After putting on the straw hat, Fu Luo's work efficiency increased several times over. He tirelessly gathered information, recalled Lin Yu's characteristics, and conducted exhaustive searches. Starting with Jiangcheng's recent three graduating classes from key high schools and elite programs—focusing on top scorers first—since Lin Yu appeared intelligent and his speech and demeanor suggested he wasn't from a rural school. Simultaneously, he investigated posts from high school confession pages three years prior, like "looking for someone" notices. Though he'd mostly only seen half of Lin Yu's face behind a mask, Fu Luo distinctly remembered one thing—that guy was handsome.
This needle-in-a-haystack approach had always been most effective. To Fu Luo, a detective's most vital assets were "knowledge reserves" and... "patience!" Real life wasn't a mystery novel with convoluted cases and flawless logic—genuine "puzzles" were exceedingly rare. For most cases, patience was key to uncovering the truth. Fu Luo loved puzzles and "investigation." Moreover... sometimes puzzles emerged during the "investigation" process. Like now.
"Jiangcheng Experimental High School, graduation photo from two years ago... one person was erased from this Class 7 photo. Their honor roll announcement was also photoshopped to remove someone." Fu Luo noticed details most would overlook. "Hah... is someone trying to hide a high schooler's past?" He felt he'd grasped something crucial. Though the erased person might not be the "May" he sought... with a "wiped" individual right before him, Fu Luo couldn't resist investigating. His detective intuition also whispered that this hidden person might be intricately linked to "May"—perhaps even the same person!
Fu Luo noted the class and searched online for more information. Soon, he found the homeroom teacher's number. After considering calling—then abandoning the idea given the late hour—he instead checked the class roster on the education website. As expected... the count matched the photos: sixty-four people. Meaning... one was still missing. Then Fu Luo spotted something: a "Model Student" commendation notice listing a Class 7 student with an unfamiliar name.
"Lin... Lin what? Why's this character so blurry?" The announcement was a low-resolution photo of a bulletin board—only the surname "Lin" was legible, the second character an indecipherable blob. Fortunately, the site had an attachment. As Fu Luo went to download it—
Suddenly, the internet café's computer fans whirred violently. "Vrrr—" The dim café, nearly empty save for a few night owls, had most machines dormant. Yet in an instant, every computer booted up, screens glowing crimson. Fu Luo's own display turned solid red.
Cries erupted throughout the café:
"Hey, why's my screen red?!"
"Red screens now? What the hell?!"
The complaints abruptly silenced. Fu Luo bolted up, pulling a magnifying glass from his coat. "Ghosts must be messing with me—I took the bait!" That commendation notice wasn't carelessly overlooked... it was left as bait! Just who was this "May"? A seemingly ordinary student, yet digging deeper revealed layered traps!
"Could they be a Player?" He climbed onto a table, surveying the café now bathed in eerie red light. The gamers and staff had all collapsed, fast asleep. On the blood-red screens, cursors blinked before displaying identical text:
"Player 『Furbollo』, you've crossed the line!"
From the start, Fu Luo suspected another "Player" of the 『Death Game』 was behind this. Now his forum ID appeared—confirmation. Realizing another Player orchestrated this, Fu Luo paled as a terrifying possibility struck him. "Are you... the 『Hacker』?!" he whispered tremulously at the screen. He knew they could hear.
Indeed, new text materialized:
"Correct."
Followed by a simple, old-school emoticon:
":)"
Fu Luo didn't find it cute—his legs turned to jelly. "I-I didn't know he was yours! I just met him in-game and got curious—no ill intent! You know me, I'm just overly curious... I'm not even in any faction!" His rapid-fire plea carried a sob. Never since discovering his adoption papers in his parents' drawer had Fu Luo hated his curiosity more!
As he spoke, the red screens suddenly went dark. The unnatural silence lifted—all computers powered down normally, noise resuming.
"Damn it, manager! Fix this! My rig froze!"
"Coming!"
Amid the restored commotion, Fu Luo slumped into his chair, clutching his chest. "Did I... pass?" He stared at the blank desktop, back drenched in cold sweat. But as he reached for the candy cigarettes in his pocket to calm his nerves—they were gone.
Beside him, a petite hooded girl popped one into her mouth before tossing the pack onto the table. Grinning at his stunned expression, she said:
"No, you didn't pass, 『Furbollo』."
"First—stop investigating. Second... I'll be watching your performance in an 'upcoming matter.' Perform poorly, and you'll be 'expelled'... and you know I don't mean from the forum."
Without waiting for a response, she stepped forward—melding into the computer screen. Fu Luo sat frozen, his heart utterly dead.
"F***ing hell, what was that?!"
A hand shot from the screen.
*Slap!*
A crisp strike landed on his cheek.
"No swearing!" scolded the voice from the monitor.