Loophole

The muffled sound of gas compression gradually faded, leaving only the sound of two people breathing in the cramped room. The air felt heavy, almost viscous.

Player 2 stood by the pod door, his gaze locked onto Ren Yi. His face was tense, and his forceful question still hung in the air.

"You're an Anomaly, aren't you?"

Ren Yi's expression didn't change in the slightest. He maintained his idle, clown-painted look, the corners of his eyes tilted upward without a hint of panic.

He even straightened his body slowly, a faint smile curling on his lips. His tone was flat but dripping with irony.

"That's a line I should be the one saying."

Ren Yi leaned forward half a step, enunciating every word clearly. The end of his sentence trailed off with a snide, mocking lilt.

"The one with the problem right now is you, my dear Chosen Peeper lord."

The vivid, exaggerated clown paint on his face made his gaze seem all the more playful. Despite his calm tone, the makeup made the sarcasm feel absolute, showing no mercy to the man who held the power of observation.

Ren Yi understood that while the current situation was chaotic and the logic had completely collapsed, leaving everyone in fear for their lives, Player 2 had no business pointing the finger at him.

The two of them had never truly been operating from a blind perspective. In this entire game, they were the only two who had actually witnessed the entire process of the first night's incident with their own eyes.

Using his peeping ability, Player 2 had seen Ren Yi's actions that night perfectly. He had no hard evidence to identify Ren Yi as an Anomaly.

To put it bluntly, Player 2's sudden accusation was nothing more than an on-the-spot test.

At most, it was mixed with a bit of inexplicable intuition; it was far from a definitive conclusion.

Since it was just a test, it didn't matter. A casual denial would suffice; there was no need for excessive explanation.

With that thought, Ren Yi cooperatively raised both hands, palms facing forward in a gesture of complete surrender, his smile deepening.

"We're locked in the room now anyway, and the sealed pod is shut tight. If you're an Anomaly, feel free to make your move now."

"My dear Chosen Peeper lord, I won't resist at all."

Player 2 pursed his lips and stared at him silently for a long time, his brow furrowed and his young face filled with conflict.

The two faced off in silence, the air seemingly frozen. It took a full half-minute before Player 2 spoke up gloomily, his tone carrying a hint of frustration and a trace of subtle embarrassment.

"...I was just about to say that line."

The smile on Ren Yi's face faltered for a second.

So, my lord, you just forgot your lines?

"Forget it." Player 2 also felt that talking over each other like this was meaningless. He waved his hand and quickly gave up on the fruitless test, his neck stiff and his tone blunt.

"In any case, if you were an Anomaly, there would be no reason for you to waste time acting with me here. You would have attacked long ago."

"If you aren't, then I hope we can establish at least a basic level of trust between us."

He looked up at Ren Yi, his voice dropping an octave.

"During the first day's vote, you were nearly voted out by the crowd. I was the one who risked being implicated and targeted by the Anomalies to step forward and protect you."

"You have to acknowledge that debt."

Ren Yi raised an eyebrow and nodded frankly, without any evasion.

"Of course I acknowledge it. I'll remember that favor. But as for trust—"

He changed the subject, his gaze falling directly on Player 2 with a blunt scrutiny as he counter-accused him.

"Mr. Player 2, you're under quite a bit of suspicion yourself right now."

"Back in the hall, you were whispering in Player 1's ear and exchanging all sorts of looks. Don't you plan on telling me what the two of you were talking about?"

If they were going to talk about trust, then those little movements behind everyone's backs should be brought out into the open.

To Ren Yi's surprise, Player 2 didn't hide anything and spoke quite candidly.

"I told him that given the current situation, either Player 11 is an Anomaly..."

"Or, there might be two of those teleporting Great Anomalies."

Hearing this, the idleness finally faded from Ren Yi's face, and he was genuinely stunned for a moment.

What did you say? There are two Lu Zihans?

Oh, no—there are two teleporting Anomalies.

His expression contorted uncontrollably for a split second before he quickly pulled himself together, adopting a look of appropriately horrified gravity.

His brow furrowed deeply, showing just the right amount of confusion. "Why would you think that?"

Player 2 crossed his arms, his expression becoming more serious and his tone earnest.

"All of this is based on the assumption that you completely believe the truth I peeped."

"But before I go into detail, tell me honestly: what were you doing in your room on the first night? Don't try to brush me off with the same excuses you gave the others."

Ren Yi paused, then realized Player 2 was asking about the incident where he used the potion to threaten Player 4.

He nonchalantly shrugged and spoke frankly, half-truthfully.

"What else? I was just probing him."

"We had just started the game and everyone was scared. If he happened to be an Anomaly, I could have used the poison I had to kill him directly, securing my own life and removing a hidden threat."

Player 2 nodded noncommittally, not dwelling on the issue, and began to recount what he had seen from his perspective.

"The target I chose to peep on the first night was your room. I saw you testing and threatening Player 4 with my own eyes, but he never underwent a transformation from beginning to end. His reactions were no different from an ordinary person's; he wasn't an Anomaly at all."

Player 2's voice was calm as he carefully recalled the scenes from that night.

"Immediately after, a tall monster suddenly appeared behind him. It moved extremely fast, killing Player 4 with a single slash before vanishing. The whole thing took only a few seconds."

"On the second night, I changed my target. I watched Player 7." His voice grew heavier, tinged with a hint of annoyance.

"I saw the same monster rush into the room and brutally slaughter Player 7."

"Haven't you realized where the problem lies yet?"

Player 2 looked at Ren Yi, his tone carrying a bit of helplessness—a frustration that wasn't directed at Ren Yi, but seemed more like he was annoyed with himself.

"I wasn't able to say it directly out there. By the time I remembered this loophole, my speaking time had already passed."

"Under the suppression of the rules, I never got another chance to speak up and correct it."

He clenched his fists, his face full of regret as he continued.

"Previously, Player 11 said that Player 12 was that teleporting Anomaly. We took her at her word for the time being and voted Player 12 out."

"But since Player 12 was voted out and sealed on the first day, completely losing his ability to act..."

"How could an identical Anomaly appear in Player 7's room to commit murder on the second night? It doesn't make any sense."

Ren Yi's heart skipped a beat, but he remained outwardly composed.

That was indeed a loophole they had overlooked.