Published at 8th of October 2024 3:08 am

Chapter 1211: There Is No Other Way

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At that moment, the utility room fell into silence, with only the sound of breathing remaining.

Admittedly, Gardenia had indeed met this NPC—not just any NPC, but the one who had his legs amputated, the one who knew who the gamer was. Bohemia was right; the reason this NPC knew who the gamer was indicated that they must have met before. Therefore, anyone who hadn’t met him before tonight couldn’t possibly be the gamer.

Gardenia’s logic was self-consistent and reasonable. However, Lin Sanjiu still looked at the remaining two people with a glimmer of hope.

“What about you?” she asked. “Have you two met this NPC before?”

Both of them seemed to have stiffened their necks. Even under her intense gaze, they couldn’t bring themselves to nod. Red Face stared at Gardenia’s profile, while the former security guard fixated on his own hands. It was evident that both of them knew they hadn’t met this NPC before.

“If they lied and claimed they had met him, the NPC wouldn’t cooperate. Of course, they wouldn’t have anything to say,” Gardenia said, relieved. She walked towards Lin Sanjiu and continued, “I told you, I know I’ve wronged you before—”

“Wait a moment!” Red Face interrupted softly, a hint of panic in his voice. From beneath the faded red paint, he showed signs of unease. “I don’t understand why this is happening. I am indeed the gamer, but I really haven’t met him. Why is this? How do you know that I am the gamer?” He directed his last question at the NPC.

The NPC only shook its head and remained silent.

“Same here,” the former security guard added hurriedly. “That’s what I wanted to say!”

Gardenia shook her head. “Is that all? No other way but to play dumb?”

As both parties were about to argue, Lin Sanjiu raised her hand and said sharply, “Shut up!”

Once again, silence filled the utility room.

Lin Sanjiu frowned; she felt that she might have missed something. After pondering for a few seconds, she suddenly looked up and addressed the NPC, “I have a question to ask you.”

“Hmm?”

“The reason you know that someone is the gamer,” she asked carefully, “is it because you have met that person?”

Gardenia had tried to pull a trick. She had only proven that she had met the NPC—confirming that point didn’t make any sense if the NPC had learned about the identity of the gamer through other means.

However, the NPC’s answer disappointed her. “Yes, I found out that person was a gamer because we met before.”

He had met them, and at this moment, it was apparent that only one person among the three had met the NPC—no matter how Lin Sanjiu thought about it, she couldn’t figure out how the gamer could be someone else. However, being forced to accept Gardenia and cooperating with her felt too suffocating. Still, she couldn’t give up and asked, “So, is this woman the gamer?”

“I cannot answer that question,” the NPC replied with the same expression. “You know this. You’ll have to make your judgment. The truth will only be revealed when you truly need to obtain points.”

“I… I also have evidence!” The former security guard suddenly stood up, almost bumping into Red Face. “I forgot, I also have this. Look!”

He reached into his collar and took out a thin chain with a small glass cube hanging from it. “I don’t know if this counts as a Special Item, as it doesn’t serve much of a purpose… It’s just a souvenir I got after joining the Gamers Club. Many people have souvenirs, I heard.”

Like a crystal ball in a magical story, the small glass cube projected images that did not belong to this time and place: several unfamiliar men and women stood in a space about the same size as the utility room. Judging from the buttons and screens on the side, this should be the interior of an elevator. The perspective of the small glass cube seemed to be projected from a camera, with the heads of the men and women occasionally getting closer and then separating, discussing something that Lin Sanjiu couldn’t see clearly. However, no one seemed to be getting out of the elevator.

“This was the first game I participated in,” the former security guard murmured as he introduced himself. “It was a complex escape game with multiple layers, and I had a hard time getting out. When I left the game, I got this little gadget. It can’t do anything but transmit real-time images from the escape game.”

“So, at this moment, these people are really in that pocket dimension’s elevator?” Bohemia asked, pinching the small glass cube, causing the former security guard to lean over as well.

“Yes, that’s right,” he confirmed.

Gardenia was the first to look away.

“What does this prove? I don’t understand,” she said, crossing her arms. “You participated in a pocket dimension game and got a souvenir… So what? Many people have participated in a pocket dimension game. Does that mean everyone is a gamer?”

Though she was reluctant to admit it, Lin Sanjiu recognized that Gardenia’s words made sense.

The former security guard began to realize this too. His face flushed with embarrassment, and he said, “This… this proves that I am a gamer! Many members of the club carry souvenirs.”

