Mutual Attraction

After the three deducers and one of them, Lian En, who had been forced to go to the toilet, returned to the classroom, everyone acted as if they hadn't seen them, and no one dared to ask what had happened.

No one cared why Lisha hadn't come back. Even Lisha girlfriends and Lisha deskmate remained completely silent.

With a squeak, Yu Xing sat down in his seat, shifted the chair, and the chair legs scraped against the ground, making a short, piercing sound.

The students around them shuddered simultaneously. Even the white-haired girl at the front of the class sat up straight, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. By the time they belatedly realized it was just a noise, their wildly beating hearts were already hard to calm down.

Oliver switched to a different book. He turned his head slightly, his gaze seemingly sweeping over Yu Xing before turning his attention back to the book.

For the first time, Yu Xing was so obedient, finishing his physics homework without doing anything. Then, the rest of the evening self-study time was peaceful. Although he and the other students could faintly hear some strange noises from upstairs, such as bouncing a ball or dragging heavy objects, the will-o'-the-wisps upstairs did not spread to them.

The bell signaling the end of evening self-study rang out amidst the oppressive and somber atmosphere.

The cheerful ringing suddenly sounded jarring. Perhaps it was just my imagination, but the volume seemed excessively loud, and there were strange noises mixed in, like someone scratching at the door with their fingernails.

"Call..."

Even so, Yu Xing still heard a slight sigh of relief from the classroom. In any case, the end of evening self-study meant that they would soon be safe again today.

The class monitor with the red armband walked down from the stage, and the other students began to pack up their things. Then, about four or five of them formed a group and walked out.

"I went to the restroom, and I bet you already know everything you need to know." Jack, carrying his backpack, walked to Yu Xing's right, chuckled twice, and said, "Scared, huh? Want to come back to the dorm with us?"

He pointed behind him, where three boys from the next class were standing. They were probably on good terms with Jack, and they were leaning against the window frame of the window near the corridor, quietly greeting Yu Xing.

After leaving the classroom, the corridor, the stairs, and the path leading to the dormitory were still filled with ghostly figures. Jack winked at Yu Xing and glanced at Oliver, who was silently packing his things, as if to say that he was practically spitting out isolation.

As fewer and fewer people remained in the class, Yu Xing smiled. He knew that after his reaction that afternoon, Jack might not have much interest in befriending him anymore. The invitation he extended now was merely to ensure that Yu Xing wouldn't leave with his deskmate Oliver.

Seeing that Yu Xing did not respond, a hint of impatience flashed in Jack's eyes. He then said, half explaining and half threatening, "We dare not go back together as a couple, because there have been cases of two people disappearing together. We also dare not travel in large groups, because with too many people, there will always be one who gets overlooked."

He held up two fingers, pointing at Yu Xing and Oliver respectively. "If you go with him, you're courting death. But if you come with us, including you, there will be exactly five of us."

"Okay, your friend is still waiting for you. Go on over." Yu Xing slowly packed her things and stood up. "Don't keep them waiting."

Jack could easily hear the refusal in Yu Xing, and his expression darkened further, as if a deep-seated, suppressed ferocity surfaced in his eyes. "You just went through all that today, aren't you afraid at all?"

Yu Xing shook her head matter-of-factly. "Of course I'm scared, so I'll go see the school clinic's Doctor tomorrow."

Jack: "..."

This is the first time I've heard such a confident expression of fear.

And the school clinic...

Everyone in Class 4 knows that the school clinic is a place you can't enter.

Students from other classes only go to the school clinic when they are injured, but it's different for their class. Their homeroom teacher, Johnny, often pretends to care about them and finds all sorts of excuses to send them to the school clinic.

Today, Yuriel, the physics class representative's deskmate, went to the school clinic and didn't return from evening self-study.

His mouth was tightly sewn shut with red thread, the fine stitches making it look like a wriggling, crawling centipede.

This is how to treat talking during class.

