“Why him?”
“He has an identity, one that can convince everyone during the day!”
“And this little performance of his was simply to make everyone think he’s a good guy. He wants people to believe he has no special role so that he has to suck up to Shiba Daye during the day just to ensure his own safety.”
As Werewolf B spoke, a smile played on his lips, though his hideous appearance made the expression feel exceptionally sinister.
They had arrived at Boss Qian’s thatched hut!
“Come on, let’s see.”
“Let’s see if he’s the Witch, the Idiot, or the Prophet!”
***
Inside Boss Qian’s room, the light of the oil lamp flickered, casting his shadow against the wall where it swayed back and forth.
It was already 12:20 AM, but Boss Qian still could not fall asleep.
He was restless.
As an old businessman, he no longer enjoyed taking risks.
Nothing was more important than steady progress—knowing approximately how much profit a deal would yield before even making it, even if that profit was small.
He was a calculating man.
He was 40 years old, and while he couldn’t be called old, he accounted for every step he took.
rustle, rustle, rustle — !
He sat at his table, which was covered in piles of money.
Beside him sat a pure gold abacus.
Both of his hands were constantly counting the cash.
There was too much on his mind, and he couldn’t sleep; only the act of counting money could bring him any peace.
Before the game started, the exchange rate in the System Mall for money needed during a game was twenty times the amount converted to the real world.
Boss Qian had used 5 Points to exchange for 100,000.
Although he felt a bit of a sting at spending the Points, he believed it was worth it.
“Gosh, this damn game. I wonder if it would be better if I’d gotten a Werewolf Card!”
“It’s all Xiao Wang’s fault. He kept saying crypto was all the rage and insisted I look into it!”
“Good grief, I studied it right into this place!!!”
“When I get back, I’m definitely going to settle the score with him!!!”
This wasn’t Boss Qian’s first game, but when he got nervous, he still couldn’t help but mutter to himself, cursing the accountant who had followed him for over ten years.
He counted the money a few more times.
Checking the System time, he figured the Werewolves should have finished their actions by now.
He finally let out a sigh of relief and prepared to lie down on the crude bed.
Even if he couldn’t sleep, closing his eyes for a bit would be good!
“Well, I should be safe tonight…”
But just as the exclamation left his mouth, a shredding sound rang out!
The wooden door of his room was suddenly torn apart by a sharp claw.
His body gave a violent shiver of fright.
Subconsciously, he grabbed the golden abacus from the table and held it high as if he intended to throw it.
However, he couldn’t bring himself to do it.
crack — crack!
Along with the sound of splintering wood and the debris flying into the room came the excited, heavy breathing of Werewolves.
Boss Qian had already scrambled into the corner of the room, his body trembling uncontrollably.
His breathing quickened, and his blood pressure spiked.
Feeling dizzy, he clutched his forehead and screamed toward the door, “Stop, stop, stop!!!”
“Don’t come in!!!!”
“I’m the Hunter! I drew the Hunter identity!!!”
“If you come in and kill me, you’ll die too!”
“In your current forms, I don’t know who you are!”
“You can totally go find someone else!”
“That Baiduren! He definitely has a God Card. Go after him!”
At the sound of Boss Qian’s voice, the Werewolves outside finally stopped their assault.
They seemed to be whispering something.
Not even 20 seconds later, one of them kicked the battered door, sending it flying across the room and slamming into the wall beside Boss Qian.
bang!
Boss Qian shrank further into the corner, staring fearfully at the two Werewolves who had entered the room.
He explained desperately, “You have to believe me!!”
“That Shiba Daye said he was the ‘gun’ and became the center of attention!”
“I just wanted to gain everyone’s trust first and then hide, pretending to be a useless Villager!”
“That way, the Knife would never come for my head!”
“If you Werewolves actually go to kill Shiba Daye later, he’ll just be a Substitute Ghost!!!”
“Please, believe me! I have plenty of money, I’ll give it all to you!!”
Boss Qian was becoming incoherent, actually believing the money in the room was real.
But money in this game was practically worthless compared to one’s life.
The Werewolves were in no hurry to strike.
They studied Boss Qian.
Werewolf A looked at Werewolf B.
“I think what he’s saying makes some sense. What do you think?”
Werewolf B shook his head and walked toward Boss Qian.
Looking down at him, he asked, “Tell me, Hunter, where is your gun?”
Hearing this, Boss Qian’s face crumpled.
“Big brother! I don’t have a gun!”
“This damn Hunter Card is bugged! There are no items, let alone a gun!!!”
