Chapter 10 — If He Breaks the Rules Four Times, Can We Recruit Him as a Colleague?

The question updated. Everyone was still stunned when a strange sound suddenly echoed through the room…

Like sharp fingernails scraping across wood.

“W-Who’s there?!”

Everyone’s hair stood on end as they frantically searched for the source.

In this kind of terrifying environment, no one wanted to be alone. No one dared leave the group to investigate—they could only crane their necks and look around.

Until someone suddenly broke down screaming:

“Behind me—behind me! It’s right behind me! Help… HELP!”

The one crying was Baldy.

He was the only person who hadn’t gone to the answer wall earlier.

From start to finish, he had stayed alone by the dining table, as if paralyzed from the neck down, curled into the seat he’d chosen.

He had fainted earlier from being scared by Hunter A, and now the scratching sound had jolted him awake.

Tears and snot streamed down his face as he wailed:

“It’s right behind me! Help me! Save me, please!”

“But there’s no one behind you…” Yu Yao said softly.

“Yeah… there’s no one…”

Hearing that only made Baldy cry harder.

No one dared approach him, so they waved frantically from a distance.

“Don’t just sit there! Come over first! Hurry!”

“I can’t move! This chair—I can’t move! It’s holding me!” Baldy stammered in panic.

“You mean… once you sit on that chair, you can’t leave?”

“Yeah… I can’t… It wants me dead—it wants me dead!” he cried.

Everyone backed far away from the dining table, but You Huo walked toward it alone.

“Bro?” Yu Wen called out.

He had planned to grab You Huo to stop him from taking risks—but after recalling his brother’s performance… and his own embarrassing negative score, he decided to just follow him.

They circled behind Baldy and finally saw the source—

Behind Baldy’s chair, wood shavings were falling away, as if an invisible hand was scratching the surface, revealing lighter wood beneath.

Yu Wen: “It’s… writing?!”

You Huo gave a quiet “Mm.”

This big shot had more patience for ghosts than for people. He simply crossed his arms and waited.

After hesitating, the others hurried over and huddled behind You Huo.

“12! It wrote 12!” the tattooed man shouted.

Then another chair nearby began to screech with scratching sounds.

You Huo took a few steps toward it. A crowd followed immediately. When he stopped, they all screeched to a halt as well.

“……”

You Huo suspected this wasn’t a physics exam—but a game of ghost-tag.

…

The scratching lasted five minutes. Every seat at the table was assigned a number.

From 1 to 12, clearly corresponding.

If they found the correct set of tableware, they only needed to write its number on the answer wall.

Yu Wen guessed, “The answers Yu Yao and I got marked correct were both related to refraction… so does that mean… we need refraction to find the tableware?”

“That should be it,” people chimed in. “But… what is refraction?”

Yu Wen: “……”

His frozen expression made Yu Yao laugh out loud.

She usually cried—fragile and mournful. This was the first time she showed any other expression, and even she was surprised.

After a moment, she returned to the group and patiently explained “refraction” to the elderly.

Yu Wen snapped out of it—and noticed You Huo staring into space.

“Bro…” he edged closer.

Following You Huo’s gaze, he saw the elderly group, the broken sofa—and the three ever-present invigilators sitting on it.

In a hushed voice, he asked, “Why are you looking at the invigilators?”

You Huo withdrew his gaze and instead looked down at him.

Yu Wen shrank back. “Forget it, forget it. Look at whatever you want. I won’t ask.”

…

Although they had survived one round and gained six more hours, no one felt relaxed.

Everyone stared at the tableware like antique appraisers.

“Can we touch these plates?” the tattooed man muttered. “If we pick one up, will it count as choosing a seat?”

“Better not touch them. You’ll di—”

Before Old Yu could finish, You Huo picked up a wine glass.

Old Yu: “—not die at all!”

The tattooed man rolled his eyes dramatically.

Everyone stared nervously. Seeing You Huo still standing—and not being forcibly stuck to a chair—they relaxed and began examining the tableware.

“You’ve got guts!” Old Yu rushed over. “What if picking up a glass counts too?!”

You Huo picked up a second glass. “It won’t. I already picked one up in the kitchen.”

