It was the six players' turn to question Xie Qi again.
This question was crucial. It was also something they had been trying to find out all along.
In the end, they decided to have Saul ask it.
"Stock and Brussels, did you kill them?"
Everyone present held their breath. If the answer confirmed their suspicions, it would mean the person before them really was a cold-blooded murderer, and his earlier friendliness had all been an act.
Xie Qi didn't keep them waiting long. When he heard the question, he answered without hesitation, "Not both of them~"
He was very honest. He rested a hand against his chin, looking somewhat troubled, and rambled on as though complaining that someone had stolen something from him:
"You have no idea. The night before last, I'd prepared a late-night snack in the kitchen, thinking I could give that guest a proper welcome when he arrived. But the appointed time passed, and he still hadn't shown up, so I had to go upstairs and see if something had happened. Oh my god! The moment I entered the room, I found that someone had already killed the guest. Blood was flowing all over his neck!"
Xie Qi gestured wildly, as though trying to paint a vivid picture of the scene for everyone.
"It was all over the floor too. I thought I had to take care of the body, or what if it frightened the guests the next day? So I took the guest away and put him somewhere safe."
Although Xie Qi tried hard to present himself as a victim, the logic behind his account was impossible to understand.
Wouldn't an ordinary person's first reaction to finding a body be to call someone?
Who saw a body and immediately thought of keeping anyone else from finding it?
That was obviously how the killer would think!
Under everyone's questioning gazes, Xie Qi continued:
"As for the second guest, I did kill him."
"???"
[???]
[Wait, bro, you're really that honest?]
[The chef really has principles. He said he wouldn't lie, and he hasn't.]
[Is he going to do this out in the open now? I like it, hehe.]
Unlike the viewers watching the show in the barrage, they had the murderer standing right in front of them, having just exposed his own identity, and they couldn't escape. It was a feeling most people couldn't understand.
Bailey swallowed and didn't dare shout as he had before.
Everyone was stunned by Xie Qi's shocking confession and didn't dare speak again.
Only Phil's expression darkened for a moment before returning to normal. He said, "You admitted to killing Brussels, but you say you didn't kill Stock. Could someone else be killing people in the villa?"
The viewers in the livestream admired his courage. He still dared to ask questions under these circumstances.
[If this guy were a streamer, I'd follow him. You've got guts, kid.]
[Why do I feel like he won't survive to the end? Didn't you see that the most outspoken ones died over the past two days? He should keep a low profile like those women. Then he might have a chance of surviving longer.]
[This rich second-generation heir is no pushover. I saw him hide a knife on himself in the kitchen earlier. The chef might end up getting killed instead!]
Unfortunately, they had already asked their question for this round. It was Xie Qi's turn to ask.
"Don't rush. We'll get to know each other slowly. It's my turn again. So, the third question is—"
"Have you ever killed someone with your own hands?"
The question made the atmosphere among them even more tense.
Song Nan's eyelid twitched, and she subtly turned her head to the side.
Phil still looked as carefree as ever, his arms crossed behind his head.
Saul's expression was grim, and he held his clenched fists together.
Bailey kept pushing up his glasses, his lips pressed tightly together.
Xie Qi smiled as he scanned everyone present, his gaze settling on Sofina, who still had her head lowered.
"No one wants to speak first? Then let's go in order. Miss blonde, shall we start with you?"
Sofina trembled, her voice barely louder than a mosquito's hum. "I-I haven't killed anyone..."
"Pfft—" Phil snickered, but said nothing else.
"Y-you, what are you laughing at? I'm telling the truth! I really haven't killed anyone with my own hands!"
Sofina directly pointed out the key part of the question.
She really hadn't killed anyone "with her own hands." After all, she was only an accomplice; she couldn't bring herself to kill.
Xie Qi nodded, indicating that he believed her.
Annie was next. She had been very quiet today, and she didn't say much now, only that she hadn't killed anyone.
Next was Bailey. His voice trembled slightly as he said, "I-I haven't killed anyone 'with my own hands' either."
Hearing him say that, everyone understood that he was like Sofina. Even if he hadn't killed anyone himself, someone had died because of him.
And neither of them had lied. After all, the question specified "with your own hands"—that was the key point.
After him came Song Nan. She clenched her hands and said calmly, "I have."
!!!
The others were stunned to hear her answer.
They had thought of this female captain as a very upright person, but who would have expected her to have killed someone?
But this wasn't the time to press her. The others stirred for a moment before quieting down.
Xie Qi simply smiled without saying anything and continued the game.
Phil stared at Song Nan with a bored expression. When it was his turn, he said casually, "I have."
His words didn't match his expression, and they left the others reeling once again.
"What? You've killed someone? Then why are you always targeting me?"
Sofina was the first to challenge him. She had long been dissatisfied with this rich second-generation heir.
She had held back for the time being because he had something on her. Who would have thought he was even worse than she was?
What right did he have to look down on her all day?
Even Bailey, Song Nan, and Saul all turned to look at him. Bailey couldn't help wondering if Phil had been the one who killed Stock.
Phil ignored Sofina's provocation and showed no intention of explaining himself. He simply raised his chin, signaling Saul to continue.
Saul took the hint and set aside his questions for the moment. "I have killed people," he answered, "but that was when I was in the military."
Everyone had already guessed as much, so no one minded that he had killed people too.
Everyone had finished answering and waited for Xie Qi's final judgment.
Song Nan's heart pounded. She felt as though the chef's gaze was on her. Could he really tell who had lied?
Fortunately, he immediately agreed to move on to the next round of questions, and she breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
The next question was Annie's to ask Xie Qi.
They hadn't discussed this question beforehand, and everyone else wanted to know what she would ask.
Annie tucked the black hair beside her face behind her ear, revealing her delicate features.
She met Xie Qi's gaze calmly and said, "What I want to ask is, are the things hanging in the kitchen sheep intestines?"
Everyone had barely moved on from the subject of murder before they had to face another such stomach-turning question.
The previous night, they had all learned that Saul and the other two had found something in the kitchen that looked like a sheep's large intestine. At the time, they thought the room might have been too dark and they had seen it wrong.
But now they knew the chef really had killed someone. Didn't that mean they hadn't seen it wrong?
More than the fact that the chef had killed someone, they wanted to know why he would put intestines in the kitchen.
A bad feeling sent stomach acid rising in several of their throats.
Seeing the guests' pale faces, Xie Qi struck one fist into his palm. "So a guest was the one who pulled that decoration down. I thought a thief had gotten into the kitchen."
After making that pointed remark, he smiled and waved a hand. "That's a decoration. I specifically asked Nikalos to help hang it up. Don't you think it looks lovely?"
Hearing him say it was only a decoration, the others' throbbing temples eased, and they reassured themselves that they had been overthinking things.
Only Annie continued to watch Xie Qi, knowing that he had glossed over the important part and hadn't actually answered her question.
Her slender fingers traced a few lines on her palm, then she curled them into a fist, tucking her index finger inside.
"It's my turn to ask again~"
The corners of Xie Qi's eyes had reddened slightly, and his breathing grew somewhat rapid.
"So, the fourth question is—"
"When did I start lying?"