Chapter Thirteen: The Dead Among the Reincarnators (2/2)

Rinko Mishima died just like that—plain and unmistakable—on the very first day of the May semester.

Liu Mengchao sat in his seat, quietly observing the students around him. No one was in the mood to speak; each person trembled silently.

Seeing this, Liu Mengchao nodded involuntarily. Now, at last, he understood why the opposing executor had brought him into this cycle world.

There was no solution.

This was the very essence of this terrifying world. It was as if an invisible hand was guiding people toward death. Just think about how Rinko Mishima died.

Because it was the first day of school, she wore high heels. And since the weather was clear, the classroom doors and windows were all open.

Then, before she could finish speaking, a heavy rain began to fall, pouring in through the open windows. Wanting to get closer to her classmates, Rinko stepped down from the podium, placing her foot into a small puddle on the floor.

Unfortunately, she was wearing high heels. Suddenly, one heel snapped, and she twisted her ankle.

Then, the other foot she relied on slipped.

At this thought, Liu Mengchao lifted his gaze and looked toward the door.

The front door of the classroom wasn't closed, allowing the wind to blow directly through the hallway and into the room. Rinko, unsteady on her feet, tried to lean against a window that was supposed to be shut.

But, by chance, the window wasn’t fully closed; a narrow gap remained. The gust of wind blew hard, pushing the window open.

And so, she fell from the second floor.

Liu Mengchao sighed softly, watching the distracted cycle players in the classroom. This death had come so swiftly that even he hadn’t quite reacted in time.

Falling from the second floor, no matter how you think about it, unless one lands headfirst, the worst injuries would be a broken leg or fractures—just like Rinko Mishima’s fall.

She had fallen but sustained no severe injuries, only a broken leg; she could only lie there, unable to move. At that moment, an experienced cycle player named Old Snake had already gone downstairs to carry her to the infirmary.

But then…

Liu Mengchao glanced at the window—now without glass—and realized that this very window, along with the fierce gust of wind, had sealed Rinko Mishima’s fate.

The wind blew violently inside, slamming the window against the eaves. The glass vibrated, shattered, and turned into sharp shards like knives, falling downward.

Eventually, one shard pierced Rinko Mishima’s throat.

Liu Mengchao stood and looked at the class.

They had all seen it—a fountain, a red fountain, a fountain made of blood.

“An absurd death…” Liu Mengchao sneered and, under the watchful eyes of the entire class, began to walk outside.

“Where are you going?” Izumi Akazawa, struggling to stand, called after him. “It’s best if we stay here and wait for Teacher Zhang to return.”

Liu Mengchao didn’t answer. His eyes scanned the faces of the cycle players in the class one by one. With a faint smile, he stepped out of the classroom.

The rain outside constantly pounded against the glass.

Liu Mengchao furrowed his brows. An uneasy feeling quietly filled his heart. He knew it was caused by asymmetric information.

At this moment, he felt more like a cycle player himself rather than the supreme executor manipulating them all.

Because, how could a supreme god not know the story’s plot?

Descending the stairs, Liu Mengchao leaned against a pillar, staring into the drizzling rain, lost in thought. His psychology skills allowed him to detect secrets in the subtlest details, but he wasn’t adept at gathering and analyzing information like a supercomputer.

Such tasks belonged to the wise.

Click.

Liu Mengchao drew his ebony and ivory pistols from his waist. The black and white twin guns lay silently in his hands.

Raising both hands, squinting his eyes at the rainy scene, he pressed the triggers repeatedly. Orange-yellow muzzle flashes erupted from his guns, dispersing the curtain-like rain, fearlessly racing toward the sky.

Bang!

He stomped the ground hard and charged into the rain. The downpour streamed down his face, gradually soothing his fear.

Yes, fear.

To Liu Mengchao, in this wretched world, death was utterly unreasonable. Perhaps if he fired a shot at the sky, the bullet might, for some unknown reason, follow its path back and kill him.

Click!

He sheathed his guns, closed his eyes, and carefully recalled everything that had happened from the beginning. Though not great at organizing thoughts, he still had to make an effort.

After all, this concerned his own life—and the next great war of the supreme gods.

He drew his gun again with his right hand. The white ivory pistol roared as a bullet struck a tree ahead.

First point: The opponent’s executor’s goal was his death.

Turning, Liu Mengchao raised his left hand, drawing the ebony pistol. Firing, the bullet hit the same spot as before.

Boom!

The tree shook violently, leaves fluttering down.

Second point: The executor didn’t know his true strength. If they did, they would have chosen a world rife with battle as the best setting. Using a world like this—one reminiscent of "Death is Coming"—was to exploit the rules' power to erase him.

Crossing his hands, Liu Mengchao fired a rapid succession of shots.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Bullets sprayed out one after another.

Third, Bai Ya had said that an executor engaged in a wager could alter the storyline. So, they must have changed the identity of the deceased. The dead person definitely wasn’t Rinko Mishima.

Unless the executor named Qingyun was utterly brainless.

Then…

Liu Mengchao’s eyes suddenly brightened. His mind recalled the mission prompt issued by Qingyun.

From the start, Qingyun had left a huge loophole by not preventing the cycle players from leaving Nightview Mountain town. What did that mean?

Liu Mengchao spun around, pistols back in their holsters.

Raising his left hand, his wrist bent slightly.

Snikt!

A hidden blade shot out from under his sleeve, piercing like a dagger through an enemy’s throat.

This showed the careless executor was desperately trying to cover something up.

Liu Mengchao paced slowly toward the training ground. The muddy ground was difficult to walk on.

Upon entering the supreme god world, he recalled Qingyun’s command word by word:

“Now issuing orders for another world.

There is only one command: find the ‘extra person’!

Requirement: Until the ‘extra person’ is found, cycle players are forbidden from using force to kill or harm any storyline characters.”

Liu Mengchao smiled, gazing at the scene ahead, while his mind raced.

People always subconsciously hide things. They unintentionally conceal their purposes and secrets through their words.

Of course, the best way is never to say them at all. Otherwise, a single carelessness will lay your intentions bare for all to see.

Like himself.

Not allowed to harm storyline characters… this was a false suggestion.

Liu Mengchao suddenly raised his head, letting the storm wash over him.

The more you don’t want others to do something, the more they consider that very possibility. They wonder which storyline character is truly dead.

But what if you reverse the psychological suggestion?

Liu Mengchao laughed.

The dead was among the cycle players themselves!

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Unable to resist spoiling the plot a little as I roll around ╭╮

Also, I feel Yukari Sakuragi is a truly gentle girl...

Thanks to jyojyo, Danxin**J, Bingdong Wuyu, Wangchen2, and Fifty-One Stone for their generous support.