Mom's Anniversary 4

Lu Mi's breathing faltered for a moment. He hurriedly forced himself to calm down, his mind racing.

They called it a game, but surviving one brush with death didn't mean he was safe.

"Mom" still hadn't attacked him directly. That probably meant she didn't know he was the one.

Last night, while he was in the back garden, he hadn't seen the lights come back on in any of the darkened rooms. That meant "Mom" didn't turn on the lights during her room checks, so she wouldn't have gotten a clear look at the faces of the people in bed.

But "Mom" could detect liars by touching their foreheads. If he really was exposed-Lu Mi lightly rubbed his thumb and index finger together-he would have no choice but to risk fighting back.

As his nerves churned, he heard "Mom" say, "This is what happens."

What?

Lu Mi was stunned, but he kept it from showing on his face.

"Mom" was pointing at the young man at her feet.

He was wearing Lu Mi's jacket.

Lu Mi suddenly remembered that "Mom" had gone into the bathroom last night.

On their way downstairs to the dining room, Ning Zhuangzhuang patted Lu Mi's shoulder. "Why do you look so pale? Oh, right. You did just watch someone get killed."

Lu Mi's voice was subdued. "I got him killed. That woman must have noticed the jacket I left on the bathroom counter last night."

After hearing the whole story, Ning Zhuangzhuang was unconcerned. "Even if you hadn't lent him your jacket, he wouldn't have escaped death. NPCs won't spare players who openly declare they want to kill them."

Lu Mi still felt weighed down and didn't want to dwell on the subject. "You can tell me what's going on now."

"Sure. Nobody knows who's behind this horror game. We were all forced into it. To clear it, you have to find clues and meet certain conditions, while making sure the NPCs don't kill you."

"Of course, there are restrictions on when NPCs can kill, too. Yesterday, you asked me whether obeying that woman would keep you alive. All I can say is..."

Ning Zhuangzhuang's tone turned solemn.

"It might lower your chances of dying, because NPCs aren't kind enough to tell you every condition that can get you killed. So plenty of people wait for others to hunt down clues and carry them to victory. They won't do anything themselves until the very last moment before the deadline."

"Deadline?" Lu Mi picked up on the key word.

"Yeah. Every instance has its own time limit, and they won't necessarily tell you what it is. Take this instance-we can only guess that we have to clear it before the anniversary. Once the deadline passes, NPCs can kill without restrictions."

Lu Mi nodded, then asked, "What about the wristbands? Do players get one after clearing a round?"

"Smart. As for the rest... I'm afraid you'll be too overwhelmed to eat if I tell you now." Ning Zhuangzhuang pulled open the dining room door and glanced back at him with a wink.

"You're so good-looking. Make sure you stay alive and give the poor souls dragged into this lousy game something nice to look at."

Lu Mi could tell Ning Zhuangzhuang was trying to cheer him up. He forced the corners of his mouth upward, but the moment he stepped inside, his smile froze.

At the dining table, someone he wanted to tear limb from limb was quietly stirring his meat soup.

The man noticed him, his eyes curving above his mask. "Good morning, kitten."

Lu Mi: "..."

Sensing the strange tension between them, Ning Zhuangzhuang ventured, "Do you two know each other?"

Lu Mi grabbed Ning Zhuangzhuang and backed out, making the people behind them hesitate to go inside.

"What's going on?" Ning Zhuangzhuang looked baffled.

Lu Mi took a deep breath and said very seriously, "He's not human."

"Fine, fine. But however much you hate each other, do you really have to stop me from eating?"

Lu Mi pressed a hand to his forehead. "...I mean he's literally not human."

Ning Zhuangzhuang looked even more bewildered. "Have you lost it? He's a player too. I'm going to eat. I'm starving."

Lu Mi froze at her words.

The others entered the kitchen without showing any sign that something was wrong. The masked man blended in with them perfectly naturally.

Lu Mi looked more closely. On the masked man's wrist was a white wristband identical to everyone else's.

"Lu Mi, what are you standing around for? Come eat," Ning Zhuangzhuang called.

He shook his head. "I'm going to the restroom."

The restroom was quite a distance from the dining room. Lu Mi had to wind through several turns before he found it.

He turned on the faucet at the sink and used the cold water to clear his head.

After going over his memories several times, Lu Mi was certain the masked man hadn't appeared in front of the others at all last night, nor had he worn a wristband in the garden. Even in his cat form, Lu Mi hadn't detected the slightest trace of the scent a living person should have.

Just what was that thing...?

Lu Mi turned off the water and prepared to leave, but when he raised his head, he saw something startling in the mirror: someone outside was slowly turning the restroom door handle.

Lu Mi watched coldly as the handle inched downward, almost soundlessly, as though someone wanted to come in and give him a "surprise."

But-

Once the handle was pressed all the way down, the person outside tried to push the door open, only to stop short. They quickly pressed the handle several more times, but the door remained shut.

Lu Mi's lips curled into a smile. He was congratulating himself on locking the door when he came in when his stomach suddenly growled.

Only then did he realize he had no idea how long it had been since he last ate.

Breakfast was probably only available for a limited time. After weighing his options, Lu Mi decided he still needed to hurry back and eat something. Otherwise, if he had to run for his life, he was already too weak to manage it well in his current state.

Holding his breath and focusing, he approached the door. There was no sound outside, but that alone wasn't enough to prove the thing beyond the door had left.

Right now, he needed something to defend himself with.

He scanned the room carefully, finally glancing at the toilet plunger in the corner. Lu Mi decided that some things still depended on his own abilities.

Yesterday, he had only managed to control the flames in the fireplace by concentrating completely on forming a connection with them.

After a moment's thought, Lu Mi turned the faucet on again.

He took a few deep breaths and worked to focus his attention, gazing at the cool stream of water. Gradually, he felt as though he had become a droplet himself and merged with it, light yet surging with force...

With a slight curl of his index finger, the stream silently changed direction, gathering into a huge ball of water that floated toward the door.

Lu Mi stood flat against the wall and placed his hand on the handle. Then he quickly pressed it down and pushed the door outward, sending the ball of water hurtling through the doorway-