"It was in He Pu’s bedroom wardrobe," Xu Huo said.
"How did you know that?" Flay looked at him in surprise, "Didn’t you say you found nothing when you went up there yesterday?"
"He Pu arrived too quickly, and I indeed didn’t have time to check; this is what I found last night, and I got hurt because of it." Xu Huo pointed to his body.
"You fought with He Pu?" You Qiwen asked, astonished.
"Of course not, do you think I could have come out unscathed if I had confronted He Pu directly?" Xu Huo retorted.
You Qiwen subdued his expression, "You completed the first task?"
Xu Huo nodded and said under the watchful eyes of the diverse-looking players, "I can’t tell you how I know this, but the information is true."
"But completing the first task doesn’t mean we can clear the game. I’m sharing this information because I want to know the truth behind the guests’ disappearance."
"Isn’t it because someone inside the manor is committing murder?" Wei Landeng frowned, "At most, the Level D Copy boss is using game glitches to deal with us players. Isn’t this correct?"
"If that were correct, he wouldn’t be here now," Liu Zhengping said irritably, running his hands through his hair, "I thought it was just a simple Level D Copy; I didn’t expect it to be so difficult."
"It’s not just a matter of difficulty," Flay said solemnly, "The Copy boss has no intention of letting any players leave alive."
"There’s no need to be so desperate," Chen Nan couldn’t help saying, "Don’t we already know the whereabouts of the bodies now?"
"Knowing is one thing, we have no chance of even getting close to the bedroom with He Pu around, and once we act, there’s no turning back," You Qiwen said, "What’s worse is that tonight is the music appreciation event."
Like Xu Huo, You Qiwen also believed that if He Pu did not intend to spare any player, he would definitely take action tonight, and the Copy would not end until twelve o’clock the next night, leaving no opportunity for the players to even delay.
"The music appreciation event is actually our last chance," Xu Huo said, "The music room and He Pu’s bedroom are adjacent to each other. We have seven people, securing some time isn’t difficult, the key is the truth behind the guests’ disappearance."
"Let’s consolidate the information we’ve each found," Wei Landeng said, "Maybe we can find some clues."
"I’ll start. I discovered that except for Butler Dong, all other servants in the castle started working here about five years ago. He Pu isn’t satisfied with the chef’s cooking. The chef complained to the other servants that he went to consult a chef who was fired before, but the dishes he learned and made were still not to He Pu’s liking, who instead relies on Hu Shan."
"He Pu relies almost entirely on Hu Shan for his daily needs. From this perspective, I think they are on the same side, at least some of the players were killed by Hu Shan."
"The time point of five years ago is very strange," Flay joined in, "Not only did the servants change five years ago, but apparently the relationship between He Pu and Mr. Dong also turned ice-cold. The photos left in the study indicate they once got along well, but from the way they’ve interacted these past few days, that doesn’t seem to be the case."
All the players could see that He Pu and Mr. Dong had a bad relationship, which was strange since despite the apparent discord, He Pu still employed Mr. Dong. If He Pu was dissatisfied with Mr. Dong, he could have completely dismissed him.
"At first I thought He Pu was under Mr. Dong’s thumb," You Qiwen said, "Now it seems like their conflict has not escalated to that extent, hence although Mr. Dong might spare us, if we start fighting with He Pu, he will definitely intervene. What we will then face are three strong enemies."
"It’s strange enough for someone’s habits to change due to illness, but for their taste to change as well is very odd," Chen Tu said, "What do you think, could it be because of the mutton?"
Both Liu Zhengping and Wei Landeng’s expressions changed instantly, with the former saying, "You might as well say He Pu has split personalities."
"It’s not impossible," Chen Tu said earnestly, "If He Pu didn’t use to eat humans, but started doing so for some reason, it could have led to a complete change of temperament. After all, cannibals can’t be viewed with normal human logic, and it wouldn’t be strange whatever they do."
"That makes sense," Wei Landeng said, "Maybe that’s the reason He Pu and Mr. Dong fell out."
"Try that answer," Flay suggested to Xu Huo.
Xu Huo accessed the game panel to submit the task, answering the truth based on everyone’s deductions.
"It’s not correct." He said two minutes later.
The players were somewhat disheartened for a moment, until Flay added, "It seems we’ll have to focus on He Pu himself now. We do have an advantage. That is, we haven’t completed the first task."
"Think about it, who in the castle would know the truth about the guests’ disappearance? It’s He Pu, Mr. Dong and them. If we were to confront him after completing the first task, He Pu would certainly kill on sight."
"But if our first task has not yet been completed, then we may be able to get the truth from He Pu’s mouth," You Qiwen followed up, "Because even if he tells us the truth, we still can’t clear the game."
Slapping his thigh, Liu Zhengping asked Xu Huo, "He Pu didn’t notice you, did he?"
Xu Huo’s mouth twitched, "Not exactly."
What kind of nonsensical talk? Their words and deeds were under He Pu’s control. It was highly unlikely that He Pu didn’t know that Yu Shuai had touched the body after having saved Hu Shan from being trapped by Mr. Dong on the third floor.
Even if he truly did not know, why should he have a confrontation with them players?
Perhaps others just wanted to play some music for the sheep before slaughtering them, as a psychological suggestion to achieve a more exquisite meat quality.
It wasn’t clear whether the other players believed it or not, but Liu Zhengping seemed to, as he breathed a huge sigh of relief, "Thank heavens."
Wei Landeng seemed to have more to say, but he looked at Flay and held back.
No matter what the players thought in their hearts, time swiftly moved on to the evening, the servants brought them new suits, and told them they could have dinner in their own rooms, as He Pu was too busy preparing for the appreciation event to join them for dinner.
At eight o’clock in the evening, the servants knocked on the players’ doors in turn, inviting them to the third floor.
Outside the music room, Mr. Dong and Hu Shan stood side by side, one on the left and the other on the right. Hu Shan handed each person a damp cloth, asking them to wipe their hands before entering.
"Every chair in the music room could fetch a sky-high price, so you’d better not get them dirty."
The music room was a small music hall with twenty seats, a stage up front, and all equipment set up on it, including the same pairs of large speakers that were seen in He Pu’s room.
There weren’t any musicians on the stage, but two rows of chairs had been placed, with common instruments on them, including violins of various sizes, drums, and flutes; a piano was also beside them.
He Pu, holding a conductor’s baton, stood at the edge of the stage. Hearing voices, he turned around and gracefully invited them to take their seats.