Old Yu: “……”

And you’re proud of that?

Old Yu nearly coughed blood, but didn’t dare scold him—only glared behind his back.

“Dad, move.”

Yu Wen stepped past him, grabbing a silver spoon… then a fork.

Everything looked ordinary. Plain white plates, no patterns. Simple utensils.

But when he picked up a sauce dish, he realized—

“Bro, why are you only looking at glasses?” Yu Wen asked.

“No need to look at anything else.” You Huo set down the third glass and left the table.

“No need?” Yu Wen was stunned.

Meanwhile, the tattooed man had already checked most items and complained, “These useless things have nothing! What secret are they hiding?!”

Another person sighed, “The question gets more abstract, but gives zero hints…”

…

You Huo crouched beside Hunter A’s corpse, picking up a shard of broken glass.

To him, the clues were already enough.

Back in the kitchen, he had tricked Hunter A—and noticed how much he cared about those wine glasses.

And when one broke, the question updated: “Only 12 sets of tableware remain.”

That meant—for the purpose of the question, the only meaningful item in a set was the glass.

So the secret had to be inside the glass.

Yu Wen stared at the answer wall, then suddenly slapped his thigh.

“Oh—! Bro, I get it! Everything else is useless! Only the glasses matter!”

Everyone holding plates, forks, and spoons froze awkwardly.

Yu Wen waved excitedly. “Stop checking those—just look at the glasses!”

He rushed over, skidding to a stop beside Hunter A and plopping down. “I’m pretty smart, right?!”

You Huo gave a perfunctory hum.

…

But the excitement didn’t last.

Soon, everyone grew frustrated again.

They examined every glass—fogging them with breath, warming them, shaking them, flipping them.

Nothing unusual.

On the sofa—

922 cracked his knuckles. “I’m a bit anxious… and a bit hungry. Is invigilating always this exhausting?”

154 replied, “Endure it. Still 36 hours to go.”

922 looked despairing.

Qin Jiu rested his chin on his hand, gaze drifting toward a corner.

There, You Huo stood with his back to them, examining the broken glass. His shoulder blades and back formed a clean, sharp line.

Qin Jiu watched quietly for a long time, then suddenly asked:

“Have you ever seen him before?”

154 paused. “Who?”

922 looked confused. “Huh?”

That reaction was answer enough.

After a moment, Qin Jiu lazily said, “Never mind. If you’re hungry, go get something from the kitchen.”

154 and 922 glanced at the kitchen, faces stiff. “Not hungry at all.”

A few seconds later, 922 stood up anyway. “Mm… I’ll just go take a look.”

154 sighed. “You can stomach that kitchen?”

“I’m just looking.”

After 922 left, 154 stared at the candidates for a while, then suddenly understood Qin Jiu’s earlier question.

He looked at You Huo, then hesitated before looking at Qin Jiu.

After a full minute of silent staring, Qin Jiu finally spoke:

“Am I dead? Why are you staring at me like you’re keeping vigil?”

154: “……”

Qin Jiu glanced at him. “If you’ve got something to say, say it.”

154 considered his words. “I just mean… if we’d met before, that ‘rule-breaking gentleman’ would’ve recognized us.”

Qin Jiu’s gaze returned to You Huo.

After a moment, he gave a soft “Mm.”

154 was right.

If they had met, the reaction wouldn’t be like this.

It couldn’t be that everyone randomly lost a piece of memory. That would be too coincidental.

…

Meanwhile, 922 wandered the kitchen twice before giving up and relocating.

Back at the sofa, he knelt by his suitcase, pulled out a grill—and a box of sliced beef.

Just as he opened it, Yu Wen suddenly shouted from the table:

“Bro, don’t be reckless!!”

The three invigilators turned—

Just in time to see You Huo pick up the base of Hunter A’s broken glass… and casually knock it against the table edge.

Crack—

Another piece snapped off.

922’s hand trembled. Beef spilled all over his pants.

Holding the half-empty box, he asked 154:

“If he breaks the rules four times, can we recruit him as a colleague? I really don’t want to keep invigilating him.”

154: “……”

Anyone who wants that is an idiot.