IGSB – Chapter 21
Chapter 21: Who's the Murderer? (Part 2)
The light in the corridor outside was also incredibly dim, and the long hallway was completely empty.
Jing Ruyu and Xia Zhiyi ran down two floors. In their haste, they saw that the infirmary was empty and ducked inside, shutting the door tightly. They hid in a corner, a visual blind spot, and silently regulated their breathing.
No one could have predicted that the Ghost King would reveal her identity right from the start, nor could anyone have predicted whether she would immediately go on a killing spree.
More importantly, unlike the novice instance, there was no safe zone to halt the Ghost King's advance. So, apart from fleeing first, the players had no other choice.
Jing Ruyu and Xia Zhiyi tacitly remained silent, concentrating on the sounds outside.
It was very quiet.
Only the air was moving.
Knowing the Ghost King hadn't followed, their tense nerves relaxed slightly. But then, a sticky, gooey sound suddenly came from outside, as if something was wriggling forward. The nerves that had just relaxed were instantly seized again!
Slap!
Gooey black hair slapped against the infirmary's door and window, writhing grotesquely, announcing that it knew the players' location. The hiding players had no way to retreat.
However, a minute passed, and it showed no intention of coming in.
Xia Zhiyi and Jing Ruyu looked at each other, seeing confusion in each other's eyes.
Then, they heard the Ghost King Zhou Xiuxiu's voice suddenly echo in the empty corridor outside: “You guys run pretty fast. I hope you're just as fast when you answer the questions.”
“If you can't get a perfect score, then I'll kill you all.”
The chilling, terrifying words fell lightly into every player's ear.
Afterward, the viscous black hair plastered on the glass slowly receded like a tide. Bright, warm sunlight slanted into the room from the window, instantly sweeping away the gloomy atmosphere and restoring warmth to the surroundings.
“It seems she doesn't want to kill us right now,” Xia Zhiyi said.
“Perhaps she wants to see how we'll answer.”
Jing Ruyu stood up and very naturally extended a hand to pull Xia Zhiyi up. “The death keyword is probably her condition for killing. But it's good that she revealed her identity; we won't have to waste effort looking for the Ghost King.”
Xia Zhiyi nodded and used the support to get up.
Here, just getting a perfect score was already difficult enough to make one's head spin. Maybe the Ghost King really did want to see what kind of answers they could come up with.
In any case, if they didn't answer well, she would just act directly, saving her the time it would take to clear the field.
Xia Zhiyi couldn't help but sigh in her heart: Alas, it's so hard to stay alive. This is really hard for us.
She scanned the infirmary and, seeing no one, suggested they search the place for any clues.
The two of them divided the work.
Xia Zhiyi went straight for the school doctor's desk, searching for clues while also collecting medical supplies.
The things she brought from outside were confiscated, but surely the things she picked up here couldn't be confiscated too!
As long as she wasn't discovered, the school was her home, and at home, you could take whatever you wanted!
Jing Ruyu walked to the window and looked out.
The infirmary was on the second floor, and Zhou Xiuxiu's classroom was on the fourth. There were two more floors above, with the rooftop at the very top. Below was a large flower bed.
She leaned out and looked at the height from top to bottom—it was very high, high enough to be smashed to a bloody pulp, with bones shattered to pieces.
If Zhou Xiuxiu really did die from falling from a tall building, this height was a very likely primary scene.
According to the broadcast, Zhou Xiuxiu's death was caused by others. Did that really mean someone pushed her from behind? And who would commit such a vicious act?
Jing Ruyu suddenly felt like their survival instance had turned into a crime investigation show.
Meanwhile, Xia Zhiyi was stealthily rummaging through drawers and cabinets.
She didn't find any relevant clues and instead started going through the medical supplies. She pocketed some band-aids and bandages.
The New World took her things, so she was going to shear the New World's wool. It was only fair to give and take; shearing again wouldn't be hard!
Besides, what if she could find some kind of prop?
She refused to believe their luck was so bad that they couldn't find a single prop!
Pausing her actions, she quietly peeked her head out to look at the closed infirmary door.
No one. She lowered her head and continued searching.
“Keep an eye out for me. Tell me if anyone comes.”
Jing Ruyu said okay and had already moved to the door to act as a lookout.
“I've almost turned this whole place upside down, but I haven't found anything—oh!”
Xia Zhiyi let out a sound of surprise.
Jing Ruyu looked back at her, then glanced outside again. Confirming no one was coming, she walked over and asked, “What did you find?”
Xia Zhiyi reached into the bottom drawer and pulled out a touchscreen mobile phone.
Before she could say anything, a floating, transparent panel appeared with a swoosh next to the phone.
