637 Death Game
“You’re a fugitive?” Han Fei didn’t sound surprised. He wanted to smile, but he couldn’t do it. “That’s such a coincidence. I’m wanted too.”
“How can you chat with me so freely when you’re tied up? Do you have some kind of strange kink?” Lee Guo Er took out a dagger and used the tip to poke Han Fei’s chin. “I can tell you clearly that I’ve not met you before. But since you were willing to save me, I won’t kill you. After I get enough theme park points, I’ll let you go.”
“What is this theme park point you talk about?” When Han Fei visited the theme park that day, he saw Fu Tian with the stamp card. However, that was a children’s toy. Why would adults fight to the death for it?
“In the past, I didn’t believe they exist either until…” Lee Guo Er sat down opposite Han Fei. “I worked in a gaming company. After experiencing some very painful stuff, I chose to quit. At the time, our department’s game exploded in popularity, and we got a lot of bonuses.
“However, money didn’t mean anything to me. At the time, my heart was hollow. That was why I wanted to try new things, to awaken my love for life. However, before I could change my lane, the police came to find me. They thought I was involved in the kidnapping and murder of an important person in the city.” The sweet smile on her face disappeared. “However, I have no impression of that at all. I was only a normal office worker. How would I be involved with a kidnapping? I explained myself, but the evidence piled up against me. I felt like someone was trying to do me in.”
Han Fei was confused. “How is that related to the theme park points?”
“At the time, no one came to my aid. I lost my most important thing, and then I was framed. My life was heading into despair. After the last interrogation, I had a mental breakdown. That night, I wanted to join him and leave this world. However, a strange man found me. He said if I participated in this game, I would be able to escape from despair and rectify all my regrets.” Lee Guo Er said seriously.
“How come your story sounds so familiar to me? It’s like I’ve been through it before.” Han Fei looked lost. “What does that strange man look like?”
“He was wearing a smiling face. He said he could see into the future, and he was there to help people in despair.” Lee Guo Er then glanced at Han Fei. “I didn’t take his words to heart. Like you, he sounded so crazy. But something happened to change my mind.”
“What happened?”
“He gave me a theme park invitation and a mask. After he left, I was followed by a crazy man. I didn’t know him, but the person insisted on killing me!” Lee Guo Er’s fingers caressed the knife. “I was already in the game, no matter I wanted to or not. If I don’t want to be killed, I have to kill.” “I still don’t get it.” Han Fei lost his memory, but Lee Guo Er’s words were like little sparks that lit up his mind.
“In short, we’ve all been submerged into a death game that we can’t leave. Only the most despairing individuals can join this game. The winning reward is something that will save us from despair.” Lee Guo Er’s eyes turned cold. “The gaming process is cruel and gory. You’ll get one point by killing each participant. That is the safest point to gain points.”
“Killing is the safest method? What other methods are there?”
“Capturing ghost.” Lee Guo Er’s face paled. She was pretty, but she looked terrifying at that moment. “I don’t know if there are ghosts in this world or not. Those who know the answer are already dead.”
“Ghosts?” Han Fei remembered the scripts in his room. The 99 scripts were like 99 real ghost stories. “Have others gained point through this method before?”
“Yes.” Lee Guo Er said confidently, “There is a point scoreboard beside all the theme park rides. Normally, they are used to record the scores of visitors, but at midnight, a random scoreboard at the theme park will list out the scores and numbers of all the participants. I’ve seen the scoreboard once. There were 32 participants, and the top 1 player had earned 99 points.”
“Is it possible that he has killed 99 players?”
“There are not so many participants, so he must have caught some ghosts!” Lee Guo Er leaned against the wall. “When you reach 100 points, you’ll get your wish granted. I wonder if he managed to get that final point.”
“The game is still ongoing, so he probably hasn’t.” Han Fei frowned. The number 99 was very special to him. He gouged out 99 scars on his arms. He wrote down 99 ghost stories, and now there was a scoreboard leader with 99 points. “Could I be the top 1 player?”
Lee Guo Er rolled her eyes. “Earlier, you suspect me of loving you, and now you think you are the top 1 player?”
“It’s just a guess.”
“Then, I guess you’re quite conceited.” Lee Guo Er didn’t mean to kill Han Fei. She placed his backpack on the table and shook everything out. The wounded kitten lay on the table. It meowed weakly.
“There’s really no invitation?” Lee Guo Er looked around, but she could only find that white smiling mask.
“Can you tell me what the invitation looks like? Perhaps I can remember something about it.” Han Fei didn’t feel threatened by Lee Guo Er. It was why he was so calm. He preferred to be trapped here than to go back ‘home’.
