Chapter 51
Chapter 51
Qiao Jin gave her a bright smile. “Let’s hear it.”
She rather liked Cheng Miao. The young woman might not have much experience yet, but she was talented and could go very far.
Cheng Miao appeared cold but did not intend to hoard her discoveries. She wanted everyone to escape and return home alive. Qiao Jin’s smile faded slightly. It had been a long time since she herself had been that kind.
As though he understood her thoughts, Qian Ming patted the top of Qiao Jin’s head. The small, intimate gesture soothed the emotion stirring within her.
Cheng Miao’s gaze rested on the green emergency-exit sign in the corridor. “They died because they failed to behave like good students.”
“Xiao Zhao skipped class. Students aren’t supposed to skip class. As for Brother Zhang, he spoke without raising his hand. He openly interrupted the teacher and disrupted classroom discipline.”
“Then why did Xiao Zhao haunt Brother Zhang?” A short man raised his hand timidly. The childlike gesture made his already cringing expression appear even weaker. Cheng Miao remembered his name was Zhou Jian.
“Everyone chose their own seats. He had bad luck,” Qin Musong answered coolly. He had survived long enough to know that ability was not always sufficient. Sometimes an instance came down to luck.
The group fell silent. Old Yu, who had spoken with Brother Zhang, wiped his face and murmured, “Both dead players came from our science class. That isn’t fair…”
An oily, lecherous-looking man from the liberal-arts group glared. “What are you saying? Your people broke the rules. Should ours die with them?”
Old Yu’s lips trembled. He waved both hands. “That’s not what I meant. I just… I’m scared.”
The greasy man swept his oily bangs aside and scoffed.
Old Yu was tall and strong, but the instance had terrified him. Two deaths immediately after arrival further eroded his courage. He did not argue and fell silent.
Cheng Miao turned toward Qiao Jin in her flowing dress. “Be careful. Your class may have different rules.”
Qiao Jin’s watery eyes curved into crescents. “Of course, little Miaomiao.”
Cheng Miao’s temple twitched, but she ignored the strange nickname.
The bell rang. The nine liberal-arts players returned to class. Because the science group still waited for someone to remove the body, its remaining seven members followed the other students to the athletic field for free activity.
“I want to go back to the classroom,” Cheng Miao whispered to Lin Zhu and Qi Jiajia.
Before Lin Zhu could respond, Qi Jiajia’s expression changed. “No.”
Cheng Miao looked up at the science-class windows. They were bright and spotless, giving no hint of the bloody, grotesque corpse lying inside.
“There may be clues in there.” Cheng Miao ran her tongue along the inside of her mouth. Watching Qian Ming had made her want candy too.
She was afraid a ghost might be inside, but someone had to investigate.
It was dangerous, so she could not send a newcomer. She did not think she could order Qin Musong around either and felt uncomfortable asking anyone else to risk their life for her guess.
Qi Jiajia stared darkly at Cheng Miao for a long moment. “Then I’ll go.”
Cheng Miao raised a brow. Before she could speak, Qi Jiajia snapped, “You saw my defensive Item. At least I definitely won’t die this time. And you’re smarter than me. If something happens to me, you can still find a way to save me. If something happens to you, I can’t.”
Lin Zhu pouted. Jiajia had not counted him at all.
Cheng Miao unconsciously rubbed her hands. Her mind said Qi Jiajia was the logical choice, but emotionally, she could not make herself send a child into danger.
Qi Jiajia seemed to know what Cheng Miao was thinking. A mocking half-smile appeared on her face. “I thought you needed teammates, not children.”
The words jolted Cheng Miao. Overprotecting someone was a serious mistake within a team. Qi Jiajia had cleared more instances alone than Cheng Miao had, and Cheng Miao had always trusted her ability. Why was she hesitating now?
“Then be careful.” After correcting her attitude, Cheng Miao handed over Liu Xue’s Jump Rope. “I have other ways to protect myself. Take this.”
Qi Jiajia accepted the rope and idly swung it. She gave Lin Zhu a sinister smile. “I hope you manage to be useful too.”
Lin Zhu sank into despair.
Qin Musong, who had found a place to rest as soon as they reached the field, appeared without anyone noticing. Hearing that Qi Jiajia intended to enter the classroom, he studied her. “I was about to go. Wait here for my report.”
Qi Jiajia ignored him and walked onward. This might be a team instance, but she trusted no one. She had to investigate personally so Cheng Miao would value her more.
Qin Musong sighed helplessly and followed. His tall frame made Qi Jiajia seem even smaller.
Cheng Miao relaxed slightly. She still remembered Ma Yuan’s conflicted expression when he looked at her seat. She had questions to ask him.
Lin Zhu had his own established method for clearing instances. After informing Cheng Miao, he went to search for clues alone.
Ma Yuan sat beside the running track drinking water. When Cheng Miao approached, he greeted her warmly.
She sat beside him and came straight to the point. “You didn’t seem happy that I was assigned as your deskmate.”
Ma Yuan looked surprised. “That’s not true!” Then he remembered something and lowered the hand holding his water bottle. “That used to be my best friend’s seat.”
Cheng Miao felt a premonition. Looking toward the boys playing basketball in the distance, she asked, “Who was your friend?”
“Tan Tao.”
As expected. Cheng Miao’s heart jumped, and she turned toward Ma Yuan. Cheng Miao had beautiful features and a slightly aloof presence. She resembled the sea, clean and free, with an air of mystery.
Ma Yuan blushed and began talking without realizing it.
Tan Tao had been his deskmate. Unlike athletic Ma Yuan, Tan Tao loved studying. He loved it intensely.
From Ma Yuan’s description, Cheng Miao thought Tan Tao’s devotion bordered on obsession. He followed even the school’s smallest rules with exceptional strictness.
That matched the pattern of Xiao Zhao and Brother Zhang dying after minor violations.
“Did Tan Tao demand the same behavior from everyone else?” Not wanting to pressure Ma Yuan, Cheng Miao looked down and picked at the rubber granules on the track.
“No…” Ma Yuan’s voice choked. “He was a good person. He always told me to do what I loved. If I didn’t enjoy studying, I should focus on soccer and make sure I pursued what I truly wanted.”
Cheng Miao’s fingers stopped. That did not match the unforgiving rules they had inferred. Had Tan Tao become obsessive only after turning into a ghost?
Ma Yuan’s eyes reddened as he crushed the plastic bottle in his grip. “He was strict only with himself and kind to everyone else. When I realized he had a fever, I should’ve insisted on telling a teacher. Then he wouldn’t have died.”
Cheng Miao offered several words of comfort to the sobbing young man. Then she saw Qi Jiajia racing down the stairs with Qin Musong behind her.
Making an excuse, Cheng Miao walked away. Qi Jiajia reached her first, too breathless from running to speak. Qin Musong showed no sign of exertion as he said, “There really is something inside.”