Players, Please Board the Train

”What do you mean by that?” Rich Kid frowned at him. ”When the power went out, everyone was near the circuit breaker. You yourself only came over after hearing the noise. Who could possibly be in two places at once to commit murder?”

”I’ve checked,” Xu Huo said. ”What fell just now was probably the shelf next to the hot spring pool. Du Lanlan and Xia Guo were both killed without even making a sound for help. The most likely explanation is that their killer was far stronger than them. There aren’t many signs of struggle around either.”

”You think the shelf fell on its own?” Wan Zhikang gave him a look that said ’don’t treat us like idiots.’

”It could’ve been accidentally knocked over, or maybe blown down by wind. With so many uncertain factors, how can you be sure someone was here when the shelf fell?” Xu Huo said meaningfully. ”Game items can also create alibis.”

Everyone froze momentarily before realizing his point. From the blackout to discovering Du and Xia’s deaths, several minutes had passed. Since the two were killed without even crying for help or signs of struggle, the shelf suddenly falling seemed highly suspicious—almost like it was staged for the players’ benefit.

”Maybe it was just coincidence,” Abel said. ”The furnishings here are old and soaked in moisture. It’s not strange for them to be unstable.”

”Coincidences are another matter,” Huang Junjie interjected. ”At the very least, we need to confirm none of the players are murder suspects first. Otherwise, how can we work together against the Headhunter Demon?”

”That’s fair,” Rich Kid started first. ”Before the blackout, I was with Liu Yuanyuan the whole time. When we went to check the circuit breaker afterward, I ran into Zhang Xiong.”

Zhang Xiong nodded. ”I saw him just coming out when I passed through the hallway. I also saw Liu Yuanyuan smoking.”

Liu Yuanyuan corroborated, ”Zhang Xiong did walk past the door.””Zhang Xiong had already come out when Yuan Yao and I heard the noise,” Huang Junjie added.

Before that, Zhang Xiong had been sharing a room with Wan Zhikang and Abel, so the three could vouch for each other.

Wang Wei had arrived at the storage room with the college student, though he hesitated before saying, ”But before the blackout, he went out for a while.”

The college student’s face visibly paled with panic. ”It wasn’t me! I didn’t kill anyone! I was already back in the room before the blackout! Right when the power went out, I even called out to you—you were still in the bathroom then!”

”People might not have died after the blackout!” Huang Junjie eyed him warily. ”You could’ve killed them first, then cut the power to lure everyone out before pretending to come with Wang Wei.”

”It wasn’t me!” the college student suddenly shouted. Before he could explain further, Zhang Xiong punched him hard in the stomach. He crumpled to his knees, tears of pain and resentment in his eyes. ”I told you it wasn’t me! If Du Lanlan and the others died before the blackout, then all of you were in your rooms too—none of you can prove your innocence either!”

Zhang Xiong yanked him up by the collar. ”Are you saying we conspired to kill them?”

”If it wasn’t the Headhunter Demon, then who could kill so quietly unless multiple people worked together?” The college student struggled, and a fruit knife suddenly fell from his back.

Wan Zhikang picked it up, furious. ”What’s this?”

Before the college student could speak, he was punched twice more. Zhang Xiong looked ready to beat him to death, but Xu Huo stopped him. ”The murder weapon wasn’t a fruit knife.”

Both Du and Xia had clear signs of violent chopping at their necks—something a fruit knife couldn’t possibly achieve.

”So what?” Wan Zhikang snapped. ”Unless he can explain where he was before the blackout, he’s the prime suspect!”

By now, the college student’s face was bruised and swollen. He glared at Zhang and Wan through slitted eyes. ”You two are the only ones in the villa with an axe.”

”I hid the fruit knife to protect myself! I found it in the dining area during the day but didn’t take it then because I didn’t want others to see. I only went out at night to retrieve it!”

”How could a fruit knife cut off heads?!”

Nearly all the players had arrived empty-handed. To commit murder, they’d need tools—and among them, only Wan Zhikang had an axe he’d taken earlier.

”You’re framing me!” Wan Zhikang lunged at him but was held back by Rich Kid and Wang Wei. The former said coldly, ”You’ve had it out for those two for a while, haven’t you?”

The color drained from Wan Zhikang’s plump face. ”You suspect me?”

The others silently stared at him, clearly siding with the college student. Wan, along with his roommates Zhang Xiong and Abel, were now under suspicion.

”Bullshit!” Zhang Xiong roared. ”I’ve never laid a hand on women!”

”Absolutely not!” Abel added frantically. ”I follow Buddhism—I don’t kill!”

Rich Kid scoffed. ”What would a foreigner know about Buddhism? You’re the only ones with an axe, and they were killed by an axe. If not you, then who?”

Sweat poured down Wan Zhikang’s face as his eyes darted wildly. In his panic, he suddenly pointed at Xu Huo. ”What about him? He’s the one who wasn’t even in the villa earlier—he came back from outside! He’s the most suspicious one here!”

”Zhang Xiong, Abel, and I only met after entering the game. Even if I had issues with those women, how could I convince them to help me kill? What good would dead players do me? I’m no match for the Headhunter Demon either!”

”He’s right! You disappeared after the first blackout—you were the only one outside!” Zhang Xiong immediately redirected the accusation.

The others turned to Xu Huo. Huang Junjie eyed him skeptically. ”Why did you stay alone in the cabin?”

Under normal circumstances, no one would willingly isolate themselves in such a dangerous place. Yet Xu Huo had chosen to remain behind even when he could’ve returned to the villa with the others—which was suspicious in itself.

”I already explained. I was curious whether that person would revive again.” Xu Huo remained unruffled, speaking calmly. ”Besides, I’d just been in a life-or-death fight and had to dig a grave. Even if I moved fast, there’s no way I could’ve traveled between both locations and killed three people in such a short time.”

”Oh, and I plucked those loquat branches from the woods. There are quite a few fruit trees here, by the way.”

The players were now thoroughly confused.

The college student was pathetically weak—he couldn’t even take one punch from Zhang Xiong. It was a stretch to think he could’ve silently decapitated two people alone.

Convincing others to collaborate in murder wasn’t easy either. Just having an axe wasn’t enough evidence, because by that logic, players from other rooms could also be suspects—there was no way to tell if they’d already formed alliances.

As for Xu Huo, his timeline didn’t add up. He hadn’t returned with Huang Junjie and Yuan Yao after the first blackout and had supposedly fought and buried a body at the cabin. The interval between the two blackouts wasn’t long enough for all that.

For a moment, it seemed like every player was both suspicious and innocent at the same time.

”Are you overthinking this?” Liu Yuanyuan, who’d been sitting quietly, finally spoke up. ”There’s a Headhunter Demon in the villa, and instead of suspecting it, you’re trying to pin this on one of us?”