exception. Without permission, I cannot enter the director's office on my own. As a newcomer, you're not bound by the rules."
"How long does it take after entering the sanatorium to fuse with an identity?"
"One week."
Wu Chang clicked his tongue, noting that the Moonlight Sanatorium dungeon was quite insidious.
The dungeon introduction only emphasized leaving the sanatorium without mentioning a time limit. If the dungeon wasn't cleared within a week, it might be impossible to leave forever.
Clearly, this was a trap for those cautious strategic players. Take the veteran Doctor, for instance—he spent nearly a week just figuring out how to transition from patient to doctor, essentially losing the game before his exploration even really began.
"Miss Julie, do you have any advice on persuading the director?"
Wu Chang was well-aware of his limits; he's not the hot-blooded anime protagonist who could defeat the villain through sheer will and righteous speech alone.
Julie pulled a metal badge, the size of a cookie, from her pocket and handed it to Wu Chang.
"It ensures you won't be killed on sight by Randy, but as for how to persuade him, that's something you'll have to figure out yourself."
Wu Chang looked at the warm badge in his hand.
"Item Name: King's Badge."
"Item Type: Dungeon Item"
"Item Description: The King's token, only envoys personally appointed by the King can hold this emblem. The holder will gain respect from the Kingdom Faction and Secret Magic Knight Order Faction. Upon obtaining Kingdom Faction-related items, there is a chance to unlock an additional ability."
"Note: Created by the first generation of the Secret Magic Knight Order. Can only be activated with the holder's permission, and cannot be forged."
No wonder Julie knew so much; she turned out to be a spy sent by the King.
"You're not worried I'm with the Peaceful Sect?"
Julie shook her head, "No, I'm not worried."
"Because I look upright and heroic?"
"..."
After a brief silence, Julie said, "Because I saw you kill Kinton; Kinton had a protective talisman bestowed by the evil god, so followers of the evil god couldn't harm him."
Thinking of something, Wu Chang's expression turned peculiar, "You didn't advise every newcomer entering the sanatorium not to provoke Kinton, did you?"
He seemed to know where Kinton's deep grievances came from.
Julie, unapologetically, said, "I need an efficient method to screen for valuable companions."
"Have you figured me out now?" Soon facing the director, as an outsider, Wu Chang needed a solid identity.
Nothing was more suitable than the identity Julie conjured up in her mind.
With a revelation-like expression, Julie slowly said:
"You carry a magical item with a sacred aura about you, preserved in immaculate condition, yet historical details can be discerned. Also, you didn't ask me about the badge's effects when you saw the King's Badge, you looked surprised, indicating you recognized it."
"Coupled with your actions of killing an evil god cultist and investigating the Cursed Gold, it's not hard to guess that you're surely a descendant of a Secret Magic Knight Order member."
Wu Chang applauded Julie's deduction.
"You're right, I am."