“The invitation is a black card. You’ll see different words if you view the card from different angles. The card has your player number too. You have to possess it to enter the theme park at night.” Lee Guo Er thought about it and added, “Only those with the invitation can participate in the ghost-catching game every night and join the Ghost Parade before dawn.”
“After killing someone, can you inherit their points after getting their cards?”
“The points can’t be transferred. Each card only represents one point.” Lee Guo Er wasn’t a murderous person. Most of the time, she only took away the other participants’ invitation. However, for some, that was worse than death.
“Such a crazy game.”
“The game doesn’t encourage people to murder each other. Instead, it encourages people to catch ghosts. However, humanity is always surprising. People will always take shortcuts.” Lee Guo Er yawned and flipped through Han Fei’s scripts. “Were you a scriptwriter?”
“Probably a scriptwriter and an actor.” Even though Han Fei was detained, his heart calmed down. This private jail brought him a sense of security. “Thank you for chatting with me.”
“You’re thanking me?” Lee Guo Er was surprised. “You do have this kind of kink, don’t you?”
“I can’t remember.” Han Fei shook his head. “I haven’t chatted with a person for a long time already. I don’t dare to approach people because I feel like they all want to kill me.” Han Fei lowered his head to study the scars on his arms. “I could only speak to myself in the past.”
“Stop rambling or I’d stab you.” Lee Guo Er studied Han Fei. “But there’s something special about you. It doesn’t appear like you’re acting.”
“I should have a blade too. A bladeless knife.”
“Right. What did I say about rambling?” Lee Guo Er sat back at the table. She was confused too. She was sure this was her first time meeting Han Fei, but she wasn’t averse to him. In fact, they felt like old friends. Lee Guo Er didn’t want to remember her bad past with her ‘friend’, so she focused on Han Fei’s scripts. In the dim underground jail, the man, the woman, and the cat passed a peaceful night.
The next morning, Han Fei smelled something good and blurrily opened his eyes.
“You have quite a nose.” Lee Guo Er sat down. “Is there something wrong with you? I have you trapped, but you slept so well the night before. You didn’t even react when I placed the knife against the neck. I feel so disrespected.”
“Ever since I woke up at the hospital, I haven’t had a good night's sleep. I was knocked out by drugs. I would feel anxiety when I was outside. I feel safe when I’m here.”
“I don’t even know what to say to that.” Lee Guo Er had her breakfast. Han Fei watched her.
“Wait. You want to eat my food too?” Lee Guo Er could feel Han Fei’s eyes on her. “Did you really treat this place as your home?”
“I have an inexplicable desire for meat. If you can provide me with meat, I will repay you with some info.” Han Fei volunteered his guesses. “The scripts probably are recordings of real events. Each script represents a ghost. If you want to gain points quickly, you should follow my scripts.”
“So that’s your goal. You want to lure me to these places to get me killed?” Lee Guo Er raised her brows. She looked cuter without her glasses.
“I just want to eat meat.” Han Fei said innocently.
After long contemplation, Lee Guo Er nodded. “Fine. I’ll trust you this once.” She stood up and left. Half an hour later, she returned with a plate of mutton. “Eat up. After you’re done, tell me the script with the easiest ghost to catch.” Han Fei’s stomach growled. Soon, the plate of mutton disappeared.
Lee Guo Er was shocked, looking at the empty plate. “That was my storage for a week. Is there a monster inside your stomach?”
“I think I prefer pork, especially pork heart.” Han Fei licked his lips. “Your meat lacks something. I remember my favorite meat contain something dangerous. Each bite is a teetering between heaven and hell.”
“I should just send you to a mental hospital. They will have better food.” Lee Guo Er was quite unhappy. She placed the scripts before Han Fei. “So, which one is the safest?”
“The scripts only tell you that ghosts exist. They also provide you with hints. That will lower the difficulty by a lot.”
“In other words, you don’t really know either?”
“I can’t remember.”
Lee Guo Er picked up the knife and then put it down again. “Fine. I’ll trust you again.” She hid the knife. She left on her own after memorizing one of the scripts.
“Be careful. Ghosts are different from people.”
Han Fei sighed after Lee Guo Er left. She was so familiar, but he couldn’t remember her. It was torturous.
“Meow…” The kitten had healed after a night of rest. It jumped out of the paper box Lee Guo Er prepared for it and came to Han Fei. It rubbed its head against Han Fei’s leg. The nine black stripes on its body became clearer. It was like they tried to form some kind of pattern.
“Are you really my cat?” Han Fei looked at the cat. “It feels like you know me. But I can’t remember you. Have I named you before?” Counting the stripes on the cat, the name suddenly came to Han Fei. “Little Eight? Is that your name?”
The cat was very happy hearing that name. It rolled on the ground.
“That’s really your name? Why would I call a cat with nine stripes Little Eight?”
