The Sheep-Faced Manager

Yu Xing walked around the changing room and checked herself again.

In his apron pocket was a lonely key with a simple sticker that read "44" on it. Yu Xing used this key to open locker number 44 and found his casual clothes and cell phone inside.

There was nothing special about it; the phone could be turned on normally. He quickly flipped through it, and no matter how he looked at it, it was just a normal person's phone.

The memo was empty, offering no information whatsoever.

Unconvinced, Yu Xing searched left and right, and finally found another note hidden in the crease of her ordinary clothes.

[Who... who am I?]

The handwriting trembled, indicating the writer was far from calm. The sentence itself is also strange; why would the writer forget who they are?

No, the question should be: why did this waiter, who was playing a character on his first day of work, forget who he was?

If Yu Xing thought about it carefully, he could almost list out all the logical chains under this clue.

This includes the possible definition of his role in this scenario, or the kind of mental pollution that the barbecue restaurant might inflict on people.

But he didn't do it.

He even deliberately cleared his mind, pretending he hadn't seen the clue.

After all, he can't interfere with other people's deductions.

Then let's just give up completely.

If you just go through the simulation missions naturally under this identity, at least you can still have some fun.

Yu Xing pouted, stuffed the note into her apron pocket, and closed the cabinet. There were only five seconds left before the mission time was up.

His figure almost vanished from his spot, moving out of the changing room like a gust of wind, swiftly traversing the winding corridor, and arriving in the lobby within two seconds.

This isn't some kind of ability; it's simply a matter of speed.

Upon arriving at the lobby, the first thing he noticed was the overall atmosphere of the barbecue restaurant.

This barbecue restaurant made no attempt to hide its eeriness; the red-tinged ceiling lights shone on the wooden tabletops, reflecting a blood-like glow.

The decor is quite exquisite. The tables and chairs are not arranged neatly, but rather, they are arranged in a staggered and aesthetically pleasing way, based on the antique wooden partitions.

This place is completely different from the barbecue restaurant that Yu Xing took Zhu Yan to; it looks like a brand new space.

The barbecue restaurant didn't seem to have officially opened for business yet; there wasn't a single customer, and none of the tables were open, so not a single ounce of heat was being released.

A chilling atmosphere hung in the air. Yu Xing took a few steps forward and felt that this place didn't resemble a barbecue restaurant, but rather a dimly lit, ambiguous bar.

A clock that is working is affixed to the wall behind the counter, and the dial shows the time as 7 a. m.

Over at the counter, a man was scolding a woman.

From Yu Xing's perspective, he could only see the man's back and the woman's pale face. Sweat soaked the woman's bangs, making them stick tightly to her face.

Her attire was different from Yu Xing's; she wore a more formal but less practical women's suit. The computer in front of her emitted a dim light, making her already pale face appear even more bloodless.

Her eyes revealed unconcealed fear and confusion, her hands clasped in front of her lower abdomen, her fingers unconsciously twisting.

The man, on the other hand, was tall and muscular—at least two meters tall.

The woman had to hold her head high in front of the man; she looked as if she might faint at any moment.

Judging from the woman's behavior, Yu Xing almost instantly deduced that she was an unlucky human who had been forcibly dragged in, one of the three candidates.

The man's voice was steady and deep, but very authoritative and aggressive.

"If you keep doing this, you might as well go home. We don't need a cashier who can't even smile."

Logically speaking, someone with no experience in simulations would probably think twice upon hearing this, wondering if going home now would be the best way to escape this nightmare.

But the woman didn't hesitate at all, shaking her head frantically. "No, no, I can't lose this job!"

She forced a smile, barely managing to clench the muscles in her face.

The man then let her go.

"Work hard and leave a warm impression on the guests, understand?"

"I understand, I understand!" The woman looked like she was about to cry, but she still tried to smile.

The man hummed in agreement and turned around.

Only then did Yu Xing see the man's face.

He understood why women were so terrified: because beneath the human body of a man was the face of a sheep.

It's a strange feeling; it has hair, it's a human head, but it has a sheep's face.

Yu Xing knew this was the foreman.

The supervisor can manage all the servers for the current shift, including cashiers, food runners, and those who grill meat for customers.

In other words, the Sheep-faced leader is now his boss.

The foreman also saw him and gave him a strange smile.

It glanced at the clock and praised, "You're very punctual. I like new employees like you, unlike another newcomer who was 30 seconds late."

Yu Xing realized that the Sheep-faced leader was probably referring to another person who had obtained the waiter's job.

Experienced simulation participants wouldn't allow themselves to break the rules in the very first step, so another new employee is very likely also a candidate.

Of course, it shouldn't be someone like him who looks like a waiter grilling meat for customers; otherwise, he should have run into him in the changing room.

Or perhaps the person who was late was also a woman?

The Sheep-faced leader seemed to be very conscious of time. He passed Yu Xing and headed to another corridor, an excited and bloodthirsty smile unconsciously appearing on his lips.

In the instant they brushed past each other, a dark light flashed in Yu Xing's blue eyes as he made out the Sheep-faced leader's name tag in the dim light.

[Manager: Zhang Xiaowei]

Wow, this little lamb's name is quite human-like.

Yu Xing silently complained in her heart.