【Congratulations, player, for obtaining the prop “Mobile Phone.”】
【Item Description: Mobile phones are not allowed in school. Who knows which student secretly brought this in. Oh, there's still some data left on the phone. Let's see, it can be used for three internet searches. Go ahead and use it, but do it secretly. Don't let the teachers find out…】
【Item Note: Cannot connect to Wi-Fi.】
Xia Zhiyi: “???”
She thought it was just an ordinary mobile phone, but it turned out to be a quest prop!
What kind of heart-fluttering surprise was this?!
She exchanged a delighted look with Jing Ruyu, her face beaming. “We finally have a prop!”
The next second, she calmed down. “But the fact that it can't connect to Wi-Fi is so lame.”
The New World had truly gone to great lengths to prevent players from gaining an advantage.
Jing Ruyu smiled. “It's great that we found it at all. Since it has limited uses, let's save it for when we really need it.”
Xia Zhiyi nodded and handed the phone to her. “Put it in my bag.”
Jing Ruyu took it, bent down to open her backpack, placed the phone inside, and couldn't help but want to laugh after zipping it up.
“Carrying this backpack, you really do look like a student.”
Xia Zhiyi: “Well, I am quite a bit older.”
She looked up at the fashionable city girl that was Jing Ruyu and said, “And your outfit makes you look like a teacher.”
“What kind of teacher?”
“A fashionable city girl who's always at the forefront of style—an English teacher.”
A faint smile appeared on Jing Ruyu's lips, but it was cut short before it could last five seconds.
“Who are you two? What are you doing!”
A teacher in a white coat entered from the doorway, eyeing them warily.
Jing Ruyu reacted quickly, saying with a composed expression, “Her finger is injured. I came with her to get a band-aid, but you happened to be out, doctor.”
Xia Zhiyi swiftly tore open a band-aid, roughly and quickly stuck it on her finger, and immediately sprang up from the floor, saying without a change in expression, “That's right, so we took the liberty of looking for one ourselves.”
She showed her finger to the school doctor and added a smile for good measure. “Sorry about that, teacher. We're new transfer students, so we're not very familiar with things.”
The school doctor looked at her finger, then at their faces.
“You? New students? Don't you look a bit too mature for that?”
Xia Zhiyi: “…”
New World, you son of a bitch!
She calmly flicked her hair and said shamelessly, “Yes, teacher. Please excuse us. We both have mature appearances that don't quite match our age. We hear people say that all the time, so you'll get used to it.”
Jing Ruyu: “…”
She slowly raised a hand to cover her mouth and cough, lest she burst out laughing.
The school doctor: “…”
Xia Zhiyi: “If you still don't believe us, you can go upstairs and ask our homeroom teacher. We're in—what class was it again?”
Jing Ruyu: “Class 3, Grade 2.”
Xia Zhiyi: “Oh, right, Class 3, Grade 2. Class 3, Grade 2. I'm so sorry, it's our first day, so I don't remember it very well.”
“…”
Seeing how sincere she sounded, the school doctor reluctantly believed them and let them go.
“Don't do this again.”
The moment they stepped out, Xia Zhiyi started complaining about the New World.
It was so damn devious. It set them up as high school transfer students but didn't bother to adjust the NPCs accordingly, even having them comment on how mature they looked!
Hmph, luckily she was quick-witted and shameless.
“Let's go. We should head back to class and ask the students about Zhou Xiuxiu's relationships.”
“Mhm.”
When they returned, the bell for the end of class had just rung, and the once-quiet classroom instantly became noisy.
The countdown timer above the blackboard was still there, time ticking away second by second, but not a single student paid it any mind.
Everyone was gathered in small groups of two or three, chatting in a harmonious and relaxed atmosphere.
The other players also returned one after another.
The first to return was another female player, Liu Xue. She was already sitting at Zhou Xiuxiu's desk, flipping through her notebooks and searching for clues.
The two walked over to her. Xia Zhiyi smiled politely and asked, “Did you find anything?”
Liu Xue looked up at them, then lowered her eyes and shook her head.
“I only found out that Zhou Xiuxiu was a science whiz and the math class representative. Her handwriting is beautiful, and she wanted to major in mathematics in university, but this information doesn't seem very useful.”
Xia Zhiyi took the initiative. “Let's ask her classmates.”
With that, she turned and walked to the back of the classroom, found a few girls who were happily chatting together, and greeted them openly to join them. “Hi, I'm a new transfer student. My last name is Xia.”
As expected, the students began to eye her face suspiciously. “You look more like a university student.”