Jack had been to the school clinic, of course, but that was back in his first year of high school. He had just started school and didn't know how terrible the school was. He tried to be a bully like he was in junior high and beat someone up that very day.

As a result of...

He trembled slightly at the thought of the consequences.

But he quickly masked his feelings, shrugging nonchalantly. "Since you don't appreciate my kindness, then so be it."

After saying that, Jack turned and left. Seeing this, the three boys outside the window also withdrew their hands from waving to Yu Xing, and their indifference became visibly apparent.

"What did that big guy say to you this time?" Wen Qinghuai leaned closer, watching with interest as Jack and the other students walked back to their dorms. "He didn't seem to have many friends in Class 4, but it turns out his friend is next door."

Zhao Mou and Zhao Mou followed closely behind, while Qu Xuanqing did not come over. She also found two girls from the next class at the classroom door. When Yu Xing looked over, Qu Xianqing turned around and nodded almost imperceptibly.

Yu Xing understood that Qu Xuanqing really intended to be a lone wolf for now. Those two girls from the next class were probably her roommates. The fact that one person was missing might be related to the "uncomfortable roommate" that Qu Xuanqing mentioned at noon.

Trust in Qu Xuanqing made Yu Xing look away and answer Wen Qinghuai's question instead, "Jack didn't say anything. He probably just forgot that I have three roommates and thought I needed his charity."

"He doesn't think you're all alone, does he?" Zhao Mou typed sarcastically from afar. "Isn't that looking down on transfer students?"

Zhao Yijiu: "Shall we go?"

Yu Xing: "Okay, let's go."

The teaching building is, after all, an unsafe place for students to gather. Even though the students here have clearly become quite experienced in abandoning their insistence on quiet after evening self-study, it doesn't mean that chatting here would be a good decision.

Throughout the entire conversation, Oliver ignored them completely, and now he simply stood up and walked away with his backpack.

Yu Xing didn't plan to ask him to come along. First of all, Oliver didn't seem to be very sociable, and even if he wasn't being bullied, he wouldn't be someone who longed for a group.

Secondly, it's only the first night, and he doesn't need to disrupt Oliver's usual behavior so quickly. Observation is more important than change at times like this.

Yu Xing noticed that Oliver's steps were unwavering, as if he had become accustomed to returning to his dormitory alone every night. A question that had vaguely come to mind when it arose surfaced in his mind.

If others are so afraid, and say that even two people aren't safe, how has Oliver managed to survive safely every day? He's all alone.

If Yu Xing were a ghost, he would prefer to target lone individuals, because there are fewer variables and a higher success rate.

As for the answer to the question, it is that Oliver is the special one. He is bullied and targeted by the other students in the classroom. His fear seems to appear more when he is facing his classmates. He reacts indifferently to the legendary ghost, or rather, he hides his emotions better, making it impossible for others to figure out what he is thinking.

The other students' fear stemmed from facing things they couldn't see, which was quite obvious.

While his classmates kept disappearing, Oliver survived all alone.

With just a little imagination and manipulation, Yu Xing could create a closed-loop Karma -and-effect scenario: Oliver was bullied by his classmates, he might have died, become Ghostification, and started taking revenge on his classmates; or Oliver might be in league with these ghosts, having reached some kind of agreement, so the ghosts not only don't harm Oliver, but also help Oliver get revenge.

For example, Lisha, who led the bullying of Oliver this afternoon, is now dead.

But such an answer can only exist in imagination and speculation. Putting aside the possibility that Lisha's sudden accident was due to Qu Xuanqing forcing her to reveal what happened during evening self-study, let's talk about revenge. Didn't Lisha bully Oliver before they transferred schools?

She's still alive and well, and besides, the people who bully Oliver are mostly students from Class 4. Why did the death spread to the entire school building?

One thing is certain: Oliver has a very deep connection with the concept of "ghosts" in St. Johnis Middle School in this instance.

When all the deducers left the classroom, it was completely empty. When Yu Xing looked back, she suddenly frowned.

He felt like he had forgotten something.

