There's definitely something wrong with this murder mystery game

Just like Hong Rao, who, as a "mentor," needed to bring students to complete her performance, Luo Kai, as a "director," also needed to extract enough scripts within a limited time.

If high-level scripts could not be extracted, he could only rely on quantity to stack up.

Thinking back to their first meeting on the high-speed train departing from Yang City, Xu Shuo actually just casually tested the waters; he did not expect that incident to be genuinely turned into a script.

This was too close to Xu Xi.

"What's it called?" he asked.

"'Crimson Dusk,' just an ordinary level-one script, the kind where players can't die inside," Luo Kai, who had been coaxed into talking, said listlessly.

"How much is the usual workload for your profession?" Xu Shuo asked in a low tone.

"That's confidential, brother," Luo Kai glanced at him.

Xu Shuo raised his eyebrows but did not ask further, his gaze thoughtful as he looked around the noisy carriage.

He consequently thought of another issue, if the players did not meet the target for the number of scripts extracted, could they go out and create their own?

After all, there aren't so many accidents in this world that you could just happen to encounter, or encounter within the system's time limit.

If it really came to that point, the players would inevitably have other thoughts.

Xu Shuo pondered, feeling that after the college entrance examination ended, he could consider sending Xu Xi to a martial arts school to learn some women's self-defense during the summer vacation.

Additionally, he needed to get her to read more psychology-related books to avoid accidentally falling into any traps.

He couldn't help but let his thoughts wander off, when at that moment, Luo Kai nudged his arm with his elbow and gestured with his eyes toward the carriage: "That... It's out again."

Xu Shuo looked up.

The little girl had run out from her seat again, her eyes bright and sparkling, her short hair somewhat disheveled, running askew in the swaying carriage.

Luo Kai very consciously turned away and leaned against the wall on the other side, his back facing them as he smoked.

Although the ghostly thing that appeared in the Spirit Car Illusory Realm moved like a gecko with its flesh and blood bursting apart, consisting of an oil-like viscous liquid, one could vaguely make out human features from that dirty face.

It was a five or six-year-old child.

Now, Luo Kai could also barely discern similar features from the face of that short-haired little girl.

Plus, with her earnest behavior, she really did resemble—that eerie presence on the spirit car that was unusually friendly to Xu Shuo.

The little girl who had run out to the end of the carriage slowed down, gazing eagerly at Xu Shuo, then shyly clenched her fist and stretched out her hand to him.

"What?" Xu Shuo squatted down to look at her.

"Thank you for earlier," the little girl said, opening her palm to reveal a Sweet Candy.

"For me?"

"Yes, yes!" the little girl nodded vigorously.

Xu Shuo took it with a beaming smile, but before he could speak again, the little girl quickly turned and ran off, her lopsided figure dashing through the carriage.

Luo Kai turned his head to sneak a peek and said regretfully, "Why didn't you use your charm to keep her around and talk a bit more?"

Xu Shuo stood up without a word, and only after the little girl's figure was blocked by the seats did he start to walk further into the carriage.

After glancing at the youth's retreating figure, Luo Kai withdrew his gaze and focused on the void.

[In Progress...]

That progress bar was crawling sluggishly forward at a snail's pace, having covered less than one-tenth.

This made him inhale his cigarette with a sense of melancholy.

…

As Xu Shuo approached the seat, he heard a loud woman's voice, along with the noise of children playing.

"Sit still and behave, will you? Can't even let you eat in peace, huh!"

"It's the little sister's fault for dropping my snacks, she's to blame!"

"You're the one who's always pushing me out..."

"Blame you, blame you!"

"Can you two just give me a break for once?"

"Haha, it's normal for kids to be a bit rowdy, better than my kid at home who never speaks up, can't even get him to call out to someone."

Seeing the woman scolding the two children, a middle-aged man sitting opposite couldn't help but smile and mediate, even taking out a few pieces of candy and giving them to the two kids.

Train journeys are always long, and a bit of liveliness can alleviate the boredom.

The seats on the right were in pairs, with the two children squeezed onto the outer ones. But after their quarrel, they were now sitting too close for comfort, and the boy kept pushing the little girl out impatiently.

The woman sat on the inside, annoyed by their bickering. She might as well be out of sight, out of mind, so she turned her head to continue snacking on sunflower seeds and chatting with the other passengers.

The little girl, pushed out of her seat, stood in the aisle sullenly looking at the boy and then at their mom, who wasn't paying them any attention.

Just then, she looked up and saw Xu Shuo, who had come over at some point.

The young man gave her a gentle smile, as if his smile possessed the comforting power of Magic Power, and the little girl's anger dissipated. She even felt her cheeks turning red involuntarily.

She ran over to Xu Shuo, showing him her candy and whispered, "I got two more sweets."

The boy had also tried to snatch her candy earlier, but the girl was very protective of her snacks, which led to her being squeezed off the seat.

Xu Shuo patted her little head and declined the candy, then looked up and found himself making eye contact with the middle-aged man sitting opposite.

The man looked surprised and then smiled at him in a friendly way.

After looking over, the middle-aged man turned away and continued his conversation with the woman.

"Big brother, don't you have a seat?" the little girl asked curiously.

"I didn't manage to get a seat ticket," Xu Shuo said with a smile.

They stood in the middle of the aisle, steadying themselves against the side of the seats, while Xu Shuo's gaze fell on the shelf on the carriage wall. He then leaned over to grab a newspaper.

The little girl stood beside him. Because she had been pushed out of her seat and didn't want to go back to fight for it, she leaned against Xu Shuo, chewing her candy and looked curiously around the carriage.

Children can never sit still for long. She soon ran off again, looking and touching everything around. Fortunately, the adults did not mind seeing a child exploring, and some even gave her treats because they found her cute.

When Xu Shuo turned to the second page of the newspaper, the girl ran back tugging at his trouser leg.

Looking down, Xu Shuo saw her happily stretching out her hand: "I got a packet of cookies!"

So, toddling around picking up treats, huh?

Xu Shuo chuckled and reached into his pocket, pulling out a Sweet Candy and placing it in her hand: "Now you've got another candy."

The little girl: "...?"

She looked at the familiar candy in her hand, confused for a moment, uncertain whether this was the one she had given to big brother earlier or his own.

Xu Shuo returned to his newspaper, his gaze suddenly focused and intent as he stared at a report below for quite a while.

His expression was calm, and it was hard to guess what he was thinking.

But compared to his often cheerful demeanor, this detached, even casually indifferent look seemed somehow more genuine.

After finishing another cigarette, Luo Kai swaggered over, glanced surreptitiously at the little girl beside him, and spoke softly to Xu Shuo: "Did you find something?"

Xu Shuo handed the newspaper to him.

"Not sure if it's related."