Chapter 74: Smells so good
Apart from the netizens in the live broadcast room who were constantly watching them through a magnifying glass, no one at the recording site noticed that the two people sitting at the very edgeâwho had started off the game by throwing kill-claims and confronting each otherâwere holding hands.
Lu Ciheng’s palm was scorching hot. Just from touching him, Xie Shibai felt the temperature of his own palm rising.
He couldn’t pull his hand back, nor could he make movements that were too large in front of the cameras. Letting Lu Ciheng get away with this didn’t mean he would escape the punishment he deserved later.
Director Tan had an eye for spotting trends. Despite his age, he keenly sensed something different. After taking a tour through everyone’s live broadcast rooms and spotting the netizens’ comments, he checked the hot search that had already soared up the charts on Weibo, thoughtfully pondering how to push the popularity even higher.
After the Sheriff vote, the banishment vote began. The production team’s host announced that last night was a peaceful night. They started speaking in numerical order.
The two Seers who had issued kill-claims against each other were pretty much the center of this vote. It was already a given that the first day’s vote would be between the two of them.
Following the host’s announcement, the voting officially began. The first to speak was Lu Ciheng.
Lu Ciheng wasn’t surprised that he didn’t win the Sheriff badge. He sighed. “I’m the real Seer. There’s nothing I can do since I spoke so late. No matter what a later position says, it looks like an aggressive fake claim. It’s a fact that my credibility is low, and I can’t change that. If I were a Wolf, why wouldn’t I choose to give a Golden Water to someone not running for Sheriff to pull votes and secure the badge, fully knowing that my speech would be branded as a desperate fake claim? Trying to prove my identity right now is useless anyway. If the Good camp stands on the wrong side at this point, there’s really no need to play the rest of this game. My checking order remains the same: 1 first, then 2.”
Lu Ciheng looked as though he genuinely felt regretfulâas if he, the real Seer, had been wronged by receiving a kill-claim from a Wolf who had spoken earlier.
Xie Shibai: “…”
He fell silent for a few seconds. Taking advantage of Lu Ciheng’s performance, he snatched his hand back.
Just as Lu Ciheng finished his performance, he saw Xie Shibai withdraw his hand. The performative regret on his face instantly turned into genuine regret.
He spoke once, and the hand he was holding was gone. A very terrible trade-off.
He tried to stealthily hook it back, only to have Xie Shibai, who had long been prepared, smack it away.
[These two are still playing with hands at a time like this!] [Aren’t you two supposed to be opposing each other? Why are you acting so gooey again?] [Oh ho, Lu Gou’s hand got smacked away.] [Finally looking a bit like rivals!] [Really? You call them clinging together like this ‘rivals’? Lu Gou looks so thrilled just from getting his hand slapped, is this still what rivals do?]
After Lu Ciheng finished speaking, next up was seat number one, Mi Qiran.
Number one, Mi Qiran, analyzed very seriously. He said, “First of all, I hold a Good card, so I don’t have a clear perspective. Looking at the two Seers running for Sheriff, at first, I thought Teacher Lu, being in the later position, had a higher chance of being a Wolf. Just as Teacher Lu said, jumping out to drop a kill-claim on Teacher Xie from a late position after being hit with a kill-claim really looks like a desperate final gambit, a choice made only because there were no other options left after being caught out.
“But I feel like what Teacher Lu said also makes some sense. A Wolf running for Sheriff definitely wants to get the badge, right? The benefits of Teacher Xie issuing a kill-claim don’t seem as good as giving a Golden Water to someone off the ballot to draw votes. After all, Teacher Lu was only one vote away from getting the Sheriff badge. Issuing a kill-claim and putting himself in a dilemma feels like the loss outweighs the gain. But we’ll have to listen to more speeches to see how it plays out.”