As the four of them walked down the dimly lit stairs to the bottom of the teaching building, Yu Xing suddenly remembered that he had forgotten about the white-haired girl.

It's strange. He always reminds himself to pay more attention to the white-haired girl sitting in front of him, but he only observes her behavior for a short time afterward. After that, he seems to ignore her existence. Today after school, he didn't see when she left.

If it were necessary to discuss her now, Yu Xing could probably only think of the white-haired girl's back and the way she lay down immediately after class, at most adding the information that the white-haired girl had an East Asian face.

He didn't even know the white-haired girl's name, and every time he passed by her, he didn't even think to glance at her name tag.

"What's the name of the girl sitting in front of me? Does anyone know?" Yu Xing asked in a very casual tone as they walked along the path towards the dormitory building.

The four of them walked at a leisurely pace. Compared to the hurried pace of others, they seemed to be taking a stroll, so they were quickly left behind and could only see the person leading them about thirty meters ahead through the flickering streetlights.

So whatever they were discussing, no one should have been able to hear them except for the nearby "ghostly figures".

"The girl in front of you?" Zhao Mou thought for a moment, then suddenly realized, "The one with the white hair, she seems to really like sleeping."

Wen Qinghuai continued, "That girl was quite conspicuous. I saw her the moment I entered the classroom this afternoon. She was the only one with white hair in the classroom."

Zhao Yijiu was much more direct. "I don't know."

Following his lead, Zhao Mou immediately said, "Although I vaguely remember her, I don't know her name. Ah... that's a bit strange, why haven't I inquired about her?"

Wen Qinghuai: "I don't know either. Apart from that one glance when she entered the classroom, I don't think I've paid any attention to her since."

Sure enough, everyone remembered her, but no one thought to understand her.

As soon as this conclusion was reached, Zhao Mou and Wen Qinghuai immediately realized the problem.

Wen Qinghuai habitually began to analyze this person. "Another special character, what role does she play in this class...?" As he spoke, his voice grew softer and softer, until it became his own muttering and grumbling.

Zhao Mou was skilled at gathering information and his analysis was more rigorous. He didn't immediately become interested in this character, but instead had a different perspective, teasing Yu Xing: "Is that the legendary protagonist's seat you chose?"

Ahead is a strangely prominent white-haired girl, her deskmate is a "weakling" who is bullied by the whole class, to her right is Jack, the biggest boy in the class, and to her side are Rebecca and others.

Almost all the prominent figures in the class, both in terms of setting and plot, were gathered around Yu Xing.

Moreover, almost everything about these people was related to Yu Xing. Throughout the day, Yu Xing attracted the attention of the entire class because of her deskmate and the desk itself. Jack also seemed to enjoy picking fights with Yu Xing; today he mostly tried to win her over, but it'll probably turn into him causing trouble later.

Compared to Yu Xing, the other deducers who transferred to the student body received far less attention. They were more likely to socialize with students around them during breaks, and those students usually didn't have any useful information.

The difference was obvious when compared like this. Zhao Mou, who had been joking, suddenly became serious after thinking about it, "Don't you think this is a bit abnormal? As a dungeon, the plot should treat all five of us equally."

"It's like you're attracting the attention of the instance," Wen Qinghuai said, "And it's even impossible to tell whether you're being targeted or being favored."

Upon hearing this question, Yu Xing recalled the sounds he had heard coming from another small space inside the women's restroom outside the men's restroom. It did indeed feel like a side story was approaching him, and there was even a slight hint of romance.

"Who knows?" he replied.

"He chose the seat himself," Zhao Yijiu suddenly said. "The important person was already sitting there; he chose that seat himself. If it were someone else, that treatment would be different."

When they went into the classroom to choose their seats, it was all entirely voluntary, and Yu Xing was the first to choose.

Looking at it this way, it seems like just a coincidence again.

Only Yu Xing's eyes flashed with a premonition that not only was the dungeon approaching him, but he himself was also unconsciously approaching the unknown behind the dungeon.