“Unless it specifically says it’s a club souvenir, it’s useless,” Red Face said, interjecting. Then he changed the subject. “But I have to defend him. If I had to choose between these two, I’d choose him because he carries such a useless gadget; it shows his obsession with games. Being obsessed with games means a higher likelihood of being a player, doesn’t it?”

This argument also seemed logical and justifiable.

“What about you?” Bohemia asked, turning to Red Face. “Are you admitting that you’re not a gamer?”

“No, I’m not,” Red Face said, sighing. “I know for sure that I am a gamer, but unfortunately, I have no means to prove it. Who would have thought that as a club member, I would need to find a way to prove my identity one day? Forget it, it seems both sides are just unlucky today.”

His attitude made Lin Sanjiu hesitate. Red Face had a good chance of being the gamer, considering his knowledge of the club and the lack of other reasons for his red face. Of course, he was tricked by Gardenia into going to the hospital’s basement, but that didn’t mean gamers couldn’t be deceived, right?

“I give up,” Bohemia said, throwing her hands up in frustration. “Why does everyone have such sincere expressions? It’s like they’re just one step away from betting their own mothers.”

She paused, then lifted her chin towards Gardenia, and said, “But if I had to say, the most likely person to be the gamer is this woman with an average appearance.”

“Average appearance?” Gardenia was clearly taken aback. This was the first time she had shown a lively expression since they met again. After all, she didn’t even appreciate compliments like “pretty,” so how could she accept being called average? “I understand now, you’re just jealous. Even if you get plastic surgery, you’ll never be like me.”

Bohemia seemed taken aback by this response, unable to come up with a retort. “Huh? Do you really think you’re beautiful?”

Was that important now?

Seeing Gardenia about to become the third Red Face, Lin Sanjiu waved her hand to silence both of them. Perhaps her irritability caused everyone to quiet down quickly.

‘If only the grand prize were here,’

she thought. She had used so many points for her Higher Consciousness, and the few she had recovered probably wouldn’t be enough to use [Consciousness Mimicry]. Moreover, Bohemia and Hei Zeji were both the type to rely on instincts over logic. In the end, she could only rely on herself.

Lin Sanjiu pondered the words of the people from earlier, feeling like the answer was within reach. She just needed a little inspiration to break through that thin layer of paper. She glanced at the NPC in the corner.

She wondered if this fat man could give her some hints.

His face, buried under layers of fat, showed almost no expression. His eyes were squinted into two thin lines, unable to reveal any clues—wait, fat…

Lin Sanjiu caught onto the two words that flashed through her mind, holding onto them tightly. Her thoughts revolved around the words “fat” repeatedly.

The NPC had said that he could freely manipulate his fat to change his body size as desired. When he was not on duty, he would move his fat and blend in among the players. So, if the remaining two couldn’t recognize this obese NPC, it wouldn’t be enough to prove that they hadn’t met him before!

Bohemia leaned in and asked, “What are you thinking?”

Lin Sanjiu didn’t dare to let her interrupt the train of thought she had finally found. Without saying a word, she waved her hand and turned towards the wall—she could feel the gaze of everyone glued to her back.

But now the NPC couldn’t move his fat on his own. She had asked this question before when she carried the NPC. Was there any other way?

“What’s with that attitude?” Bohemia said unhappily. She extended her hand to separate the suspects in front of her and squeezed her way to Hei Zeji, saying to him, “Hey, I don’t think her plan will work. Why don’t you just break all of their limbs, and we’ll take them to that room together! I don’t believe three cripples can cause any trouble—”

“Step aside,” Hei Zeji whispered, then pounced from the ground; Bohemia was taken aback when he pushed her to the side. At the same time, she felt a gust of wind brush past her ears, and a moment later, a scream came from behind her. Both Lin Sanjiu and Bohemia turned to look in the direction of the scream, freezing in shock.

Even though he was the first to react, Hei Zeji was still half a step too late.

A deep gash was cut across the former security guard’s throat, and blood bubbles constantly gushed from his windpipe, mixed with the desperate wheezing sound he made when trying to inhale. Gardenia stood next to the former security guard, her face and arms splattered with blood spots. Perhaps she couldn’t believe that she had actually succeeded, as her chest rose and fell with excitement.

“I admit it, he’s the real gamer,” she said, wiping the blood off her face and smiling at the people in the utility room. “It’s neither me nor this red-faced man. But now that he’s dead, I also figured out the hidden way he earned points. Other than taking me along, you don’t have any other options now.”

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