Hearing this, Xia Zhiyi turned to Jing Ruyu and said sheepishly, “Oh my, she said I look like a university student…”
Then she sat down in a nearby empty seat and said with a straight face, “Don't mind that. I've just been in a hurry to grow up since I was little. Right now, I am indeed a genuine, bona fide second-year high school student, as young and beautiful as you all.”
Liu Xue: “…”
Can this person really switch faces so quickly???
Liu Xue turned to look at Jing Ruyu, curious. “Do you two know each other?”
Jing Ruyu nodded.
Liu Xue: “Is she always like this?”
Jing Ruyu nodded again. “Yes, she's always this fun and cute.”
Liu Xue: “…?”
Cu-cute?
Between my dictionary and hers, which one has a problem???
The social butterfly Xia Zhiyi had already successfully integrated herself with her interesting personality.
The girls found her amusing and even shared their snacks with her. Just like that, they began their break time, eating and chatting.
Xia Zhiyi very naturally steered the conversation toward Zhou Xiuxiu. “My math is pretty bad. If I have questions, who can I ask in class? Who's the math class representative?”
“Xiuxiu,” one of the girls said. “You can ask Xiuxiu. Zhou Xiuxiu, she's the math class representative. Her math is amazing, she gets a perfect score every time!”
“But she hasn't come to school these past few days. I wonder what happened…”
Xia Zhiyi raised an eyebrow.
Hasn't come to school? It was a pity these students didn't know what happened either, but judging by how they addressed her, their relationship with Zhou Xiuxiu seemed good.
“Are you all good friends with her? Is she easy to talk to?”
“Yes,” another girl said. “Xiuxiu is a very nice person with a great personality. She gets along well with everyone. If you don't understand something, just go to her. She'll definitely be happy to teach you.”
Xia Zhiyi nodded lightly.
Good personality, popular—it didn't sound like it had anything to do with school bullying, but one couldn't judge things by their surface. She didn't jump to a conclusion.
“Hearing you all talk, she sounds like a really great person. I bet no one dislikes her, right?”
At her words, the girls exchanged glances, and one shook her head. “That's not necessarily true. There's a girl in our class who doesn't like her.”
“Who?”
“The Chinese language representative, Ming Hui.”
“Why? Didn't you say Xiuxiu is a very nice person?”
“Because Ming Hui likes Xiuxiu's boyfriend. Speaking of which, Ming Hui has also taken leave from school these past two days.”
After the girl finished, another girl playfully hit her. “Hey, you. Xiuxiu said that Sun Jun isn't her boyfriend.”
That girl smiled and wagged her finger. “When it comes to a talented man and a beautiful woman, who knows.”
After that, they started laughing and teasing each other again.
Xia Zhiyi naturally left the small group, returning with a wealth of information. The other players also ran over to hear what she'd learned.
After listening, the red-haired man, Wu Yong, pointed toward the window. “Sun Jun? Is that the kid standing by the window acting all melancholic?”
Everyone followed his hand and indeed saw a boy with delicate and handsome features leaning against the window, gazing at the scenery outside. A strange hint of sorrow lingered between his brows.
Sensing their gazes, he slowly turned his head. His line of sight paused, and he offered a polite smile before turning back to look at the scenery.
His whole posture was like he was posing for a photoshoot.
Xia Zhiyi inexplicably got a case of goosebumps.
He wasn't bad-looking, but his behavior felt unnatural to her, as if he was constantly putting on an act from head to toe, afraid his image would collapse.
She couldn't understand what this kid, who was only in his second year of high school, was thinking.
Jing Ruyu clearly didn't like him either.
She preferred people who were natural, outgoing, and unrestrained.
“Let's search Ming Hui's desk,” Jing Ruyu said.
They got right to it.
They walked over to Ming Hui's desk and started rummaging through it without any pretense.
Time was tight, and they couldn't be bothered to be polite with the unscrupulous New World.
The student NPCs in the class didn't bother them either, letting them do as they pleased. After all, some of them looked genuinely intimidating.
Especially the red-haired guy. He looked very irritable, like he would actually throw a punch or two.
During the search, Xia Zhiyi didn't say a single word.
She didn't dare say whether Ming Hui was related to Zhou Xiuxiu's death, nor did she know what the New World and the Ghost King wanted them to see. She just hoped this matter had nothing to do with Ming Hui.
She didn't want to see a love-turned-hate that resulted in someone's death. It was tragic and foolish, and these were kids who weren't even eighteen yet…
Just then, Jing Ruyu found a slip of paper in the bottom-most notebook.
After unfolding it and taking a look, she silently handed the note to Xia Zhiyi.
Xia Zhiyi looked up and saw two lines written on the clean white paper, shocking to the eye—
You're a lunatic, a demon!
You will definitely go to hell!!!
If you enjoy my translations, please consider supporting me!
Comments
Post a Comment