“But believe me, I really am the Hunter!”
As soon as he finished, before Werewolf B could respond, Werewolf A walked over with a loud laugh.
“Hahaha… you damned crooked merchant. Do you think this is the outside world?”
“Are you trying to trick a child?”
“We can transform into Werewolves at night, and you, a Hunter, don’t have a gun?”
“Are you kidding me?!!”
Finishing his sentence, he rubbed his claws and looked at Werewolf B.
“So, did you misjudge him?”
“All you found was a Hunter without a gun. I told you… you aren’t actually that impressive.”
Werewolf B fell into thought, sensing that something was fishy.
But in the end, he nodded.
With Werewolf B’s confirmation, Werewolf A no longer held back and lunged toward Boss Qian.
As for Boss Qian?
His face was drenched in sweat and panic.
Just as Werewolf A came within 1 meter of him, he bit his lip and suddenly hurled the golden abacus at the creature.
He put all his strength into his legs, intending to bolt for the door.
The sky was overcast.
There were no lights and no candles.
If he could just get out that door, then…
Then…
Then even if there was only a tiny shred of a possibility, if he could hide and last until dawn…
Then…
Could he survive?!!!
Boss Qian used every ounce of strength he possessed to run for his life.
However…
rip — !
With the sound of tearing flesh, he suddenly lost all sensation in his lower body.
A searing, burning pain erupted in his back.
*thud — *
He crashed directly onto the floor!
His spine had been severed from behind by Werewolf A’s claws.
Blood sprayed across the entire room.
Boss Qian’s head spun.
He watched the darkness outside the door, and the doorframe seemed to sway and tilt…
His hands clawed at the ground, trying to crawl out, but he couldn’t find the strength to drag his 170-pound body.
He could feel a Werewolf constantly tearing at his body as if trying to hollow him out completely.
Meanwhile, the other Werewolf, who hadn’t participated, was already walking out the door.
Boss Qian’s eyes were wide but lifeless.
He could no longer feel the intense pain; he had begun to go numb.
Over the years, he had made a lot of money, much of it through dishonest means.
Was this… his karma?
As his life flashed before his eyes, Boss Qian’s consciousness grew increasingly blurred.
‘Who are the Werewolves… why… choose me…’
In his final moments, a surge of hatred welled up in his heart.
He remembered the scenes from earlier that day.
‘It’s… it’s you…’
‘It must be you!!!’
‘Whether the Witch saves me or not…’
‘I will… make you lose this game regardless of the cost…’
Boss Qian wanted to roar it out, but unfortunately, he could no longer speak.
With his eyes still open, staring at Werewolf B outside the door, he died.
Werewolf A had acted purely out of spite.
Using his transformed claws, he completely shredded Boss Qian’s corpse.
Only then did he walk out, his face covered in blood.
Looking at Werewolf B, who was standing with his head down in thought, he laughed happily.
“Hahaha, being a Werewolf is the best!”
Werewolf B rubbed his chin and pursed his lips.
After a moment of hesitation, he said, “I feel like… we picked the wrong person…”
“He probably figured out who I am…”
Werewolf A laughed.
“What’s there to be afraid of?”
“Even if the Witch saves him, he won’t have any memories.”
“Just focus on deciding who we’re going to get eliminated tomorrow. We should both try to talk as little as possible to avoid suspicion.”
Werewolf B shook his head.
“I suppose that’s all we can do. Sigh!”
However, looking at Boss Qian’s corpse, he couldn’t explain why, but he felt incredibly uneasy.
***
At 5:00 AM the next morning, Yi Mo was jolted awake by his electronic watch.
Because he had slept inside the cabinet, his entire body was aching.
He rubbed his neck.
He checked the System time and saw no new game notifications, so he hurriedly climbed out of the cabinet.
He had things he needed to confirm today.
He didn’t know exactly what time he was allowed to leave the house, but he rushed toward the door nonetheless.
With a push, it actually opened!
Seeing this, Yi Mo couldn’t help but shake his head helplessly.
‘If I had known, I would have set the alarm for 4:30 AM…’
‘I thought I wouldn’t be able to leave until 6:00 AM or 7:00 AM!’
However, just as Yi Mo was muttering to himself and preparing to step out, he suddenly spotted someone moving very cautiously but quickly past the thatched hut across from him!
Terrified, Yi Mo quickly pulled the door shut.
He wasn’t sure if the other person had spotted him.
‘Ordinary Maiden… what is she doing out so early?’