Is life something that can be disregarded? Especially human life—can it be taken away so easily, just like that?
Hua Ru realized she had, at some unknown point, become accustomed to solving problems by killing, rather than considering how to resolve them peacefully without bloodshed.
Now that she was aware of this, she felt powerless to change it. She still had to think about how to kill, or else she herself would die—her head exploding like Zhang Huiran’s, dead and still despised for being dirty.
“What’s wrong? Is Number 10 that dangerous? Should we kill him tonight?” Ragnar suggested when he saw Hua Ru silent and withdrawn.
(Kantonese) “Kill him? According to yesterday’s plan, wouldn’t it be better to wait until this guy gets voted out? Killing Number 1 might be a better option.” Xukesi shook his head in objection.
Both of them were already used to solving problems by killing, and though they somewhat resisted it, the habit had already taken root. It was a true contradiction.
“Sorry, you two discuss it first.” Hua Ru stood up and went into the bathroom.
Her behavior was somewhat unusual, which made Xukesi and Ragnar even more worried.
Their conversation soon centered on Number 10, Liu Qingzhu, believing his threat was overwhelming—unaware that this “exceptionally poised young lady” was actually feeling agitated due to psychological reasons.
Inside the bathroom, she turned on the faucet and splashed water on her face. Perhaps the cold water’s sting calmed her somewhat.
When she looked up, what met her eyes was a girl who seemed to have stepped right out of an anime world—a beautiful maiden with jet-black hair, every part of her body exquisitely refined and alluring.
After all, she was meticulously crafted; her appearance was unrealistically beautiful.
Now she suddenly felt this was a bit over the top—such perfection might make it easy for others to tell this was a created character, not a real person.
The girl’s eyes held a trace of confusion.
She didn’t understand the purpose of coming here.
Why did she have to follow the system’s rules to kill again?
Was it really just because she didn’t want to die?
Back when she was Hua Hualong, she had no grand ambitions—not wanting to topple Bill Gates, nor stepping on Jack Ma.
She lived simply because she didn’t want to die.
But… after arriving in this world, she realized that living was quite interesting.
Unknowingly, she had immersed herself to the point where she was gradually getting used to death—even approaching the point of personally killing.
So… was the only reason she lived really just because she didn’t want to die?
Or… had she yet to find meaning in living? Could she perhaps find that meaning here?
Tearing off a neat piece of tissue along the perforation, she wiped the water from her face.
Whether she had changed or not, the desire not to die always came first.
To prevent that desire from shattering, she had no choice but to abide by the Dark World’s rules and kill.
It was truly helpless.
She knew she was being changed, she didn’t want to become that kind of person, yet she could do nothing to stop it.
After leaving the bathroom, she regained her elegant and proud demeanor.
(Kantonese) “So, who do we kill tonight?” Xukesi seemed to have developed some reliance on the young girl.
“Right now, Number 10 looks the most dangerous, right? Should we get him tonight?” Ragnar also sought her opinion.
Hua Ru sat down calmly and said, “Let me analyze first, you listen.”
“There’s a cop who’s already been revealed. It’s not 100% certain, but the likelihood is quite high.”
Her words made the other three hold their breath, their curiosity piqued as they quietly awaited more.
“It’s Number 11, Xuanyuan Najiang. The chance of him being a cop is over 80%.” Just as Ragnar seemed about to speak, Hua Ru raised her hand to stop him and continued, “Let me finish first, then you can give your thoughts.
Why do I suspect Number 11 is a cop? First, at noon I contacted Zhang Huiran. That woman and Number 11 Xuanyuan Najiang went publicly to a bathhouse.
It seemed like they went for something intimate, but it wasn’t that simple.
Number 11 is secretly trying to contact Number 2, and is also trying to persuade Number 2 Zhang Huiran to disguise herself as a cop to unite the vote and eliminate Number 10.”
“This gave me a hypothesis. The cops, on the first night, somehow confirmed that Number 2 Zhang Huiran was a civilian, so they want to use her as a pawn—to have her go out front and take down the suspected killer, Number 10.
Those cops probably can only act once per night, meaning they can only verify one person’s identity each night.
Since Number 2 is confirmed civilian, they want to use her to take out Number 10, who is suspected of being the killer. That’s the first point.”
“Second, before Number 15 died last night, he said one sentence: ‘We’ll definitely be seen through by Number 1 Zhou Wei.’ Was that a desperate ramble, or did it have some purpose? Let’s set that aside for now and listen to the rest.”
“Third, today’s vote. Five people voted for Number 10 Liu Qingzhu. Note that Number 11 Xuanyuan Najiang is among them, and Number 1 is too.
This is interesting. To me, Number 11 is likely a cop, and Number 15 also suggested Number 1 might be able to ‘see through us.’ So Number 1 might also be a cop, though less likely.
But… when both Number 11 and Number 1 voted for Number 10, that’s interesting. Is it coincidence or coordinated voting among cops?”
“Putting these three points together, I think Number 11 can basically be confirmed as a cop, and Number 1 is suspicious too.
The five who voted for Number 10 are Numbers 2, 4, 1, 11, and 16. Notice the order: Number 2 voted earliest, then 4, then 1, 11, and finally 16. If we’re lucky, Number 15 is a cop, Number 1 is a cop, Number 11 is a cop, and the last cop must be among these five.”
“If we’re unlucky and facing a clever opponent, maybe my reasoning is just a trap to mislead us. In that case, I can only admit bad luck. But regardless, the Number 11 line is definitely worth watching.
Even if he’s not a cop, even if he’s a pawn for the cops, as long as we keep an eye on him, we’ll know who the cops are. Whoever votes with him is very likely a cop.”
After she finished, the room fell silent again, and it was a full ten seconds before someone spoke.
“So we kill Number 11 tonight?” Ragnar felt overwhelmed, not fully understanding what was just said.
(Kantonese) “Is your head made of shit?” Number 12 Xukesi slapped the high schooler’s head—not hard—“Number 11 is basically an informant. How does killing him help us fish?”
This wasn’t really Ragnar’s fault. He was actually quite sharp; it was just Hua Ru’s long speech was too dense to parse quickly.
But it was different for Number 12 Xukesi, who claimed to be a Hong Kong reporter. What does a reporter do?
They listen to others talk, then piece things together and speculate within reason.
That was his specialty, so he could easily grasp the key points from the girl’s long monologue.
“Is that so? So we’re protecting Number 11?” Ragnar protected his head with both hands, afraid of getting hit again.
(Kantonese) “Right. We’ve confirmed Number 11 is a cop. Number 1 Zhou Wei and the deceased Number 15 are also suspected cops. The last cop is among those who voted for Liu Qingzhu, right?” Xukesi faced the girl and asked that last sentence as a question.
Hua Ru nodded and added, “This is just my guess, not necessarily accurate. Number 11 is very likely a cop, but he might also be a pawn of the cops. In any case, he must have contact with them.”
“So who do we kill tonight?” Ragnar’s mind was already fuzzy and unwilling to think further.
(Kantonese) “Yeah, who do we kill tonight?” Xukesi also didn’t want to overthink it—he just wanted the girl to give a target.