Then he thought for a moment and realized that the woman at the cashier hadn't noticed him yet, so a trembling expression quickly appeared on his face.

He moved quickly toward the cashier with small, quick steps, every inch of his body seeming to tell of his tension and fear.

Hearing footsteps, the woman turned her head sharply.

The woman shuddered at the sight of Yu Xing, for he was wearing a bright red apron and was quite tall, not much shorter than the sheep-faced man.

When it walked towards her from the darkness, it looked like a blood-soaked figure with a clear objective, making it hard not to be terrified.

Her gaze was as if she had seen a ghost.

Yu Xing's figure flickered between light and shadow, passing through the dim red light above.

This allowed the woman to quickly see Yu Xing's face clearly.

Upon discovering that Yu Xing had a human face pressed against her neck, and an excessively handsome one at that, she was slightly taken aback, and her fear miraculously dissipated by most.

Regardless, seeing someone of your own kind in a completely unfamiliar place naturally evokes a sense of kinship.

She braced her hands on the cold countertop, leaned forward, and asked impatiently, "Were you one of the people who were pulled in here too?"

Before answering her, Yu Xing pretended to look around, then cautiously put a finger to her lips and shushed her, "Keep your voice down."

Influenced by his attitude, the woman immediately lowered her voice and said, "Okay, okay."

Yu Xing seemed like a newbie with a bit of experience but still terrified, trembling as she reminded, "The dungeon is called Silent Barbecue Restaurant, I think we'd better not talk loudly."

"Okay," the woman would only reply blankly.

Upon closer inspection, Yu Xing could see that the woman's face not only retained fear, but also a hidden anxiety.

Even so, she didn't do anything too foolish; her feet were rooted to the counter, not moving an inch.

She didn't even ask how to get out when she saw other people, nor did she emotionally break down and vent her Yu Xing on Yu Xing, cursing or relying on her.

Although scared, I remained calm.

All I can say is that the candidates the system pulled out weren't too bad.

Yu Xing took another look at the woman. She looked to be around forty years old and was well-maintained, but wrinkles were already showing at the corners of her eyes.

"Did the system give you a notification?" Yu Xing asked softly.

He was trying to get information out of the system. Although he wasn't planning to use his brain in this instance, he was still quite curious about how the system would treat complete newbies.

Is it like he did at the beginning, without any warning?

Or should we, like Fang Xiao, explain the purpose and process of the instance beforehand?

For the system, instilling these concepts should be a matter of a single moment.

The woman wiped the cold sweat from her forehead. "I gave it to you. I know what a system is... it just appeared in my mind like that."

"It... it kept me alive. Now that I'm alive, I can make a wish list to get my son treated..." The woman gritted her teeth, then suddenly realized something, her voice trailing off, a belated look of wariness appearing in her eyes.

How did you know I was a candidate?

Shouldn't only candidates be asked if they received any hints?

Yu Xing looked around again, remaining vigilant for any approaching ghosts, before explaining with a furrowed brow, "You're too scared... Just like the first time I entered the simulation. I had the same expression last time, Auntie, you need to cheer up."

The woman pursed her lips.

Okay, now that she saw Yu Xing, the initial shock was completely gone; she just thought the kid was an idiot.

Not only did he reveal that "last time" meant "first time," directly exposing himself as a semi-newbie entering the instance for the second time, but he was also completely unaware of this and foolishly told her to cheer up.

The child even called her "Auntie," exuding a naive innocence untouched by the harsh realities of life, though... she was forty years old and certainly deserved the title.

Anyway, this kid sold her out with just a few words. If she was afraid of him before because he was an "old player", now she just felt that his experience was about the same as hers, and they were both newbies.

Ah, young people.

The woman's gaze towards Yu Xing became complex. The anxiety between her brows unconsciously dissipated, and the more she looked at Yu Xing, the more loving she became.

Suddenly, as if she had thought of something, she breathed a sigh of relief, "My son is a little younger than you, thank goodness he didn't come in."

"I want to live; my son is still waiting for me outside."

"Oh, good luck, Auntie." Yu Xing shivered from the cold and muttered, "Wasn't I supposed to greet the guests? Why haven't they arrived yet...?"

The topic was withdrawn from the deduction process itself.

The woman started to get nervous again.

Just then, a piercing scream came from the direction of the kitchen.

The cries clearly belonged to a man. He made a few indistinct pleas for mercy before the cries stopped and silence fell.

Silence, deathly silence.

Cold sweat beaded on the woman's forehead, forming a droplet that slid down her soft cheek.

Yu Xing appeared strong and calm, but her body went limp, and she slumped onto the cashier counter like a jelly, unable to even stand.

They simultaneously heard faint chewing sounds.

It felt as if something was gnawing at my flesh in some unseen space, the bouncy sensation of teeth tearing through muscle fermenting in my mind.

After a long while, a trembling, breathy voice finally shattered this devastating fantasy.

"Something... something's happened..." Yu Xing stammered, "Someone must be dead!"

"Is it the one who was late?" The woman had also heard what the Sheep-faced leader had just said: someone was thirty seconds late.

Is this the price of making mistakes in a dungeon?

Eaten?

The woman and Yu Xing's faces turned pale at the same time.

This, this is terrifying.