The doctor

"I..." The man in the white coat looked calmer than everyone else. Even the corpse on the table seemed unable to faze him. "My name is Zhao Haibo. I'm a doctor, as you can probably tell from my clothes."

He tugged at his filthy white coat and continued, "Before I came here, I was operating on a woman. She had an intraventricular tumor. It was growing rapidly and had continued to enlarge over the past six months, causing mild hydrocephalus. Without prompt surgery to open her skull and treat it, her life would have been in danger."

"I chose a frontal approach, puncturing directly into the ventricle under CT guidance. Every operation of this kind carries considerable risk, but she chose to take that risk so she could be there for her young son for years to come."

"Normally, to keep conditions stable, an operating room can't have even the slightest draft. But none of us expected something far more powerful than wind."

"When the earthquake struck, I had just removed a section of her skull and was cutting through the dura mater. Any mistake at that stage could easily cause a cerebral contusion and leave her with devastating long-term damage."

"I made an immediate decision to stop the operation and temporarily put the section of skull back in place. Otherwise, with dust flying everywhere, her life would have been at risk."

"But that proved harder than I'd expected. I couldn't even keep my footing. How was I supposed to fit a small piece of skull back into place with perfect precision?"

"The nurses beside me kept bumping into me, knocking me off balance. No one could stand steadily. In the chaos, all I could do was cover her head with a sterile sheet, then turn around to organize everyone's evacuation. But just then, a medical cart struck my legs and sent me crashing to the floor."

"Before I could get back up, the operating room's ceiling split open. I lost consciousness immediately."

After hearing the doctor's account, everyone looked uneasy.

He had used a great deal of medical terminology in his story.

If even one of those terms had been made up, none of them would have been able to tell.

"Doctor Zhao, where are you from?" the muscular man asked casually.

"I don't feel obliged to answer your questions," Doctor Zhao replied. "I've finished my story."

The muscular man opened his mouth, but said nothing.

"Is... is it my turn?" A young man wearing glasses glanced around uncertainly before saying, "My name is Han Yimo. I'm a..."

"Wait." Goat Head suddenly interrupted Han Yimo.

The interruption startled Han Yimo, and he turned back in confusion.

"Wh-what is it?"

"It's time for the 'Midgame Break,'" Goat Head said with an awkward chuckle. "You now have a twenty-minute break."

Everyone seemed at a loss.

There was actually a "Midgame Break" at a time like this?

Qi Xia glanced at the clock in the center of the table. Half an hour had passed since they had woken up.

It was now twelve thirty.

So this "break" is mandatory, Qi Xia thought. At twelve thirty, no matter who's telling their story, everyone has to take a twenty-minute break...

But the game had only been going for thirty minutes, and now the break alone would last twenty?

Qi Xia frowned. He knew that wasn't what he needed to concern himself with.

Whoever had organized this game was insane to begin with. There was no point trying to understand the Organizer through ordinary logic.

All he could do was drill the same words into his mind over and over.

My name is Li Ming. I'm from Shandong.

Only by repeating those words to himself countless times would he be able to say them without hesitation when his turn came.

Everyone waited in silence, looking troubled.

It was supposedly a "Midgame Break," yet the atmosphere had grown even more oppressive.

"Excuse me... are we allowed to talk?" the muscular man asked Goat Head.

"Oh, of course. This is your free time. I have no right to interfere."

The muscular man nodded, then turned back to Doctor Zhao. "Doctor Zhao, where exactly are you from?"

Doctor Zhao's expression darkened. "Look, you seem to have had a problem with me from the very start. Why do I have to tell you where I'm from?"

"Don't misunderstand. I mean no harm," the muscular man said steadily. "The more you tell us, the more credible your story becomes. Since everyone else has told us where they're from, there's no need for you to hide it, is there?"

"The more I say, the more credible I become?" The doctor shook his head noncommittally. "All I know is that the more you say, the more mistakes you make. If the rules are absolute, there's nothing wrong with the account I've given. Besides, I don't trust any of you."

"That's a little unfair," the muscular man said. "There are nine people here, and only one is the enemy. If you're willing to cooperate, we can work together to root out the liar. The more you hide, the more suspicious you look. This is the second time I've asked you. Are you still going to keep it from us?"

The muscular man seemed highly skilled at interrogation. In just a few sentences, he had backed Doctor Zhao into a logical corner.

His meaning was clear.

Only the "liar" had no need to trust anyone else. After all, he knew his own identity.

If the doctor kept withholding information now, he would make himself everyone's target.

But someone capable of becoming a brain surgeon was hardly ordinary. He snorted coldly and asked, "Then answer me first. Who are you? What do you do?"

"Me?" The muscular man hadn't expected the doctor to turn the tables so suddenly, and his expression grew awkward.

"That's right. Since you've kept questioning me after my account, I can ask you a few questions before yours." Doctor Zhao smiled. "That's fair, isn't it?"

The muscular man considered it, then nodded. "You're right. I have nothing to hide. My name is Li Shangwu. I'm a criminal investigator."

As soon as he said that, everyone turned to look at him.

At a moment like this, the words "criminal investigator" gave them an unimaginable sense of security.

"You're a police officer?!" The doctor froze.

No wonder the man had seemed to be probing for information from the start. He had also been the first to propose keeping everyone alive. Perhaps he really did want to get them all out.

The doctor's attitude softened considerably. "In that case, I apologize for my attitude earlier. I'm from Jiangsu."

At that moment, Qiao Jiajin, the man with tattoo sleeves, looked troubled. "Hold on, Doctor Zhao. Are you going to trust Officer Li?"

"Hm?" Doctor Zhao looked at Qiao Jiajin in confusion. "What are you trying to say?"

Qiao Jiajin tapped the table with a finger and said evenly, "It isn't 'storytelling time' right now. In other words... everyone can lie right now."