[Indeed, Lu Gou suffered a loss because he spoke late. His credibility is too low.] [And he doesn’t have the Sheriff badge either. The Good camp has a disastrous start this round.] [Teacher Xie played this hand beautifully!] [No choice, Teacher Xie was also very passive at the start. Doing nothing and just purely playing deep cover or aggressively fake claiming would both attract attention. Lu Gou knows Teacher Xie is a Wolf, and from his state, he wouldn’t hide it. He hasn’t reached the point of being incurably love-struck yet, so at least the game can still be played properly. Teacher Xie was just saving himself.] [But Qi Ran Ge’s words are still as watertight as ever.] [Sigh, Mi Qiran kind of has a people-pleasing personality, always trying to smooth things over.]
Number two was Qiao Jiayi. He spoke up, “Closed-eye player. I just started playing so I’m not very good at it. I think what number one said makes a lot of sense, and my view aligns with his. I need to hear more speeches before making an accurate vote.”
Number three was Li Lechi. He glanced at Xie Shibai. He knew that even if they didn’t coordinate kills at night, going head-to-head with the Seer wouldn’t last long, unless they somehow flawlessly faked their checking reports every single time without error. But that was practically impossible; once a mistake was made during the checking report phase, the Villagers would catch on. They had to find the other two God cards as quickly as possible.
“I am a Villager or higher. I ran for Sheriff just for fun, just to blend in. I think Xie Ge is more likely the real Seer. Teacher Lu’s reasoning couldn’t convince me. I agree more with what Mi Ge said: pulling an aggressive fake claim on the spot makes him look very much like a Wolf here.”
Number four was Su Xingran. He glanced at Lu Ciheng and sighed. As the Witch who had saved Lu Ciheng the previous night, he naturally knew whose words held more credibility. But subjectively, he still didn’t want to believe that Xie Shibai was a Werewolf.
Last night, when Su Xingran saw that the person who needed saving was Lu Ciheng, he had struggled with the decision for a long time. He saved him out of humanitarianism, but thinking about it now, it felt like a bit of a loss.
Lu Ciheng must be a Wolf self-killing! Teacher Xie couldn’t possibly be a Wolf!
Su Xingran’s brain spun, and the more he thought about it, the more he was convinced that Lu Ciheng was a Wolf self-killing to bait the Silver Water. Xie Shibai was the sole genuine Seer of the game, completely framed by a Wolf dropping a kill-claim on him!
“The Witch must have used the medicine last night, right? Maybe it was a Wolf self-killing to bait the Silver Water. I think that’s highly possible, and I believe Xie Ge isn’t a Wolf. Senior Lu, on the other hand, is a different story; he’s got a huge Wolf face in my eyes! None of this convinced me, so I’ll be voting for you.”
Xie Shibai cast a glance at Su Xingran, failing to react for a moment. Did he misjudge the situation? Was Su Xingran not the Witch?
If he were the Witch, how could he not know who he saved?
Su Xingran did know. He simply didn’t want to believe that Xie Shibai was a Wolf, and he blindly believed everything Xie Shibai said.
For the first time, Lu Ciheng was utterly speechless.
Did you play the Witch and save someone just so you could claim the next day that it was a Wolf self-killing?
[That’s not right, it wasn’t a self-kill, ahhh!] [Obviously not!] [Could it be that Su Xingran knows but still believes Teacher Xie is a good guy…] [Highly likely, he didn’t even want to save him in the first place, hahahaha!] [LMAO, Lu Gou, isn’t this game fun? There are always things you never expect.]
With Su Xingran setting the tone, the speeches that followed were somewhat led astray.
By the time it was Xie Shibai’s turn, the direction had already gone wildly off course. He swept a glance over Lu Ciheng, curled his lips, and asked effortlessly, “Mr. Werewolf, have you still not recognized reality?”
Lu Ciheng’s dark eyes locked onto the smiling Xie Shibai. His breathing hitched slightly, and the corners of his lips quirked up.
Getting to see Xie Shibai smile made playing this game completely worth it.
During the first round of the banishment vote, following Su Xingran’s long-debated vote, the person who received the most votes was Lu Ciheng.
Lu Ciheng: “…”
Totally not surprised; he had kind of expected this.
Being eliminated had little impact on Lu Ciheng’s mood. His mind was still replaying Xie Shibai’s smile from just now, leaving him somewhat distracted. He waved his hand and left, his quiet departure leaving Xie Shibai feeling a bit unaccustomed.
