With a gloomy and melancholic mood, we trudged into the round table room. Passing by the body of the person who died on the first night - the corpse now stitched heavily together into a gruesome scarecrow - everyone froze. Its pale skin was soaked in even more fresh blood, bright red and pungent. I instinctively glanced at the unfortunate victim's chair. It had shifted slightly from its original position. However, I only secretly thought that someone must have accidentally bumped into it when walking in, so I didn't pay much attention to it.
The Game Master, sitting perched up high, suddenly chuckled, breaking the dead silence:
-"Let the second voting begin!"
We stared blankly at each other for a few tense seconds. Finally, Yun Xiao Yao (Seat No. 6) - the fierce red-haired girl - could no longer stand the pressure and spoke up to break the impasse:
-"The other day we discussed the assumption: the Werewolf is the person who died on the first night, right?"
Mo Feng Yan lazily rested his hands behind his head, replying casually:
-"That's right."
As if finding a focal point, Yun Xiao Yao continued in a rushed voice:
-"Just now, everyone saw it clearly! That corpse was soaked in a lot of fresh blood, which is clearly the blood of Guang Jun Ning who just died last night. There's no doubt about it, that corpse must have come back to life in the middle of the night and gone hunting!"
Chu Hao Cheng (Seat No. 5) frowned slightly and cut in:
-"But before that, we also had many doubts that haven't been satisfactorily explained."
-"If we keep hesitating like this, we'll lose more people!" Yun Xiao Yao completely lost her composure, she screamed, her face showing clear panic: "Otherwise, let's just vote randomly now. At least it eliminates one object of suspicion!"
Yashu, sitting next to me, pondered for a moment and then nodded in agreement:
-"Yun Xiao Yao has a point, let's just gamble and try it out once."
The atmosphere at this moment was thick with pressure, my heart thumping continuously. My hands trembled as I carefully wrote Chen Ying Ke's name on the parchment, then shakily dropped it into the voting box filled with sharp teeth that looked ready to chew everything to pieces.
As soon as the final ballot fell to the bottom of the box, the Game Master suddenly cackled, his eerie laughter echoing off the walls, sending a chill down my spine:
-"WRONG GUESS! The voting session is over!"
I startled, my heart skipping a beat. Although I had somewhat anticipated that this result would be wrong, hearing the Game Master's mocking voice with my own ears still sent a spine-chilling wave of cold air running through me.
The Game Master lazily shook the spooky pumpkin beside him. Instantly, the sky outside darkened rapidly in an absurd manner:
-"Now, you little mice, beat it back to your tents! No food or drink for you today."
Everyone dispersed listlessly in helplessness. Yashu, Chu Hao Cheng, and I intentionally slowed our pace, quietly stepping toward each other to discuss the next survival code.
I lowered my voice, voicing my biggest suspicion:
-"I have a conjecture... I think there's a high probability that the Game Master is the Werewolf. While we're meeting or voting, he's always sitting up in the tree monitoring everything, isn't that too much of a coincidence?"
Yashu furrowed her brows slightly, looking skeptical:
-"Initially, I suspected his hounds more. But thinking about it carefully now, that hypothesis doesn't make much sense either. Alright, let's provisionally go with your conjecture for now."
She paused briefly, her serious gaze sweeping across me and Chu Hao Cheng, then she lowered her voice to a bare whisper:
-"Now, let's agree on a code like this. This is just a backup plan for the worst-case scenario - if one of the three of us unfortunately gets attacked by the Werewolf tonight."
Yashu raised her right hand, demonstrating each movement slowly and decisively:
-"If your conjecture is Right (the Game Master is the Werewolf): let the victim try to use their remaining strength to bend their hand, raising only their index finger toward the sky. Meaning the ultimate target is the Game Master."
"If the conjecture is Wrong (the Game Master is not the Werewolf): spread all five fingers out. Meaning the direction of suspicion needs to widen to other targets, not him."
"And if you Don't know or Didn't catch a glimpse of the Werewolf's face: clench your whole hand into a fist. What do you two think, do you agree?"
Chu Hao Cheng remained silent for a second, slightly tightening his fist, then nodded and replied in a deep, muffled voice:
-"Not a bad idea. I agree."
After the final security plan was established, we trudged away, each returning to our own tent. Yet, my steps felt heavy. An uneasy, cold premonition running down my spine told me that something bad would definitely happen tonight. Thinking of this, I turned around, proactively shaking hands tightly with Chu Hao Cheng and Yashu. That handshake in the gathering darkness held so many unspoken words. Because all of us understood clearly that in this wheel of death... who knows if this would be the last time we would see each other whole, in the flesh...