Chapter 51: Devil Rabbit

Lin Kuo carefully went over everyone in his mind.

When they were introducing themselves earlier, he knew some of them must have been lying, but he hadn’t listened too closely.

Now that he tried recalling those ten people, he couldn’t even fully match all the names to faces. What he needed now was to list every suspicious point.

Even if he couldn’t yet determine whether he himself was the Demon or the Escaper, it was better to be prepared.

A storm of thoughts whirled through his mind, and a list took shape:

• Short-haired man
• Long-haired man No.1
• Pillow girl
• Schoolbag boy

Nothing more than this: these four had volunteered their names. Since the second clue was “wood,” which easily connected to names, their intentional or unintentional avoidance of it stood out.

But the one who drew Lin Kuo’s attention the most was Pillow girl. She could have easily avoided suspicion as an Escaper, yet she had taken the initiative to report her name. Thinking back, not only that—she had even gone so far as to bring up her blood type.

Lin Kuo tried putting himself in her shoes, attempting to explain her actions from her perspective. But no matter how much he reasoned, he couldn’t logically reconcile her behavior.

Unless… Pillow girl had been passing clues to the Escaper?

That possibility, Lin Kuo couldn’t confirm.

Just then, the cold, emotionless mechanical voice rang out:

“The Demon’s hint has appeared in the first-floor kitchen. Escapers are welcome to go check it out.”

Lin Kuo drew in a breath. Should he go?

After some thought, he decided he would. Just as his hand touched the doorknob, he heard the faintest click of a closing door. He froze, leaned forward, holding his breath to listen.

Footsteps—deliberately softened. He couldn’t tell where they came from, but given the villa’s layout, the staircase down was at the far left of the second floor. The footsteps passed his door, then went down.

He waited a moment, just about to open the door—

Thud thud thud.

Another set of footsteps, this time unrestrained. They stopped right outside his room.

Then—knock, knock, knock.

The pounding echoed through the wood, so loud that with his ear pressed against the door, Lin Kuo’s eardrum nearly burst. He quickly retreated a few steps, then deliberately made it sound as if he was walking to the door before opening it.

Standing outside was Glasses man.

“The rain’s stopped,” Glasses man said.

Lin Kuo said nothing, just looked at him.

“My room doesn’t get a view of the moon,” Glasses man continued, “but yours is the best spot to watch it.”

Lin Kuo’s tone grew impatient. “So what?”

“Want to swap rooms?”

“Are you insane?”

With that, Lin Kuo shut the door. His face darkened. If he went out again now, he’d expose himself. He could only give up on the first night’s Demon hint.

He lingered in the room for a while, but the thought gnawed at him—he wasn’t willing to miss the clue. Finally, he decided to risk it. He opened the door and stepped out.

In his line of sight: Glasses man was knocking on the next room. Long-haired man No.1 opened it.

“My room can’t see the moon,” Glasses man repeated.

“That’s a shame,” Long-haired man No.1 replied.

“Switch with me.”

Long-haired man No.1 shook his head, smiling politely. “I’ve always been fond of moon-gazing. Sorry, but I have to stay true to myself.”

Lin Kuo thought for a moment, then broke in to draw their attention: “Did you hear the mechanical voice?”

Both of them turned and nodded.

“Let’s go check it out together.”

They seemed hesitant. Lin Kuo then knocked on another door. Short-haired man opened.

“What is it?”

“Kitchen. The Demon’s hint.”

Short-haired man considered, then nodded. “Alright.”

Once he agreed, Glasses man and Long-haired man No.1 also followed, though Glasses man added a condition: “But I still want you to swap rooms with me.”

Lin Kuo didn’t hesitate. “Then don’t come.”

He moved down the hall, knocking on door after door. Yes, this could give another participant clues about who he was—but it was worth it. He still remembered that earlier set of footsteps, before Glasses man. That person had likely already gone to the kitchen. By knocking on each door, he could see who wasn’t inside. Whoever wasn’t there would be the other participant.

With that in mind, he started at the far left, skipping Glasses man’s already-opened door, and worked his way down to the last room on the right. Every door he knocked on opened—except the last one.

That last room belonged to the schoolbag boy.

Lin Kuo kept his true thoughts hidden. He raised his hand and gave the door a token knock.

Ten seconds later, it opened. Schoolbag boy stared at him.

“What do you want?”

Lin Kuo forced himself several times not to furrow his brows out of habit.

Everyone had already opened the doors, so whose footsteps had they heard just now?

Was it another participant who had already returned, or did this mean there truly was a mysterious twelfth person among them?

Suppressing the unease in his heart, Lin Kuo’s voice was as calm and steady as ever:
“Let’s head to the kitchen to check the clue.”

The teenage boy with the notebook gave him a glance. After making sure everyone agreed, he too nodded and followed the group toward the kitchen.

The eleven-person team quickly located the kitchen.

The kitchen was on the same floor, just next to the dining hall.

As soon as Pillow girl reached the dining hall, she immediately refused to go any further.
“No, I can’t, I’m scared. I’ll just wait for you here.”

Even Lazy Eyelids didn’t bother to argue with her this time, and naturally no one else did either.

The rest went into the kitchen area. As they entered, they were greeted by the sound of continuous splashing—someone had clearly left the water running too long, filling the sink until it overflowed.

The excess water spilled down to the tiled floor, forming a thin layer of water nearly two centimeters deep. Every movement they made sent ripples spreading outward, the sounds amplified against the tile and echoing in their ears.

“What’s that in the sink?” someone muttered. The group instinctively turned to look. Lin Kuo felt his heart tighten as he saw what was floating there.

A drowned rabbit.

The sound of dripping water echoed in their ears as the teenager with the notebook reached in and grabbed the rabbit by its long, sodden ears. Lin Kuo looked at the rabbit’s lifeless face, its soaked fur clinging to its body. He frowned and said softly:
“…What does this mean?”

The short-haired boy analyzed in a low voice:
“Could it be that the demon is… a rabbit?”

The man with glasses thought for a moment.
“If it’s the Year of the Rabbit, then they’d be twenty-two this year. Do we know anyone who’s twenty-two?”

The boy with the backpack suddenly recalled something and pointed at Lin Kuo.
“Sheng Kuo—unemployed drifter, twenty-two years old.”

That was something Lin Kuo himself had casually said back when they were all sharing their identities.

Everyone’s eyes turned to Lin Kuo. His expression remained completely blank as he replied:
“I’m not a participant, nor am I the demon. I don’t know anything.”