With the real Seer voted out, Xie Shibai’s fake Seer didn’t bother continuing to check people. Once the other players caught on, they hastily voted him out as well.
Xie Shibai had prepared himself to be voted out the moment he decided to pull an aggressive fake claim. Their goal was to slaughter the Gods; by utilizing Lu Ciheng, they aimed to fish out the other two God cards.
By running for Sheriff and aggressively confronting Lu Ciheng, Xie Shibai managed to expose Su Xingran as the Witch. As for the remaining God card, it would be up to Li Lechi and Qiao Jiayi to figure out a way.
Following the staff’s guidance, Xie Shibai headed to the lounge. When he pushed the door open and entered, Lu Ciheng wasn’t there.
Xie Shibai’s brows furrowed. He scanned the room but couldn’t spot Lu Ciheng, not knowing where he had gone off to. It felt as if a dog that was always at hand had suddenly run far away. After just a brief moment, an uncontrollable wave of irritation welled up in his heart.
It was akin to symptoms of anxiety, but much more uncomfortable.
His distracted mind even thought: He should be collared and chained, held firmly in my palm.
Startled into a cold sweat by the dangerous thoughts in his own head, Xie Shibai clenched his fists tightly, throwing away those strange musings.
A staff member whispered, “Teacher Lu went to take a call.”
Sitting on the sofa, Xie Shibai gave a soft “Mm.”
Lu Ciheng didn’t return until a good while later; it seemed the call had taken a very long time.
Upon seeing Xie Shibai, his dark eyes lit up. With a curl of his lips, he sat down next to Xie Shibai, their thighs pressing together. They sat so closely that not even a piece of paper could fit between them.
Still remembering how unnervingly quiet Lu Ciheng had been earlier, Xie Shibai cast him a glance. “Is there no room on your side?”
Lu Ciheng quickly shook his head. “No.”
Instead, he leaned in even closer.
“Teacher Xie, I’m going to fall off.”
As if a kitten were being squished into a pancake, it was incredibly cramped.
Xie Shibai: “…”
Lu Ciheng scratched Xie Shibai’s palm with his finger like a clingy large dog. Acting as if their confrontation moments ago had never happened, he clung to him and asked, “Teacher Xie, aren’t you curious how I knew it was you?”
Xie Shibai swept a light glance over him. It would’ve been fine if Lu Ciheng hadn’t brought it up, but the moment he did, it reminded Xie Shibai of how Lu Ciheng had behaved when he went in for the kill. His expression turned cold and detached. “Not interested.”
“No, you’re interested.” Lu Ciheng harbored a hint of malice. Pressing the tip of his high nose against Xie Shibai’s fair, slender neck, he took a deep breath. Rubbing against him like sniffing a cat, his dark eyes made absolutely no effort to hide his infatuation.
Xie Shibai’s eyelashes trembled slightly, his body tensing up. He reached out to push Lu Ciheng away, glaring at him with cold eyes. “What are you doing?”
The lounge also had a live broadcast camera, and comments immediately flew across the screen.
[You two just finished confronting each other up there, and now you’re being this intimate down here?!] [Just like sniffing a kitten. Teacher Xie looks so soft.] [Teacher Xie is this good to Lu Gou? Letting him sniff him in a daze like that?! I’m so jealous!] [Very curious how Lu Gou found out it was Teacher Xie.] [Almost forgot about that! Right, Teacher Xie didn’t even make a sound but got guessed immediately.]
Lu Ciheng’s lips lingered incredibly close to the pale neck. With just a slight lean forward, he could kiss the side of it. The scorching breath he exhaled swept across the skin, bringing out a dense wave of discomfort.
“By scent.” Lu Ciheng’s dark eyes stared up at Xie Shibai. His lips pressed against Xie Shibai’s neck, his teeth giving it a light, grinding bite that left behind a damp, reddish mark. His voice was husky, “Teacher Xie, you smell so good.”
“Smackâ”
Translator’s Note: Hello! Happy reading!Â
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