"Huh? Are you crazy?"
Brussels' mind was in chaos, and he looked for a chance to escape.
He gripped the chair tightly, kicked Stock's severed head off it, and faced Xie Qi nervously.
Xie Qi watched him and rested a hand against his chin in thought. "Why are you so scared, guest? Didn't you dare eat sheep?"
As he spoke those last words, Xie Qi's eyes curved slightly, and he stared teasingly at the trembling Black man.
Brussels swallowed hard, his words coming out in a stammer. "Wh-what are you talking about? How could we have eaten any?"
As he spoke, he kept inching over, hoping to rush out the door when Xie Qi wasn't looking.
But he failed to notice Xie Qi's expression darkening, his voice turning low and hoarse.
"Honestly, I don't like guests who lie."
The atmosphere in the room changed instantly, while roars still echoed behind Xie Qi.
Now that he knew the other man's true nature, Brussels realized what those things crying out were.
If he didn't escape today, he would surely end up like those things, wouldn't he?
His survival instinct gave him a burst of strength, and he swung the chair at Xie Qi.
Then, while Xie Qi dodged, he rushed out the door.
The farm's main hall was large, but for Brussels, whose inner cosmos had erupted in a moment of crisis, crossing it took only a few seconds.
When he reached the entrance, however, the lock on the door plunged him into the depths of despair.
Footsteps sounded behind him, each one seeming to strike his heart.
Brussels' courage instantly deflated like a balloon with a hole poked in it.
He turned around, pressed himself against the door, and pleaded, "Don't kill me! I'll tell you whatever you want to know. Let me go, and I'll disappear from your sight right away. I won't tell anyone!"
Hearing his pleas, Xie Qi looked at the Black man sitting on the floor with an unreadable expression.
"Weren't you very fond of that blonde lady, guest? How could you bear to run away and leave her behind?"
"Who gives a damn about that bitch? She's a devil too. You're right, we did all eat sheep. It was on the ship!
"We'd been out of food for days, and there wasn't a single fucking fish or bird to be found. The one with glasses suggested eating the mother and daughter who were already close to death, and Sofina helped tie up the people who objected."
Terrified, Brussels sold Sofina out completely, but said nothing about the role he had played.
"Everyone else ate it! You can go ask them one by one. Not a single one of them can get away with it, so why did you grab me?!"
As Brussels spoke, anger welled up inside him.
He felt he was terribly unlucky. Eating people hadn't even been his idea, and others had done all the bad things, so why was he the first to be caught?
"Tsk, tsk, tsk—"
Xie Qi shook his head and wagged his index finger at Brussels.
"You've misunderstood, guest. I have no intention of judging you."
Making light of the matter, Xie Qi dragged his long knife as he slowly approached Brussels.
"You're quite good at glossing over the important parts, aren't you, guest? Were you one of the people tied up on the ship back then? Given your build, I'm afraid that wouldn't have been easy, would it?"
Xie Qi saw through Brussels' lie at once and watched him look guilty with a faint smile.
"Actually, I admire your nerve, guest. I feel we'd get along very well."
Listening to the chef, Brussels felt he had a chance to survive.
"Yes, yes, exactly! I think so too! We get along great!"
Panic mingled with delight, and the Black man looked excited, as if he were about to prove where he stood to Xie Qi on the spot.
And Xie Qi didn't disappoint him. As though Brussels had truly persuaded him, he stopped and stood still two meters away.
Brussels discreetly glanced at the key on Xie Qi's waist, rubbing his fingers together behind his back as he continued to pledge his loyalty.
"Lord Chef, just let me join you. Look, I'm strong. I can carry corpses without breaking a sweat, and I can help you out."
He went on listing his strengths, watching as Xie Qi seemed absorbed in the promises he was making and shifted his attention away from him.
"Hmm, that's a good suggestion, but I still think you should first learn..."
As Xie Qi spoke, a figure rushed at him.
Dodging Xie Qi's knife-wielding right hand, a muscular arm moved to wrap around his neck.
Once someone had a hold on your neck, no matter how strong you were, it was hard to break free.
Seeing that Xie Qi had yet to react, Brussels' eyes flashed with a cruel red light.
You still want to make me your prey? You can die first!
At once, the comments in the livestream paused for a moment, then began flooding in. The viewers watched the confrontation between the two without blinking.
[Whoa, I thought this Black guy had really been scared out of his wits. I didn't expect him to be waiting for the chef to let his guard down!]
[Ahhh! Lord Kani, no! Don't hurt his perfect face!]
[The hunter and the prey have really switched roles. I can't guess which of them will win in the end.]
[I'm betting on the chef. Neither of them is a good person, but judging by their experience points as perverts, the chef still has the edge. (doge)]
The confrontation at the farm continued.
Brussels had thought his move was well concealed and that Xie Qi surely wouldn't be able to react in time.
But when he swung his arm and failed to touch him, his heart sank.
By then, the icy tip of the knife had already entered the edge of his vision.
It was so fast that, although his eyes saw it, his body couldn't react.
By the time he realized he should dodge, his arm had gone cold.
A wave of intense pain followed.
"Aaaah!!!"
Brussels clutched his shoulder, blood gushing from it. There was nothing left where his arm had been, and the severed limb lay on the floor.
Xie Qi slowly drew back the long knife, let out a breath, and continued their earlier conversation in a troubled tone:
"If you want to join us, I think you should first learn to be a polite guest."